5 Quick Small Meals Perfect for a Lazy Night In

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When it comes to putting together the perfect lazy night in food is one of the most crucial factors to consider, without having an easy to prepare but the tasty meal you run the risk of causing yourself significant stress and ruining your entire evening. There are many different meals that fit these criteria so keep an eye out for suitable recipes that you could use.

Another key thing to remember is that you will also need some form of entertainment for your lazy night in, this could be television or watching a film but if you are looking for something different for you and your loved ones to enjoy you could try some of the new online quizzes such as which haikyuu character are you or finding out Your Harry Potter house.

 

Tapas

Tapas is a traditional Spanish dish that consists of a variety of small side dishes put together into a main meal, this would be perfect for hosting large groups or for small lazy nights in as you can tailor the dishes that you include to ensure that there is something suited for your guest’s preference and taste. If you are unsure of what dishes to include then I would highly recommend that you look on social media and online recipe resources for your inspiration.

 

Tacos

If you are looking for something that is easy to make as well as tasty then tacos are the perfect option, aside from the filling that you choose to make there really isn’t much cooking involved so this can be prepared very quickly so that you have plenty of time to relax for your lazy evening. Tacos are a very versatile dish and aside from the basic ingredients of your taco shells which can be found in most major stores, it is totally up to you what you decide to put in them. Spiced beef and chicken are great choices but if you are vegetarian you can also very easily switch out the meat for a selection of fried vegetables or other meat alternatives.

 

Pasta

Another great dish that you can make for an evening would be some form of pasta dish, if you are looking for something that is easy to make and filling then this would be the way to go. As is the case with many of the dishes on this list you can definitely customize your pasta dish to include ingredients that suit your preference and if you want to make things even easier for yourself then why not prepare the dish in advance and bake it in the oven before you are ready to eat to make a deliciously cheesy pasta bake.

 

Baked Camembert

Baked camembert is a delicious dish that could be used as a starter or as part of a tapas-style meal with multiple smaller dishes for you and your loved ones to enjoy. This cheese can be bought from a number of different stores and the only real cooking that is required to prepare it is to bake camembert on low heat until the cheese inside is nice and melted. You can serve this dish with your favorite crackers and bread to dip into the cheese but if you want something healthier carrot and celery sticks are just as good.

 

Homemade Pizzas

The final dish on this list that would be perfect for your lazy evening would be your own homemade pizza, using a simple dough or premade bases you simply add your preferred toppings and bake in the oven until you reach the desired texture and crispness of the base.

How to Bake the Perfect Loaf of Bread

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If you are someone that has been bored in lockdown and you are looking for ways to occupy your time, then you may have taken up baking. Lots of people decided to give baking a whirl during the lockdown and there was actually a shortage of baking products all around the world as everyone was going mad for cooking banana bread. Though everyone was getting involved in baking, this does not mean that everyone was being entirely successful. Baking is a precise science and even adding a gram of the wrong ingredients can completely ruin the texture of anything that you make.  

 

Though it has been made for thousands of years, bread is also extremely difficult to make. Nowhere in the cookbooks among all of the bread puns does it say just how temperamental bread is.  If you have tried to make bread in the last few months, then you have probably have had to deal with your loafs collapsing and everything just going wrong, which is extremely common in the world of bread baking. The last thing you should do when things go wrong is given up, as you can always try again and do it better the next time around. If you are looking into trying again then you may be looking for some useful tips to help you get by. Here are our tips on how to bake the perfect loaf of bread the next time you give baking a go.  

 

Yeast 

People forget just how important yeast is when it comes to baking bread and some people forget that you even need yeast at all when baking bread. There are several types of yeast that you can choose from when it comes to using yeast in your bread. You can use fast-acting dried yeast, fresh yeast, and active dried yeast. Depending on the kind of bread that you are making, the recipe will tell you exactly what kind of yeast you should be using. Be sure to not ignore the specified yeast as you could ruin the entire recipe for yourself. 

When you have got the right yeast, make sure that you care for it properly. Many people believe that yeast is one of those things that you only need to buy once and leave in the back of the cupboard for when you need it.  In actual fact, most yeast can only keep for a couple of months and after that, it won’t work the same and will not make your bread rise as you would like it to. Another very common mistake that people who are new to bread make is not knowing how to store fresh yeast. People that are new to the world of bread making often think that all yeast can be stored in the same place, however, you should know that if you want to use fresh yeast it should in fact be stored in the fridge and only has a lifespan of a couple of weeks. 

 

Give your dough time  

Another very common mistake that people make when they are trying to cook bread is rushing. Bread is something that needs to be treated with care and so you should do what you can to ensure that you are not rushing the recipe. Once you have made your bread dough, this dough will need time to rise. We recommend that you let your bread rise overnight so that you get the best possible results and an airy loath that you can be proud of. If you are someone that doesn’t have the time to wait for the bread to rise, we recommend that you make sourdough bread as this needs no time to rise and is a brilliant option for someone that is new to bread making.  

 

Measurements 

With anything in baking, you need to make sure that all of your measurements are extremely accurate. Baking is often considered to be somewhat of a science and with any kind of science, you have to make sure that you are being as accurate as you possibly can. We recommend that you not only use measuring cups but get weighing scales so that you can weigh out your overall mixture.