Zingy, crunchy Flapjacks

Ingredients

180g unsalted butter

180g dark brown soft sugar

160g golden syrup

1 x tbs of black treacle

340g porridge oats

250g chopped walnuts

Grated zest of 1 large orange

1 x tsp powdered ginger

Method

Melt the butter in a saucepan then add the golden syrup, treacle and sugar.

When the sugar is completely dissolved in the butter remove the pan from the heat and stir in the porridge oats, chopped walnuts, ginger powder and grated zest of orange.

Line a 20 cm square greased baking tin with greaseproof paper.

Pour the mixture into the tin, squashing down evenly.

Bake in a preheated oven 150° c for 30-40 minutes until firm to the touch but don’t let it go too hard.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool for about 10-15 minutes.

Take out of the tin and cut into squares – it’s easier to do this before it gets too cold.

As an alternative to the walnuts I sometimes use chopped up dried apricots which give you a chewier version.

Stuffed mushrooms with walnuts, goats cheese & bacon

This makes a lovely starter for 6 people:

Ingredients

12 x medium sized mushrooms (about 6cm diameter)

2 tbs cooking oil (don’t waste olive oil)
1 stick finely chopped celery
1 finely chopped red onion
100g bacon lardons – I use smoked ones

150g soft goats cheese
About 10 chopped walnut halves
Salt & pepper to taste

Method

Remove the stalks from the mushrooms and reserve to use for another day/dish – I use the chestnut brown ones which I buy in our local market, but any good sized mushrooms will be fine

Gently sauté either side of the mushrooms in a non stick pan using a tablespoon of hot oil. Cook for a few minutes to soften slightly then place them open side up in a greased ovenproof dish ready for stuffing.

Sauté the celery and onion in the rest of the oil until soft then add bacon & walnuts and continue cooking for about 5 minutes until the bacon is cooked.

Take off the heat and leave for a few minutes to cool a little before putting all of this mixture into a blender along with the soft goat’s cheese. Blitz the mixture to make a rough paste which you can use to stuff the mushrooms, adding salt & pepper to taste – you probably won’t need much salt if you have used smoked bacon.

Place the stuffed mushrooms in a preheated oven (180° C) for half an hour.

Serve two mushrooms per person with a few sprigs of water cress or mixed salad leaves of your choice and drizzle with a simple vinaigrette dressing.

Didn't have any pictures of mushrooms so thought as it's Valentine's day this "heart" jug would be appropriate.

Susie's Mum's Shortbread

Recently I've been doing lots of baking and yesterday I decided that I fancied making some shortbread, so I dug out my Mum's recipe and made it. Have to say it tasted as good as I remembered so thought I'd share the recipe with you. Incidentally I have photographed it on my Grandmother's Shelley Tea service, which is over a hundred years old, bringing back lots of childhood memories.

Ingredients - enough for twelve wedges.

175 g plain flour

110g unsalted butter

50g caster sugar

Method

Put softened butter into a mixing bowl.
Add the flour and the sugar and knead with your hands until you have made a dough. This takes about five minutes depending on how soft your butter is.
Roll out the dough on a flat surface to fit into a lined round baking tin (20cm diameter).
Press the mixture down gently into the baking tin and crimp the edges with a fork to make a pattern all the way round, making sure the top is fairly flat.
Prick all over with a fork so that during cooking it doesn't rise.
Put into a heated oven 175° C for 20 minutes then turn the oven down to 150°C for a further fifteen minutes or so, until the shortbread is a light golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool, gently sprinkling a little caster sugar over the top whilst it is cooling.
When cool remove from the tin and cut into 12 wedges and store in an airtight container.

For a yummy dessert leave the shortbread whole, cover with Creme fraiche or whipped cream and place summer fruits like strawberries and raspberries on top - delicious!