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Lavender's Best Vanilla Fudge

250 ml milk, whole or semi-skimmed
50 ml cream, single
350 g caster sugar
100g unsalted butter
1 tsp best vanilla extract (in brown bottle!)

18 cm flat, rectangular dish for this quantity
heavy based pan

Sugar thermometer (don't attempt recipe without one)

I treble recipe and use a large, heavy based pan the size of a big pressure cooker and large, rectangular china dish

Grease tin

Put milk, and chopped butter in pan.

Heat slowly, stirring occasionally until melted.

Keeping heat fairly low, stir in caster sugar until dissolved. Do not let it boil until dissolved or fudge will not work.

Bring to the boil, stirring. It takes forever to reach the Soft Ball stage, 115 deg on a sugar thermometer placed in the pan with the glass bulb under the surface.

Stir almost continually so that the mixture does not stick to the base and burn.

Remove from heat.

Stir in the vanilla essence.

Beat by hand for about 10 mins until gloss disappears. It is so much easier if you have an electric mixer. Recipes recommend an electric hand mixer. I don't have one but recently been pouring it into the Ken*ood. Take huge care as mixture boiling (probably shouldn't be recommending to do this). Won't take too many minutes to achieve a very thick mixture with almost no gloss.

Pour into greased, china casserole.

When half-set, cut lines to make square. Leave until cool.

If a little soft, it may be left overnight to dry out.

PS A few spoonfuls of soft brown sugar may be substituted for caster which gives a nice flavour too.

Do not rush. Recipe can take a couple of hours to make, leave loads of stirring time.

Not suitable to make with children due to boiling sugar.

Makes lovely Xmas gifts, wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbon.

I have never tried the single quantity, always doubled or trebled it. :-)

Good morning to everyone who has ever posted on here.
Yesterday I came back to Genes and left Anc...y
I missed all the chats, learning everything I can think off, and the fun. I still use some of the Recipies and cake already for Christmas.
I hope to hear from some of you

Bridget

I haven't checked but nudging this up for Ldy Scozz in case there are Christmas recipes in here somewhere.

Thank you MMA. I have been out so only just got round to this. I wanted to add this recipe.

Hit and run tray baked chicken serves 4
Oven preheated to 160

4 large ripe tomatoes
2 red onions
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
6 chicken thigh fillets
4 garlic cloves
Half bunch fresh thyme (15g)
½ tsp smoked paprika
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Quarter tomatoes, cut onions into wedges, deseed peppers and roughly chop. Add all these to tray with chicken thighs. Squash garlic cloves, add to tray, pick over thyme leaves and sprinkle over with paprika. Add oil and balsamic vinegar and seasoning. Toss everything together really well to coat, spread across tray, make sure chicken isn’t covered by vegetables. Roast for about 1 hour or until chicken is golden and cooked through, turning and basting a couple of times with the juices.
Serve with a green salad, or with rice, polenta or crusty bread to mop up juices.
Per serving 340 calories.

Note I have used bone in thighs, cook a little longer and make sure they are cooked. Calories will be higher if skin left on.

Nudged up for AnninGlos

A new to me Chicken Dish.

Chicken,Chorizo &Paprika for Soup or Casserole. About 4 Helpings.

2 Chicken fillets, chopped
3 chorizo, chopped
1 onion,1/2 red pepper,1/2 yellow pepper both chopped
2 teaspoons paprika
4 cloves of garlic
400g tin chopped tomatoes
3\4 pint of chicken
1/4 teaspoon sugar. Salt & Pepper to taste.
Fry onions, add chorizo and cook for 5 minutes
Add chorizo, peppers, garlic, paprika and cook for five minutes.
Then add everything else for 15 minutes and season to taste.
Take out 2 ladles full and liquidise and then return to th saucepan and stir. Serve with Creme Fraiche

To turn into casserole,
Cover the base of the casserole with rice and then stir in the mixture and add mor rice to cover the top. Cook for 1hr 15mins at 180c. ( according to your oven you may wish to change the heat.)

Then find a bottle of wine which you like and have with the meal!


Bridget :-)

I have just been looking through the old thread of Just Jeans with recipes on it and thought this might be a good addition to this thread.

Banana Bread

Group 1
2tblsp melted butter
1tbls milk
2 over ripe bananas
1 egg
handful of chopped walnuts (optional)

Group 2
1 /1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp bicar of soda
1/4 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt

preheat oven 200c/400f/gas6
grease a medium size bread tin
mix group 1 ingredients together in bowl
add group 2 mix well
pour mix into tin
cook 25/30 mins
or put into small cases cook 10-15 mins

lovely moist loaf........enjoy.......

We have visitors and they have asked for one of my husbands Italian dishes for our main meal but tomorrow we shall try this dish, OH will have the baked beans but I do not like them,

Carbonara is our main meal today , we like all pasta dishes.

On the economic recipe ideas, tried this last night and it delicious

Savoury Tart

for 4

3 slices of bread made into breadcrumbs, soaked in 500 ml milk. leave for 10 mins then mash with a fork. Cook 125g bacon chopped or a small pancetta amount, or lardons. Chop up a Mathesons smoked sausage. or 400g of cheap saus (or leftovers)
Cooked and then chopped up/ Beat together 4 medium eggs, 1 teasp dry mustard, salt and pepper, and 100g grated cheese. Then add the breadcrumb mix, saus bacon and egg mix together. Grease a dish pour in and sprinkle with remainder of the cheese, and dust with smoked paprika powder. Oven at 190o C cook until set in middle....we had with baked beans,,it was lovely.

I haven't given a size for the dish, as the recipe didn't give it..I suggest doing what I did and wait until all mixed together, and judge, worked for me. Took for half of this mix about 50 mins.
Regards Jan

Thanks to everyone who posted re icing my cake.

Here is a new recipe, well a new one for me and it was delicious.
I cannot get the ham suggested as I believe that it is cut this way in America. But I did buy a large ham for cooking and it was fine.

Maple Brown Sugar Ham in a slow cooker.

7 to 8lb spiral cut ham.
1 cup of dark brown sugar
1/2 cup of pure Mable syrup
2 cups of pineapple juice.

Method

1 Unwrap the ham but do not use any little packets if they are one the container. Of course if bought from a butcher this will not be offered.
2. Place the ham into the slow cooker, flattest side down
3. Rub sugar on all sides
4. Pour the Mable Syrup & the pineapple juice over the Ham
5. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 to 5. Hours.
6. One hour before serving baste the Ham with the juices from the bottom of the cooker.
7.When cooked carefully remove and let it rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes and then serve.
8. This is also delicious cold.

Note. It is possible that you have difficulty finding this particular cut...do not worry just find a cut that suits you, as I did and then continue.

I hope you enjoy it AND that I haven't posted this before!

This is not a recipe that I made up but cannot recall who gave it to me, it may have been my friend June.

If you either don't like marzipan or don't have any, put a layer of regalice ( ready made icing ) let it dry and put either another layer, or royal ice the top.
Hope this helps.

Yesterday we went to the largest superstore near us and they had just put out their Christmas foods...and I found both icing sugar and Marzipan so stocked up by doubling what I needed! Thank you all for sending me advice about the lack of the ingredients.
The sun is shining this morning and I am sitting on the verandah with Jet and Joe who are having their breakfast. The birds are twittering and apart from hearing some cars going by in town all is peaceful ,,,a beautiful day.
As I sit I can see new roses opening especially the dark red ones and all our new plants are looking very healthy.
Today I feel very relaxed and it reminds me of a few years ago when I first started this thread......and I met all of you through this amazing way. Sometimes I go back just to re read some of the entries. I hope that everyone feels somewhat the same.

Any ideas about a new entry / discussion/ story etc very welcome.

Have a good day or night if you are in a different hemisphere to me.

Bridget :-D <3 <3 :-)

Glad to be of service !!

Jan

Greenfingers.
Many thank for your suggestion. I have some white marziipan which I bought in Holland, they have a large range of different colours. I will use this for just one part of the cake and then I will put various other items on as well....just the usual things.
After all it is really the cake that matters!
:-D :-D

If you do not like marzipan, then leave the icing to the day before, and the grease of the cake should not get through....or just put marzipan on the top, it can be easily removed and given to those ...like me...who love marzipan

Good morning to you all.

I am beginning to wish that I had not added my last recipe! Mostly because of the errors.

Yesterday I made this dish and the aromas were yummy, however I did remove some of the fat from the meeat after it had been in the slow cooker for about 45 minutes. Then I added favourites of our own......I am sure that we all do this at times.
I added various beans, a few more potatoes as they were several days old and chopped up 4 carrots for the same reason.


When OH arrived back from the English Bar, where he had been watching football we had this for our main meal of the day.....there is none left as we ate it all, which was not the idea as I was hoping to freeze some!

I know it does not sound very inspiring but in our house it is going to be an Autunm / Winter favourite.

Cheap, delicious recipes required PLEASE.

If you do not like Marzipan please tell me how I can decorate my Christmas Cakes.
Thanks.

Sharron, I hope you removed the Shell Bits. :-D Ideal recipe for dinner. (1) Find a Michillin 5 Star Restraunt. :-D(2) Pick up Phone :-D (3)Book Table :-D (4) Enjoy Meal :-D (5) Apologise to Bank Manager for exceeding Overdraft :-S but still enjoy. :-D :-D :-D ;-) and eat bread and dripping for the next two months. :-D :-D ;-)

Bridget, check your recipe. You have tomatos twice and no mention of potatoes until the method. I assume the potatoes replace one lot of tomatoes :-D

I made cracked egg and cheeserind tarts the other day and they were delicious.

It was pastry left over from a big pie cut into tart size and filled with an egg that was cracked in the box and needed using mixed with the grated cheese ends and baked.

They looked quite expensive too.

I have a new recipie which has been tried and tested by friends who the copied the recipe so thought I would add it on here.

Arroz al Horno or Oven baked Meat & Rice.

This is a Valencian Rice dish, humble in origin when it was made from left over stew and chickpeas, pork ribs and motcilla sausage was added.
In Xativa there is an annual competion ever year to find the best dish.

1\2 kg pork rib
1/4 kg of dried blood sausage
1 head of garlic
2 tomatoes
250gr Rice
2 medium size potatoes
125 grams of chick peas ( cooked )
Olive oil.
Fry the meat and garlic ( best in an earthenware dish) but I used my deep frying pan.
Add one tomato cut into pieces and stir the rice around the casseroles few times and then add the chickpeas. I used two tomatoes.
Slice the potatoes and lightly fry them and place the with the Tomatos on top of the rice.

Bake in the oven until Golden brown on the top and then serve and Enjoy.

:-)