Lemon Honey Popcorn

Ingredients:

Popcorn
1 tbsp olive oil
3-4 drops of Young Living Lemon essential oil (can also use lime or orange)
1 tsp runny honey

Method:

1. Heat the oil gently in the bottom of a pan (must be a pan with a lid). Once the bottom of the pan is covered with oil, put enough popcorn in to cover the bottom of the pan & place the lid on the pan.
2. Watch and wait until the corn begins popping & once it has finished turn the heat off & place in a large mixing bowl.
3. Mix the oil with the honey on a teaspoon and mix through the popcorn until evenly coated.

Great to eat with a good film!

NB I use Young Living Essential Oil due to it's known high quality grade & assurance that it is 100% pure essential oil, so completely safe to ingest. Other oils may not be safe to ingest.

Savoury Cheese & Raisin Muffins

We're trying to reduce our sugar intake slightly so thought I'd try and make some savoury things to replace all the biscuits & chocolate we seem to eat. These are delicious and the raisins adds a little natural sweetness.

Ingredients:

250g plain flour
3 1/2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
50g butter
1 egg
250ml milk
120g grated cheese
100g raisins

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 220C.
2. Place flour, baking powder, salt and paprika in a bowl & mix together.
3. Cut the butter into small pieces and using your finger tips rub the flour into the butter.
4. Beat the egg and add the milk mixing together well.
5. Add the milk-egg mix to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
6. Add the grated cheese and raisins and mix well.
7. Place into cupcake cases or a muffin tin.
8. Bake in the oven for 20-25 mins.

Serve with soup or a stew. 

Cut in half and spread some soft cheese on them.

Baked Stuffed Cheesy Mexican Pittas

Ingredients:

4 pitta breads
1 red pepper, sliced
1 onion, chopped finely
1 carrot, chopped into sticks
100g mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp dried coriander leaves
1 tsp lime juice
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch of cumin
pinch of dried chillies
1 garlic clove, chopped finely
grated cheese
more olive oil for drizzling or brushing onto pittas

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 170C.
2. In a bowl mix together the ground & dried coriander, cumin, paprika and chillies with the oil and lime juice into a paste.
3. Add the onions and garlic to the paste & mix well.
4. Heat a pan until it's hot and add the onion & paste mix, frying until the onions are beginning to soften. 
5. Add the vegetables to the pan and fry until soft.
6. Take the pitta breads and cut in half, opening up the pocket in the bread.
7. Stuff the pittas with grated cheese and the cooked vegetable mix.
8. Place the stuffed pittas on a baking tray and drizzle or brush with some olive oil.
9. Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins or until looking golden.

Serve with a lovely green salad as a light lunch.

Tomato, Thyme & Spinach Tartlets

Ingredients:

500g ready-made puff pastry

1 pepper, sliced

1 red onion, sliced

2 handful of fresh spinach

fresh thyme, chopped finely

16 cherry tomatoes, halved

225g goats cheese.

Olive oil

225g chorizo, chopped finely (Optional)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to Gas Mark 7 or 220C.
2. Slice the pepper and onion.
3. Heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the onion, chopped thyme and peppers together.
4. When the pepper and onion are soft add the spinach and stir until it has cooked through.
5. On a clean, dry work surface sprinkle some plain flour and roll out the pastry until it is approximately 0.5cm thick.
6. Cut into rounds approximately 10cm in diameter or squares approximately 10x10cm.
7. Place onto a baking sheet and spread the cooked onion, pepper and spinach mix onto each square, leaving about 1cm around the edge.
8. Top with the halved cherry tomatoes, goats cheese, chorizo (Optional) and sprinkle with extra thyme, if necesary.
9. Place in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown and the edges of the pastry have all puff up.

Can be served hot or cold, delicious either way. 

NB Chorizo can be added for those meatarians amongst you, but for a vegetarian option it is just as tasty without chorizo.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Ingredients:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcake

Cake:

55g margarine

225g soft light brown sugar

115g crunchy peanut butter

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

225g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

100ml milk

chocolate spread

Icing:

100g butter

200g icing sugar

1-2 tbsps milk

2-3 tbsps peanut butter (or more as required)

Method:

Cake:

Add half a tsp of chocolate spread

1. Preheat oven to Gas Mark 4 or 180C.
2. Beat well together the butter, sugar and peanut butter.
3. Gradually beat in the already lightly beaten eggs and add the vanilla extract.
4. Add the flour and baking powder and fold into the mix gently whilst adding the milk slowly.
5. Spoon 1 tsp of the mixture into each of the paper bun cases and make a small well in the mix.
6. Add half a tsp of chocolate spread into the centre of each bun and top with another tsp of the cake mixture.
7. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Allow to cool.

Icing:

Cool the cakes before icing

1. Put icing sugar and butter together in a bowl and add the milk very slowly whilst mixing very well until it is a thick consistency.
2. Add the peanut butter and continue to mix well.
3. With the back of a spoon spread the icing onto the tops of the cooled cakes.

GRAZE BOX

We were given a code for a FREE Graze box last week, so I had to trial it!

I love healthy snacks and trying new foods and combinations.

On Wednesday our first box arrived through the post, it was very exciting opening it to see what we had been given...

Our first GRAZE box

If you've never heard of Graze before visit their website, but as a quick summary:

• You sign up to receive a nibblebox every week or fortnight which contains 4 snack boxes
• You rank their snacks: LOVE (would like to receive regularly), LIKE (send occasionally), TRY (happy to try) and BIN (you do not wish to receive it)
• Then every week or fortnight you receive a little box through the post with 4 snack in it, which they have picked out from your selections.
• You can cancel at any time if you do not want to keep receiving the boxes.

Our selection of snacks

In our first box we have received:

1. Tutti Frutti - dried pineapple, cherry, raisins, blueberry, cranberries & raisins
2. Salsa Fresca - coriander and lime salsa with cheesy sombreros
3. Honeycomb Flapjack - flapjack with milk chocolate
4. Eton Mess - mini meringues, blackcurrants, cranberries & almond slices

I look forward to trying out our selection and will decide whether to continue receiving them or not.

It has also inspired me to have a go at putting some of my own together, so watch this space on Foody Friday!!