Cauliflower & Bacon Fritters

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Easy Weekday dinner

Ingredients

Makes lots for 2 - enough as side for 4

1/2 head of cauliflower steamed or boiled

1 large free range egg

3 rashers of bacon grilled until crispy

2 tablespoons of plain yogurt (cause I didn't have enough milk)

a dash of milk

1 teaspoon of cumin seeds

1 clove of garlic crushed

1 heaped table spoon of gram flour / or regular flour

mustard seeds

salt and pepper

Method

1. Once your cauliflower is cool mash it with a fork or masher
2. Cut your bacon into small pieces
3. Mix all the ingredients together in a big bowl
4. Heat a frying pan with some oil over medium to high heat
5. When it's nice and hot spoon in one tablespoon of mixture per patty
6. Cook one one side for 2-3 mins or until nicely golden
7. Flip carefully over
8. Press down with the spatula to firm up the fritter
9. Remove from pan and place on kitchen towel
10. Repeat with rest of mixture

I served these along side some salad and homemade baked beans

Pancake Stack with Toasted Almonds and Maple Syrup

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Today is Tuesday

Some confusion arose this morning as to - firstly what day of the week it was and then subsequently - was this pancake Tuesday? I decided it was and went off to fix myself a massive coffee and what turned out to be an equally enormous stack of pancakes.


It is pancake Tuesday - but not until next week, so for once I am ahead of the game and have this recipe for you to try on the real pancake Tuesday!

Ingredients
Serves 2 - makes 10 mini pancakes (diameter 10cm!)
55g plain flour
1 egg
100 ml of milk with 35 ml cold water added in
melted butter - around a tablespoon
Maple Syrup
Large Handful Toasted Almonds

• Sieve the flour into a large bowl. Add in a pinch of salt if you like.
• Make a well in the centre of the sifted flour. Break the egg into the centre. Break up the eggs with a spoon and then gently stir, so that the egg pulls in a little flour with each stir. Continue to do this until the mixture is getting thick.
• Add in a little of the milk mixture - continue until all the flour has been incorporated. If you don't rush then you should have a nice batter that has little lumps. If you do have lumps give it a whisk with a balloon whisk.
• Allow the mixture to rest for a few minutes if you did use a balloon whisk.
• Heat up a small non stick frying pan on a med/high heat. Add in a small nob of butter. When it begins to bubble add in a spoonful of the pancake mixture. Swirl around to coat the base of the pan.

• If you have the pan heated up well - the pancake should take 230 seconds or so on each side. You can see the batter on top slowly turning opaque as it cooks through.

• Stack pancakes in a warm oven on a plate covered with kitchen towel until you have a huge pile of pancakes. Then enjoy with your topping of choice - sugar and lemon, maple syrup, nutella, banana and Chantilly cream.

Leek & Bread Pudding

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Twice Baked Bread

I saw this recipe mid-week and just knew I had to make it. One of my favorite things is bread and butter pudding, and this is a savory version including a rich conte cheese and gently carmelised leeks. This recipe comes from the super blog - based out of NYC - Smitten Kitchen. I love her recipes its one of m favorite blogs - so be sure and check it out. She has  a book in the due out in the next few, which is def on my Christmas list (oh hint, hint!)

I followed the recipe exactly at this link. I served it with some fresh - uncoloured smoked haddock, from the fishmonger at the Saturday food market in Temple Bar - I hadn't been there in a while and had forgotten how great it is, for an morning wander and a nibble. 

To prepare the fish - simply poach in milk for 5 minutes, flake over a slice of this bread pudding hot from the oven - it's Saturday lunch heaven. Give Delo an extra large slice cause he bought you a lovely bunch of flowers!!! My pictures don't really convey the texture of the bread too well, it was crispy and crunchy on top, whilst soft, spongy and creamy inside - this is a well recommended recipe and the possibility of endless variations.