Sticky Satay Chicken

The authentic Satay marinade is the key part of this recipe. It works fantastically well with chicken and is super fast to make. In this post we are baking sweet potato, which does take approx 1 hour, if you dont have that amount of time you can whip up a fast firey noodle salad instead to go with this (method for that at the end of this post)

Serves 2

Time : 1hr 10mins

Ingredients

2 Large free range chicken supremes

2 Large sweet potatoes

1 pack or 1 bunch of fresh baby spinach

Olive oil

For the satay;

3 Tbsp of good quality crunchy peanut butter

1 Good glug of dark soy sauce

1 Red chilli, Chopped finely

1 Handful of corriander, Chopped finely

The juice of 1 Lime

The zest of 2 Limes

Method

Get your oven preheated to approx 220 degrees first and when its up to temperature, pierce your sweet pots a few times and get them onto the middle shelf of the oven and bake for approx 1 hr.

Now make your sticky satay marinade. Mix the peanut butter, chilli, corriander, lime juice, lime zest and soy sauce together in a bowl. Fast, Authentic, Delicious Satay marinade DONE!

Approx 25 mins before your sweet potatoes are ready to come out of the oven, Heat a large pan on a medium/high heat and cook your chicken breasts for approx 5 minutes, turning over. If you don't do this and cook in the oven straight away, the chicken will dry out.

After 5 minutes of cooking in the pan, lift the chicken out and onto a baking tray with a tiny bit of oil. Now using a spoon coat the chicken in your satay marinade all over, make sure you flip them over to get the bottom covered also.

Now chicken into the oven with your potatoes, on the bottom shelf. And bake for the remainder of time (Around 20 mins).

2 minutes before your chicken and potatoes are ready, wash and then add your baby spinach to a saucepan with a dash of cold water and wilt the spinach over a high heat for 2 minutes. (Remember to put a lid on the pan while doing this)

Now to serve, cut your sweet potato in half and take the end off if its not completely round. Place on your plates and add a small dollop of peanut butter ontop. Serve with your spinach and chicken.

ALTERNATIVE

Serve your chicken and spinach with a firey cold noodle salad.

Ingredients

1 x pack of plain noodles

1 x Small red onion, finely chopped

1 x Red chilli, finely chopped

Juice of half a lime

Method

Cook the noodles as per instructions on the pack. When they are done transfer to a colander and rinse with cold water.

Now add the noodles, red chilli, red onion and lime juice to a mixing bowl and toss together.

Serve cold with your Satay Chicken!

Beef Wellington with Sweet Sherry Gravy

This is a rather luxurious recipe, ideal for special occasions and feeding a group.

Serves 4-6

Approx 90 mins

Ingredients

1 kg Fillet of beef (ideally the middle of the fillet so its evenly thick)

Olive oil

375g of good quality chicken liver and mushroom pate

1 small red onion (finely chopped)

50g Cup Mushrooms (finely chopped)

1 Large knobs of unsalted butter

1 Sprigs of rosemary

50g Fresh breadcrumbs

1 x 500g block of puff pastry

1 Large free-range egg

For the gravy

2 Onions roughly chopped

4 sprigs of thyme

1 Heaped teaspoon Blackcurrent jam

100ml sweet sherry

1 heaped tsp of English Mustard

2 heaped tsp plain flour plus extra for dusting

600ml of Beef stock

Sides

Seasonal green vegetables

Method

Preheat a large frying pan on a high heat, season the beef fillet with salt and pepper all over. Now get a good glug of olive oil into your pan. Place the beef into the pan to begin searing it, followed by 1 knob of butter and 1 sprig of rosemary. Sear the beef for around 4 minutes, turning with a pair of tongs to make sure its seared all the way around. After its seared, take the beef out of the pan, onto a plate and set aside.

Now mix your pate with the mushrooms, red onion and the breadcrumbs in a mixing bowl and set aside.

Pre-heat your oven to exactly 210 degrees (gas 7).

Roll out the pastry on a flour dusted surface to approx 30 x 40cm with the longest side facing you. Now  evenly spread the pate mix onto the pastry leaving a 5cm gap around the edges. Egg wash the longest edge furthest away from you and the two shorter edges.

Now place your beef fillet onto the edge of the pastry nearest to you, and begin to roll it up. You need to keep this as tight as you can. Once rolled all the way around, nip the ends together and make sure its sealed across the top.

Transfer the wellington to a suitable sized baking tray lined with grease proof paper with the pastry seal at the bottom and brush all over with egg wash. Heat the baking tray on the hob for a couple of minutes to start crisping the pastry base to avoid a soggy bottom. Now place the Wellington into the oven to cook for exactly 40 minutes.

Now to make the gravy, get yous chopped onions into a large pan with a glug of olive oil on a medium heat. Throw in the thyme leaves and cook for 20 minutes whilst stirring. Add the Blackcurrent jam and simmer this until shiny and dark. Now add the Sweet Sherry and simmer away, then add the mustard and the flour, gradually add the beef stock and then simmer to a consistency of your liking.

You may blend the gravy once ready or leave it chunky.

Once the beef is ready, let it rest for 5 minutes. Carve into thick slices and serve with steamed seasonal greens and the gravy.

Plum & Cinnamon/All-spice Brandy

Every year I like to make homemade gin which I use as Christmas Presents. This year I decided to mix things up and use brandy instead. 

This recipe consists of two separate flavours Cinnamon & Plum Brandy and All Spice & Plum Brandy.

To start you will need a few Kilner jars which need to be thoroughly sterilised. 

 

You will need about 500 grams of plums for each jar of Brandy you intend to make. Half the plums, remove the stone and then mash them in a large bowl to release more juice(and more flavour!)

Once you have mashed the plums place half of them in the Kilner jar and sprinkle sugar over. You can then add Brandy and repeat the process until the jar is full. I used two large bottles of good quality Brandy to fill two 1.5 litre jars.

 

To finish add either cinnamon sticks or all spice to the jars and give them a good shake. Continue to shake every few days and leave in a cupboard for at least two month before serving as gifts!

Melted Gruyere & Parma ham Focaccia bread

A delicious recipe great for feeding a small group for lunch. Add this to a simple fresh pasta dish if you are catering for more people. This Focaccia is guaranteed to please!

*BREADMAKER REQUIRED*

Serves 4

Ingredients for the dough;

150ml Water
250g white bread flour plus extra for dusting
1 Tsp dried yeast
1 Tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil plus extra for greasing

Ingredients for the filling;

175g sliced Parma ham
3 Tbsp fresh sage leaves, chopped
350 Gruyere cheese
Fresh black pepper for seasoning
10-15 small sprigs of fresh Rosemary
1 Tsp salt
2 Tbsp Olive oil

1 well greased flat baking tray approx 28 x 40cm, or a pizza baking stone.

Method

First, throw in all of the dough ingredients into your bread maker, set it to the dough only setting and set it away.

Towards the end of your bread maker timer, gather all of the ingredients for the filling. Separate the ham and cut the cheese into thin slices. When the dough is ready pop it onto a flat surface which has been dusted. Cut the dough in half and roll into a rounded rectangle approx 28 x 20cm. Now place the dough you have rolled onto the baking tray and place the slices of ham on top, making sure you get them right to the edge. Now do this with the cheese and then scatter the freshly chopped sage leave on top, and lastly season with freshly ground black pepper

Now roll out the other half of the dough into approx the same shape and size, then lay it on top and pinch the edges together all the way around while doing so. Now cover the Focaccia with a clean tea towel and leave to puff up for around 30 mins.

Once you have done this get your oven on and pre heat to 200 degrees. After the Focaccia has rested for 30 mins, pierce the top with a knife so you can place your sprigs of rosemary in. Drizzle with olive oil and season with fresh sea salt. Bake for 20-25 mins or until it is nice and golden.

Slice up and serve straight from the oven!

Tandoori cod cheeks with baked sweet potato & Asian style slaw

This is two recipes i used together to create a great fusion dish. Once you have your prep work done its pretty easy going. The only time taking part is waiting for your potatoes to bake. Using cod cheeks instead of a more pricey cut makes this meal very cheap to make.

Time - 15 mins prep, 45 mins cook.
Serves - 4

Indregients

30 fresh cod cheeks (cod lips work just as well)
4 small sweet potatoes
130g of frozen broad beans
150g of white cabbage, shredded
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
4 spring onions, sliced chunky
1 sweet pointy pepper, deseeded and sliced finely
1Tbsp of good quality soy sauce
3-4 Tbsp of groundnut oil
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp of fresh lemon juice
1 Red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
2 Tbsp of fresh corriander, finely chopped

Tandoori Rub;
1 Tbsp of ground Tumeric
1 Tbsp of ground Cumin
1 Tbsp of Paprika
1 Tbsp of ground Ginger
1/2 - 1 Tbsp of Cayenne pepper (1/2 for less heat, 1 for spicy)
1/2 Tbsp of salt


Method

Gather all of your equipment and ingredients. Pre-heat the oven to 200c or 180c fan, prick your potatoes all around and get them in the oven for approx 45 mins or until soft in the middle.

Carry out all the prep work as described in the ingredients list;

Add all of the rub ingredients (Tumeric, cumin, ginger, paprika, cayenne & salt) to a small bowl and add 1 Tbsp of fresh corriander and stir. Now grab your cod cheeks one by one and coat in the Tandoori rub and set each aside onto a large plate ready for cooking.

Get the broad beans into a small pan of boiling water, return to the boil and cook for around 3-4 mins. Drain them off and set aside to cool.

Using a large mixing bowl, add the carrot, cabbage, sweet pepper and spring onion and toss together.

Whisk up your soy sauce, groundnut oil (i used 4 Tbsp) and lemon juice. Now add your fresh corriander and red chilli. Whisk together. Pour this dressing over your bowl of coleslaw and mix together.

4-5 Minutes before your sweet potatoes are ready heat up the olive oil in a large frying pan on a high heat. Once hot add your cod cheeks one by one and cook for 1-2 minutes turning with tongs.

Grab your potatoes, split with a knife and place your slaw on the top, with 7-8 cod cheeks per person. Garnish with fresh corriander leaves.

Fast Spaghetti & Pork Meatballs w/ Homemade vine tomato & basil sauce

This is a great and very simple recipe we use when we want to make a fast evening tea. Few ingredients and a couple of shortcuts but it makes a pretty tasty meal. Letting the sauce simmer for long enough is the key here to avoid it being watery.

Serves 2
Prep time - 5 mins (if you're fast)
Cook time - 35 mins

2 Tbsp Virgin olive oil
2 Tsp fresh Basil, Finely chopped
4 whole basil leaves, to garnish
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
1-2 Tsp sugar
1/2 mug of frozen peas
Parmesan cheese to serve
Pinch of dried oregano

6 good quality pork sausages (90% pork or higher if you can)
2 ripe large vine tomatoes, chopped and diced small.
1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
150g - 200g wholewheat spaghetti pasta


Method

Gather all equipment and ingredients you need and carry out all the prep work detailed above in the ingredients list.

Grab your sausages and squeeze out the meat with your fingers onto a plate (try to get 3 sections out of each sausage) Do not roll up the meat with your hands, just leave it as it comes out of the skin, rolling will cause it to break up in the pan.

In a medium saucepan heat up 1 Tbsp of olive oil on a medium heat. Add the garlic, chopped vine tomatoes, and crunch of sea salt and black pepper. Cook for 1 minute and then add 1 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar and a good tsp of fresh chopped basil. Cook this down for about 4-5 mins, keep an eye on the heat, not to high.

Tip in the tin of chopped tomatoes, and then 1 good Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce followed by a second Tsp of chopped basil. Bring this up to gentle simmer and add 1 Tsp of sugar (this takes the sharpness off of the tinned tomatoes) and a pinch of oregano. You may add more sugar later if you like if you find it too sharp. Let your sauce simmer for at least 25 mins or until it has reduced and thickened.

Heat up 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan on a medium heat and add your sausage meatballs. Season with salt and pepper. shuffle them in the pan and Fry until golden brown this should take about 15 mins.

Meanwhile grab your pasta and add it to a pan of boiling water with a crunch of sea salt. Cook this as per the packet instructions (usually between 8 and 12 mins) or until Al-dente.

5 Mins before your pasta is done stick your frozen peas into a bowl with a spash of cold water into the microwave and heat on full power for 2 1/2 mins, drain and tip into your simmering tomato sauce and stir in. The sauce should be starting to reduce and thicken by now, check for taste and season accordingly.

Assemble you're plates. Spaghetti First, Tomato sauce and then your meatballs placed on top. Garnish with grated Parmesan and 2 fresh Basil leaves.

Fruity Vegetable & chickpea Tagine

Serves 4
Time - 1 Hr

1 tbsp of olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 butternut squash, cubed
250g chantenay carrots halved
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
1 level tsp ground cumin
1 level tsp ground tumeric
1 level tsp ground cinnamon
400g tin chopped tomato
10 dried apricots, chopped
400g tin of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
350ml good veg stock
2tbsp fresh corriander, chopped
30g pomegranate seeds
1tbsp Tomato puree

Preheat your oven to 160 or 140C if it is fan assisted. Gather all of your ingredients and equipment, failing to prepare means preparing to fail! Get all of your prep work done as detailed in the ingredients list above, and divide them up onto plates.

Use a large casserole pot/saucepan and heat up your oil. Get your red onions in there and cook on a medium heat for 3-4 mins.

Next add your butternut & carrots and cook for another 2 minutes or so, stirring. Now reduce the heat to low and add the fresh ginger and garlic, cook this for another 1 minute.

Now add our Moroccan inspired spices Tumeric, Cinnamon and Cumin with a splash of cold water (approx 2 Tbsp) and turn the heat back up to medium. Stir and cook for 1 minute or so.

Add the tomato puree, chopped tomato, apricots and chickpeas. Heat this until it starts to simmer and then add your veg stock. Bring to a simmer again while stirring.

Now transfer your mixture to an ovenproof dish (if your saucepan has plastic handles like mine!) and cover with foil. Cook in your pre heated oven for 45 mins. Approx 15 mins before its ready get some long grain rice on to serve your tagine with.

Serve up and add your pomegranate seeds and fresh chopped corriander to garnish on top.