Cauliflower/Macaroni Cheese - MS Word document for downloading

Cauliflowers were on “special offer” today - very fresh and good quality, so I bought two - one for a very tasty soup which will go into the freezer (recipe shortly!) and another for supper tonight. We haven’t had Cauliflower Cheese for a long time. I like the variations possible with this dish, not only with the different cheeses you can use, but also by adding chopped fried crispy bacon, mushroom and onion to the sauce, (as shown in the photograph) or a well-drained can of salmon. A mixture of cauliflower and broccoli florets makes a colourful and even more attractive dish.

You can use the same sauce recipe with macaroni. Depending on the size of the appetite, allow between 50-100g (2-4oz) of macaroni per person. Cook according to the instructions on the packet.

Not into sauce making? I’ll give you an alternative recipe, based on crème fraiche which you could use with the cauliflower, macaroni or mixed vegetables - preparation time then would be 5 minutes.

Serves 4.

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Lemon Drizzle Cake - MS Word document for downloading

This first recipe is from “Mary Berry’s Ultimate Cake Book” and is the one we served at Presentation Evening. Mary suggests a lemon icing for the top. As the pupils would be icing this freshly made cake, I didn’t want to risk cake crumbs getting caught up in the icing as they were spreading it. This can happen in seconds and completely spoil the look of the cake, so I opted for a crunchy topping instead. It also meant peace of mind for me, knowing there was one less cake to need icing when cold!

I love the convenience of this crunchy lemon topping. It should be poured over the hot cake and left to cool. So quick and easy! Although I might have started off baking with enthusiasm, I have often felt I don’t want to make an icing once the cake is cold. This solves that problem!

If you use margarine from a tub, cakes can be made very quickly, just using a bowl and a wooden spoon. (Make sure it is not a spread, though. That doesn’t make good cakes). Packet margarine or butter usually needs an electric whisk to break up the lumps of fat.

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Family Mushroom Soup - MS Word document for downloading

In “The Complete Book of Home Freezing”, Audrey Ellis has some wonderful recipes, which I have used for years. (Yes, it is a very old book and she was writing long before the advent of “Ready Meals”!) I adopted quite a bit of her theory “My experience has always been that multiplying the basic amount to serve your family by three, produces a quantity that is practical to cook, (unless you have a very large family). This gives you a meal to serve and two to store…” Over a period of time, you can build up quite a selection in the freezer - so you can have evenings “off” where you are simply reheating previously made dishes. This is a bonus if you are very busy or tired (as at the end of term!) or ill. On a more cheerful note, it also means you can treat unexpected visitors to your home cooking.

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Crispy Fish Hotpot - MS Word document for downloading

We don’t like the bones in fish, so I’m very choosy about the fish dishes I serve. This is very tasty. Crispy Fish Hotpot can be made using any firm white fish fillets. It does have a lot of juice with it, but this is mainly taken up by the potatoes as you are eating. If you want to thicken the juices a little bit, toss the fish cubes in seasoned flour before adding to the casserole.

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 10 minutes, followed by 30 minutes cooking time, plus 2 minutes preparation time, followed by 35-40 minutes cooking time.

This is a very substantial “all in one” dish. It lacks colour in spite of the red skinned apples in it, so add some halved tomatoes for the last 10 minutes of cooking time. Season these well, and add a knob of butter.

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