Super Simple Self-Saucing Chocolate Sponge Pudding

This one is a little weird. A basic chocolate cake batter is topped with a sugar and cocoa powder crumb and boiling water is poured on. As the cake bakes and rises, the cocoa, sugar, and water soak through the sponge, pools at the bottom of the dish and thickens. 

This is a great recipe for informal get-togethers as the batter and topping can be prepared ahead of time and, when ready for dessert, just add boiling water and bake. 

Wet ingredients:
250ml milk
2 eggs
85gr butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry ingredients:
125gr plain flour
Pinch of salt
3 tsp baking powder
120g caster sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa powder

Topping:
185gr soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
250ml boiling water

Mix all the wet ingredients in your mixer and spoon in the dry until everything is incorporated. Pour this cake batter into a large dish. As the pudding will rise a lot, make sure you use a big enough dish- the batter should come about a third of the way up the side.

Combine the soft brown sugar and cocoa and sprinkle on top. When you're ready to bake, pour the boiling water on top (honestly!) and bake at 200 degrees (180 fan) for 35-40 mins.

The batter

With the topping added

Water poured on- this is where you need to hold your nerve

Out of oven and smelling amazing

Saucy!

With cream, as nature intended

A Cookie by Any Other Name...

Cookies are great. Raisin oatmeal cookies are extra great. They're chewy, cinnamony, sweet and comforting. They're also packed full of sugar and butter. But I love them so and, in an attempt to make them a little less lethal, adjusted the recipe to reduce the sugar and fat.

Makes 12 cookies

• 50gr coconut oil
• 50gr caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1 large egg
• 1 dessert spoon runny honey or orchard syrup (a syrup made from apples and nothing else. I'm allergic to honey so use this as a substitute and love the subtle apple flavour). Maple syrup could also be used. 
• 50gr wholemeal flour (see... healthy!)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 80gr porridge oats
• 80gr raisins

Heat your oven to 180 degrees (gas mark 4/fan oven 160 degrees)

Place the raisins in a small bowl and cover with boiling water for ten minutes. This will makes the raisins sweeter and will stop them burning in the oven.

In your mixer, beat the coconut oil and sugar until combined. Add the egg, cinnamon and honey (or syrup) and beat. Add the flour, baking powder, oats and finally, the drained raisins. Mix well. 

Place spoonfuls of the mixture on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Due to the low sugar content, these won't spread as much as regular cookies when baking so they need to be patted down with a fork. 

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes until slightly brown. Allow to rest on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring on to wire racks to cool.

While I love these cookies, I do like some extra sweetness so I topped with a little royal icing. 

Serve with milk. Or a second cookie. Whichever. 

A Slow-Cooker Quickie- Cinnamony Porridge with Fruit

I'm not a breakfast person and tend to just grab a coffee on my way to work and have something mid-morning. This porridge, done in the slow-cooker, is packed full of flavour and, best of all, is ready when I am in the morning. 

To make things even simpler, I use cup measures.

Serves 6

• 2 cups porridge oats
• 4 cups cold water
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 apples, peeled and chopped
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/3 cup of sultanas or raisins

Place everything into the slow cooker, do not stir. Cook on low for 9 hours and you'll wake to the amazing smell of cinnamon and apples.

Everyone in the pool

The finished product

Jam Jar Chicken

I've been wanting to make beer can chicken for ages but I really hate the taste of beer so experimented and came up with this. It's fabulous because, as the chicken roasts, the liquid steams so you get really moist, flavoursome chicken with crispy skin.
You need:

• A chicken
• A lemon
• Herbs (I use rosemary and thyme but use whatever- dried or fresh)
• Olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• Salt
• Black pepper
• A jam jar (I use a small half pound one but a big one would work too, no need for the lid). 

Juice the lemon and put the juice into the jam jar with about half the quantity again of boiled water. Add in the garlic and herbs, making sure everything is covered by the liquid. 

Pour a small amount of olive oil onto the chicken and rub in. Season liberally with salt and pepper, and herbs, if you'd like. 

Using a small roasting pan with high sides, put the jar in the dish and put the chicken down onto the jar so the jar is right inside and holding it up. I also used a few wooden skewers to keep the chicken propped up securely. It kind of looks like he's kicking back in a jacuzzi, no?

Roast the chicken as per instructions (in my fan oven, a medium chicken takes 1hr 15 mins at 160 done this way). When it's done, check juices run clear and allow to sit in a warm place for ten minutes. After this time, carefully wiggle the chicken so the jar slips out, taking care not to splash any of the hot liquid on yourself. 

Forgot to take a before and after picture, but this is during: