Rhubarb Crumble Tart Recipe

I love rhubarb - the tartness contrasts so wonderfully with all the sweetness that abounds in summer. Since planting my own rhubarb crown three years ago I have been blessed with an abundance of lovely pinky green rhubarb stems all through late spring and early summer. I love it served as a compote with yoghurt, whisked up with cream and yoghurt to make Rhubarb Fool and in my all time favourite pudding - crumble with custard. But as lovely as crumble and custard puddings are sometimes you want something a little more....well... refined. Try this lovely tart with a sweet pastry base (adapted from Jamie Oliver's wonderful Old Fashioned Sweet Pastry recipe), and a crispy crumble topping. Serve cooled slices with a little cream for a lovely summer dessert.

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Brownies Recipe

Here's a little recipe for what is quite possibly the stickiest, gooiest, sweetest, richest, scrummiest Chocolate Brownie I have ever had (and I have tried a few...)

Chocolate Orange Syrup Loaf Cake Recipe

I am a big fan of Nigella Lawson's no nonsense if sometimes a little over-indulgent attitude to cooking. Her 'How to be a Domestic Goddess' is my go-to book when I am looking for something yummy to bake just for the hell of it, and the Lemon Syrup Loaf cake is a definite favourite in our house!
Sometimes, however, only chocolate will do so a few weeks back I had a play with the Lemon Syrup Loaf recipe and came up with a gorgeous chocolate orange version...

 

Homemade Tomato Sauce Recipe

In our house we eat a LOT of pasta - fresh pasta with a simple homemade sauce stirred through is one of life's pleasures for me. So simple, filling and tasty!

Homemade tomato sauce should be allowed to cook long and slow to allow the flavours to develop but the good news is it freezes really well too - so here is my recipe for Homemade Tomato Sauce.

Tuesday Tutorials - Just for Mum!

It's Pintorials time again! Last week I asked for some ideas for Mother's Day gifts and a few of you linked up some lovely ideas for making this coming Sunday extra special.

Tuesday Tutorials

Hello and Happy Tuesday! I'm a bit late with the Tuesday Tutorials post this week - we have been making the most of the glorious weather! (I think we've had it for now, judging by the grey skies I see out of my window as I type - *sigh* well it was good while it lasted!)

Valentines Day Jam Tarts recipe

My lovely friends at Duerr's have sent me some of their special edition 'Aphrodisiac Jam' to try this week and asked me if I could come up with something a little loved up to celebrate Valentines Day.

Tuesday Tutorials week 2

Hello! Welcome to week 2 of Tuesday Tutorials Pin Party!



Our launch week was a resounding success - we had 36 fab tutorials, how to's and recipes link up by the end of the week. These have all been added to our Tuesday Tutorials Pinterest board. Why not head over, have a look and start sharing those pins?

Meal Planning 2014 - Aduki Bean Pie recipe

We are into our second month of meal planning now and things are starting to get a bit more tricky. Most of the nice munchy food pressies we got over Christmas (tins of biscuits/chocolates/sweets) have gone and the store cupboards and freezer stores are starting the thin down as I am using things up and not able to replace them instantly.  I guess it's only going to get harder from here.

On the bright side the Aduki beans from last week are going down well - I will be using the other half of the pie filling this week for one meal.  Here is the recipe I promised to share...

Meal Planning 2014 - Lunchbox Stars!

Well last week didn't go quite as well as week before. If there is one thing I am learning it's that it's important to be flexible with the meal planning! Roo was invited to his friend's house for tea on Tuesday so rather than cook the meal I had planned for the two of us I opted for a tea and toast supper and cooked Tuesday's meal on Friday. And we ended up having Wednesday's soup two night running as Roo loved it so much...
 
Despite this I still went £2.04 over budget - although to be fair at least two meals this week will be made from Sunday's roast dinner left overs so potential to make up for over spend there...

Roo's school packed lunch is still proving tricky.  Every day this week his lunch bag has come home with about 75% of his lunch in a squished up mess at the bottom of it, so not only is he not eating it at school, I can't even make him eat it when he gets home hungry...
It doesn't seem to make much difference whether I put his favourite sandwiches (minus crusts) and snacks in or not - he rarely eats more than half of it.
We talked about it and I asked him what he would really like in his lunch bag and he said 'pasta and tuna or some soup'  This week we are going to try just a bowl of pasta salad and some of these fab little cheesy star snack biscuits (recipe below).  Less stuff to chose from will hopefully mean he eats more of what he is given and I won't have to keep throwing food away!


This week's meal plan...

Monday 

Cauliflower and Other veg cheese, made with Sunday dinner leftovers!

Tuesday 

Chicken, Sweetcorn and Noodle Soup - again made with Sunday's left over roast chicken

Wednesday

Roo going to his Nonny's house after school so probably cheesy beans on toast for me! (or left over left overs...)

Thursday

Lentil and Carrot soup with homemade rustic bread

Friday

Aduki Bean pie

Saturday

Homemade pizza

Sunday

Toad in the Hole with mash and veg

Easy Cheesy Lunchbox Stars recipe

Ingredients

4oz/125g plain flour
2oz/60g butter
2ox/60g finely grated cheese (a mature cheddar gives a better flavour)
1tsp paprika
splash of cold milk
1 egg yolk

Method

Sift the flour and paprika into a large bowl.  Rub in the butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, mix in the cheese then make a well in the centre. Add the egg yolk and a splash of milk (go easy, you can always add a little more if need be) and mix together to form a soft dough.
Roll out the the dough on a floured surface - about 3-5mm thick is enough as the biscuits puff up a bit when cooked.  Cut out your biscuits and place on a greased/lined baking tray and cook at top of a moderate oven (180c/gas 4) for about 10 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on a wire rack then store in an airtight container.

They should stay fresh for five or six days.

They may not actually stay uneaten for that long though...

The paprika is entirely optional but adds a subtle kick. Leave it out if you don't think your kids will like it. Try dried herbs instead if you want or add some poppy seeds to the mix with the cheese.
Try using different shaped cookie cutters too - I have dinosaur ones that went down particularly well or you could try mini gingerbread men cutters, hearts, flowers, or just plain rounds.

These snacks are incredibly easy and cheap to make - not to mention very moreish - so enjoy experimenting with different seasonings and shapes and make your kids lunchboxes more fun!

ps - I have submitted this post to #mealplanningmonday over on At Home with Mrs M - there's loads of other meal planning ideas linked up too so do go and take a look!

Scrummy Chocolate Orange Cake recipe

You may have noticed I have a slight obsession with traditional home baked cakes and puddings.

Duerr's - producers of jam, marmalade and peanut butter of extreme yumminess who have already featured a couple of times on this blog - have obviously noticed this too and sent me some more of their lovely jams and asked me to test out a few more recipes from their 'Baking for Boys' series on YouTube.

I was more than happy to oblige!


Last weekend we made the gorgeous Victoria Sponge with Raspberry Jam and Cream - it was lovely. In fact it was so lovely we kind of got carried away and ate it all before I had a chance to photograph it for bloggy purposes... oops!

On Sunday we were heading over to the inlaws for a family Sunday dinner so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to try out another recipe in the series - Chocolate Orange Cake. I can tell you it went down an absolute storm. And I actually managed to take a photo or too before everyone tucked in...

Scrummy Chocolate Orange Cake

Ingredients

 For the cake
100g softened butter
50g cocoa powder
90ml warm water
3 large eggs
300g caster sugar
175g self raising flour
1 rounded tsp baking powder
zest of one orange
 For the icing
150g good dark chocolate
150ml double cream
some Duerr's Fine Cut Orange Marmalade

Method
Place the cocoa powder in a large bowl and mix to a paste with the hot water.
Add the eggs then the butter and mix it in.
Stir in the sugar (but don't over stir it!) before adding the flour and baking powder.
Finally add the orange zest.  If the mix seems dry add a little milk to loosen it up.

Pour into two prepared cake tins (I used the liners like the ones used in the video but you could just grease, base line and flour the edges of each tin)

Pop them into a preheated oven 170c/GAS5 for about 25 mins.

While the cake is baking break up the chocolate and put it, with the cream into a bowl placed over a pan of water. Heat the water gently to melt the chocolate into the cream. Once it's all melted remove from the heat and allow to properly cool, for about half an hour, giving it an occasional stir.

When the cakes are done, allow to cool for a few minutes then sandwich together with a big dollop of marmalade. Smooth some more marmalade over the top of the cake and then cover with the cooled chocolate ganache (posh name for cream/choc mix ;-) )

If you want you can grate more chocolate over the top to decorate.

The original recipe called for Apricot jam in the middle but I wanted a full on choc orange experience so went with marmalade all the way - it was well worth it!

To watch the boys baking this cake check out the video below...




As you can see this show stopper is dead easy to make and the smell as it was baking was heavenly!
Also, I can guarantee there won't be any left overs for later unless you stash a slice in the fridge, behind the butter... *cough*

Happy Baking!

Blackberry Crumble Pie recipe

So you've been out foraging for blackberries and have more than you know what to do with - try this mega sized tray bake that is super versatile and very, very tasty...

Blackberry Crumble Pie

You will need

for base and topping:

14oz/390g plain flour
7oz/200g caster sugar
1/4tsp salt
12oz/340g butter, chilled and cut into small cubes

for the filling

4 large eggs
9oz/260g caster sugar
300ml (one large pot) sour cream
3.5oz/100g plain flour
pinch salt
1tsp Vanilla extract
zest of half a lemon
1 1/2lb/700g fresh blackberries

Preheat oven to 350F/180C/GAS4

Start with the base - sift the flour, sugar and salt into a large bowl then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles rough breadcrumbs.  Reserve approx 200g of this mixture for the topping and press the remaining mixture into the base of a large tray bake tin (I used a large roasting tray measuring approx 43cm x 32cm). Pop this in the oven for 12-15mins to set the base. Remove from the oven and allow to cool whilst preparing the filling.

Whisk the eggs in a large bowl then add all the other ingredients except the blackberries, mixing thoroughly. Finally fold in the blackberries gently.

Pour the mix over the base then top with the remaining crumble mix.

Bake in the oven for approx 50mins.
 

Blackberry Crumble Pie tastes just wonderful warm from the oven served with cream, custard or ice cream but works even better if you leave it cool completely, cut it into squares and refrigerate.  The centre firms up nicely and contrasts beautifully with the buttery crumble top and bottom. It will keep in the fridge for up to a week in a covered container.

Best of all this tray bake freezes well too which is just as well as this recipe makes a lot of pie! Cut into slices/squares when cold and freeze in suitable containers. Defrost for about 4 hours before serving.

Happy Baking!

Something for the weekend :: Blackberries

If you love to eat and cook seasonally then you'll know that now is the best time for one of my favourite fruits - the blackberry.  The best thing about blackberries is they are available for free in many places and not just in the country either - check out parks, alongside canals or cycle tracks and scrub land. Berries growing close to busy roads are best avoided as are those growing close to the ground where dogs and foxes may cock a leg.

I'm very lucky when it comes to blackberries - not only do I live in the country with lots of brambles in the woods nearby (and sloes too but that's a whole other blog post!) but my MIL's large garden has a HUGE bramble bush tucked away down the bottom absolutely over flowing with luscious black jewels. This year the harvest has been very abundant and we have already picked more blackberries than in previous few years and there are still many more growing and ripening.

That's one BIG bush...

 

Fortunately blackberries freeze well. Just give them a wash and check through for bugs then lay them, in a single layer, on a baking tray and pop them in the freezer until solid before bagging them up for future use in cakes, muffins, tea breads, coulis, compote and more.

I have been collecting lush blackberry recipes on my 'Autumn' Pinterest board and last weekend I had a bit of a baking frenzy trying out some of them...


This 'Wild Blackberry Loaf' recipe was incredibly simple to make and tasted absolutely wonderful - the blackberry icing was a bit of a faff but definitely worth it!

We also had a go at 'Blackberry Lemonade' which is delicious as it is but, I would imagine would make a lovely mixer with a splash or two of vodka...

Talking of vodka, there is a great Blackberry Vodka recipe pinned to the board that I may have to try too!

 Far and away our favourite recipe was the magnificent Blackberry Pie Bars tray bake. It needed a bit of tweaking and deciphering of American measurements but turned out amazing. I shall be adding the recipe as a separate post later but in the meantime here are some piccies to whet your appetite!

 

There's still a few weeks of blackberry season left so why not make the most of this most wonderful FREE food and get picking!!

New oven, puddings and 'Baking for Boys'

At last, after best part of three months I have a working oven again!!!!

It's not a new oven, it's not even a particularly pretty oven but it works - and it was free so really all other niggles can be ignored!

Now don't get me wrong, life without an oven was not unbearable. The slow cooker got a fair bit of use - pasta bakes and lasagna both worked well. I developed a new method of cooking pre-cooked frozen pies which involved defrosting in the microwave followed by grilling with the tray on bottom shelf of the oven and turning the pie over, like you would when grilling sausages, so that it cooked all the way through and didn't end up with a burnt top and a soggy bottom. It wasn't perfect but it worked. Skinny chips also grill ok. I even managed to do my favourite summer dish - Mediterranean 'roasted' veg under the grill!

But what I really missed was baking (although Wright's Ginger cake mix made in the bread machine was a revelation!) Cookies, muffins, sponge cakes and tray bakes. I have had to buy cake from the shops ** READY MADE **.  It really is not the same.

And you don't get that lovely warm cakey smell wafting through the house when all you have to do is slice open a plastic wrapper...

So, the new (to us) cooker came from a flat refurb and would have been thrown away otherwise (Kirstie Allsopp would be so proud of us!) and was fitted by my FIL at the weekend. So now I can bake once more.

Which is good now summer is ending. There is a nip in the air in the evening and it's very nearly that time of year when custard replaces ice cream as the dessert accompaniment of choice. Custard and crumble. Custard and steamed pudding. Custard and fruit pie. Just custard (when I'm feeling lazy).

You may have noticed that Great British Bake Off  is back with more inspiration and ideas than you can shake a silicon spatula at and those lovely people at Duerrs are celebrating with their very own YouTube series of yummy cakey, puddingy (if that's not a real word I want to know why!) recipes demonstrated by their master bakers Richard and Paul.  Each episode showcases a British pud in neat 5minute slices. The first episode featured the classic Victoria Sandwich - the perfect summer cake. Their latest offering is definitely more comfort food - a little twist on an old classic - a delicious looking Marmalade Bread and Butter pudding.

Now I have an oven again I shall definitely be giving this one a go!

Fruity Peanut Butter Crunch Bites recipe

When those lovely people at Duerr's tweeted this cute message to me a few weeks back, I had to respond (I'm a crunchy gal, in case you were wondering...) It would have been rude not to!

Duerr's sent me a jar of of their brand new crunchy peanut butter and a tasty looking recipe for peanut butter cookies but as our oven is still out of action I had to think up other creative and tasty ways to use my jar of crunchy peanut butter, and I came up with this delicious, no-bake sweet treat...

Fruity Peanut Butter Crunch Bites

100g digestive biscuits
100g crunchy peanut butter
50g butter
50g mixed dried fruit
25g glace cherries, quartered


First you need to crush your digestive biscuits to fine crumbs. Either blitz them in a food processor or place them in a strong plastic bag - zip lock freezer bags are good - and bash them up with a rolling pin. For some reason kids LOVE doing this ;-)

Next melt the butter in a saucepan (or large jug/bowl in the microwave).  Remove from the heat and stir in the peanut butter, dried fruit and chopped glace cherries and crushed biscuits until thoroughly combined.

Line an 18cm square cake tin (I use one of these from Lakeland) with foil and press the mixture into the tin. Pop it in the fridge to chill for an hour or so.

When completely cooled and set cut into bite size squares. The squares can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week and are better if kept chilled.

Be warned - these fruity, crunchy, peanuty squares are very rich but incredibly more-ish!

ps - want to make a larger batch? Just double up the ingredients and use a tray bake or swiss roll tin.

#VegBoxChallenge - Grilled Mediterranean Veg

I haven't done a veg box post for a while - not because I haven't had lovely veg boxes but more because it's been so hot I have had to get the contents in the fridge asap and have completely forgotten to photograph the contents!

Dinners the last couple of weeks have consisted mostly of salad, of the leafy, potato or grated/chopped veg variety. There are very few veggies that really cannot be eaten raw in a salad. Grated carrot, courgettes and beetroot, finely chopped (very fresh) mushrooms, small florets of broccoli, fennel, chicory, all manner of  leaves, tomatoes, peppers, slivers of onion, fresh chopped herbs and dressings of olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar or mayonnaise mixed with a little plain yoghurt and chives from the garden have graced my plate.

(The Other Half, however,  is still resolutely clinging to his beans on toast and bacon sarnies... )

One dish I love in the summer is roasted Mediterranean veg - aubergine, courgette, peppers, onions, garlic and cherry tomatoes, chopped into chunks, tossed in olive oil, seasoned and roasted in a hot oven for about half an hour. I love how the onion caramelises and the individual cloves of garlic taste so sweet cooked this way!

Look what was in my box this week! There was a large courgette too but I couldn't fit it in the piccie... plus I still had a bulb of garlic left from last week's box! All the ingredients I need for my favourite summer food.

Except we still don't have an oven that works...

So I decided I would grill it instead!  I prepared the veg just as I would normally and placed the roasting tin lower down in the oven than I would when grilling, say, fishfingers, then turned the grill up to full heat. I had to give the veggies a good stir every five minutes or so but they were done in about 15 minutes!  Less than half the time they would take 'roasting' normally!

I tossed them into some pasta that already had a little red pesto stirred through it and served with some torn mozzarella.  I would have loved to have added some fresh basil too but unfortunately I don't have any right now.

Doesn't it look tasty? It was gorgeous. Who needs an oven?*

*well me, actually. I really don't think you can grill cake and cookies and boy do I miss home baked cake and cookies...

National Vegetarian Week - Chunky Veg and Nut Loaf recipe

Did you know it's National Vegetarian Week? No? Well you do now!

I was a vegetarian for most of my teens and twenties, partly out of protest against the treatment of animals kept for food and partly because I just wasn't that fond of the taste of meat (these days I am more relaxed about what I eat but, more often than not, I still go for the veggie option). In that time I learnt a good many great veggie recipes, many of which I still cook on a regular basis for my non-vegetarian family.

One particular favourite is this fab nut roast recipe. Originally from Rose Elliot's Complete Vegetarian Cookbook, sadly now out of print but replaced by Rose Elliot's NEW Complete Vegetarian - an updated edition taking into account current healthy eating advice.
The recipe has been tweaked and adjusted over the years to suit what I had in the cupboard. The original recipe contains onion, carrot and celery but I substitute celery (which I hate) with any other veg I have. It's a great way to use up those lone courgettes, half a pepper or handful of mushrooms that lurk at the back of the fridge! It's cheap to make, filling and nutritious with a chewy texture that even a die hard meat eater can enjoy.
Although not my Other Half. Way to much veggie presence for his tastes... *sigh*

Chunky Veg & Nut Loaf

Ingredients

1 large carrot
1 onion
A portion or two of any other veg you may have around - celery, pepper, courgette or mushrooms all work well
200g chopped mixed nuts - Brazil nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts (sometimes I use pre-packed chopped nuts found in baking isle at around £1 for 100g or you can chop and mix your own)
2 tsp yeast extract
2tsp Marigold Vegetable Bouillon (optional but tasty!)
2 eggs
1-2tsp dried mixed herbs or a handful of chopped fresh herbs
A knob of butter and a handful of breadcrumbs to line tin

Chop your veggies into chunks then throw them all in food processor and pulse until they are all chopped up. If you don't have a food processor then you can grate or finely chop all the veg by hand.

Tip the chopped veg into a large bowl. Add all the other ingredients and mix thoroughly - it will be quite a wet mix - like a very lumpy fruit cake batter!




Line the bottom of a 1lb loaf tin with a long strip of greaseproof paper so it comes up and over the 2 short sides then grease the tin with butter and sprinkle with some breadcrumbs (I blitz any slightly stale bread in the processor and freeze breadcrumbs so I always have a supply at hand. So much better than the bright orange ones you can buy in tubs!)







Pour the veg mix into the tin, making sure you tap the tin to eliminate air bubbles.

Bake in a preheated oven GAS5/190C/375F, uncovered for about 45mins - slide a sharp knife into the loaf to make sure the centre is set (just like a cake). Remove from the oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes before sliding a knife all the way round the edge and turning onto a serving plate.

Lovely served warm with roast potatoes, greens and onion gravy or cold with a salad and new potatoes. I have even shallow fried slices of cold loaf for a couple of minutes on each side and served them in a roll with some grated cheese and ketchup for a veggie burger alternative.

Chunky veg and nut loaf with salad... omnomnom!

If you want to find out more about National Vegetarian Week please visit their website - there are a loads of hints and tips for those thinking of taking up a meat free lifestyle and scrummy simple recipes to get you started!

#VegBoxChallenge - salad days and rhubarb fool

Well I HAVE been slacking a bit on the Veg Box Challenge. Not in that I'm not using up my veg, I hasten to add, just not really finding time to pin and blog recipes! Which is daft coz I've had 2 whole weeks to sort it out!!

But hey....

The weather improved for a bit which meant I actually felt like eating all the fab salad stuff that was in the last box - the lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, chicory and carrots all got tossed up with some olive oil and balsamic dressing at some point during the week (sorry, no pics, I was too busy enjoying eating :-) )   Even the baby new potatoes got boiled up, cooled down then mixed with mayonnaise and chives from the garden.

The rhubarb was made into a fabulous fool - chopped up rhubarb was cooked with a couple of spoonfuls of soft brown sugar, the juice of an orange and a teaspoonful of ground ginger (I told you there was a twist!) for ten minutes or so then mixed into a small carton of whipped double cream and a small carton of creme fraiche, spooned into dishes and left to chill for a bit in the fridge. It was delicious!!

Here's a little selection of the other lovely meals we've had from our veg box in the past fortnight...

clockwise from top left: veg box curry; tucking in!; cheesy spud boats; roasted veg pizza; broccoli and cauliflower soup; rhubarb, orange and ginger fool

So I guess you'd like to see what delights we got this week?

What I got in my box this week...

• 2 LARGE baking potatoes
• big bunch carrots
• radishes
• green beans
• peas
• large leek
• chard
• more rhubarb :-)
• 2 bananas
• 2 oranges
• 2 apples
• 2 peaches

I mentioned in the last post that I had changed my delivery to a larger box but delivered fortnightly instead of weekly and buying some back up basics (onions and potatoes) and this seems to work well for us. I have been toying with switching from the fruit and veg box to just a veg box but there is no way I'd be enjoying a peach in my conservatory right now if it hadn't come in my delivery (wouldn't even think about buying a whole punnet from supermarket at silly prices) so I am still undecided...

perfect peach

and just look how shiny this apple is!

Now I am off to find interesting recipes for swiss chard...  

#VegBoxChallenge - a taste of summer...

Tomorrow is Roo's 5th birthday (where did THAT time go!) so it's all go here on Mount Pleasant.
We are planning a picnic with family and a few of his friends from school at a local 'tourist' spot - Beechenhurst. It's a lovely place in the heart of the Forest - a large picnic area with a fab playground and lots of room for kids to run around and play.
It's all a bit last minute as we weren't sure what the weather was going to be like (fingers crossed it stays as lovely as it has been all week!) so I'm super busy prepping food and games which doesn't leave much time for anything else!

So, just a quick post showing you the super fruit and veg box I got from Four Seasons Food this week...

What I got in my box this week...

• potatoes
• carrots
• purple sprouting
• cauliflower
• chicory
• lettuce
• cherry tomatoes
• cucumber
• rhubarb
• apples
• pears
• a large orange
• a punnet of strawberries!

first taste of summer...

Don't they look gorgeous? I left them warm up in the sun then me and Roo gobbled the lot :-) 

There are 4 lovely bulbs of chicory which is something I have eaten in salad - the boat shaped leaves make great little receptacles for dips or cottage cheese - but never actually cooked with so this weeks pinboard additions will mostly be chicory recipes. I am looking forward to trying something new! 

We also got the first thin pink sticks of rhubarb. Not quite enough for a crumble but I am thinking of making one of my all time favourite puddings - Rhubarb fool - with a little extra twist. Don't worry I'll share next week...

I have made a slight change to my veg box delivery - upgrading to a medium box at £13.50 but only have a delivery every two weeks. Money is tight and I often end up buying extra  basics anyway (there's never enough potatoes to keep the Other Half happy!) so I thought save a few quid and minimise waste this way. 

This means my veg box posts will be fortnightly too but I may still squeeze an extra recipe in alternate weeks!

I'll leave you with a few of the dishes we enjoyed with the contents of last week's box...

stir fried purple sprouting with mange tout and red onion - went lovely with a basic omelette

chunky veg and nut loaf with salad - a recipe I have been making for years and I WILL share shortly...

carrot cake muffins - the most sensible thing to do when you have a surplus of carrots! I blogged this recipe here if you have lots of carrots to use up too...

In case you were wondering what I did with the avocado that I was so excited about last week - it ended up sliced on ryvita which is still my favourite way to eat them :-)

Avocado appreciation

This week's box contained one of my favourite fruits in the whole world - the avocado pear.

I have fond memories of my mum and dad having 'date nights' at home when we would all be ushered up to our room early with strict instructions not to come downstairs unless it was an absolute emergency.  Dad would cook a nice meal that invariably started with Mum's favourite - prawn salad served in half an avocado. This was the 70's after all!

As a child I couldn't understand the fuss about avocado's but as I got older my tastes changed. One of my favourite snacks during pregnancy was sliced avocado on Ryvita and Pinterest has opened up a whole new chapter of my avocado appreciation - I never realised you could do so much with them!

Things have been a bit busy here this week (stock take at my Other Half's shop, which is always fun) so I haven't had time to rustle up AND photograph a recipe for this post but I have added loads of avocado treats - including some gorgeous looking chocolate avocado puddings which I MUST try - to my Veggie Box Recipes pinboard. Do go take a look if you are wanting some avocado inspiration!

What I got in my box this week

• potatoes
• onion
• carrots
• red pepper
• purple sprouting broccoli
• green chilli
• lettuce
• mange tout
• cucumber
• apples
• satsumas
• orange
• avocado pear
• a bunch of thyme

As you can see it's another very colourful box!  I just love that Four Seasons Foods always make an effort to provide a good variety of produce in their boxes from week to week - I know not all veg boxes are so varied and that puts some people off. Sometimes it pays to shop around if you can and, as with so many other things in life, the cheapest is not always the best.  I know I am very lucky to have a local supplier who cares so much about what they send out! :-)

As promised, here's a selection of meals made with last week's veg box.

from top left - roasted new potatoes; roasted mixed veg; leisurely Sunday morning melon breakfast; pasta with pesto, cream cheese, cherry tomatoes and grated raw courgette; grated carrot, lettuce and hummus wraps; leek, pea and mushroom risotto