Tag Archives: Good Food Fast

Cranberry and Cinnamon Cookies

A rich shortbread lightly spiced with cinnamon with a contrasting tang from the dried cranberries.

Time 25 minutes
Calories per cookie 134 Kcal
Fat per cookie 10g
of which saturated 6.2g
Makes 15 cookies
Suitable for vegetarians

Plain flour 250g (9oz)
Ground cinnamon 1 tspSalt a pinch
Unsalted butter 175g (6oz)
Light soft brown sugar 75g (3oz)
Dried cranberries 150g (5oz)

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4 and grease a baking sheet.

2 To make the dough, sift the flour, cinnamon and salt into a bowl. Add the butter, cut into pieces, and rub it into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the sugar to the bowl and continue to work the mixture until it starts to bind together. Add the dried cranberries and work the mixture to form a dough.

3 Roll the dough into a sausage shape about 7cm (2¾in) diameter and cut into slices about 1cm (½in) thick and place them on the baking sheets.

4 Bake the cookies in the centre of the oven for 15–20 minutes, until they are starting to turn light golden in colour. Remove from the oven and leave them to cool on the tray for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. Serve the biscuits warm or cold.

If you are unable to find any dried cranberries, use raisins or sultanas in their place.

Recipe taken from Good Food , Fast: Dairy Cookbook

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Time to save some time

With the nights drawing in so fast, time seems even more limited than usual.

The midweek rush to get a meal on the table can often result in a hastily cooked pizza or other oven-meal.

However, if you prepare ahead a little when time is not so precious, you can eat great food mid-week too.

Try making Spiced Plums for the freezer. You can make not one but two delicious meals from it – such as Stir-fry Pork with Spiced Plum Sauce and Plum Semi-Freddo.

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Spiced Plums, Stir Fry Pork & Plum Semi-Freddo

Spiced Plums

This recipe makes enough sauce for 2 separate dishes – such as the Stir Fry Pork and Plum Semi-Freddo below – and can be frozen until required.

Time 25 minutes
Suitable for vegetarians, depending on usage
Suitable for freezing

Red plums 600g (1lb 6oz), halved, stoned and quartered
Ground cinnamon ¼–½ tsp
Golden caster sugar 75g (3oz)
Orange juice 3–6 tbsp

1 Tip the plums into a large heavy based pan with all the other ingredients (the amount of orange juice you use will depend on how ripe the plums are) and mix well.

2 Cook over a gentle heat for 8–10 minutes, stirring often. It is important to keep the heat very low or the cinnamon will burn and taste bitter.Cook for a further 5 minutes if necessary. The exact cooking time will depend on the ripeness of the plums – you want the mix to be tender but not mushy.

3 Then remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.When cold, transfer the mixture into two freezer-proof containers, cover, label and freeze for up to 1 month.

Stir-fry Pork with Spiced Plum Sauce

Time 15 minutes plus thawing time
Calories per portion 713 Kcal
Fat per portion 16g
of which saturated 2.7g
Serves 3

Spiced plums 1 portion, thawed at room temperature for 3–4 hours or overnight in the fridge
Red wine vinegar 1–2 tbsp
Pork loin steaks 2, trimmed and cut into thin slices
Sesame oil 1 tbsp
Fresh egg noodles 385g packet
Oriental stir-fry mix 270g packet

1 Stir together the plum sauce and vinegar and then add the strips of pork.

2 Heat the sesame oil in a large wok and add the pork and plum sauce – watch out, it will sizzle a bit! Stir-fry for 5–7 minutes or until the liquid from the plums has almost evaporated.

3 Add the remaining ingredients and stir-fry for a further 3–5 minutes or until the vegetables have wilted and the pork is cooked through. Serve at once with soy sauce, if wished.

You can easily buy sesame oil in supermarkets – it adds a lovely flavour.

Plum Semi-Freddo

Time 10 minutes
Calories per portion 250 Kcal
Fat per portion 20g
of which saturated 11.3g
Serves 4
Suitable for vegetarians

Spiced plums 1 portion, still frozen
Double cream 150ml (¼ pint), lightly whipped

1 Take the plums from the freezer and remove the lid from the storage container. Microwave on high for about 10 seconds just so that you can get the plum mix out of the container.

2 Break the sauce into chunks and pop in a food processor. Then use the pulse button to cut the sauce into chunks.

3 Quickly add the chunks of sauce to the whipped cream and mix gently. Serve immediately in glasses with dessert biscuits.

You can also use the Plum Semi-Freddo as a filling for four meringue nests.

Recipes taken from Good Food, Fast: Dairy Cookbook

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Carrot, Apple and Celeriac Soup

Packed full of flavour and low in calories here is a tasty soup to hit the spot when you fancy a light snack.

Time 25 minutes
Calories per portion 99 Kcal
Fat per portion 1gof which saturated 0.1g
Serves 3
Suitable for vegetarians
Suitable for freezing without the yogurt

Carrot 1 large, peeled and cut into small pieces
Celeriac, ¼ bulb, peeled and flesh cut into small pieces
Onion 1, peeled and chopped
Vegetable stock 600ml (1 pint)
Eating apples 2
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Grated nutmeg a pinch
Low fat natural yogurt 2–3 tbsp
Ready made croutons to serve

1 Put the vegetables in a medium saucepan and pour over the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer the soup for 5 minutes.

2 Meanwhile, peel, core and chop the apples. Stir into the vegetables and continue to simmer for a further 5 minutes until tender.

3 Remove the pan from the heat and blend the soup using a hand-held electric wand or in a food processor or blender until the vegetables are finely chopped. Return to the pan, if necessary, season to taste and add the nutmeg.

4 Stir in the yogurt and heat through very gently for 1–2 minutes without boiling, until piping hot. Ladle into warm bowls and top each with a handful of croutons and a grinding of black pepper.

Celeriac is a knobbly root vegetable related to celery. If unavailable, use 2 sticks chopped celery instead.

Recipe taken from Good Food, Fast: Dairy Cookbook.

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Squirrel Spotting!

They’re agile, cute and furry, and we’re nuts about them! Red squirrels are one of the most loved animals in the UK.

With their distinctive russet fur, tufted ears and twitching tail, a red squirrel is always a captivating sight in the forests of the UK.

Yet these flashes of red are becoming scarcer, with the current population is estimated to be only 160,000.

Support these adorable little creatures with Red Squirrel Week. There are events at selected red squirrel sites across the UK. See http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/?section=events:autumn:redsquirrelweek for details.

Win a Wildlife Book

To celebrate Red Squirrel Week we have 10 copies of Britain’s Favourite Animals to give away.

Click for a chance to win.

If you’ve had a long day out in the cold squirrel spotting you will need a quick and warming dinner Good Food, Fast: Dairy Cookbook has the answer: Try the truly comforting Quick Cottage Pie.

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Tag Archives: Good Food Fast

Cranberry and Cinnamon Cookies

A rich shortbread lightly spiced with cinnamon with a contrasting tang from the dried cranberries.

Time to save some time

With the nights drawing in so fast, time seems even more limited than usual.

Don’t miss your chance to
win a superb Dairy Diary Apron