Turnip cookies

175 g (6 oz) butter

150 g (5 oz) sugar (I use 50 g granulated and 100 g light brown soft sugar)

Pinch of salt

1 egg

150 g (5 oz) turnip puree (roughly 1 small or 1/2 medium size turnip, boiled and mashed). 

60 g (2 1/2 oz) ground almonds

200 g (7 oz) plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 or 2 tsp ground mixed spice

50 g (2 oz) rolled oats

Makes about 20 cookies

Cream butter with sugar(s), add salt, egg, turnip puree and combine. Next add ground almonds, flour, baking powder (or if you're in the UK, just use self-raising flour and miss out the baking powder!), mixed spice and oats. Mix well. 

Refrigerate this (soft) dough for at least 1 hour. 

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (gas mark 6). 

Remove dough from fridge and use a couple of teaspoons to make dollops of dough about the size of golf balls. Space these out on a greased baking tray or non-stick liner. 

Bake for 13 minutes or until just golden around the edges. 

If you're feeling adventurous, you might try sprinkling flaked almonds or more rolled oats on the top of the blobs before baking.

I just made this recipe up, so feel free to suggest improvements!

Ice cream Mint choc chip

250 ml double cream

250 ml full fat milk

100 g sugar

2 cups of fresh mint leaves

Some chocolate or chocolate chips.

Warm the cream in a pan and submerge the mint leaves in it. Leave to steep for at least an hour. 

Meanwhile put the milk and sugar in a pan and warm, stirring, just enough for the sugar to dissolve. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

After an hour or more has passed, whizz up the minty mixture with a handheld liquidiser (this is optional). 

Strain the mint mixture, discard the mint leaves and pour the minty cream into the milk mixture. Chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

Put mixture in pre-prepared ice cream maker and let it start churning. When it starts thickening, add in chocolate chips or chocolate chopped into teeny chunks.

Ice cream Fior di Latte

250 ml double cream

250 ml full fat milk

100 g sugar

A few drops of vanilla essence

A generous pinch of salt

Put all ingredients in pan and heat gently until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool in fridge for at least a few hours. 

Put into prepared ice cream maker and let it do its thing.

Fig and almond cake

 Ingredients

6oz salted butter

6 oz sugar

2 large eggs

4 oz ground almonds

3 oz flour (plain/gluten-free)

⅓ tsp salt

a smattering of ground vanilla beans

a pinch or two of ground star anise

3 oz Greek yogurt

6-9 figs

Method 

1.  Soften the butter. 
2. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Weigh up the almonds, flour, salt, vanilla, spice together.
4. Crack the eggs into a cup and beat them a bit (or just add them one at a time to the mixture if you can't be bothered with this).
5. Alternately add a bit of egg and some of the flour/almonds dry mix to the bowl, until it's all well mixed in. 
6. Mix in the yogurt.
7. Put on the oven, at gas mark 6, 200C
8. Find an 8 inch sandwich tin or flan tin, grease it and line it with greaseproof baking paper
9. Spoon the cake mixture into the lined tin.
10. Slice the figs down the middle to make halves or wedges
11. Arrange the fig pieces on top of the cake
12. Bake in the hot oven for 15 minutes and then reduce the temperature to Mark 3, 170C, and continue baking for 30-35 minutes. Test it with a skewer to see if it comes out clean. 
13. Serve hot or cold with yogurt or cream for pudding, or cold for tea.

Nursery wheels (aka pinwheel biscuits, whirlygig biscuits)

 Ingredients:

6 oz plain flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

3 oz butter

3 oz sugar

vanilla essence (a few drops)

milk (a little)

2-3 teaspoons cocoa powder

Method: 

• Cream butter and sugar 
• Add flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla essence and enough milk to mix to a stiff paste.
• Divide mixture in half
• Blend cocoa powder thoroughly into one half of the mixture
• Roll out each mixture thinly to the same size and shape (a longish rectangle)
• Place the chocolate piece on top of the plain one and roll up tightly (rolling from the longer side)
• Leave the roll 1/2 hour in a cool place
• Cut into slices 1/4 inch thick
• Place slices on a greased baking tray and bake in a moderate oven for 15-20 mins
• Dust with caster sugar (optional) and cool on a wire rack.
  

Jerusalem artichokes, roasted with mushrooms and onions

 I used to believe that Jerusalem artichokes were out of bounds because they cause terrible flatulence, but I got some from waitrose recently and they were no trouble at all (and delicious). This recipe worked very well, but see the modifications below!

Serves 4. Prep 10 minutes. Cook 45 minutes in the oven.

Ingredients

1 ½ lb (700 g) Jerusalem artichokes

2 onions

A few sprigs of fresh thyme

4 ½ tbsp olive oil

1 lb (450g) chestnut mushrooms (less will do)

1 oz (20g) butter

Salt and pepper etc 

 

Method (see below for advice on simplifying this)

1. Heat the oven to 230º C or gas mark 8.
2. Cut the artichokes into even sized pieces (large). Cut the onions into wedges. Put all these in a large roasting tin, in a single layer. 
3. Toss in 2 ½ tbsp of the oil. Season with salt and black pepper as you wish.
4. Roast these for 35 minutes, turning occasionally.
5. Cut the mushrooms in half. 
6. Put the mushrooms in another roasting pan with half the butter and 2 tbsp of oil. Roast for 30 minutes till golden, turning occasionally.
7. For the last ten minutes add the rest of the butter to the artichokes,
8. Throw the contents of both pans together and serve.

Alternative method.

Follow steps 1-3 as shown. 

4. Roast them for 15 minutes.

5. Add the mushrooms and all the rest of the butter and oil and roast for the remaining 30 minutes.

Serve.

Paraguayan chipa

 Recipe from Antonela

Chipá 

Ingredients:

500g of cassava flour

1 egg

300 grams of cheddar (the one actually used is Pategrás but i haven't found it in England)

150g of mozzarella

100 g of butter

A spoonful of salt

A mug of milk

Chop the mozzarella and half of the hard cheese into small cubes and grate the rest. Mix the cassava flour with the cheese and salt. Add melted butter and stir. Mix the egg and milk and add it, use your hands until you get a dough (it won't be a smooth one). Preheat the oven at 180° while you make the balls. Put the balls onto a tray with baking paper and bake for 25 minutes at 6. Depending on the oven it'll take between 20 and 30 minutes, so you might want to check them when it's been 20 minutes. Let them cool down for about 10 minutes and enjoy =)