Food Recipes

Quick sausage Bolognese

2009-09-01T08:56:00.000-07:00

Pasta, sauce, and sausages, what could be a better combination? The sausage meat adds great flavor to a simple dish

Ingredient:

6 good-quality sausages , skins removed
1 tsp fennel seeds
250g pack mushrooms , sliced
150g red wine (optional)
660g jar tomato pasta sauces (we used Loyd Grossman's tomato & chili)
300g penny
grated or shaved parmesan , to serve

Methods:

Heat a large, wide frying pan, then crumble in the sausage meat and fennel seeds (there's no need to add any oil). Fry for a few mints until golden and the fat is released, stirring well to break up the meat. Add the mushrooms and fry for a few mints until beginning to soften. Stir in the wine now, if using, bubble for 1 min, then add the tomato sauce and heat through until bubbling.
Meanwhile, boil the penny. When ready, drain and tip into the sauce. Mix well until completely coated, then divide between four plates, finishing with a little Parmesan.

Roast chicken with pancetta & ricotta stuffing balls

2009-09-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

A classic roast chicken is made extra special with these Italian stuffing balls

Ingredient:

1 whole chicken (about 1.5kg)
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

FOR THE STUFFING BALLS:

140g fresh bread (about 3-4 slices)
handful parsley , chopped
140g ricotta
100g Parmesan , freshly grated
handful thyme , chopped
handful basil , chopped
2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
2 eggs
12 thin slices pancetta or streaky bacon

Methods:

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Season the chicken inside and out, then place in a large roasting dish. Rub all over with the oil. Place in oven, then cook for 1 hr 30 mints, spooning oil and juices over the bird a few times during cooking.
Meanwhile, make the stuffing. Whizz the bread and parsley in a food processor or grate the bread on the biggest holes of a grater. Mix with the rest of the stuffing ingredients, apart from the pancetta or bacon, in a large bowl. Use your hands to shape into 12 balls, then wrap a slice of pancetta or bacon around each.
Test if the chicken is done by inserting a skewer into the thigh meat; when the juices run clear, remove from the roasting dish. Place on a serving plate and loosely cover with foil. While the chicken is resting, pour away any excess fat from the dish and tip in the stuffing balls. Cook for 20 mints until crisp and golden. Serve alongside the chicken.

beetroot, red apple and watercress salad

2009-08-24T07:21:00.000-07:00

Beetroot can be eaten raw but it needs to be very finely sliced – a mandolin is ideal.

Squeeze the lemon juice into a clean jam jar. Add three times the amount of extra virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper then screw the lid on and shake to emulsify.

Add the rocket, watercress, pea shoots, apples, beetroot and beetroot leaves, if you have them to a large bowl. Drizzle over enough dressing to completely coat the ingredients, add the marjoram, toss again and serve.
Source

reuben-ish sandwich

2009-08-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

The origin of the Reuben sandwich is hotly disputed, but many New Yorkers say it began in Reuben’s Deli on East 58th Street. A classic Reuben sandwich should have Thousand Island dressing, but this is my version. Try it with nice smoked ham if you can’t find pastrami.

Grill the slices of bread on a griddle pan until lightly toasted on both sides then spread one side of each with mayonnaise. Put some of the sauerkraut and some of the chilli on 2 of the slices, and top with a couple of slices of pastrami. Top with the remaining sauerkraut and chilli and the sliced gherkins, then grate the Swiss cheese over the top.

Preheat a hot grill. Place the slices with toppings under the grill until the cheese is melted and dribbling.

Stack the sandwich together, adding a few watercress leaves and finishing with the final slice of toast. Press down lightly and use wooden skewers to hold together. Tuck in!
Source

caesar salad bites

2009-08-24T07:15:00.001-07:00

This is a brilliant idea for a picnic with a handy homemade sachet of dressing.

Lay the pork belly slices on a non-stick baking tray and bake in the oven or under the grill for about 20 to 30 minutes or until cooked, golden brown and crispy.

Remove the pork, chop the strips into chunks or leave whole, if you wish. Set aside. Toast the bread cubes in the pork fat under the grill until brown and crispy.

Dress the anchovies with a little lemon juice and zest, extra virgin olive oil and some chopped flat-leaf parsley. To make a dressing for the salad, use 3 parts extra virgin olive oil to 1 part lemon juice and season it well with salt and pepper. Line a cup with cling film, pour the dressing in, gather up the edges and tie in a knot. Now you have a homemade sachet of salad dressing!

Trim the lettuce back until you get to the pale inner leaves. Wash well and spin dry.

Take a leaf of cos lettuce and fill it with croutons, pork, tomatoes, Parmesan and an anchovy. Prick the bag and drip some salad dressing over the top and tuck in!
Source

summer fruit jellies

2009-08-24T07:00:00.000-07:00

Make these in individual moulds, little tea cups or coffee cups, which are a great way of transporting them to your picnic.

Fill whatever moulds you are using (egg cups, cappuccino or espresso cups or tea cups or dariole moulds) three-quarters full of berries. Put them in the fridge to chill.

Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for a few minutes until soft. Pick them out of the water and shake any excess water off. Place them in a bowl and cover with 150ml hot (but not boiling) water and the sugar. Stir to dissolve.

When the gelatine water has cooled to room temperature, add the Prosecco or Champagne, stir well and pour over the fruits in the chilled moulds. Return to the fridge to set.

When the jellies are ready, dip the bottom of each one in a little hot water to melt it very slightly and then turn out on to a plate. Scatter with a few mint leaves before serving.
Source

italian roast vegetable and farro salad

2009-08-19T00:18:00.000-07:00

Farro is a wheat grain that is eaten in salads, soups and desserts all over Italy. It’s not expensive and can be found in good delis. If you can’t find it, though, use Bulgar wheat, which is just as nutty in texture and cooked in the same way.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6. Soak the farro or Bulgar wheat in cold water for 20 minutes, then drain.

Meanwhile, slice the courgettes crossways into chunky crescents and put into a large roasting tray. Add the remaining vegetables and garlic cloves and toss together with a good splash of olive oil. Season well.

Spread the vegetables out in one layer if you can, as they’ll roast better this way – use 2 trays if you have to. Roast in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, removing the trays from the oven and carefully shaking them every now and then, until the vegetables are cooked through and crisp around the edges. Sprinkle the vinegar over the vegetables as soon as they come out of the oven and set aside to cool. When cool, tip on to a large chopping board, add the fresh herbs and chop it all finely.

Place the farro or Bulgar wheat in a large saucepan, cover with fresh cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 20 minutes or until tender, then drain well. Dress the farro or Bulgar wheat with a good splash of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice, season with salt and pepper and toss with the chopped vegetables. Scatter the reserved fennel tops over the mix and serve.
Source

beef and vegetable stir fry

2009-08-19T00:15:00.000-07:00

Cook the egg noodles in boiling salted water until just tender. Drain, place in a bowl and set aside.

Heat a large wok or a heavy-based frying pan until very hot. Add a splash of vegetable oil then stir fry the beef slices with the sliced garlic, ginger and chillies until just cooked. Add the shoots or beansprouts, a good splash of soy sauce and sesame oil and the lime juice for the last 30 seconds of cooking.

Tip the contents of the wok into a large bowl, including all the lovely juices. Put the wok back on the heat, add a splash more vegetable oil and all the vegetables. Stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes, then add the cooked noodles and toss well over the heat.

Divide the fried vegetables and noodles between 4 plates. Return the beef and juices to the wok and stir fry until heated through. Add the coriander and toss until well mixed with the beef. Arrange on top of the noodles and garnish with a cos lettuce leaf.
Source

calzone

2009-08-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

Calzone is a folded Italian pizza which, by the sheer nature of its shape, is far more portable than a normal pizza and looks a bit like a Cornish pasty. Although the flavourings can be the same as for pizza, Italians often fill their calzone with leftover veg from the night before, or with various things that need using up, mixed with lovely tomatoes and some melting mozzarella. Great served hot or cold.

First, make your pizza dough. Preheat the oven to full whack, then tear the knocked-back dough into four pieces and roll each one out on a floured surface. You want to get them roughly circular, about the thickness of a pound coin, and 30cm across. You can now either keep these in the fridge, stacked and separated with olive-oil-rubbed and flour-dusted tinfoil, until you’re ready to cook them, or you can put your topping on and cook them straight away.

Pour a large lug of olive oil into a hot frying pan. Add the mushrooms and toss briefly in the hot oil before adding the sliced garlic and the thyme. Fry until the mushrooms are cooked and smell fantastic. Drop in the butter and toss the mushrooms in it to make them tasty and shiny. Season with a little salt and pepper.

Add the tomato sauce to the pan and stir. Cook for a few minutes, then add the spinach (in batches if you need to) and stir again. Simmer away the liquid until you’re left with a thick, tasty mixture that’s not too moist (otherwise it will burst through the dough when you’re cooking the calzone).

Divide the mushroom and spinach mixture evenly between the four pizza bases and spread it out nicely. Top with pieces of mozzarella and season with salt and pepper. To make your calzone, carefully lift the far edge of the pizza dough and pull it over the top towards you – you basically need to fold it in half (imagine it looking like a big Cornish pasty!). Crimp the edges so none of the filling can spill out. Place the calzone side by side on a floured baking tray (use two if you need to), pizza stone or granite slab.

Cook for 10 to 15 minutes on the bottom of the preheated oven until the dough is puffed up and golden on top and the filling is hot.

humble home-cooked beans

2009-08-10T08:15:00.000-07:00

My first thought when I saw these beans on a menu in Italy was ‘Beans on toast?’ But then I tasted them. I felt pretty humbled that such a simple dish had been made to taste so gorgeous. Once you’ve learned how to season and cook them in the right way, you can apply the method to cannellini beans, butter beans, borlotti beans, haricots verts, lentils, even chickpeas. If you’ve grown your own beans, good on ya! Fresh ones will take about 45 minutes to cook, but you’re more likely to get dried beans as they’re cheap, and very reliable to cook. However, they will need soaking for at least 12 hours.

Drain your soaked beans, then give them a good wash. Place them in a deep pot and cover them with cold water. Throw in your garlic, herb sprigs, bay leaves, celery stick, potato and tomatoes. Place the beans on the heat and slowly bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and simmer very gently for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on whether you’re using fresh or dried, until soft and cooked nicely. Skim if necessary, topping up with boiling water from the kettle if you need to.

When the beans are cooked, drain them in a colander, reserving enough of the cooking water to cover them halfway up when put back in the pot. Remove the garlic, herbs, celery, potato and tomatoes from the beans. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins and pinch the skin off the tomatoes. Put the garlic, tomatoes and potato on to a plate, mash them with a fork and stir back into the beans. Season well with salt and pepper, and pour in three generous lugs of extra virgin olive oil and a few splashes of vinegar. Stir in the parsley and serve on some toasted sourdough bread.

cinder-baked artichokes with lemon, bay and prosciutto

2009-08-10T08:11:00.000-07:00

Look for the violet, Roman, or even the green Spanish artichokes. Don’t use globe ones as they tend to be large and coarse.

Slice off the top 2cm of the head of the artichoke then peel the stem with a knife or speed peeler. Tear off the tough outer leaves until you get to the softer inner green ones. Open them out, then use a teaspoon to scrape out the furry chokes and discard. If you’re doing this ahead, put the artichokes in a bowl of water with a little lemon juice to stop them discolouring.

Drizzle the inside of each artichoke with olive oil and season well. Stuff each one with a small lemon wedge, a rolled-up slice of prosciutto and a bay leaf.

Wet 4 sheets of baking paper, then scrunch up and wrap 1 around each artichoke. Now tightly wrap each one in foil and place directly on the edge of the hot coals for about an hour, turning, until tender. If you have a gas barbie, put them at the back where the heat’s not so intense and cook for 1 hour.

Serve unwrapped and broken up with a generous lug of oil and scattered with mint.

wild strawberries and vanilla cream

2009-08-07T08:30:00.000-07:00

Pick out the nicest strawberries and set aside. Put the rest in a bowl and add the sugar, half the vanilla seeds and the vinegar. Squash together with the back of a fork and leave to macerate for 10–15 minutes.

Stir the rest of the vanilla seeds into the crème fraîche. To serve, spoon a little vanilla cream in the centre of each bowl, make a well in the middle and spoon in some mushed strawberries. Halve some of the reserved strawberries and sprinkle the lot over the vanilla cream. Scatter over the mint leaves and orange zest then serve.
Source

grilled flatbreads with rosemary oil

2009-08-05T03:39:00.000-07:00

Follow my basic bread recipe through steps 1 to 4. After the dough has doubled in size, you need to knock the air out of it by bashing it around for a minute. Now it’s ready to be transformed into pizzas or flatbreads.

Tear off chunks of the dough and roll out your bread, shaping into slightly irregular oval shape rounds, about 0.5cm thick.

Oil the grill on the barbie, then lay the flatbreads on top of the grill and cook them for about 3 minutes. Turn them over and cook for another 3 minutes until they are golden brown, crispy and slightly charred – this’ll give them a real barbecued flavour.

Take the flatbreads off the barbie. Mix a couple of lugs of olive oil with the rosemary leaves and brush (or drizzle) over the hot breads. Sprinkle with salt and serve straight away while still warm.
Source

garlic, thyme and anchovy baked potatoes

2009-08-05T03:32:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves a baked potato and this is one of the tastiest ways to make them. Slice, fill, then fit them back together.

Pound the garlic and butter in a pestle and mortar until smooth. Season the garlic butter well with lots of pepper but just a little salt as the anchovy or bacon will act as a seasoning too.

Cut each potato into 8 slices. Coat the slices of each potato with the butter mix then reassemble each potato on a piece of double-thick foil. Cut the anchovies or bacon into strips and put between the slices. Do the same with the thyme sprigs and carefully wrap up the potatoes.

Lay the wrapped spuds on the cooler coals at the sides of the barbie for 1–1½ hours, depending on their size, turning every now and then, until tender. If you’ve got a gas barbie, put the potatoes right at the back over a low heat and give them plenty of time to cook. You might even want to give them half an hour’s headstart in the oven first.
Source

chargrilled whole squid with chilli and mint

2009-08-05T03:23:00.000-07:00

This is a wonderful dish. Usually people cut squid into rings - try my method as it looks great and is easy to cook, serve and eat!

Turn the first squid upside down so that its wings are flat on your chopping board.

Push in a large knife and leave it inside flat on its side. With a sharp knife, slice the squid as if you were going to chop it into rings. The knife that is lying inside the body of the squid will prevent you from cutting right through it. You end up with a concertina effect with the squid sliced, but still holding together. Repeat with the other three.

In a pestle and mortar, bash the fennel seeds into a light powder with a good pinch of salt and pepper. Sprinkle this all over the squid, making sure it gets into all the cuts you’ve made. Place immediately on the hottest part of the grill, and grill, turning every 30 seconds or so or every time it starts to char, until the squids firm up and turn from opaque to white inside. This shouldn’t take more than a few minutes.

Add the lemon juice to a bowl with 3 times as much extra virgin olive oil and whisk together. Stir in the lemon zest, chilli, mint and a pinch of salt and pepper. Drizzle this over the squid then serve, with lemon wedges on the side for squeezing over.
Source

fantastic tomato and fennel salad with flaked barbecued fish

2009-08-05T03:05:00.000-07:00

The nice thing about this dish is that you have the lovely, cool salad contrasting with your warm or hot fish. It works really well and is beautifully refreshing. Feel free to use whatever fish looks nice and fresh, just ask your fishmonger to fillet and pin-bone it for you.

Mix together a good lug of extra virgin olive oil, a nice squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Drizzle this all over the fish then pat on the chopped marjoram or oregano. Put your fillets on the hottest part of the grill (make sure your grill is really clean to prevent the fish from sticking).

If your fillets are 2cm thick, they’ll only need about 2 minutes cooking time. If the fish breaks up, don’t worry as you’ll be flaking it up later anyway. If it still has the skin on, cook it skin-side down as it’s less likely to stick. Once cooked, remove to a warm plate.

To make the salad, finely slice the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Arrange on your plates. Finely slice your fennel bulb and dress it in a bowl with extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper then scatter over your tomatoes. Finally, spoon over your fish, flaking it as you go. Scatter over your reserved fennel tops, drizzle with the balsamic vinegar and scatter with chilli, if using, to finish.
Source

barbecued lamb lollipops with spiked hummus and nuts

2009-08-03T00:54:00.000-07:00

This is perfect summer food when you’ve got a few mates round – just pile it all on a board in the middle of the table and dig in! It’s good fun food and your mates will be blown away by the combination of lemony hummus, spicy harissa and crunchy nuts. This really is summer eating at its best – just don’t forget to serve up a few ice-cold beers on the side!

Start by getting your barbecue going – it’ll need about 45 minutes cranking away until the heat has mellowed enough to cook your lamb chops.

On a big chopping board roughly chop the thyme leaves. Bash the fennel and cumin seeds in a pestle and mortar with a good pinch of salt and pepper then sprinkle them over your chopped thyme on the board.

Rub the lamb on the seasoned board so the spices stick to it. Once the chops are well coated, drizzle each with a little olive oil then pop onto the barbecue, turning every couple of minutes for about 8 to 10 minutes in total.

Meanwhile, put your hummus into a bowl with a little squeeze of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of harrissa. Mix well. Bash the toasted nuts and seeds in a pestle and mortar.
Put your salad leaves in a bowl and dress with a good squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Toss together.

By this time your lamb chops should have had 8 to 10 minutes and be perfectly cooked. Press the meat with your finger - if it gives it’s medium rare, if it doesn’t it’s well done. Get yourself a big board and spoon your lemony hummus on to one side, top with the remaining harrissa and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Pile your salad and bashed nuts in separate plies on the board too, then stack your chops on the board, get your friends round the table and dig in. Perfect.

Watch this video online.
Source

the best barbecued sticky chicken with lemon and garlic

2009-08-03T00:52:00.000-07:00

These chicken thighs are slow-cooked to start off with then finished hard and fast on the barbecue. Once you’ve learned to cook meat like this on the barbecue you’ll never look back. Cooking the thighs all the way through in foil first means you’ll be confident that they’re cooked through and you’ll be free to concentrate on getting that lovely layer of sticky flavour from the roasted lemon and garlic glaze.

Get your barbecue on about an hour before you want to cook and preheat your oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4.

Season the chicken well with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little olive oil. Get a big double layer of tin foil and pop the thighs in the middle with the bulb of garlic. Chop one of your lemons in half and pop this in too. Wrap the chicken up then put your foil parcel on a baking tray and into the hot oven for 35 minutes until the chicken pulls away easily from the bone – if you have to tug at it it’s not ready, so pop it back in the oven for another 5 minutes or so.

When done, carefully take the chicken out off the oven and unwrap it. By this time your barbecue should be at the perfect temperature – a good medium heat – so get your chicken on to start charring.

While this is happening, get on with your sticky glaze. Carefully, clove by clove, squeeze the sweet roasted garlic out of its papery skin into a pestle and mortar. Carefully squeeze in the juice of your roasted lemon halves too. Give this a good bash up and season with salt and pepper then add a good lug of olive oil and mix until you have a thick paste. Now squeeze in the juice of the other lemon so you get 2 levels of lemon flavour – one sweet and roasted, the other fresh and zingy.

Use your rosemary sprigs to brush the paste onto the chicken, basting and turning for about 10 minutes so you are building up a lovely layer of sticky garlicky sweetness and a wonderful golden brown colour.

Once you’re happy with the chicken, use tongs to move it to a nice platter then top with the rocket or pea shoots and any remaining marinade and tuck in!
Source

killer mexican barbecued corn on the cob

2009-08-03T00:50:00.000-07:00

I tried this fantastic Mexican corn at a basement Mexican restaurant in New York. We ate loads of amazing Mexican food but it was these snacky corn on the cobs which really stuck in my mind. Barbecuing the corn gives it the most wonderful sweet and smoky flavour, and with the heat from the chilli and the saltiness of the cheese, you're onto a real winner. Make these for your mates at a barbecue and they’ll never forget it!

For this recipe you'll need a barbecue with a lid. About an hour before you want to cook, get your barbecue on to heat up - you want one side to be a bit hotter than the other so stack your coals higher on one side. While your barbecue is heating up, put all your corn on the cobs in a big bowl, cover with cold water and leave to soak.

Once your barbecue is nice and hot drain your corn – make sure you shake off any excess water. Keeping the husks on the corn, pop them on the cooler side of the barbecue then put the lid on and leave to cook for about 20 minutes. The corn husks will act like a natural layer of greaseproof paper, allowing the kernels inside to steam and smoke beautifully.

After 20 minutes, any water will have evaporated and the skins will be blackened – there should be a wonderful sweet and smoky smell. Using tongs, carefully peel back the papery husks and discard, then transfer the corn cobs to the hotter side of the barbecue. This time leave the lid open. The corn husks will start to burn off but this is exactly what you want – keep turning them for 5 to 10 minutes until all of the kernels are lightly charred.

While your corn is cooking, scatter your chopped chilli onto a large chopping board then grate the cheese over the top. Pop to one side for now.

Once you’re happy with the corn, remove from the barbecue then chop off the papery end and discard. Pop your butter into a deep dish or platter and use tongs to place the cobs onto the butter – the heat from the corn will start to melt the butter. Roll the corn around in the butter until it's glossy and coated all over, then one by one, roll the cobs in the cheesy chilli mixture, making sure they are evenly coated.

Serve them lovely and hot with wedge of lime for squeezing over. Genius!
Source

strawberry champagne

2009-08-03T00:48:00.000-07:00

This is the simplest recipe in the world and possibly one of the best Champagne cocktails I’ve ever tasted. A great way to start a summer dinner or party.

Place the mint leaf and the strawberries in a sieve. Push the strawberries through the sieve into a bowl, using the back of a spoon. (You’re not really after the pulp, just the juice.) Chill until you are ready to serve your drinks.

Divide the strawberry purée between six Champagne glasses, carefully fill with bubbly and enjoy!
Source

strawberry salad with speck and halloumi

2009-08-03T00:46:00.000-07:00

Most people think of strawberries as something they’d only eat for dessert, but they work so well in salads. Especially when paired with halloumi cheese, which I just love. It’s a Cypriot cheese made from goat’s or sheep’s milk and you can get it from all good supermarkets. It’s like a chewy feta but one you can cook with. When fried or grilled it goes all crispy on the outside and soft and slightly chewy on the inside. A brilliant thing to eat.

In a bowl, drizzle the sliced strawberries with a good splash of balsamic vinegar, the lemon juice and some extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. This will draw out and flavour the lovely strawberry juices.

Preheat a large non-stick frying pan to medium hot and add a splash of olive oil. Press a basil leaf on to each slice of halloumi. Place the slices, leaf side down, in the frying pan and fry for a minute. Turn over carefully and fry for another minute until the halloumi is light golden and crisp.

Get yourself four plates and place a couple of pieces of the crispy halloumi on each. Put the mint, the rest of the basil leaves and the salad leaves into the bowl with the strawberries and toss together. Pile some of the strawberry mixture in the middle of each plate and drape the speck over the top. Finish with more salad leaves. To serve, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.
Source

sweet vanilla risotto with poached peaches and chocolate

2009-08-03T00:42:00.000-07:00

People in Britain have always had a bit of a soft spot in their hearts for rice pudding. However, the convenience and relative quality of tinned Ambrosia rice pudding has stopped a lot of people cooking the real thing. I thought it would be good to get you making this lovely old British dessert, but with a northern Italian twist – in the style of a risotto. Pudding rice and risotto rice are both plump, short-grain and starchy, so I thought it would be a good test to see if risotto rice would make great rice pudding – and it did. It has to be one of the best rice puddings I've ever made! It's lovely served with the peaches, but you could also use apricots, strawberries or rhubarb.

When you halve the peaches, leave the stones in – they will come away a lot more easily after they have been cooked. Put them into a small pan with 4 tablespoons of the sugar, the cinnamon stick and the zest and juice of the orange. Put a lid on top and slowly simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the peach skin and stones can be easily removed. You don't want to cook them to pulp – they should be soft but should still hold their shape. Remove from the heat and put to one side.

In an appropriately sized high-sided, thick-bottomed pan with a lid, slowly melt two-thirds of the butter. Score down the length of the vanilla pods and remove the seeds by scraping a knife down the inside of each half. Add the seeds to the butter and stir. Continue to cook for 1 minute before adding your rice with the remaining sugar. Turn the heat up to medium, stir the rice, and add the wine, continuing to stir until it has almost cooked away. Now add the milk little by little. Keep the rice on a slow but constant simmer for about 16 or 17 minutes and stir it as often as you can. In this way you can massage the starch out of the rice and this will give you a silky, oozy end product, much like the classic Italian risotto. When the rice has cooked through it should be soft yet still holding its shape. You may need to add a little more milk or water just to adjust the consistency. Remove from the heat, add the grated white chocolate and the rest of the butter, then stir, place a lid on top and leave for a few minutes.

Remove the skin and stones from the peaches, discard them along with the cinnamon stick, and take the peaches to the table with your block of dark chocolate, snapped into small pieces. Spoon the risotto on to plates, then push a couple of pieces of dark chocolate into the middle of each one. Just so you know, a perfect risotto should slowly creep and ooze to the side of your plate, so don't worry if it starts to spread out! Gently tear the peaches and place some on each plate, then drizzle over some of the lovely juice and sprinkle over a few mint leaves. By the time you go to eat it, the dark chocolate will have melted. Joy joy joy!
Source

strawberries with lemon and mint (fragole con limone e menta)

2009-08-03T00:35:00.000-07:00

Put a few strawberries into frozen bowls. Squeeze over a little lemon juice and add a good sprinkling of caster sugar, a tiny bit of lemon zest and a little torn fresh mint. Also really nice with a swig of prosecco.
Source

Healthy Stir Fried Tiger Prawns, Black Beans And Ginger Recipe

2009-07-01T23:31:00.000-07:00

This Chinese-style stir-fry is brilliantly quick to prepare, filling and nutritious.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

125 g rice noodles
3 tbsp sunflower oil
2.5 cm cube of fresh root ginger, finely sliced
8 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
250 g cooked tiger prawns, shelled
1 tbsp dry sherry
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
3 tbsp of water
1 tbsp black bean sauce

Add the rice noodles to a saucepan of boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes or until just tender. Drain and keep covered to retain heat.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the ginger, spring onions, garlic and prawns. Fry on a high heat for about 1 minute.
Then, stir in the sherry, soy sauce, water and black bean sauce. Cook for a further 2 minutes, then add the noodles and toss together to heat through. Serve straight from the pan.

Food Recipes

Quick sausage Bolognese

Roast chicken with pancetta & ricotta stuffing balls

beetroot, red apple and watercress salad

reuben-ish sandwich

caesar salad bites

summer fruit jellies

italian roast vegetable and farro salad

beef and vegetable stir fry

calzone

humble home-cooked beans

cinder-baked artichokes with lemon, bay and prosciutto

wild strawberries and vanilla cream

grilled flatbreads with rosemary oil

garlic, thyme and anchovy baked potatoes

chargrilled whole squid with chilli and mint

fantastic tomato and fennel salad with flaked barbecued fish

barbecued lamb lollipops with spiked hummus and nuts

the best barbecued sticky chicken with lemon and garlic

killer mexican barbecued corn on the cob

strawberry champagne

strawberry salad with speck and halloumi

sweet vanilla risotto with poached peaches and chocolate

strawberries with lemon and mint (fragole con limone e menta)

Healthy Stir Fried Tiger Prawns, Black Beans And Ginger Recipe

Healthy Oaty Lemon And Ginger Muffins Recipe

Healthy Red Onion, Rosemary And Goat’s Cheese Pizza Recipe

Healthy Broccoli And Roasted Garlic Soup Recipe

Healthy Chocolate And Star Anise Souffles Recipe

Healthy Sherry Chicken With Garlic And Rosemary Recipe

Healthy Creamy Chicken And Ginger Soup Recipe

Healthy Seafood Paella Recipe

Healthy Spinach And Feta Frittata Recipe

Healthy Stuffed Mushrooms Recipe

Healthy Watercress Soup Recipe

Healthy Potato And Tuna Medley Salad Recipe

Healthy Pasta With Herby Tomato Sauce Recipe

Healthy Thai Beef Salad Recipe

Healthy Avocado And Cucumber Nori Rolls Recipe

Healthy Beetroot, Watercress, Walnut And Apple Salad Recipe

Healthy Veggie Burgers Recipe

Healthy Prawn And Pea Pilau Recipe

Healthy Dates And Walnut Scones Recipe

Healthy Chicken Ramen With Udon Noodles Recipe

Healthy Roasted Monkfish With Yogurt Olives And Capers Recipe

Healthy Spicy Lamb With Sweet Potatoes Recipe

Healthy Moroccan Chicken With Apricots And Chick Peas Recipe

Healthy Chocolate Bread Pudding Recipe

Healthy Chilli Ginger Roast Chicken Recipe

Healthy Vegetarian Quorn Satay Recipes

Healthy Vegetarian Mushroom Strudel Recipe

Healthy Lentil Soup Recipe

peppery prawn noodles

Healthy Quinoa With Roasted Vegetables Recipe

Healthy Carrot And Crest Triple Decker Recipe

Healthy Chicken And Avocado Tortilla Recipe

Healthy Roasted Red Pepper Dip Recipe

Gordon Ramsay's lemon tart

One-pot chicken pilaf

Healthy Chicken Kebabs With Avocado Salsa Recipe

Healthy Spinach And Lemon Risotto Recipe

Healthy Salmon With A Crumb Crust Recipe

Minty salmon & broccoli frittata

Healthy Vegetables In Lemon And Coriander Recipe

Sticky pan-roasted sausages with grapes

Healthy White Fish And Leeks In Mustard Sauce Recipe

meatballs and pasta

Ingredients

perfect roast chicken

Ingredients

fish pie

Ingredients

vegetable jelfrazi

Ingredients

Blitz-and-bake beetroot & chocolate cake

Healthy Turkey Stir Fry Recipe

Chorizo chicken with chilli wedges

Butternut squash with spicy chilli

Pesto chicken kebabs with roasted veg pasta

All-in-one-baked mushrooms