Butternut Squash and Almond Soup

This is the recipe for one of the ‘everyday’ soups that Lynne makes up for our lunches. Usually in three litre batches so that we have six portions or three lunches. (Our soup cups are 500ml capacity.) This one was just too good to lose!

  • 2 butternut squash
  • Good olive or other nutty oil
  • 2 handfuls of whole blanched almonds
  • Garlic
  • Mild curry powder or paste to taste
  • 1 litre vegetable stock
  • 300g carton crême fraiche (I think, it was from Aldi)
  • Salt & pepper
  • Water or stock to bring the quantity up to three litres
  1. De-seed and chop the butternut squash into chunky pieces. Place in roasting pans, drizzle with oil, season with salt and pepper, place in a hot oven and roast until soft and browned at the edges. Do not peel.
  2. Toast the almonds in a dry pan until golden.
  3. Place the butternut squash and almonds in a large pan with a little more oil, add the curry powder or paste and chopped garlic and heat on a medium flame until the spices and garlic are toasted but nor burned and the squash and almonds coated with them.
  4. Add the vegetable stock (preferably hot) and simmer together until all are softened.
  5. Us the whizzy stick (stick blender) or liquidiser to liquidise until creamy in texture. Add more stock if necessary and desired until you have a texture you like.
  6. Stir in the carton of crême fraiche, adjust the seasoning to taste and heat through but do not boil.

Serve with crispy croutons and/or crispy fried bacon lardons.

Dairy Free Smoothie With Zing

Serves 2 generously

2 large bananas, sliced
4 kiwi fruit, peeled
Ginger beer (ALDI’s is brilliant)

Place the fruits in a blender or food processor and whiz. Add only enough ginger beer to facilitate the production of a smooth puree. Place in a chilled jug that will accommodate twice the volume. Top up with an equal quantity of ginger beer, stir until well mixed and serve.

Delicious and good for you!

Patatas Casa Nirvana

For 2 portions:-

4 medium potatoes
1 large scallion finely chopped (include the green part)
1 fat clove of garlic
Salt
Good olive oil
Tasty stock powder (marigold or klaarsuppe)

Microwave or boil the potatoes whole until just cooked but still firm. Cut into bite sized chunks.
Heat the oil until smoking hot in a sauté pan then add the potatoes and sauté until golden. Remove and set aside.
In the same pan, add more oil and when hot add the scallion and finely chopped garlic. Fry until soft then sprinkle with the stock powder & mix.
Add the potatoes and reheat, mixing well.
Season with salt , stir and serve.

Delicious! Goes brilliantly with fried eggs.

Invented by Lynne Joyce on 03.05.2011.

Cream of Strawberry Soup

1 punnet of strawberries (8oz)
4 tablespoons of good quality, clear honey
About 8 ounces of gluten-free sponge cake of your choice (NOT fruit cake)
Sherry or fruit juice to moisten the cake
2x 200ml tubs of crème fraiche

• Wash and hull the strawberries, cut into small dice and place in a bowl. Add the honey and stir together. Set to one side and leave until the honey has drawn lots of juice out of the strawberries.
• Cut the cake into small cubes, place in a large bowl and moisten thoroughly with sherry, orange juice or best of all, a mixture of the two. Set aside until the cake has absorbed all the liquid and is thoroughly soggy.
• When the cake is soggy and the strawberries have exuded lots of juice, add the strawberries to the cake and mix thoroughly.
• Add the crème fraiche and mix thoroughly.
• Put in the fridge for at least an hour for the flavours to amalgamate.
• Serve in soup bowls as a dessert and make sure everybody wears a bib!

Bendy Pancakes

Ingredients

4 heaped tablespoons of brown rice flour
2 heaped tablespoons if tapioca starch
2 large, free range eggs
Half a teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of gluten-free baking powder – optional, to be used if you want thicker, American style pancakes.
Sufficient milk to make a batter the consistency you require – a thick cream for American style pancakes, a thinner cream for thin crepes. (1/4 – 1/2 pint)

Sift the flours into a bowl, add the salt and baking powder if used, and mix well. Make a well on the centre, add the eggs and mix in, then gradually add milk and whisk until the desired consistency is obtained and the batter is lump free. You can do this in a food processor if you wish. Cover and leave to stand for about half an hour.

Whisk again then fry on a low heat in a non-stick pan brushed with the minimum of oil each time. These take longer to cook than conventional pancakes.

Serve with a filling of your choice, sweet or savoury. They can be used as wraps or flatbreads too.

Blue Cheese Dip de Calpé

A recipe created for and consumed with gusto by Keith Wildman, El Presidente of A.F.P.O. Calpe.

250g of Bergader Blue Cheese (from the cheese and ham stall on Calpé market) Other good, soft blue cheese can be substituted.
2 x 125g cartons of Griego Greek style yoghurt (from Mercadona)
1 tblsp of crushed garlic and finely chopped parsley
1/2 tsp of freshely ground black pepper

Blend all the ingredients together – Simples!
(Then see how long you can keep your sampling finger out of it!)

Serve with crudites, crisps and gluten-free toast fingers for dipping.

Spanish Style Vegetable Stew

Plenty good, flavoursome olive oil
1 white onion finely chopped
2 sticks celery finely chopped
4 fat cloves of garlic very finely chopped
1 aubergine diced
2 courgettes diced
4-6 fresh plum tomatoes (4 if they are large, 6 if they are small, cut into quarters or eighths according to size
1/2 red + 1/2 green (preferably pointy) pepper finely chopped
2 tbsp green peppercorns very finely chopped
1 tbsp veg stock powder or Klaarsuppe powder
2 tbsp sweet paprika
Salt to taste
2tbsp finely chopped, flat-leaved parsley

Using a large saute pan, fry the onion and celery in plenty oil until they are beginning to soften. Add the garlic, aubergine, courgettes, tomatoes & peppers and cook slowly until you have a soft vegetable stew. Stir in the veg stock powder, the sweet paprika, salt and chopped green peppercorns and taste for seasoning. Adjust accordingly, simmer until the dish is heated through.

Serve sprinkled with the parsley and enjoy. Can be used with pasta, rice or even baked potatoes as a vegatarian main course, or served as an accompaniment to meat or fish.

Arroz Con Salchichas

Plenty good, flavoursome olive oil
1 white onion finely chopped
2 sticks celery finely chopped
4 fat cloves of garlic very finely chopped
1 aubergine diced
4-6 fresh plum tomatoes (4 if they are large, 6 if they are small
1/2 red + 1/2 green pepper finely chopped
2 tbsp green peppercorns very finely chopped
1 tbsp veg stock powder or Klaarsuppe powder
2 tbsp sweet paprika
Salt to taste
2oz pancetta or good bacon, finely diced
Assorted gluten free salchichas (spanish sausages) & chorizo, diced
About 4 coffee mugs of cooked white rice

Using a large saute pan, fry the onion and celery in plenty oil until they are beginning to soften. Add the garlic, aubergine, tomatoes & peppers and cook slowly until you have a soft vegetable stew. Stir in the veg stock powder, the sweet paprika, salt and chopped green peppercorns and taste for seasoning. Adjust accordingly, simmer for a couple of minutes then decant into a bowl.

Clean the pan and return to the heat. Fry the pancetta or bacon until the fat starts to run out. Add the diced salchichas & chorizo and fry gently until cooked. Add the cooked rice and vergeatble stew, stir thoroughly and cook until the dish is heated through.

Serve and enjoy.

Cesca’s Cupcakes – © Francesca Earnshaw

125g Margarine/Olive Oil Spread/Butter
125g Granualated Sugar
2 Medium eggs lightly beaten
1tsp Vanilla Extract
100g Rice Flour
25g Tapioca Starch
2 tsp Gluten-Free baking powder

Directions

1. Pre heat the oven to 180degrees C
2. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter & Sugar untill pale & fluffy.
3. Add the beaten eggs a little at a time, whicsking to incorporate.
4. Beat in the vanilla extract.
5.Mix the flour, baking powder and tapioca starch together.
6. Sift in half the flours & Fold into the mixture.
7. Add the milk & the rest of the flour & Fold into the mixtureuntil well combined.
8. Spon into the paper cases.
9. Cook for 20minutes or untill golden brown ontop.
10. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tin.

Number of Servings: 20

Cauliflower Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
1 onion chopped
½ cauliflower
½ pint / 300ml water or light stock
Pinch thyme
Salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp / 5g corn flour
½ pint / 300ml milk
4 oz / 100g mature cheddar for a sharp taste or fromage frais for a mild one

Cook the onion and cauliflower in the water until soft, together with the thyme, salt and freshly ground pepper. Mash these up with a potato masher or use a food processor. Add a little cold milk to the corn flour and mix into a paste, then add the rest of the milk. This is to thicken your soup. Stir this into the vegetables.

Stir in the grated cheese or fromage frais, heating the soup until hot enough to serve but do not boil.

This should be a fairly thick soup. Serve with thin slices of toast as a luch dish, or with croutons for a hearty starter.

Avocado Stilton Bake

500g waxy potatoes
1 large leek
50g butter
Double cream
2 x Ripe Avocados
4 trimmed spring onions
Lemon juice
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
Fresh herbs (chives & parsley)
Tabasco
50-75g ripe Blue Stilton, or
preferred equivalent.
4 x large, free-range eggs.

Preheat the oven to 200?C.

Dice the potatoes into 1cm. dice. Chop the leek finely. In a sauté pan with a lid, gently sauté the leeks and potatoes in a mixture of virgin olive oil and butter until cooked through. Season and stir in enough cream to coat and moisten. Divide the cooked potato mix between four individual ovenproof serving dishes. These should be at least 5cm. deep.

In a food processor, pulverise the spring onions. Add the flesh of the Avocados (do not discard the stones yet) and the cubed Stilton and process. Add a few shakes of lemon juice and process again. Pour in double cream and process until the mixture is smooth & has the consistency of cream cheese. Freshly chopped chives or parsley can be added at this stage if desired. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. A few drops of Tabasco can also be added. Remove the blade and place an avocado stone in the mixture to avoid discolouration.

Divide the mix equally between the four dishes, spreading it over the potato evenly. Place in the oven and cook until the avocado/cheese topping is bubbling. Turn off the oven and keep warm while you poach the eggs.

Serve in the ovenproof dishes with a poached egg on top of each serving. Sprinkle with freshly chopped chives or parsley or swirls of paprika if you are showing off!

Variation: As a starter, omit the potato & leek mix and substitute courgetti (shredded sautéed courgette).

Cheat/time saver:- Use tinned potatoes.

GF Cranachan

Gluten-Free Variation on a Theme of Cranachan

Double cream
Creme fraiche
Ricotta cheese (optional calorie saver)
Unwaxed lime juice & zest
Mixed, dried fruit, soaked to plumpness in Sherry, Marsala or port to taste (at least 24 hours)
Finely chopped tropical fruit mix (Holland & Barratt)
Gluten -free biscuits crushed
Stem ginger in syrup, the ginger very finely chopped.
Whisky liqueur
Vanilla Caster Sugar or Honey.

Whip a quantity of cream to the softly whipped stage in a bowl that will cope with at least three times its whipped volume.
Add half its quantity again of creme fraiche and/or ricotta gently whip in.
Add the juice and zest of limes (one lime per 1/4 pint of cream as a guide) to taste, and whip in, remembering that the lime will react with the cream and thicken it. You should have a stiff mix at this stage.
Add sufficient dried fruit soaked in sherry so that the mix is nicely speckled with fruit with enough of the sherry to loosen the mix to thick school custard consistency.

Add the tropical fruit mix -approximately the same volume as the sherried fruit.

Add sufficient crushed GF biscuit crumbs (coconut ones are nice) to make a stiff mix – rather like softened butter.

Add finely chopped stem ginger, with syrup, and whisky liqueur to taste until the mixture is back to thick custard consistency, remembering that the biscuit crumbs will soak up the liquid and firm up the mixture.

Box and keep in the fridge for at least 24 hours.

Taste and test for taste and consistency. Adjust using lime juice and/or whisky liqueur and/or vanilla caster sugar or honey.

The end product should spoon easily into sundae glasses or expresso cups.
Drizzle with ginger syrup from the stem ginger jar.

SERVE IN SMALL QUANTITIES – THIS IS RICH, ALCOHOLIC, AND TRULY DELICIOUS!

For those who cannot or choose not to have alcohol, elderflower or ginger cordial make good substitutes. If using ginger cordial, adjust the amount of stem ginger.

You can add to the five-a-day count by serving this over poached or fresh fruit.