Mini Muffin Quiches

We made some individual, pastryless quiches... mini sized ones which were 'perfect for picnic food'.  To do this, we decided to use some silicone muffin cases and our 'usual' quiche mix.

We used:-

4 eggs, beaten
3 onions, peeled and finely chopped
250ml yoghurt
Cheese, grated (we used mature farmhouse cheddar)

 These ingredients were enough to make 6 mini quiches and a large pastryless quiche.

 We used silicone muffin cases to line our muffin tin.

The eggs were lightly beaten...

... and then the yoghurt was added and whisked through.  Next the grated cheese was incorporated and the mix was stirred to make sure it was all combined.

Having chopped the red onions, they were lightly fried untill they started to cook through.

We added a dessertspoonful of the egg, yoghurt and cheese to the bottom of the cases then topped this with some of the lightly cooked onions.

Each case was then topped up with some more of the egg mix before having some sliced yellow cherry tomatoes added.

The quiches were then placed in a pre-heated oven (180ºC) for about 10 minutes after which time we checked them every few minutes and removed them when the tops were just beginning to brown.










The completed quiches looked really appetising and were easy to remove from the cases.

We served ours with spicy potato wedges, sweetcorn and peas.

They can be saved, in an airtight container, in the fridge (or frozen), and make a great picnic/packed lunch item.

Home Grown Tomato Salsa

We've had a fantastic crop of tomatoes in the garden this year which has resulted in a daily harvest of more than a handful of ripe fruits to 'deal with'.  As Sous Chef J is a big fan of salsa we decided to use our garden haul to make a try at our own salsa. 

Looking round the garden, we gathered a few salad onions, a small bunch of flat leaf parsley and a chilli... to go with the tomatoes.


The tomatoes were washed and chopped.




Having found a small lemon in the fridge, we used a reamer to juice it.


We also washed and chopped the onions before carefully removing the chilli seeds and finely chopping that.

The parsley was roughly chopped, added to the bowl with the other ingredients and the lemon juice was added and mixed through.

That was it - our version of salsa was ready for eating with gluten free tortilla chips.

Simple Sausage Pasta

We were chatting on twitter about our favourite gluten free sausages last week - Sous Chef J has long been a fan of the Good Little Company's teeny weeny sausages but we haven't been able to find them in the supermarket for a while.  The final batch from the freezer had been used up so we entered into a conversation with the manufacturers and they reassured us the teeny weenies will be in stores again soon.   Sous Chef J likes the teeny weeny sausages as they are easier for him to eat and have a soft consistency.  He rates them as "the best gluten free sausages to eat." 

In the meantime, we were sent a parcel of the current range of sausages they have on sale which was very kind and much appreciated.  It contained  great BIG sausages and good little sausages (chipolatas).  The covering letter was addressed to J and explained about how the company donates meals through Christian aids food security projects. 

Now came the challenge to find a suitable recipe to tempt Sous Chef J to try the 'larger' sausages... I decided to use my old standby technique of 'rebranding' and thought a sausage used as a meat ball in a tomato sauce with pasta would be a good idea.

To make the re-brand into a tomato and meatball pasta sauce, we used:-

Sausages - cut into 2cm chunks (meatballs)
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
one small salad onion or a crushed clove of garlic
one Tablespoon tomato puree

The chopped onion and tomato puree were sauteed in a skillet for a few minutes.

Then we added the sausage meatball chunks and left them to cook for a little under 10 minutes until they were lightly cooked throughout.

At this point the tinned tomatoes were added and the lid was placed on the pan to allow the mix to boil.

Once boiling, the heat was reduced and the sausage mix was allowed to simmer whilst we cooked the pasta.  We chose to have Dove's Farm Gluten Free penne with our tomato sausage meatballs.

The tomato and sausage sauce could easily be cooked in a slow cooker - ready to use after a day out.  Just add all ingredients to the crock pot and cook on low for a few hours.

Feta Salad

This is a really simple, tasty summertime salad.

The ingredients needed for two portions are - 

 

Feta cheese, about 100g, cubed

2 tomatoes, cubed
10cm cucumber, peeled and cubed
30ml (2Tbsp) oil (we used sunflower)
30ml (2Tbsp) cider vinegar

Peel and cube the cucumber and add to serving bowls...







Dice the tomatoes and add to the bowl.





Drain off the feta and dice...







... before adding to the bowls.



Finally, pour over the oil and vinegar and make sure the salad components are well coated.  Serve!

Tomato Chutney

Our pot-grown tomato plants rewarded us with a good haul of fruit this year.  With the approach of Autumn and forecast strong winds, we needed to harvest and use them... so we decided to make chutney.  The recipe used was originally for just green tomatoes but we decided to make a mixed tomato version of it.

The ingredients used were -

1.8kg tomatoes, washed and chopped
675g onions, peeled and chopped
450g cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped (we used ready pureed frozen apples)
450g brown sugar
600ml cider vinegar
225g seedless raisins and sultanas
25g root ginger, bruised
tablespoon chilli flakes
2 teaspoons of salt

Having chopped and chopped and chopped the tomatoes and onions, they were placed in our huge chutney pan... the apple was also added, as was 300ml of the vinegar.  This was then cooked over a medium heat until the contents were soft (took about 30 minutes).

Using a spatula to mix the contents of the pan, we than added the fruits and place a bag containing the ginger and chilli into the pan (we attached ours to the pan's handle).  This was then mixed through and cooked for about an hour.

Once the chutney started to thicken, the sugar, remaining vinegar and salt was added. Stirring the chutney thoroughly, the chutney was brought up to simmering and left to thicken - stirring regularly to avoid burning/sticking.  (To remind us to stir the chutney, we set the timer for 15 minute)  It took about an hour for the mix to thicken.

The bag of ginger and chilli was removed and then we potted the chutney in sterilised jars, allowed it to cool and will leave for

the flavour to develop for at least 6 weeks before eating it.

We like to serve the chutney with cheese or spicy potato wedges.  If bottled in pretty jars, it makes a lovely gift - perfect for a foodie's Christmas!

'Our' BLT Sarnie

Having been trying to 're-brand' a few food types to encourage Sous Chef J to eat more (and stop losing weight) a weekend breakfast option had been bacon sandwiches but he's not keen on 'thick' meat.  So, we thought about an alternative and pancetta came to mind.

As usual, we gathered the ingredients needed - in this case, Genius Gluten Free Seeded Bread, tomato ketchup, lettuce and tomatoes.  

For the 'bacon', we got a pack of pancetta and fried it til crispy.

Whilst the pancetta was being cooked, the bread was spread with tomato ketchup then lettuce and tomato slices added.

Finally, the fried pancetta was added, the top slice of bread was flipped over to top the sandwich.

All that was left was to eat the delicious breakfast sandwich.  Sous Chef J ate almost all of his and that's a real improvement on previous "offerings", as he calls them!

Garlic Mushrooms

When the veg box arrived the other day with a paper bag of chestnut mushrooms, which Sous Chef J will not eat, a recipe was required to make use of them.  We chose another long standing family recipe as it's quick and easy with only five ingredients. 

Gathered with the mushrooms were a clove of garlic, an onion, a Tablespoon of oil and a Tablespoon of tomato puree.

The garlic was 'squashed and squished', then the onion was chopped fairly finely.  Next the oil was heated in a small pan before adding the garlic and onion, to sweat over a low heat for a few minutes. At this point, the tomato puree was added to the pan and left to cook through for about five minutes (again on a low heat). 


Whilst the garlic, onion and tomato puree was cooking, the mushrooms were cleaned, the stalks trimmed and they were quartered. 


Finally the mushrooms were added to the pan and left to cook, still on low, for a little over five minutes.  This allows the lovely mushroom juices to be released.

A quick mix round and the mushrooms are ready to serve... as a side dish with steak or on Gluten Free toast for a quick lunch.

Summer Dipping Sauce

We have been eating outdoors a lot in the hot weather we've had in the UK over the last week.  This has prompted a seasonal interest in dips and dippers.  Sous Chef J particularly likes such food as it means NO CUTLERY required!

So, having decided to look at our range of dip recipes, we went for a simple version of Marie Rose Sauce.

As ever, few ingredients are involved.  Sous Chef J found all the items we needed - mayonnaise, lemon, tomato puree and Tabasco (pepper sauce).







Placing a couple of tablespoons of mayo in a bowl together with about a heaped teaspoon of tomato puree, a good squeeze of lemon juice was added (the more lemon juice you add, the runnier the 'dip) and mixed well.  Then a healthy dash of Tabasco was added and stirred through.  Et voila.  Dip ready!

Next the dippers were prepared.  This time we had some spicy tortilla chips, chopped up peppers, cucumber, apple, tomatoes and cheese.  If you want you can also use prawns, crabsticks (although we don't these days as they aren't gluten free) and/or crisps.