Bonfire Night Feast

Whether you celebrate with fireworks, sparklers or not at all this bonfire night feast will be an event all on it's own.

For those who attend an organised fireworks event the whole menu can be prepared in advance and the toffee apples made the night before. If you are eating before you go, save the toffee apples and chocolate bananas for your return.
Sticky Sausages

Rosemary Lamb Cutlets

Roasted Potato skins

Sweetcorn Fritters

Cherry Tomato and Courgette Chunks on Rosemary Skewers

Creme Fraiche and Yoghurt Mint Sauce

Toffee Apples with Coconut

Baked Chocolate Bananas

Serves 8

Sticky Sausages

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4

500g (at least 8) good quality sausages, Cumberland work very well

2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

2 tbsp clear honey

1 tbsp soy sauce

Mix together the mustard, honey and soy sauce.

Sear the sausages in a roasting tin over direct heat until just browned. Add the honey/mustard mixture to the tin and shake to coat the sausages.

Roast in the oven for 15 minutes, shake the tin to turn the sausages and cook for a further 10 minutes.

Lamb cutlets with Rosemary

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4

8 lamb cutlets

2 cloves garlic

3 sprigs Rosemary

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 dessertspoon plain flour

150ml red wine

1 tsp redcurrant jelly

150ml lamb or vegetable stock

Fry the lamb cutlets in 1 tbsp olive oil, for 1 minute each side to seal. Set them aside in an ovenproof dish.

Add the remaining olive oil to the pan and add the garlic and Rosemary. Cook gently for 1 minute. Sprinkle over the flour and cook for a further minute.

Add the red wine, any juices from the cutlets and stock and simmer to reduce the sauce by half.

Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add the redcurrant jelly

Pour the sauce over the cutlets and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Roasted potato skins

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ gas 6

4 large baking potatoes

olive oil to coat

Large pinch of coarse salt

Prick the potatoes and cook in the microwave for 16-20 minutes until tender.

Cut the potatoes into segments and scoop out 1/3 of the flesh, drizzle with olive oil. Roast in the oven for 15- 20 minutes until golden and crispy at the edges.

Serve sprinkled with coarse salt.

Sweetcorn Fritters

420g can creamed sweetcorn, drained

Vegetable oil for frying

2 spring onions, finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper

5 tbsp cornflour

2 tblsp very cold water

1 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix together the sweetcorn, onions, cornflour, water Cayenne and season generously.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook spoonfuls of the mixture for 2-3 minutes each side until crisp and golden.

Drain on kitchen paper, season with black pepper and serve with a little dollop of creme fraiche and yoghurt mint sauce.

Creme Fraiche and Yoghurt Mint Sauce

1 small carton plain yoghurt

3 tbsp creme fraiche

1 1/2 tsp mint sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together, cover and store in the fridge until needed.

Cherry Tomato and Courgette chunks on Rosemary Skewers

3 courgettes, cut to 1 " chunks

24 cherry tomatoes

8 firm stalks of Rosemary

Salt and pepper

olive oil

Strip the leaves from the Rosemary stalks, leaving a few at the top for decoration

Place the tomatoes and courgette chunks in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and add the Rosemary leaves. Leave to marinate for 30 minutes.

Thread the tomatoes and courgette chunks onto the Rosemary stalk, and grill for 5 minutes each side.

Season with salt and pepper just before serving.

Toffee Apples

Not a good recipe for the children to help with as the toffee reaches an extremely high temperature.

6 small eating apples

8 oz Demerara sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

2 tbsp golden syrup

1 oz unsalted butter

Dessicated coconut to sprinkle

Wash and dry the apples. Remove the stalk and push in a stick firmly to the top of each apple.

Place the sugar and 4 fl oz water in a saucepan. Stir over a low heat to dissolve the sugar. Add the lemon juice, syrup and butter and bring to the boil. Cook with out stirring for about 8-10 minutes. Test by putting a teaspoon of the mixture into a cup of cold water, it should harden immediately.

Remove the toffee from the heat and dip in one apple at a time to coat with the toffee. Sprinkle with dessicated coconut (or leave plain). Place the toffee apples on parchment paper and cool completely before wrapping in cellophane.

Baked Chocolate Bananas

Preheat the oven to 2000C/400F/ gas 6

1 banana per person + 2 squares of chocolate per banana.

Don't remove the banana skin.

Make a small cut at each end of the banana and place a square of chocolate into each cut. Wrap each banana in foil and bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes until the chocolate has melted.

Take care opening the foil, the banana will be very hot.

Serve in the foil with the banana split open and eat with a spoon.