Fish and Chips

It is a lot easier and cheaper to buy them, but far more healthy and satisfying to make them yourself.

Serves 2

Chips:

500g Potatoes, peeled

4 cloves Garlic, unpeeled

4 sprigs Thyme

Olive Oil to drizzle

Slice potatoes into 1cm chips and parboil for 5 min or until just tender. Drain and pat dry with a tea towel. Place on a preheated oven tray, drizzle with olive oil, season and scatter over garlic and thyme. Bake at 200C for 15-20 min or until crisp and golden. 

Fish:

2 Cod Fillets (or other white fish)

75g Flour

1 Egg, beaten

75g Breadcrumbs 

4 tbsp Olive Oil

Put flour on one plate and season. Put egg on a second plate and bread crumbs on a third. Heat oil. Dip fillets into the flour, then the egg and then the breadcrumbs, ensuring n even coating of each and fry for 5 min until golden brown and crisp all over, turning once. Drain on paper towels and serve with the chips and salad. 

Chocolate Orange Meringue Pie

This pie is disgustingly rich; not for the faint tastebudded.

Short Sweet Pastry:

1 Egg 

50g Icing Sugar

125g Butter, softened

1/4 tsp Salt

200g Flour

Beat egg and sugar until well mixed. Beat in butter, don't worry if it looks a little curdled. Sift in flour and salt and mix well. Knead together, wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 30 min. Roll out on floured surface and line pie dish with 2 cm extra around edge. Fold this back over to make a double thick edge and flute by pressing between thumb and index and middle fingers. 

Prick pastry and line with 3 layers of tin foil pressed firmly into base of pie. 

Bake for 10 min at 180C, remove tinfoil and bake another 5 min. Cool and remove from pie dish before filling. 

Filling:

300ml Cream

250g Dark Chocolate

4 tbsp Squeezed Orange Juice (about 3 oranges)

3 Egg Whites

1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar

150g Caster Sugar

Warm cream, remove from heat and add broken chocolate. Stir until melted, combined and smooth. Stir in orange juice, mix well and cool in fridge for 30 min or until beginning to set. Beat with electric mixer until thick and beginning to form. Pour into pie base.

Create meringue by beating egg whites and cream of tartar until peaks form. Gradually add sugar and beat until thick and glossy and the sugar has dissolved. 

Spread over pie and bake until light golden brown. Set in fridge for at least 1 hour. 

Strawberry Yoghurt and Cream Pie

I fucking love pie. This will be the first of many pie posts. Why don't we love pie as much as the Americans do? We should.

Short Sweet Pastry:

1 Egg

50g Icing Sugar

125g Butter, softened

1/4 tsp Salt

200g Flour

Beat egg and sugar until well mixed. Beat in butter. It may look a little curdled and unpleasant at this point but don't fret, the flour will fix it. Sift in flour and salt and mix well. Knead together, wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 30 min. Roll out on a floured surface and line a pie dish leaving 2cm of overhang. fold this over to create a double thick edge and flute by pressing between thumb and index and middle fingers. 

Prick pastry and line with 3 layers of tin foil pressed firmly into the base. 

Bake at 180C for 10 min, remove foil and continue to bake util edges are golden brown. Cool completely and remove from pie dish before filling.

Filling:

85g Strawberry Jelly

1 1/4 cups Boiling Water

1 cup Strawberry Yoghurt

1/4 cup Honey

2 cups Strawberries, sliced

250ml Cream, whipped

Combine jelly crystals and water and stir until dissolved. Beat in honey and yoghurt. Chill in freezer for 30 min or until partially set. Beat for 2 min with electric mixer and fold in strawberries. Pour into crust and chill for at least 2 hours. 

Coat the top with whipped cream and garnish with strawberries and mint. 

Peanut Butter Cups

Everyone knows that chocolate and peanut butter were created to be together; a match made in fat heaven. Reeces know it, M&Ms and Whittakers know it. Now you can blend these two beautiful things together in elegant little cups just perfect for showing off and/or making people sick.

250g Milk Chocolate

1 Tbsp Butter

24 Mini Cupcake or Confectionery Cups

3/4 cup Smooth Peanut Butter

3/4 cup Icing Sugar

1 Tbsp Butter, melted

Melt the chocolate and the butter in a bowl over a saucepan of water. Use a pastry brush and coat the inside of the cups. This does not have to be even but should be reasonably thick so as to hold together. Allow cups to set. 

Combine the peanut butter, icing sugar and melted butter. Roll into small balls, place in the cups and then flatten slightly. Leave a gap of about 3mm at the top of each one. Coat the tops with the remaining melted chocolate and allow to set. 

I had a little filling left over (and a new cake decorating set to test out) so I added some more icing sugar and a dash of hot water and made a simple icing to decorate the tops with. 

Choc Chip Marshmellow Cookies

A few nights ago there was a bit of a storm; the only logical thing to do was make cookies. Lots of cookies. This recipe makes about 3 dozen so halve the ingredients if you only want a few.

180g Butter, melted then cooled

1 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 cup Sugar

1 Egg + 1 Yolk

2 tsp Vanilla Essence

2 cups + 2 tbsp Flour

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

3/4 cup Chocolate Chips 

3/4 cup Mini Marshmellows

Beat together butter and sugars and then beat in egg, yolk and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and salt. Fold into wet mixture until just combined. Mix in choc chips and marshmellows. Roll into small balls, place on baking tray and flatten gently with the back of a spoon. The mixture does seem a bit wetter than cookie dough usually is but it is perfect and chewy once cooked.

Bake cookies for about 10 minutes at 180C or until the edges are golden brown and the centre still soft. 

Spaghetti and Meatballs with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Using fresh tomatoes for this is really only good in spring or summer when they become cheap. In the cooler months, use tinned tomatoes or just buy a tomato pasta sauce. 

Meatballs:

500g Mince

1/4 cup Breadcrumbs

1 Egg, beaten

1 clove Garlic, finely chopped

1/2 Onion, diced

2 Tbsp Fresh Coriander, chopped

Salt and Pepper to season

Sauce:

1/2 Onion, diced

2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 kg Tomatoes, roughly chopped

5-6 large leaves Fresh Basil, roughly chopped

1 tsp Fresh Thyme

2 Tbsp Fresh Oregano or 1 Tbsp Dried

1 Tbsp Brown Sugar

Mix mince, breadcrumbs, garlic, onion and coriander together. Season and add egg, mixing with hands. Roll into about 16 balls, cover and chill for at least half an hour. 

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large pan, soften garlic and onion then add tomatoes and allow to gently fry over a medium heat. Put your spaghetti or preferred pasta on now, about half a packet. 

When pasta is cooked, pour a cupful of the water over the tomatoes (the starch works as a thickening agent) along with basil, thyme, oregano and sugar. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain your pasta, cool under cold water, drain again ad leave aside. 

Heat olive oil in a pan and lightly brown your meatballs all over before adding them to the sauce. Season generously and simmer uncovered over a medium-high heat for 20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked though. 

Add pasta and mix through sauce for 2 minutes to reheat and then serve.

Dark Chocolate Mousse

This is a very rich mousse that got me in the good books with my flatties last night. And made me unable to go on the spinning rides at the Guy Fawks due to it being incredibly rich. Totally worth it.

Serves 4 - 6

150g Mini Marshmellows

50g Butter

250g Dark Chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)

60ml Hot Water

280ml Cream

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Put marshmellows, butter, chocolate and water into a saucepan over a low heat until melted, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. 

Whip cream with vanilla until thick and fold into the chocolate mixture. Mix until combined and smooth. Pour into glasses or ramekins and chill until ready to eat. I went a little bit posh and used martini glasses. You can also put a little berry jam or dessert topping in the bottom of the glass to add some extra flavour. Sprinkle cocoa or icing sugar and shaved chocolate on top before serving. 

Baseless Quiche

Sometimes I'm just not in the mood for pastry, or I can't be bothered making it, but I still want quiche. Tada! Quiche with no base. Kind of like a giant omelette...

Serves 4

4 Eggs

1 1/2 cups Milk

3 Tbsp Butter, melted

1/2 cup Self-Raising Flour

1 1/2 cups Cheese, grated

2 rashers Bacon, sliced

1 Red Pepper, chopped

1 Onion, diced

1 clove Garlic, finely chopped

1 Tomato

You can take creative license with the fillings. It is also delicious with spinach, feta and mushrooms or with chorizo instead of bacon. It's also a good way to use up the leftover meat and veg from a roast. 

Lightly fry bacon, onion, garlic and capsicum. 

In a bowl whisk together eggs, milk, butter and flour. Fold in cheese and fillings and season to taste. Pour into a 24cm pie or casserole dish (not a pie dish with a removable bottom like I almost did, forgetting I had no base) and lay thin slices of tomato on top. 

Bake at 180C for 40 mins or until set and golden brown on top. Serve hot or cold with salad. 

Cowboy Hash

This is great if you want to make a show off, epic breakfast or, if you're like me, and find a childish delight in having breakfast for dinner. Nom. 

Serves 2 on it's own or 4 as a side

800g Potatoes, cubed (about 2cm)

4 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 Large Red Onion, sliced 1cm wedges

2 or 3 Chorizos, cut into chunks

2 tsp Thyme

1 tsp Chilli, finely chopped

2 Tbsp Fresh Coriander Leaves

Bring potatoes to boil and let boil for 5 minutes then drain. Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large pan and cook onion over medium heat until softened. Add chorizo and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Lift onion and chorizo out of pan and put to the side. 

Add remaining oil, potatoes and thyme and cook over medium high heat until crispy. 

Return the onion and chorizo to pan with the chilli and cook for 2 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper and fresh coriander (or parsley if you prefer). This goes great with bacon, eggs and toast and is guaranteed to cure any hangover. 

Lolly Cake Balls

Everyone loves lolly cake. It's what our mums used to get us whenever they dragged us into some cafe so they could sit around being boring with their friends. Just like goody gumdrops ice cream, it was two treats in one - cake and candy! Also, it is ridiculously easy to make.

All you need is:

250g Malt Biscuits, crushed

50g Butter, melted

200ml Condensed Milk

100g (ish) Fruit Puffs or Eskimos, roughly chopped

Dessicated Coconut

Now, this would be a lot easier if I could find the lid for my food processor... but I can't so I will have to resort to putting the biscuits in a plastic bag (double bag in case of splitting) and bashing them with a bottle (thank you Jameson). 

As you can see my biscuit crumbs are still a little chunky but not to worry, I just give them a blitz with a stick blender after I add the wet ingredients. 

Mix the butter and condensed milk in with the crushed biscuits. If the mixture is too dry, add more melted butter 25g at a time until moist and easy to combine. Then add your lollies. As many as you can get into the mix, or as few if that's what you prefer. 

Now all that's left is to roll the mix into small balls, roll them though the coconut and put in the fridge for an hour or so until set. If you prefer, this recipe works just as well as a slice, just roll into a log or press into a cake tin, cover in coconut and set before slicing. 

Lamb Meatballs with Cumin Rub

This recipe comes from Cuisine magazine and is basically perfect. Though it does allow for some playing with the spices for the rub and the method of serving. I like to have them on a plate with a yoghurt dipping sauce or in a wrap or pita bread with seasonal salad and greek yoghurt.

Serves 4

Meatballs:
800g lamb mince
2 cloves garlic, crushed with 1 tsp salt*
1 tsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large egg

Mix all ingredients in a bowl (I like to put on some gloves and use my hands, so much easier). Form into oval  balls of about 45g each, cover and leave in the fridge to set for at least 1 hour.

Rub:
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp sea salt
To spice things up, add 1 tsp of paprika and/or 1 tsp of chilli powder

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Lightly roll meatballs through mix and gently massage into surface. Leave to sit at room temperature for 30 mins.

Cook on a pre-heated and oiled pan or BBQ plate until golden brown and just cooked through.

I like to serve with a yoghurt sauce which can be used for dipping or a filling for wraps or pitas. Simply mix together 1/2 cup greek yoghurt, 50g finely diced cucumber and 1 Tbsp mint sauce or finely chopped mint. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

* Crushing your own garlic is easy! Simply chop finely then cover with a decent pinch of salt and press onto chopping board with the flat of your knife until a paste forms. Doing this as the first prep for a meal will also get the garlic flavour to spread over all the veges you chop on your board.

Food = good

In biblical times, "breaking bread" was a term used literally; nobody had cutlery, let alone bread knives, and bread was literally torn apart to be shared. In antiquity, bread was considered so essential to the maintenance of human life that the sharing of it became an important and complex social act. Rituals formed and evolved as to who would be the first at a table to break bread, and about the sharing of bread with friends, strangers, or even enemies. In fact, this food staple, and the rituals surrounding it, were deemed so important that the bible contains no less than 600 references to bread and the koran no less than 80.

Today, breaking bread is generally used to describe the sharing of food in a comfortable, social situation and is often accompanied by wine and conversation; both of which vary greatly in quality. The sharing of a meal forms the central element of most social situations from casual dinners to holiday celebrations to mating rituals. Global trends are forever developing and reemerging in the world of food and it plays an enormous role in the economy and entertainment sectors. Like the modern social networks of today, food bridges culture, spanning the globe and bringing flavors, traditions and techniques from one country to another seamlessly. Not only is it essential for all human life, but food has become one of life's  greatest and most diverse sources of pleasure. The point I'm making here is that everyone, from the Good Lord to the Sith Lord, loves to eat. 

This new blog stems from my decision to cook at least one new thing every week in order to become an excellent cook alongside the fact that finding recipes online is a pain in the butt. Hundreds of websites offer hundreds of versions of a recipe, all of which are slightly different and in order to use them you must sift through and apply a basic understanding of kitchen chemistry to find one that may or may not turn out great. And cook books are expensive. I recently bought a Gordon Ramsay (god of the foods!) cook book just to find that most of the ingredients are not readily accessible to me and I have to modify most of the recipes anyway. So, my aim is to provide a few recipes that I have tested and adapted already for your convenience in the hope that I can take a little of the frustration out of cooking. After all, cooking should be more fun than frustrating.