Stir Fried Chicken and Vegetables

 I know its Valentines Day but I felt like something clean and fresh tasting tonight. So decided on a last minute stir fry.

Serves 4

Ingredients

500g/ 1lb 4oz chicken breast -diced

1 tbsp cooking oil
100g/ 4oz baby sweetcorn
100g/4oz mangetout
2 carrots shaved into strips with a peeler
1tbsp finely chopped ginger
1 garlic clove-crushed
1 onion -roughly chopped
75g/3oz water chestnuts

1x300g/12oz pack of beansprouts

Marinade

2tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp five spice
1tbsp mirin ( rice wine)

noodles or rice to serve

Method

Mix the marinade ingredients together and set aside.
Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan. Add the chicken pieces and stir fry over a high heat until the chicken is browned.

Remove the chicken and set aside.

Add a little more oil if necessary and fry the onion and garlic for a few seconds. Add the remaining vegetables and stir fry for  about 5 minutes. Return the chicken to the pan and pour on the marinade. 

Cook you stir fry for another 5 minutes until vegetables are tender and the chicken has heated through.

Serve with some cooked noodles or rice.

Chloe and Lauren's Pancakes

It just has to be done - pancakes on pancake day. The girls had seen pancake mix in the shop and came home saying they wanted to make pancakes but why buy a pancake mix?

Recipe
Makes 6-8 pancakes depending on size.

125g/4oz plain flour
pinch of salt
2 eggs, beaten
300ml/10floz milk
25g/1oz butter melted

Place the flour,salt,eggs, milk and melted butter in a bowl and beat well until you have a smooth batter.

Heat your pan until hot and put in a little knob of butter. When the butter is foaming, pour in just enough batter to thinly coat the base of the pan, tilting the pan around so that it is evenly coated with the batter.
Cook over a fairly high heat until the pancake looks set and the edges of the pancake begin to slightly curl. Turn the pancake over and cook the other side until the pancakes are flecked with brown.
Transfer to a warm plate and repeat again to cook your next pancake. Interleave your pancakes with greaseproof paper to prevent the pancakes sticking together.

We served our pancakes with berries and ice cream, nutella and ice cream but you can have them with whatever you like e.g. just with sugar and lemon.

My Minestrone Soup

I am not a fan of fad diets or crazes. The newest diet fad is the “fasting  diet” where you eat normally for 5 days of the week and reduce your calorie intake for the other 2 days to 500 calories for women and 600 for men.

I still feel it is better to eat a healthy balanced diet as your body will balance out the calories over time anyway and this diet may be difficult to sustain for the long term.

If you are looking to eat more healthily and have a lighter meal there is nothing better than homemade soup. My Minestrone soup is packed with lots of vegetables so you are getting all your vitamins, minerals and antioxidants too.

This recipe makes a large batch but you can keep some for lunch the next day or freeze for later.

  Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic- finely chopped
3 medium leeks- finely sliced
1 small celery heart –finely sliced
4 medium carrots – peeled and chopped into small dice
1-400g tin chopped tomatoes or 1 jar of passata ( about 600g)
3 pints hot stock or water
1 medium fennel bulb – chopped into dice
1 red and 1 yellow pepper – chopped into dice
1 pack green beans – cut into short lengths
3 medium courgettes – chopped into dice
1 can mixed beans or other beans of your choice
2oz small pasta shapes or broken up bits of spaghetti
300g chard, spinach or cavolo nero
fresh basil leaves, olive oil and grated parmesan cheese to serve.

Method

Wash and prepare all the vegetables as directed above. You need to keep your vegetables as similar in size as possible to allow for even cooking.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and gently sweat the leeks, carrots, celery and garlic for about 15 minutes. This means you will cook them over a gentle heat without browning in order to soften them. Add the fennel and peppers and cook for another 10 minutes. Add the tinned tomatoes or passata and dried herbs and stir to mix.

Add the stock or water and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat to a simmer and allow to  cook for about 15 minutes.

Now add the green beans, courgettes and pasta and allow to  cook for 30 – 45 minutes until the pasta and vegetables are tender. If the soup is becoming too thick add a little more water or stock.

Add the canned beans and chard or spinach and cook for 10 more minutes. Adjust the seasoning to taste.

Serve in deep bowls, drizzled with some peppery olive oil and sprinkled with fresh basil and grated parmesan cheese. Some good chewy crusty bread goes really well with this soup.

Blueberry Bundt Cakes

I bought some bundt cake tins a while ago and had not got round to using them. I felt like baking something nice on this very rainy day so decided to make some blueberry bundt cakes.
It took a while to perfect the mix and balance of flavours but I think they have come out great.
The first batch I made stuck to the bottom of the tin even though I had thoroughly greased and floured the tin. It was a bit disappointing but my daughters still managed to eat the stuck on bits with a spoon straight out of the tin!
When making the second batch I said a little prayer before putting them in the oven. Again they came out of the oven smelling really good and evenly risen. This time I decided I would allow them to cool in the tin before turning them out and they came out perfectly. So my tip is let them cool down first!!!

Makes 12 bundt cakes

120g/ 6oz blueberries
150g/5oz butter - softened
400g/14oz caster sugar
2 eggs lightly beaten
300g/10 oz plain flour -sifted
225ml/ 8floz buttermilk
1tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Icing
juice of 1 lemon
100 g of icing sugar -sifted

Cream together the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs a little at time until they are incorporated into the mixture and then add the buttermilk and vanilla extract.

Fold in the flour and the bicarbonate of soda and then gently fold in the blueberries.

Pipe or spoon the batter into the prepared tins and bake in a preheated oven, 180 degrees centigrade/ gas mark 4 for 15 to 20 minutes until risen and golden brown.

Allow to cool in the tins before turning out onto a wire rack.
To make the icing blend the icing sugar with the lemon juice until you have a smooth but not too runny icing. You may need more or less icing sugar to get the right consistency.

Allow the cakes to cool completely before drizzling with the icing.

Filo Pastry Pie with Spinach, Feta and Herbs

I made this recipe today as I had some spinach which I wanted to use up.  I wanted something a bit more substantial for us to have for lunch rather than a traditional spanakopitta so came up with this recipe which is a sort of amalgamation of a spanakopitta and a quiche. In Greece and Cyprus there is a similar version of this pie which is made using wild greens which are foraged from the mountainside. I used other types of green stuff which I thought would be a suitable substitute. Even my children loved it which I was quite surprised about as it had so much "green" in it!

1 pack of filo pastry sheets -about 200g -( the one I used had 8 sheets of filo)
3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 onion chopped

100g of chicory chopped
100g wild rocket
200g spinach

25g fresh mint - leaves picked and chopped
25g fresh dill- chopped

200g feta cheese crumbled
200g ricotta cheese

4 eggs lightly beaten
80g melted butter
50g breadcrumbs
salt and pepper
a good grating of fresh nutmeg.

28cm/11" round tin with a removable base

Heat the oven to gas 180 degrees centigrade/gas 7

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large pan. Add the chopped onion and cook over a low heat until the onion is soft. Add the chicory, rocket and spinach and allow all the greens to wilt down for about 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped herbs, crumbled feta cheese and ricotta. Mix in the eggs and lightly season with salt and pepper ( as the feta is quite salty) and the nutmeg. Set aside.

 Place on sheet of filo pastry into the base of your tin and brush with melted butter. Layer another 3 sheets into the pan allowing the excess to hang over the sides of the tin. You will need to fold these over to enclose the filling later. Brush each sheet with melted butter as you go. Sprinkle the base of your filo pastry with the breadcrumbs. These will absorb any excess moisture which will come out of your greens and ensure your pie does not have a "soggy bottom".

Pour in your prepared filling and fold over the excess filo pastry. Make a top for your pie by lightly "scrunching" the remaining filo sheets and lightly placing them on top of the filling. Again brush each sheet with melted butter.

Place your pie on a baking sheet and cook in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes to an hour. Keep an eye on your pie. Check it after about half an hour and if it is browning too quickly lightly cover the top with a piece of foil.

When your pie is cooked remove from the oven and allow it to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before removing the side of the tin. Serve hot or cold cut into wedges.

Orange, Cinnamon and Rhubarb Crumble

Orange,Cinnamon and Rhubarb Crumble

Serves 6

2lbs /800g rhubarb -washed and cut into 2" pieces
2oz /50g caster sugar
juice and rind of 1 orange
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
8oz /200g plain flour
4oz/ 100g butter
2oz/50g caster sugar
2oz/50g porridge oats

Method

Place the prepared rhubarb into a deep ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with the caster sugar, the orange rind and juice and the teaspoon of cinnamon.

To make the crumble place the flour in a bowl and add the butter cut into small cubes. Rub the butter into the flour until you have a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the caster sugar and the porridge oats and sprinkle over the rhubarb.

Place in a hot oven gas 7/250 degrees centigrade for about 40 minutes until the topping is brown and crunchy and the rhubarb is tender.

Serve with custard, fresh cream or ice cream.

Valentines Day Menu

I have designed this menu for Valentines day which you can cook yourself at home. It is simple to prepare and most of the menu can be made in advance allowing you to be relaxed and enjoy your Valentines Day meal without feeling flustered and running in and out of the kitchen. The recipes given here serve 2 but you can always increase the quantity if you are serving more people. 

Starter

 

Asparagus wrapped in Parma Ham

12 asparagus spears

12 slices parma ham

olive oil, balsamic vinegar and parmesan shavings to serve.

Prepare the asparagus by washing it and snapping off the woody ends. You can do this by just bending the asparagus stalks at their base and they should just snap off where the stalk is woody.

Blanch the asparagus stalks by plunging them into a pan of boiling, salted water for 2 minutes. Drain the asparagus in a colander and allow them to drain and cool.

When the asparagus has cooled wrap each spear in a slice of parma ham. Place on a baking tray.

You can prepare this stage in advance and put aside until you are ready to cook.

When you are ready to cook the asparagus preheat the oven to Gas 6, 200 degrees centigrade. Drizzle the asparagus with some olive oil and season  with pepper. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes until the ham is crisp and the asparagus is tender.

To serve sprinkle the asparagus with a little more olive oil, some balsamic vinegar and parmesan shavings.

Main Course

Greek Style Spiced Beef served with tagliatelle

This is a Greek inspired dish. It is really easy to make and if you make it the day before the flavours improve and all you have to do is make some pasta.

400g lean beef braising steak- cut into 2" cubes
2tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic- thinly sliced
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 wine glass red wine ( about 4-6 floz)
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1 bay leaf

Heat the oil in a casserole pan and fry the garlic cloves over a gentle heat until theyare fragrant and soft but not brown.

Add the beef and quickly brown it all over.

Add the red wine and allow to come to the boil. Add the tinned tomatoes, bay leaf and spices and season with salt and pepper.

Allow to come back to the boil, then turn down the heat to a simmer and allow to cook slowly for about 2 hours until the beef is really tender.

If you are making this in advance allow the beef to cool and place in the fridge.
The next day remove from the fridge about an hour before you wish to eat and reheat for about 20 minutes until it is hot all the way through.

Serve with some pasta -  I have mentioned tagliatelle but any pasta is good.
Serve sprinkled with grated parmesan and a lightly dressed rocket salad.

Dessert

Spiced Chocolate Pots

These little chocolate mousses are quite rich so only a small serving is required. I serve them in little coffee cups and saucers. These are best made the day before to allow them to set properly overnight.
I have used a good quality ready flavoured chocolate with orange and ginger but you can use any chocolate you like flavoured or just plain as long as it is about 70% cocoa solids.

100g good quality chocolate ( flavoured or plain)
1 tbsp water
1 tbsp golden syrup
2 eggs separated

Place the chocolate, broken into small pieces into a bowl over a pan of simmering but not boiling water. Add the tablespoon of water and the golden syrup and allow to melt.

Meanwhile whisk the egg whites until stiff.
When the chocolate mix has melted remove from the heat.
Allow to cool slightly and then beat in the egg yolks.
Fold the egg white into the chocolate mixture until it is thoroughly incorporated.

Place the mousse into small ramekins, coffee cups or other small dishes of your choice and place in the fridge to set overnight.
Serve with some crisp sweet biscuits on the side.