Pumpkin Muffins

We regularly have a coeliac trick or treater visiting us the last few years, so I always make a gluten free treat.  This year I have made Pumpkin Muffins, using gluten free self raising flour rather than self raising flour, and the scrapings from inside a couple of pumpkins we've carved.

Any leftover muffins will be used for grab & go breakfasts, in lunchboxes, or snacks next week.

Makes 12

125ml vegetable or light olive oil

2 large free range eggs

250g pumpkin puree 

100-150g sugar

100g mixed dried fruit

2 tsp pumpkin spice (or 1 tsp cinnamon + 1 tsp ginger)

250g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

Make pumpkin purée by simmering 250g of pumpkin in water for 15 minutes.  Drain and liquidise.  

In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs into the oil, followed by the cooled pumpkin purée, sugar, dried fruit, spices and baking powder.  Mix well then stir in the self raising flour.  This is a quite a wet mixture, so unlike other muffin recipes don't be afraid to mix the flour in thoroughly, as the muffins still rise well having done this.

Divide into 12 muffin cases. Bake at 200C for 15 minutes, until a metal sewer comes out of the central muffins clean.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

TikTok: @leesashomemade

Choc Chip Banana Bread Breakfast Muffins

More Grab & Go breakfast muffins for my 17 year old son, which he likes to alternate with Bacon & Cheddar Muffins I posted earlier, as he runs out the door to catch the bus to college.

Makes 12

100ml vegetable or light olive oil

75g sugar (optional)

2 ripe bananas (I freeze overripe bananas rather than throw them away, specifically to make this)

225g self raising flour or gluten free self raising flour

100g porridge oats

100g dark chocolate chips or cocoa nibs

1 tsp baking powder

2 large free range eggs

Put all the ingredients, apart from the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs, into a food processor and whizz until smooth. 

Add the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs and whizz to mix them in evenly. 

Divide the mixture into 12 muffin cases.  I use a generous vintage ice cream scoop, which only made 10 muffins the last time I made them.

Bake at 180C for 20 minutes, turning them through 180 degrees half way through the cooking time, until golden brown.  They are cooked through when a metal skewer comes out clean when pushed into the centre.  If not, cook for a couple more minutes then check again.

Keep in an airtight container for 5 days, or freeze.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

TikTok: @leesashomemade

Bacon & Cheddar Breakfast Muffins

Grab & go breakfast for students (and their parents on the train to London to watch the Women's Rugby World Cup Final).

The trick to muffins that rise well is not overmixing.  As ever I have attempted a few short cuts, like adding the bacon and cheese to the milk mixture, and weighing the self raising flour straight into to the wet mixture to avoid mixing several times (and reduce washing up).

Makes 12

250ml whole milk

80ml light olive oil

1 free range egg

200g cooked bacon bits

100g grated mature cheddar

1 small courgette, grated (he was not impressed by this ingredient)

300g self raising flour (I used half wholemeal self raising flour, half white self raising flour)

Brown the bacon in a non stick frying pan. Add the courgette if using to soften it and evaporate off some of the liquid.  Leave to cool a little whilst you mix the other ingredients together.

Beat the egg, oil, and milk together in a mixing bowl.  Mix the bacon and courgette into the wet mixture well.

Weigh the self raising flour into the wet mixture and fold in gently, just until you can no longer see dry flour.

Divide into 12 muffin cases, and bake at 200C/180C fan in a preheated oven for 20 minutes, until lightly golden brown on top.

Leave to cool for 15 minutes before eating.  Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze and defrost overnight before breakfast.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

TikTok: @leesashomemade

Greek Style Spinach & Feta Pasta Salad

This pasta salad was inspired by the flavours of Spanakopita, the less well known pasta bake Makaronopita, a big bag of freshly picked rainbow chard (which use like spinach), and the need to make a pasta salad in half an hour for a neighbourhood barbecue.

Fried courgette or roasted squash can be used instead of spinach.

Serves 10 as an accompaniment 

500g spinach or chard

500g pasta

200g feta

4 heaped dessertspoons plain yoghurt

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp dried mint

1/2 tsp chilli flakes (optional) 

Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.  Drain when cooked, and rinse with cold water to cool and prevent sticking.

Wash the spinach and steam in the pasta pan. The water on the leaves from washing should sufficient to steam it in.  Cook over a medium high heat with the lid on for about 5 minutes until the spinach has wilted.

Whilst the spinach is cooking mash the feta with a fork in a small bowl to the consistency of cottage cheese.  Stir in the yoghurt, garlic, mint, and chilli if using.

Drain the spinach and squeeze the water out.  Spread it out on a chopping board and chop in it fairly finely.

Tip the pasta back into the pasta pan, stir through the olive oil, then mix in the feta mixture and chopped spinach.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

TikTok: @leesashomemade

Chinese Congee (Rice Porridge/Soup)

Rice porridge may sound unappealing, but this simple Asian dish is great comfort food and can be taken in a soup flask as a packed lunch. 

Congee is the Mandarin name, Jook in Cantonese, Chok in Thailand, and Cháo in Vietnamese. I regularly had it for breakfast backpacking in Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong.

The classic congee is just rice simmered in water or stock until it breaks down essentially to mush, and flavoured with ginger and soy.

Shredded chicken, minced pork, or egg can be added to the classic congee for protein, but I like to make a plant based version with vegetable stock, tofu, and colourful vegetables.

Serves 2

1 litre vegetable stock

1 cup cooked rice, white rice is traditional but I prefer brown rice

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

200g firm tofu, grated

1 large carrot, grated

1 pak choi, thinly sliced 

2 spring onions, finely chopped

Seasonings - chilli oil, sesame oil, chilli flakes, soy sauce, and/or fish sauce to serve

Add the rice, garlic, and ginger to a pan.  Pour over the stock and bring to the boil.

Boil for 5-10 minutes uncovered until the rice is a runny porridge consistence. 

Stir in the tofu, carrot, and pak choi to heat up.

Serve when congee comes back to the boil.  Sprinkle each serving with a chopped spring onion, and season with what ever you have to hand and to your own taste.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

Samosa Potato Salad

Digging up over a kilo of salad potatoes, and having a vegetable samosa for lunch from a family butcher, gave me the idea of a samosa potato salad. OH thought it a bit dry to have for lunch at work, so I added a cashew and tamarind cream. It is ideal for a packed lunch as nothing in it needs to be kept cold.  And for those following Zoe Health, the plant count is over 20, with 10 in the garam masala alone!

Serves 4

Samosa Potato Salad

1kg cooked salad potatoes

1 tbsp light olive oil

1 large onion

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

2 medium carrots, grated

200g frozen peas

100ml recently boiled water

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tbsp garam masala

2 tbsp mixed seeds (optional)

Cashew & Tamarind Cream

50g cashews

100ml recently boiled water

1 tbsp tamarind sauce or lemon juice

1 small garlic clove

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Boil the salad potatoes whole for 10-20 minutes, drain, and leave to cool.

Fry the onion in the light olive oil a large saute pan over a medium heat until golden brown.

Stir in the garlic and grated carrot and fry for a few minutes.  

Add the peas and hot water.

Simmer gently whilst you cut the potatoes into bite sized pieces into the pan.  Sprinkle over the seeds if using and mix well.

If making cashew cream, soak the cashews In 100ml boiling water. Once cool enough to handle, place all the cashew cream ingredients into liquidiser cup and blend until smooth and pourable like single cream.

Serve hot or cold.

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

Alevropita, Greek Feta Bake

I love Spanakopita, but cannot be bothered with brushing innumerable sheets of filo with olive oil.  So this simple 'toad' in the hole style traybake has all the flavour and none of the hassle.  The traditional Alevropita recipe has just feta, but I thought to add spinach (and a few more flavourings) to make it healthier.

Serves 4

250g wilted baby leaf or chopped spinach (optional)

2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

150g plain or self raising flour

200ml milk

2 free range eggs

1/4 tsp salt

150g crumbled feta

1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed (optional)

1 tsp dried Greek oregano or thyme (optional)

Wilt spinach in a little water, pour into a sieve and leave to cool and drain.

Preheat the oven to 170C Fan/190C together with a baking dish with 1 tbsp of olive oil.

Whisk flour, milk, eggs, and salt together into a smooth batter.  Add garlic and oregano if using and mix thoroughly

When the oven has reached temperature, take out the baking dish and carefully swirl the hot oil around the sides.  Pour the batter into the hot oil, then scatter over the feta and spinach. Swirl this into the batter and drizzle over another tablespoon of olive oil.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until golden and crispy on top.  Serve with a Greek Salad (minus the feta).

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade

Grab & Go Salad Jar

I've seen a few salads in a jar on Instagram. It seems to be a form of decorative food prepping in my opinion, but I guess the benefit is that if you layer your ingredients in in the right order, your grab and go salad stays fresh for several days than if you refrigerated a mixed dressed salad.

I had a few ingredients that needed cooking (beetroot, kale), so thought I'd experiment with a couple of large empty pickle jars.

I mixed up enough vinaigrette for 2 people and divided this into the jars first, then added the ingredients that wouldn't go soggy or would not be any the worse from marinading in the vinaigrette. 

So, in each jar on top of the vinaigrette I added 1) a handful chopped wilted kale, 2) 1/2 a can cooked drained puy lentils, 3) 1 small peeled and diced roasted beetroot, 4) 1 thinly sliced celery stick, 5) 1 tbsp mixed seeds, 6) a serving of cooked quinoa.

The salad was a filling success, and with the principle of some pulses + wholegrain + seeds + vegetables I'm already planning a Satay dressing based salad with white beans and roasted squash instead of lentils and beetroot, and maybe swapping cucumber for celery.  And then a Greek Salad (feta in first), probably a Ratatouille/Mediterranean roasted vegetable based salad, something with a Tahini dressing...

Instagram: leesashomemade

Facebook: Leesa's Homemade