I am probably what you would call ‘a spur of the moment’ cook. I cannot get my head around meal planning whatsoever, I quite often don’t know what we are having for dinner until I open the fridge frantically at 5 or 6pm! Meal planning fills me with horror because if I don’t fancy something on a particular day then no amount of planning will make me cook it. I like to eat what I fancy on a particular day/time. We don’t have a ‘set’ weekly menu, I will plan a couple of recipes when I do the online shop but that’s about as forward planning as it gets. As for leftovers, or using leftovers up, they’re virtually non-existent. I know, I know… I’m rubbish.

I am sure I am not the only family cook that needs inspiration at times though, so was very interested to try out some cooking using The Lake District Dairy Co.’s new Quark cooking sauces that are being launched later this year. In three varieties; Garlic & Herb, Tikka and Tomato & Basil they are versatile but at the same time offering a ‘healthier’ alternative to some other ingredients that may be used such as cream, more numbers and facts in a bit.

Firstly we helped prepare a Lemon Quark Ice Cream, using The Lake District Dairy Co. Lemon Quark (available in the shops now) instead of double cream means that there was 50% less calories per serving, 22g less fat and 8g of protein per person. Did I feel when I was eating it I was missing out on something? No, absolutely not, it was delicious.

Lemon Quark Ice Cream

 

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Prep time

20 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Author: The Lake District Dairy Co.

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• ½ pint full fat milk
• 3 egg yolks
• 150g caster sugar
• 250g Lake District Dairy Co. Lemon Quark

Instructions

1. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together, add milk and whisk together until evenly combined
2. Add the mixture to a pan and cook over a low heat until the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon
3. Add the Lake District Dairy Co. Lemon Quark and mix together until evenly combined
4. Pour into a frozen bowl or ice cream machine and churn until set
5. Place in the freezer until set

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Next up we were shown how to de bone a chicken, I have never been confident enough to do this before but it is another skill I now have under my belt. After coating the chicken fillets in The Lake District Dairy Co. Tikka sauce we put them on skewers and once cooked they were served with what was my favourite element of the whole meal; Garlic & Herb Quark pancakes with roasted artichoke.

Finally we made pasta, from scratch, this was a huge novelty to me…I want a pasta machine now!! Loved it. It tasted great too and using The Lake District Dairy Co. Tomato & Basil cooking sauce instead of cream cheese reduced the fat content by 25%

I am all for everything in moderation, these sauces are a great ‘source’ of inspiration for those times when you just can’t think what to cook. They make a quick and easy meal simply by stirring them into a recipe. However plain Quark can also be used in baking, for example muffins and cakes. It makes a great topping to cakes in replace of cream cheese reducing the saturated fat content by almost 50%, is low in carbohydrates and contains twice the protein of low fat yoghurt.

The Lake District Dairy Co cooking sauces will be available in supermarkets this autumn at a RRP of £1.75 per 200g pot.

Disclosure: I got to try hands on cooking with the Lake District Dairy Co. brand new sauces with other food bloggers and received a goody bag, however all opinions are my own.