Steak, Egg and Chips

So I had no internet for a while and my digital camera is broken :( That's why I've not been around in a while. I'll be getting back to posting some more recipes and me in the kitchen very soon.

Thanks for being patient :)

So as promised, here is my recipe for bread and butter pudding. Not too sweet, not using bread cubes or stale bread or anything weird. Pretty basic, pretty simple :)

British Bread and Butter Pudding

1 loaf of cheap white bread
4 cups of milk
6 eggs
Half a cup of white sugar
3 cups of raisins
A small amount of butter/margarine
Quarter cup of brown sugar

Firstly, you have to start off with WHITE BREAD.

Cheap white bread is best. I just used a store-bought loaf- but I find that Wonder Bread is really good for this recipe. Find a large ovenproof dish out of the cupboards and start off the bread part of the recipe. Also, start heating your oven at 375F ;)

Second, butter each slice of bread on one side with a thin amount of butter/margarine. It will melt, and you don't want the dish to be all oily. Grab a large

pot and crack 6 eggs into it. Add four cups of milk. Whisk it all together and heat on the LOWEST setting. Keep stirring and don't let it curdle. You don't want scrambled eggs. After it's heated (you don't want it boiling), add half a cup of white sugar. Mix until dissolved. Take your bread slice, and chop in half diagonally. Dip into the egg mixture and place in the ovenproof dish until the bottom of the dish is covered. Sprinkle with a handful of raisins.

Afterwards, turn your pot off and keep going with the bread layers until you've reached the top of the ovenproof dish. DO NOT PILE IT IN. It's not supposed to look neat- you are not Emeril or Delia.

Pour over the egg mixture and sprinkly liberally with brown sugar. Put in the oven on the middle shelf and bake for around 45 minutes or until the egg has set and it's all lovely and brown on top.

Serve hot or cold with whatever you fancy. Enjoy! :)

I'm going to be making bread pudding this afternoon, and for all those people who've never made it (you are seriously deprived people!), I'll be taking you through it step-by-step. So get ready :)

So I got up earlier than usual this morning and went to a couple of markets with my friend. We hit the Farmers Market and then on the way back home stopped at the Public Market downtown. I got a good haul of food. At the Farmers Market, I knew what I wanted to get...but some of the sellers wern't there so I ended up getting it at the Public Market instead. My haul of stuff....

So, I think that I got a pretty good haul. All for $5 :) And as I said before, I stopped off at the Public Market...there's a couple of photos that I just have to show you. One I was weirded out by and the other I seriously wanted to buy some, but I'm a bit short on cash at the moment :(

What song or lyrics are stuck in your head at the moment?  What album is it from?
Submitted by Lox Ly. 

Not really from an album, but I have the 'Friends' theme tune stuck in my head. Argh! :(

I'm twitching to get back in the kitchen...but I looked through the cupboards yesterday evening and I'm missing some key ingredients. So tomorrow, I'm either going to make cake or flapjacks (flat sweet oaty squares to you Americans). My mum sent me her flapjacks recipe, I found a really nice sounding recipe for a  7-Up cake or since I'm heading out to the farmers market tomorrow...I could go the whole hog and try out my Nana's jam recipe. I just don't know...

Since I'm not in the kitchen doing anything, I've been scrubbing it down from top to bottom today. It was looking kinda grubby. I'm not too sure whether I want to play on the XBox or read. I'm reading the book below at the moment...and it's actually pretty good :)

I seem to have only been blogging about random food stuffs recently.  It's time for some recipes I think...if you've been looking at my photos, you'll have seen things like cupcakes and pasta dishes float by. I also made roast chicken recently...but the battery on the camera was charging at the time, and so I couldn't take a photo :( But I'll be starting with the cupcakes and finishing with pasta...enjoy! :)

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting and Mini Candies

Sponge recipe (my mum and grandma's):
100g (4oz) butter melted
6 eggs, room temperature
225g (8oz) caster sugar
125g (5oz) self-raising flour
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
cocoa powder (1oz)

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, mixing in one at a time. Add the vanilla. Sift in the flour. Add the cocoa and mix well. Can be used for any cake recipe- cupcakes, victoria sandwich, swiss roll- whatever!

Chocolate Ganache Frosting (can also be used as a glaze):
16 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
16 ounces (2 cups) heavy cream

Place the chopped chocolate into the bowl of a food processor.

Heat the heavy cream in a quart-sized, microwavable container and microwave for 3 to 4 minutes on high, or until it just begins to simmer; be careful not to allow cream to boil over. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let stand for 2 minutes. Process by pulsing several times until chocolate mixture is smooth. Use as is for glazing. If you wish to make a lighter frosting, allow it to come to room temperature, approximately 2 hours. Once at room temperature, place in the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk on high for 2 to 3 minutes.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

1 tbsp of butter/marg
half lb of sharp cheddar, grated
1 package of buffalo mozzarella
3 large handfuls of macaroni or ziti
1 cup of milk
2 tbsp plain flour
salt and pepper to taste
dash of oregano
2 cloves of garlic

Chop up the garlic finely and fry off in a pan with a little oil. In another pan, add the milk and the flour and gradually whisk together to avoid lumps. This forms a roux, whisk in the butter afterwards. Add three-quarters of the grated cheese to the roux and whisk to blend. Add the salt, pepper and oregano to taste. Add the garlic to the cheese sauce and whisk together, then turn off the heat.

In a pan of boiling water, add the pasta and cook until almost done. Drain the paste and add to a small baking dish (not too big, a small square one will do). add the cheese sauce and mix. Chop up the mozz into cubes and along with the remainder of the grated cheese to the top of the dish.

Cook for about 20-30 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 375F on the middle rack. Serve with salad or cursty bread :)

A meme I was recently sent. Let me have a think...

1. Bakewell Pudding And no, I do not mean 'bakewell tart'. They are completely different and in my book, the pudding is far better. Since Bakewell used to be only a bus ride away from my parents house- I would go there about once a week to get my fix. The best place to get the puddings from is the "Old Fashioned Bakewell Pudding Shop"- they put it in a brown paper bag for you or a box and then you take it away. You can get them in either small, medium or large (the large really isn't that big). I would buy one and take it home to share with my parents for dinner...it goes down lovely with a large serving of custard :)

2.  Something made by a friend Yes, I am serious. If they're cooking skills are bad, tell them. They're not going to get any better if you beat around the bush. My best friend makes the best flaky cheese straws and bonfire toffee. I love my best friend :)

3. A good pate I mean those ones in the fancy packaging at the supermarket- the ones that cost you a good $6-$7 a pop. Cheap pate is alright for sarnies (I had that a lot when I was a nipper), but for eating on crackers or serving in slices with melba toast- you've gotta have the good stuff. I'm not a fan of the fois gras, but I do love me a bit of Ardennes or Brussels :)

4. Homemade jam or preserve Now my Nana makes fantastic jams and preserves (and so do I now I have the recipe). Supermarket jams and preserves taste like crap compared to something you make in your own kitchen- they're way too sweet and most of the time too geletinous. Proper homemade jams have to be slightly runny so you can get it out of the jar easier- my favourite is either strawberry or raspberry.

And finally...

5. A mushy pea/baked bean mix from the chippy This is the stuff of the gods. Whoever decided to stick mushy peas or baked beans on top of a portion of chips is a God in my eyes. My brother's a fan of the gravy/curry sauce mix. I don't like curry sauce and chips, and the gravy mix is only good if you get that nice rich onion tasting gravy- too many times they just gloop it out of a big can and warm it up (believe me I've watched them)

Yes, I am aware that the majority of the stuff is only available in the UK- but surely that's an excuse to get your arse over there and try these culinary delights. Oh and if you plan on trying #1, tell me cause I'd like to see what other people from around the world think of our regional delights :D

Are there any snacks, food or candy that are no longer made that you desperately miss?

Yeah...when my parents come over every year, they bring me Cadbury's chocolate and Wotsits. I miss ham and Wotsit sandwiches :p

So this is my first entry on Vox. I've been using Livejournal for years, but I'll give this a try and see how I like it. It's kinda weird, but I guess I'll get used to it :)