Almondy Sundae

We have long been fans of Almondy frozen 'cakes'... and the Toblerone version is a particular favourite.  Having seen a number of tweets from Almondy, tempting us with their fare, we decided to give our own twist to a gluten free Sundae.

The ingredients we used to 'assemble' the dessert were - Almondy Toblerone (one slice), Swedish Glace Vanilla Ice, mini marshmallows, chocolate buttons (and chocolate sauce or cream can be used too).

A couple of small scoops of the vanilla ice were placed in each bowl.

A slice of the Almondy cake was chopped into three, then cut into small pieces which were added to the bowl.

Next, some mini marshmallows were sprinkled over...

... before adding the giant chocolate buttons (chocolate sprinkles, stars or curls could also be used).

Adding the Eskal Wafer Rolls (and a drizzle of chocolate sauce or dollop of cream, if you like) and our speedy dessert was ready.

We have been trying to get Ocado to stock Almondy as, for us, it's the easiest way to get our frozen goods delivered.  No news on this yet... but the request(s) have been made!  All the other items used to make this dessert came from Ocado so to be able to buy a 'bundle' of all these ingredients would be FAB...

Slow Cooker Potato Layers

To make this simple store cupboard dish, we gathered the ingredients - garlic (2 cloves), onion (one large), potatoes (we used about 6 small ones), butter, cheese (grated leftovers from Christmas) and vegetable stock.  The amounts you will need depend on how big a potful you want to make - you'll need enough potatoes, onions and garlic for the layers and can add as much (or little/no) cheese as suits.  We used cheddar cheese, finely grated but gruyere or others could be used if they're what you've got to hand.  Here's what we did -

Whilst the onions were sliced thinly and the garlic was chopped, we switched the slow cooker on high to warm it up. 

Next, we sliced the potatoes thinly (and carefully) using a mini-mandolin device we have... it's always a bit of a worry to use such things as digits get very close to blade - hence I did this rather than delegate to Sous Chef J.

Once everything was prepared, we greased the inside of the slow cooker pot with butter, then began assembly...

 .... which is simply layering onion and garlic, then potato slices and cheese... repeat until all ingredients used up.

On the top layer, we added some knobs of butter and a good grind of black pepper.

Finally, vegetable stock (we made ours up using a Knorr stock pot and used about 300ml, enough to just about reach the top of the layers) was poured into the pot and the slow cooker was turned down to low. 

The lid was placed on and the dish was left to cook for about 6 hours.  (It can also be cooked on high for about 3 hours -  which is useful if you forget to start the dish in time to leave it to cook for hours and need to eat earlier!)

The end result was judged as being "very tasty".

Butternut Squash and Spinach Curry

 

Looking for something to do with the contents of our veg box we decided a curry would be a good idea.  Having searched online, we found this recipe.

The ingredients we used were:-

 

• 1 butternut squash - peeled, de-seeded and cubed
• 1 packet fresh spinach - washed and drained, stems removed 
• 1 onion - sliced
• 1 thumb-sized knob of fresh ginger - peeled and diced finely
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 4 bruised cardamom pods
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes
• 500 ml vegetable stock - we made ours up from Gluten Free Bouillon powder
• tin coconut milk - we used about 100ml 
• Sunflower oil for frying

The onion was fried until starting to soften in a little sunflower oil.  Once it was starting to caramelise, the spices and ginger were added and cooked for about a minute.

Then the prepared butternut squash was added and covered with the vegetable stock before being simmered until the squash was cooked.




At this point the coconut milk was added - we used about half a tin - and combined it through before returning to the heat.


Next, the spinach leaves were added and the curry was covered and heated over a moderate heat until the leaves were wilted.

Finally, after a few minutes and whilst the spinach remained a vibrant green, the curry was ready to serve.

Slow Cooker Breast of Lamb

We needed an easy meal to be ready for us after J's sports club session at the weekend and decided 'something in the slow cooker' would be a good idea.  As we had a piece of breast of lamb in the fridge, we decided to make use of that.  Also, before Christmas, we were sent some Sweet Mandarin Gluten Free sauces to try so thought we would make use of the, not so seasonal, barbecue one.  (For info - it's called a dipping sauce, but as regular readers of this blog will know, we are not ones to stick to what a label or recipe tell us to).  So we thought a slow cooker BBQ meal in January was called for.  Here's what we did.

The breast of lamb was cut into manageable sized pieces.  It was then placed in a pan of water to which a dash of vinegar was added and it was brought to the boil, covered and simmered for about 25 minutes.

This was done to start to break down the fat within this very fatty cut of meat.  At this point, the meat was drained using a sieve over a bowl (this is to catch the water - you will NEED to do this or your drains will get clogged with lamb fat... you have been warned!).  Set the bowl with the water to one side and allow the water to cool, this means the fat will solidify on the surface and then you can throw it away without risking the need for a call out from Dyno Rod...

The warm lamb breast meat was placed in the slow cooker and some of the barbecue sauce was drizzled over.  Next the meat and sauce was mixed through. 

Having placed the lid on the slow cooker, the meat was left on low to cook whilst we went out.

On arrival home, the smell that greeted us was amazing and very welcome.  Some rice and peas were cooked and the meal was served up.  We declared it the best "not home made" barbecue sauce we've tried... and we still have half a bottle left to use.

We look forward to trying the other two sauces over the coming weeks - they are Sweet Chilli and Sweet and Sour. 

Disclosure - we were sent a set of the Sweet Mandarins Gluten Free sauces by @SainsburysPR. All opinions are our own.

Special Coffee and Walnut Cake (Gluten Free)

We got this recipe off the internet a while ago but the site it was on no longer exists, sadly.... no idea where the resources on there have gone but, luckily I scrawled the ingredients out for sous chef J to use when he's preparing to bake.  The method is just what we do (as ever!)

To make a 8 inch /20cm round cake, you will need

115g gluten free flour (we use Dove's Farm plain)

50g maize flour or cornflour

1 heaped teaspoon gluten free baking powder (again, we use Dove's Farm)

60g walnuts, ground (we use a Braun hand blender for this)

225g butter or margarine, at room temperature

225g unrefined caster sugar
4 large eggs

15ml/1 tablespoon instant coffee, mixed with a small amount of boiling water

small handful of walnuts (we roughly chop these)

For the icing, we use 125g butter at room temperature, 250g icing sugar and a dessert spoon (10ml) instant coffee mixed with a little boiling water.

The oven was preheated to 170ºC (fan oven) and the cake tin was lined with a baking parchment liner (we get the ones from Lakeland)... these are easier for sous chef J to use but you could also grease and line the tin with greaseproof paper if that's what you have to hand.

First sous chef J sifted together all the dry ingredients... he did this at least twice (more if we can spare the time!)  This is important as it makes sure all the baking powder is well distributed and makes the cooked cake have a better texture.

Next, the butter and sugar were creamed together.

Then the eggs were cracked into a bowl and lightly beaten before being added to the creamed mix a small amount at a time... the mix often starts to split so we just add a little of the dry ingredients in to stop this.

After this, we added the flour mix and folded it all in well.  Then the diluted coffee was added and mixed in.

Finally the roughly chopped walnut pieces were added and mixed through.





The mix was then placed in the lined baking tin and baked for 30-35 minutes (although it is less if you make cupcakes).  The important thing is to use a knife to test the cake - only remove it from the oven when the knife blade comes out clean.  The cake was then left to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out to cool completely on a wire rack.

Whilst the cake was cooling, we prepared the icing.  The butter was beaten (using a hand mixer) to soften, the icing sugar and coffee mix were then added slowly. This was then mixed well until it was completely incorporated and the buttercream was soft and had an even colour.

The icing was then spread on the cake.... and a slice can be seen at the top of this page.

This cake is one we make for special occasions - it freezes well, adapts to being made into a loaf or cupcakes easily (these are decorated using Kuhn Rikon icing bottles and a star nozzle.)