Mini Shepherd’s Pies

Mini Shepherd Pies make handy individual eating, especially if frozen. This recipe makes use of New Zealand lamb mince which is good but also uses baked beans which we’re not sure about. Mind you, it does make the mince go further and you can’t ignore anything that cuts costs now can you?

British Trout is good for the brain

It’s easy to make a positive change to your diet this year with a great range of recipes from the British Trout Association. Many people now know that eating two portions* of oily fish each week provides essential vitamins and fatty acids that are an important part of a healthy diet, though many people do not realise that Trout is in fact an oily fish.

Fruisana recipe of the month Chocolate Almond Cake

After the excesses of the festive period, and the general cutting back on rich food during January, we start to regain our appetite for the occasional treat. Here from the Fruisana Kitchen is a quick and easy recipe which uses store cupboard ingredients.
Chocolate is always a favourite and this delicious cake, with its soft, rich, gooey centre makes a perfect dessert perhaps for Valentine’s Day?

Peas, Love And Harmony On Valentine’s Day

‘Candlelight, romantic melody and aromatic scent all add to the pea-fect ambience of the night, while the brilliant green of each dish assaults your vision. If you can let yourselves merge with the richness of gourmet sensuality you can actually imbibe romance.’

Blimey! We’re talking abut peas here, more romantic than you think apparently. Here’s a complete Valentine pea meal for you


Dorot frozen herbs make hot dishes

Frozen herbs? Well why not, they’re convenient and far better than the dried stuff which is about as much use as sawdust. Freezing keeps the flavour and saves the waste normally asscociated with fresh herbs when the last bits go all manky in the fridge. Dorot are the masters at freezng herbs and have some rather tasty recipes. You can find Dorot frozen herbs in Sainsburys.

Cooking up a storm for Chinese new year

Great recipes from Cherry Valley Duckling mean the Chinese New Year is now the perfect opportunity for budding Nigella Lawson’s and Gordon Ramsay’s to learn new culinary talents and create their own ‘STAGS’ – Stay at Home Gourmets

Celebrate Chinese New Year With Alan Coxon’s Oriental Banquet

‘Kung Hei Fat Choy’ or ‘Happy Chinese New Year’! The Year of the Ox is celebrated on 26th January and with Chinese households cleaning, repainting and handing out Lai See (lucky money); Alan Coxon has developed a menu for those who want to join in with the festivities. Food is an integral part of the celebrations and Alan has scoured the Orient to come up with a delicious menu for all to enjoy.

date and walnut cake

We all do it, there is some madness which happens to us just before Christmas and we become domestic goddesses, with the need to fill the house with everything and anything that anyone could possible crave over the holiday. Come January, we find ourselves with bowls of nuts waiting to be shelled and those ubiquitous boxes of dates, bought because Granny always likes them