Orange, Maple and Grape Traybake

This week a colleague brought a bag full of home-grown grapes into work that were free for the taking. Naturally, the first thing that came into my head was cake. I’d never made a cake with grapes before, and wasn’t entirely sure if it would work so I perused the internet for inspiration. After looking at a handful of recipes that included dessert wines, I found this New Zealand recipe for a simpler, lighter cake. I’ve adapted it slightly, and the end result is actually much better than I had expected! The recipe has no butter, oil or lard, but it makes such a light, moist sponge, that’s a little sticky on top. Go on, try it! You’ll be surprised!

Cheesy Waffles

Oh yes! While helping my Mum clear out her attic long before we moved, I came across an old Nordic Ware stove top waffle iron. Not sure of where it came from, she was going to send it to the charity shop, but I claimed it for my own and it got added to our boxes ready for our house move. I finally got around to unpacking it at the weekend and couldn’t wait to try it out! James isn’t one for sweet breakfasts, so we tried a cheesy waffle mix (adapted from here) and served them with crispy bacon (and maple syrup for me). The waffles are so light and fluffy, and I was really impressed with the bit of kit too, especially given that it’s older than I am!

Thai Spiced Pulled Pork

 

Ok, so this isn't really baking, but it's too tasty not to share with you! This pulled pork recipe works EVERY time. It's a real crowd-pleaser and is relatively cheap - a £4/5 piece of pork shoulder would easily feed six people, and you'd still probably have left overs (unless your friends are greedy like mine!). It takes a little preparation, and a long time to cook, so it's definitely not a last minute meal but it's totally worth it.

Wholemeal Pancakes

Our neighbours daughter lives in Canada and after a recent trip to visit, they gave us a tin of proper maple syrup - I think we must have mentioned our love of it to them at some point - and as soon as we heard my Dad shout to say that we’d just been given some, both my Mum and I turned to look at each other and said ‘pancakes!’. We were patient enough to wait for Sunday morning to come around, and while Mum was out walking the dogs, I made our pancakes for breakfast. These pancakes are great – they’re so easy to make, and as they’re thick and fluffy, it’s a million times easier to flip them than the thin crepe like pancakes we eat on Shrove Tuesday. If you’re not a fan of maple syrup, try topping them with crispy bacon and a knob of butter, or fresh fruit and a dusting of icing sugar – what ever takes your fancy. And here’s a tip – make the batter in a jug. It’s a lot easier to pour small round pancakes with the spout of a jug than it is with a ladle! To give you an idea of serving size, I made 15 pancakes with this batter, and we had 5 each in a stack.