Easter baking roundup 2019

Baking is a massive part of my self care routine. It de-stresses me (even with the kitchen looking like an absolute tip afterwards), makes me feel productive and there's a tasty reward at the end. It even has the added bonus of giving me some easy Insta content *side grin*.

Vegan banana split recipe

I don't like ice cream. There, I said it. It's a real thing guys. So banana splits aren't really on my radar as enjoyable dishes. But I love the idea of them, so I've created my own version that makes for a hella yummy breakfast and is totally vegan. It's warm and filling and I love having it in the morning at this time of year.

Autumnal minestrone soup recipe

I'm not exaggerating when I say that this soup has been saving my life over the past month. Okay, okay that might be a slight exaggeration. BUT, it's been making my life a hell of a lot easier, and helped me fight off the god awful cold that plagued me at the start of September. I make this in a massive bulk, freeze it out and have it as my lunch at work. It's perfect because it's filling and healthy and I still haven't got sick of it. Sorta. 13 portions in and I'm starting to get a little overwhelmed.

The best spaghetti bolognese recipe ever (okay, I'm biased)

Spaghetti bolognese is one of the first dishes I ever made for myself. It kinda got me through uni, with a little help from Dolmio of course. But for years it was my backup dinner; a really simple thing that I could fling together with zero effort and I didn't really enjoy but found bearable because it was easy. 

Get hydrated with fruit infused water*

I mentioned in my February life update/favourites that I joined a gym last month. I am loving it. It's all part of my plan to get more energy (seriously, naps are my LIFE but I've got to learn to adult sometime, right?) so that I can boss my life, do my best and live life to the fullest. I've started making other little changes too: I've mostly cut out naps so I'm not sleeping too much, I've switched out fruit juice for green tea and I've (mostly) given up the sweeties that give me a quick sugar fix. 

How to make caprese garlic bread

This recipe legitimately haunts my dreams. And not in an 'oh no, I ate too much cheese before bed and now the cheese is chasing me in a nightmare' kind of way, more like a waking up with a lil patch of drool kind of way. Cute, I know. 

The Perfect Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate

Wrapping cold fingers around steaming mugs of hot drinks is one of the best feelings you can have during the festive season in my opinion. I just have one problem though: milk isn't my friend. It makes me feel so nauseous, and totally ruins any hot drink I have. Thankfully more and more companies are warming to the idea that not everyone likes/can drink milk, so soya milk or a similar alternative is becoming more readily available in coffee shops and cafes. However, you still need to keep an eye out for hot chocolate powder that contains milk solids. Ugh. 
Hot chocolate is one of those things that is just totally irreplaceable. Sometimes you just need one, especially if you're sat down wrapping presents and want to feel extra festive. Tomorrow I think I'll have to recreate this recipe when I pop the Grinch on and attempt to tackle the mammoth amount of presents I need to wrap before the big day.
Here's what I need to make my favourite hot chocolate recipe, ever:
Ingredients: - 2 heaped teaspoons cacao powder - Le Sirop de Monin Chocolate Cookie Syrup - Rice milk - Mini marshmallows
Method: - Heat the rice milk in a saucepan until hot all the way through. - Whilst it's heating, mix the syrup and cacao powder in your glass/mug - Pour the milk into the glass and stir into the powder and syrup mixture until everything is completely smooth. - Top with as many marshmallows as you like
This recipe is so good at this time of year, and makes me feel as though I don't have to miss out on festive drinks by not drinking cow's milk!
What's your favourite festive drink to make?
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Beef Teriyaki with Tilda Wholegrain Pilau Rice*

I've reached that point in the year (or maybe my life??? ... Who knows) at which if I don't get a meal that's steamy hot and full of carbs every day then that day is basically an absolute waste for me. It's so cold out, and I'm enjoying taking the time to cook so much more at the moment, that I just can't get enough of trying new recipes like this.
A while ago I spoke about my chicken and broccoli stir fry recipe on Nourish ME, which has now become a staple in our household. Seriously, we eat it every week, and it's such an easy meal to make that's jam packed full of goodness. The sauce I've used on there is exactly the same as the one I've used here because it is uh-mazing, and tastes just as good on beef as it does on chicken. 
I've spoken before about the fact that I enjoy brown rice way more than white rice - I just think that the texture and flavour are both much more preferable in the former. The one downside? It takes almost three times as long to cook. Ugh. But, when Tilda offered to send me a selection of their newly-branded rice pouches, I was pretty darn excited to get some wholegrain rice* that only takes two minutes in the microwave. You can fry it as well if you're not a fan of microwaves (I know so many people aren't) and it still only takes three minutes then.
I've only ever tried normal pilau rice before, and I really haven't been a fan, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed this to the extent that I hunted it down in my weekly food shop to rebuy. Tilda kindly sent me a range of their flavours, including mushroom basmati* and coconut basmati* rice. My boyfriend offered to be the guinea pig for the mushroom one because I cannot stand the slimy little things, and he loved it. I enjoyed the coconut one too, but I have to say that the wholegrain pilau is still my firm favourite. 
Anyhow, let's get onto the recipe!
Ingredients: (for 2 servings) 300g beef (diced) Sauce (recipe here) Tilda wholegrain pilau rice Sea salt Black pepper
Method:
1.) Tenderise the beef 2.) Heat a tablespoon of oil in a wok or frying pan. 3.) Season the beef with salt and pepper and cook until it is done to your liking. I enjoy having mine still pink in the middle and it took about ten minutes on a low heat. 4.) Whilst it is cooking, make the sauce. 5.) When the beef is nearly completely ready, pop the rice pouch in the microwave for two minutes. 6.) Pour the sauce over your beef and cook for a further minute. 7.) Plate everything up.
This really is such a simple meal to make and I'll definitely be making it again in the near future!
*Although products in these post were gifted to me for the purpose of a review, all opinions are my own as always*
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Alice in Wonderland Inspired 'Eat Me' Cookies

Sugar cookies are the simplest little tasty thing to bake, and I can't believe it has taken me years to get around to it. One of my favourite memories of being a child is standing on a wooden footstool at my Grandma's house, helping her bake tiny little sugar cookies to take home with me on a Saturday afternoon. So, feeling a little nostalgic and homesick a few weeks ago, I made a massive batch of these and fell in love with the simple design.
I bought an 'eat me' cookie cutter and stamp from Amazon for a couple of pounds and I was good to go. It was far easier than it would ever have been for me to hand cut these. That would have been a total disaster and I think I would have given up half way through, flooded with tears of frustration.
Alice in Wonderland is one of my all-time favourite Disney films. As a child I was absolutely obsessed, and I really think it helped my imagination to expand, as it showed that anything was possible. Even if it did it in a pretty weird, trippy way. When I saw cookies like these on Pinterest months ago they totally rose to the top of my baking bucket list. And yes, I totally have one of those. I'm not sure that I'm quite skilled enough to have a go at icing yet, so I've left mine plain. Maybe I'll add that to the 2017 baking bucket list!
Sugar cookies are SO easy to make that I'm pretty sure anyone should be able to do it. They're pretty hard to burn too: a few extra minutes in the oven isn't going to lead to a full on disaster.
Ingredients:
225g butter 200g sugar 340g plain flour 1 teaspoon vanilla essence 1 egg
Method:
1.) Cream together the sugar and butter in a large bowl.
2.) Stir in the egg and vanilla essence.
3.) Add the flour and combine the mixture until everything is mixed in and it forms a dough.
4.) Chill for one hour. If you're in a rush you can leave this step out, but it does make rolling the dough out a lot harder
5.) Preheat your oven to 190 degrees celsius.
6.) Line a baking tray (or two) with baking paper.
7.) Flour a work surface and roll out your cookie dough.
8.) Use the cookie cutter and stamp to create your cookies.
9.) Place trays of cookies in the oven for approximately 8-10 minutes. They should be golden when they're ready to come out.
What's your favourite nostalgic recipe to make?
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Warming vegetable soup recipe

Cooking is one of my favourite things to do, but in the run up to the Christmas season I've been finding my time a little pushed for making recipes that take longer than half an hour in total (this includes prep). I work in a restaurant and it is starting to get a little hectic right now, so my shifts are increasing, getting longer and getting a little bit more stressful.
So, on my day off last week I whipped up a massive batch of this homemade vegetable soup. And I mean massive: I had 17 portions of it in the end. My freezer has been looking a little rammed, but it has made for an easy lunch each day, giving me that extra little bit of time to chill out. The winter colds have been doing their rounds at the moments, but this soup is so stuffed with goodness that I'm hoping *fingers crossed* it'll stop me from getting one ... again. 
An added bonus really is that it is so cheap to make. All of the ingredients I used came to around £3 altogether, which makes each portion around 18p to make!
Ingredients:
4 salad tomatoes 3 sticks of celery 3 carrots 6 potatoes 3 small onions (or 1 large onion) 6 cloves garlic 2 400g cans of haricot beans 1 400g can of chickpeas 3 handfuls brown pasta 2 pints chicken stock Olive oil Chili flakes Salt and pepper Mixed herbs
Method:
1.) The prep time of this soup is going to take up most of your time, so prepare yourself for a lot of chopping. Before you start any actual cooking, dice the carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, celery and onion. Mince your garlic cloves. 2.) Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan (I use a big casserole pan for mine). Add the onions and garlic and cook until softened.  3.) Whilst this is cooking make your stock. 4.) Add in all of the rest of the vegetables and a pinch or two of chili flakes, Stir for one minute. 5.) Season with salt and pepper. Add the stock.  6.) Simmer for 15 minutes. 7.) Add the beans, chickpeas, pasta and a tablespoon of mixed herbs (or to taste). Simmer for another 15-20 minutes. 
And that's it folks. It's actually a really easy soup to make. There's only a small chance of really burning it, which is something that I definitely need. If you want, you can also add a little grated cheese to your bowl, because, well, who doesn't love cheese?
What's your favourite soup recipe for this time of year?
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Making Drool-Worthy Chocolate Chip Oat Cookie Bars

Baking is my main form of stress relief, or as I like to call it, procrasti-baking. I basically put everything off until after I've made some yummy goodies and feel a lot more calm and less anxious. So, because I bake once a week usually as part of my self care routine, I bring my bakes into work and we all share them on a Sunday shift. I don't know what it is about eating roast dinner that brings out the worst in people, but Sundays always seem to mean that we have our grumpiest customers in. 
These were possibly my most popular yet, and they were definitely something I could eat a whole tonne of. Because of the oats and the use of dark chocolate, they weren't overly sweet, so you never got to a sickly stage of consumption (which has both pros and cons, hehe). 
As always with my bakes, they didn't go quite to plan. BUT, I did actually use ingredients that made a perfect recipe this time. What went wrong was my baking tray size: it was too big so the mixture didn't end up going all the way to the edge. Thus, instead of coming out of the oven as a perfect rectangular bake, it looked more like a giant cookie. And god was it a tasty one. 
Ingredients: 225g butter (softened and unsalted) 175g light brown sugar 110g caster sugar 2 medium eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 225g plain flour 280g oats 300g dark chocolate chips
Method: 
1.) Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and grease your pan with some butter and lay a sheet of baking paper in it.  2.) Cream the softened butter and both types of sugar together. 3.) Add the eggs individually, stirring after each one. Add the vanilla essence.  4.) Stir in all of the dry ingredients, including just 150g of the chocolate chips . 5.) Press half of the mixture into your baking tray. Cover with the remaining half of your chocolate chips, and then cover this with the second half of your mixture. Think of it as a chocolate chip sandwich *drools*. 6.) Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and leave to cool for 45 minutes.
What's your favourite thing to bake at the moment?
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The most comforting mashed potato recipe with Lurpak*

Doesn't this picture just get your taste buds a-tingling for Autumn and Winter foods? I don't know about you, but as the weather gets more dreary and the days become shorter, I turn to old classics in terms of dinners. I also become even more of a potato fiend. I don't know if it's the Irish blood in me (meaning I was raised with potatoes at basically every meal), or the fact that carbs are my no. 1 food group, but I find it hard to turn down a good potatoe-y dish.
Now, mash for me is very much a hit and miss potato style. I think it's probably the hardest to get right, and the hardest to make taste interesting. So, over the past year or so I've been developing my own little recipe to make sure that I don't end up with plain old mashed potato (anyone else got the Bodger and Badger theme tune in their head yet? No?), but something that people would compliment me on if I was enough of an adult to have a dinner party. One day ... 
So, this is what you need to create the perfect mashed potatoes - potatoes (duh. Maris Pipers are my favourite for this) - Lurpak Infusions sea salt and pink peppercorn butter - Mustard seeds - Chili flakes
Method:  - Boil the potatoes for 25-30 minutes to ensure that they are totally lump free.  - Stir the butter in. - Add a teaspoon of mustard seeds and a teaspoon of chili flakes. Stir and leave to sink in for five minutes. - Serve.
I know the whole mustard seed/chili flake and mashed potato combo seems a little odd, but trust me, it tastes gooooood.
How do you make your mash stand out?
*Although there were products gifted to me for this post, it contains my honest opinion and ideas.
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Chili and Lime Salmon Recipe with Lurpak

Salmon gets cooked only on the rare occasion in our household. It's one of those things that I'm totally aware is very good for me, but that I can't bring myself to make and eat very often. Even then, when we do have salmon, it's most likely raw atop a lil' bed of sushi rice, mmmmm. 
But, when Lurpak invited me to try their new range of infused butter, I knew the chili and lime flavour* had to be tried on a nice piece of salmon. I've always been a much bigger lime fan than lemon, which is the more classic addition to any fish seasoning. Usually I spend a bit of time adding olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice (sometimes it just feels right) and parsley, but with this I simply dolloped a teaspoon of the infused butter on top of the salmon and we were ready to get cracking in the oven. 
The chili added a nice kick of heat to something that otherwise may have been overtly fish-y, and it is definitely something I would give a go again. I served mine over brown rice with cabbage, but there are so many other ways this could be served. Next time, I'm thinking a salmon pasta dish will be really tasty with the chili and lime!
If you're a little lazy in the kitchen, or don't have the time to season your salmon with care, I would recommend giving this a go to please guests or the family.
Ingredients (serves 1): - 1 piece of salmon (preferably boneless) - 1 tablespoon Lurpak Chili and Lime infused butter*
Method - Preheat your oven to 180 degrees (Celsius) - Place a fairly large piece of foil on a baking tray. - Pop the salmon on the centre of the foil and place the butter on top of the salmon. - Bring the edges of the foil together over the salmon and lightly scrunch. - Cook in the oven for 20-25 minutes. - Unfold the foil and enjoy!
What is your favourite way to cook salmon?
Although this post features gifted products, all opinions are as always my own.
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Chipotle Infused Cottage Pie Recipe

As Summer starts to wind down in the UK, I'm thinking ahead to all the gooey, wholesome, toasty meals that I love to make in Autumn and Winter. Here comes the seasons of pies, bourgignon, stew and copious amounts of soup to sort out a rough day. So, when Lurpak asked me to create a recipe with their new chipotle infused spreadable butter* in, my little cooking cogs got a-whirring and I finally settled on the idea of a cottage pie.

Me and my boyfriend don't always eat meat, and when we do it's almost always restricted to chicken or fish. This is basically because it's cheaper and so versatile. It does however mean that any meal like this one is a total treat and I was more than a little excited to get cracking. 

Although I'm not always a big fan of heat, I found that just using this in the mashed potato atop the pie gave the meal a nice kick without scorching your mouth, and it was totally easy to add in. Usually I spend a little while adding a variety of seasoning into my mash to ensure that it's a little nicer than just bland potato, so this sped up my mash creation process a whole tonne as I simply just had to add the butter!

Ingredients: 

- 400g beef/lamb mince

- 1 onion

- 2 carrots

- 1 cup peas

- 1 tablespoon tomato puree

- 500ml beef stock

- 2 garlic cloves

- Bay leaf

- Sea salt and black pepper

- 1 stick celery

- 500g potatoes

- 4 tablespooons Lurpak Infusions Chipotle Spreadable Butter

Method: 

1.) Chop the onion and garlic. Fry the beef, onion and garlic in a pan until the onion is soft and beef is browned. 

2.) Chop the carrots and celery. Add to the pan with the beef stock, tomato puree, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Simmer for 25 minutes. 

3.) Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

4.) Boil the potatoes.

5.) Once the potatoes are boiled and the filling has simmered, pour the filling into an ovenproof dish. 

6.) Mash the potatoes and add the butter.

7.) Top the filling with the mash potatoes and place in the oven for 15 minutes.

8.) Top with a sprinkling of cheese if you wish and enjoy!

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Ombre Strawberries

So, um are these Pinterest worthy or what? I pin a buttload of baking-y recipes every week, and a few ideas for these babies have been sat there staring at me for a while now, willing me to give making them a go. At the moment I don't have a proper kitchen, and not being able to make cute little things like this, let alone full-on bake things has really been getting me down. So, when I went to visit my little sister recently, I went armed with a chock-a-block Pinterest baking board. Naturally.
I've seen ombre strawberries a few times on the interwebs now, and they looked like they'd make a totally dreamy Instagram picture. They were fairly easy to make - not quite as easy as I had imagined though! But, in the end, I did get my Insta-worthy snaps, so it was all worth it!
Here's how we made them:
Ingredients: Strawberries Milkybar white chocolate Pink gel food colouring
Method:  1.) Wash your strawbs (gotta be done) 2.) Split the white chocolate into 4 equal parts and melt. Place into 4 bowls. 3.) Keep one bowl food colouring free. Add 3 drops of food colouring to the second bowl, 6 to the third and nine to the final. 4.) Swirl your strawberries in the mixtures, and place in whatever order you fancy!
There we have it guys! Have you ever tried anything similar?
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Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry Recipe

I'm loving sharing more recipes with you guys on here at the moment, so I thought I'd chat a little bit about this quick and easy chicken and broccoli stir fry. Just like my chicken fajitas recipe that I shared earlier on in the week, this has become a weekly staple for us recently as it's so quick to whip up. This actually takes a measly 15 minutes to get sorted, so if you're looking for a quick fix at the end of a long day, or if (like me) there are some days when you'd rather do anything than spend an hour cooking something, then this is a fab go-to. Plus, it's got about one zillion nutrients so, y'know, it really is a little health kick in a meal.

I use brown rice for this because, as I've mentioned in my overcoming food fears post, there are certain foods I haven't quite got round to finding enjoyable, White rice is 100% one of them. I prefer the flavour, texture and added health benefits of brown rice. The one downside? It doubles the time this takes to make. Brown rice tends to take around half an hour to cook, as opposed to the standard 12 minutes for white rice. So bear in mind that if, like me you want to make the switch to brown, you'll need to allocate a little more time.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

- 2 chicken breasts

- 1 bunch broccoli

- Grapeseed/extra virgin olive oil

- Salt and pepper

For the sauce:

- 3 tablespoons soy sauce

- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

- 2 tablespoons honey

- 1 tablespoon cornstarch

- 1 minced garlic clove

- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

- 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Method:

1.) Chop the chicken into bite sized pieces and the broccoli into small florets. Keep them separate.

2.) Boil water for your rice and put it on to cook.

2.) Heat some oil in a wok or frying pan. Place the chicken in and fry until it is cooked through.

3.) Whilst the chicken is cooking, mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a mug or small bowl.

4.) When the chicken has been cooked sufficiently, add the broccoli to the pan with a little more oil. Fry until the broccoli has gone a bright green colour (this should take roughly four minutes).

5.) Pour the sauce over the chicken and broccoli and cook for another 2 minutes.

6.) Serve.

I really hope you enjoy this recipe - if you do make it, please tag me in your pictures - I would love to see them! 

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