Apparently its Spring. I say apparently, as at the moment I’m sitting writing this blog post with a jumper and fleece on and it’s raining and misty outside. Feels more like Autumn than Spring! With that being said these oats are perfect for a cold morning and they keep you going until lunch which is ideal.
Monthly Archives: March 2014
Sweet Potato Gnocchi (Gluten Free)
I had forgotten how much I loved gnocchi until I came up with this recipe.! After finding out I was intolerant to gluten, I found there are lots of gluten free pastas but no gnocchi – at least I couldn’t find any. So I set myself a task of coming up with a recipe. I must admit I was a little daunted at first as I always think making pasta and gnocchi is harder than it actually is.
This recipe was my third attempt of trying gnocchi. On the first attempt I included egg but the gnocchi was too heavy. The second time I flavoured it with cinnamon and it just didn’t taste right to me. Then I came up with the recipe below and couldn’t believe I’d managed it! Now my freezer will be stocked with gnocchi for easy quick dinners. So far I’ve had it with my pesto and my tomato and basil sauce, both were delicious. Below the recipe I’ve included tips on how to freeze, re-heat and store the gnocchi.
Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce
I’ve called this a pasta sauce but it pretty much goes with anything. I’ve had it over grilled vegetables, lentil and cashew nut loaf and with chicken. It also freezes well too which makes it ideal to cook up a big batch then portion it out before freezing so when you’re stuck for time you could whip up some pasta and sauce in no time.
I find the wine makes this sauce lovely and rich but if you don’t have any wine in or don’t want to use it then just omit from the recipe. The longer you leave the sauce the simmer the thicker it gets. I forgot to set a timer one day and left the sauce simmering for about 45 minutes and it had thickened beautifully – ideal for a homemade pizza sauce.
Ingredients
-1 Tbsp olive oil
-1 small or 1/2 large red onion, finely diced
-2 garlic cloves, crushed
-1/4 cup red wine
-1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
-1 heaped Tbsp tomato puree
-small handful (approx 2 heaped Tbsp) fresh leaves, roughly chopped
-salt & pepper to taste
How To Make
Place a medium saucepan over a low-medium heat and add the oil.
Add the onion to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes before adding the garlic.
Cook the onion and garlic slowly (for at least 10 minutes). The onion should become soft and golden. Stir often to prevent it burning as this will make the sauce taste bitter and you’ll need to start again. If you think the onion is browning too quickly reduce the heat.
Add the wine, if using, and turn up the heat. Allow the wine to bubble away until reduced by half.
Next add the chopped tomatoes and tomato puree. Bring to the boil give everything a good stir.
Reduce heat to a low simmer and cook, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes.
Add the basil, salt and pepper and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Check seasoning before serving.
If freezing, portion out sauce in to suitable containers, allow to cool and then freeze.
Enjoy 🙂
Spinach & Cherry Tomato Scramble
Please let me start off by apologising for the pictures of this dish. Trying to get a good shot of scrambled eggs for an (very) amateur photographer with a camera that is slowly dying is not the easiest! However, let me assure you that this dish tastes good and I hope the pictures don’t put you off!
You may wonder why I’m posting a recipe for scrambled eggs, as surely it’s one of the easiest things to make. That may be so but for me when I first started getting interested in cooking I had so many disasters just trying to make scrambled eggs I thought I’d share this recipe – plus it’s my new favourite way to eat them.
Creamy Lemon Dressing (Dairy free)
I’ve called this a dressing but it could be used as a dip or even a spread – I’ll explain more later! Sometimes I find the hardest thing is to name a recipe once I have created it. And normally once I’ve posted a recipe I have a flash of inspiration and think of another name for the dish!
Just now I seem to be a tad obsessed with lemons. I’m not sure if it’s due to Spring arriving but the smell and taste of lemons just reminds me of warmer weather and long Summer days! Lemon tea, lemon slices in water with mint or lemon juice over salads, it’s all about the lemons in my house right now!
Chocolate Chia Pudding
Hello lovely readers! I hope you’re all well and looking forward to Spring arriving.
Apologies for lack of new recipes but I was away on holiday to visit my beautiful sister and her family in Florida. I had an excellent time. In total awe of how much my 5-year-old nephew changes each time I see him! I sampled lots of gluten free and dairy free delights whilst out there and fell in love with Whole Foods! Oh. My. Word. That shop is amazing. Quite good I don’t have one near me as I would spend a fortune. I saw lots of new ingredients that I want to try so my head is buzzing with new recipes to invent!
Four Candles Kitchen 