Spicy Beef Lettuce Cups

Spicy beef lettuce cups make a great main course but they’d also be fun as appetizers. Put the lettuce leaves and spicy beef in the middle of the party table and let family and friends help themselves.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I went out to lunch at a beautiful restaurant in the middle of a manmade oasis just off one of the main highways that crisscross Dubai. Al Barari is a verdant refuge from the dusty sandpit that surrounds it, with streams, lily ponds and waterfalls.

Its restaurant, called The Farm, has a wide variety of choices in the menu, a mix of western and Asian dishes, with a little Middle Eastern thrown in as well. I ordered the spicy Thai beef salad, which frankly, wasn’t very salad-like at all. It was pretty much all spicy meat with a few random slices of zucchini, but it gave me the idea for this dish. I would have liked some crunchy lettuce leaves to eat with it.

Spicy Beef Lettuce Cups

This was a quick, last minute dinner. Because I was hungry and didn’t have time for marinating strips of beef, I used ground beef. Worked beautifully! If your pan isn’t big enough for my method, feel free to tip the crispy cooked beef into a bowl before cooking the ginger, garlic, chili peppers, and then the onions. Add it back when those are done.

Ingredients
1 lb 2 1/2 oz or 525g ground beef – not low fat
Olive oil, as needed
1 fat thumb-sized piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-2 small red chili peppers, finely chopped
2 small onions, peeled and cut in wedges
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese vinegar (substitute lime juice if you can’t find the black vinegar)

To serve:
2 heads baby cos lettuce, leaves separated, washed and dried*
1 small bunch cilantro, hard stems removed, chopped roughly
1 medium cucumber, seeds removed, cubed
extra minced chili, optional

*Save the smaller leaves and the heart of the lettuce for a salad.

Method
In a non-stick skillet, brown the beef over a medium high heat until crispy. Add a little olive oil, if necessary, to get it to fry. Beef in Dubai, even the beef that doesn’t say low fat, doesn’t seem to render fat out as it does in other places, so I do add some oil. (Also, my non-stick skillet isn’t as non-stick as it used to be!)

Once the beef is crispy, push it to the sides of the pan and turn the heat down to medium low. Add the ginger, garlic and chili peppers to the middle of the pan.

Again, if your beef hasn’t rendered much or any fat, drizzle in a little more olive oil. Sauté the ginger, garlic and peppers until they soften. Mix them in with the beef and then push it back out to the sides.

Add in the onion into the middle and turn the heat up slightly.

Cook the onions for just a minute or two, stirring well. You want them slightly cooked but still a bit crunchy. Mix them in with the beef. Remove the pan from the heat and add in the soy sauce, fish sauce and vinegar. Stir well to combine.

Leave the beef to cool for about 15-20 minutes. You want it slightly warm but not hot enough to immediately wilt the lettuce.

To serve, spoon the spicy beef into the lettuce leaves. Top with cucumber bits and some chopped cilantro. Add more minced chili, if desired.

I filled mine too full at first and they were a challenge to eat without spilling. A couple of generous tablespoons per lettuce leaf will do nicely. The very next day, as I was eating the leftovers, I also added avocado on top. Awesome!

Enjoy!

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Sweet Peach Cream Cheese Muffins #MuffinMonday

Sweet Peach Cream Cheese Muffins celebrate the best of summer peaches with a wonderfully subtle tang. They are perfect for a summertime brunch, breakfast or snack.

If you follow me on Instagram, you know I’ve been flitting all about this last week and a half, with a long weekend first in New York City and then a few short days in Quito, Ecuador. Now I am finally back in my hometown of Houston, enjoying time with even more family and taking advantage of local Texas produce, like my favorite crookneck yellow squash, young carrots with greens still attached, glowing golden beets, and especially the fragrant peaches.

In the Dubai grocery stores, peaches rarely smell like peach. They’ve been picked too young and flown in from goodness knows where. The Texas peaches actually smell as a good peach should. I stood in front of the peach bin picking many of them up, one by one, inhaling that glorious aroma and tucking them into a produce bag.

When I got home, my mom reminded me that peaches are her favorite fruit, to which I replied, I know! That’s why I’m making peach cream cheese muffins. I love cooking and baking for Mom because she always loves whatever I make.

Which brings me to this month’s Muffin Monday recipe.

Sweet Peach Cream Cheese Muffins

If you don’t have good fresh peaches, you can substitute frozen or, if you drain them well on some paper towels first, peaches canned in natural juice.

Ingredients
2 ripe but firm peaches (approximate whole weight of both: 10.5 oz or 300g)
2 cups or 250g flour
1 cup or 200g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 oz or 113g cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup or 60g butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for the pan
1 large egg, at room temperature
3/4 cup or 180ml milk

Method
Preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C. Prepare your muffin pan by buttering it or lining it with muffin cups.

Pit and dice your peaches, setting aside about 1/4 cup to top the muffins with before baking. The larger pile will go in the muffin batter.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

Tip in the bigger pile of diced peaches and stir till the peach bits are well coated with the flour. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mash the cream cheese with a fork, then pour in the cool, melted butter. Use the fork to mix the cream cheese and butter together until you have a mixture that looks like small soft curds.

Add in the egg and the milk and beat with the fork until combined. There will still be some tiny lumps of cream cheese.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold until they are just combined.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups in your prepared pan. Top with the reserved diced peach.

Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are golden all around the edges and a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then remove the muffins and cool on a wire rack. These can be served warm or room temperature.

Enjoy!

Check out the other lovely muffins my Muffin Monday friends are sharing today!

• Cheesy Corn Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Chile and Raspberry Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Oreo Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Strawberry Banana Muffins from Farm Fresh Feasts
• Sweet Peach Cream Cheese Muffins from Food Lust People Love

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday, can be found on our home page.

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Spring Minestrone #FoodieExtravaganza

Spring Minestrone is the perfect light meal, with tender young vegetables in a clear broth, topped with crème fraîche. You can, of course, substitute whatever fresh from the garden veggies you have available.

I called this recipe Spring Minestrone because I used those itty bitty baby vegetables that often appear in shops in late spring. Many are harvested early while still young and some are actually varieties that will never get much bigger. I went poking about the internet and found a couple of different articles that were very enlightening. This one in particular from Business Insider will give you the low down on some of our favorite tiny vegetables.

And this article on Slate goes into the culinary history of what they call micro-vegetables.

What I know for sure is that most "baby" carrots aren't really, but the rest of the little guys are adorable and, most importantly, make a beautiful tasty soup.

Spring Minestrone

This ingredient list is not set in stone! You can use vegetables in amounts and combinations that please you, so don’t get too hung up on the weights or measures. The amounts below are what I used. The whole recipe is also easily doubled or trebled to feed a crowd.

Ingredients to serve 4-5 as a first course, 2-3 as a main course
1/2 cup or 80g dried tiny pasta, like ditalini rigate
Big handful fine green beans
2 spring carrots
2 small zucchini
1 small bulb fennel (Choose one with fronds for garnish)
1/2 cup or 75g fresh-hulled peas (sub frozen petit pois if fresh aren't available)
2 baby corn on cobs
2 baby leeks
2/3 cup or 117g canned borlotti beans, rinsed and drained
4 1/4 cups or 1L good quality chicken stock

To serve:
Crème fraîche or lightly soured cream
Fennel fronds or chopped spring onions

Tip: Make this vegetarian by substituting a good quality vegetable stock instead.

Method
Scrub your carrots and zucchini and cut them into small pieces. These tender vegetables don’t need to be peeled, just cleaned.

Cut the stalks off the fennel and keep any fronds for garnish. Thinly slice the bulb. Top and tail the green beans and cut them into thirds.

Trim the ends of the corn and the dark green off of the baby leeks and then cut them both into short pieces.

Boil your pasta according to package instructions. Drain, rinse and set aside.

Place the vegetables in a soup pot then pour in the chicken stock.

Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are cooked through, but still firm, about 5-7 minutes tops.

Add in the cooked pasta and beans. Warm through, then ladle into bowls and top each with a dollop of crème fraîche and a sprinkle of chopped fennel fronds and/or spring onions.

Enjoy!

June is National Fruit andVegetable Month! Many thanks to Ellen of Family Around the Table for this month's Foodie Extravaganza theme and for her behind the scenes work. Check out all of the other fabulous recipes we are sharing today.

• Farmers' Market Walk + Chilled Cantaloupe Soup with Preserved Lemon-Herb Salsa by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Fresh Fruit Tart with Orange Curd by My Pinterventures
• Fresh Strawberry Salsa by Jolene's Recipe Journal
• Fried Onion Strings by Family Around the Table
• Fruity Rice Paper Rolls by Sneha's Recipe
• Green Papaya Salad (Som Tum) by Palatable Pastime
• Grilled Ratatouille by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Shaved Asparagus Pizza with Brie by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Spring Minestrone by Food Lust People Love
• Strawberry Avocado Salad by Cookaholic Wife
• Watermelon Lemonade by Caroline's Cooking

Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays, and we all post recipes using the same ingredient. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

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Passionfruit Banana Muffins #MuffinMonday

With well-ripened bananas for sweetness and fresh passionfruit pulp for a little added zip, these passionfruit banana muffins make a great breakfast, mid-morning or after school snack.

Often when I make banana muffins, I add some lemon juice and/or zest. That hint of tartness brightens them up. Ditto for passionfruit! The bonus with passionfruit is the little crunchy seeds that make a satisfying pop as you chew them. Some people strain these out, but why?

If you are a fan of banana muffins, you might also want to check out my Peanut Butter Stuffed Banana Muffins, Banana Honey Muffins or my fancier Bananas Foster Muffins.

Passionfruit Banana Muffins

If you only have canned passionfruit pulp, you can use it as a substitute, with perhaps a little added lemon juice to add a bit more tang.

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups or 218g flour
1/2 cup or 100g packed soft dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-3 very ripe bananas (about 10 oz or 285g by weight when peeled)
2 tablespoons fresh passionfruit pulp (about 30g)
1/3 cup or 80ml light vegetable oil
2 eggs

Optional for topping: 2 tablespoons amber sugar crystals

Method
Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease your muffin pan or line it with paper cups.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt together. Make sure to mash out any lumps of brown sugar.

Mash the bananas with a fork then add in the passionfruit pulp, eggs and oil. Whisk until thoroughly combined.

Fold your wet ingredients into your dry ones until they are just mixed.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups and sprinkle the tops with the sugar crystals, if using.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool slightly in the muffin pan before removing to a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Check out the other lovely muffins my Muffin Monday bakers have for you today!

• Coffee Cake Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Red White and Blue Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Passionfruit Banana Muffins from Food Lust People Love

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday, can be found on our home page.

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Simple Salmon Sliders with Sesame Ginger Slaw #FishFridayFoodies

These simple salmon sliders are easy to make and take mere minutes to cook. Topped with sesame ginger slaw, they are fresh and flavorful, a fun appetizer or main course your friends and family will love.

Lately the fishmonger in my closest supermarket has taken to making salmon patties and packaging them up for sale in twos on the fish counter. While I appreciate his efforts, I cannot bring myself to buy chopped up fish that is possibly almost or just past its best. If I'm going to buy salmon, I like a fillet or even a cross-section – bones don’t bother me, they add flavor – where I can see if the fish seems firm and moist and fresh.

But that doesn’t mean I don’t like salmon patties, big or small. I just like to make them myself. If you have a food processor, they are also very simple to make and no fillers like bread or egg are needed. Who knows what the supermarket guy is putting in!

Simple Salmon Sliders with Sesame Ginger Slaw

Feel free to substitute your favorite fresh greens or slaw to top these little guys. Or skip the salad altogether and serve them with a small dollop of mayo mixed with sriracha sauce.

Ingredients - 24 sliders
For the sliders:
2 lbs or 900g fresh salmon, skinned and cut in chunks
8 oz or 225g smoked salmon
Small bundle green onions, both white and green tops, chopped finely
Black pepper
Salt - may not be necessary

To serve:
24 small buns
broccoli slaw
Optional: sriracha for serving

For the broccoli slaw:
1/2 purple onion, sliced thinly
1/2 cup or 120ml sesame ginger dressing or dressing of your choice
12 oz or 340g package broccoli slaw

Method
In a medium sized bowl (or a plastic container), pour a few tablespoons of the dressing over the sliced onion and leave to marinate for a few minutes. This takes a little of the sharpness and burn out of the onion.

Add the rest of the broccoli slaw to the bowl and toss with balance of the dressing. Cover the bowl with cling film (or the container with its lid) and put it in the refrigerator until you are ready almost ready to serve.

To make the salmon patties, chop the smoked salmon with a sharp knife and pop it in a food processor with the green onions and a few good grinds of black pepper. Give it a few quick pulses to combine the ingredients.

Add some of the fresh salmon – about ½ lb or 225g - to the food processor.

Process until you have a thick, chunky paste. This is what is going to hold the rest of the salmon together in patties. Scrape this mixture out of the food processor and into a large mixing bowl.

Chop the rest of the salmon into small pieces with a sharp knife. Add these to the bowl with the salmon paste and mix well with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until thoroughly combined.

Heat your griddle or nonstick pan and cook a teaspoonful of the mixture. Add salt to taste. You might find, as I do, that the smoked salmon adds enough salt and no more is necessary.

Divide the salmon mixture into 24 small piles. Form these into patties, wetting your hands occasionally as you go along, to stop the mixture from sticking to them.

Put your oven on warm and fold a sheet of foil on a baking pan and put it in the oven.

Heat your griddle or nonstick pan again over a medium high heat and panfry the salmon patties a few at a time until browned on both sides and cooked through.

This just takes mere minutes.

Transfer cooked patties to the oven, tucking them between the fold of the foil, to keep them warm.

Slice the buns in half and top each with a salmon patty, broccoli slaw and, if desired, a squirt of sriracha.

Enjoy!

This month my Fish Friday Foodie group is sharing sandwiches made with seafood so you’ve got plenty of tasty choices to check out below. Many thanks to this month’s host, Sue of Palatable Pastime.

An InLinkz Link-up

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Lemon Drizzle Pound Cake #BundtBakers

The bright as sunshine taste of lemon with the additional tang of yogurt makes this traditional lemon drizzle pound cake a constant favorite.

This month my Bundt Bakers group is sharing recipes for southern cakes (from the south of the United States, that is) at the instigation of our host, Sue from Palatable Pastime. Being a southerner myself, I’ve made many Bundts already based on flavors of the south, including a Sticky Pecan Pie Bundt, Sock It to Me Cake, Banana Pecan Bundt with Bananas Foster Frosting, and Sweet Potato Pecan Spice Cake just to name a few.

But sometimes a classic is called for, like this Lemon Drizzle Pound Cake. Pound cake is the first dessert I ever remember eating as a child. Home-baked by my mother, it was accompanied by a warm lemon sauce. I loved that cake and that sauce! Whenever I get nostalgic for the south, for home, that's the cake I bake. With all the lemon in this particular recipe, plus the lemon drizzle, you don't need the lemon sauce at all. It's perfect all on its own.

Lemon Drizzle Pound Cake

Pound cake is one of the most dependable cakes you can make for any party or occasion. It’s simple but elegant and everybody likes it, especially if it’s as moist and lemony as this one is.

Ingredients
For the cake batter:
2 1/2 cups or 312g all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup or 245g plain yogurt
1/4 cup or 60ml fresh lemon juice
Zest from 1 large lemon
2 1/2 cups or 500g granulated sugar
1 cup or 227g unsalted butter, softened, plus more for buttering the pan
6 large eggs

For the lemon drizzle:
3/4 cup or 95g powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Optional to decorate: extra lemon zest

Tip: If you finely great the extra lemon zest onto a paper towel and set it aside while you bake the cake, make the glaze, etc. it will dry out just enough to sprinkle quite successfully when the cake is cooled and glazed.

Method
Preheat your oven to 325°F or 163°C. Lightly butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan. I like my Nordic Ware anniversary Bundt pan* for this traditional cake.

Whisk together your yogurt, lemon juice and zest in a measuring jug and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together your flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. This incorporates air in the mix and saves you from needing to sift the dry ingredients.

With electric beaters or in your stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter until they become pale yellow and fluffy.

Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add in the eggs, one at time, beating briefly, until each is incorporated.

Add half of the flour mixture along with half of the yogurt mixture. Beat at low speed until just incorporated.

Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula, then repeat the process with the other half of each mixture, beating again on low until just mixed.

Pour or spoon the batter into your prepared Bundt pan and smooth out the top.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 55-60 minutes, checking it about three-quarters of the way through. If the top is browning too quickly, cover it with foil for the remaining baking time.

Remove from the oven when a wooden toothpick comes out clean and the sides are pulling away from the pan slightly.

Leave to cool for about 10 minutes then invert the Bundt pan on a wire rack. Cool completely before drizzling with glaze.

To make the lemon drizzle, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice until all the sugar has dissolved. Spoon on to the cooled cake. Sprinkle with the extra lemon zest, if using, to decorate.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime for this great theme and her behind the scenes work. Check out all the other wonderful southern cakes we have for you today!

• Bourbon Praline Bundt Cake from The Sweet Sensations
• Bundt Cake Hummingbird from Merce`s Cake
• Buttermilk Bundt Cake with Caramel Icing from Sneha's Recipe
• Coconut Bundt Cake from Palatable Pastime
• Cream of Coconut Bundt Cake with Chocolate-Coconut Glaze from katin špajz
• Hot Milk Cake from Cookaholic Wife
• Kentucky Butter Bundt Cake from All That's Left are The Crumbs
• Key Lime Bundt Cake from I Love Bundt Cakes
• Lemon Drizzle Pound Cake from Food Lust People Love
• Peach Bundt with Cardamom Whipped Cream from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Peanut Butter Bundt Cake from Tartacadabra
• Sweet Potato Bourbon Bundt Cake from Patty's Cake

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on the BundtBakers home page.

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Lazy Homemade Shortbread

Buttery and sweet, with just the right amount of resistance before it crumbles in your mouth, this lazy shortbread shaves minutes off the more traditional method. If the word lazy offends you, just call it easy.

We make most traditional shortbread recipes by cutting cold butter into the flour creating a sort of rough and sandy crumble. But years ago, I needed a quick recipe to make big pans of shortbread for a school function and I came across this one using melted butter instead. I have since made homemade shortbread the more traditional way but I must confess that when I’m in a hurry, I go back to this lazy shortbread time and time again.

Shortbread packages up nicely and would make a special gift for Mother's Day, don't you think?

Lazy Shortbread

If you want to change it up a bit, add some orange or lemon zest to the dough and sprinkle the top with orange or lemon sugar or a little more zest.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g flour
1 cup or 130g cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
Slightly rounded ½ cup or 125g caster or fine grain sugar
1⅛ cup or 250g unsalted butter

To decorate the shortbread:
1 egg white, whisked with a teaspoon of water
2-3 tablespoons coarse grain sugar (I love using my lavender sugar here.)
Optional: edible glitter

Method
Line the bottom of a small 8x8in or 20x20cm pan with baking parchment and preheat your oven to 325°F or 163°C.

Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt in to a large mixing bowl. Add in the sugar and stir to mix.

Gently melt the butter in a small pot over a low heat then pour it into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until it is well combined and you have a soft, buttery dough.

Tip the dough into your prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Use a knife to score the top into 18 equal pieces. Use a fork or a skewer to poke decorative holes in each piece.

Bake in your preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the shortbread is begins to brown slightly.
Remove from the oven and brush lightly with the beaten egg white.
Sprinkle the top generously with coarse sugar.

Bake for five more minutes.

Remove from the oven and lightly sprinkle with edible glitter, if using. This is purely for show but I love how it brings out the natural purple in the lavender sugar. Leave to cool for about 10 minutes.

Use a sharp knife to cut the shortbread into pieces where you scored. Leave to cool completely before removing from the pan.

Store in an airtight container once completely cooled. Or wrap some up and give it away!

Enjoy!

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Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers #BreadBakers

Easy homemade oyster crackers are puffs of buttery, slightly salty dough, rolled thin and baked to crisp perfection. Float them in your favorite chowder!

Had it not been for this month’s Bread Bakers challenge, I don’t think it would ever have occurred to me to make my own crackers. Crackers are thin and crispy and light. And they come in a box.

But after just a little research, I found out that people all over the world are making homemade crackers! There are recipes for saltines, wheat thins, ritz crackers, water crackers and even homemade cheesy goldfish. I so wanted to make those but I couldn’t find a tiny fish cutter. Is it still a cheesy goldfish cracker if it’s round? No, nah, nope.

The decision was made when I ran across a recipe for homemade oyster crackers on Serious Eats because crab and scallop chowder was already on my menu. And everybody knows that a good seafood chowder needs some light and crunchy oyster crackers floating on the top. Maybe someone in Dubai sells them but I haven't found them yet.

Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers

No oysters were harmed in the making of these crackers. The story goes that these delightful little round crackers were first eaten with oyster stew so that is how they got their name. If you don’t feel like fiddling with a round cutter, by all means use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to make small squares instead.

Ingredients
1 1/8 cup or 140g all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons or 28g cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 in or 1/2cm cubes
1/3 cup or 80ml cold water, plus additional as needed

Method
Whisk your flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder together in a medium bowl.  Or sift them together into the bowl.

Add the bits of butter into the flour and use a pastry cutter or two knives to work the butter into the flour until it resembles slightly damp sand.

Add the cold water a little at a time and use a fork to mix it through the flour until it begins to stick together like a soft dough. You may not need it all or you may need just a little bit more. This is just like making pie crust, but with way less fat.

Knead the dough for a few turns on a lightly floured surface and then roll it into a ball. Cover it with the mixing bowl and leave it to rest for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, adjust your oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C. Line two baking pans with baking parchment or silicone liners.

Once the dough has rested, cut it into two equal pieces and wrap the second one in cling film. Set aside.

Lightly flour your rolling pin and work surface and roll the dough out to a thickness of about 1/8th inch or 3mm. This is about the same thickness as two US quarters stacked on one another or a single UK one pound coin, if you have either of those handy to compare.

Use a large decorating tip (I used a Wilton 124) or a small fondant cutter to cut the dough into small circles. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet. You can put them fairly close together because they don't really puff out from the sides.

You can also use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut the dough into small squares instead of using a decorating tip, although putting a Q-tip through the tip does make it very easy to poke the dough out should it get stuck.

Form a ball out of the leftover dough and roll it out and cut shapes again. Repeat the process with the other half of the dough until all the little oyster crackers have been cut out.

Bake the crackers one pan at a time on that middle shelf, until the crackers are golden brown.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

This makes about 2 1/2 cups or 175g of easy homemade oyster crackers.

Enjoy as a crunchy snack or float some in your favorite chowder or soup.

Check out all the other creative crackers we have for you this month! Many thanks to our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime for this great theme.

• Coconut Cheese Crackers from Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Crispy Homemade Cheddar Crackers from Palatable Pastime
• Dried Fruit Crackers from Cook's Hideout
• Easy Homemade Oyster Crackers from Food Lust People Love
• Freshly Baked Methi Crackers from The Mad Scientist's Kitchen
• Garlicky Chickpea Flour Crackers from Ambrosia
• Parmesan Herb Crackers from Spill the Spices
• Sourdough Crackers with Chilli and Garlic from Sonlicious
• Sourdough Crackers with Gruyère and Thyme from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Spicy Popcorn Crisps from What Smells So Good?
• Spicy Potato Crackers from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Sweet & Savory Crackers from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Vegan Herbed Crackers from Sizzling Tastebuds
• Vegan Whole Wheat Crackers from Sneha's Recipe

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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