Creamy Chicken Kiev

MUNCH RATING: 3/5

 

I was inspired by the Cheat’s Chicken Kiev recipe in the May issue of BBC Good Food magazine to make something similar. We hardly ever eat chicken breast as we normally find it too dry and bland compared to the dark meat (thighs and legs). But I had some soft cheese in the fridge and I thought it would keep the chicken nice and moist, especially when coated in breadcrumbs.

 

CHANGES TO THE RECIPE:

I used Panko breadcrumbs as I always have them in the cupboard for when I make Chicken Katsu Curry. Normally I would pane the chicken by dusting in flour, then coating in beaten egg and then coating with breadcrumbs. But the Good Food recipe said to coat the chicken in olive oil and then coat in breadcrumbs. This method worked just as well as the pane technique and it’s a lot less faffing around! I didn’t flavour the breadcrumbs with parsley or garlic as I flavoured the soft cheese instead.

I flavoured the soft cheese with garlic and fresh chives (from my herb pot!) instead of using a shop-bought garlic and herb soft cheese.

 

TASTE TEST:

I thought the chicken was really moist and tender and I liked the crunch of the breadcrumbs. Steve said he wasn’t too keen on the soft cheese as he thought it had a strange taste, but he’s not a huge fan of it anyway. I think that maybe it was the garlic that tasted strange, as it had a bit of a raw taste to it. So maybe it is better to use a shop-bought garlic and herb soft cheese so that it would have a milder flavour? I would use this method of cooking chicken breast again as the meat was lovely and tender, but I would experiment with the filling. I loved the new technique of coating with the breadcrumbs, so I’ve learnt a new trick!

 

• Serves: 2
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C

 

Ingredients:

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed or grated
• 2 Tablespoons soft cheese (I used Sainsburys Light Soft Cheese)
• 2 Tablespoons chives, finely chopped
• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 4 Tablespoons Panko breadcrumbs (or use fresh breadcrumbs)
• Olive oil

 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C.
2. Mix together the garlic, soft cheese and chives. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Cut a slit in the side of each chicken breast to make a small pocket. Spoon half the soft cheese mixture into the hole of each chicken breast and press together to seal. (I prepared the chicken up to this stage and then left them in the fridge).
4. Coat the chicken breasts in the olive oil, then coat both sides with the breadcrumbs and drizzle with more oil (optional, I didn’t do this).
5. Place the coated chicken on a baking tray and bake for 20-25 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the breadcrumbs are golden brown.

Vegged Out Macaroni Cheese

 

MUNCH RATING: 5/5

 

Macaroni Cheese is one of those comfort foods that I really love, but I don’t make it very often as it can take a long time to make from scratch – this took me about 1½ hours!  But it was a labour of love that was really worth it, as all the veggies made it really tasty and slightly healthy to offset all that cheese!

 

CHANGES TO THE RECIPE:

I actually halved the amount of cheese that the original recipe suggested, as 400g seemed really excessive! The addition of all the veggies adds a lot of flavour, so you really don’t need loads of cheese. I also changed/omitted some of the veggies to suit what I had in the fridge. I also used Panko breadcrumbs instead of fresh, as that is what I had to hand.

 

TASTE TEST:

Steve wasn’t sure if he liked the breadcrumbs, as it reminded him too much of fish pie, which he isn’t keen on. But he said he wouldn’t have known they were breadcrumbs if I hadn’t told him – he thought it was just crispy golden cheese. But I liked the breadcrumbs on top, as they gave the topping a nice contrasting texture. Steve said this was the best macaroni cheese I’ve ever made and he literally licked his plate clean!

 

• Serves: 4
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C
• You will need: a large ovenproof dish, lightly oiled

 

Ingredients:

• 400g macaroni
• 150g streaky bacon, thinly sliced (I used a small packet of pancetta cubes)
• 1 leek, white part only, finely sliced (I used 1 medium onion, finely chopped)
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and diced (I used small orange peppers)
• 150g broccoli florets (I omitted this because I couldn’t be bothered to chop it up!)
• 110g frozen peas
• 100g tinned sweetcorn, drained (I used a whole small tin)
• 60g butter
• 60g plain flour
• 600ml cold semi-skimmed milk
• 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 400g mixture of mature cheddar, red Gloucester and Cheshire cheeses, grated (I used 200g mixture mature and mild cheddar cheeses)
• 3 Tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs (I used Panko instead)

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C.
2. Bring a large pan of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the macaroni and cook according to the pack instructions until al dente (my pack said 13 minutes, so I cooked for 8 minutes). Drain well and run under cold water. Place in a large bowl and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, in a frying pan cook the bacon/pancetta in ½ Tablespoon olive oil until crisp and golden, then remove from the pan and set aside. Add the sliced leek/onion to the pan without adding any extra fat and cook over a medium heat, until very soft. Add the garlic and red pepper and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened, then throw in the broccoli (if using) and peas. Add a splash of water and cook for 1-2 minutes until the broccoli is still a little crunchy and the peas are just tender. Transfer to the bowl with the macaroni in, mix in the sweetcorn and set aside.
4. Make the cheese sauce: place the butter, flour and cold milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil whisking. Reduce the heat and simmer until thickened, whisking all the time. Once thickened, cook for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat and stir in the mustard and ¾ of the cheese. Stir until the cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth.
5. Pour the cheese sauce over the macaroni and vegetable mixture and give everything a good stir, then spoon into a large ovenproof dish. Mix the remaining cheese with the breadcrumbs, sprinkle over the top of the pasta and bake for 30-35 minutes until golden and bubbling.

 

COOK’S NOTES:

• The recipe said you can freeze this dish, so I froze half of it without any cheese or breadcrumbs on top. Apparently you can freeze for up to 1 month – we shall see if it tastes just as good once defrosted and reheated! To reheat: bake at Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C for 40-50 minutes.
• This can obviously be made vegetarian by omitting the bacon/pancetta.

 

Dauphinois Potatoes

MUNCH RATING: 5/5

CHANGES TO THE RECIPE:
I used the Rachel Allen recipe for Garlic Layered Potatoes from her book Rachel’s Favourite Food for Friends (which Steve bought for me many moons ago and I am sorry to say that I haven’t used very much!) for the ingredients and quantities, but I changed the method. This was mainly because I wanted to speed things up and also because I thought her way required too much faffing about with lots of layering of the potatoes and dotting with the garlic and butter. My way is a lot more slap dash, but at least you won’t want to commit hari-kiri before you’ve even put it in the oven and it still tastes great.

Even though I was only cooking for Steve and myself, I made a full quantity which should serve 5-6 people because I love potatoes and I knew that any leftovers would be just as good reheated. We ate half of the whole thing with steak and asparagus and the other half with a chicken, mushroom and pea dish that I made up (a recipe might get posted if I can remember the quantities!).

The photo above is of the reheated half and as you can see it really is a dish that doesn’t suffer from a night in the chiller. 30 minutes at Gas 6 should do the trick and keep it covered with foil if it is already quite brown from its first visit to the oven.

• Serves: 5-6 (but more realistically 4 greedy people)
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C
• You will need: a shallow wide gratin/ovenproof dish (I used a 10x10 inch square dish)

Ingredients:

• 250ml (8¾ fl.oz) double cream
• 2 large cloves of garlic, crushed
• 25g (1oz) butter
• salt and pepper
• 800g (1¾ lb) peeled potatoes (weigh when peeled), sliced ½cm (¼ inch) thick
• 2 small pinches of freshly ground nutmeg (I left this out)
• 40g (1½ oz) finely grated Parmesan Cheese (I used Twineham Grange)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C.
2. Grease your ovenproof dish liberally with butter.
3. Place your cream, butter, garlic and salt and pepper in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil.
4. Add the potatoes and heat for a few minutes until the potatoes have absorbed some of the cream.
5. Pour the potatoes into your ovenproof dish (arranging the top layer as neatly as possible!), then scatter the Parmesan over the top.
6. Cover with tin foil and place in the oven for 1 hour, removing the foil after 30 minutes. The potatoes are done when you can easily stick a knife into them and the top should be golden brown.

COOK’S NOTES:

• Use a mandoline or V slicer to slice the potatoes to an even thickness. Go and look in the back of your cupboards, I’m sure you have one gathering dust!
• Use a dish that is big enough so that the potatoes are only about 3 layers deep, otherwise it will take longer to cook.

Butternut Squash Risotto

MUNCH RATING: 5/5

Although I discovered the wonders of oven-baking risotto, nothing can really compare to a properly made risotto and all that stirring is really worth it for this risotto!

Half of the butternut squash is cooked in the stock and then mashed into a puree. This makes the rice beautifully creamy. The other half of the squash is roasted and this gives it a wonderful charred flavour and a different texture. I love the smell of roasted squash; it just screams of Autumn.

Unfortunately I didn’t use a home-grown squash as they’re not quite ready yet!

• Serves: 2
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C
• You will need: a roasting tray, a small saucepan, a medium saucepan

Ingredients:

• 1 large butternut squash
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil
• 600ml/1 pint vegetable stock (I used 1 Knorr Stock Pot)
• 25g/1oz unsalted butter
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, picked
• 140g/5oz risotto rice (I used Arborio)
• 100ml/3½ fl.oz white wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc)
• 50g/2oz Parmesan (I used Twineham Grange)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C.
2. Peel the squash and separate the bulbous seeded section from the long end. Chop the long end into 2cm cubes, toss in half the oil, season with salt and pepper and roast in the oven, turning occasionally until they are golden brown and tender (should take the same amount of time as to cook the risotto rice, about 30 minutes).
3. Cut the bulbous section in half and remove the seeds with a spoon, then cut into 2cm cubes. Warm the stock in the small saucepan over a low heat and add the squash and allow it to gently poach.
4. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil and the butter in the medium saucepan, then add the onion, cover and cook for 3 minutes until the onion turns translucent.
5. Add the garlic, herbs and some black pepper. Increase the heat slightly, then add the rice and stir uncovered for about 5 minutes until the rice has turned almost completely translucent.
6. Turn up the heat and add the wine and allow it to bubble away until it has evaporated. Reduce the heat then start adding the stock a ladle at a time, stirring constantly whilst you allow each ladle of stock to be absorbed. It will take between 15-20 minutes for all the stock to be absorbed. Check the rice is cooked (it should be tender but not mushy) and then mash the squash that has been cooking in the stock before adding it to the cooked rice.
7. Turn off the heat, add most of the Parmesan, cover and leave to rest for 2 minutes, then stir and check for seasoning.
8. Spoon the risotto into shallow bowls, sprinkle over the roasted squash and more Parmesan if you like.

Haddock and Chorizo Gnocchi

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

This is my interpretation of a Gregg Wallace recipe from BBC Good Food Magazine. He used potatoes in his dish instead of the gnocchi, but I like the way the gnocchi absorbs some of the sauce, plus it’s quicker to cook!

I added some Parmesan to the dish as I’d just bought some from the Farmer’s Market in Epsom (read more about it here) and it worked well.
This is a really quick and easy recipe and the chorizo gives so much flavour. It’s quick garlicky, so there was no need to add any extra garlic!

• Serves: 2
• You will need: a frying pan with a tight fitting lid

Ingredients:

• 250g potato gnocchi (I used ½ 500g pack of Trattoria Verdi from Tescos)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small chorizo sausage, thinly sliced (I used Cooking Chorizo from the Tesco Ingredients range)
• good handful cherry tomatoes, halved (home-grown of course!)
• 1 teaspoon Knorr Chicken Stock Granules
• 2 skinless thick haddock fillets (or other white fish)*
• salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Cook the gnocchi as per pack instructions, drain but reserve a couple of Tablespoons of the cooking water and then set aside.
2. Heat a large lidded frying, then add the oil. Add the chorizo and fry for 2 minutes until it starts to release its oil, then add the tomatoes, the reserved cooking water and the chicken stock. Cook until the tomatoes burst, then add the gnocchi and mix in well.
3. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Lay the fish on top of the gnocchi, put the lid on and leave to cook for 5 minutes, or until the fish has turned white and is flaky when prodded in the middle.
4. Sprinkle with a small handle of parmesan cheese.

*Take the fish out of the fridge and allow to come up to room temperature before cooking.

Epsom Farmers Market: Corn on the cob, Rabbit and Parmesan Cheese

Today Steve and I went to the Farmers Market in Epsom as I love going to food markets. The market is on the 1st Sunday of every month. It’s quite a small market, with maybe around 20 stalls. The majority of stalls sell meat and you can pick up the more unusual cuts and types of meat that supermarkets don’t have. For example, we bought a whole rabbit for £5, which I’m excited about cooking as I’ve never tried it before. I’m going to make Stifado (Greek stew) as Steve’s sister bought us a seasoning pack on her last holiday to Halkidiki.

There were other stalls selling cheese, fruit and vegetables, bread and cakes, honey, eggs and olives. Most of the stalls had taster samples, so we tried some South African sausages (which were nice) and some bacon (which was not so nice!).

I bought some hard Italian type cheese which is like Parmesan, so hopefully that will be nice as it cost £3.50 for 200g. I’ve just checked the name of the cheese and it’s called Twineham Grange Farmers’ Hand and it’s made by Bookhams Fine Food in Sussex. It was mentioned on the Hairy Bikers Food Tour of Britain when they visited East Sussex. On the show the makers said they’re not allowed to call it Parmesan, so they called it Farmers’ Hand because if you say it quickly it sounds like Parmesan! But they’re rebranding it now to “Not Just A Pasta Cheese” to encourage people to eat it in various ways. Apparently it’s sweeter and more palatable than real Parmesan, but I will be first trying it in a Spaghetti Carbonara, so we shall see!
Update on the cheese – I’ve tried it in a risotto, cauliflower cheese and dauphinois potatoes and it’s just as good as real Parmesan!

Anyway, I bought a bag of carrots for £1, 3 leeks for £1 and 4 corn on the cobs for £1.

I didn’t get to pick my own corn, so I ended up getting a mixed bag of different shapes and sizes. Two of them weren’t fully grown and the biggest one had deformed looking kernels. There was only one that looked ‘supermarket worthy’, but would it taste any better than the ugly ones?


Well I have to say that they all tasted pretty much the same. They were nice and sweet, probably due to being picked recently. It was quite satisfying removing the husks and silks just before cooking. I placed them in a pan and covered with cold water (I didn’t add salt as this makes the corn tough). I brought the water to the boil, then boiled them for 5 minutes, until it was easy to remove a kernel from the end. Then simply smother with butter and a good grinding of black pepper and enjoy!

The Farmers Market in Epsom is on the First Sunday of every month. Opening hours: Sun 9am-1.30pm

Focaccia with Mozzarella (and pesto)

MUNCH RATING: 3/5

This recipe is from BBC Good Food – I had the mozzarella but I didn’t have the pesto! The bread was easy to make, but it was a bit bland as the cheese didn’t have any flavour and I really wished I’d had the pesto! I should have put some caramelised onions, herbs or roasted cherry tomatoes on top – that’s for next time! This dough would make a good pizza base though as it had a really nice texture.

Ingredients:

• 500g strong white bread flour, plus some for dusting
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• 7g sachet fast-action yeast (I used 1 tsp Doves Farm Quick Yeast)
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for drizzling
• 125g ball mozzarella , drained
• 5 Tbsp pesto

Directions:

1. Put the flour into a bowl and mix in the salt. Mix the yeast into 325ml tepid water. Add the water and oil to the flour, then mix well with a plastic scraper or your hands. When most of the liquid is incorporated, use your hands to bring all the ingredients together into a ball of dough.
2. Tip the dough out onto a worktop lightly dusted with flour and work it by pulling and stretching for at least 10 mins. Try to get as much air into it as possible. Put the ball of worked dough into a well-oiled bowl, cover with a little more oil and a tea towel or cling film. Leave to rest for 1 hr or so in a non-draughty warm spot, until doubled in size.
3. Now stretch the dough out onto a baking sheet until it's about 20 x 30cm. Leave the dough to rise again to about half as high again, about 30-40 mins in a warm draught-free place, loosely covered with a tea towel.
4. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. When the dough has risen, press your fingers into it gently to make some holes. Bake for about 15 mins, then remove from the oven. Tear over the mozzarella, then bake for another 5-10 mins until golden and cooked through. Drizzle over the pesto and scatter with sea salt, if you like. Serve straight away.

Leek, Pea and Bacon Pasta Bake

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

This is one of those speedy suppers that doesn’t require any effort! The result is a really comforting dish of sweet leeks and peas, meaty bacon, pasta and a creamy cheese sauce – yum!

You will need: a large frying pan, a large saucepan

Ingredients:

• 3-6 rashers of bacon, chopped
• 1 leek, finely sliced into rings
• 1 Tablespoon oil
• 140g frozen peas
• 300g pasta shapes
• 200g tub of soft cream cheese (I used Tesco Value, only 45p!)
• 85g mature cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 teaspoon mustard (I used Dijon)
• black pepper

Directions:

1. Boil the pasta in plenty of salted, boiling water.
2. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in the oil until it is crispy and then add the leeks and gently fry for 10 minutes until they are soft.
3. Add the peas and gently fry until they’re heated through, about 3 minutes.
4. Reserve 150ml of the cooking water when you drain the pasta. Add this water, the cream cheese, half of the grated cheese and the mustard to the leeks and bacon. Stir until the cheese melts into a creamy sauce. Then stir in the pasta. Scatter the other half of the cheese over the top.
5. Heat the grill to high, then grill your pasta bake for 2-3 minutes until the cheese has melted and turned golden brown.

Pasta Bake

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

This is basically like a lasagne, but instead of using lasagne sheets you use cooked tagliatelle, so it is much quicker to cook as it is just flashed under the grill. I’ve made dishes like this before with a mince beef tomato sauce, but the addition of the wine really makes a difference, as do the herbs and nutmeg, so they are well worth buying.

• Serves: 4
• You will need: an ovenproof dish about 9 x 9 inches

Ingredients:

• 225g (8oz) minced beef
• 2 Tablespoons oil
• 50g (2oz) lean bacon, chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 small carrot, grated
• 2 Tablespoons red or white wine
• 65ml (2½ fl.oz) stock
• salt and pepper
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 medium tin tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons tomato puree
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• bay leaf
• 100g (4oz) dried tagliatelle
• 450ml (¾ pint) Béchamel sauce*
• 100g (4oz) grated cheese

Directions:

1. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a saucepan, add the bacon and cook until golden brown.
2. Add the onion and carrot and cook slowly until soft and transparent.
3. Stir in the minced beef and cook until the meat changes colour.
4. Add the wine, stock, salt and pepper, nutmeg, tomatoes, tomato puree, garlic and bay leaf. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for approximately 45 minutes.
5. Cook the tagliatelle in boiling salted water with the remaining Tablespoon of oil. Drain well.
6. Place a layer of meat mixture in an ovenproof dish, cover with a layer of tagliatelle, then a layer of Béchamel sauce and then a layer of grated cheese. Repeat these layers finishing with a layer of cheese.
7. Brown under a hot grill or in the top of a hot oven Gas mark 7/425°F/220°C.

* Make the sauce using 450ml (¾ pint) milk, 40g (1½oz) butter and 40g (1½oz) flour.

Leek and Bacon Quiche

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

I’ve never made a quiche before and even though I like Quiche Lorraine, I thought I’d do something a bit different by making a Leek and Bacon one.
I made some shortcrust pastry which was really easy to do and the recipe below makes enough pastry for 2 quiches if using an 8-inch flan tin.
Steve and I did like this quiche a lot as the pastry was really nice and the filling didn’t taste too eggy, but we were discussing different fillings and agreed next time I’ll make a Breakfast Quiche with sausage, bacon and mushrooms. I’d like to add some cherry tomatoes but Steve wasn’t keen on that idea, so I’ll add caramelised onions instead.

• Makes: 1 quiche but enough pastry for 2
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C then Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C
• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Cooking time: 1 hour
• You will need: an 8-inch flan tin

Ingredients for the Shortcrust Pastry:

• 225g plain flour
• 55g butter, cold
• 55g lard, cold
• approx. 9 teaspoons water

Directions for the pastry:

1. Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a mixing bowl.
2. Cut the fat into small pieces and add to the flour. Rub the fat into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. If you shake the bowl, any big lumps of fat should rise to the surface, so you need to rub these in.
3. Make a well in the centre, then add the water and using a round bladed/palette knife, mix into a firm dough. Don’t force the mixture together, if you need to add another teaspoon of water to bring together the dry bits at the bottom of the bowl then that’s fine.
4. There is no need to chill this dough, so you can roll it out and use it straight away or store it in the freezer for another time.
5. You only need half the amount of pastry for 1 quiche, so split it in half and freeze whatever you don’t need - if you have a spare flan tin then it’s ideal if you line that tin with the pastry and then pop the whole thing in the freezer, then it’s ready to use for next time!
6. Preheat the oven to Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C.
7. Roll out your pastry to 2-3mm thick and use it to line an 8-inch flan tin, pressing it into the flutes, then neatly trim away the excess with a knife. If your tin has a lip then make sure it is covered with pastry as when it bakes it will shrink. Then line the tin with some greaseproof paper and fill with a layer of baking beans and bake blind for 15 minutes, it should be pale golden brown. Remove the baking beans and the paper and return the pastry to the oven for about 5 minutes to dry out the base.

Ingredients for the filling:

• 2 medium sized leeks
• 25g butter
• 2-3 rashers of bacon, grilled and cut into pieces
• 75g mature cheddar cheese, grated
• 2 large eggs
• 150ml double cream (I used Elmlea)
• salt and black pepper
• pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions for the filling:

1. Trim the leeks, discarding the dark green part. Wash the white part of the leeks and slice thinly into rings.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the leeks and mix well. Season with salt and black pepper. Cover with a piece of damp greaseproof paper and a lid and sweat the leeks until they are tender. Stir in the bacon.
3. Place the leek and bacon into the blind-baked pastry case and sprinkle on the cheese.
4. Whisk the eggs with the cream, salt and cayenne pepper. Pour the liquid into the pastry case, being careful not to overfill it (you might not need all of it).
5. Place in the top third of your oven and cook for 10 minutes at Gas mark 6/400°F/200°C , then reduce the temperature to Gas mark 4/350°F/180°C and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Serve hot or warm.

I served the quiche with Vichy Carrots: allow one large carrot per person and peel and cut them into even sized batons. Place in a fairly small saucepan and add a generous knob of butter, a pinch of sugar and some salt and pepper. Add enough water to the carrots so that they are barely covered, then boil rapidly for about 10-15 minutes, until the carrots are tender and the water has evaporated so that you are left with a lovely buttery glaze.

Homemade Pizza

MUNCH RATING: 3/5

It’s been a while since my last attempt at cooking with dough (Chelsea Buns in March) and I thought I’d try something a bit simpler, so I found this pizza recipe on the BBC Good Food website.

The dough was incredibly easy to make and had a really good texture, so I’ll definitely be making it again. I imagine these would taste even better if cooked on a pizza stone!

This might seem like a really long recipe, but so many things can be prepared in advance and apparently the dough can be frozen.

The original recipe called for passata for the sauce, but I didn’t have any and we had some tomatoes that had gone soft, so I used those instead to make my own sauce. Unfortunately my basil hasn’t grown big enough otherwise I would have added some! I would of also added garlic, but I’d run out! Plus I was making this pizza with Steve’s mum in mind and as she doesn’t like garlic I was trying to make it as plain as possible. She doesn’t normally like pizza as she doesn’t like the tomato sauce, but she tried some of my sauce and said it was very nice! I had some sauce leftover and this was great mixed with some creme fraiche to make a sauce for pasta.

I also added lots of extra topping ingredients as I find margherita a bit boring!

• Makes: 2 pizzas
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 8/450°F/230°C
• You will need: a large bowl, 2 baking sheets plus 1 in the oven
• Prep Time: 25 mins plus time if you let the dough rise
• Cook Time: 10-15 mins per pizza

Ingredients For The Base:

• 300g strong bread flour
• 1 tsp instant yeast (I used Tesco’s Fast Action Dried Yeast)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 200ml warm water

Ingredients For My Sauce:

• 2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes
• 3 large tomatoes, quartered
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 100ml vegetable stock
• 1 Tablespoon tomato ketchup
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Black pepper to season

Ingredients For The Topping:

• 125g ball mozzarella, chopped into small pieces
• 100g mature cheddar cheese, grated
• 4 mushrooms, sliced
• 2 sweet orange peppers, sliced
• cooked Cajun chicken, chopped into small pieces*

Directions:
1. Make The Dough: Put the flour into a large bowl, then stir in the yeast and salt. Make a well, pour in 200ml warm water and the olive oil and bring together with a wooden spoon until you have a soft, fairly wet dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 mins until smooth. Lightly oil the bowl before you put the dough back into it, then cover with a tea towel and set aside. You can leave the dough to rise if you like, but it's not essential for a thin crust. (I left my dough to rise and the middle photo shows it after 1 hour and the photo on the right is after 2.5 hours).

2. Make the sauce: Put all the sauce ingredients into a saucepan and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down and the stock has reduced and you have a nice thick sauce. Pass through a sieve to strain out the tomato skins. Leave to stand at room temperature whilst you make the base.
3. Roll out the dough: If you've let the dough rise, give it a quick knead, then split into two balls. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into large rounds, about 25cm across, using a rolling pin. The dough needs to be very thin as it will rise in the oven. Lift the rounds onto two floured baking sheets.
4. Top and bake: Heat oven to Gas mark 8/450°F/230°C. Put another baking sheet or an upturned baking tray in the oven on the top shelf. Smooth sauce over bases with the back of a spoon. Scatter with your toppings (drizzle with olive oil and season). Put one pizza, still on its baking sheet, on top of the preheated sheet or tray. Bake for 8-10 mins until crisp (mine took between 10-15 mins as I made my bases quite thick). Repeat step for remaining pizza.
* To make the Cajun chicken I took the skin off and deboned 2 small chicken thighs and marinated in 1 Tablespoon olive oil and 1 Tablespoon of Cajun seasoning (I used Bart’s). Then I cooked in a George Foreman grill for about 5 minutes so it was crispy and charred as if it had been on the BBQ!
You might also be interested in:

• Calzone and Dough Balls
• New and improved pizza!

Fish Pie

MUNCH RATING: 2/5

All the recipes I had for fish pie were for 6 to 8 people, so I've made a recipe to serve 2 which is easy to double/triple. I made individual pies using little tapas dishes.

They are an ideal dish to prepare in advance, as you make them and then refrigerate overnight. If you do this then I would let them come to room temperature before baking in the oven.

I used salmon and white fish, but some nice smoked haddock would be great in this too. If we'd had some small cooked prawns I would have added those too, but times are hard so we can't afford that luxury!

I served the pies with Creamy Cheesy Leeks which uses some of the white sauce for the pies and they're really delicious.

• Serves: 2
• Oven temperature: Gas mark 5/375°F/190°C moderate/hot
• You will need: 2 oven proof dishes that can each hold 1/2 pint (250ml) 

Ingredients:
FOR THE FILLING 

• 250ml (1 cup) milk
• 25g (1 oz) butter
• 25g (1 oz) flour
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped - green and white parts separated
• 250g (9 oz) fish (I used 2 salmon portions with skins removed and 1 portion thin white fish)
• Salt and pepper

FOR THE POTATO TOPPING

• 500g (17 oz) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1cm dice
• 25g (1 oz) butter
• 2 Tablespoons milk
• Salt and pepper 25g (1 oz) grated cheddar cheese (optional) 

Directions:

1. First make the potato topping: Boil the potatoes in water until soft and tender. Drain then mash with the butter and milk over a low heat. Stir in the green parts of the spring onions. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Now poach the fish: Pour the milk into a pan and bring to the boil. Add the fish and gently simmer for about 5 minutes, until just cooked. Lift the fish onto a plate to cool slightly and reserve the hot milk. Break the fish into large chunks, putting them into your dishes.
3. Next make the white sauce: Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the flour. Cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add the reserved hot milk a little at a time, constantly stirring and simmer for about 5 minutes until you have a smooth, thick sauce. Add the white part of the spring onion. Allow the sauce to cool for a few minutes before mixing in the egg yolk. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Pour the sauce over the fish, reserving about 4 Tablespoons for the leeks. (If you're using prawns then you would add then at this stage).
5. Assemble your pies: spread the mashed potato on top of the pies and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Put the pies onto a baking sheet and bake them for 15-20 minutes until the piping hot and they are nice and golden brown.

CREAMY CHEESY LEEKS:

1. Wash 2 medium leeks, cut in half lengthways and then slice thinly into half-moons.
2. Melt a knob of butter in a pan and add the leeks. Gently fry until coated in the butter and then add a splash of water. Fry the leeks until nicely softened.
3. Add the reserved white sauce and a handful of grated cheese and mix well. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

PHOTOGRAPHY UPDATE: I used my new Photo Tent to take this photo and used 2 bedside lamps. I'm quite pleased with the result, but I am going to buy some angled desk lamps with trumpet bulbs as they produce white light (5000k daylight balanced neutral colour). Credit goes to Steve for a little Photoshop airbrushing!

Mac 'n' cheese, chilli bake with butternut squash

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

I had some leftover chili that Steve had cooked and some roasted butternut squash in the fridge and this is something I threw together. I wasn't going to blog it but Steve insisted it was so nice that I should write about it, so I've done my best to remember the quantities, but really it is a dish you can play around with. The roasted butternut squash on the top is really the concept we want to share as it's a surprisingly good addition because it adds so much natural sweetness.
Credit goes to Steve for the photo - I was too busy eating!

• Serves: 2 generously
• You will need: small but deep baking dish (I used a 9 x 5 x 3 inch silicone loaf pan)

Ingredients:

• 225g/8oz macaroni
• About 1 cup leftover chilli
• About 3/4 pint cheese sauce
• About 1 cup of roasted butternut squash

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to Gas Mark 7/425°F/220°C.
2. Cook macaroni until just al dente then drain well.
3. Mix half of the cooked macaroni with the chilli and spoon into a baking dish.
4. Mix the other half of the macaroni with the cheese sauce and spoon on top of the meaty pasta.
5. Scatter the roasted butternut squash over the top.
6. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the cheese is slightly golden.

Arancini (Rice Balls)

MUNCH RATING: 4/5

I used proper risotto rice for this attempt at Arancini and I'm really pleased with the result. I decided on the conical shape after watching a video on Youtube of someone making arancini and I thought it looked more appealing than just a round ball. I also found that when it came to cooking them, I had more control to get them evenly brown on all sides, rather than them rolling around in the oil.
Making arancini from scratch takes some time and preparation, but it is ideal if you have leftover risotto, which means you can pick up this recipe from step 3.
This amount makes 8 Arancini Balls, so perfect to serve as a starter with a Roasted Red Pepper sauce (recipe to follow). I managed to eat 2 with my dinner, but Steve ate 5 so you may need to double the quantity if you're cooking for people with healthy appetites!
Next time I want to try stuffing them with meaty bolognese - yum!

You will need:

• Saucepan to cook the risotto
• 1 small bowl for the beaten egg
• 1 medium bowl for the breadcrumbs
• Medium saucepan with about 2 inches of hot oil
• 1 baking sheet to keep cooked arancini warm in the oven

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups risotto rice, e.g. arborio
• 3 cups hot stock (you may need an additional 1 cup stock)
• 8 mini mozzarella balls or chunks cut about 2cm cube
• 1 egg, beaten
• About 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (or normal breadcrumbs)
• For added flavour you can add 1/2 cup parmesan to the breadcrumbs

Directions:

1. Cook the risotto rice until it is nice and tender, but not mushy. I used a Mushroom and Herb flavoured risotto to give it more flavour.
2. Allow the risotto to completely cool and then put it in the fridge.
3. When you're ready to make your arancini, remove the cooked rice from the fridge. Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/180°C/350°F.
4. Heat the oil in the saucepan until a few breadcrumbs dropped in the oil sizzle and go brown within a few seconds.
5. Have the beaten egg ready in a small bowl and the breadcrumbs ready in a medium bowl.
6. Divide the risotto into 8 portions. Wet your hands and take 1 portion and shape it with both hands into a hollow cone with the pointed end at the bottom. Place a piece of mozzarella in the middle and then seal the hole with the rice, creating a flat bottom. Put your arancini on a plate whilst you shape the rest of the rice.
7. One by one, dip the arancini into the egg and then the breadcrumbs, making sure they are well coated. I like to put a small amount of breadcrumbs in the bowl and then add more as I complete each arancini. This prevents all your breadcrumbs becoming all glued together as they come into contact with the egg.
8. When the oil is ready, carefully place 2 to 3 arancini into the oil and cook for about 4-5 minutes, turning so that they are nicely golden brown on all sides.
9. When they are ready, place them on a baking sheet and pop them into the preheated oven to keep warm whilst you cook the rest.
10. When ready to serve, rest them on paper towels to soak up any excess oil before plating up.

Lazy Sunday Roast Dinner with Roasted Broccoli

Back in the UK Steve's mum always cooks us a lovely roast dinner on Sundays and then we usually spend the rest of the day being complete coach potatoes. So even though the food out in SF is great and special ingredients are easily obtainable, nothing quite beats a Roast Dinner for pure comfort food (although I could quite happily sit and eat a big bowl of mashed potatoes!).

The first time I made Roast Dinner in the apartment it was a bit stressful because we only have 1 shelf in the oven, so I had to juggle a few different baking trays to get everything to be ready at the same time. But I now have this great new method which is so much easier and I can sit back and relax whilst it cooks away in the hotbox.

Also, here is a fantastic recipe for Roasted Broccoli (yes really!) by Alton Brown. It's perfect to serve with roast dinner as you've already got the oven on, you just need to crank it up once everything else is cooked. Being Chinese I've grown up with my parents cooking vegetables perfectly al dente in stir fries etc, so I find nothing worse than overcooked broccoli which has no flavour and the texture of a soggy sponge. This method of roasting broccoli ensures you have perfectly cooked broccoli and none of the vitamins are lost through boiling - bonus! OK so dumping a load of cheese on top probably negates any of the health benefits, but trust me the cheese really makes this so good! I haven't tried it with the panko breadcrumbs yet so will let you know if it's any good!

• Serves 2
  
• Oven temperature: Gas 6/200C/400F
• You will need: Large baking dish/tray about 13 x 9 inches and a baking sheet
  
• Prep time: 10-15 minutes
• Cooking time: 45-50 minutes plus 8-10 minutes for the broccoli
  

Ingredients:

• 2 large Chicken Thighs, bone in and skin on
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped into sticks
• 2 or 3 large floury potatoes, peeled and cut into walnut-sized pieces (Russets or Maris Pipers are good)
• 5 or 6 garlic cloves, peeled and slightly smashed
• Salt and pepper
• Herbs & spices of your choice (I used a ready-made Italian Seasoning mix grinder)
• Some olive or vegetable oil
• 2 small heads of broccoli, florets cut into bitesize pieces and stalks cut into batons
• A large handful of grated cheese (I used Monterey)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to Gas 6/200C/400F.
2. Season the chicken and arrange in the baking dish skin side up.
   
3. Mix the oil and your seasoning in a large bowl, add the potatoes and thoroughly coat. Add the potatoes to the baking dish in their own section. Do the same for the carrots.
4. Evenly distribute the garlic around the chicken, potatoes and carrots.
   
5. Put the dish in the hot oven and roast for 45-50 minutes, occasionally turning the potatoes and carrots, until the chicken is completely cooked. About halfway through cooking you might have a pool of oil in the dish as the chicken skin renders the fat, so collect this and save it to use on the broccoli.
   
6. Remove from the oven and cover with foil to keep warm.
7. Now crank up the oven to Gas 7/220C/425F to cook the broccoli.
8. Place the broccoli into a mixing bowl and toss with your reserved oil from the baking dish (or drizzle with some olive oil and seasoning) and then spread the broccoli out on a baking sheet.
9. Roast in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until just tender. (Whilst this is cooking you can make your gravy). Sprinkle the cheese on the broccoli and melt under the grill/broiler (I usually turn this on so I can make the chicken skin and roast potatoes even crispier!).

TASTY TIP:
Serve up the garlic! Even though it has imparted a lot of flavour to the chicken, carrots and potatoes during cooking, it has a lovely flavour when eaten whole and isn't too strong - trust me I ate some thinking it was potato and was pleasantly surprised!

Fish gratin

We had some half-fat creme fraiche to use up so I found this recipe from a magazine and tweaked it to make it healthier (omitted some of the butter and used semi-skimmed milk instead of full-cream) and use up what we had in the fridge/freezer.

Serves 2

Ingredients
White Sauce:

• 30g butter
• 30g plain flour
• 300ml semi-skimmed milk heated for 1 min in the microwave
• Handful of mature cheddar cheese
• 3 tbsp half-fat creme fraiche
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste

Main:

• Some cauliflower and broccoli florets cut into bitesize pieces (original recipe used spinach)
• Knob of butter
• Some indiscriminate frozen white fish, thawed (original recipe used thick pieces of haddock fillet)

Directions

1. Make a white sauce by melting the butter in a small saucepan, then add the flour and cook over a medium heat for 1 minute until the flour and butter have combined to make a roux.
2. Gradually pour in the warm milk, little by little, and beat until smooth after each addition.
3. Bring to the boil, stirring, and simmer very gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Meanwhile, blanch the vegetables in boiling water, drain, set aside and keep warm.
   
5. Heat the grill to high. Put the small knob of butter in a gratin dish and melt under the grill.
6. Add the fish pieces and coat them in the melted butter, then season.
7. Cook the fish under the grill for 2-4 minutes until half cooked (this will depend on how thick your fish is).
8. Lift the fish onto a plate and keep the grill on.
9. Spoon the cooked vegetables over the base of the gratin dish and put the fish on top.
10. Stir half of the cheese and all of the creme fraiche into the sauce and season to taste with cayenne and/or mustard, salt and pepper.
    
11. Pour the sauce over the fish and sprinkle with the remaining cheese and more cayenne.
12. Slide the dish back under the grill for a further 4-5 mins until the gratin is golden brown and bubbling.