I love tomato soup but i dont like the amount of sugar and salt in some of the tinned versions so last year i made my own the only problem was i didn’t write the recipe down! So as we are now in the winter months its time to revisit the recipe – the key with this soup is to use the ripest tomatoes you can find this will take away that “tart” taste you can get in some tomato soups.
There will always be an element of taste adjustment at the end of this because its going to depend on what tomatoes you use and you may need to add more flavour – more basil or balsamic vinegar i would suggest you let the soup cool slightly before tasting as when hot i dont think you can judge it properly.
Looking for something a little bit different??? this is it! is was so tasty and so easy to make always a winner in my book!
I made this up as part of a batch cooking session as the recipe will serve 4 but it will also freeze well saves a job for another day!
This would make a fab weekend family meal or #fakeaway it really was good we really enjoyed it Graeme even had seconds!
If your sauce does end up slightly too watery take the lid off the slow cooker and let it cook for a little longer or take the sauce out and pop it in a pan to reduce it down that way. I have to say i didn’t need to do any of that.
Another top tip is taste i tasted my sauce at the beginning before cooking and decided to add a couple of more splashes of Worcestershire sauce, however after cooking it was still a little tart so i added a teaspoon of BBQ sauce to to take out the sharpness. All tomato based recipes vary so much and its down to the ripeness of the tomatoes used even in passata, its usually one of the reasons small children are not always keen of tomato based dishes, the easy way around this is always add sugars….hence the brown/BBQ sauce in this recipe – you can always add more sweetener but sometimes i feel sweetener can also leave a funny artificial taste to the sauce.
Love a beef stew especially now the weather is getting colder and this one is fab! its no fuss and so easy to make and by using the slow cooker you can buy the cheapest of cuts of beef. I browned off my beef first as you will see in the video but as always the choice is yours.
My top tip for cooking a fab beef stew is give yourself plenty of time and wherever possible always cook it on low, if the beef is tough and chewy its not cooked keep cooking until it nearly falls apart. I added pearl barley to mine but you can use red lentils if you want they will disappear during the cooking but will still thicken the gravy – they do exactly the same job as pearl barley but if you have kids then this maybe an easier option! Lets talk about the Jam i added yep i appreciate that sounds mad but it really does work and you need to adjust it to your taste i would suggest you add 1 teaspoon then taste again before serving and add another one if you like. If your stew has that “too beefy” taste or a “tinnie metalic” taste the jam will counteract that and the sweetness from the sugars will take that taste away.
The biggest mistake people make when cooking a stew in the slow cooker is they add way too much water trust me it doesn’t need it.
This recipe appears in my Cookbook MY SLOW COOKER MEALS its on my Amazon shop look under COOKBOOKS
The slow cooker i use can go on the hob under the grill and in the oven again its one my Amazon shop press the below link and look under KITCHEN GADGETS
Healthy Yorkshire Puddings? absolutely! these really do work and i use this recipe frequently. A fab addition to Sunday Lunch and super easy to make.
In this recipe i made a batch of 12, let them cool then I froze them. However, if there are only 2 of you like Graeme and I just half the ingredients to make 6.
I’m the older version of this recipe it asks for 40ml water but today I didn’t need the water as it depends on the size of the eggs you use.
My top tip is to add all the ingredients to a jug mix well and leave the batter to sit for a minimum of 20mins then if needed add small amounts of water.
Another top tip is to test the heat of the oil before adding the batter as this will really help the puddings rise, drop a small amount of batter into the tray and if it sizzles then it’s OK if it doesn’t put it back into the oven.
I have wanted to make this for ages and ive now finally got around to it!! Old School sausage and gravy casserole super easy to make but soooooooo tasty!
Use any sausages you like and add any flavours you like
If you want the gravy really thick you may need to add a touch of flour or corn flour – i didnt have to do this as the onions thickened the gravy for me
I love a good curry and this is a good curry plus its super simple and if your looking for something tasty through the week this is it! Its not too spicy but if you want to add more spice feel free!
You can use Lamb or Chicken the choice is yours (you don’t need to brown the chicken) Use Greek Yogurt or Natural Yogurt to stir in before serving – use as much or as little to get the desired taste, but before adding it let the curry cool slightly or you run the risk of it splitting.
As you will see i use my slow cooker inner pot to soften down the onions and brown the lamb this is because my slow cooker can go on the hob if you have the ceramic type pot then you will need to use a frying pan to do this. The slow cooker i use is on my Amazon shop press the link it will take you there then look under kitchen gadgets https://www.amazon.co.uk/shop/julesthelazycook
This recipe appears in my cookbook MY SLOW COOKER MEALS which is available on Amazon in paperback & kindle press here https://amzn.eu/d/bxDzxmn
Ok i admit this sounds mad but if your wanting to reduce your carbs or following slimming world SP days and missing your mash then give this a go you wont regret it!
I used a tin of butterbeans and a tin of chickpeas but you can use whatever you want and add any flavours spices or herbs you like
Just a note:- add the used stock a little at a time until you get the mash to the consistency you want
Wow Wow Wow how good was this????? sooooooo good!!! have not made this for ages so decided to give it another go as needed that pure comfort food and something healthy so this was it and what a fab choice!
Its so easy to make and you can adjust the spices in any volumes you like to get the flavour you want (dip your finger in the breadcrumbs and taste) ha! ha! trust me it works
The red plastic spiky stuff on my baking tray is called Pan Pyramid and i bought it from ebay but its also available on Amazon it really does help gets crisp food up
Slow Cooker Chicken one of the easiest ways to cook a chicken add any flavours you want or leave plain. The chicken must be lifted off the bottom of the slow cooker you can use any old vegetables to do this, ramekins turned upside down or scrunched up foil balls to sit the chicken on this keeps it out of the juices.
More importantly the heating element of the slow cooker is directly under where you would sit the chicken and placing it straight onto the heating element isnt a great idea – you can run the risk of an uneven cook where the chicken maybe over cooked on the base but not cooked in the breast.
You dont need to add any liquid as during the cooking process the chicken will release enough it is cooked when juices run clear, i find this is the most economical way of buying chicken as its so much cheaper than buying a packet
Use whatever you like to flavour/infuse the chicken anything will work ive tried it trust me lol even though the spices sit on top of the skin it still infuses the meat
Or you can turn it into a roast chicken, once cooked pop it straight into a red hot oven to crisp the skin my slow cooker has an aluminium pot so i can pop mine under a grill or in the oven. BUT make sure yours can go under the grill or into a hot oven most enamel pots can’t so check the manufacturers instructions. The best way around this if you are unsure is to place the slow cooker chicken into an oven proof casserole dish then place it into the oven.
I have wanted to make these for ages ever since they popped up on a facebook page however im always wary of these versions of the real thing as ive tried many of these recipes and they have left me totally disappointed! However these were really good and you can swap the flavours to make whatever type of pasty you like – they are super simple to make and really tasty.
In the video there are a couple of top tips to stop you getting a soggy bottom and to help with crimping to stop any leaking,
Wow this was a fab change for a mid week meal and the thing i love about this one is you can spice it up or spice it down to suit your heat level. I served mine on a bed of stir fry veg but you can serve with noodles this dish really would make a fab alternative to a weekend takeaway.
In this recipe you are going to need to understand how much heat you like in your food the things that create heat that people mistake for spice are Ginger and Lemongrass both really can pack a punch if you are not careful. My suggestion is if you are unsure start with the smallest amount and keep tasting and add more as you cook.
I cooked the beef in my air fryer but you can do it in a pan on the hob if you wish as you know i use my air fryer for everything now its just so much easier.
I love fajitas but sometime the list of ingredients and prep can be so long that it kind of puts me off so i decided to simply it! Still tastes fab and is now super easy to make
Now this was just a little bit tasty and considering i have someone who doesn’t like cheese…. i know how can you not like cheese!!!! I think the beauty of this one is you can mix the flavours up to suit whatever you like.
I cooked mine in my air fryer but you can cook this under the grill or in an oven
There is not a lot of explanation need with this dish as its super simple but dont let that fool you as its also super tasty.
Now this was a game changer i absolutely loved this one its an idea ive had for a while but as with everything its getting the time to get around to make the things! But here we are made and eaten and enjoyed!
You can add any extra vegetables you like to this and also any flavours but spring onion and chilli worked really well
Yet another winner in our house i really loved this one again simple to make the flavours were amazing and all the ingredients are store cupboard so nothing special is needed to recreate the meal.
This recipe may need adjusting to suit your taste and this will depend on how sweet the oranges are you use. Also how sweet the marmalade is, as marmalade can be “sharp” rather than sweet depending on the brand you use.
In the ingredients list I have added honey as OPTIONAL I didn’t add it to mine but you many want a tiny drizzle in yours remember taste, taste and taste again.
The sauce takes a little patience to reduce so give yourself time, you could add a small amount of cornflour or Xanthan Gum. If using Xanthan Gum add half a teaspoon at a time as you really don’t need much of it to thicken sauces.
As an option you could dust the chicken in flour this would help thicken the sauce quicker, the choice as always is yours.
Another fantastic easy tasty (very tasty) meal this made a fab BBQ and i really enjoyed it the flavours were spot on! This makes a really easy prep meal as you could do this the night before and leave it in the fridge marinating overnight so a real time saver!
For this you can use any chicken part you like thigh diced strips it really doesn’t make any difference use whatever you like or have
Ive have reached the point of getting sick of throwing cucumbers away my fridge isnt the best to start with!!! So ive come across this fab nifty trick to make then last longer and stop that horrible soggy mess ending up in the salad tray… and it really does work
Yep as you guessed im fed up of paying for microwave pouches of cauliflower rice so i decided to see how difficult it was to make my own hmmmm how difficult was it???? Not! it was so easy and to be honest tasted so much better and i really liked the fact i could get the texture the way i liked it i left mine slightly chunky which i really loved but blitz it down to how you like it.
Add any spices you like this works really well on SP days
Well what a treat this was not only was someone else doing the cooking but it was divine! such fab flavours and so easy to make – just wish i had thought of it myself ha!!!
Im sure you will have guessed by now my long suffering OH is a much better cook than i will ever be and it was him who taught me to cook so i though it only fair to not claim this one as my own but to give him some credit for this new creation!
The key to this is getting the chicken cut thinly or the fillets sliced thinly depending on which you use as the idea is it should be a quick meal to get to the table! Its really easy to cook but tastes amazing you wont be disappointed making this one thats for sure!
Jules The Lazy Cook 