If anyone wants to cook my father's day lunch...

It's tomorrow by the way kids, so the shopping window of opportunity is pretty much NOW, and I can't hint strongly enough but shall just continue here to jot a few words down.

Since scaring myself down to a maximum of two fish moments a week at the moment, and trying my level best to hold back on red meat while increasing the vegetable intake. The gaps left seem to be utterly filled with depleting my Chinese instant noodle stockpile, so life isn't all that grim. The reserved approach to meat does ensure that on special occasions (please do refer to tomorrow as SPECIAL) then a mahoosive fat and juicy steak is completely justifiable, and so the hints keep on coming.


The mass of expertise around steaks; rearing, choosing, storing, cooking and serving is insane, and everyone and their mother is an expert on this topic of course. But there are some cool people out there who know what they're talking about while not making a meal out of it. Foodurchin's great guide to getting the beast just right is hilarious. While the wonderful people of Edinburgh are experimenting with their 22 hour beef at home show us just what is possible.

It doesn't need to be all bells and whistles you know, I'm just asking for something that I can sleep off tomorrow afternoon in front of the telly. But if I had to choose for myself i think I'd go with the larger joint approach which has tended to satisfy my weekly beefy like urges of late. 


As far as what to go with it are concerned, I'm a classic steak cliche all bundled up in a chef's jacket here. Chips - large, but not fries. Watercress leaves, but not rocket, dressed lightly with a mustardy vinaigrette. Horseradish of course, but if possible freshly grated into a little creme fraiche with an extra squeeze of lemon. I'll be happy for sure.

A drink to go with that Sir did you say? Well it is a wee bit predictable but I think something rich, red and rounded might help the food slip effortlessly down, I have just the bottle of the most perfect Napa Cabernet Sauvignon brought back from the US recently that has tomorrow written all over it. The topic of American wines I have a strong opinion of which will come another day. But as I'm awaiting the arrival of the feast, I think I can indulge in a little imperfect perfection. It is my day after all.

Caramelised hazelnut chocolate clusters

Makes 24

These petits fours are simply clumps of hazelnuts set in a buttery caramel and then coated in melted dark chocolate. If the notion takes you, milk or white chocolate can easily be substituted, and the nuts swapped for some dried fruit. Such a simple recipe for the kids to get involved in the kitchen.

200g caster sugar
2 tblsp water
50g butter
100g whole hazelnuts
200g dark chocolate (55–60 per cent cocoa solids)

Line a baking sheet with a silicone cooking liner or baking parchment. Melt the sugar with the water in a heavy-based saucepan over a very gentle heat. Once all the sugar grains have dissolved, stir in the melted butter. Increase the heat and boil to a mid-golden colour. Take off the heat.

Drop in a cluster of three nuts, scoop out at once with a metal spoon and place on the lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining nuts to make about 24 clusters. Cool until set and firm.
Melt the chocolate. Dunk each nut cluster into the chocolate to coat and place on baking parchment to set. Store in an airtight tin for up to three days.

Carrot and pineapple muffins

Makes 12 large muffins

The best carrot cakes if ever made and tasted have an undercurrent of pineapple in there. This adaptation of the cake is a great way to get more fruit and fibre into your children’s diet, particularly if you add wholemeal flour into the muffin mix as I have here. Most kids tend to love sultanas and walnuts, but you can omit the latter if your child has a nut allergy. These also make a fantastic teatime treat, glazed with a mascarpone or cream-cheese frosting that has been sweetened with a few tablespoons of icing sugar

150g carrots

100g plain flour

100g wholemeal flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

100ml vegetable oil

50g salted butter, melted

150g light muscovado sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

225g can of pineapple in natural juice, drained and finely chopped

50g golden sultanas (optional)

50g walnut pieces (optional)

2 tblsp demerara sugar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180c/gas mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with papercases.

Peel and coarsely grate the carrots, then pat dry with kitchen paper.
Mix together the plain and wholemeal flours, the baking powder and the ground spices in a bowl. In another large bowl, beat together the oil, melted butter, sugar and eggs.

Add the grated carrots to the wet mixture, then stir in the pineapple,sultanas and walnuts. Gradually fold in the flour mixture until justcombined. To keep the muffins light and fluffy, do not overwork the batter.

Spoon the batter into the lined muffin tray and sprinkle with demerara sugar, if using. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer inserted into themiddle of the muffins comes out clean. Cool the muffins on a wire rack.

Double chocolate chip cookies

Makes 12

50g unsalted butter

450g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

2 eggs

170g soft light brown sugar or light muscovado sugar

¼ tsp vanilla extract

85g plain flour

½ tsp salt

½ tsp baking powder

2 baking trays, lined with greaseproof paper

Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas 3. Put the butter and half the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the base of the bowl touch the water). Leave until melted and smooth.

Put the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) and beat until well mixed. Pour in the chocolate mixture, beating on slow speed until well combined.

Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a separate bowl, then stir into the chocolate mixture in 3 additions, mixing well after each addition (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula). Finally, stir in the remaining chocolate until evenly dispersed.

Arrange 6 equal amounts of cookie dough on each prepared baking tray. Make sure that the cookies are spaced apart to allow for spreading while baking. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, checking regularly after 10 minutes. They are ready when the tops start to crack and look glossy. Leave the cookies to cool slightly on the trays before turning out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Carrot cupcakes with orange frosting

Makes 12 large cupcakes

This is simply a perfect carrot cake recipe which makes enough batter for 12 muffin sized cupcakes. You can, of course, make smaller cakes using cupcake tins, but these will require less time to cook, so do check after 15-20 minutes of baking. A great kids' recipe to get them involved in the kitchen.

75g sultanas
200g plain wholemeal flour
1 tblsp ground mixed spice
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
200g soft dark brown sugar
150ml sunflower oil
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange
2 tblsp orange juice
2 large free range eggs
200g peeled and grated carrots
45g ground almonds
45g roughly chopped walnuts or pecans

For the orange frosting
400g cream cheese
Finely grated zest of 2 oranges
1 tsp orange juice
60g sifted icing sugar

Place 12 paper muffin cases in a muffin tin. Put the sultanas in a small bowl, cover with hot water and leave to soak for 10-20 minutes until they have plumped up, then drain well and set aside. Preheat the oven to 180c/Gas 4.

Put the flour, mixed spice, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into a large bowl and stir well to incorporate.

In another mixing bowl, combine the sugar, oil, orange zest, orange juice and eggs and beat with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Fold in the flour mixture in two batches, followed by the sultanas, carrots, ground almonds and chopped walnuts or pecans.

Divide the batter among the muffin cases, level the tops and bake for 20-25 minutes, until well risen and golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.

To make the orange frosting, beat together the cream cheese, orange zest and juice and icing sugar until smooth. Chill until ready to use, then spread liberally over the cooled cupcakes. Once frosted, the cakes should be eaten within a few hours, or will keep chilled for a couple of days

White chocolate flapjacks

Makes about 7 long bars or 14 small bites

A weekend favourite which rarely fails to hit the mark. This is one of those terrific all in one recipes that can be done on autopilot and is versatile enough for you to customise each time. Adding any combination of nuts and dried fruits, changing the chocolate topping and decorating with really whatever you fancy is all a part of keeping this base recipe going week after week

75g rolled porridge oats
100g jumbo oats
25g toasted chopped nuts
75g salted butter, plus extra for greasing
75g soft light brown sugar
2 tblsp golden syrup
Few drops of vanilla extract
50g white chocolate, chopped and melted

Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas 3 and grease a 2lb loaf tin.

Mix the oats and nuts together in a large bowl. Gently heat the butter, sugar, syrup and vanilla in a pan, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved. Pour over the oats and mix to coat well. With a spatula, press the mixture evenly into the loaf tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Leave to cool completely in the tin, then remove and slice into 7 bars. (Cut across into 14 smaller pieces, if you wish.) Drizzle over the melted chocolate and let it set.

Apple and toffee muffins

Makes 12

So so easy to fumble together, great to do with the kids. Don't put too much toffee in each muffin or it will boil over during baking. For a different flavour, use nutmeg instead of cinnamon, and got to be eaten the same day you bake them - saving them tomorrow is a waste of good oven heat...

2 eggs, beaten
80g caster sugar

240ml milk

100g butter, melted

300g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp saltgood pinch of cinnamon

2 eating apples, such as Cox's or Granny Smiths, peeled, cored and finely chopped

50g toffee, broken into small pieces

Pre-heat oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. Line a 12-hole bun or muffin tin with paper cases.

Mix the eggs, sugar, milk and melted butter in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add the chopped apple and mix roughly.

Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases, filling them a quarter full, then top with a few pieces of toffee, and cover the rest of the muffin mixture until the paper cases are half full. Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until well risen and golden. Cool on a wire rack.