Blue Cheese and Broccoli Mini Quiches with Walnut Pastry

Blue Cheese (Stilton) & Broccoli Mini Quiches with Walnut & Cheese Pastry

These are great make ahead and freeze mini-quiches.  I usually make a huge batch of about 100 or more and pack tightly into boxes of 24 ready for any occasion.  Especially good for drinks parties and the perfect combination of ingredients for that Thanksgiving and Christmas get-togethers.  

Just use whatever blue cheese you like best... I used Stilton or if you're not a blue-cheese fan then a strong cheddar will do nicely.  You could also buy a block of shortcrust pastry if you're in a hurry but remember to use the all butter kind...I really prefer it for texture and flavour. 

For the pastry. 

3oz / 75g self raising flour

3oz / 75g wholewheat flour     you can use just 6oz of plain flour if you don't have any wholewheat

pinch of salt

half teaspoon of dry mustard powder (optional)

(sieve these ingredients together in a bowl)

3oz/ 75g butter

2oz/ 50 g grated cheddar

Rub the fat into the flour then add

1oz /25g walnuts finely chopped

Bind with enough cold water to make a pliable dough.

refrigerate for half an hour.

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The Filling.

1 head of broccoli stalk removed and cut into small pieces then blanched

3 eggs

half a pint of double cream

6 oz Stilton or another blue cheese of your choice.

1 onion finely diced and sauteed in a little butter

seasoning

grated nutmeg

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Put the Stilton or whatever Blue Cheese you prefer, cream, eggs, sauteed onion into a food processor & blitz until it starts to thicken. Season to taste.

Roll out the pastry thinly & use to line around 24 - 36 well greased mini muffin cases. use a cutter large enough so that the pastry comes up to the top of the holes in the muffin tray

Place some blanched broccoli into each case.

Spoon over the cheese mixture taking care not to overfill.

Give the trays a sharp rap on the table to settle the mixture and add a little more filling if needed.

Grate over some nutmeg

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Bake at 180c for around 15 mins or until lovely & golden . Just test to make sure the underneath of the pastry is cooked through. 

remove onto a cooling rack after around 3 mins .

Cashew Nut Chicken Fillets (Oven Baked)

I'm a real nut lover and I think that Cashews could be my favourites. I use them such a lot especially when I cook a Chinese & Indian Meals. I like to buy a big bag of raw cashews when I visit the Chinese Supermarket. They're great roasted in the oven with chilli and maple syrup for a drinks party, or dry fried in a frying pan for a few minutes to ready to add to stir fries, curries and Moroccan cous cous. 

Here I have added them to this lovely crunchy coating for chicken fillets which are then baked in the oven for around 25 mins. Fabulous served hot or cold and would be great for a packed lunch or picnic. We enjoyed a couple of left over pieces served up in a tortilla wrap with salad for lunch the following day.

 I served this with a simple minted yoghurt with a little red chilli added but I'm sure the kids would enjoy it more with a dollop of tomato ketchup .

Heat the oven to 200c/400f/gas 6

The ingredients will serve 4

4 chicken fillets cut in half lenghthwise to make 8 pieces in total
4 oz  raw cashew nuts (if you can't find them use roasted & salted but omit the salt from the recipe)
2 slices of yesterday's bread ( made into breadcrumbs)
1 spring onion roughly chopped  including all the green part
1 tbsp chopped coriander or parsley if preferred
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp olive oil

flour, spread onto a plate
2 eggs beat and place onto a plate

Squeeze of lemon to finish

Method:

To make the coating just whizz everything (except the chicken & cashews) in a food processor until well blended then add the nuts & the oil and lightly blitz to break up the nuts slightly. Place on a plate & leave to one side while you prepare the chicken.

Line 3 plates up,  1st with the flour, then the beaten eggs  then the crumb coating

Dip the chicken into the flour,  then the egg, then finally roll into the cashew nut mixture making sure it's well coated

Place each piece onto a large baking tray

Bake in a hot oven 200c/400f/gas6 for around 20 mins ( check after 15) until cooked through and golden brown.

Serve hot or cold with a squeeze of lemon sprinkled over

Spicy Spinach & Chickpea Pakora

Spicy Spinach & Chickpea Pakora (Fritters)

Ingredients for the Pakora

This recipe will make approx 20 pakoras

450gms Fresh spinach, washed and quickly cooked and thoroughly drained...make sure all water is squeezed out.
400g tin of cooked & drained chickpeas
1 red onion very finely chopped
1 large garlic clove  "     "
1 green chilli
1 red chilli
½ tsp chilli powder
1 heaped tsp ground coriander
1 heaped tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground fennel seeds
1 tsp black onion seeds (optional)
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp sea salt
½tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 cup of gram (chick pea) flour
oil for deep frying

For the yoghurt sauce

5inch piece of cucumber grated.... squeeze out all the juice
around 4 tbsp natural yoghurt (I used Greek)
1 tbsp chopped mint or coriander
½ of a chopped red chilli
seasoning
mix everything together

Method.

Whiz the chickpeas in a food processor until coarse.....not too fine
Add the spinach and give it a blast, place everything into a bowl
Add all the other pakora ingredients and mix well.
Lighten slightly with a couple of tbsp of water so that the mix is still thick but spoonable.
Place a couple of layers of kitchen towel on a tray ready to drain the excess oil off.

Heat the oil until hot enough to fry a small cube of bread to golden in 15 secs.
Take great care with the hot oil (
Place just 1 dessertspoonful of the batter initially, cook till golden and check  for seasoning adjust the remainder as necessary.
Place heaped dessertspoons of the batter into the oil
Fry in small batches, I made about 5 at a time, they cook fairly quickly, just make sure they're golden brown and hot right through.
Remove with a slotted spoon
Place on the kitchen towel...keep warm until you've cooked them all

Serve with the yoghurt dip or with any other sauce you may prefer   

Honey & Mustard Sausages

Honey & Mustard Sausages

These are the business. So easy and perfect for any drinks party.
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48 cocktail sausages or chipolatas
2 tbsp honey
1 heaped tablespoon grainy Dijon Mustard
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heat the oven to 220c/425f. gas 7
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Place the sausages on a lightly oiled baking tin
Bake for around 10 mins or until they're about half cooked through
Drizzle over the honey and stir in the mustard till all is coated
Pop back in the oven for around another 7 minutes or until they are glazed, golden and cooked through.
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pierce with cocktail sticks
pile up and serve immediately
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they can be frozen and reheated for a few minutes in a hot oven.
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