Name: Show the love for pumpkin.
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Yield: -6 people
Ingredients: 1 tbsp rapeseed oil; 1 medium red onion - chopped; 3 garlic cloves - crushed; 1 kg pumpkin - chopped; 300 g potatoes - chopped; 1 tsp ground corriander; 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (Or 1 tsp dried chilli powder); 1 litre Stock - Vegetable or Chicken; 200ml Creme Fraiche - half fat if preferred; Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Show the love for pumpkins

October 7, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Pumpkins are for eating, not just for Halloween

Call me a killjoy, if it was Christmas you could call me Ba Humbug, but I really dislike the waste of food at Halloween. I saw it when my own kids were young, bags of sweets and fruit from trick or treating, and of course the huge numbers of pumpkins that are wasted. Okay, that’s the lecture over so let’s look at loving and eating pumpkins this year.

I was delighted to find a great big pumpkin in my veg bag delivery this week and even more delighted to find that it also included a recipe for spicy pumpkin soup. My bag comes from Bellfield Organics and they’re always happy for me to include the recipe in blog posts. I’m on a mission this month to think outside the pumpkin. It’s not just for Halloween, it’s for eating. Make soup, use it it casseroles, roast it, make it cakes, whatever you do, cook pumpkin and eat it.

This gorgeous pumpkin was in my organic veg bag this week

This was quite a big pumpkin and I still have more than half leftover. The pumpkin seeds can also be used so don’t thrown them away. I’ll be roasting them in oil and using in salads and snacks.

Don’t throw the seeds away, roast and use in salads or as snacks.

This is the first of several recipes I’ll be posting this month and I hope it encourages you to be adventurous with pumpkins while they are in season.

Warming and spicy pumpkin soup

Show the love for pumpkin.

A delicious warming and seasonal soup. Add more spice or fresh chilli if you prefer a spicier soup.

Servings	Prep Time
-6 people	15 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
-6 people	15 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Show the love for pumpkin.

A delicious warming and seasonal soup. Add more spice or fresh chilli if you prefer a spicier soup.

Servings	Prep Time
-6 people	15 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
-6 people	15 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Ingredients

1 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 medium red onion - chopped
3 garlic cloves - crushed
1 kg pumpkin - chopped
300 g potatoes - chopped
1 tsp ground corriander
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes Or 1 tsp dried chilli powder
1 litre Stock - Vegetable or Chicken
200ml Creme Fraiche - half fat if preferred
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Servings: people

Instructions

Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and garlic, cook gently for about 3 minutes or until the onion has softened.
Add the pumpkin and the potato and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
Add the chilli flakes and coriander and cook for a 1 minute.
Add the stock, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Blend until smooth and stir in cream. Adjust seasoning as required.

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Honey & Ginger Thai Salmon

October 2, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Scottish salmon, delicious, high quality and healthy

Fish, particularly Scottish salmon is something I cook at least once a week in the Wee Pinch of Sugar Kitchen. And, after my recent cooking demo at Eat Drink Discover Scotland with Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation and chef Mark Heirs , I’ve been trying out some new recipes. Having recently signed up for a fortnight ‘Fish Box’ delivery scheme from Inverness company, Coast and Glen, I’ve had a regular supply of some great quality farmed salmon from Wester Ross Fisheries. It’s Scotland’s smallest, independent and owner operated farm and I’ve been really impressed with the quality, and freshness of their salmon.

Fresh quality farmed salmon from Wester Ross Fisheries

This little book from Scottish Salmon Producers is full of quick and easy salmon recipes and last week I opted to try the Honey and Ginger Thai Salmon.

Easy and tasty recipes from Scottish Salmon Producers.

Easy and tasty recipes. Download from Scottish Salmon Producers.

It’s a dish that all the family will love and as I was accommodating several different mealtimes, rather than cook all the salmon at once, I wrapped each salmon fillet in its own tin foil bag and cooked as they were needed. Everyone gave the dish the thumbs up and it’s definitely one I’ll cook again.

I wrapped each fillet in tin foil parcels and cooked when needed

The salmon was delicious and I served with plain boiled rice and broccoli

In addition to the salmon recipes for mind and body, you’ll find a variety of healthy and delicious recipes in the ‘Healthy and Delicious’ section on Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation website.

Salmon Artwork by Alice Strange

Honey & Ginger Thai Salmon

This dish is quick and easy to prepare, providing not only the succulent flavour of salmon but also the popular and authentic flavours of Thailand

Servings	Prep Time
4 People	10 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
4 People	10 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Honey & Ginger Thai Salmon

This dish is quick and easy to prepare, providing not only the succulent flavour of salmon but also the popular and authentic flavours of Thailand

Servings	Prep Time
4 People	10 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
4 People	10 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Ingredients

4 good sized skinned salmon fillets
4 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp clear honey
2 cloves of garlic cloves - crushed
2 fresh chillies, finely chopped or 4 tsp jar prepared hot chillies
4 tsp chopped fresh ginger or jar prepared ginger

Servings: People

Instructions

Preheat the oven - 220C Fan 200C or Gas 7
Place the 4 salmon fillets in a shallow ovenproof dish.
Pour a tablespoon of soy sauce over each fillet.
Drizzle a tablespoon of honey over each fillet
Divide the garlic, chilli and ginger between the four fillets, using a small knife to evenly distribute them
Tightly cover the dish in foil and bake in the oven for 20 mins.
Serve on hot plates, dividing the marinade between the four fillets and serve either with freshly cooked broccoli and boiled rice or with a fresh green salad and crusty bread.

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Do Sourdough. Slow Bread for Busy Lives

September 24, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Do Sourdough —Slow Bread for Busy Lives by Andrew Whitley.

Making sourdough bread needs only flour, water, salt and a little time. But what if time is the one thing you don’t have. Do Sourdough – Slow Bread for Busy Lives is baker Andrew Whitley’s second book on bread making. A baker for over 30 years, Andrew’s expertise was recognised in 2011 with a BBC Food and Farming Special Judges’ Award for ‘changing the way we think about bread’.

pic by Jonathan Cherry

Dispel Myths

Do Sourdough has two purposes, to dispel the myths that make sourdough seem complicated and intimidating; and to show how slow fermentation, with all it’s benefits, is both easy to manage and ideally suited to today’s busy lifestyles. As a bread maker, and having read many books on the subject, I can tell you that ‘Do Sourdough’ does exactly what it says, it dispels those myths. All those who thought they don’t have time to make bread, let alone sourdough are in for a real treat.

This is a book that talks to you, works with you, makes sourdough understandable and achievable, regardless of your lifestyle. Experienced bread makers and novices alike will find this book extremely helpful. Following a brief introductory explanation to dispel the myths around sourdough, there is some useful and enlightening information about industrialised bread making in the UK. Did you know that in this country there is no legal definition for sourdough? Andrew explains the process behind the ‘pseudoughs’ the ‘sourdoughs’ that appear in many in-store bakeries.

Clear Instructions

In the first chapter, there’s clear instructions to take the bread maker through the three stages of sourdough; the starter, production sourdough and final dough. There are recipes for both Rye and wheat starters with good advice on ‘starter housekeeping, general advice for handling starters of all kinds. Rye starters are a favourite and apparently the one you would take to your desert Island.The next two stages, making the production sourdough and the final dough are again, explained clearly, and there’s a good checklist to ensure your loaf is baked. As the author says, “success with sourdough has a lot to do with what you are looking for, and at”.

It’s a clear and reassuring way to learn the different processes and there is some very useful advice throughout the book. ‘Be patient’, and interestingly, “there’s no right or wrong way of kneading”. Handy to know and it’s tips like these that will leave you feeling more confident by the end of chapter 2. The detailed recipes for different sourdough breads are uncomplicated and easy to follow and there’s also a recipe for an overnight, no-knead sourdough. Extremely useful if you find yourself short of starter anytime. The troubleshooting section with some FAQs is very helpful and will answer most questions, particularly those about problems with starters.

Master the basics and the chapter on ‘Freestyle baking’ will confidently take you to a new level. “Once you’ve got the hang of it, baking with sourdough is tremendously liberating. That starter in your fridge is a powerhouse of possibilities. Sourdough ciabatta, soft rolls, pizza, crispbreads and crumpets, almost very kind of bread can be made with sourdough. Sweet sourdough is covered and there’s a heavenly recipe for a ginger and ginger sourdough bannock.

This book is undoubtedly an invaluable reference for bread makers and those who long to make sourdough, but have been put off by the so called time consuming complicated process.

As the Do Sourdough title suggests, it’s about slow bread for busy lives and the final chapter has suggested schedules to help bakers slot the vital fermentation time into periods that will fit with various lifestyles. ” The sourdough process requires many hours, but not of your time”.

DoBookCo £8.99 ISBN:978-1-907974-11-3

Cooking with quality, healthy and delicious Scottish Salmon

September 21, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Scottish salmon, delicious, high quality and healthy

Over the past two weeks I’ve been on a mission to find out more about the fantastic salmon that’s produced in Scotland. Not any old salmon you understand, but the high quality & healthy Scottish farmed salmon that has become the country’s number one export. And, after my trip north to top salmon producer, Marine Harvest, with Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation, it was time to get cooking.

Last weekend saw Scotland’s ultimate celebration of Scottish food and drink, Eat Drink Discover Scotland, showcase top notch produce with a stellar line up of celebrity chefs along with a packed programme of demonstrations, tastings, talks and sampling sessions. This was the ideal place to tell visitors about this truly wonderful fish. It was a great event, allowing farmers and producers to promote Scotland’s fantastic rich natural larder with fish, lamb and beef taking centre stage in many of the cookery demonstrations and I was on stand with Scottish Salmon Producers and chef Mark Heirs cooking up salmon dishes for visitors to the show.

Preparing to cook up some healthy salmon dishes for visitors.

Great to see the kids being enthusiastic about salmon

Visitors to the stand were keen to find out more about cooking with Scottish Salmon

Mark being a top class professional chef showed off some great culinary skill with his dishes, while I focused on a recipe that could could be cooked quickly and easily as a family meal. It was great opportunity to chat with people about farmed salmon and for them to see and taste the quality of the fish we were cooking with.

Fresh and delcious, quality Scottish salmon

Fresh and delicious, quality Scottish salmon

Visitors to the stand were surprised to see just how quickly a family meal with salmon and a few additional ingredients could be prepared and served up. The very talented Mark cooked up a variety of salmon recipes including this decadent gin cured salmon, and we both cooked simple but healthy and tasty salmon and pasta dishes that could be cooked quickly and easily at home.

Mark showing his expertise with gin cured salmon

Mark showing his expertise with gin cured Scottish salmon

Mark’s decadent gin cured Scottish salmon

Mark cooked hot smoked salmon carbonara, a fantastic dish with only a few ingredients and I cooked a quick and easy creamy salmon and broccoli pasta. Both of these dishes make ideal family meals but will also be great as impressive supper dishes when entertaining.

Mark Heirs hot smoked salmon carbonara

Prep: 5mins Cook Time: 10mins

Ingredients: 500g Rigatoni Pasta , 100g grated Parmesan Cheese, 25ml double Cream, small bunch chopped Parsley (flat or curly), 400g hot smoked Scottish salmon, 3 eggs.

Method:

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook your pasta until tender but retaining a bite.
In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs, cream, Parmesan and parsley together.
Add the hot pasta to the beaten egg mixture and a little of the cooking water and stir to create a creamy but light sauce.
Flake in the hot smoked salmon and serve in a warm deep pasta bowl

Rachel’s Creamy Salmon and broccoli Pasta

Creamy salmon and broccoli pasta bake

Ready in under 20 minutes – Preparation 5 Minutes – Cooking 10 – 12 minutes – Serves 4

Ingredients :- 350g Conchiglie pasta, 200g/7oz tender stem broccoli, 600g boneless skinless salmon fillet cut into bite size cubes, 200g cream cheese, 300ml milk, 2 tbsp sun dried tomato paste, finely grated rind of half a lemon, small bunch of fresh parsley chopped, freshly ground black pepper

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet, adding the broccoli for the last 4 – 5 minutes.
Mix the cream cheese and the sun dried tomato paste to make a smooth sauce. Add the milk to a large frying pan, add the cream sauce and heat slowly, stirring to ensure the sauce is smooth.
Add the salmon to the sauce, gently mix through and cook gently for 10 – 15 minutes until the salmon is cooked.
Stir in the lemon rind, most of the parsley and add the pasta and broccoli to the sauce, gently mixing together.
Check the seasoning, and sprinkle with the remainder of the chopped parsley.
Serve sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan (if using)

For more Scottish salmon recipes this recipe booklet ‘Salmon Recipes For Body and Mind’ can be downloaded from Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation website.

Easy and tasty recipes from Scottish Salmon Producers.

Photograph and artwork credits.

Thanks to Jon Brady for all the pics he took while I was cooking. You can see more of his work on his website. www.jonfaec.com

The salmon artwork at the top of the post is from Scottish artist, alicestrange at alicestrange.com

Scotland is world renowned for delicious, high quality and healthy farmed salmon

September 16, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Last week saw the launch of the annual Scottish Food and Drink Fortnight, Scotland’s largest annual celebration of fresh, local and seasonal produce. The event provides opportunities for Scottish food and drink producers to showcase their products and tell not only the country, but the world about the quality and provenance of Scotland’s natural larder.

For me, it’s been time to find out more about Scottish salmon farming, and as part of my ‘Fortnight Food Adventure’, I got the chance to visit Marine Harvest, one of the country’s and the industry’s leading producers. The company is one of the largest seafood companies in the world and the largest producer of Atlantic salmon.

My visit was organised by Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation the body representing the country’s salmon farming industry, and took me to one of Marine Harvest’s freshwater sites and processing plants on the West coast of Scotland. Having very little knowledge of salmon farming, it was chance for me to find out first hand about the industry producing sustainable top quality salmon and Scotland’s number one export.

The day started in Fort William where Steve Bracken from Marine Harvest outlined the company’s history, followed by a fascinating session on how salmon is farmed at the various locations in Scotland’s freshwater and sea lochs. Later, a visit to a freshwater site allowed me to see the farming process at close hand and to gain a fuller understanding of the different stages in the life of a farmed salmon

Interestingly, my fellow guests on the trip were a party of French Fishmongers, also keen to learn about our salmon farming as Scottish Salmon was the first ‘non French’ product to be awarded the prestigious Label Rouge for superior quality and taste.

In addition to this, Scottish farmed salmon has been awarded European PGI, (protected geographical indication) placing it alongside Scotch Beef and Arbroath Smokies as products of distinct, regional characteristics.

At the state of the art processing plan in Fort William, I watched a slick and impressive operation as the freshly harvested salmon arrived for processing.

Arriving in large tankers, the salmon were immediately on the move. The various processes ensuring that suppliers were guaranteed the freshest quality Scottish farmed salmon, and confidence for consumers that the salmon on their plates was the freshest available. Two hours later the salmon I saw arriving was packed and ready to head out to customers in the UK and across the world.

“As provenance, sustainability and quality are becoming ever more valued by customers, it is heartening to know that Scottish salmon ticks all the boxes” Scott Landsburgh, Chief Executive of Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation

For great recipes for cooking salmon and find out more about salmon farming by downloading the Marine Harvest App– itunes.apple.com/us/app/marine-…

You can follow my salmon journey in the next post as I cook some of this fantastic fish on the Scottish Salmon Producers stand at Eat Drink Discover Scotland.

My thanks to Scottish Salmon Producers and marine Harvest for hosting me on this trip.

Chicken with Herbs and Gnocchi

August 28, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

I love meals that can be served up in one big dish and placed in the middle of the table for everyone to share and help themselves. This chicken with herbs and gnocchi fits the bill perfectly and like many of my recipes it was made with a few ingredients from the fridge/freezer and store cupboard with herbs from the garden. That means it’s easy for you to change the flavours by using different herbs or spices.

Gnocchi, like pasta is great store cupboard standby and makes a change from using potatoes or pasta, especially when including in a one pot dish. It’s also ideal as it cooks very quickly, usually in 3 minutes. Once cooked I like to saute the gnocchi for a few minutes in the pan that the chicken was browned in as it adds a nice golden colour and some extra flavour when it picks up all the bits from the pan. I have made my own gnocci, but to be honest, when it’s a quick meal you’re looking for, a good quality pre made version will be just fine. I like De Cecco for pasta and gnocchi but use whatever make suits your taste and budget.

I added 2 Italian sausages to make the dish go a bit further but it will be fine with any sausage or indeed leave them out and just use chicken.

Chicken with herbs and gnocchi.

Chicken with Herbs and Gnocchi

A delicious healthy chicken meal for all the family.

CourseMain Dish

Servings	Prep Time
4 people	20 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
4 people	20 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Chicken with Herbs and Gnocchi

A delicious healthy chicken meal for all the family.

CourseMain Dish

Servings	Prep Time
4 people	20 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Servings	Prep Time
4 people	20 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Ingredients

Marinade

5 tbsp olive
juice of 1 lemon
2 -3 tbsp fresh herbs - chopped I used rosemary, thyme, parsley and oregano
freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
8 chicken thighs I used boneless but bone in will work equally well
2 Italian sausages optional, or use any type of pork sausage.
4 shallots - finely chopped
4 Garlic cloves - sliced
8 small tomatoes - halved or half a tin of plum tomatoes
12 - 15 green olives - halved
2 tbsp fresh herbs - chopped
1 Bay leaf
Approx 200ml White wine
1 500g packet Gnocchi

To Serve

Handful of chopped herbs

Servings: people

Instructions

Marinade

Place the marinade ingredients in a bowl or plastic bag, mix well, add the chicken thighs and leave to marinate in the fridge 2 - 3 hours.

To Cook

Pre Heat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5 Remove the Chicken from the marinade. Heat the oil in a heat proof casserole over a medium heat. Add the chicken thighs and cook for a few minutes on each side until browned. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the chopped sausages, if using, cook to lightly brown and remove from pan. Add the shallots and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Return the chicken thighs and sausages to the casserole and add the tomatoes, white wine, herbs, seasoning and bring slowly to a simmer. Cover and cook in the preheated oven for approx 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. When the chicken is cooked, prepare the gnocchi according to the instructions on the packet. Once cooked, heat the frying pan used to brown the chicken and saute the gnocchi for a few minutes, add to the chicken and gently mix through.

To Serve

Sprinkle with the remaining fresh herbs and serve.

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It’s ‘Love Scotch Lamb’ Weekend.

August 23, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Did you know that despite producing some of the best lamb in the world, we Scots eat much less lamb per capita than elsewhere in the UK. So, obviously we need some help to encourage us to include lamb as part of weekly family meals.

This week saw the 2014 launch of Quality Meat Scotland’s, ‘Wham Bam Thank You Lamb‘ campaign, aimed at encouraging us to understand the versatility, simplicity and speed of cooking with lamb. This is ‘Love Scotch Lamb Weekend‘ and to spread the love for our delicious Scotch lamb some of Scotland’s sheep farmers will be out and about in town centres and supermarkets telling shoppers about Scotland’s outstanding lamb. There will be samples of the new season’s delicious Scotch lamb with lot’s of encouragement to include lamb as part of the weekly shop.

Cooking with Scotch lamb can be quick and easy, and as part of ‘Love Scotch Lamb’ weekend, Quality Meat Scotland sent me a hamper with lamb mince along with a super tasty recipe for lamb meatballs. The challenge was to put my cooking skills to the test and show how quickly a tasty mid week meal can be prepared. All the ingredients were included for my challenge and the hamper also included a handy stopwatch to let me see how quickly the recipe could be cooked up.

This recipe for lamb meatballs is easy to prepare, and once the prep is done and the meatballs are browned the dish is popped into the oven to finish cooking and will be on the table within 20 minutes.

My family gave the dish top marks and they loved the flavour from the tarragon and basil. Served up in the middle of the table in one big pot this makes a great family meal for any day of the week.

Love Scotch Lamb

Recipe Type: Easy

Cuisine: Scottish

Author: rachelgillon

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 50 mins

Ingredients

500g Lean Scotch Lamb mice
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
2 small brown onions, finely diced
1 slice of white bread, grated into crumbs
1 egg, lightly beaten
25g fresh tarragon
25g fresh basil
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
200g cherry tomatoes
400g penne pasta
50g Parmesan shavings (optional)

Instructions

preheat oven to gas mark6/ 200C/ 400F
Mix the lamb, half the garlic and onion, breadcrumbs, egg, a pinch of salt & pepper, and tarragon leaves. Shape into 12 balls.
In batches, cook the meatballs in oil and allow them to brown all over. Remove and place to one side. Stir the onions and garlic in the pan before adding the chopped tomatoes with a pinch of sugar. Bring to the boil and allow to simmer for 3 – 4 mins.
Add the meatballs back into the pan along with the cherry tomatoes and basil. Stir and bring to a simmer, place in the oven with a lid and bake for approx. 20 mins.
Cook the pasta according the instructions on the pack & drain. Remove the meatballs from the oven before adding to the pasta with the sauce. Sprinkle the Parmesan and sprigs of basil to serve.

There you have it, no excuses, Scotch lamb is on the supermarket shelves and at farmers markets around the country. Why not pop a pack of lean mince lamb into your shopping basket and give this recipe a try. More delicious and easy recipes for Scotch Lamb are available on Quality Meat Scotland’s website

Notes: The recipe suggests shaping the meat into 12 meatballs. However my boys prefer smaller meatballs and I managed to make 36 from the lamb mixture.

It’s Edinburgh Foodies’s Festival Weekend

August 7, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Tomorrow see’s the kick off for a weekend of spectacular food and drink at Inverleith Park Edinburgh. Foodie’s Festival, the UK’s largest food festival returns home to the city for it’s biggest festival yet. It is a something for everyone festival with over 200 artisan producers, pop up restaurants, international street food and the Chef’s Theatre where some of Scotland’s top chefs will cook their favourite summer recipes for home cooks to recreate.

Something for everyone at this years Edinburgh Foodies Festival

The sessions in the Chef’s Theatre are always a favourite with visitors and among those taking part for the first time will be the popular Three Sisters Bake, Gillian, Nichola and Linsey Reith. The girls who run a Bistro Cafe in the picturesque village of Bridge of Weir, Renfrewshire, shot to fame last year following the launch of their Cookbook, ‘Three Sisters Bake, Delectable Recipes for Everyday’.

Three Sister’s Bake, Delectable Recipes for Everyday

Since then they have found themselves in the limelight with appearances on TV, radio, and features in several well known magazines and newspapers. The Three Sisters are now truly following their culinary dream. Visitors to the festival will find them cooking up fresh vibrant food that has influences from their time when all three of them ate and cooked their way around the world. Gillian says their approach to food is simple, “Delighting the senses, cooking delicious things that look as good as they taste to enjoy with friends and family”.

Three Sisters Bake,Gillian, Linsay and Nichola.

You’ll find the Three Sisters Bake on stage in the Chef’s Theatre on Sunday 10th August at 4pm and they also have sessions in the Chocolate, Cake, Bake and Preserves Theatre on Friday, Sat and Sunday.

Also returning to this year’s festival and Chef’s Theatre is veteran and real favourite Chef Jacqueline O’Donnell. Jacqueline will be on stage over the three days and will be cooking up some of her favourite dishes, as always using the best of Scottish produce.

Chef Jacqueline O’Donnell will be cooking up some of her favourite dishes.

For the last 17 years, Jacqueline has been running the extremely popular Glasgow restaurant ‘The Sisters and is well known for her style of cooking simple dishes that allow the produce to speak for itself. She’s also a regular guest on TVand radio and more recently represented Scotland in the BBC series, The Great British Menu. Jacqueline will be on stage in the Chef’s Theatre at 5pm each day and is sure to be a winner with visitors.

On Saturday another Scottish favourite on stage in the Chef’s Theatre will be Edinburgh’s Chef Neil Forbes. Neil runs Cafe St Honore where focus is on serving good honest ingredients cooked simply. Seasonal ingredients, fresh meat, fish and game all locally sourced feature in Neil’s demonstrations and he is sure to wow the crowds this weekend with his passion for food. Neil describes cooking as an ’emotional experience that uses all the senses’.

Chef Neil Forbes will be cooking up his dshes using the best of local, seasonal and sustainable ingredients.

Chef Neil Forbes will be cooking up his dishes using the best of local, seasonal and sustainable ingredients.

Neil is ‘Catering in Scotland’s ‘Chef of the Year’ 2014 and was Scottish Restaurant Awards ‘Chef of the Year’ in 2011. He’s also a member of Slow Food Uk Chef Alliance and holds the Sustainable Restaurant Association 3-star champion status.

He’s a regular presenter on BBC’s Kitchen Cafe programme and also shares his love of cooking and skills with a programme of ‘Slow Food Masterclasses at Cafe St Honore throughout the year. He’s a very entertaining chef and his theatre sessions are sure to be popular with visitors to the festival. You’ll find Chef Forbes on stage at 11am on Saturday 10th August.

The full schedule for all the demonstrations in the Chefs Theatre can be found on the Foodies Festival website

As well as the Chef’s Theatre there’s a whole host of great food demonstrations to enjoy at this years festival. If your kids are interested in cooking, there’s also a Children’s Cookery Theatre running over the three days. Hosted by The Edinburgh School of Food and Wine, it will give kids the opportunity to learn to cook Summer recipes.

The brand new Chocolate, Cake, Bake and Preserves Theatre is hosting classes and demonstrations every hour over the three days and if you’re a chocolate lover it includes a chocolate tasting masterclass and other delicious chocolate making sessions. If dinks and coffee are more your thing, then the ever popular Drinks Theatre has an exciting array of demonstrations for cocktails and food matching on offer.

Whatever your interest in food there’s definitely something for you at Foodies Festival this weekend. Check the Foodies website for full details ticket availability and the full selection of classes and demonstrations.

Carina Contini’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook

August 6, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

My book review for the July issue of Scottish Home and Country Magazine.

Carina Contini’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook By Carina Contini

Published by Frances Lincoln – £25

ISBN 978-0-71123460-4

Carina Contini's book is a collection of over 100 seasonal recipes that bring together Carina's Italian family heritage and her Scottish roots.

Carina Contini’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook is a collection of over 100 seasonal recipes that bring together Carina’s Italian family heritage and her Scottish roots.

Some people are just born to cook, the passion for food evident in their daily life. Cara Contini is one of those people.

In her new book, Carina Contini’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook: A Year of Italian Scots Recipes Carina tells the story of that inherited love of food, the connection to simple seasonal food, along with her personal recollections of growing up in an Italian Scottish family.

After arriving in Scotland in 1919, Carina’s grandparents opened an ice cream shop in Port Seton which developed into a thriving café, restaurant and catering business. Fast forward almost 100 years and the mantle has now been taken up by Carina and husband Victor at their two award winning Edinburgh restaurants, Contini Restaurant and the Scottish café at the National Gallery of Scotland.

At the family home on the outskirts of Edinburgh Carina and Victor established an outstanding kitchen garden that grows an abundance of seasonal produce. The garden now supplies the seasonal fruit and vegetables to both of their Edinburgh restaurants.

Each monthly chapter celebrates the best of Scotland’s seasonal produce, with a selection of simply cooked recipes. Arbroath smokies, black pudding, venison, beef and lamb, are added to the kitchen garden fruit and vegetables to create a collection of mouthwatering recipes.

The recipes include many old favourites such as Isle of Mull macaroni cheese with cauliflower, leek and potato soup with leek and barley bon bons and kitchen garden cottage pie. To celebrate Scotland’s wonderful soft fruit season, there are recipes for fennel, raspberry and cucumber salad, kitchen garden summer pudding and burnt cream with blackcurrant compôte.

Carina is a great champion of Scottish produce and was recently named Scotland 2014 food ambassador. She is also the first female chef to be appointed to the Slow Food Chef Alliance. RG

Another ‘Damn Delcious’ recipe. Pork Chops with Rosemary & Ginger Wine Sauce

August 3, 2014 By Rachel Leave a Comment

Recently, Farmer Michael Shannon of Damn Delicious, sent me a selection of his top quality Scotch beef and pork to cook with. The beef was the first to be cooked and it was as it said on the label, ‘Damn Delicious’. You can read about the beef and what I cooked in the previous blog post.

Damn Delicious have a fantastic range of Scotch beef, lamb and pork and as well as being an online butcher, this week the new farm shop opened, stocking the same wide selection of the farm’s delicious meat.

The new Damn Delicious farm shop at Thankerton Farm, Biggar.

The new shop sells the same top quality meat that's available online from Damn Delicious

The new farm shop sells the same top quality meat that’s available online from Damn Delicious

Among the selection of meat I received were some very nice looking pork chops and I decided to cook them using a Quality Meat Scotland recipe from one of the recipe books that Damn Delicious had included with the parcel.

Making the most of Summer. Simple & satisfying meals for easy Summer eating.

The recipe I opted to use, ‘pork chops with rosemary & ginger wine sauce’ was quick and easy and made for a delicious meal served with new potatoes and vegetables.

Pork chops with rosemary & ginger wine sauce

Ingredients: 4 pork chops, (2 1/2 cm thick) or boneless loin chops, leaves from 2 sprigs of rosemary-finely chopped, salt & pepper, a little olive oil or butter.

Ginger Wine Sauce: 12 tbsp ginger wine, 200ml water or stock, 2 tbsp grainy mustard, 4 tbsp cream or half fat creme fraiche (optional), 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley.

Method: Pork Chops: Sprinkle the chops with rosemary, salt and pepper. Heat a non stick pan until nice and hot then add a teaspoon of oil. Fry the chops for 6 or 7 minutes on each side until well browned. Remove the chops to a warm serving dish in a moderate oven while you make the sauce.

Sauce: Reduce the heat then pour in the ginger wine, let it bubble for a few seconds then add the water or stock and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the mustard, cream (if using) and parsley. After 1 minute remove from the heat. Check that the chops are thoroughly cooked (those with the bone in will take a little longer than loin steaks) and if not quite done you can return to the pan with the sauce and simmer gently for a few minutes more. Serve the chops with plenty of the sauce spooned over.

The rosemary & ginger wine sauce was the perfect accompaniment to the pork chops.

The quality and flavour of the pork chops was outstanding and you can view the full range of pork and other meat available on the Damn Delicious website. Additional recipes for quality Scotch beef, lamb and pork recipes can be found at the following links to Quality Meat Scotland websites.

Scotch beef and lamb

Specially selected pork