Pumpkin Pie

Before making this pumpkin pie I had never even tasted it. I wanted to make it purely to try it, and it turned out I really like it. Pumpkin pie is very popular in America but in this country it seems very few people have tried it. When asked what it tasted like I've described it as a cross between an egg custard tart and carrot cake...sounds strange, but trust me when I say it's good and you should at least try it! It is a very seasonal treat for Autumn and especially around Halloween when we see so many pumpkins around. If you don't go to the effort of making your own shortcrust pastry, this is very quick and easy to put together.

You will need:

400g Ready-made Shortcrust Pastry
425g Tin of Pumpkin Puree
340g Evaporated Milk
2 Eggs
¾ cup Granulated Sugar
1 ½ tsp Cinnamon
¾ tsp Ground Ginger
⅜ tsp Ground Nutmeg
⅜ tsp Ground Allspice

Method:

Preheat your oven to 220 C. Start by lightly greasing a 9-inch tart tin. Dust flour over a clean work surface and roll out the pastry in a circular shape until it is about half a cm thick. Wrap the sheet of pastry around your rolling pin and use it to lift the pastry onto the tin. Lower the pastry into the sides of the tin without stretching it and lightly press into the corners. Trim any excess pastry off leaving about 2 cm around the edge. Fold the edge back on itself. Using a fork, carefully prick the pastry on the base of the tin.
In a large mixing bowl measure out all of the remaining ingredients. Using a hand or electric whisk, mix all the ingredients together. Pour the mixture into the pastry lined tin, leaving about cm gap at the top of the pastry. (I had a small amount of pastry and a small amount of filling left, so if you have a small tartlet tin you can make a mini pie with the leftover.)
Put the pie into the oven. After 15 minutes turn the temperature down to 175 C. Leave the pie in the oven for a further 50-55 minutes. The filling should still be wobbly when it is done. Take it out of the oven and leave to cool completely before taking it out of the tin. Store in the fridge, as it is best eaten chilled.

The Beauty of Going for a Walk

I have many memories of going on walks with my family. It was something we often did. Something to get us out the house, get some fresh air and blow the cobwebs away. Maybe it was something to wear us out when we were young and full of energy, and something free that we could all do together.
More often than not we wouldn't even get in the the car. We would simply walk out the front door and see which direction took our fancy.
I remember walking to primary school. There was a few others from the village that also did and we would sometimes be all walking together. Even though it was at least a half an hour walk, only the rain or lack of time would stop us. In the Summer we would enjoy the walk more, playing and chasing each other on the way home. I remember the steep hill we had to walk on the way out of the village and the many times that I fell and injured my knee. In the Autumn we would collect conkers and play with them in the school playground.
I remember many of the walks we took as a family to Meanporth beach. I specifically remember the time when my Dad taught me how to whistle. He spent the whole way there showing me with persistence how to shape my lips and blow, demonstrating himself, until I finally mastered it. I then spent the whole way back whistling, so pleased with my achievement. 

When we got a dog, I would walk him to the beach with my Dad almost every day of the week. I would love running across the beach with Sam, chasing him and throwing sticks.
On a cold windy day we would often get wrapped up warm and walk along the cliffs, or drive to kennack or cadgwith and take a walk through the woods. We would appreciate our nice warm house all the more when we returned.
If I ever needed time to think. If life ever felt like it was getting too much. If I just need time alone. I would take myself out for walk, usually with Sam, to the top of the cliffs. I would sit on a bench up the there looking out to sea, listening to nothing but the wind and waves, and the thoughts in my head.

It didn't even matter if it was wet outside. We would dress up in waterproofs and embrace whatever the weather was. 

In the autumn our walks would often take us blackberry picking. This was something me, James and Dad normally did and then Mum would make a lovely apple and blackberry crumble with our pickings. On cold days we would sometimes stop to get a hot drink from a cafe on the way back.

I've realised I don't go on walks hardly at all anymore. Where I live now is quite different to the cliffs and valleys and beaches of Cornwall. I had lived in Cornwall my whole life and so knew the place well. I knew all the places to go on a day out, all the beaches along the coast, all the footpaths we could walk along. There's certainly advantages to where I'm living now but there's also many thing I miss in Cornwall. I suppose after time, and a lot of exploring the area we will get to know the place we live now better.

Back to University

Please forgive the lack of posts this month, I plan on getting back on schedule by the end of this week. I started back at university on the 19th of this month and the following weekend my Mum came to stay with us for 3 nights, so I've been a little busy.
It's really good to be back at University. After such a long summer holiday it's nice to be busy again and to get back into a routine. It did feel strange going to lectures again though as it'd been about 5 months since the last one. It was pretty horrible weather on the first day back and I got soaked, so I really hope it's not going to be like that all winter!
It was really great to see Mum, even if it wasn't for long. I'd been missing Cornwall and my family over the summer, especially as living so far away I don't get to go back often. The first afternoon I showed her around where we live here in Seaford. On the Saturday we spent the day in Brighton doing all the typical touristy things, and the day after we visited Eastbourne.

After a full week back at University, me and Michael realised that it's going to be harder to get days off together with his shifts being different every week and me mostly just getting the weekends off. So we took the chance last Sunday to have a day out together. We went to the Sealife Centre in Brighton as we had a 2 for 1 voucher to use. I really enjoyed our day together, and looking at all the animals in the aquarium. We took a lot of photos but it was hard to get any good ones with such low lighting.

After visiting the aquarium we brought doughnuts from the pier before heading home. We ordered chinese for dinner and watched a movie. I really do look forward to the the days we have off together, or even the time we spend together everyday.

Baklava

You will need :

About 4 Ready-Made Filo Pastry Sheets
65g Pistashio Kernels
65g Walnuts
40g Soft Light Brown Sugar
 ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon 

¼ tsp Ground Nutmeg

For the syrup:  
225g Granlulated Sugar
150ml Water
Juice and Zest of 1/2 an Orange

Method:

Chop the nuts up to a coarse texture. (I did this by putting them in a plastic food bag and using a large knife to chop them, although it would be easier to use a food processor if you have one.)
In a bowl, mix the nuts with the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cut the filo pastry into rectangles about 20cm x 25cm (or a similar area to fit the baking tray you are using). Lay the first piece on a baking tray. Brush with melted butter before placing the next piece on top. Repeat until you have 4 layers of filo pastry. Spread the nut mixture over the filo base. Cover with a piece of filo pastry, and brush with the melted butter. Repeat until the top layer has 6 layers of filo pastry. Make sure the top is well brushed with melted butter and then cut a diamond pattern through the top layer of pastry. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C for 20-25 mins or until the top is golden in colour.

Meanwhile, prepare the syrup. Put the sugar, water orange juice and zest into a saucepan. Heat gently while stirring until all the sugar has dissolved. Continue to simmer until the mixture becomes thicker in consistency, much like a runny syrup (it will become more syrup like when it cools down). This may take up to 20 minutes.

Let the baklava cool for 5 minutes after taking it out of the oven and then pour the syrup over the top, making sure to cover it evenly. Leave until it has completely cooled down before cutting into individual pieces.

Brownie Cheesecake Bites

Makes 14

You will need:

225g Unsalted Butter

100g Dark Chocolate (broken into small pieces)

2 Eggs

225g Caster Sugar

½ tsp Vanilla Extract

Pinch of Salt

1 tbsp Cocoa Powder

100g Plain Flour

For the cheesecake topping:

85g Cream Cheese

1 Egg Yolk

1 ½ tbsp Caster Sugar

Method:

Prepare a cupcake tray with 14 cupcake cases and preheat the oven to 180 C.
Place the butter and the chocolate into a microwaveable bowl and put in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well and replace in the microwave for short periods of time, stirring in between, until the chocolate has just melted completely.
In a seperate bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar using a manual or electric whisk.
Slowly mix the melted chocolate into the sugar and eggs mixture. Finally add the salt, cocoa powder and flour and stir until it is all combined.
Divide the mixture between the 14 cupcake cases.

Beat the egg yolk, sugar and cream cheese together. Divide this mixture between the cupcake cases placing a small spoonful on the top of each.

Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes.

Spring Onion, Feta and Chorizo Couscous

This couscous salad is very simple to put together and is great as a lunch or light meal. The different flavours and textures work well together and I love how the oils from the chorizo give the couscous so much flavour.

Serves 1

You will need:

50g couscous

Equal volume of hot chicken stock

5cm of chorizo sausage, cut into small chunks

2 spring onions, sliced

2 slices of feta cheese, broken into small pieces


Method:

Put the couscous and the chicken stock into a bowl (can be the one used to serve). Stir once to make sure all the couscous is emersed in the stock and leave completely for 5 minutes.
Add the chorizo to a medium/hot frying pan while the couscous is soaking to release the oils.
Stir the couscous with a fork to fluff it up. Add the chorizo with all the oils from the frying pan, stir to combine. Finally add the spring onions and feta cheese to the mixture and stir once again to combine.
Serve immediately while warm.

Brown Rice and Chorizo Stuffed Pepper

Serves 1

You will need:

1 red pepper

35g brown rice, cooked according to the packet instructions

1/2 a small onion, diced

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

5cm of chorizo sausage, cut into small chunks

small amount of grated cheese, cheddar or parmesan

olive oil 


Method:

Start by preparing the pepper. Trim the very bottom of the pepper, just enough so that it will stand upright. Cut around the sides of the pepper near the top and pull out the center removing all the seeds. (Chop up any pepper leftover from what was cut of the top and bottom of the pepper and add to the filling.) Remove any of the white membrane from the inside of the pepper. Put the pepper on a non-stick baking sheet ready to be filled.
 Heat a small amount of olive oil in a frying pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft. Add the chorizo, chopped red pepper and cook for a further 3-5 minutes before adding the rice. 
Make sure to mix all the ingredients in the filling well and then stuff the pepper until it is mounded slightly on the top (it will shrink down a little while cooking). 
Place in a preheated oven at 180 C for 30 minutes. Serve immediately and enjoy while hot.