Continue reading “Keto / Low Carb Three-Cornered Leek and Cheese Scones”
Keto / Low Carb Three-Cornered Leek and Cheese Scones
Cheesy Straws
These cheesy straws are a lovely snack for lunch boxes and last minute visitors. They can be prepared whenever you have time, and the pastry frozen – then just pop out a handful and bake when you need them. I was setting an Autumn scene for some photos I had to do, so we broke up the straws to make a ‘woodpile’. I was glad when the kids walked in and said ‘Oh, look at the brooms!’ Always useful when people can tell what you’re going for!
These cheesy straws can be made as straws, though simply baking them in rounds is okay too – I tend to freeze them as round biscuits, making them easier to use with dips. If you’re going to make brooms, I recommend that you use the stringy type of kids cheese, rather than regular blocks of cheese which crack rather than pull apart. And have more chives than you think you need as they break really easily too.
I also like to add paprika or rosemary to cheese strings – it just depends on what flavour you like, or whether you like something different from time to time! Also, you don’t have to add parmesan, it just heightens the cheese flavour. If you decide not to, just make another 50g cheddar cheese.
Cheesy Straws Recipe:
Cheesy Straws
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Prep time:
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Serves: 60 sticks
Ingredients
- 375g plain flour
- 225g butter
- 150g cheddar cheese
- 50g parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp mustard (I use a grainy mustard, but powder will work too)
- 2 egg yolks
- pinch of salt
- pepper to taste
Instructions
Thermomix Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to the Thermomix bowl
- Mix speed 5/30 seconds
- Remove and shape into a log. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes
- Heat the oven to 180C
- Break off pieces and roll into sticks using your hands
- Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool before moving but be gentle as they are fragile
Regularly Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a food processor
- Mix until everything is combined and the dough forms a ball
- Remove and shape into a log. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes
- Heat the oven to 180C
- Break off pieces and roll into sticks using your hands
- Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool before moving but be gentle as they are fragile
Honey Cookies
It’s national Winnie The Pooh day on Monday the 18th of January and we love Winnie the Pooh in this house. We’ve visited the real 100 Acre Woods and we’ve had a Winnie The Pooh birthday party and my kids have been playing Pooh Sticks since they could stand up straight, so really it’s only obvious that we’d have to do something to celebrate Winnie the Pooh’s special day!
I’ve made this recipe a few times, because they’re honey cookies, and bears love honey! And so do my children. They are really tasty on their own, but my little ones love them with chocolate chips on top and my personal favourite is with glacé cherries on top. It’s just deliciousness all round.
The original recipe from the 1979 The Pooh Cook Book You suggests you can top it with almond slivers. I’ve reduced the sugar too, with no ill effect, though that’s probably because we eat them before they can go stale, which is what the sugar helps slow down.
Honey Cookies
Prep time:
Cook time:
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Serves: 40 cookies
Ingredients
- 230g self raising flour
- pinch of salt
- 115g salted butter
- 80g brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 45g honey
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- almonds (optional)
- choc chips (optional)
- glacé cherries (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F
- Add flour, salt, butter, sugar, egg, honey and vanilla essence to the food processor and mix till it’s all well combined (Thermomix: speed 5/30 seconds)
- On a well floured surface, and with well floured hands, shape balls the size of large marbles and space them out evenly on a tray. They will expand in the oven.
- With your finger make a dent in each ball and fill it with the optional extras or leave it as is
- Place in the oven and bake for 13 – 15 minutes depending on your oven
- They will still be really soft when they come out the oven, so leave them to cool entirely before transferring to a biscuit tin
Isn’t it funny
How a bear likes honey
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
I wonder why he does
Leftover Couscous Balls Or Patties
We often eat couscous as an alternative to pasta. While I know I do better on a grain free diet, life circumstances dictate that grains make up a big part of our diet – they just cost less than the better-f0r-me stuff! Sad but true. So, we eat a lot of grains. One of the fantastic things about couscous is that you can make completely different meals by adapting the sauce, seasoning and add-ons in your couscous salad.
Sometimes we also end up with a left over couscous – not enough for another meal, but too much to bin in good conscience. So I tried frying it arancini-style. Because the leftover couscous was already so flavourful, I wasn’t all that fussed with additions, but we could have put mozzarella balls or even flavoured cream cheese in the centre. I didn’t miss it though.
Obviously these aren’t perfectly round as sticky rice arancini would be, but it really makes no difference to the flavour. They make great little patties too.
The couscous on the outside forms a crispy layer outside the softer insides, so it provides a great variety of texture from the standard couscous salad too.
This recipe is just a starting point. You can adapt it to pretty much anything. Be careful with wet ingredients that it doesn’t get too wet and fall apart – start with less and add more as needed. Also, you don’t need to use egg, but it’s more fragile without the egg.
Another delicious flavour combination is couscous with shredded chicken in tomato and basil sauce. Add feta to the centre of the balls, and follow the instructions for cooking!
Tip: Plan to make a few more than you need as some will break and fall apart. They still taste great, and can be eaten anyway, but not ideal if you’re looking for presentation brownie-points.
Fried Couscous Balls Or Patties
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Serves: 10 balls
I use a basic formula when I make couscous salad, and no two are ever the same. It’s quite simple: 1 part meat, equal amounts vegetables, and herbs & spices to taste. For the leftovers, I simply mix in an egg. Done. It couldn’t really be simpler! It’s hard to give an exact recipe though, as that kind of negates the point of using the leftovers – just play around with it. It’s worth it!
Ingredients
- For the couscous
- 300g dry couscous
- 200g pancetta or diced bacon, cooked
- 2 spring onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 10g (2 tsp) [url href=”http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00NGU3DIW/?tag=diaofafirchi-21″ target=”_blank”]Ras el hanout[/url] or other favourite spice mix. (Chinese 5 spices, BBQ etc)
- For the balls/patties
- 300g prepared couscous (roughly)
- 1 egg, whisked
Instructions
If making couscous especially for this recipe
- Bring 500g water (2 cups in a kettle) or stock to the boil.
- Switch off the heat and stir in 300g couscous and spices.
- Add a tablespoon of butter if you used a water based stock. If you used a meat stock you are unlikely to need the extra fat.
- Chop cooked bacon, spring onions, garlic finely. (10 seconds, speed 4 in Thermomix) and add to couscous.
- Leave to cool.
If using leftover couscous
- Once cool, whisk an egg and add to the mixture to help it stick together. You don’t have to use an egg, but they are a lot more fragile without it.
- Form either balls or patties in the palm of your hand.
- Meanwhile heat a frying pan to medium heat with a small amount of oil. Add the balls to the frying pan and leave for 2 – 3 minutes until they become golden and crispy. Turn over, remembering that they are more fragile than e.g. meatballs. The browner and crisper the outer layer, the better they will hold together. Everything in the patties that needs to be cooked, like the pancetta or bacon, is already cooked so you’re just trying to crisp it up.
- Once golden on all sides, remove to a serving dish and serve immediately as a snack or as a side dish to meat, salad or similar.
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