Announcing Event~ Lets cook sweet treats for Valentine

At simply.food the month of February is dedicated to romance, this event is all about preparing delicious desserts to woo your loved one by making their favorite sweet treat. Feel free to make any sweet treat that you would like to present to your valentine and link it to this event.

To Participate:

1. Prepare any  sweet treat  suitable for vegetarians  (eggs allowed),  please link your dish using the linky below by entering your Dish Name and Post URL
2. Please link this event announcement with your entry, this is mandatory.
3.Use of logo is  not mandatory but it helps to spread the word if you can use it.

4. Multiple entries are allowed, archived are only allowed if reposted and updated with this event link.

4. In the event of problem using linky you can email me the entry at simplysensationalfood@gmail.com

Please use this format:

Your Name: Recipe
Name Recipe URL
Image no larger than 300 pixels.
Event Ends 28th Feb 2014

Strawberry Marble Cake (eggless)

Luscious strawberry in a moist sponge makes this cake delicious.

Ingredients:

225g (8 oz) self-raising flour
225g (8 oz) butter, at room temperature
225g (8 oz) caster sugar plus 2 teaspoons
4 eggs or (4 tablespoons egg replacer mixed with 4 tablespoons water )
1 teaspoon baking powder
10 strawberries
1 teaspoon  natural red food colouring

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C / gas mark 4.
2. Mix the egg replacer with 4 tablespoons water whisk and keep aside.
3.Mix together the butter and 225 g sugar until light and fluffy.
4. In a separate bowl sieve together the flour and baking powder
5. Add spoonful of flour and egg replacer alternately into the butter and sugar and fold it in until all the flour is mixed in.
6. Chop the strawberries into small pieces and add 3/4 of them  to the batter and fold them in
7. The remaining 1/4 of the strawberries place in a food blender with 2 teaspoons sugar and whizz blend them to form a smooth puree.
8. Sieve the puree to remove pips. Add 1 teaspoon red food colour to this puree and mix it in. Pour the puree into a plastic piping bag and keep aside.
9. Grease and line a rectangular cake tin .
10. Pour the cake batter in the tin and tap the tin gently to spread the batter out evenly.
11. Cut a tiny hole in the piping bag and pipe red swirls all over the top of the cake batter.
12. Using a cocktail stick swirl the red strawberry puree into the batter.
13. Place the cake in the oven to bake for 35-40 mins at 180 degrees c /350 degrees F . Check the cake is done by inserting a skewer in the cake if it comes out clean cake is baked.
14 Remove from oven and cool  on a wire rack before serving.

You may like:
Strawberry Kisses mini muffins

Submitting to:
Flavours of the world ~Grand Finale

Orange Chocolate Mousse Vegetarian friendly and Shaken Udder Milkshakes giveaway.

I recently wrote about some yummy milkshakes that I was sent by Shaken Udder, we really enjoyed them and we not only drank them but created some awesome desserts with them too such as Banana caramel Ice cream and Orange chocolate mousse.

Here is the recipe:

Creamy rich and chocolicious with a hint of orange chocolate mousse.

Ingredients:

240 ml Shaken Udder Choc Orange Milkshake
120 ml Milk
1 tablespoon agar agar flakes
1 tablespoon sugar
60 g milk chocolate grated or finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon orange essence
Orange slices for garnish
6 Orange chocolate match sticks for garnish

Method:

1. Add the milk to a pan and add the agar agar flakes and sugar bring to boil, keep stirring  until agar agar and sugar are fully dissolved.  Turn off heat and add in the chocolate and keep stirring until its all melted.
2.Whisk the milk shake until thick and creamy. I used my milk frother for this.Add the orange essence and mix it in.
3. Fold the agar agar mixture to the whisked chocolate milk shake to combine it.
4. Spoon the mixture into small shot glasses.
5. Place the mousse in the fridge for 4 hours to semi set.
6. Before serving garnish with orange slices and a chocolate match stick

NB- Due to this mousse being gelatine free it does not set fully and will have a creamy smooth texture.

I was sent the Shaken Udder milkshakes to try and they have been very kind and have agreed to provide two simply.food readers 16 bottles of their milkshakes each  for a giveaway prize.

How To Enter

Simply complete the Rafflecopter widget below to verify your entries
Entries can be via blog comment, Facebook, Twitter etc
Please read the rules they form the terms and conditions of this Giveaway
Closing date – 12th February 2014 12.00 am

Open to over 18 years old and UK residents only.
2 prizes of 16 bottles of Shaken Udder Milkshake (One prize per winner only)

How Rafflecopter works:

• You will need to complete the mandatory entry first – usually making a blog comment. You can do this by clicking on leave a comment at the bottom of the post and leaving your reply in the comment box. Please note your comment will not show immediately as it needs to be moderated however rest assured it will appear on the site, so carry on with rest of entries.
• Login to Rafflecopter – click to see what the question is. Make a comment answering the question on the blog.
•  Go back to Rafflecopter and click the green button to tell me you have made a comment, this will unlock all the other options. All entries are checked to see that the mandatory question is answered, if its not all bonus entries will become void. 
• Rafflecopter will tweet, like and follow on your behalf.
• For information on how to find the URL of your tweet click here. 
• For bonus entries you can return to this page and enter the daily bonus entries. 
• If you are still unsure as to how Rafflecopter works please do check out this short video.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Apple Crumb Bars ~Secret recipe club challenge 20th January 2014

This is my assignment with the Secret Recipe Club.The aim of the club is that you are allocated a blog from which you have to select a recipe and try it and blog about it. My assigned blog was Mele Cotte.This blog is written By Chris who is from an Italian background.Browsing through her blog there were many recipes that caught my eye but one that I immediately want to try was her Apple Crumb Bars.Being the christmas holidays I always have an invite  or two to someones house, a baked goodie makes a perfect edible pressie.
I did not make any major changes to the recipe but I halved it and reduced the amount of sugar slightly. I also tossed some flaked almonds on the crumb topping for extra crunch .The apple crumb bars turned out delicious. My only challenge was that living in the UK working out what a stick of butter weighed took some googling. :)
You can find the original Apple crumb bar recipe here.

Crisp baked oats and apple bars with a delicious cinnamon crumb topping.

Ingredients:

Bottom layer

½ cup rolled oats
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup packed brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
120g butter
1 tablespoon egg replacer mixed with three tablespoons water

Middle layer-apple layer

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly
½ cup granulated sugar
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Top layer-crumb topping

½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup rolled oats
½ cup sugar
60g/ 2oz butter chilled

30g / 1 oz flaked almonds

Method:

1. Heat oven to 175°C/ 350° F.

2. Lightly line & grease a shallow baking tin

3. To prepare crumb topping take a medium bowl and add to it the flour and rub in the chilled butter to form a bread crumb type mixture, stir in the oats and sugar and set aside.

4. To prepare the apple layer, add the apples slices to a bowl add to it the sugar and cinnamon and toss together. Keep aside

 5. To prepare the bottom layer take a medium bowl and add to it the flour, salt, baking powder and chilled butter and rub gently to form a crumb type texture.

6. Stir in the oats and sugar and add the egg replacer and mix together.

7. Spread this mixture into the greased and lined baking tray and smooth it out.

8. Arrange the apples in cinnamon sugar over this layer.

9. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the apples and smooth it out so that it forms an even layer.

10. Bake the apple crumb bars in the preheated oven for 25 minutes.

11. After 25 minutes of cooking sprinkle some almond flakes on the crumb bars and return to the oven for another 10 minutes or until the crumb mixture is golden brown and apple are cooked.

Remove from oven and leave to cool completely before cutting into bars.

You may like:

Honey Ginger Flapjacks

Submitting to:

Lets cook with Apples  :


Flavours of the world ~ Grand Finale event by simply.food

Shaken Udder Milkshakes review

I love milkshakes and its such a good way to get your children to drink milk without making a fuss. Making milkshakes at home is fairly simple and can be made with avariety of fruits but sometimes when we are out or need lunch on the go its not practical to carry homemade milkshakes.In this situation Shaken Udder milkshakes are perfect for on the go.

Shaken Udder is a range of delicious milkshakes made from fresh British milk, combined with finest ingredients such as Belgium chocolate, vanilla beans, fresh strawberries and real bananas, no artificial colours or flavourings are added the the milkshakes.The milkshakes have less than  5% added sugar providing a good source of Calcium. They are gluten free and suitable for vegetarians too.

The four amazing flavours are Choc Orange, Top banana, Chocolush and Vanilllalicious. Having tried all the flavours my favorite was the choc orange however my family disagreed and voted for the banana.The milkshakes are available in Waitrose, Sainsburys and Tesco. You can also purchase them online. The online price is £ 14.00 for 8 bottles.

In the photo above you can see we enjoyed the top banana flavour , perfectly chilled and served with a garnish of banana slices covered in chocolate sauce. Apart from drinking the shakes, I am sure you can create icecreams with them too which is going to be my next task.

Thankyou to shaken Udder for sending me the samples. All the views expressed  in this review are my own.

Pixley Berries Cordial Review

In the summer it’s nice to have refreshing soft drinks but I prefer to serve soft drinks that are low in sugars and made from fresh fruits rather than concentrates with additives in them. Pixley Berries cordials are made from fruit juices, sugar, and water. They are completely free from additives and preservatives and are not made from concentrates.The cordials come in three flavours blackcurrant, cranberry and apple and blackcurrant and raspberry.
Pixley Berries sent me the Cranberry and Apple flavour to sample. I tried it diluted with ice cold still water and also tried it by diluting it with ice cold sparkling water. I definitely preferred mine with the sparkling water.You could taste the cranberries and the sweetness of the apple which left a pleasing sensation on the palate.
All the berries used in the cordials are carefully selected from suppliers and pressed to retain the flavours of them. Each bottle will provide 12 servings .The cordials are perfect for making mocktails, cocktails or even added to fruit salads and used as flavourings. They are available to purchase from Waitrose and online.

Thank you to Pixley Berries for sending me a bottle of the Cranberry and Apple cordial to try, all the views and opinions expressed  in this post are my own.

Greek Phyllo triangles with cheese and potato

Greek phyllo pastry filled with a cheesy potato filling and baked to perfection.

Ingredients:

2 large potatoes boiled
90g /3 oz  feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon paprika
6 sheets of phyllo pastry
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 small onion finely diced
1 clove garlic finely chopped
1 tablespoon sun dried tomatoes finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon olive oil to brush on the triangles

Method:

1. In a bowl add the potatoes and mash it with a potato masher.
2. Add the salt, pepper, paprika,nutmeg, chopped sundried tomatoes and crumble the feta cheese into the bowl.
3. In a pan add 1 tablespoon olive oil and saute the onions and garlic  until translucent, once onions are soft remove them from the pan and wait for them to cool.
4. Add the lemon juice and onions to the potato mixture and mix all the ingredients together well.
5. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C /375 degrees F
6. Oil a baking tray and keep aside.
7. Unroll the phyllo sheets and place them on a flat surface.
8. Using a sharp knife cut the phyllo sheets into two lengthways.
9. To fold the triangles take one length of phyllo and place it length ways in front of you.
10. Place a spoonful of the potato mixture in the corner at the bottom of the phyllo strip.
11. Fold that corner over to form a triangle making sure all filling is encased.Continue folding the phyllo triangle from left to right until you have a perfectly encased phyllo triangle.

Please check this video that shows how to fold the triangles.

12. Place the phyllo triangle on the baking tray with the seam side down.
13. Repeat for rest of phyllo sheets.
14.Brush all the phyllo triangles with olive oil and bake the triangles in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes until pastry is golden brown.
15.Remove triangles from oven and serve hot with minty yoghurt dip.

Submitting to:

Flavours of the world-Grand Finale event by simply.food

Javelin Warriors Made with luv
Delicieux and Eat your Veg FSF Winter
Extra veg event by fuss free flavours and utterly scrummy
In my veg box ~Potatoes event by citrusspiceuk guest hosted by Give me some spice

Spinach and Potato Curry

Delicious baby spinach cooked with baby potatoes in a spicy gravy.

Ingredients:

240g / 8 oz baby Spinach
12 baby potatoes
1 tomato cut into half, seeds removed and sliced
1 green chilli cut into slits and seeds removed
1 clove garlic peeled and finely chopped
3 tablespoons passata (sieved tomatoes)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

Method:

1.Put the baby potatoes without peeling them in a microwaveable bowl, add 2-3 tablespoons of water and cover and cook on high for 7-10 minutes until potatoes are fully cooked.
2. Look through the spinach leaves and cut off any long stalks.
3. In a large saucepan boil some water, when it is boiling place the spinach leaves in a colander and place the colander in the boiling water to blanch the spinach leaves for 2-3 minutes.
4. Lift out the colander of spinach and immediately run some cold water through them .
5. Place the blanched spinach in a food processor and puree them.
6. In a pan add the olive oil and wait for it to heat up, once its hot add the mustard seeds and wait for them to splutter.Next add the garlic and saute for a few seconds, take care not to burn it.
7. Add the passata, chilli powder, cumin powder,coriander powder,turmeric and salt and saute the mixture for 2-3 minutes.
8. Add the spinach puree and mix thoroughly into the spicy passata sauce.Add 50 ml water and cook for 3-4 minutes.
9. Peel the skin off the potatoes and cut them into halves.Add the potatoes to the spinach.
10. Mix thoroughly until all the spinach coates the potatoes. Cover and cook for a further 5 minutes until all the spices have infused into the potatoes.
11.Transfer the spinach and potato curry to a serving dish. Garnish with the tomato slices and green chiilis.

I served this curry with  with mixed dhal pancakes

You may like:
Spinach Parathas

Submitting to:

Flavours of the world-Grand Finale event by simply.food

Lets cook with green vegetables event by simply.food

Javelin Warriors Made with luv
Healthy side dishes event by Priya Guest hosted by Nandoos Kitchen
Delicieux and Eat your Veg FSF Winter
Extra veg event by fuss free flavours and utterly scrummy
In my veg box ~Potatoes event by citrusspiceuk guest hosted by Give me some spice

Giveaway~Mustard Heart Rotary Whisk/ Frother

Images courtesy of Mustard

In the kitchen we have many gadgets but one that I find I use frequently is my whisk, be it for whisking cream for toppings, batter for pancakes, frothing milk for lattes or whisking eggs for an omelette.

I find that using an electric blender somewhat cumbersome if I want to whisk something in a hurry. That’s when my heart rotary whisk is perfect for those simple whisking tasks in the kitchen. It is constructed from stainless steel with silicon and plastic making it light and easy to use. The heart whisk is a push rotary whisk that needs no batteries, but uses a clever mechanism to turn pushing action into a spinning whipping motion helping to save time and effort whenever you bake. Washing it is absolutely no problem as all that is required is to run the whisk under some running water and it’s clean in jiffy.

The heart whisk can be bought on line from Mustard and retails at £ 12.00. It is a wonderful gadget and perfect for all whisking tasks especially frothy milk for cappuccinos and lattes.I would like to thank Mustard for sending me the whisk to use, all the views and opinions in this post are my own.

With Valentine’s day just around the corner Mustard have teamed up with simply.food and are offering two simply.food readers a heart whisk each to gift to their valentine.

How To Enter

Simply complete the Rafflecopter widget below to verify your entries
Entries can be via blog comment, Facebook, Twitter etc
Please read the rules they form the terms and conditions of this Giveaway
Closing date – 8th February 2014 12.00 am

Open to over 18 years old and UK residents only.

How Rafflecopter works:

• You will need to complete the mandatory entry first – usually making a blog comment. You can do this by clicking on leave a comment at the bottom of the post and leaving your reply in the comment box. Please note your comment will not show immediately as it needs to be moderated however rest assured it will appear on the site, so carry on with rest of entries.
• Login to Rafflecopter – click to see what the question is. Make a comment answering the question on the blog.
•  Go back to Rafflecopter and click the green button to tell me you have made a comment, this will unlock all the other options. All entries are checked to see that the mandatory question is answered, if its not all bonus entries will become void. 
• Rafflecopter will tweet, like and follow on your behalf.
• For information on how to find the URL of your tweet click here. 
• For bonus entries you can return to this page and enter the daily bonus entries. 
• If you are still unsure as to how Rafflecopter works please do check out this short video.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Broccoli and Potato curry

Punjabi style broccoli and potato curry flavoured with aromatic garam masala and  cooked in a spicy sauce.

Ingredients

240 g / 8 oz broccoli florets
10 small baby potatoes
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
3 tablespoons passata ( sieved tomatoes)
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon punjabi garam masala
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
3 tablespoons olive oil

Method:

1. Place the baby potatoes in a large microwaveable bowl with 3 tablespoons of water and microwave them on high for 8-10 minutes until potatoes are cooked. Remove from microwave and peel off the skin. If some potatoes are bigger than others cut them into halves.
2. Place the broccoli in the microwaveable pot and add two tablespoons of water, cook the broccoli for 5 minutes until its cooked.Remove from microwave drain and keep aside.
3. In a large wok add 2 tablespoons of oil and wait for it to heat up ,once its hot add the potatoes and broccoli and stir fry until both start to crisp up slightly (takes about 5 minutes.) Once both broccoli and potatoes are crisp turn off heat and keep aside.
4. In another pan add the 1 tablespoon of oil and wait for it to heat up.Once hot add the mustard seeds and wait for them to pop, add the garlic and saute for a few seconds.
5. Add the passata , salt, chilli powder,cumin powder,coriander powder and garam masala and saute the spices in the passata until they are fully infused.
6. Add the stir fried broccoli and potatoes to the gravy nad toss until all the spice mixture has coated the potatoes and broccoli.
7. Reduce the heat and cook the curry for 4-5 minutes on a low heat to allow the spices to infuse.
Transfer the curry to a serving dish and serve with paratha.

You may like:
Sweet and sour vegetables

Submitting to:
Flavours of the world-Grand Finale event by simply.food

Lets cook with green vegetables event by simply.food

Javelin Warriors Made with luv
Healthy side dishes event by Priya Guest hosted by Nandoos Kitchen
Delicieux and Eat your Veg FSF Winter
Extra veg event by fuss free flavours and utterly scrummy
In my veg box ~Potatoes event by citrusspiceuk guest hosted by Give me some spice

Round Up ~ Lets Cook Christmas Party Food

Thankyou for all the wonderful entries, here is the lovely round up of the dishes.