September Credit Crunching Recipes

Ingredients
serves 4

600-900 unsmoked ham hock (available from butcher)
1 bay leaf
bunch beetroot (about4-5), trimmed with stalks intact
2 eating apples chopped
700g potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
handful mustard seeds
300ml hot vegetable stock
3 tbsp vinaigrette (salad dressing)

Method

In a large pan of water, add ham and boil for about 10 minutes, then drain and discard water. Rinse out pan and ham, then return ham to pan and cover with cold water, along with the bay leaf. Bring to boil, and then simmer gently for 11/2-2 hours, till ham is cooked through. When cool enough to handle, remove thick outer skin and then bone from middle, and slice meat into chunky pieces.

While ham is cooking, in a large pan of water, add beetroot and cook till soft (about 1hr). Drain and, when cool, peel away skin and roughly chop, then mix with apple and mint.

Put potatoes in another pan of boiling, salted water and cook till they're soft but still have a bite to them, then drain.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan, and then add potatoes with mustard seeds, for about 5 minutes, till they begin to brown a little. Add ham and cook till potatoes become a little crispy around edges and ingredients are well combined. Add a little hot stock, and cook till it has been soaked up.

Serve with beetroot and apple salad.

Pork Bacon and Apple Loaf

Ingredients
Serves 4

450g pork mince
250 g pack bacon bits
2 apples, cored and chopped into bite-size pieces
Bunch spring onion, finely chopped
Bunch parsley, finely chopped
1 egg

Method

Preheat oven to gas 5 190°C
In a large bowl, add mince, bacon, apples and spring onions and mix well. Season with salt and pepper Add parsley and egg and combine with your hands, squishing mixture together, so it’s really well combined. Spoon into loaf tin and flatten so surface is level

Cover with foil, then stand loaf tin in roasting tin and pour in cold water to come about half way up side of loaf tin, Place in oven to cook for 45 mn. Leave to cool slightly before removing from tin. Serve in slices with some piccalilli and bread. This tastes fabulous eaten either cold or hot.

Summer Tomato and Bean Soup

Ingredients
Serves4

1onion, finely chopped
2-3 tbsp olive oil
3 sticks celery
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 bay leaf
Large squirt of tomato purée
6 fresh tomatoes, quartered (skin them if you want)
400g can Berlotti beans, drained and rinsed
900ml vegetable stock
Juice of ½ lemon
Handful flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Method

In a large pan, add 1tbsp olive oil, the onion and a pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook gently till onion softens - don’t let it brown at all. Add celery, garlic and bay leaf. Stir, then add remaining oil and tomato purée and simmer on a very low heat till celery and garlic soften.

Add tomatoes and cook for 5-10 minutes, till they begin to break down, squashing them a little with the back of wooden spoon.

Then tip in beans and stock. Bring to boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook gently for 30-40 minutes, till it begins to thicken. Add a little more stock as it needs it.

Add a squeeze of lemon juice (optional), and cook for 5 minutes more. Remove bay leaf. Taste and season again if needed. Stir through parsley before serving.

This soup will last for days. Simply top up with more hot stock or add pasta shapes.

Coley with Chicken Peas and Spinach

Ingredients
Serves 4

3-4 tbsp olive oil
1onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Pinch of cumin
1 lemon juice of ½ lemon
1-2 large pieces of coley or cod , skin on or off
Handful flat parsley, finely chopped
Large handful spinach, roughly torn

Method

In a large frying pan, add a little drizzle of olive oil, then onions and a pinch of salt. Cook till soft - don’t let onion brown. Add garlic, chickpeas and cumin, along with a little more oil, and then simmer really gently on a low heat, till chickpeas begin to soften. Keep topping up with a little more oil if they seem at all dry. Add lemon juice and stir. Leave to simmer on very low heat while you cook fish.

Heat a frying pan till hot, and then add remaining olive oil. Add fish, skin side down, and cook for 2-3 minutes, till it begins to firm up, then turn it and cook other side for a further 2-3 minutes.

Remove carefully with a spatula and leave to sit for a few minutes.
Add parsley and spinach to chickpeas and stir till spinach wilts. Taste and season. Serve with fish and a lemon wedge.

Late Summer Pudding

Ingredients
serves 8

700g mixed berries, such a raspberries, blackcurrants and redcurrants or blueberries
150g caster sugar
Approximately 1/2 x 800 day-old white bakery loaves

You will need
a 11/2 pudding basin lined with clear film.

Method

In a pan, mix sugar and berries (reserving a few berries for decoration).

Heat slowly till sugar has dissolved and juices have started to run. Remove from heat and strain through a nylon sieve into a bowl, reserving juices.

Cut bread into 1.2cm slices, remove crusts and cut each slice into long fingers. Dip one side of each finger into juice, then line a basin with fingers, juicy side out. Repeat, overlapping bread to ensure there are no gaps, then place 1 or 2 torn pieces of bread on base so bottom of basin is lined.

Spoon in fruit, then cover top with remaining bred fingers, taking care to leave no gaps. Pour over any remaining juices. Lay a sheet of clear film over the top, then push down by hand to firm it. Then lay a saucer on top and press down, and stand a heavy jar or weight on top of that. Chill in fridge for 6 hours or overnight.

Remove weight, saucer and clear film, place a serving plate on top of basin, then quickly and carefully invert it. Lift off basin and top pudding with reserved berries. To serve slice and top with a dollop of lightly whipped cream.

Add a splash of crème de cassis or raspberry schnapps to the juice for extra boozy flavour.

How to save money on puddings

Whizz leftover crusts into breadcrumbs and freeze for other recipes.
Visit market stalls near closing time, or visit a pick-your own farm, to buy fruit at really good prices.