Carrot Cake

Ingredients

175 g light muscovado or soft brown sugar
175 ml sunflower oil
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
140 g grated carrots (about 3 medium)
100 g raisins
1 large orange grated zest of
175 g self-raising flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp grated nutmeg (freshly grated will give you the best flavour)
Frosting  
125 g unsalted butter at room temperature
50 g icing sugar
250 g cream cheese

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180℃ (fan 160℃).
  2. Oil and line the base and sides of an 18 cm square cake tin with baking parchment.
  3. Tip the sugar into a large mixing bowl, pour in the oil and add the eggs.  Lightly mix with a wooden spoon.
  4. Stir in the grated carrots, raisins and orange rind.
  5. Mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices, then sift into the bowl.  Lightly mix all the ingredients until evenly amalgamated.  The mixture will be fairly soft and almost runny.
  6. Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until it feels firm and springy.
  7. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn it out, peel off the paper and cool on a wire rack.
    (You can freeze the cake at this point.)
  8. Cream cheese frosting:  For the frosting, beat the butter and icing sugar together until soft and then beat in the cream cheese. Spread a thick layer on top of the cake.

Notes

  • Ingredient amounts don’t need to be exact.
  • May need to bake longer and at a lower temp in a loaf tin.  Two small loaf tins cook for same amount as a large square tin.
  • Tested successfully with gluten free flour

Roast Vegetables

You will Need

root vegetables potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, beetroot, onions, etc.
peeled and cut into similar sized pieces
2 tbsp lard or Trex
2 tbsp olive oil
Optional
ingredients 		lemon juice
vinegar

Method

Put the lard and oil onto a large shallow baking tray, and put to heat in the oven at 200°C.  The oil gives good flavour, but the lard or Trex gets it hotter and helps them crisp up.  If you intend to use a tablespoon or two of the lemon juice or vinegar, add this at the same time.

Peel and part cook the vegetables.  (Strictly speaking you don’t need to part-cook the veg, but it speeds up the cooking and makes them crunchier.)  You can part-cook either in the microwave or by boiling the veg (not onions) for a short period.  In either case make sure that you toss the part cooked veg to “fluff” the edges - this is what will make it crispier.

Tip the veg into the hot oil and make sure it is coated, then put back in the oven.  Cook for a further 45 mins, turning the veg within the fat halfway through.

Stew and Dumplings

You need

3 potatoes
2 carrots
½ turnip
1 or 2 onions
500 g beef (stewing steak), cubed
1 tsp herbs
1 beef stock cube
2 tbsp pearl barley (optional)
50 g suet
100 g self-raising flour
pinch salt

Method

  1. Toss the beef in a little flour to coat it.
  2. Chop all the vegetables into bit sized pieces and layer them with the beef.
  3. Mix up a stock cube with boiling water and just cover the veg. and meat with the stock.
  4. Add the herbs (and pearl barley, if desired).
  5. Bring to boiling point, then cover reduce to a simmer for at least an hour.  Check occasionally to ensure that it doesn't burn.
  6. Make up the dumplings by mixing the suet, flour and salt with just enough cold water to clump it all together.
  7. Toss into the liquid and allow to simmer for 15 mins.

Makes loads.  Also, tastes better the next day!