Shortly after I posted about the coffee cake I made for a friend I received an email from The Lake District Dairy Co. about whether I would like a hamper with their new quark to try. The hamper duly arrived with several samples of Quark and a lot more besides.

The hamper also came with plenty of recipes to try, many of which have been created for The Lake District Co. by The Fabulous Baker Boys. The hamper contained all of the ingredients needed for the moussaka recipe, but I couldn’t resist adding a few of my own additions and changes to the recipe provided by the Baker Boys.

1 aubergine, sliced into rings or into lengths
200g lamb mince
1 onion diced
2 carrots diced
2 celery sticks diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red or green chilli, chopped finely
1 tsp of cumin seed
1 tsp dried coriander leaf
½ tsp smoked paprika
100ml red wine
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp worcester sauce or mushroom ketchup
salt and pepper
Olive oil

For the white sauce:
30g butter
25g plain flour
200ml milk
200g The Lake District Co. Quark
salt and pepper

5og grated cheddar

Method
Lightly coat the aubergine with olive oil and place into a roasting tray in a single layer. Cook in a preheated oven at 200°c for about 15 minutes until golden. You can also sear them on a griddle pan. Leave to one side.

Fry the onion, carrot, celery, chilli and garlic in 2 tbsp of olive oil in a pan until the onion is translucent. Remove to a plate. Add the mince to the pan and fry until well browned. Add the vegetables back to the pan. Add the cumin seed, coriander leaf and paprika and stir for a moment or two. Add the red wine and bubble until it is reduced. Add the tomatoes, worcester sauce/mushroom ketchup and salt and pepper and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Simmer for 20-30 minutes until the tomato sauce is thick.

Make the white sauce by melting the butter in a small pan. Add the flour and stir well. Cook for two minutes over a medium heat, stirring all the time. Add the milk gradually, stirring all the time. Each time the sauce thickens up add a little more of the milk. You should have a smooth sauce when all the milk has been added. Add the quark and season to taste.

In a heatproof deep dish, layer half the mince then cover with a layer of aubergine and then a layer of white sauce. Repeat the layers. Cover with the grated cheese and cook in a preheated oven at 200°c for 20-25 minutes until the cheese has turned golden and crispy. I enjoyed mine with salad and bread.

I haven’t kept my resolution to be here more.

Sorry about that.

What I need is a holiday.

Then perhaps my words will return.

I will keep you posted (I hope).

Kath x

This is a review post. The above items were sent to me free of charge for the purposes of this review. However, the opinions in this post are entirely my own and are not influenced by Puro Coffee.

Puro Coffee contacted me to ask if I would review their coffee.  The ethical stance of Puro interested me and I do love a good cup of coffee. The package arrived beautifully presented in a rustic style.

Puro Coffee is Fairtrade, which means that the coffee farmers get a better price for their produce. Puro also contribute 2% of turnover (rather than profits) to The World Land Trust. Their contribution has so far resulted in the purchase of 5,600 acres of exceptionally diverse rainforest. They also invest in social initiatives such as Trees4Schools in Africa which has planted trees and vegetable gardens helping to feed some of those most in need in Africa.

This is all great and a business that works so closely with charity to make the world a better place should be commended and supported.

If you are going to buy a coffee though you need to know that it tastes good. My review sample contained the three blends Noble, Organic and Fuerte. You can also get Noble as a decaffeinated coffee.

I make my coffee with a stove top espresso maker and like it made with half very strong coffee and half hot milk. What would you call this if you ordered it at a well known coffee house? A latte? A cafe au lait? A Flat White? I never know and I am too scared of the efficient barista to ask.

What I look for in a coffee is a dark roast with a kick of fieriness, a touch of bitterness and plenty of body. So my favourite of the Puro range is the Fuerte, made with half Arabica and half Robusta. The Organic blend is 100% Arabica  and the Noble is 80% Arabica and 20% Robusta. Having said that the Fuerte is my favourite, the other two are fine coffees. If you prefer a lighter roast then Organic is the blend for you.

Puro coffees are available in the UK at National Trust cafes, Leon and the Royal Parks among others. The range will also be available to buy online direct from the Puro At Home website soon.

If you would like to learn more about the social initiatives that Puro are involved with you can watch a video here.

My eldest daughter is rather taken with the chicken satay sticks that you can buy from the supermarket deli. Now, I don’t mean to a food snob, but they are processed chicken with I don’t know what in the marinade. I do buy them for her if she happens to be with me and is mithering me for them. I mean, I feel bad enough that they were 6 and 4 years old when they asked me what the place with the big M outside was because their friends talked about it a lot. Oh, the guilt of parenthood.

So, I got some chicken breasts from the butcher and made these for her yesterday. She liked them, but although she didn’t say it, probably not as much as the ones from the supermarket. Well, her best friend likes the ones from the supermarket too, so I can’t really compete with that, can I?

Anyway, if you aren’t 8 years old and you would like some tasty chicken satay I can thoroughly recommend these. I like the consistency of the peanut sauce – it sticks to the roof of your mouth and is sweet, sour and hot – all good.

To serve 4 greedy people
4 chicken breasts
(NB. The photo above shows 2 chicken breasts)

For the marinade:
1 tsp finely chopped or grated root ginger
1 clove garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp honey

For the peanut sauce:

4 spring onions, sliced or 1 small onion, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped (I remove the seeds to reduce the heat)
1 tsp root ginger, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp dark brown sugar
4 tbsp water (you can add more if you want a thinner sauce)

If you have some coriander leaves they would be very good sprinkled over the top of the chicken and the peanut sauce.

Method

If you are using wooden skewers, then soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before cooking with them to prevent them catching fire.

Prepare the chicken by removing the skin and cutting into cubes which will fit onto skewers easily.

Place all of the marinade ingredients in a glass or ceramic bowl and mix together well. Add the chicken cubes and cover with the marinade.  Cover with cling film. They need at least 30 minutes in the marinade, otherwise place in the fridge for 2 to 3 hours.

I served the peanut sauce at room temperature but you could serve it hot. To make the sauce, fry the onion, ginger, garlic and chilli in a tablespoon of vegetable oil over a high heat, stirring all the time until softened. Take off the heat and add the peanut butter, lemon juice, soy sauce and sugar. Stir well and place over a gentle heat and stir until everything has combined and the sugar has dissolved. Add enough water to get to the consistency that you like.

Thread the chicken cubes onto skewers and grill until cooked through. I cooked them in a griddle pan to sear them and then placed in the roasting oven of the Aga (about 200°c, gas mark 6) to finish off and cook through completely.

Serve with rice, noodles or salad and the peanut sauce.

Wishing all my lovely readers a very happy year ahead. May it bring you good health and happiness.

I haven’t been here very much recently. I am going to try to be here more often. It’s one of my goals for this year.

I have looked back on the goals I set myself for last year and was pleased to find that most of them were met. The losing a few inches off the waistline went a bit awry -they went and then crept back on. However, the plus side of this is all the lovely food I have enjoyed adding those inches.

This year’s goals are being formulated… I am going to finish a tapestry that I started when I was 17 (that’s  nearly twenty-one years ago – I know a sorry state of affairs if ever there was one).  I am going to make another dress. I am going to try to shift a couple of those inches again. The rest of the list is to be decided, but I am going to try to blog more.

So Happy New Year.

Kath x

I hope that you have a few goals of your own