Easy Pickled Green Chillies

As you may know by now I love a quick and easy tasty recipe. Here we have Easy Pickled Green Chillies. I grew these cayenne peppers in pots on our window sill at home and because they were producing so many of them quite quickly I wanted a way to preserve them for future use. I have picked when green but you can wait and do the same when red.

Here are the ingredients you will need for one jam jar size:

Half a jar of clear vinegar.

1.5 teaspoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

A big bunch of green chillies

500ml hot water

OK here’s what you need to do:

Combine the vinegar with the sugar and salt in the jar you will be using to store them when finished.

Put the lid on and give it a good shake so that the sugar and salt dissolve in the vinegar.

pickled green chillies www.myrealfairy.com

pickled green chillies www.myrealfairy.com

pickled green chillies www.myrealfairy.com

Top and tail the chillies and then chop in 1cm lengths.

Place in a large bowl and pour over the hot water.

Leave for 30 seconds and then scoop out with a slotted spoon.

Try and leave behind as many of the chilli seeds as possible – you don’t need or really want them all as they are pretty hot.

Place the chillies into the jar with the vinegar, sugar and salt solution.

Pop in the fridge and leave for a week before using.

If you have enjoyed this recipe, please have a look at my other ‘Easy’ ways to create great food here:

Easy Focaccia Bread

Easy Lemon Curd

 

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.








Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk

Nothing quite like the smell of fresh baked bread is there? With this easy soda bread without buttermilk recipe you can get just that without all the kneading, proving and above all, without the waiting!

Most recipes for soda bread include the traditional buttermilk. I couldn’t get hold of it so used another home method of converting your milk into buttermilk. As with everything to do with this recipe, I did it the easy way. Put one table spoon of fresh or bottled lemon juice into your jug of milk. Within 5 minutes it’s doing its thing and turning into buttermilk.

4 from 1 vote
Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk
Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
35 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 

If you cant find buttermilk then this is great for you, if you can then use it and don't add the lemon.

Servings: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp Lemon juice
  • 300 ml Whole milk
  • 450 grammes Plain flour
  • 1 tspn Bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tspn Salt
Instructions
  1. Pour the milk into a jug and add the lemon juice.

  2. Leave to stand for 5 minutes for it to turn into buttermilk

  3. While this is happening weigh out your other ingredients

  4. Put the flour, bicarbonate of soda and the salt in a large mixing bowl

  5. Pour in the buttermilk and combine together into a large ball

  6. Don't overwork but just form into the ball

  7. Place on a lined and floured baking tray

  8. Cook for 35-40 minutes on 180oc for a fan oven

  9. Test by putting in a wooden cocktail stick and if it comes out clear then it's done. Also tap on the bottom of the loaf and if it sounds hollow then that is a great sign

Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk

You’ll be so delighted with this bread, it has the look and taste of a deep tasty farmhouse style loaf.

I enjoy mine with lots of butter and cheese while my boys tend to go for black currant jam generously spread right up to the edges.

Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk
With my favourite stilton and cheddar cheese

Have a go and let me know how it turns out, I always love to hear.

If you are in the mood for some quick recipes while this is in the oven then try my One Step No Churn Ice Cream or Easy Lemon Curd.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Red Cherry Pepper Dip

This dip is packed full of punch and is equally good on burgers as it is on the buffet table ready for breadsticks and crunchy carrots to be dipped in generously.

These little cherry peppers have a heat to them which isn’t overpowering on the palate, it’s more of a warm sweet taste which doesn’t leave you reaching for gulps of water.

My other half came home from our local shops the other day with a huge great big tub of these little gems. After seeing them in the fridge for about a week I knew that I would have to do something with them as they didn’t seem to be disappearing no matter how many we ate! There’s only so many times that you can put them on the side of the plate as an accompaniment so I set to work on a recipe. I played around with the different types of flavours I wanted to have and as I wanted to make the most of the sweet taste these peppers had to offer.

In this recipe you can alter the quantities of red peppers to shallots as takes your fancy and you can use standard flaky salt instead of the fancy Himalayan pink salt I wanted to try out.

What is fabulous about  this recipe is that it’s very easy to make, very quick and leaves you with 2 jars of this delicious cherry pepper dip.

Red Cherry Pepper Dip

4.63 from 8 votes
Cherry Pepper Dip
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
20 mins
 
Course: Side Dish
Servings: 8
Author: mainy - myrealfairy
Ingredients
  • 25 Cherry Peppers pre cooked. Do this by baking in a covered dish in the oven for 20 mins on a medium heat.
  • 3 small Shallots
  • 1 large Garlic Clove
  • 4 tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
  • 1 tbsp White Wine Vinegar
  • 1 tsp Sugar
Instructions
  1. Place the olive oil and shallots in a deep saucepan and cook gently for 5 minutes.

  2. Crush the garlic and add this along with the salt to the shallots.

  3. Cook for 2 minutes.

  4. Add vinegar, sugar and tomato paste and stir well.

  5. Add cherry peppers and stir.

  6. Leave to cool for 5 mins.

  7. Place all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.

Red Cherry Pepper Dip

This dip makes a great gift too. Who can resist something that tastes so good and they can actually make use of. Place the mixture into nice looking pots which are sterilised and will produce an air tight seal when closed. Yummy!

Red Cherry Pepper Dip

If this has made you feel in the cooking mood then have a look at this Easy Soda Bread recipe which is a wonderful partner to this Red Cherry Pepper Dip.

If you like this recipe then please rate it using the stars index in the comments section. I’d love to hear your views too. Enjoy!

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Tasty Tomato Chutney

I wanted to make full use of all the beautiful tomatoes we have grown in the garden this year so I have developed this Tasty Tomato Chutney. It’s been our best year so far with our tomatoes and I am pleased as punch with how it has turned out.

 Jump to Recipe

We set about with our raised beds  this spring at the end of our garden. It’s been a learning experience which is still playing out due to it not being the end of the season yet for root vegetables. I’ll let you know how we get on soon. However, our tomatoes are coming on fantastically and growing up and around our patio pallet garden which is brilliant.

Tiger tomatoes starting to ripen

The tomatoes which we have used are a combination of tiger tomatoes which are striped hence the name I guess and standard red tomatoes which my youngest and I grew from the seeds of a fresh tomato which was bought from the supermarket at the start of the year. We were preparing our lunch one day and he asked if we could plant the seeds and we did. I honestly didn’t think much would come of it but low and behold it did and the plants are strong and producing lots of fruit.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and see how easy it is to make fresh chutney with a few ingredients.

Use a really sharp knife to cut a cross in the skin before pouring the boiling water over. This way after 5 minutes you can push the tomatoes out of their skin which isn’t needed in the recipe.

Tasty Tomato Chutney

Click to tweet and share the recipe...thank you!Click To Tweet

Tasty Tomato Chutney

The chutney is ideal as a little accompaniment to most other supper or lunch dishes and can even be added to vegetarian or meat stews for added richness.

Tasty Tomato Chutney
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
45 mins
Cooling time
10 mins
Total Time
55 mins
 

A super easy Tomato Chutney packed with flavour

Course: Side Dish
Servings: 8
Author: mainy - myrealfairy
Ingredients
  • 500 g Tomato
  • 250 g Onions
  • 100 g Brown sugar
  • 1 clove Garlic
  • 75 ml Red or White wine vinegar
  • Half tspn Paprika Optional
Instructions
  1. Cut a cross in the skins of the tomatoes and pour over boiling water in a bowl.

    Leave to stand for 5 mins and then carefully remove the skins which should peel off easily now. 

    tomato chutney
  2. Chop the onions roughly and then mince the garlic. Place in a large heavy bottomed saucepan.

    tomato chutney
  3. Place all the other ingredients on top and bring gently to the boil stirring all the time.

  4. Simmer gently, stirring frequently for approx 45mins

  5. You are looking and feeling for a soft jam like consistency.

  6. After about 30 mins, spoon out a small amount, set aside to cool. Then try it for personal taste.

    When you are happy, continue for the full amount of time.

  7. Leave to cool slightly then place in your sterilised jars and leave to fully cool.

    tomato chutney
Recipe Notes

Enjoy with cold meats or cheese. Also try out my Soda Bread recipe as these goes amazing well together.

Have Fun! Mainy

Tasty Tomato Chutney

Let me know how you get on if you make yours. Also rate the recipe please.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Seriously Tasty Cheese Scone Recipe

Cheese Scones

When I was a young girl and staying with my nan on the weekends she would often bake with me. I remember the feel of the oversized apron tied around my waist, folded in the middle so that it wouldn’t trip me up.

One of the staple things we would bake together was scones; plain, fruit or cheese, all these would be made with her big hands over my little ones.

So, when I was looking for a tasty bake to make with my boys then cheese scones were a favourite choice.

The recipe and method are straightforward and ideas for moulding together quickly for a warm and wholesome savory treat.

Seriously tasty cheese scone recipe

4 from 1 vote
seriously tasty cheese scones recipe
Seriously Tasty Cheese Scones Recipe

As the title says, these are seriously tasty and what's more is that they can be made in the blink of an eye!

Ingredients
  • 200 g Plain Flour
  • 3 tsp Baking Powder
  • Half tsp Salt
  • 50 g Butter
  • 100 g Cheddar Cheese
  • 20 g Parmesan Cheese optional
  • 60 ml Cold Water
  • 60 ml Milk
  • 1 Egg used for glazing
Instructions
  1. Pre heat oven to 200 ºC (185 ºC if using a fan oven)

  2. Measure and put the Flour, Baking Powder and Salt into a mixing bowl

  3. Combine well
  4. Add the Butter and rub together with the tips of your fingers until it looks and feels like wet sand
  5. Grate the Cheese and mix through with a large spoon
  6. Add the Water and Milk
  7. Work together with your hands but don’t hand longer than necessary
  8. Put out onto a lightly floured surface
  9. Press down to a thickness of 2cm and cut out in rounds approximately 5cm wide
  10. Put onto a baking tray and cook for 15mins until golden
  11. Allow to cool a little on a wire rack.

Seriously tasty cheese scone recipe

If you fancy another easy comfort food dish that you can make while you’ve got the oven on then try my Easy Toad in the Hole recipe

Click to Share this Seriously Tasty Cheese Scone Recipe Click To Tweet

Thank you nan, this ones for you.

Seriously tasty cheese scone recipe

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Perfect Pineapple Cake Recipe

Perfect Pineapple Cake Recipe for lockdown in easy picture guide steps…..

This is moist, sweet and a delight to the taste buds. My Step by step picture guide makes it super easy to make. You can also Jump to Recipe

I love a good cake and my family loves baking day too! Who doesn’t love the smell of baking coming from the kitchen and knowing that soon there will be the delicious offerings available to taste.

This cake is made very moist by the addition of the syrup from the canned pineapple. You can use fresh pineapple of course, just make sure if you do that you rescue every bit of juice that you create so that you can add it.

Perfect Pineapple Cake

Perfect Pineapple Cake

Perfect Pineapple Cake

Perfect Pineapple Cake

Perfect Pineapple Cake

Perfect Pineapple Cake

4.8 from 10 votes
Perfect Pineapple Cake
Perfect Pineapple Cake
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
35 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 

Soft, sweet and perfectly baked. This easy pineapple cake will be a treat for everyone.

Course: Dessert
Keyword: cake
Servings: 12
Ingredients
  • 3 Eggs
  • 150 g Caster Sugar
  • 565 g Can of Pineapple chunks in syrup
  • 300 g Self Raising Flour
  • 1 tspn Baking Powder
Instructions
  1. Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk with a hand or electric whisk.

  2. Whisk the sugar into the eggs.

  3. Put the whole can of pineapple chunks and syrup into the mixture.

  4. Add Flour and Baking Powder. Mix well.

  5. 180 degrees for 35-40 minutes

  6. Check if it's cooked using a cocktail stick. Put in the centre of the cake and if it is clear when you remove it then it's done. 

Click to share with your followers, make my day:)Click To Tweet

If you like the look of this recipe then why not try some of these too:

Easy Soda Bread Without Buttermilk
Easy No Churn Ice Cream With Salted Caramel Baileys
Easy Lemon Curd

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

One Step No Churn Ice Cream with Salted Caramel Baileys

Honestly this ice cream recipe is so easy that it barely makes a full post, I just need to shout it from the rooftops so that everyone can hear.

You don’t need an ice cream maker, you don’t need to stir it part way through the freezing process, it really is One Step No Churn Ice Cream. My other half loves his Baileys or Irish cream liqueur. Just to be clear, this post is not sponsored or endorsed and I haven’t been paid mega bucks *I wish!* to endorse any brand. It’s purely his treat and this salted caramel version was screaming out to be poured into this creamy ice cream.

The quantities I have included in the recipe below make enough for 4 tubs of this gorgeous ice cream. If you want to make for fewer people then it’s still perfect if you half the quantities and make less.

The addition of the alcohol does make it a bit smoother and easier to scoop. Can you make it without the alcohol?…Sure, there are so many varieties to choose from. Salted Caramel syrup without the liquer part will be just as tasty.

One Step No Churn Ice Cream with Salted Caramel Baileys

Click to share!Click To Tweet

5 from 4 votes
One Step No Churn Ice Cream with Salted Caramel Baileys
One Step No Churn Ice Cream with Salted Caramel Baileys
Prep Time
5 mins
freezing time
5 hrs
 

Probably the easiest ice cream you will ever make. The most delicious too! This will make 4 medium tubs similar to the luxury brand ones from your local supermarket.

Course: Dessert
Servings: 16
Author: mainy - myrealfairy
Ingredients
  • 600 ml Double Cream
  • 390 g Condensed Milk Sold in cans
  • 3 tbsp Salted Caramel Baileys Irish Liqueur Or supermarkets own brand
Instructions
  1. This is a one step recipe....

  2. Place all of the ingredients into a mixing bowl, whisk until soft peaks are formed.

  3. Pour into a suitable freezable container with a tight fitting lid. Place in the freezer for 5hrs or more.

Recipe Notes

Ready to eat after 5hrs of freezing. Lots of different flavours to choose from. Experiment and enjoy!

Mainy

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Pesto made with carrot tops. You have to try this!

This dish is so easy to make and the idea that you can make super yummy pesto made with carrot tops is a great idea. The amount of green carrot tops that just end up in the food bin is really daft and finding that they can be put to good use is pretty cool.

We have been growing vegetables this year which you can see in my free pallet patio garden post and you can actually see the carrots as they started off there. They have come out all shapes and sizes which is really cute.

pesto made with carrot tops

We eat lots of pasta at home and it’s a really quick supper for our family which can fit in with our busy homelife. Pesto has long been a favourite but I had rarely made it before. Then when I was looking for ways to use the leftovers from some of my home grown vegetables I stumbled across someone saying to try it in pesto. I adapted the general idea and had a play and came up with this recipe which is quick, easy and very adaptable to the amount of ingredients you have to hand.


pesto made with carrot tops
One of the many advantages of this recipe is that it’s an all in one recipe. Everything into the mixer and blitz for a couple of minutes.

pesto made with carrot tops

Once made you can store for up to two weeks in an airtight container in the fridge. Try it out on chicken or tofu too.

4.34 from 3 votes
Pesto made with carrot tops
Prep Time
10 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 

This delicious Pesto made with the leafy green carrot tops adds a new dimension to Pesto Pasta. Also great to be smothered over meat or vegetables for your BBQ or main meal

Course: Main Course
Servings: 6 people
Author: Mainy - myrealfairy.com
Ingredients
  • 100 ml Rapeseed Oil
  • 1 bunch Green leafs from carrot tops
  • 1 clove Garlic
  • 10 leaves Basil
  • 1 handful Hazelnuts
  • 25 grammes Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Wash the leafy tops of the carrots well in cold water to remove any soil

  2. Peel a garlic clove

  3. Put all of the ingredients into a small blender with a chopping setting.

  4. Whizz for approximately 2 minutes until it is all chopped to a smooth paste

Please click and share this quick and easy recipe:)Click To Tweet

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Is social media and technology affecting your family?

“Come down for tea” I hollar cheerfully up the stairs….. a minute or so goes by….

“boys, come on my darlings, it’s on the table….” more time passes and not a peep can be heard.

It’s now on the table and I’m getting a bit irritated….”Boys!!”

I’m starting to boil now…. “Right I’m going to count to 3!”

Eventually they appear, not in the least bit aware of the effect of my shouting up the stairs. I’ve now got to get myself out of the self induced strop that I’m in because day after day my voice is just not having the effect I think it should. My little boys are getting into a world of their own and that world is inhabited by the likes of YouTube stars and watching people carry out the silliest of pranks on shows they and their friends find online.

Now, I love to blog, my youngest loves to vlog for my blog and I have brought them the gadgets to watch this stuff on so really the blame lands firmly with me, I realise that but it’s all starting to get on my wick a bit.

Me and the OH do chat about the gadgets in our house and the boys use of them. We are pretty good in a few areas, we don’t have any devices at the meal table, homework is done straight away and they both do classes after school. It’s still amazes me though how they can get so into the zone watching these things on YouTube. I push for things like newsround and adventure shows to throw in a bit of knowledge based learning but even Steve Backshaw has a bit of competition with the YouTube elite of Spencer et al.

Looking at the stats you can find for facebook, snapchat, instagram and all the other little cousins of the social media world you can see the millions of daily users and how year on year these are increasing to meet the demand of our younger generation hopping onto this online juggernaut. Even their games such as Fortnite can have them chatting for hours.

I find myself dreaming of giving it all up and living on a farm away from the bustle of modern life. I see the huge pitfalls too of making this leap; money, contacts, work, school to name but a few of the basics. It’s still so tempting!

social media
But is it?

I was watching a film the other night about a family shunning the modern way of living and relying more on natural skills and intellectual educational learning and I kept thinking the same thing; there was something missing. The more I thought about it the easier it was to see, the missing link was ‘balance‘.

Technology can have so many great benefits to us and our family life, we can instantly communicate with friends and relatives on the other side of the world and keep our links with these people alive and current. They can help with homework and general knowledge. On the other hand are our children’s social skills being permanently adversely affected? Are we protecting their well-being by letting them be in their rooms on social media apps that distort their communication methods into abbreviated text junk?

So, back to my thoughts about balance and what can I do to instil some balance in the way that we live our lives. We can take a moment to stop and think what we are filling our days with. We can discuss together whether this is the direction we want to continue in. Do we need to get back to basics. Not one of those political slogans but something that is right for our own families. Sitting and talking as a family, eating together at least once a day, spending time without phones, iPads or any form of devise. I’m willing to give this a go and put my other solution of wellington boots and the countryside to one side at the moment. I want us to connect.

Has technology affected the way that you and your family communicate with each other and have you seen this trend slowly change or were there certain triggers? Can they be a valuable aid for educational learning?

Let's see who has got the balance right, involve others in the discussion.Click To Tweet

If you enjoyed this post then I think that you’d love my 5 tips to help the school run go smoother.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Halloween Pumpkin Carving

It’s that time of year again to go wild with the face paint and walk the streets in search of sweets and mischief. One of the best traditions in our house has been the halloween pumpkin carving. This is totally the domain of my OH. I’m so proud of him I couldn’t resist the urge to showcase our previous years offerings. We are set to try and beat these beauties this year but we haven’t even bought the pumpkins yet! Everything has been so busy and even though I have seen them in the shops they are yet to make their way to our house. Stay tuned and they will be on show soon!  So, back to last years carvings.

The evening started with the humble pumpkin…

Halloween pumpkin carving

A couple of years ago we brought a pack with all the carving tools in it. It was obviously the OH setting the scene for him to get serious!

The preparation has started and all of the insides are taken out. Sounds gruesome but it’s definitely in the Halloween theme. He uses the stencil for the main shape and marks out the outline.

Halloween pumpkin carving

Before we know it, the unveiling is upon us and look….

Halloween Pumpkin Carving

Oh yeah, not just one, but two! the Prince of Darkness is joined by the Spooky Spider.

Halloween Pumpkin Carving

I love them and the kids think they are fab! They will sit outside our house on Halloween with candles in them and let people know that we are joining in the fun.

How is your Halloween going so far? Do you love to get into the spirit of it, if so how do you celebrate?

If you have any links to your carvings, please share in the comments section.

I'd love you to share by clicking please!Click To Tweet

Once you have had fun with the carving you could try my delicious savoury halloween special 4 Steps to a Camembert Funny Mummy

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.