Rhubarb and Custard with Apricot Granola Topping

I didn't buy into the expensive pink rhubarb at the beginning of the season, we've got a perfectly good rhubarb patch at the end of the garden and if you pick the stalks that are streaked with pink and resist peeling them you'll end up with some pink fruit juices.  Whilst I lingered over the pretty pink stalks in the shops with a hefty price tag and thought of all the bakes I could make with them, commonsense has to prevail and I think about my everyday rhubarb that I planted and the fact it rewards me with free homegrown fruit.

A cheat way to turn everyday rhubarb pink is to cook it with red fruits such as strawberries, raspberries or plums and this will definitely make old rhubarb look far more attractive.

Recipe serves 6 people:
450g rhubarb, trimmed (if necessary)
cut into chunks
85g caster sugar
500g tub ready-made custard
or make up the same of Birds Custard
½ quantity honey crunch granola (recipe below

Apricot, Honey and Nut Granola

200g clear honey
4 tbsp sunflower oil
300g rolled oats
100g flaked almonds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
140g dried apricots roughly chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. In a large pan gently heat the  honey and oil together until the mixture is bubbling, then add in the oats, almonds and cinnamon. Stir well until the oats are well coated, then tip onto a large baking tray, spread the mixture out on the tray. Bake for ­25 minutes, stirring halfway, until  golden.
3. Remove from the oven and immediately stir in the apricots.  Spread out again and press down
with a spatula to cool. Any leftover will keep in an  airtight container for 3 weeks.
4. To cook the rhubarb. Turn the oven down to 150°C. Place the rhubarb in a roasting tin in a single layer, scatter with the sugar and cover with foil. Bake for 15-20 minutes until just tender, cool in the tin.
5. Spoon some of the rhubarb into the base of 6 small glasses, top with a couple of tablespoons of custard, repeating the layers.  Cover with clingwrap and chill in the fridge. Remove from the fridge and just before serving sprinkle with granola.
6. Serve either at Brunch or for Dessert.

More rhubarb recipes:
Strawberry and Rhubarb Crumble
Plum, Rhubarb and Apple Crumble

Pancakes With Fresh Orange Juice

Pancakes served with orange is a puzzle to those who have never heard of this or always use freshly squeezed lemons.  I'm never sure, do you put juice on the pancake first and then sugar, or is it the other way round?

This is how I have eaten my pancakes since I was a child. I originally come from Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, I'm not sure if this is the traditional way to serve them in Melton Mowbray or indeed Leicestershire.

Listening to the afternoon presenter on Radio Shropshire he has said for a few days now that he has always eaten pancakes with orange juice and he too comes from Melton Mowbray.

Upon a little internet research there is an article regarding pancakes on the bbc.co.uk/Leicester information pages and one of the photographs shows an orange being squeezed over a pancake. They also suggest filling pancakes with pork pie, Stilton Cheese and Red Leicester, not sure about this suggestion though!

I always use Delia's recipe because I love the lace effect the pancake produces - I hope you try this way of serving pancakes next time you feel a pancake moment coming on.  Children love oranges squeezed over pancakes and it is far kinder to them than using lemon juice.

Fruit and Nut Granola

I am always trying muesli and granola recipes, mainly because I've got a cupboard full of various oats, and so I tend to adapt recipes to use them up.

This recipe is by John Torode and unusually it uses pine nuts in the mix, I have adapted the recipe by adding some dried sour cherries and barley flakes, I didn't have any maple syrup and so used all honey.

I added some large chunks of 70% dark chocolate, this idea came from a box of granola with added chocolate chunks and it was very, very delicious. My chunks of chocolate would have been better if they had been cut smaller, it is a wonder though any chocolate made it to the mix. Buy decent chocolate otherwise I think it would be best to forget the chocolate....

This granola is so good and tempting it seemed a shame to only eat this at breakfast, it was very easy to eat from the jar! Not so great though if you are dieting....

The recipe can be found here on the BBC GoodFood website.

TOASTED GRAIN AND NUT CEREAL

Bill Granger is famous for his breakfasts and you just know his recipes are going to taste good.

I love muesli and granola, and mostly only make enough to fill a large storage jar, so that I can quickly move on to the next recipe.

The recipe Bill gives, is a blueprint really, and one that you can easily adjust to suit any particular whims you may have at the time you make it.

I cooked the cereal on a conventional oven setting but it didn't seem to brown and crisp and so I popped the fan oven on and it very quickly browned and crisped up.

After going to Tom's Kitchen for brunch and eating granola, I wanted to reproduce something similar. This wasn't as rich as Tom's granola but tasted every bit as good!

Oh! nearly forgot - you will need a small dish of Greek yogurt drizzled with honey to go alongside!!

BILL'S SIDNEY FOOD

ISBN 0864119917 - Page 53

If you make the full quantity it will yield 1.5kg.

You will need: 125g unsalted butter, 6 fl oz honey, 1½ teaspoons vanilla essence, 500g rolled oats (I used jumbo oats), 1 cup sunflower seeds, 1 cup slivered almonds, 1 cup shredded coconut, ¾ cup pumpkin seeds, 1 cup rye flakes, 1 cup chopped dried fruit, such as sultanas, apricots, cranberries etc.

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C(325°F). Place butter, honey and vanilla in a small saucepan. Cook gently over a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until the honey and butter are combined.
2. Place the remaining ingredients, except the fruit, in a large mixing bowl and mix well, Slowly stir in the butter mixture, making sure that each grain is evenly coated.
3. Spread the cereal over two baking trays and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, or until the grains are crisp and very lightly browned. Stir occasionally to prevent the mixture from sticking to the baking dish. Also, check that the grains aren't over browning.
4. Remove the cereal from the oven and allow to cool.
5. When the cereal has cooled, add the dried fruit and stir evenly through the grain mixture.
6. This can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Here is a link to a couple of other granola recipes.

RACHEL ALLEN'S CRUNCHY NUTTY GRANOLA

I thought how striking the colours were in my Apricot, Almond and Cranberry cake and with some of the leftover fruits made this granola.

The granola is full of wonderful dried fruits, nuts and seeds, also it gave me an opportunity to use some of my freshly grated coconut I have squirreled away in the freezer.

The recipe makes a huge 1.5kg, but I simply halved the original recipe and stored the granola in a large kilner jar.

This seasonal granola would be wonderful as a gift, especially if you are to be a house guest over Christmas, and I couldn't think of a better way to start Christmas day than with a bowl of jewelled granola.

The recipe also comes under another title Crunchy Nutty Muesli and is in Rachel's Favourite Food ISBN 0717138984 this can be found on page 89.


Sometime ago I made granola and this too was a runaway success. As an added bonus for all of you Nigel Slater fans, I have given the recipe for his Two-Oat Muesli in the comment box!

Well, I seem to be on a roll now using up the cranberries and apricots. Pop back in a weeks time to see what else I've made!

After many reqests here is the recipe for Crunchy Nutty Granola.

Makes 1.5kg

125g butter, 150ml runny honey, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 500g rolled oats, 50g roughly chopped pecan nuts, 150g roughly chopped hazelnuts, 75g pumpkin seeds, 75g sunflower seeds, 50g golden linseeds, 100g desiccated coconut, 300g mixed dried fruit such as dates, figs, apricots, raisins, sultanas, cranberries (the larger fruit chopped)

1. Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas3.
2. Place the butter, honey and vanilla extract in a small saucepan on a low heat and gently melt together. Mix the oats, nuts, seeds and desiccated coconut together in a large bowl. Pour over the melted butter and honey mixture and stir really well to ensure all the dry ingredients are evenly coated.
3. Divide the mixture between two large baking trays and spread in an even layer. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, tossing every 5 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the trays, stirring every now and then. (If you transfer it into a deep bowl at this stage, while it is still warm, it will go soggy.)
4. Once completely cool, transfer to a large bowl and stir in your choice of dried fruits. Pour into an airtight container and store at room temperature for up to two months.

GOOD-FOR-YOU GRANOLA

Mostly for breakfast, I like to eat homemade muesli - I have a favourite recipe taken from Sainsbury's Magazine by Nigel Slater. The main reason I favour this is because it is unsweetened.
However, I decided to make granola for a change and this recipe is taken from the bbcgoodfood website. It both looks and tastes delicious. I found this granola quite sweet but it has a wonderful crunch. To counteract the sweetness a dollop of natural homemade yogurt goes with it perfectly.
Even though I found it a little sweet, it still beats anything you can buy off the supermarket shelf.
A few spoonfuls on vanilla ice cream would be good or a bowl filled with granola to snack on throughout the day would be perfect.