Cinnamon Sugar Mini Muffin Doughnuts

When I saw Michelle from Utterly Scrummy's recipe for these delicious-looking, mini muffin-doughnuts (which are obviously not Duffins!), I just had to make them. They're really simple to make, and taste even better then they look! They have the taste and texture of those mini supermarket doughnuts.

I made a few minor changes to the recipe as follows...

• I halved the recipe (to make 24) and replaced the cinnamon in the cake mixture with vanilla extract. 
• To coat the muffins, I mixed 2 tsp of cinnamon with 6 tbsp sugar. 
• I melted around 4 tbsp butter and after dipping a couple and seeing how much butter each muffin absorbed, I decided to just dip the 'muffin tops' into the butter, but still roll the whole cakes in the cinnamon sugar.

I froze half of the batch and took a few out to defrost as and when anyone fancied one. They are best served warm and I found that a 10-15 second blast in the microwave did the job, without affecting the taste or texture.

My next challenge is to make a vegan version, so watch this space!

I'm adding this post to this month's Bookmarked Recipes over on Tinned Tomatoes.

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Marinated Olives with Garlic, Chilli & Parsley

I generally buy a pot of marinated olives each week. This works out to be quite expensive, as my favourite marinated Queen green olives are generally £2-£3 a tub. So, I thought I'd have a go at marinating plain olives (at about £1 per jar) to see if they would taste as good and save money...they do!

• 1 jar of your preferred plain or stuffed olives in brine (about 200g/8oz drained weight)
• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and sliced
• 1 tsp fresh, chopped parsley
• 1 pinch of dried crushed chilli

Drain the olives, blot dry on some kitchen roll.

Mix the marinade ingredients together and pour over the olives.

Allow to marinate over night in an airtight tub.
Will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge.

Top tip: After you've eaten the olives, don't through the marinade away...pour over chopped Mediterranean or root vegetables and roast them.

Other marinade suggestions: Just add the chopped ingredients to olive oil as above - lemon zest and chopped coriander leaves, sun-dried tomatoes and feta (use the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes), chopped basil and garlic, garlic and chopped fresh chilli etc.

Any other marinade ideas? Do let me know in a comment below.

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Mini Halloumi Tarts

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Here's my next Christmas canapé recipe. These little halloumi tarts can be baked in advance and frozen until needed. Defrost for a couple of hours then warm up before eating...et voilà!

Makes approx 24 mini tarts.

• 8oz/200g halloumi cheese grated
• 4 fl oz/100ml Greek yogurt
• 1 medium egg
• ½ tsp dried oregano plus 1 tsp chopped, fresh dill 
• 10oz/250g (½ pack) ready-made shortcrust pastry

Preheat the oven to 190C/180C Fan/Gas 5/375F.
Mix the grated halloumi with the yogurt, egg and herbs.

Roll out the pastry on a floured board, to around the thickness of a one pound coin (about 3-4 mm or a 16th of an inch).

Lightly grease a 24 hole mini muffin pan.
Cut out 24x3.5"/9 cm circles...you may need to re-roll the pastry scraps for the final few!
Pop the pastry circles into the pan and press down (I used the end of my rolling pin for this, but you can buy this nifty little gadget from Amazon which is purpose made for the job!)
Generously fill each pastry case with the cheese mixture. 
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from the pan. Serve straight away or cool and freeze until needed.

Top tip: Grate the halloumi with a food processor or use a hand grater and chop up any bits that don't make it through the grater!

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Mini Courgette and Potato Quiches

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I'm in the midst of baking canapés for Christmas, so I thought I'd share a couple of recipes with you. These little vegetarian quiches can be baked in advance and frozen until needed. Defrost for a couple of hours then warm up before eating...simples!

Makes approx 24 mini quiches.

• 4oz/100g potato, peeled and grated
• 4oz/100g courgette (zucchini), grated
• 1 medium onion, diced finely
• 4 fl oz/100ml double cream
• 1 medium egg
• 2oz/50g vegetarian Parmesan cheese or mature cheddar, grated
• 1 tsp chopped. fresh basil or parsley
• black pepper and nutmeg to season 
• 10oz/250g (½ pack) ready-made shortcrust pastry

Preheat the oven to 190C/180C Fan/Gas 5/375F.
Heat a drop of olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onions for a few minutes until softened.

Add the grated vegetables, herbs and seasonings and cook on a low heat for around 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Beat the egg and cream together in a jug.

Stir the grated cheese into the cooked vegetables.

Roll out the pastry on a floured board, to around the thickness of a one pound coin (about 3-4 mm or a 16th of an inch).

Lightly grease a 24 hole mini muffin pan.
Cut out 24x3.5"/9 cm circles...you may need to re-roll the pastry scraps for the final few!
Pop the pastry circles into the pan and press down (I used the end of my rolling pin for this, but you can buy this nifty little gadget from Amazon which is purpose made for the job!)

Add a teaspoonful of the vegetable mixture to each pastry case and top up with the egg and cream mixture. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from the pan. Serve straight away or cool and freeze until needed.

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Savoury Puff Pastry Tartlets

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I'm testing out a few Christmas buffet and canapé recipes at the moment. These little bite-sized tartlets can be filled with your choice of vegetarian or vegan fillings. I have added a few suggestions below, but you can use pretty much anything you fancy.

• 1 block of ready-made puff pastry
• Your choice of fillings

Grease a tartlet/mini muffin/bun tin and preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/425F/Gas7.

Roll out the puff pastry until it is fairly thin. Using a cutter just bigger than the top of your tartlet or bun tin (holes wells indents...what do you call them?), cut out circles of the pastry, as close together as possible, so that you don't waste too much pastry. 
Pop the pastry circles into your tin and press down in the centre to make space for the fillings.
Fill and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown. Only add a little filling to each tartlet as the pastry will rise quite a lot. 
When cooked, remove from the tin and serve hot or warm.

I filled mine with 3 different combinations:

• Greek (pictured left) - chopped olives, roasted red pepper and sundried tomatoes. Top with a little feta cheese and a sprinkle of dried oregano.
• Roasted piri piri vegetables (pictured centre - vegan) - finely chop some bell pepper, courgette, mushroom and onion and fry in a drop of olive oil for around 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 2 tbsp piri piri sauce. 
• Roasted squash and goat's cheese (pictured right) - cube the squash and roast with some ground fennel seeds for about 15 minutes. Top with a little goat's cheese.

Suitable for freezing

If you wish to make these in advance, slightly under-cook them (so the pastry is firm but still pale). Cool and freeze. Defrost and reheat at 180C/170C Fan/350F/Gas4 for around 5 minutes.

Other ideas include: chopped tomato, basil & mozzarella, blue cheese & mushroom, roasted vegetables & pesto, garlic mushrooms, refried beans and salsa etc. Just remember to cook raw vegetables lightly first, to remove some of their juices, otherwise your tartlets will have soggy bottoms!

If you want to make mini quiches or add sweet fillings (including chutneys), use shortcrust pastry instead, as puff pastry will not hold these fillings well. 

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Savoury Cheese Muffins

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These savoury muffins take just minutes to make, and taste delicious served warm with home made soup. They are also a great addition to packed lunches and picnics.

• 2 cups hard, tasty cheese (e.g. extra mature cheddar, hard goat's cheese), grated 
• 2 cups self raising flour
• 1 level tsp paprika
• 1 level tsp English mustard powder
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• 2 medium eggs
• 1 cup milk
• ½ level tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½ cup chopped vegetable anti-pasti (e.g. olives, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted peppers)

Mix the eggs and milk together.

Put all of the dry ingredients in a bowl and add the egg and milk mixture. Stir gently to combine. 

Spoon mixture into a well greased muffin tin. 

Bake at 200C/190C Fan/Gas 6/400F for 12-15 mins, or until firm and golden brown. 

Leave to cool for a few minutes and then loosen around each muffin with a knife before turning out and cooling on a wire rack.

Best eaten warm on the day you've made them.

Suitable for freezing.

Alternatives: Bake mini, bite-size muffins for parties. Reduce the cooking time to 8-10 minutes. 

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Vegetarian & vegan buffet ideas

Here are some of our favourite vegetarian and vegan buffet/meze/canape ideas which are ideal for parties and picnics (for mums who don't shop at Iceland!)
If catering for large numbers, I generally make up some batches of buffet foods in advance and freeze them. I also make various fresh salads and dips as needed, either the day before or on the day.

All recipes are, of course, vegetarian, so I have marked vegan recipes with (v) and those which can have a vegan option as (vo).

Make in advance and freeze:
Halloumi and double potato cakes
Halloumi tarts
Courgette and potato quiches
Falafels (vo)
Spinach and cheese pies
Cheese scones
Glamorgan sausages (or use this mixture in puff pastry to make sausage rolls)
Chorizo-type sausages (as above)
Nut roast sausage rolls (v)
Scone-base pizzas
Cheese muffins
Garlic bread/dough balls/pizza (vo)
Spinach, pepper and Goat's cheese quiche
Savoury puff pastry tartlets (vo)
Quorn kebabs (vo)

Make  fresh:
Hummus (v)
Tzatziki
Aubergine and feta dip (vo)
Pasta salad (vo)
Pesto and antipasti tart (vo)
Squash, lentil and sweet potato salad (vo)
Vegan salads (v)
Bulghar wheat salad (vo)
Marinated olives (v)
Guacamole (v)
Mushroom bruschetta (v)
Dakos (vo)
Veggie frittata/tortilla
Roasted vegetable salad
Green salad
Rice salad
Greek salad on a stick - a chunk of cucumber, a piece of feta, half a cherry tomato and an olive on a cocktail stick
Potato salad
Jacket potatoes/Potato wedges/Home made chips

Add a few store cupboard standbys:
Veggie cocktail sausages on sticks 
Cheese and pineapple on sticks
Crisps
Crackers
Bread sticks
Bread/wraps

Dessert ideas:
Oreo truffles
Tiffin (v)
Chocolate hazelnut truffles (v)
Mini whoopie pies
Mini desserts
Fresh fruit salad

Drinks:
Cider Punch
Champagne cocktails

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Oreo Truffles

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As it's the 1st of December, I thought I'd start adding some more Christmas-inspired recipes to my blog (here are some of last years' recipes).

This recipe was given to me by a work colleague who generously brought some of these delicious morsels into work to help raise money for Children in Need. I'd never tried them before, but after googling, it seems that Oreo truffles are very popular, especially in the US. They're easy enough for children (or inexperienced cooks) to make, but taste quite wonderful!

These truffles would make a great dessert canape for parties (double the recipe) and I think they'd be a great Christmas gift, the only problem being is that they need to be kept refrigerated due to the mascarpone cheese in them.

Makes about 20

• 1½ packets (200g/8oz) Oreos (or other biscuits*)
• 100g/4oz mascarpone or other mild-tasting cream cheese
• 150g/6oz plain, milk or white chocolate

Put the biscuits in the food processor and blend into crumbs (or put in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin).
Add the cream cheese and blend again to make a firm mixture (add a little more cheese if needed).
Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes, to allow the mixture to firm up.
Roll into small balls using your hands and then chill in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
Melt the chocolate and dip each Oreo ball into the chocolate to cover.
Remove with a fork and drain off the excess chocolate.
Place on greaseproof paper, decorate with sprinkles if wanted and chill until set.

Will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Alternatives: Add a few drops of flavouring essence to the biscuit mixture such as vanilla, mint, orange, coffee etc.

Oreos may not strictly vegetarian as they may contain non-vegetarian whey...try using other biscuits to make different flavoured truffles (e.g. amaretti, chocolate-chip cookies, shortbread etc) - adjust the amount of mascarpone used to make a firm mixture.

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