Nibbles in Norfolk

Its has recently been team meeting time again for our lovely consultants.  Around the country our teams of pasionate and friendly foodies have been gathering to swop business tips and of course share a tasty nibble or two.  This month we have showcased a recipe from Terri Rhind (our team leader in Wiltshire) with Juliette Kidd and her team in Norfolk.

Jumping Jack & Potato Bread Puddings may sound a little unusual but I can assure you they had us all coming back for more at our recent recipe testing session. They feature one of our best selling yummy products Jumping Jack Chilli Jam and the individual savoury bread puddings make a great addition to lunch boxes (they freeze brilliantly too). The recipe also uses our extremely versatile Beer Bread Mixes and with wintery chills in the air and the darker nights, a little homely and wholesome bread baking is just what the oven ordered. You can find the full recipe here and no doubt you can come up with your own ingenious twists on this recipe. 
Happy baking!

Clare
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Coffee Monster

Its no secret that I am the coffee equivalent of the cookie monster when it comes to my morning brew. Don't even think about talking to me until the kettle is on and I do not share. Yes I also take my own coffee pot and coffee wherever I go.

As a cooking flavour, coffee is more of an acquired taste. Enter My Secret Kitchen Mochaccino Cookie Mix. It is a brilliant cookie mix bringing coffee together with chunks of white and dark chocolate.  It was developed orignially as a biscotti mix (and you can still make fabulous biscotti with it - find the recipe and here) but in a simpler fashion it also makes fabulous soft bake cookies - amazing warm and gooey straight from the oven as well as chunky scones and to-die-for mini pecan pie coffee cookies
 
So I thought I would try to create a coffee cup cake with one of our most versatile products.  The results - the Caramel Latte Cup Cake.

Its a coffee and chocolate cup cake, doused in coffee liqueur and topped with maple caramel buttercream, sprinkled with cocoa and a coffee bean.  You can find the full recipe here and try your hand at any of the gorgeous recipes using our Mochaccino Cookie Mix.

Enjoy!

Clare
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Mango Melba Magic

Here's the second of our adventures in cup cake land. Our Mango Melba cup cake is a creative fusion of a raspberry and white chocolate cup cake (thanks to our Chocaberry Cheese Ball Mix and Original Beer Bread Mix) with a mango glaze and topped with a velvety smooth mango cream cheese buttercream (courtesy of our Mango Mojito Dessert Sauce).  To complete the look, it is garnished with a fresh raspberry, a piece of dried mango, mint leaves and a final flourish of Mango Mojito Dessert sauce.  This is not a cup cake to be scoffed lightly, serve on your best tea plates with a little cake fork and slowly devour every mouthful.  You can find the full recipe here, Enjoy!

Clare
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Sugar and spice and all things nice

Autumn is in the air and as we say goodbye to the last few warm days of the season and drag out our woollies, here's a little something to look forward to from our kitchen - cup cakes.  This is our first cup cake recipe as we celebrate all that is sugary, sweet, plus a little spice and of course always nice.

Thanks to our client Lisa Lovell for the inspiration for the Apple Cup Cake with Canella Buttercream.  It not only features our Beer Bread Mix and Maple Caramel Sauce but a debut recipe for our new Vanilla Pudding Spices.  I promise you, baking with this new sweet spice will fill your home and your heart with the comforts of vanilla, cinnamon and our new bff, roasted cassia.

You can find the full recipe here

Next week with the expert help from 'Cup Cake Katie' we'll be turning our hands to another cup cake sensation.

Happy baking!

Clare
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Saving the best for last

Do you sometimes fnd yourself scraping the barrel....well ok the jar?!

We love our square jars but like you, we often find ourselves trying to reach the last elusive tasty bits that get stuck in the corners. Well here are a few recipes & tips to make sure that you get the most out of our jars!  

Our Tapenade with Smoked Garlic & Jumping Jack Chilli Jam (& even a little Fig Pudding Pickle) are great added to Bolognese, casseroles & soups so when it's not possible to get a spoonful out, add a little hot water from the kettle, give the jar a shake & then tip into your recipe. 

For super speedy and simple dressings, add the extra ingredients needed for these fab recipes straight into the jar and give it all a shake. 

Fig Balsamic & Walnut Dressing 

Tapenade Vinaigrette 

 

How about adding a secret extra to your hot drinks? A Maple Caramel Latte is a yummy treat that if you haven't enjoyed before is definitely a must for the end of the jar - just add your hot coffee to the jar & shake it into the corners to free those last bits of Maple Caramel Sauce then pour into a mug of heated/frothed milk.   Instead of coffee you could use cocoa & enjoy a decadent hot chocolate!  

Hot chocolate is another drink that we enjoy with our Chocolate Peppermint Fondue so at the end of the jar just add in some of the hot milk & shake to melt the last bits of fondue.  

Maple Caramel Sauce is also delicious with apples & pears so if you are stewing or poaching these then add some hot water to the jar to free the sauce & then add to your pan of fruit.  

We hope these tips & ideas help you to enjoy our products right down to the last drop and maybe you'd agree that we save the best for last?!

 

- Laura Virgoe

Feeling hungry? It must be launchtime!

Today is one of the days of the year we love the most – it’s the time when we launch our new goodies for the autumn/winter season! As well as some cracking new products, we’ve news of some amazing new gift packs. Christmas may be three months away, but it pays to be prepared! And on that note, as things get busier and busier for us, we’re looking for more lovely people to come and join the team. Read on to learn more!

• Fire-up the flavour of your favourite foods
• Savour our new sweet and spicy innovation
• Get the lowdown on our great new gift packs
• Come on – let’s help each other out!

Secret Firecracker
Chilli Spices

After the success of our Secret Wild Garlic Spices, the ?rst product in our Secret Spices range, we’re excited to bring you another – Firecracker Chilli. This sensational seasoning is simply bursting with fiery flavours thanks to our blend of Mexico’s ‘holy trinity’ of chillies.

This includes the sweet and mild ancho, the dark and liquorice-like pasilla, and the red and fruity guajillo. Together with the flavours and spicy heat of cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic and Mexican oregano, this Secret Spice is so much easier to use than fresh chillies – just 1/4 tsp will replace one small red chilli!

To put our Secret Firecracker Chilli Spices through its paces, you could:

• Serve onion rings (or steak and chips) with a creamy Firecracker Chill dip
• Make you own salsa by stirring 2 tsp Secret Firecracker Chilli Spices into 400g of chopped tomatoes, onions and fresh coriander (or your own favourite combination of salsa ingredients – tropical fruits, avocado or black beans all work well)
• Add some to natural yogurt to use to give wraps and pitta bread fillings a cheeky kick. 

• More about Secret Firecracker Chilli Spices

Secret Vanilla
Pudding Spices

We’re proud to be the first people in the market with the concept of a sweet seasoning.

Secret Vanilla Pudding Spices cleverly combines voluptuous vanilla with cinnamon, ground coriander seed, ginger and the secret ingredient, roasted cassia.

Cassia – also known as Chinese cinnamon – has a similar appearance to cinnamon bark but with a stronger flavour.  

Roasting it also gives a wonderfully unique toasted flavour, and helps to make our Secret Vanilla Pudding Spices a must-have ingredient for autumn and winter comfort baking. It will add a tasty twist to puddings and desserts – and is especially awesome in a traditional English apple pie.

To savour our Secret Vanilla Pudding Spices you could:

• Use it as a sweet topping for warming drinks, stirring it into hot chocolate or mixing some with sugar and using as the edging for cocktail glasses.
• Use some as the dusting for warm donuts, French toast or for churros,
• Serve it alongside My Secret Kitchen Chocolate Peppermint Fondue
• Add some to custard or try some in a vanilla, rum and raisin sauce
• Sprinkle it onto popcorn or onto marshmallows for Halloween parties
• Use it in the buttercream for a carrot cake – or try it with apple cupcakes with canella buttercream

• More about Secret Vanilla Pudding Spices

Our great new gift packs and hampers 

We’ve been hard at work creating a new gift pack range. From perfect stocking fillers such as our £10 Bread & Jam gift box, through to our sumptuous £180 Ultimate Hamper (which comprises a gorgeous 24” wicker hamper and every single one of our products) it’s our biggest and most varied selection ever.

So if you are looking for a present for a food-loving friend, or your business would like to give slightly tastier corporate gifts this year, you’ll be sure to find something that ticks all the right boxes. For more details, simply speak to your local consultant – or for corporate gift enquiries, just contact us directly.

Let’s help each other out! 

We get so busy in the run up to Christmas, so now is a terrific time to join us as a consultant. With the coming demands of next few months, we would really welcome more help.

If the idea of some extra income appeals to you, give us a call on 0845 094 5319 or send us an email to find out more and see whether being a My Secret Kitchen Consultant could work for you.

Simple Pleasures

It may not be the best summer for sunshine but there is still joy to be had from garden flavours this year - thanks to the greenhouse or in our case, conservatory-come-gym-come-greenhouse.

What can be sweeter than a plate of tomatoes drizzled with Balsamic Reduction, a touch of Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil and a sprinkling of Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt.  Borage flowers complete the look and who knows, a diet of summer tomatoes *may* help with that bikini body count down!  (What an inspiration the Olympian athletes are too although I'll set my sights a little lower with eating healthier and more fresh air this summer regardless of the weather!).  Simple pleasures are the best.

Happy summer everyone,

Clare
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Something for everyone!

In this month’s newsletter we really have got something for everyone! We’ve exciting news about our brand new online recipe book; details of a fabulous new business kit for would-be consultants; the low-down on the celebrities who visited our stand at the Good Food Show; and ideas for giving your next tasting a bit of a twist!

• Cast your eyes over our online recipe book
• Discover our brand new type of business kit
• Find out which famous folk visited us at the Good Food Show
• Give your tasting a twist in July

Our online recipe book is now open! 

First, the news many of our followers have been waiting for! Over the last few months, in response to your requests for even more ideas on how to make your meals more amazing, we’ve been busily beavering away to create a database of our recipes.

We’re delighted to say that this bright and exciting ‘online recipe book’ is now live! All the recipes featured in it are easy to follow, and each one includes a nice big photo to whet your appetite.

• Take a look at our online recipe book now!

We’ve already uploaded over 65 tempting recipes, and we’ll be adding more each month. What’s more, you can add comments to each recipe, so if you have ideas for a variation or how to make it even better, please feel free to chip in and share your thoughts!

Get kitted out for an event 

We have a number of consultants who earn their My Secret Kitchen income at events such as farmers’ markets rather than at home tastings. In light of this, we have created a brand new business kit for people who would like to join us as a consultant and sell our products in this way. The Events and Markets Business Kit can be bought for just £35, making it a really low-cost way to kick-start your My Secret Kitchen Business.

• For more details, simply get in touch

Getting all showbiz at the Good Food show 

If you were one of the many who stopped by to meet us at the Good Food Show last week, a big, big thank you! It was an exhausting few days, but with so many of our customers – and quite a few celebrities – stopping by to sample goodies, it was well worth the effort.

Well-known visitors to our stand included the winner and the runners-up from this year’s Masterchef, and the actor Todd Carty (who played Mark in Eastenders, but who we will always remember as Tucker Jenkins in Grange Hill). On top of all of that, Masterchef’s Greg Wallace did a cooking demo on stage using our Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil. What can we say but bring on the next exhibition!

Give your tasting a twist in July 

This month, you can give your tasting a twist by choosing one of these three tasty themes:

FAMILY FAVOURITES
Discover inspired yet easy ways to increase your repertoire of meals that even the fussiest members of your household will love to eat – and help to make!

LIGHTER & BRIGHTER
Revel in recipes that are low in fat, high in energy, packed with flavour rather than calories – and which satisfy your appetite long after your devoured them!

SUMMER SPECIALS
Savour sumptuous seasonal ingredients and fantastic flavours that will cast a ray of sunshine on your taste buds, whatever the weather!

To arrange a themed tasting, just get in touch with your your local consultant (or simply contact us if you’re not sure of their details).
 

That’s it for another edition – until next time, stay up to date with our latest news via Twitter, Facebook or our blog.

Best wishes

Clare Moran, Founder, My Secret Kitchen

Thank you!

We've got to thank so many of you for stopping by to meet us at the Good Food Show last week. It was an exhausting few days but we met so many of you and quite a few celebs stopped by to try and approve of our goodies including the winner and all runner-ups of this years Masterchef, Greg Wallace cooking with our oak smoked rapeseed oil onstage, and good old Tucker Jenkins from Grange Hill (Todd Carty, but I will always remember him as Tucker)

A lot of you are now thinking of joining us as consultants so we look forward to bringing you onboard!

Creativity Wins!

How do you like to cook? Some people like to read and prepare recipes to the letter creating perfection in every bite.  Others give the ingredients a quick scan and then ditch the recipe book to create their own masterpieces. It is true that a picture speaks a thousand words - just the sight of something yummy can give the inspiration to get creative in the kitchen.


My kind of cooking can be compared to reality singing shows where contestants are encouraged to make songs 'their own'. There is nothing more satisfying to me than to hear of new ways that My Secret Kitchen products and recipes are being enjoyed.

One of my favourite recipes this month is hoummus using our gorgeous Saffron Tagine Paste. Our paste is great value for money - from the same jar you can make a fabulous tagine for six and still have enough left to use in marinades and dressings or to add a touch of exotic flavour to any dish - we've made it unique by adding the evocative spice, saffron. To serve with the hoummus we created another recipe for our versatile Beer Bread Mixes - Sunflower Seeded Honey Beer Bread and turned the loaf into home-made gourmet crisp bread crackers.

Hoummus with Saffron Tagine Chick Pea Topping
and Sunflower Seeded Honey Crisp Bread

The hoummus recipe uses chick peas - some of which are reserved to make a topping along with more Saffron Tagine Paste, red onion, tomato puree and our Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil from Sussex - with its golden colour and distinctive smokey flavour.  The Sunflower Seeded Honey Crisp Breads are made by leaving the prepared loaf to cool completely before cutting into slices and baking in a low oven......

Saffron Tagine Hoummus with
Sunflower seeded Honey Beer Bread

Alternatively, you can interpret the recipe differently (like one of our team leaders Nic Blake did!) by shoving all the ingredients in a blender and whizz away!  Similarly with the bread recipe you can just cut into chunks and serve!  Both serving suggestions are really tasty and great as a starter or for serving with crudites, in sandwiches or with salads.  I then used the last of the hoummus to thicken up a one pot chicken stew that needed some oomph!

In all cases creativity wins - the true pleasure is seeing everyone in the kitchen using and abusing our recipes and products - I'm confident you'll be a winner - after all, every My Secret Kitchen product has the X Factor!

Enjoy!

Clare

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Hoummus topped with Saffron Tagine Chick Peas & Smoked Oil

Serves 8-10

1 x can of chick peas drained and rinsed (240g)
3 tbsp tahini
1/2 tsp My Secret Kitchen Wild Garlic Secret Spices
Juice of 1 large lemon
2 tbsp light olive oil
50ml cold water, more as required
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp My Secret Kitchen Saffron Tagine Paste
2 tbsp My Secret Kitchen Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil
1 tbsp tomato puree
Handful fresh coriander, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

To make the chick pea topping, take 2 tbsp of the chick peas, mix together in a small bowl with the red onion, tomato puree, chopped coriander, Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil and 1 tbsp of the Saffron Tagine Paste and put to one side. To make the hoummus, blend all the remaining ingredients in a blender or food processor, adding more water as required.  Check the seasoning to taste and serve in a bowl with the seasoned chick peas scattered over the top.

Sunflower Seeded Honey Beer Bread

Makes 1 loaf

1 x My Secret Kitchen Wholegrain Beer Bread Mix
50g sunflower seeds
1 tbsp honey
150ml fizzy beverage

Preheat oven 175°C / Gas Mark 4. Grease and line a 1lb loaf tin. Empty the Beer Bread Mix into a bowl, add the sunflower seeds and mix together.  Make a well in the centre and add the fizzy beverage and then the honey.  Mix quickly and thoroughly until all the ingredients are combined.  Spoon the dough into the loaf tin and roughly smooth over. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. For an added touch you can top the loaf with more sunflower seeds and a drizzle of Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil as it goes in the oven.  To make the bread into crackers, leave until completely cold (preferably overnight) and slice into thin slices.  Bake in a low oven, turning once, until crunchy and golden brown.

Forever Foodies

Clare Moran (Co-Founder)

Every month our lovely foodie consultants (or gastronauts as we sometimes call them!) get together at local team meetings for business support and inspiration.  For their meetings we come up with new recipes to try out – last month we put together some gorgeous Artichoke Pesto & gruyere puffs as well as stuffed baby potatoes with Tapenade with Smoked Garlic and a fabulous dairy free banana and Fig Pudding Pickle smoothie. 

Joy, Jane & Suzette

Artichoke Pesto & Gruyere Puffs

Makes 24 appetisers

2 tbsp My Secret Kitchen Artichoke Pesto

3 medium eggs
100g gruyere cheese, finely grated
3 tbsp My Secret Kitchen Original Beer Bread Mix
My Secret Kitchen Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt

Preheat oven 200°C / Gas Mark 6. Grease a mini muffin pan with olive oil and place in the oven to heat.
Whisk together the eggs in a medium bowl and whisk in the Artichoke Pesto. Add the grated cheese and season with Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt.  Add the Original Beer Bread Mix and quickly mix. Divide the mixture equally between the muffin pan and bake for 8 to 10 minutes until golden and puffed.  Allow to cool slightly before removing from the pan. 

It never ceases to amaze me the wonderful people we meet and whom join us as consultants – foodies who are first-time business people or business people who see the potential in our food; either way, all our consultants love sharing our foods with people in an authentic way. 

Take Suzanne Alexander in Melton Mowbray – using the same recipe as the puffs, she created these fabulous blinis and combined them with Wild Garlic sour cream.

So hats off to all you foodies and being creative with our ingredients; at My Secret Kitchen you know we will never compromise on taste, value and versatility.  You don’t need to be a whizz in the kitchen to be one of our consultants – just an entrepreneurial spirit with a touch of foodie passion and we can provide the rest of the support you need – and perhaps you are the star of your own foodie show after all! 

(don’t forget you can email us to find out a little more or complete our online enquiry form)

Clare

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More Secret Kitchens!

Thanks for your photos of your gorgeous secret kitchens...keep them coming!  Email us at office@mysecretkitchen.co.uk
What do you love about your kitchen and what's cooking?!
Clare
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Sally's Secret Kitchen

Mat in action!

Your Secret Kitchen

I'm a sucker for home magazines; I love drooling over the pictures of glossy high end kitchens from modern city chic apartments to rustic farmhouses - the ones with the hand-made-cost-a-fortune type kitchens. In those pages, it looks as if nothing gets spilled or burnt and never needs cleaning - and come with perfect children and a labrador!

The majority of us have modest, simple and most important, fully functioning culinary spaces. Does a perfect show-home kitchen mean perfect cooking every time?  Maybe, but still, we all have the opportunity to make gorgeous meals whether you have a dual fuel, 6 burner range with sous vide option or an oven that needs a broom handle to keep it shut (I've been there!). That's our philosophy at My Secret Kitchen - we want to help you make your meals more amazing regardless of how your kitchen is styled or if you have the latest kitchen gizmo or not.

Mat and Vi's Secret Kitchen

Take my nephew Mat and his girlfriend Vi - they have just moved in together and are blissfully happy and proud to be in their first place together. I asked them to share what they have been cooking in their compact and bijou little kitchen. Gracing their foot stool - spicy thai papaya salad, bangers and mash and a rather incredible-sounding dish from Vi's native Poland of fried chicken with peaches, curry powder, chillies, soy and single cream served with rice. My personal favourite was the egg and soldiers which I'm sure tasted even more fabulous because it was cooked in their own secret kitchen.

Its true what they say about the kitchen being the heart of the home and you know the one about kitchens and parties. The art of making and preparing food is magical and I hope that as our company grows we can continue to be inspirational with our foods into the heart of your kitchens.

If you'd like to send us your photos of your secret kitchen, we'd love to send you our Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt - perfect for making pretty much anything really tasty and would be amazing with that egg :-)

 (email your photos to office@mysecretkitchen.co.uk)

So here's to your secret kitchen and to making your meals more amazing, Enjoy,

Clare
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Open and Enjoy

Lets face it, most of us need to get dinner on the table in under 30 mins.  Week-end cooking and entertaining is where we can spend more time and effort in creating ellaborate dishes that taste great but why should we compromise mid-week?  So, here are a few ideas to make those every day meals more amazing with My Secret Kitchen products lending a helping hand.  The products features are particularly suited to just 'open and enjoy' with your mid-week suppers, Enjoy!

Featuring: Tapenade with Smoked Garlic & Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt

A new meaning for Ham, Egg and Chips?

Poached egg, parma ham and new potatoes roasted in Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil and sprinkled with Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt. All made extra tasty with a few teaspoons of Tapenade with Smoked Garlic.

Featuring: Jumping Jack Chilli Jam & Wild Garlic Secret Spices

Gourmet Burgers at home

Grilled butterflied chicken breast glazed with Jumping Jack Chilli Jam in a toasted bun and Wild Garlic Secret Spices mayonnaise.

Pasta with a difference

Artichoke Pesto pasta with camembert, lemon & pinenuts.  Roast chicken and cherry tomatoes with Balsamic Reduction.

                                                                       

Breakfast, lunch-on-the-go or an easy family friendly dessert  Granola, greek yogurt and Maple Caramel Sauce topped with plums, peaches and chocolate shavings

Confessions of a chocolate lover

Clare Moran - Co Founder My Secret Kitchen

I know I know, its Lent, but with Easter just around the corner who hasn't got chocolate on their mind?

At My Secret Kitchen we are also promoting our Ultimate Chocolate Brownie and Chocolate Peppermint Sauce in March and April so what a lovely excuse to experiment with chocolate again. In our Brownie Bliss recipes we have created Coconut Brownies with a Lime Glaze or for a simple and equally delicious dessert Ultimate Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Peppermint Fondue



I'm in awe of anyone who's decided to give up chocolate for 40 days - or indeed to give up anything food related.  Trying to give up anything I love is a near impossibility and believe me I've tried, but I am proud to be a very happy chocolate fiend.

(Have you read 'Beyond Chocolate' by Sophie & Audrey Boss? thoroughly recommended)


So, here are my 7 chocolate confessions in all their chocolatey glory...




1. I count chocolate covered raisins as one of my '5 a day'
2. As a student, for 6 months I lived on brain food of Kit Kats and black coffee
3. Yes, it was me who stole the chocolate buttons from the kid's sweet tin late last night
4. The little pea sized brown smudge on the sofa is evidence of the bar of cooking chocolate that side-stepped straight to my tummy
5. I buy low-fat hot chocolate mix - and then prepare it with double cream
6. I always lick the bowl when making Ultimate Chocolate Brownies - and never share
7. Petit dessert pots made with Chocolate Peppermint Sauce are the only cure for a case of the Mondays

Clare
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Tagine Dream

I’ve fallen in love all over again - with Moroccan flavours.   

Our recent launch of Saffron Tagine Paste has inspired me so much; Phil and I had friends for dinner on Friday and and once again we turned to North African cuisine and flavours for inspiration. 

What’s even better is that I realised so many of My Secret Kitchen products could lend a helping.  

Our Moroccan Menu:

Moroccan Spiced Banana Soup with Duck & Fig Rolls

Featuring: Saffron Tagine Paste, Wild Garlic Secret Spices, Fig Pudding Pickle
This may sound a little crazy, but the combination of our tagine paste used in a base of onion, potato, carrot and chicken stock with a couple of ripe bananas give the soup a gorgeous spicy yet sweet flavour and velvety texture. The duck rolls are made with shredded cooked duck meat and our fig pudding pickle reduced with a pear and a touch of honey then rolled in phyllo pastry and shallow fried.

Saffron Marinated Chicken with Chermoula Couscous and Aubergine Tagine with preserved lemons

Featuring: Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt, SmokedRapeseed Oil, Wild Garlic Secret Spices, Tapenade with Smoked Garlic, SaffronTagine Paste
This is a really simple dish that takes care of itself - chicken thighs marinated in a saffron spiced marinade with our wild garlic secret spices and then slow cooked to be extra tender. Couscous is always a dream to prepare - as long as it is well seasoned, here I made a chermoula dressing to add flavour.  The aubergine tagine used pre-roasted aubergines and our tapenade with smoked garlic, combined with our saffron tagine paste and finely chopped preserved lemons.  Seasoning with our Lemon & Chipotle Spiced Sea Salt completes each of the dishes.

Pistachio Ice Cream, Mango & Mint Sorbet & Ras El Hanout Caramel

Featuring: Mango Mojito Dessert Sauce, Maple Caramel Sauce
My favourite kitchen gadget has to be my ice cream maker.  For this dessert I prepared a pistachio ice cream - with a touch of maple caramel sauce as well as a mango and mint sorbet made with pink grapefruit.  The ras el hanout caramel was an interesting moroccan touch made by caramelising sugar and a little water, pouring onto a baking sheet and sprinkling over the ras el hanout seasoning and leaving to cool before breaking into pieces to garnish the dessert.

This month, our teams of consultants are testing out the soup with the duck and fig rolls at their team meetings - its a tough job but someone's got to do it!

Happy cooking,

Clare

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Cherry Bakewell Baby

On Monday I had the pleasure of meeting our first consultant in Cornwall – Lynne Ratcliffe. As we prepared for her launch tasting together, her husband Nick (also very keen to see how it all works) popped out to the local shop to get some refreshments for their tasting guests. When he returned, he was hiding a packet of cherry bakewells under his arm in a ‘I just couldn’t resist’ kind of way. We all love guilty pleasures and since some of you may be embarking on a chocolate free zone for the next 40 days, here’s something to satisfy your sweet tooth and I admit, a blatant showing off on my part – anything you can do I can do better, this one is for you Nick….

Cherry Bakewell Bread

1 My Secret Kitchen Original Beer Bread Mix

50g ground almonds

50g caster sugar

50ml veg oil

2 tsp almond essence

100ml lemonade

100g glace cherries

125g icing sugar

20ml cold water

Preheat oven 190c and line a 1lb loaf tin. Empty the bread mix into a bowl and add the ground almonds and sugar and stir together. Reserve 6 of the glace cherries and chop the rest in half and add to the dry ingredients and mix. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the vegetable oil, almond essence and lemonade. Mix thoroughly and quickly before putting in to the loaf tin and bake for 25 - 30 minutes. Make the icing by mixing the icing sugar with the water. When the loaf is cool, top with the icing and the reserved whole cherries.