I have found it really hard and stressful to figure out exactly what I wanted to do and pursue as a career. I think I've found exactly what I want to do. (:
For the past 4 days I have been on location in County Down, catering for a wonderful film crew and cast! I catered for breakfast and lunch and then on the last day, made 4 surprise desserts.
Why 4 you ask? I don't know, but I am going to say it was because I catered for 4 days there, so maybe that is why? Or it was most likely, like 99% because I love baking and felt like it was needed! And what a better excuse than the need for it by a hungry crew and cast!
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| See, there's me! Checking a recipe or something- I really don't remember |
This is what I want to do for a career and business! It is catering for Ciara Little; also known as CVL Bakes!
These past few days have been stressful, busy and non-stop! And guess what!?... I have never been so happy and comfortable in my life! I loved every minute of it and am sorry it is over... for now!
I met so many lovely, friendly, hospitable and genuinely down to earth bunch of people! So committed and happy to what they are doing on set and that shows in their work. It was a pleasure feeding their tummies and catering for a film crew and cast!! Very talented bunch and it was great craic!!
If any of you, readers, friends, new and old, cast and crew ever need anything catered for; savoury or sweet for any occasion I cannot say enough how much I would love to be a consideration!
Now, down to business!
Menu for the 4 day shoot:
DAY 1: FRIDAY 21ST AUGUST 2015
Breakfast:
Sausages, Bacon, Scrambled egg, Roasted tomatoes, Roasted mushrooms and Ciabatta bread with Tea and Coffee!
Lunch:
Chicken Tarragon served with rice and an Iceberg, Cucumber, Spring Onion and Green Pepper Salad.
Roasted red pepper, stuffed with Lemon and Herb Couscous and Feta Cheese with Salad.
Grilled Chicken Salad with French Dressing.
Tea and Coffee.
DAY 2: SATURDAY 22ND AUGUST 2015
Breakfast:
Sausages, Bacon, Scrambled egg, Roasted tomatoes, Roasted mushrooms and Ciabatta bread with Tea and Coffee!
Lunch:
Chilli Con Carne, served with rice and an Iceberg, Cucumber, Spring Onion and Green pepper salad.
Bruschetta with a tomato, garlic and red pepper salsa.
Tea and Coffee.
DAY 3: SUNDAY 23RD AUGUST 2015
Breakfast:
Sausages, Bacon, Scrambled egg, Roasted tomatoes, Roasted mushrooms and Ciabatta bread with Tea and Coffee!
Lunch:
Chicken Pasta Bake, served with an Iceberg, green tomato and pear salad.
Baked Mushroom, stuffed with an onion and garlic salsa and topped with grated cheddar cheese.
Chicken and Vegetable Soup, served with Ciabatta bread and butter.
Tea and Coffee.
DAY 4: MONDAY 24TH AUGUST 2015
Breakfast:
Sausages, Bacon, Scrambled egg, Roasted tomatoes, Roasted mushrooms and Ciabatta bread with Tea and Coffee!
Lunch:
Coffee Cake, with Coffee Buttercream and fine coffee dusting.
Plain Cake with Buttercream, with a scrunched up flake on the top.
Chocolate Fudge Cake with chocolate fudge icing and lined with chocolate fingers.
Chocolate and Caramel Tarts with a caramel swirl or zigzag.
Tea and Coffee.
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| Me again- this time trying to take twine off my bakes |
My and my Mama's basic routine for the past few days has been;
1) 06:15am- Wake up and drag one's self away from warm, cosy and comforting bed- always the worst part
2) 06:40am- Pack the car
3) 07:15am- Chat to mama on the drive up
4) 07:35am- Pick up milk
5) 07:10-08:00am- Unpack the car
6) 08:15am- Cook breakfast
7) 08:40am- Chat to people
8) 09:00-10:00am- Serve breakfast
9) 10:40ish am- Do dishes
10) 11:20am- Prep for the next day or for lunch
11) 12:00pm- Cook/ Reheat Lunch
12) 12:40pm- Chat to people
13) 1:00pm- Chat to people
14) 2:00pm- Serve Lunch
15) 2:30pm- Chat to people
16) 3:00pm- Do dishes
17) 3:20pm- Chat to people
18) 4:00pm- Pack up food leftovers
19) 4:30-4:45pm- Pack the car
20) 5:00- 5:30pm- Drive to the shops and buy ingredients
21) 6:00pm- Do dishes, more dishes lol
22) 6:30pm- Start cooking breakfast
23) 7:30pm- Start cooking main dishes
24) 8:00pm- Plan and pack the car for the morning and next day
25) 8:40pm- Do more cooking
26) 9:40pm- Cool the dishes, package them and refrigerate them
27) 10:30pm- Do some last minute packing and list making
28) 11:20pm- Sleep, until getting up time again
And I've never had so much fun in my life!!!
Now i'm going to go through some recipes;
For the breakfast;
Bake everything! In a pan, get a little sunflower oil and grease the pan. Put the vegetables in one oven and separate trays and bake and the meat onto another and then bake in the oven until cooked. The veg will be wilted and wrinkly and delicious looking and the meat will be golden brown with little flecks of its natural fat dancing on the surface.
Cook the bacon in the morning in a frying pan and then the eggs in a glass bowl in the microwave with a little milk. Keep forking it!
For the Chicken Tarragon with rice:
The ingredients you'll need are;
- 600ml Double Cream
- 2 Chicken Stock Cubes
- 1 Jug of boiling water; to dissolve the stock
- Depending on how many mouths you're feeding, it's a ration of 1:1- 1 chicken breast per person
- 5 tbsp of dried Tarragon
- 2 tbsp Garlic granules or 3 cloves of fresh garlic
- Swig of oil
- Rice; I do a small cup per person. This is probably 1/2 a normal sized mug.
You want to cut the chicken breasts into fours as this makes even chunks and also makes it easier to portion out. Put these into a hot pan, with oil and cook the chicken until just browned, to a golden and crispy stage on one side.
Shake on a few garlic granules, or sprinkle in the finely diced fresh garlic and cook for a few minutes. Keep flipping the chicken and stirring it occasionally so it doesn't brown too much and dry out. You want to ensure it is cooked all the way through, but not cremate it.
At this stage, you want to pour in the dissolved stock with the tarragon mixed in. You can do this when the chicken is cooking as you will be free to do so and then it will mean the stock has time to rest and develop that little bit more in flavour.
Let this bubble and simmer away to allow the chicken to take on those lovely flavours and become tender and delicious!
Boil the rice in a pot, or put it in a bowl and fill it with boiling water on top of the rice until it submerges the rice. You want to go 2 centimeters past the level of the rice. Place clingfilm over this and pierce to allow the heat out and then pop into the microwave for 10 minutes. Stop at the 5 minute mark to stir the rice. Once cooked, take out and allow to cool. Stir.
By this stage, your chicken will be ready, all you need to do is add the cream, around 50ml per person. It is a deliciously indulgent dish, so don't scrimp on the cream. Stir in the cream, but don't let it boil or it will split and then curdle slightly, ruining the texture and appearance.
Serve with garlic bread or salad and eat up! Yum!
For the Stuffed pepper:
You'll need; 1 person
- 1 pepper; red, yellow, green, orange- whatever takes your fancy. I used a red though as I think they are that little bit sweeter.
- 1 bag of Lemon and Herb Couscous
- 1 pack of Feta Cheese
As you can see, in terms of ingredients, this is a humble wee main or starter or snack. There's not much to it, but it sure is delicious.
What I love about it is that you get that bite from the couscous, the sweet, slightly crunchy and roasted flavour of the pepper and then the salty feta to balance out the flavour and keep your taste buds on their toes! It is a winner for me.
I would also add goat's cheese instead of the feta sometimes, as personally I prefer Goat's as opposed to feta!
To make these, you want to set the oven to 200C or as high as it will go- you want the oven to be scorching!
Pop the pepper into the oven on an oiled tray, sprinkled with a little garlic. Let this roast until the skin is creased and wrinkled and the pepper is seeping its juices slightly.
Take this out of the oven and set aside. Get a bowl and tip the couscous into it. Fill the bowl with a few tbsp of boiling water to allow the couscous to absorb it and plump up. When made, fill the pepper when still warm as this will give the whole thing the chance to mingle with the different flavours and make something magical.
Top with the crumbled feta when serving as you want it to be freshly put on and not have it sitting around for long. The pepper will last a few days (minus cheese on it) in the fridge. My rule is, if it smells and looks funny don't eat it. Or if you have any hesitation to put it anywhere near your mouth, 1) don't eat it and 2) don't serve it to others. lol!
For the Chicken Salad:
The ingredients for this fresh and quick lunch or snack are; 1 person
- 1 Chicken breast
- 1 small Iceberg Lettuce, finely sliced into strands
- A few cherry tomatoes
- A few chunks of diced cucumber; to dice, get 1 cucumber, slice in half lengths ways, then again and then dice into little triangle shapes up the cucumbers.
- Some dressing if you have it- I like using Fig and Balsamic- you can get this from a stall in St. George's Market!
Slice the lettuce into thin strands. Dice the cucumber and half the tomatoes. Put these all into one bowl and set aside somewhere cool.
Get the grill on high and grill the chicken until cooked through and juicy. When cooled slightly, slice this diagonally and butterfly on top of the salad. As it is still warm, it will flavour the leaves a little and make the salad taste superb in terms of flavour. Put whatever dressing you like over the salad or have it as it is! It is fresh, quick and healthy!
For the Chilli Con Carne:
For this you'll need rather a lot of ingredients;
- 1 kg Ground Mince Meat
- 1 can of Tinned Tomatoes
- Squirt of Tomato Puree
- 2 tsp Salt
- 4 tsp Pepper
These last to will depend on your tastes. Add more if the seasoning needs it and less if you think it is grand.
- Some oil- Sunflower if you have it or Rapeseed
- 400g Red Kidney Beans; drained
- 1 Red pepper; diced
- 1 White Onion, diced finely
- 5 tsp Chilli Powder
- 5 tsp All Spice
- 5 tsp Paprika- mild
- 5 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 3 tsp Caster Sugar
- 5 tsp Galric
- 1/2 small mug of rice per person eating
- 1 tub of Sour Cream
- 1 bottle of Tabasco
- 2 Beef Stock cubes
- 1/2 L of Boiling Water
To make this chilli, you will need to;
Season and seal the mince meat until all the water has been cooked away and you are left with a smaller amount of beef and it is all cooked and browned, with the flavour sealed in. (Although, mince needs a lot of flavouring, so it won't taste like much at this stage of the game.)
In a separate pan, Saute the onions in a little of the oil until soft, translucent and smells yummy! Add the spices all at once and the sugar and salt and pepper and stir this into the onions. Add the diced pepper and allow this to soften and cook. Allow this to cook away for a few minutes until the harsh punch of the spice has gone, as it has had a chance to cook for a little while.
Add the beef and allow this to reduce for a few minutes. Add the tomatoes, beef stock and water to form the base of the sauce along with the flavour coming from the spiced onions.
Let this bubble away and simmer for around 30 minutes, just until the sauce begins to reduce and add the kidney beans. They need to cook as well and heat up. Leave this for a few hours to develop and intensify in flavour.
Keep testing it from now and then to check the flavour and add ingredients/ spices and seasonings as you feel necessary.
Once ready, serve with rice, sour cream, Tabasco and salad. Ooh, garlic bread would be nice with this too- all buttery and garlicky! I think it is a word, even if it isn't. Is that a word...? It is now!
This will last up to a week in an air tight container in the fridge. It will simply intensify in flavour and become even more perfumed and fragrant! Yum, yum, in ma tum tum!
For the Bruschetta:
- Ciabatta Bread, sliced into thick pieces
- 1 Red Pepper; diced
- 4 Large Tomatoes; diced
- 3 tsp Garlic
- 20g Oil
To make this, toast the bread in a toasted until lightly browned and set aside.
Put the chopped pepper and tomatoes into a pan with some oil and the garlic. Cook this slowly until softened and tender. It is going to smell so fresh and inviting you might not be able to wait for it to touch the surface of the bread.
Some fresh basil would go great with this as it would bring out that beautiful flavour. Basil and tomatoes are best friends and complement each other.
For the Chicken Pasta Bake:
The one you've all been secretly waiting for! This is a good one folks. It is the ultimate comfort food and is always there for you and your stomach!
You'll need; 4 people
- 4 Chicken breasts, cut into fours
- 100g Mascarpone Cheese
- 100g Cheddar Cheese
- 100g Parmesan Cheese
- 100g Mozzarella Cheese
- Garlic
- 4 Tomatoes- halved
- 1 tbsp Tomatoe puree
- 1 can Tinned tomatoes
- 1/2 kg Penne or Fusilli Pasta
- Salt and Pepper to season
- Oil- Rapeseed
Fry the chicken in a non-stick pan until browned and cooked through, with the oil and garlic.
Cook the pasta until cooked through, but still has a bite to eat. We don't want it tasting like wet cardboard.
Put the cheeses and the tomato puree and tinned tomatoes into a pan and simmer and let them melt into each other until the form a beautiful sauce. Add some garlic and salt and pepper. Not too much salt as the Parmesan will especially season it naturally already.
Alternatively, pop yourself off to Tesco and buy some Mascarpone Pasta Sauce if you are pushed for time and are making in bulk.
You could put peas, broccoli and peppers into this as well. Whatever really to suit your preferences.
Put the cooked chicken, sauce and pasta into a baking dish and mix until it looks silky and combined. Pop this into the oven for 40 minutes until bubbling and slightly browned on the top. 5 minutes before serving and coming out, grate some cheese on top and allow to melt and ooze into the pasta bake to make it extra special and delicious!
Serve with extra cheese, garlic bread and, now this is a Northern Irish thing, well I say it is, so there it is, haha! Add some crunched up crisps on top and eat! I use a mix of Quavers and Tayto Cheese and Onion. It makes it crunchy and delicious! You must try this one! If you don't we can't be friends- it is that serious! (:
For the Chicken Soup:
This is something yummy, deep in flavour, ridiculously simple and great for if you need some comforting. You'll be requiring;
- 4 Chicken Breasts, cut into four's
- 4 Carrots, peeled, sliced and then diced
- 4 Celery Sticks, peeled, sliced and diced
- 1 Onion, diced
- 5 Garlic Cloves, crushes
- 2 Chicken Stock Cubes, dissolved into 1 L boiling water
- 4 tsp Italian Seasoning
- Salt and Pepper
Cook the chicken until browned with a little oil in the oven until cooked through. Do this when they are whole and then slice them into four's.
Saute the onion until soft and caramalise it slightly with a little sugar. Put this in with the other ingredients into the pot.
Bung the chicken and all other ingredients into a pot and boil for 15 minutes then simmer for around 2 hours to allow the flavours to develop and become rich and warming. Add cream to make it that little more indulgent and serve with crusty bread to mop up all those flavours and juices.
For the Stuffed Mushroom:
- 1 large Mushroom, peeled and cleaned
- 1/2 Onion, diced
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- A little Oil
Put the mushroom into a hot oven at about 180C on an oiled tray and bake for 30 minutes, if it takes that. Let it wilt slightly and become juicy. Add the onion, garlic mix that you have sauted in a pan and let this bake again for a few minutes.
Serve with grated cheddar and serve warm on a bed of rocket and pomegranate seeds.
For the Savoury Shepherd's Pie:
This is different from your normal, more traditional shepherd's pie, as it had Worcestershire Sauce in it as well as Soy. It gives it an almost sweeter taste and makes it fuller in flavour.
- Swig of Oil
- 1kg Of Beef Mince Meat
- 1 White Onion, diced
- 3 Carrots, peeled, sliced and then diced
- 4 Garlic cloves, crushed and finely diced
- 1 tbsp Tomato Puree
- 2 tins of Tinned Tomato
- 800ml Boiling water
- 2 Beef Stock cubes
- A few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, enough to satisfy your taste preferences
- 10 Maris Piper Potatoes, peeled, sliced and cubed
- 20ml Milk
- 1 knob of Butter
- Salt and Pepper
Put the prepared potatoes into a pot of seasoned boiling water. This is where you add salt to the water. Let them boil until cooked through and fluffy looking.
Saute and soften the diced onion with garlic in the oil until cooked through. Add the carrots and cook until softened.
Fry off the mince until cooked through and seasoned. Use salt and pepper, soy and Worcestershire sauce to do this.
Put the beef and the onion and carrot into one pan and allow to cook together for 1 minute or so. They are already cooked, this is so they become one.
Add the puree, stock and tinned tomatoes to make the sauce and allow the meat and veg to adapt and take on those flavours. Add flavours as you feel necessary- it all varies depending on people's tastes.
Put this into a baking dish and top with the mashed potatoes. To mash the potatoes what I do is whisk them. This gives a smooth and creamy mash. Firstly mash the potatoes until crushes. Add the salt and pepper and then milk and now you want to switch to a whisk. Beat the potatoes until smooth and silky.
Spoon this onto the meat base and spread using a spatula or the back of a spoon. Put into the oven and cook until the potato is golden brown in patches and the sauce is bubbling up round the edges. Serve with bread and salad and whatever else you may fancy.
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| Garlic |
For the Roasted Vegetables:
- 3 Carrots, peeled and cut in half and then again
- 3 Parsnips, peeled and cut in half and then again
- 1 Pepper- yellow, sliced and cut in half
- A few little garlic cloves, peeled and scattered
- A handful of little cherry tomatoes
- 1 Courgette, peeled and sliced into little cubes
2 Onions, peeled and halved
Put all of these into an oiled baking dish and shake them around so that they are all completely coated.
Bake for 40 minutes in an oven set to 200C until tender and cooked through.
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| Ignore the potatoes (: |
For the Plain Cake with buttercream:
This is a Delia Smith basic recipe, with my subtle changes;
- 220g Self- Raising Flour
- 220g Caster Sugar
- 220g Butter
- 4 Eggs
- I add a little Lemon Zest, too subtle sometimes to taste, but it lifts it a little and makes it a little fresher I feel.
Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl gradually and then give it one last fast whisk until it forms a smooth and silky batter consistency. Zest a lemon and then add the zest.
Evenly portion this into two lined and greased 20cm cake tins and bake for 25 minutes or until cooked all the way through.
Take these out of the oven when golden brown and allow to cool on a cooling rack until cold. Use a pallet knife or knife to spread on the buttercream. If it is a little stiffer and is making it hard to spread, add a little water to the buttercream and beat this in until it is looser and smooth and spreadable.
Cover the first cake on top with icing. Top this with the other cake and then ice it too. Crumble a flake on top of this and then it is done. Bob's your uncle!
I love the contrast of colours, the dark, golden brown against the creamy buttercream and then the flake. Visually and taste wise appealing.
Then for the buttercream;
- 100g Butter, softened
- 100g Icing Sugar, although I add as I taste until that buttery flavour goes away
- 1 Flake, broken into little pieces and sprinkled on top
Whisk the butter and icing sugar together until they are smooth and the buttery aftertaste goes away.
For the Chocolate Fudge Cake with buttercream:
- 220g Self- Raising Flour
- 220g Caster Sugar
- 220g Butter
- 4 Eggs
- I add a some Chocolate Ganche into this to make it moist and give it a deeper chocolate flavour. To make this;
Ganache:
- 100g Dark Chocolate
- 100g Milk Chocolate
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt
- 200g Double Cream
- 1 tbsp Butter to give it a shine
Heat the cream until just before boiling point, add the chocolates, vanilla, salt and butter and mix until fully combined and shiny. Take off the heat, so the chocolate cools when you're still mixing , this will allow the chocolate to temper slightly.
- Fingers- 2 boxes
Mix all the ingredients in the bowl until smooth and silky. Add the ganache and let this marble in and then mix fully.
Bake in an oven at 170C for 25 minutes in a lined tin or until cooked through and allow to cook. Take out of the oven once cooked and allow to cool completely before icing.
To ice the cake, take one of the sponges and put a dollop of buttercream in the middle. With a knife, pallet knife or spoon, manipulate the icing to cover the entire surface area.
Top this with the other sponge and do the same to this. Ice all over the edges as well and then line it with chocolate fingers.
Then for the buttercream;
- 100g Butter, softened
- 100g Icing Sugar, although I add as I taste until that buttery flavour goes away
- Ganache
Whisk the butter until softened. Gradually add in the icing sugar and chocolate until it forms a thick buttercream.
- 220g Self- Raising Flour
- 220g Caster Sugar
- 220g Butter
- 4 Eggs
- 50g Instant Coffee Powder, mixed with a little water
Mix this altogether in one bowl and portion evenly into lined cake tins. I normally mix in this pattern, butter, then sugar to cream it and make it light and fluffy. Then the eggs, one at a time and then the flour. I then add the additional ingredients, like this time it would be the espresso coffee.
Bake for around 30 minutes or until cooked through and bouncy to the touch. Cool completely then ice.
Buttercream:
- 100g Butter, softened
- 100g Icing Sugar
- A little water
- 50g Instant Coffee Powder
Gradually whisk the icing sugar into the butter until fully combined. Add the espresso and mix in until it is this light, coffee colour.
To ice the cake, take the first sponge and ice the surface to be able to stick it onto the other sponge. Ice the second sponge with a thick, neat covering. Sprinkle coffee powder on top of this and serve!
For the Chocolate and Caramel Tarts:
For these you need to grease and prepare your tart tins first. To do this, melt some butter and with a pastry brush, cover the entire tin and dust with flour.
Preheat the oven to 170C and place a baking sheet in the oven to heat with the oven for your tarts. This will ensure then that the tarts bottoms are cooked and crisp.
The ingredients for the Pastry;
- 225g Plain, pastry flour; plus a little extra for rolling out the pastry and ensuring it doesn't stick to the surface when rolling out.
- 100g Butter, cooled and cut into cubes. The butter must be completely cold, so that it will rub into the flour easily and create that breadcrumb appearance that you need.
- 25g Caster Sugar
- 1 Egg, whisked
Rub the flour, sugar and butter together in a bowl with your finger tips until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg and with a wooden spoon at first, mix this in until it begin to clump together and form a ball. Use your hands to manipulate it, but gently and not handling it too much to bring the pastry together.
Wrap in cling film, pat down to flatten a little and then refrigerate for 40 minutes.
Use the left over ganache, if you have any for the tart filling. Add the caramel sauce you have made into this.
Making the Caramel:
This is James Martin Inspired:
- 110g Dark, Soft, Brown Sugar
- 110g Butter, melted
- 1/2 tsp of Sea Salt
- 175ml of Double Cream
Heat the sugar, butter and salt together in a pan until melted and a lovely light brown colour. Allow this colour into develop a little into a deeper shade. Add the cream and mix together until completely combined.
Put this into a clean, air tight container and refrigerate until it thickens and is luscious looking and tasting. Add this to the ganache for pouring into the tarts.
Roll out the pastry until 1cm on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Line the tart tin with it and pierce the base of it.
Chill for 25 minutes until firm and cold.
Line with baking paper and some extra flour to weigh it down and then blind bake until a light golden brown colour. This will take around 15 minutes or so.
Take the tarts out of the oven, remove the lining and extra flour and pop back into the oven until cooked through. This should take around 10 minutes, just until the pastry is crisp and a golden brown colour and dry and firm to the touch.
Once they are cooled add the caramel ganache and allow this to sit and set for an hour. Once set slightly, pipe a swirl or decoration with the left over caramel and serve!
I have loved, loved, loved this great experience and chance to show how well I can cook/bake and love to do it!
Anyway that is it for now! I'll be back very soon as have to sleep some more and think about what I shall bake next?...
Thanks again for reading and I hope you all enjoyed this as I really enjoyed writing it and recalling one of the most wonderful life events I have had!! Here's to many more catering gigs!!
I have the bug for it now!
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