Simple and in Season: December and January Round-Up

Simple and in Season:

December and January Round-Up

 A very Happy New Year to all of you wonderful Simple and in Season contributors and thanks for all of your wonderful entries! We had a fabulous response to the event with a plethora of roots, sprouts, winter fruits and nuts……..it was a veritable hamper of tasty recipes and mouth-watering photos. I was delighted to be entrusted with Ren’s monthly challenge and now it’s time to see what you all cooked up and brought to the simple and in season table! Karen

December and January Round-Up

Loving Those Leeks  by Anneli from Delicieux: Three delicious leek recipes from Anneli kicked off the event and Anneli said her recipes were all comfort food personified, winter warmth on a plate; guaranteed to banish your blues and leave you feeling chipper! I agree and I LOVE all of the recipes that you suggested in your post!

Parsnip Chips for Babies and Toddlers by mamacook: I adore parsnips and these chips look wonderful! This is a great recipe for the slightly reluctant vegetable eater as these look a bit like chips, they taste sweeter but handily, unlike potato based chips or fries, these count towards your five a day. And, there’s nothing wrong with adults having them either!

Cranberry & Cinnamon Muffins and Chestnut Cookies by Jen at Blue Kitchen Bakes: Jen made the muffins in May to use up some leftover cranberries that were hidden in the freezer but realised these muffins would be perfect for a Christmas morning breakfast, I agree! And, this year she signed up to take part in the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap for the first time……and made some chestnut cookies from her copy of ‘Big, soft, chewy cookies’ to give away to my swap partners, LUCKY them as they look divine!

Jen then also made some Cranberry Mince Pie Mini Muffins! She came across this recipe for Mince Pie Muffins on the Dolly Bakes blog recently and knew that she had to make them as they sounded absolutely delicious. When she told her mum about them, she ended up baking some more to take to France for her mum and Dad! Better keep quiet next time Jen!

Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts Bake by Rita at Rita cooks Italian: Like me, Rita is a sprout lover and her recipe looks so tasty and comforting! She says This dish is the easiest way to convince reluctant Brussels sprouts eaters to give them a try. The sprouts are hidden amongst the potatoes and their slightly bitter flavour adds a special character to the creamy sauce…LUSH!

Roast Root Veg Fritatta with cauli & chorizo by Sally from Recipe Junkie and the attack of the custard creams:  Sally says of this delicious looking recipe that it may not be the most beautiful to look at, but it’s damn tasty, all things considered! She also says that she is clearly better at fridge foraging than wardrobe foraging…….interesting!

Parsnip and Pear Soup by Louisa at Chef Foti: Two of my favourite ingredients in one soup tureen next! Louisa makes a delectable sounding soup and after a few trials with this is the soup, she decided to kick off Christmas day lunch with it, using some of her lovely parsnips and the last of the pears from the garden. It looks fabulous!

Baby Quinoa (Kaniwa) Bowl with Cranberry Jicama Salsa and Sweet Squash Puree by Janet at the taste space – steam, bake, boil, shake! Janet is supposed to be culling her pantry, but when she sees something like baby quinoa (kaniwa), she has to try it out. A new, healthy food….. let’s see what it is like Janet said! Just look at what she created, simply stunning!

Orange Kugelhopf Cake from Lottie’s World of Cakes and Bakes:  Lottie shares a German cake with us all, it is called a Kugelhopf cake, also known as a Gugelhopf cake or a Bundt cake might be a term you are more familiar with. The cake is lovely and moist and its delicious orange flavour makes it a perfect cake for this time of year….I agree Lottie, it looks wonderful!

 Christmas Day Recipe – Paleo Yule Log by Ceri at Cucina Ceri:  This next recipe is from my lovely landlady from FBC12! Yes, I slept on her sofa for the weekend!  Ceri adapted this recipe slightly, opting for an entirely dairy-free filling and also adding a bit of cocoa powder to the filling for a richer flavour.  She then opted for organic honey instead of sweet freedom as my natural sweetener of choice.

A Gingerbread House for Christmas by Laura of How to Cook Good Food: Who can resist a gingerbread house, and Laura’s is delightful! Laura can’t count  how many years have passed with her saying this is the year she will  make a Gingerbread House, only for it never to come to fruition. Well, finally, here it is. In full pastel hued glory…….

Chocolate Chestnut Truffle Cake by Kellie at Food to Glow: Kellie made a FABULOUS chocolate Chestnut Truffle Cake with NO flour! Like me, she is not overly crazy about chocolate, but says this recipe is her favourite – I can see why! It’s a recipe that was  inspired by one torn out of a newspaper many years ago.

Kellie is then back again with her Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Crispy Sage Crumbs recipe: As an avid sprout lover, I totally approve! Kellie also says that this recipe is brilliant with a rasher or two of proper butchers’ bacon.

Cranberry, orange and thyme conserve by Sarah of The Garden Deli: Sarah says that the original recipe came from Rose Elliot’s Vegetarian Christmas book (a great source of ideas if you are catering for vegetarians this Christmas), but she couldn’t resist adding some thyme to herb it up a bit. As a herb addict, I totally agree!

Nigella’s Cranberry Cake is Jen from Blue Kitchen Bake’s next entry: Jen says if you’ve been reading her blog for a while then you may have noticed that she is rather partial to cranberries, just like me! The recipe is a Nigella Lawson one and comes from her ‘How To Be A Domestic Goddess’  book.

Festive Vegetarian Christmas Burger and Vegetable Bourguignonne with Sundried Tomato and Rosemary Polenta by Shaheen of allotment2kitchen: TWO gorgeous seasonal veggie recipes are next and I LOVE the lo0k of both of them! These Vegetarian Christmas Burgers are served in a large granary roll, with winter greens, a slice of mock ‘turkey’ and a generous spread of cranberry sauce…..YES please! The slow cooking process has tainted the orange of the Chantenay carrots and creamy lace colour of the parsnips in Shaheen’s Vegetable Bourguignonne with Sundried Tomato and Rosemary Polenta recipe. Both recipes look amazing!

Jen is back from Blue Kitchen bakes, with a Chocolate & Chestnut Spiced Loaf recipe: she HAS been busy! After a quick flick through one of her bread book she found a recipe for chestnut bread. She didn’t follow it to the letter,  but instead used it as inspiration for this spiced loaf.

Roast Pheasant With Bacon, Prunes, Apples & Beans by Helen of Fuss Free Flavours: Helen says this recipe is partially inspired by another recipe of hers, harissa roast chicken with beans and lentils, as she tries to follow a low GI/GL diet, and is used to adding beans and lentils into dishes. It’s lovely to see seasonal game entered!

Red Lentil Soup with Garlic & Seaweed Croutons by Elizabeth from Elizabeth’s Kitchen:  This delicious soup recipe for red lentil soup was spied by Elizabeth on the blog My Golden Pear, and she immediately bookmarked it to make. This is a wonderful, warming winter soup with just the perfect touch of chilli Elizabeth says and I could do with a bowl right now!

Roasted sprouts with rosemary, lemon and pecorino by Camilla from Dinner with Crayons: No more soggy brussels sprouts with these roasted sprouts with rosemary, lemon and pecorino from Nigellissima says Camilla and as an affirmed sprout lover, I would take a bowl of these off her hands in a flash!

Raw Chocolate Truffles by Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog: Choclette says that Dates are currently in season and so she has sent us over a BOX of Raw Chocolate Truffles! LOVELY! Choclette was sent a beautiful gold box of twenty Medjool dates to try before Christmas, and she uses them in this recipe.

Risotto with Italian chicory (radicchio) by ALIDA of My Little Italian Kitchen: Alida made this classic risotto for lunch, light and creamy and she says that anyone can make it. It’s a very easy dish with an interesting taste. If you cannot find radicchio you can use endive instead which is like a little lettuce slightly bitter in taste similar to radicchio.

Another lovely entry from Shaheen, Sweet Potato Cranberry Brownies:  Shaheen says that  she knows some of you have made resolutions to lose a few inches from your waistline, so please don’t be too miffed with her with what she is about to share with us  – a rich decadent chocolate brownie made from sweet potatoes and cranberries. NAUGHTY!

Five-A-Day Family Supper Recipe: “Sunday Lunch” Chicken, Sausage and Vegetable Hotpot by Karen of Lavender and Lovage:  This is my entry for Simple and in Season! A hearty hotpot style casserole that is packed with vegetables as part of your 5-a-day regime; this hotpot is healthy as well as tasty and makes good use of reduced-fat high meat content sausages and chicken breasts, for an easy and comforting  “Sunday Lunch” alternative.

Parmesan and butternut squash soup by Solange at Pebble Soup: This delicious soup is a perfect seasonal recipe. Solange says she wishes she had an anecdote related to butternut squash so that the post would scintillate. Or a story sprinkled with Parmesan. Even a joke about soups would be better than nothing….BUT, your soup is GOOD enough Solange!

Butternut, Coconut and Hazelnut Soup by Ren of Fabulicious Food: Another lovely butternut squash soup and this time from Ren! This recipe is vegetarian, Paleo and Whole 30 friendly soup with butternut squash, coconut milk and chopped hazelnuts…..it looks and sounds delicious!

Ren’s next entry is a gift! Christmas Spiced Cranberry and Plum Chutney, or not as the case may be! This lovely recipe makes 2 x jam jars of chutney. Once opened store the chutney in the fridge. The chutney will keep for up to six months……if it lasts that long Ren!

Kir Royale-poached summer berries by Mel at Sharky Oven Gloves: Mel says that this beautiful dessert is best served with little biscuits to nibble on alongside (although it won’t necessarily be dairy-, egg- and gluten-free anymore) – langues de chat would work perfectly – and serving it in fancy glasses such as champagne saucers or martini glasses really dresses it up.

Saag by The Spicy Pear:  Mid-January marks Lohri, a festival celebrated in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himanchal Pradesh and Jammu. It is traditionally associated with the end of winter and the harvesting of rabi (winter) crops. These crops include wheat, barley, mustard and peas. Apparently, it It takes a long time preparing the saag, what with washing and chopping the leaves and then wilting them in a pan for several hours until they reach the right consistency, but I think it is well worth the effort!

Parsnip Soup and Muffins by Fleur at Home-made by Fleur: These lovely muffins are made with parsnips! Fleur says that the recipe was an experiment in many ways using much less sugar, a root vegetable and mixing lime with spice but this is a super recipe and perfect if you want something to satisfy your sweet tooth without going over board……

……and there’s soup too!

 I hope you have enjoyed the round-up, a BIG thanks to all of you who sent your recipes in and especially to Ren for trusting me with her super blog challenge!  

Karen