Seafood paella

Servings: 5 servings

Ingredients:
- juice of 1/2 lemon;
- dried parsley and coriander;
- 0.5g saffron strands;
- 2 cubes of chicken stock;
- salt and pepper;
- 1 clove of garlic, chopped;
- 2 tbsps olive oil;
- 1/2 onion, chopped;
- 90g garden peas;
- 1 red pepper, chopped;
- 250g seafood selection (mussels, squid, prawns);
- 200g king prawns;
- 2 fish fillets (I used cod);
- 250g paella rice (or risotto rice).



Chop all the vegetables. Dissolve the chicken stock in 1 litre of boiling water.
Add the saffron strands and mix well. Infuse for 10-15 minutes.
Heat a very large frying pan or wok and add the olive oil.
Add the garlic, onion and pepper. Cook, stirring for a few minutes, until softened.



Add rice to the frying pan and stir-fry for a couple of minutes.
Pour in a quarter of the stock, bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the stock is absorbed. Add all the ingredients, mixing well.



Add more stock and keep stirring, adding the rest of the stock when necessary.
Cook gently without a lid for about 20 minutes, until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender.
Check seasoning, then serve.

Brigadeiro (chocolate sweet)

Ingredients:
- 1 can of condensed milk (405g);
- 200ml milk;
- 1 tbsp butter;
- 6 tbsps chocolate powder;
- chocolate sprinkle or hundreds-and-thousands or silver balls;
- mini paper cases



In a sauce pan, add the condensed milk, milk and butter. Take it to boil, stirring all the time.
When the butter melts, add the chocolate powder.



After boiling, keep stirring for around 20 minutes or until the mixture stops sticking on the bottom of the pan. It is a very thick and sticky consistency.
Take it off the heat and set aside to cool down completely. You can put it in the fridge if necessary.


Spread the chocolate sprinkle on a plate and place the paper cases on a separate plate.
Spread butter in your hands, so the brigadeiro won't stick.
With a teaspoon, take a litte bit of the mixture and roll into small balls, truffle size.
Roll the truffle on the sprinkle plate and place it in the paper case.



It is a messy business, but everybody loves it. :)

P.S.: you can also make another version, without the chocolate powder, adding grated coconut and using granulated sugar instead of sprinkles. This version is called "coconut kiss". :)

Chocolate cake (with chocolate cover)

Ingredients for 1 normal sized cake (or double recipe):

Butter	125g (200g) + 1 (2) tea spoon
Bitter/Dark chocolate	200g (350-400g)
Sugar	250g (400g)
Flour	100g (200g)
Baking Powder	1 (2) tea spoon
Eggs	6 (12)

Preparing the cake:



Set aside 2 (3) rows of the chocolate bar (about a quarter) for later. Put the rest of the chocolate and 125g (200g) of butter in a heat-proof bowl and place it over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until the chocolate and the butter have both melted together.
Then, separate the yolks and whites of 6 (12) eggs. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until its creamy white.
Add the melted chocolate and butter, then the flour and the baking powder and mix well. Finally, whisk up the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Gently fold into the chocolate mixture until completely combined, being careful not to knock out all of the air.



Line a baking tray with butter and flour (to prevent the cake from sticking to the sides) and pour in the chocolate mixture. Cook it in a pre-heated oven at around 180 degrees for about 40 minutes (time will change depending on the oven). To check if the cake is done you can use a toothpick (or a skewer or knife): stick it in the centre of the cake and if the toothpick comes out clean, it is done; if there are bits of cake on the toothpick, leave it in the oven for a bit longer. It is not advisable to leave the cake in the oven for longer than necessary or the cake will become dry.



Meanwhile (or even just after the cake is cooked), you can prepare the chocolate coating by simply melting the remaining 2 (3) rows of chocolate with the remaining 1 (2) tea spoons of butter. Let the cake cool before you spread the melted chocolate mixture over the cake.

Tip: you can use the back of a normal table knife to spread the chocolate.

One last thing: if you cannot find bitter/dark chocolate, compensate by using a bit less than the recommended amount of sugar.

Hope you like it! :)

Beeftekia (meat balls)

Ingredients:
500gr minced meat
1 big onion grated
1 tomato grated (only the inside)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 bowl of bread soaked in water or milk (the white part of the bread only)
Spearmint
Paprika, cinnamon or any other spice you want to add in your meat
Salt
Pepper



Preparing the meat balls:
You soak the bread for 5-10 mins in water or milk.
In a big bowl grate the onion and the tomato taking out any big pieces of onion that might fall in.
Put the minced meat in the bowl and add the bread (after you have drained the any excessive liquid), salt, pepper, paprika, spearmint, oil and any other spices you like.
Mix the ingredients to make a smooth paste and store them in the fridge for 20 min so that the ingredients blend.
Preheat the oven at 200 gr.



Shape the dough into the shape of burgers but don't make them too thick.
Place them on a tray and put them in the oven.
After 20 min turn the beeftekia and reduce the oven to 180 degrees.
The average time for cooking is 40 min but it depends on the strength of your oven.



Serving suggestions: rice, salad, potatoes

Red Onion, Feta and Olive Tart

Serves 4-6
Health information - Per serving (4) - 646 calories, protein 11g, carbohydrate 53g, fat 44g, saturated fat 18g, fibre 2g, added sugar 8g (depending on how much you add), salt 4.07g (depending on how much you add)

Ingredients
-25g butter
-2 medium red onions, finely sliced
-2 tbsp light muscovado sugar (I find this a bit too much so I use 1 and a half tbsp)
-2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
-flour, for dusting
-450g puff pastry, thawed if frozen
-100g feta, crumbled
-175g black olives, pitted and chopped (use as many olives as you want, I use less than this)
-1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
-shredded basil leaves, to garnish
-green salad, to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, gas mark 6, fan oven 180 degrees. Heat the butter in a pan and add the onions. Add a pinch of salt and fry for about 10 minutes, until caramalised. Add the sugar and balsamic vinegar and cook for a further 5 mins, until the juices are reduced and syrupy. Leave to cool.

2. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface and use to line a baking tray or swiss roll tin (30x22cm/12x8and a half inches). Cover with the onion mixture and scatter over the feta and olives. Season and drizzle with the olive oil.

3. Bake for 15-20 mins until the pastry is risen and golden and the base is crisp. Scatter over the basil leaves and cut into wedges. Serve with a green salad.

4. Sit back and enjoy!

Carrot cake

Ingredients:
- 3 carrots, peeled
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup of vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cup of sugar
- 2 cups of plain flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder



Preparing the cake:
Pre-heat the oven to 180º C.
Grate the carrots thinly, in the small side of the grater.
Add the eggs and whisk well with a whisker or a spoon.
Add the oil, sugar and flour, whisking well after each addition.
Mix the baking powder with one extra tbsp of flour, and then add to the mixture, whisking well.
Pour the mixture in an oil-greased baking tray and bake it for around 30 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the cake rest for 5 minutes inside it. Set aside to cool down.



Chocolate sauce:
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 2 tbsps chocolate powder
- 2 tbsps butter
- 1/2 cup of milk

Preparing the sauce:
Add all ingredients to a sauce pan and take it to the boil, whisking constantly with a wooden spoon (around 15 t0 20 minutes). It is going to reduce and become sticky. It is ready when you lift the spoon and it pours as a caramel string, not as water. It also does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
Pour over the cake and enjoy.

Souffléd beef omelette

Ingredients:

- 3 eggs
- salt
- 1/2 tbsp plain flour
- 200g minced beef (see recipe here)
- vegetable oil to fry



Preparing the omelette:

Prepare the beef and set aside to rest.
Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites, adding the whites to a bowl.
Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until they become firmer.
Add a pinch of salt, and the three yolks, whisking until they are incorporated to the whites.
Add the flour and mix again.
On a frying pan, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan completely. The omelette should float on the oil without touching the bottom of the pan.
Wait until the oil is very hot and add half the whisked eggs. With a spoon, try to make a round shape with the omelette if necessary.
Add half of the prepared beef to half the omelette, leaving half without filling.
With a spatula, fold the empty half over the filling, creating a half-moon shape.
Turn to fry a little more on the other side.
Put aside to rest on kitchen towel, to absorve the oil.



Repeat with the rest of the material.

Obs.: you can change the filling to anything you like, but bear in mind the filling cannot be too heavy, as it can pass through the egg and break the omelette.

Oats & apple muffins

Ingredients:
- 125g (4oz) plain white flour
- 125g (4oz) wholemeal plain flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 50g (2oz) medium oatmeal
- 50g (2oz) light muscovado sugar
- 3 small (or 2 medium/big) dessert apples, peeled, cored and diced
- 50g (2oz) sultanas or raisins
- 50g (2oz) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 150ml (1/4 pint) yoghurt
- 150ml (1/4 pint) milk
- 1 egg
- 5 tbsps clear honey
- extra oatmeal for dusting
- 12-hole muffin tray filled with paper muffin cases



Preparing the muffins:
Mix all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, oatmeal, and sugar) in a bowl.
Add the apples and the sultanas.
In a separate bowl, mix all wet ingredients (butter, yoghurt, milk, and honey).
Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing them together quickly, but do not over mix.



Divide mixture into the paper cases, and sprinkle with a little extra oatmeal.
Bake on a pre-heated oven (200º C) for 18 to 20 minutes until firm to touch.



Enjoy.

Jamie's Ministry of Food

Hi guys

Just wanted to suggest for you to watch a new show they are showing on tv (Channel 4), called Jamie's Ministry of Food.
The idea is to teach simple recipes to people who don't know how to cook and have them passing the recipes on to their friends, and these friends passing them on to other friends.
It's like our cooking club, but in a chain. :)

Take a look at his website and maybe we could try some of his recipes in our next meetings.

http://www.jamiesministryoffood.com/content/jo/home.html

The show is on at the following times:
Programme 1: Channel 4 - 30/09/2008 at 9pm
(Repeated 01/10/2008 at 11pm, shown on More 4 05/10/08 at 10pm)

Programme 2: Channel 4 07/10/2008 at 9pm
(Repeated 08/10/2008 at 11pm, shown on More 4 12/10/08 at 10pm)

Programme 3: Channel 4 14/10/2008 at 9pm
(Repeated 15/10/2008 at 11pm, shown on More 4 19/10/08 at 10pm)

Programme 4: Channel 4 21/10/2008 at 9pm
(Repeated 22/10/2008 at 11pm, shown on More 4, 26/10/08 at 10pm)

Enjoy.

Savoury muffins

Ingredients to 12 pop-overs (muffins)
- 125g of flour
- 210g of milk
- 2 whole eggs
- half a tablespoon of sugar
- one and a half teaspoon of salt
- a tablespoon of olive oil
- optional: grated parsley, grated cheese

Preparing the muffins:
Put everything together in a bowl and whisk quickly with a spoon or fork. You can add grated cheese, parsley, or ham. Do not use a mixer because the mixture needs to remain grainy to cook well.
Pour the mixture in a lightly greased cup cake baking tray (fill up to 3/4 of each hole)Place in a preheated oven at 200C: the muffins will magically start to rise!



Cooking time: between 40-55 minutes, but it depends on the oven.
You need to give enough time for the inside to bake fully so that the muffins don't fall once removed from the oven. And most importantly, do not keep opening the oven before the muffins are ready!

Bread lasagna

Third meeting, three more recipes. :)

The bread lasagna has three sets of ingredients.



Ingredients for the beef:
- 500g minced beef
- 1 tsp olive oil (or cooking spray)
- 1 beef stock cube
- 200g can of chopped tomatoes
- cumin, paprika and salt to season

Preparing the beef:
Add the olive oil to the pan and add the beef, cooking it in high heat until completely brown. Add the stock cube, the chopped tomatoes and season to taste.
Reduce the heat and simmer for around 20 minutes.

Ingredients for the sauce:
- 1 onion, grated
- 2 tbsps butter
- 1 glass of milk (around 250ml)
- 2 tbsps of flour, plain
- 1 can of extra thick cream (around 280ml)
- salt
- a handful of grated parmesan cheese (around 50g)



Preparing the sauce:
Melt the butter in a sauce pan and fry the onion. Add the flour mixed in the milk, the cream, the salt, and the cheese. Cook in medium to low heat until it gets thick.

Ingredients for the lasagna:
- sliced bread, no crusts
- cream cheese
- ham
- grated mozzarella and cheddar cheese
- grated parmesan



Preparing the lasagna:
Add one layer of bread in an oven-proof dish. Spread a layer of cream cheese on top of the bread, and add one layer of ham and grated cheese.
Add another layer of bread, cover with the minced beef, add a last layer of bread and cover with the sauce, making sure it goes through to the bottom of the dish.
Cover with grated parmesan cheese and take it to the oven (200 degrees) for around 20 minutes.

Greek Salad and Waldorf Salad

Here are two very easy, healthy, and tasty salads! :)

1 - Greek Salad

Ingredients:
- tomato;
- feta cheese;
- cucumber (sometimes I use olives instead);
- olive oil;
- oregano.

Now the hard part: cut the tomato, cucumber and feta in cubes (not too small); add some olive oil and oregano as you wish. Mix everything and enjoy! :)
Note: I usually use about 1 large tomato and around 5 cm of cucumber for 1 or 2 persons.



2 - Waldorf Salad

Ingredients:
- celery sticks;
- granny smith apple;
- yogurt;
- walnuts.

Again, the 'hard part': first cut the celery in medium slices, then the apple in cubes and immediately add some yogurt (this will prevent the apple from getting yellow, though that is still perfectly eatable, just not as good looking). Add some chopped walnuts. Eat and enjoy! :)
Note: about 3 celery sticks and 1-1,5 apples are enough for 1 or 2 persons.

Pizza, pizza, pizza...

Today, our second meeting was about pizza. Well, not only about pizza. We also had two types of salad and a lime mousse.
It was a lovelly afternoon and I hope people are getting more excited about our meetings.
Now, recipes!



Ingredients for the base (for 3 pizzas, 11 inches each):
- 500g plain flour
- 4 tbsps olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 250ml warm water
- 2 tsps dried yeast
- 1/2 tsp sugar

Preparing the base:
Put the yeast, sugar and 50ml of water in a cup and mix well. Let sit for 10 minutes until it develops a foam on top.

Put the flour into a bowl, add the olive oil and salt.
When the yeast is ready add it to the flour, and add the rest of the water.
Mix with your hands and knead until you have a smooth dough that does not get stuck in your hands (In this point, you can freeze the dough and use it some other time).
Cover it with a clean, dry tea towell and let it sit for an hour.
In the meantime, prepare the sauce.

Ingredients for the sauce (to cover the base):
- half red onion, chopped
- 2 tbsps olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic, chopped
- 1/2 red pepper, chopped
- 1 carrot, grated
- 1 pack of passata (500g)
- 1 tsp oregano
- fresh basil
- freshly ground pepper
- paprica




Add the olive oil to a large frying pan and fry the onions, garlic and pepper for a few minutes.
Add the passata and the carrots, mix well. Add the oregano, ground pepper and paprica, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the basil leaves, tearing them small to release the flavour. Stir well and simmer for more 5 minutes.




The dough should like like this after it has risen.
Take 1/3 of the dough and spread it with your fingers into a pizza pan. You can use a rolling pin instead of spreading if you prefer a very thin and crispy base.
Let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes so it can rise again.



For the topping, start spreading the sauce all over it.
Then add your favorite toppings. Our choices were:
- parma ham with mozzarella, red onion, tomato and basil
- pancetta with gorgonzolla chesse and red pepper pesto
- parma ham, pancetta, black olives and mozzarella.

The mozzarella should be the last or next to last topping on it, as it will melt over the other ingredients.



Put into the oven for approximately 25 minutes (200 degrees if fan assisted ovens; 240 degrees if electrical ovens). The heat should come only from the bottom of the oven to cook the base properly.



Enjoy!

Lime mousse

Ingredients:
- Juice of 4 limes
- 1 can of condensed milk
- 2 cans of extra thick cream


Add the condensed milk and cream in a bowl and mix it with an eletric mixer until you have a homogeneous mixture.

Still mixing, pour the lime juice slowly.

Take it to the fridge for 2 hours.

Chicken stir fry with egg noodles (or how to cheat cooking Chinese food)

Stir fries are usually very quick to prepare, and they can also be a very healthy meal if you prepare it properly.
They can get even faster if you cheat a little and use all the making-your-life-easy packs available at local supermarkets. And the noodles are still going to taste beautifully.

Below, I'm presenting both recipes: the original if you want to try, and the cheating version, if you wanna be quick. Both versions serve 4 people.



Original:

Ingredients
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, squashed
1 medium red green or yellow pepper(s), chopped
1 packet beansprouts
2 carrots, grated
100 g mangetout
5 tablespoon soy sauce
3 teaspoon fresh coriander
1 pouch Blue Dragon Oyster & Spring Onion Sauce
800 g chicken breast, uncooked, skinless, in cubes
4 portions Sharwoods Medium Egg Noodles

Cheating version:

Ingredients
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 packet stir fry vegetables
5 tablespoon soy sauce
1 pouch Blue Dragon Oyster & Spring Onion Sauce
800 g chicken breast, uncooked, skinless, in cubes
4 portions Sharwoods Medium Egg Noodles



Instructions

Cook the noodles in plenty of boiling water until tender, about 5 minutes.
Drain well and sprinkle soy sauce and a bit of oil, mixing well.

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan and stir-fry the chicken until cooked thoroughly (not pink inside) with 2 spoons of soy sauce. Add all the vegetables and stir fry for 4 - 5 minutes.

Tip the cooked drained noodles into the wok or frying pan and stir-fry over a medium-high heat for 1 minute, stirring all the time.

Add the Chinese sauce and soy sauce to the wok. Stir-fry for another few moments, until thoroughly heated. Season to taste, then serve.

Tips:
1 - You can always substitute the oil for light oil spray, if you want to maintain the calories down;

2 - Substitute the chicken for pork, beef, or prawns, or combine them the way you want;

3- Substitute the Oyster & Spring Onion Sauce for any other type. There are many different types of sauce you can use for stir fry. I definitely recommend the Black Bean sauce, the Chow Mein, and the Hoi Sin & Garlic sauce.

Enjoy!

Greek cheese pies (and how to fold a flag)

Ingredients:

• 200 gr feta cheese
• 1 pack filo pastry (200 gr) (you can find it in Sainsbury' s)
• 2 eggs
• black pepper
• dry spearmint
• sunflower oil
• kitchen paper
  

Grate all the feta cheese in a deep bowl.
Add the two eggs (white + yolk) , some black pepper and some spearmint. The amount of black pepper and spearmint is your choice :)
NB: If you don't have spearmint then just add black pepper.

Fill of the cheese pies:
Mix all the ingredients together in the bowl using a fork. Don't use force. You want to mix them not flatten them!

Filo preparation:
Clean some space on a flat surface and lay the filo pastry.
NB: The filo pastry that is not being used, should be covered with a clean kitchen towel so that it doesn't become dry.
Use a sharp knife to cut the filo in half along its length so that you have stripes of 5-6 cm width and approximately 30 cm length.

Cooking:
Put some sunflower oil in a frying pan and heat it. You don't need to put a lot. Perhaps 1 mm depth.
With the fork take a small amount of the fill, add it on the edge of a filo stripe and start folding the pastry as you would fold a flag (see Fig. 1 bellow) until you have a triangle.

Fold a cheese pie:



Repeat this with each stripe and when you have the triangular cheese pies ready, reduce the fire to minimum and place them on the frying pan. Be aware as they cook very fast so you will need to turn them as soon as you see them becoming golden at the bottom. When they are ready, place them on a plate on top of which you will have laid some kitchen paper that will soak the excessive oil.



The oil in the frying pan must be quite hot when you put them to cook, but while cooking them the fire must be low. You want to make sure that the egg is cooked and that the pies are golden and not black!

It is likely that you will not use all the filo that is in the 200 gr pack. In that case, fold the remaining filo and cover it with some cling film as it was when you opened it, so that it is not in contact with air. Store it in the fridge.

Enjoy the cheese pies.