Wendy Richard’s Chilli con Carne

Wendy Richard was one of those stars of TV who inspired nothing but affection. Whether as the dollybird Miss Brahms in Are you being served? To the sometimes forbidding matriarch Pauline Fowler in Eastenders, she one of those people that everyone liked, probably because she seemed so down to earth.

At her funeral this week, at her request, she included something unusual in the order of service:  a recipe. ‘Wendy’s Chilli Con Carne’ gets a whole page in the booklet. You can imagine people round at Wendy’s house, tucking in to huge portions (for this is not a recipe for dieters), having a drink and a laughing a lot. That’s presumably why she included it: it was famous among her friends.

It’s a bit of an eccentric recipe, obviously honed and tweaked over the years. There’s  tarragon vinegar and chocolate too. It’s not a very hot chilli. I can imagine chilli purists (mostly boys) not being very impressed. But that’s hardly the point. Food has the power to evoke such memories. It can immediately transport you back to a particular time or place. And that is why, I suppose, Wendy Richard shared this recipe with her friends at her funeral. They will make it and think of her. Which is rather touching.

Cook the Cold Out: Risotto Time!

One of the most delicious Italian dishes is the humble Risotto. It has all the hallmarks of a classic Italian favourite: it easy, filling, delicious and all the better when made from quality, natural ingredients. A traditional risotto is easy: onion, garlic, stock, rice, a lot of stirring, a good grind of pepper and no scrimping on the parmesan! It’s wonderful warming food: it gets cold in Italy too, you know.

But importantly, risotto is a great base for more exotic and exciting dishes. You can all manner of delicious extras to bring taste and fun. Chorizo, chicken, prawns, broccoli, baby corn, mushrooms. Pretty much anything you can think of.

We’ve had a look round MyDish and here are some delicious risottos for your delectation:

Vegetable Risotto

Watercress and Pea Risotto

Butternut Squash Risotto

Gammon Risotto

Goat’s Cheese Risotto

MyDish Recipe: Sussex Hotpot with Pork Chops or Steaks

Sussex Hotpot with Pork Chops or Steaks

The Basics

* Dish: Main Course
* Cuisine: English
* Serves: 4
* Prep Time: 0hrs 15 mins
* Cooking Time: 1hrs 0 mins

Ingredients

* 4 -6 Pork chops or steaks
* 4 English apples
* 2 large onions
* Juice of 1 Lemon
* Handful of Fresh sage
* A grind Salt and Pepper
* 2 500ml bottles of Good cider

Method

Chop your onions finely. Decore, peel and cut the apples into chunks.

Fry the onions for a few minutes to soften and add to a casserole dish. Also, fry the apples in a little oil for a moment to soften and add to casserole.

Seal the meat and brown a little in pan too and then add to the casserole. Add lemon juice and sage too.

Deglaze the pan with a glug of the cider and then add that to the casserole. Then add more cider, enough to cover the meat. If you have cide left over, you’ll just have to drink it.

Put the lid on the casserole and pop in the oven on a medium for an hour. Longer if you like. Take the lid off for the last twenty minutes or so.

Serve up with potatoes and generous spoonfuls of the cider onoin and apple sauce. It’s delicious.

Tips

Get good quality cloudy still cider for the best results. A tin of strongbow won’t have the same results!

(Find this recipe on MyDish.co.uk.)

More things for the Christmas shopping list…

When you’re doing your christmas shopping in the next few days, make sure that you’re ready for that huge, uninspiring pile of turkey leftovers after the big meal. Dry turkey isn’t much fun in a sandwich but marinaded and simmered in a tasty curry sauce, and it’s delicious and flavoursome. So why not plan for a curry after christmas and make sure that you’ve got all the turmeric, cumin, coriander, garam masala, ginger and other herbs and spices that can make a delicious homemade curry.

Here are a few ideas. In this dead easy recipe, just replace the chicken with turkey: Chicken Curry.

If you’re a bit more ambitious, try this Christmas Turkey Curry.

Google Zeitgeist: Fastest Rising Recipes

Google gives a fascinating glimpse into what the nation is thinking and the Google Zeitgeist service is an absorbing read. In particular we were gripped by the details of the fastest rising recipes on Google.co.uk in 2008:

Recipes (Fastest Rising)

1. cupcake
2. meatballs
3. rocky road
4. crumble topping
5. eaton mess
6. pork belly
7. rhubarb fool
8. lemon posset
9. honey comb
10. beer batter

MyDish has lots of recipes that searchers are looking for. But if you’re looking for ‘eaton mess’, you’ll be disappointed. The dish is a tradition from the famous British public school, Eton College.  And if you want to get your chops round that: this is a perfect Eton Mess recipe. Accept no imitations.

Recipe of the Day: Semi Liquid Chocolate Cake

Semi Liquid Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Cake

* Serves: 10
* Prep Time: 0hrs 15 mins
* Cooking Time: 0hrs 20 mins

Ingredients

* 200g Black chocolate
* 180g Butter
* 100g Flour
* 4 Eggs
* 200g Sugar

Method

Preheat your oven at 225°C.

Melt the butter in your microwave in a bowl.

In a big bowl mix the sugar, the eggs, and the butter together. The mixture must be creamy.

Break the chocolate into pieces and melt it in the microwave with 3 tea spoons of water.

Now pour the melted chocolate and the sifted flour into the mixture, stirring just until everything is well blended and you have a smooth consistency.

Pour this into the tin and bake for 20 minutes.

(Find this recipe on MyDish.co.uk)

MyDish Recipe of the Day: Banana Banoffee Pie

Banana Banoffee Pie

* Serves: 4
* Prep Time: 0hrs 25 mins
* Cooking Time: 2hrs 15 mins

Ingredients

* 2 x 400ml/ 14 fl oz cans sweetened condensed milk
* 6 tbsp Melted butter/ plus extra for greasing
* 150g/ 5 ½ oz Digestive buscuits/ crused into crumbs
* 1 tbsp lemon juice
* 1 tsp Vanilla essence
* 75g/ 2 ¾ oz chocolate grated
* 450ml/ 16 fl oz Thick double whipped cream
* 50g/ 1 ¾ oz Almonds toasted and ground
* 4 Ripe Bananas
* 50g/ 1¾ oz Shelled hazelnuts toasted and ground

Method

1. Place the cans of milk in a large saucepan and cover them with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2 hours. Ensure that the water is topped up regulary to keep the cans covered. Carefully lift out the hot cans and leave to cool.

2. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centegrade or gas mark 4. Grease a 23-cm/9-inch flan tin Put the butter into a bowl and add the biscuits and nuts. Mix together well, then press mixture evenly into the base and sides of the flan tin. Bake for 10-12 minutes, then remove from oven and leave to cool.

3. Peel and slice the bananas and put them into a bowl. Sprinkle over the lemon juice and vanilla essence and mix gently. Spread the banana mixture over the biscuit crust in the tin, then open the cans of condensed milk and spoon the contents over the bananas. Sprinkle over 50g/1 and a quarter oz of the chocolate, then top with a thick layer of whipped cream. Scatter over the remaining chocolate and serve.

Find this recipe on Mydish.co.uk.

MyDish Recipe of the day: Gingerbread Mini Muffins

Gingerbread Muffins

* Serves: 16
* Prep Time: 0hrs 15 mins
* Cooking Time: 0hrs 15 mins

Ingredients

* 2.5 cups flour
* 2 tsp baking soda
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 tsp cinnamon powder
* 1 tsp ginger powder
* 1 pinch salt
* 0.25 tsp nutmeg
* 1 egg
* 0.5 cup molasses
* 1 cup buttermilk
* 0.5 cup melted butter

Method

1. Preheat oven to 220 degree C. Grease muffin tins.

2. 1st bowl: mix sugar, flour, soda, salt and spices.

3. 2nd bowl: mix the egg, molasses, milk, and butter.

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just blended.

5. Add to muffin tins – 3/4 full

6. Bake for 15 minutes.

Tips

If you dont have buttermilk, just add 1 tbsp of white vinegar to a cup of regular milk and let sit out for about 10 minutes.

Welcome to the MyDish.co.uk Blog

Welcome to the new MyDish.co.uk blog. In the coming weeks and months we’ll be adding news related to food, cooking and helping you with great ideas in the run up to Christmas. In the meantime: welcome to our brand new blog.