by Tanya Burr
Bake these for 10–12 minutes but no longer! They will look like they need longer, but don’t do it! Leave them on the baking tray or a cooling rack to cool for 25 minutes. They should be gooey on the inside and hard on the outside – so, so good!
HEALTHY WINTER SOUP
As soon as the clocks go back in the autumn and it starts to get cold and chilly, this is one of the recipes I always turn to because it is so comforting and warm. I start by getting out my fleecy PJs and autumn/winter candles and then cook a homemade soup to warm me up. Homemade soup is great because you can control exactly what you’re putting into it. So many ready-made soups that you buy in the supermarket are full of additives and salt. As part of my aim to be healthy eighty per cent of the time, this soup is the perfect thing to cook since as the weather gets colder we tend to start to crave lots of stodgy carbohydrate-based foods like bread, mashed potato and pasta. Because I make this soup quite thick, it ticks the box for me of being that stodgy, warm food but at the same time it is really healthy and tastes great.
You will need:
2 onions
Garlic (put in however much you like; I did 3 cloves)
A few stalks of celery
Half a head of broccoli
2 leeks
1 large sweet potato
1 carrot
150g red lentils
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 litre chicken stock
Salt and pepper
This is really easy! Just chop up all your veggies and chuck them in the pot. Also pop in the lentils – they are a great source of protein, fibre and loads of vitamins and minerals and they will also help to thicken the soup. Add a bit more oil and then let everything cook for about three minutes.
Now, add a litre of stock – I used chicken stock, but if you are vegetarian you can use veggie stock. Also, if you want to make your soup a bit thinner, just add more stock.
Add salt and pepper and bring it to the boil. Then just let the soup simmer for about 25 minutes or until the sweet potato is soft and the lentils are cooked.
Then use a handheld blender or what I call a ‘whizzer’ to blend the cooked ingredients and make them into soup! I like my soup quite thick and a bit chunky so I am careful not to whizz mine too much so it still has chunks of veggies in it.
Light one of your favourite wintery candles and cosy up with a bowl of the soup!
ROASTED SQUASH, LENTIL AND GOAT’S CHEESE SALAD
Jim’s mum makes this for us and it’s a salad that’s great for all year round. It’s really filling and satisfying so I never feel hungry afterwards. Again, this is another great option for the eighty per cent of the time that I am trying to be good and the individual ingredients are really nutritious.
You will need:
A large butternut squash
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
100g goat’s cheese
250g pack of ready-to-eat puy lentils
A handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped
70g spinach
Balsamic vinegar
Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC. Line a large baking sheet with baking parchment. Chop up the squash into small chunks and cover with two tablespoons of olive oil and salt and pepper (use as much or as little as you like). Cook for 30–40 minutes.
Break up the goat’s cheese into bite-size pieces. Tip the roasted squash into a salad bowl and stir in the lentils, chopped cherry tomatoes, spinach and goat’s cheese. Dress with balsamic vinegar and a bit more olive oil to taste. Serve with a smile!
SUNDAY CAKE
This is a cake that Mum made for us every Sunday growing up and for birthdays and special occasions. She would always make it in the morning ready for our family who would come over to our house every Sunday, and she’d mix up the decorations for extra fun.
You will need:
For the cake:
170g butter
170g caster sugar
3 eggs
30g cocoa powder
140g self-raising flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
For the inside icing:
60g butter
110g icing sugar
Cocoa powder to taste
For the topping:
A 200g bar of chocolate to melt, and chocolates like Smarties, white chocolate buttons or Maltesers to decorate
Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. Line two baking tins with baking parchment. Cream the butter and sugar together. Then add the eggs, sifted cocoa, flour and baking powder and mix well. Divide the mixture into two baking tins and pop into the oven for 18–20 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
For the icing, whisk the butter, icing sugar and cocoa powder together, and for the topping, melt the chocolate in a bowl over simmering water.
When the cake is cool, sandwich the two sides together with the icing and pour the melted chocolate over the top. Decorate with whatever you have in your cupboard – I always love white chocolate buttons on mine.
NANNY’S APPLE PIE
When I was little, Nanny always used to cook apple pie for after Sunday lunch every week or if we had lunch at our house, she would always bring one. Out of the whole family I was the most crazy about this pie and always looked forward to it. Now she is older, she doesn’t cook as much as she used to and, up until recently, I hadn’t had her apple pie for years. Then, a few months ago, when I was in Norfolk, I knew I needed to see her, so Jim and I went over to her house and when we arrived, she pulled an apple pie out of the oven. I thought it was such a sweet gesture and, of course, it tasted amazing! Just the taste of it reminds me of childhood.
You will need:
340g self-raising flour
110g vegetable fat
60g butter
6 tablespoons cold water
5 cooking apples
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cold water
1 egg
Pre-heat your oven to 200ºC. Mix the flour, fat and butter with your fingertips until it turns into a breadcrumb-like consistency. Then add the six tablespoons of water and make into a ball of pastry; wrap in tin foil and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Take the apples and peel and chop them. As Nanny chops them, she drops the pieces into a pan of cold water with a pinch of salt to stop them browning. Then rinse the apples and put them in a different pan over a high heat with a tablespoon of water. Add the sugar and simmer for about 10 minutes until soft.
Cool the apple by putting the pan in cold water, then take your pastry from the fridge. Cut the pastry into two pieces, one slightly bigger than the other.
Grease a 10-inch pie dish and roll the larger half of the pastry out. Put it into the bottom of the dish, tuck in the edges and cut any excess pastry away with a blunt knife. Place the apples in the centre of the pie. Take the egg and whisk it, then use the egg mix to moisten the edge of the pastry, before rolling out the other half of pastry and laying it on top. Pierce a hole in the centre to let out the air. Then brush egg over the entire pie and if you want, add a pretty design around the edge of the pie with the leftover pastry – Nanny always does apple leaves.
Bake for 20 minutes and then turn the oven down to 170ºC for the last 10 minutes until the pie is golden brown. You can serve it with whatever you fancy, Nanny always serves her pie with custard – heaven!
VANILLA STAR-SPRINKLED CUPCAKES
These cupcakes are one of the first cakes I made with my mum when I was small. It was always the perfect snack when I got back from school and I would have it with a glass of squash, but now I’m more partial to having a cup of tea with my cupcake!
To make twelve cupcakes you will need:
For the cupcakes
50g butter
180g caster sugar
160g plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
160ml milk
1 egg
A few drops of vanilla extract (depending on how strong you like the vanilla flavo
ur)
For the icing:
500g icing sugar
250g butter
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the decoration:
white and dark chocolate stars, edible glitter or anything else you like
Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. Cream the butter and sugar together. Then fold in the flour and baking powder and slowly add the milk. Crack in the egg, followed by the vanilla extract and continue beating the mixture throughout.
Spoon the mixture into the twelve cupcake cases and bake for 20 minutes. The baking time varies but they should be golden brown and if you touch them, they should bounce back. Leave them to cool on a wire rack.
Then, for the icing, just mix all the ingredients together and either spoon on top or if you are feeling fancy, use a piping bag to pipe the icing on for a more professional-looking finish. Decorate however you like – my favourites are white and dark chocolate stars and I also have a small obsession with edible glitter, which looks divine!
OVERNIGHT OATS BREAKFAST SUNDAE
This reminds me of being in Sydney when I stayed with my cousin Vanessa and her husband Russ because they have these gorgeous breakfast bars on the beach. There was one that we loved just off Bondi Beach where overnight oats, where you soak oats in apple juice, always featured on the menu. It is so fresh, tasty and healthy – the perfect to way to start your day! It’s also great if you are short of time in the morning because you can eat it on the go on the bus or at your desk at work.
You will need:
1 large Bramley apple
85g oats
1 cup of almond milk
Two tablespoons honey
One teaspoon cinnamon
2 large handfuls of blackberries
Peel the apple and chop into chunks. Put the pieces into a saucepan with a dash of water and simmer until they become soft. This normally takes about 8–10 minutes. If the apples are still lumpy after that time, mash them with a fork and drain off any excess water.
Mix the oats, almond milk, one tablespoon of honey and the cinnamon together and then stir in the apple mixture.
Now move onto the blackberry compôte. Blend the blackberries and one tablespoon of honey in a blender. Take your sundae glass and layer the two mixtures one after the other. I like to mix: oats, compôte, oats then compôte dressed with a single blackberry on top but you can do any combination you choose. Pop the glass in the fridge for at least six hours. This is the perfect recipe to make before bedtime and then you can roll out of bed the next morning and grab your oats before you head out.
SMARTIES FLAPJACKS
Flapjacks are something I’ve always made growing up and they remind me of my piano teacher, Mrs Fisher. Before my lessons, she had always been baking and sometimes I would arrive an hour before my piano lesson to eat her flapjacks and play with the other children who were there. These include my own unique chocolatey addition!
For nine flapjacks you will need:
125g butter
125g sugar
6 tablespoons golden syrup
250g porridge oats
A tube of Smarties
Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. Melt the butter in a medium pan over a low heat. Add the golden syrup and sugar to the butter and heat gently. Once the sugar is dissolved and the butter is melted, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the porridge oats and Smarties.
Put the flapjack mixture into a baking tin and squash down. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then leave to cool and cut into squares. Easy!
COLOURFUL DETOX JUICES
Juicing has taken over the health food world in the last couple of years and I’m always reading about the benefits of juicing. You do need a juicer to make these at home, but once you’ve invested in one they last for ages and they aren’t too expensive. When I’m buying kitchen gadgets I don’t tend to go for the most expensive option and it never seems to matter! With juicing I don’t give myself loads of rules when it comes to making quantities. I just like to throw bits into the juicer and add coconut water, until I have a whole glass of juice. These are my favourite flavour combinations and I’ve named them after some of my best-loved Disney characters.
Apple, watermelon, strawberries and coconut water
SIMBA
This is the perfect beginner juice. If you’re new to juicing, fruit-based juices are great to start off with because they are so sweet and yummy. Watermelon contains loads of Vitamin C and a nutrient called lycopene, which is important for heart and bone health, while coconut water is super-hydrating.
Pineapple, spinach, cucumber, kale and coconut water
PETER PAN
This is packed full of goodness: spinach is an excellent source of iron and many vitamins including Vitamins K, A, C and folic acid; kale is packed with antioxidants and calcium; and pineapple contains bags of fibre, thiamin and B vitamins. This juice tastes very green and when I first tried it I thought it was a bit gross, but I’ve grown to like it because it is so refreshing.
Beetroot, carrot, orange, ginger and strawberries
MALEFICENT
This one is the most beautiful colour and even just looking at it makes me happy! Beetroot and ginger are health food heroes – beetroot contains loads of iron, vitamins and minerals, and ginger has loads of healing properties.
MY TOP 10
TIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL BAKING
1. HAVE A CLEAN KITCHEN
Always start with a clean kitchen. You don’t want to be falling over last night’s dinner plates and the day’s breakfast mess. I make enough mess as it is when I’m baking and I always find I need so much equipment that I need all the surfaces to be clear when I start.
2. GET OUT ALL OF YOUR EQUIPMENT FIRST
Think about everything you could need before you start and get it out of the cupboards and drawers first. I always freak out halfway through my bake because I can’t find the whisk!
3. WEIGH ALL YOUR INGREDIENTS CAREFULLY
This is an easy thing to get right so don’t just chuck everything in without measuring and weighing carefully because it can change the consistency and flavour of your bake. Follow the order of your recipe to ensure you don’t miss an important ingredient out. You can also tick off ingredients as you add them if you think it will help you.
4. BE INSPIRED
Whether it’s watching the Great British Bake-Off, watching baking tutorials on YouTube, looking at recipes in your favourite cookbooks or reading posts from fab food bloggers, feel inspired by other people’s recipes and try to re-create them. I’ve always loved Mary Berry and look through her recipe books if I am looking for ideas. When I met her at the BAFTAs it was one of the best moments ever!
4. DON’T RUSH IT
I like baking to be fun, relaxing and therapeutic so I never try to bake something complicated without giving myself enough time. Allow more time than you think you need because if you’re in a big rush, your bake will probably end up being a bit disappointing.
5. HAVE A COOL APRON
I love my Emma Bridgewater apron with hearts all over it. Just putting it on gets me in the mood for baking.
6. ALWAYS LEAVE YOUR CAKE TO COOL BEFORE ICING IT
I always used to get my cake out of the oven and feel so excited about how it looked that I would ice it immediately. Ten minutes later all the icing would all be melted and running down the sides, so make sure your cake is completely cool before you ice it.
7. DON’T BE AFRAID TO GET CREATIVE
Always stick to measuring the main ingredients, like flour, sugar and butter carefully but after that get creative with your baking. I created my flapjack recipe when I found some Smarties in the kitchen and decided to throw them in. It’s fun to mix things up and this is how you make your own signature dishes. If you make something unique, always make a note of what you have done so you can re-create it at a later date and don’t just forget it immediately after eating!
9. CREAM THE BUTTER BEFORE THE SUGAR
To get per
fect light and fluffy buttercream, take the butter out of the fridge a few hours before your bake so it is soft, and always thoroughly cream the butter first before adding the sugar. If I forget to soften my butter first and then put it in the microwave, it melts around the edges and isn’t the right consistency and I always find this affects how my cake tastes at the end!
10. DON’T OPEN THE DOOR
You may be very tempted to look at your cake as it is baking, but if you open the door, the cold air will probably make your cake sink! Always pre-heat the oven; if you put your bake in before it has got to the right temperature it may affect the way it rises and, similarly, as you are putting it in, don’t linger because it might let all the heat out.
List the people you’d like to have dinner or eat cake with …
MY TOP 10
PEOPLE I’D LIKE TO EAT CAKE AND DRINK TEA WITH
1. THE QUEEN
I’d love to ask the queen questions about what she gets up too, like what she eats for breakfast and what make-up she uses. In fact, I wish the queen daily vlogged so I could get to know her better!
2. MARIO TESTINO
He is so creative and interesting and seems to be one of the world’s friendliest people too. I love looking up interviews with him on YouTube – I think I would like him to be my new best friend. I am also really inspired by his work and really like his early photographs of Kate Moss – they are just beautiful.
3. SHAKESPEARE
I’d really like to meet someone from this era and Shakespeare is the obvious person to choose. I studied his work at school and because my mum is an English teacher, I feel like I know most of his plays really well. I used to watch a lot of the old film adaptations while growing up.