Simply for Summer Camp: Mac 'n' Cheese

Hey foodies,


So as I am teaching away in America, I thought it would only be fair to share a couple of simple recipes with you guys too, starting with this super simple Mac 'n' Cheese. All the recipes I put up over the next two months will be incredibly kid friendly and can be done and dusted in less than an hour. Don't worry, I will be giving you the UK friendly recipes and saving the cups for the USA!

Right, let's get cooking...

Ingredients

·         250g elbow macaroni (cooked to packet instructions in salted water) ·         60g butter ·         60g plain flour ·         200g  cheddar (2oz extra for topping if serving grilled) ·         White pepper to taste ·         Pinch of paprika ·         400ml milk ·         Optional – fried off pancetta

Method

1.      Cook macaroni according to packet instructions in salted water on a hob.

2.      In a medium sized saucepan, melt butter over a medium heat.

3.      Stir in the flour off the heat, beating fast and return to the heat and cook out the flour for 1 minute, stirring continuously. CHECK Stir quickly and add gradually to avoid lumps.

4.      Remove from the heat and gradually add the milk, stirring quickly to keep the sauce smooth

5.      Once all the milk is added, return to a medium heat and stir until thickened (up to 5 minutes). Season whilst the sauce is thickening.

6.      Drain macaroni and add to thickened sauce, adding paprika and adjusting seasoning. (Add pancetta here). CHECK Hot pan with liquid – be careful.

7.      Either serve or transfer to an oven dish, sprinkle with extra cheddar and grill until cheese blisters.

Keep calm and let's get cheesy.

Love, 

Jess xo

Eggcellent Chocolate Filled Clandestine Cake Club

April saw a fantastically full gathering at the Clandestine Easter themed baking event, in Sheffield. It was a chocolate based event, so I obviously had to attend! With Spring fever, I baked a simple chocolate loaf cake and turned the decoration into a carrot garden bed, with rosette piped buttercream, vanilla flowers and bright orange carrots running through the centre of the cake - not forgetting the popping candy mud.

With spare mixture I also rustled up a few mini cupcakes. We held a dissertation hand in house party and the cupcakes went down a treat! Mini mouthful's of happiness!

The rest of the cakes were equally as delicious, including a Sachertorte, marble bundt cake and a few Brooklyn Blackout cakes. I took a big board of tasty treats home for my friends too!

You can see how busy this event was with the sheer number of tasty chocolate treats for us all to try.

Check out my home time cake platter! Chocolate cake never lasts long in my house though!

Keep calm and tuck in.

Love,

Jess xo

APP REVIEW: Cook with M & S

Hello all you cooking enthusiasts!

I trialled another app out and want you to let me know what you think - what do you like to cook most?

This week I tried out the reasonably new Cook with M&S application, to get all you packet natives, into using that kitchen side and messing up the chopping boards.

I was pleasantly surprised that there was less emphasis on getting you to cook using their ingredients and it actually seemed nice and simple to use, with a clean looking user interface. I mean the food photography is gorgeous - check it out simply to sit a drool!

In terms of it's real purpose, there are a number of functions which I enjoyed, including the cooking mode for step-by-step instructions. Each recipe is broken down and really simply explained with pictures. There is also an integrated link to add the recipe ingredients to a master shopping list, which I can imagine would be extremely useful if you were meal planning for a period of days. 

 In addition, there is a handy serving alteration button to add more or less servings. This automatically affects the recipe to exclude any calculations. Perfect for upscaling your favourite dishes to double as dinner party winners. I especially loved this as I hate the hassle of upscaling and the calculations involved - why not get the app to do it for you!

Another feature is the recipe book, where I can store all my favourite recipes by photographic thumbnail. Personally, I would prefer a more structured recipe filing system on the app, but it does come across very clean and efficient. All recipes are viewable initially via a picture thumbnail, name and include timings for people under limited time restrictions for culinary creativity. 

I did enjoy the app and felt rather inspired to get back in the kitchen and cook! Tell me your opinion or experience below...what are you looking for in a foodie cooking app?

Keep calm and get that apron on.

Love, 

Jess xo