The Family Cook Book

In the Sunday Times this morning from the excellent Lucas Hollweg .... eaten for lunch whilst watching the footy. I think it has a nice taste and the celery/onion combination gives a slightly different spin on this pho-ish soup Chicken, celery and ginger broth A simple, warming, cleansing broth with vaguely oriental leanings. Serves 2 Ingredients 4cm of fresh ginger, about as wide as a thumb, peeled ½ medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced 2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced Pinch of dried chilli flakes 6 sticks of celery heart, finely shredded lengthways, plus a handful of leaves from inside the core 500ml chicken stock 1 skinless chicken breast 1 tbsp lemon juice 1 tbsp fish sauce 2 handfuls coriander leaves ½ medium red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced Finely grate half the ginger — you want it to turn into a purée. Cut the remaining ginger into thin discs, then slice these across so they form fine shreds. Cut the shredded celery into 5cm...

That's my hands of course. On Friday night I managed to nearly sever a tendon and ended up getting 8 or 9 stitches in one finger and 3 in another .... Oh and I had to have 5 injections in my hand too! The moral of the story don't chop an avocado stone whilst holding the avocado ... Sounds stupid, sounds obvious, that's because it is ... But it didn't stop me doing it. Luckily everyone was at home to get me through it and to wipe the blood off the knife, chopping board, work surface, floor and cupboards. It's a bit of a drag that its happened at xmas as I am a little encumbered but I will just have to be a little bit Gordon or a bit Raymond ...Adam!

Red cabbage is a must for Xmas day AND boxing day. Luckily it's one of those things that can definitely be made ahead. This year, after an extensive online search for the best recipe I have alighted on this one; Braised red cabbage with apple and red wine, from 'Vegetables' by Sophie Grigson. According to the article I read this is the 'absolute classic, unbeatable way with red cabbage. It's a tradition originating in Germany and Austria and has become part of our Christmas, too.' Well lets hope they're right cos its now in the freezer! Serves 6 Ingredients 1 large red cabbage 1 large onion, halved and sliced 2 eating apples, cored and roughly chopped 100 ml (3½ fl oz) red wine (or port) 4 tbs caster sugar 2 tbs red wine vinegar 4 cloves 2 cinnamon sticks 1 blade of mace 40g (1½ oz) unsalted or lightly salted butter salt and pepper Method Preheat the oven to 150C/gas 2. Quarter the red cabbage, then c...

OK, OK, I know its heresy. How on earth can you make get ahead bubble and squeak? By definition it needs to be made on boxing day from the left overs of xmas day .... but what if you've got 12 people coming and you dont know if you'll have enough and you dont want to cook an extra kilo of brussels and leave them sweating away in that rather gaseous state overnight. Well welcome to my heretic trial, Gordon Ramsey's pre-made bubble and squeak 'cakes' Lets hope they work! Ingredients 1kg floury potatoes , quartered (I use King Edward) 40g butter 500g Brussels sprouts , trimmed 50g plain flour , seasoned with salt and pepper olive oil , for frying Method Boil the potatoes for 12-15 mins or until tender, then drain and return to the pan over a low heat for 1-2 mins to dry out. Add the butter and mash well. Meanwhile, boil the sprouts for 3-5 mins until just tender. Drain and cool quickly under cold running water. Shake dry, then shred as finely as you ca...

We had ten for dinner last night and instead of sitting down for a starter we had a selection of bits at the bar. I turned to 'The return of the Naked Chef' for a couple of them and it reminded me how good and original Jamie was when he first burst on the scene. The reci pes below come f rom the tapas, munchies and snacks section of the book . It has to be said they went down pretty well.   nb  I halved the tuna recipe as we were having a few different things to eat. we could also have easily halved the tapenade recipe but it keeps perfectly well in the fridge  Asian infused tuna Try to buy firm, deep red tuna. The idea is for it to be eaten raw - just like sushi ­ but, in actual fact, the acidity of the lime juice starts to cook the fish. serves 6-8 455g/1lb tuna 1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced juice of 4-5 limes, to taste 1-2 fresh chillies, deseeded and finely chopped 3 tablespoons sesame seed oil 4 tablespoons coconut milk 1 good handful...

After my Plum and orange cake last week (I went through by the way) it was Mr Quarrey's turn to compete in Cake club. I think its fair to say that he has kept the founders end up rather well, his Sticky pear and ginger cake may not have risen to the greatest of heights but on the flavour front it was positively Shard like.  Heres the recipe This is a cross between a sticky toffee pudding and a ginger cake. Serve warm with ice cream or cream as a dessert Serves   8 - 10 Ingredients ·       250g stoned  dates   , finely chopped ·       300ml milk ·       100g butter , plus extra for the tin ·       140g ginger preserve (you'll find this with the jams) ·       140g dark muscovado sugar ·       3 large ripe  pears   (we used Conference) · ...

I just saw this and thought I should try it ... this is a reminder to me to do so. It is similar to the April Bloomfield one that nearly gassed Joe and I last week but doesn't involve cooking the chillies!  Ribeye steak with Asian dressing A cross between Italian tagliata — sliced steak — and a Vietnamese beef salad. Ingredients   Serves 2-4 2 tbsp soy sauce 2 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)  Zest and juice of 2 limes  1 tbsp brown sugar  4 wafer-thin slices of ginger, finely shredded  1 medium red chilli, deseeded and finely shredded  2 shallots, finely sliced  2 ribeye steaks, 2cm-3cm thick  4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil  Salt and pepper  Baby-leaf salad  A few coriander leaves  A few mint leaves, roughly torn  A few chives, cut into 5cm lengths, to scatter  2 radishes, cut into tiny sticks  3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil Put the soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar in a sm...