Caramelised Cranberry Relish

This is a recipe that I posted a couple of years ago, but I thought I would re-post it, so you can all start getting ahead of the big feast without searching through my archives.

I know Christmas is still weeks away, and I also know that December can fly by faster than Superman on his way to meet Lois Lane when we are busy. It is for this reason that I have decided to get ahead of the Christmas dinner game and prepare my Cranberry Relish now. It only takes ten minutes to make, so I probably could have made it on the day, but why would I want to do that when I could be relaxing with kids?

This recipe will keep well in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but I have chosen not to take any chances. I am making it now and freezing it. Then I can just pop it out a few days in advance (I will be setting a reminder on my phone so I don’t forget) and it will be ready to go with my turkey dinner on the big day.

Carmelised Cranberry Relish

• Skill level: Easy

• Preparation time: 5 minutes

• Cooking time: 10 minutes

• Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 red onion, finely diced
• Knob of butter
• 1 large orange
• Thumb sized piece of ginger, finely sliced into matchsticks
• 100g/4oz caster sugar
• 500g/1lb cranberries (fresh or frozen)
• splash of Port (optional)

Method

1. Use a zester to zest the orange, or use a speed peeler to peel off the zest then finely shred it with a knife and set aside with the ginger.
2. Halve and juice the orange. Tip the orange juice into a shallow saucepan and boil gently with the sugar until you get a light amber-orange caramel.
3. Scatter the zest and ginger into the caramel, cook for 1 minute, then tip in the cranberries and port if using. Cook everything on a high heat for 5 minutes until the cranberries are starting to split but still have texture. Leave to cool and serve with the turkey.

This recipe will keep for a few weeks in the refrigerator, or can be frozen for up to a month.

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

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Diwali Delight part 2… Chicken Tikka Masala

I have probably eaten every popular Indian Dish available on an Indian menu. This is thanks to working with a very talented chef called Errol who generously brings in mounds of Indian and Indian inspired dishes for us hungry workers on London Underground.

Despite eating tons of Indian food however, I have never tried to cook any Indian dishes myself. I was always afraid it would be too much work, or would leave my house smelling of a local curry take-away… After some research and some encouragement from my Asian friends I have now finally taken the plunge and made my first Indian dish, a Chicken Tikka Masala (which isn’t a true Indian dish, but a good starting point for Indian cooking).

This particular version of the dish was pretty simple to make, and a lot of fun as well. It involved dry roasting of spices, lots of whizzing up ingredients in my under-used food processor and lots of stirring, reducing and frying and grilling of ingredients. Which may sound complicated, but really was quite simple… All in all I think this recipe is a fantastic starting point for anyone like me who is interested in cooking foods from many cultures. And for those who think Indian curries are always fiery hot, fear not this recipe has little heat, but loads of flavour. So give it a go, your taste buds will truly thank you for it!

Super easy, super fast apple sauce

Apple sauce is the perfect accompaniment with pork. It is also an excellent topping for pancakes, and ice cream, and babies love it as well. Yet until recently I never realised just how easy and fast it was to make.

It is also a perfect recipe for me to try when I have so little time to spend in the kitchen… I am currently planning a trip to Devon and Cornwall, and I leave a couple of days.

Forgot the Tartare sauce for you fish and chips? Make your own in two minutes.

Yesterday I went to the trouble of making my kids a lovely fish and chip dinner only to realise that I had forgotten the tartare sauce… And even though I can eat fish and chips without it, I love the stuff, and it really makes a plate of fish and chips 100% better.

So to advert any whining (from me mostly) I found a recipe for tartare sauce and managed to whip up a batch in two minutes flat, and it was so good, I will probably never buy it again!

Chilli with lime and other things fine…

The sun has finally broken through and it is starting to look like we might get a summer here in the UK, so I guess my barbecue might get a decent work-out this year… And if there is one thing that any great barbecue chef needs, it is a good choice of marinades to give their meat that extra zing.

So yesterday I popped into the kitchen here at Chez Winegarden, tied up the apron, and searched through my collection of magazine cuttings for some marinade recipes to experiment with. Within minutes I stumbled across this fabulous Sweet Chilli marinade recipe which I think I had cut from an old Sainsburys or Tesco food magazine. It is so easy to make and so delicious that I thought I would come and share it with you all.

Sweet Chilli Marinade

I love this recipe, it is easy to make, tastes delicious and can be used with so many things. I used it on some pork loin steaks, but it could easily be used on some chicken, or perhaps even with a stir fry.

Sweet Chilli Marinade. So easy to make, so hard to photograph

• Preparation time: less than 10 minutes

• Cooking time: none

• Skill level: easy

Ingredients

• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped.
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 4 tsp runny honey
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 4 tsp lime juice

Method

After preparing your ingredients, toss them into a bowl and mix them up. After the ingredients are well mixed your marinade is ready to enjoy!