Hi and welcome to my blog! My name is Karen and I love cooking simple, uncomplicated, flavourful food. My cooking is inspired by seasonal ingredients, punchy flavours, an awareness of sustainability and of course by the likes and dislikes of my family and friends that sit around my table as well as you, the virtual guests around my table!
I am a chef, recipe developer and food stylist and generate my own content. I am also completely addicted to recipe books, of which I have an extremely large collection but the essence of my food is about celebrating life and all the fabulousness that we can add by creating good food.
Thank you for reading my blog. Please keep on giving me feedback and may your kitchen, as mine, be filled with joy and the best tasting food!
2kg chicken, portioned 1 fresh chilli 2 cloves of garlic, minced 5ml chilli flakes 15ml smoked paprika 10ml dried oreganum 2,5ml dried thyme or 5ml fresh thyme leaves 60ml lemon juice 30ml vegetable oil 30ml brown sugar 2 red onions 500g potatoes a handful of parsley, roughly chopped
Preheat your oven to 200℃. Place the chicken pieces in a roasting tray, season with salt and pepper and set aside. Chop the chilli finely and add it to a small bowl with the garlic, chilli flakes, smoked paprika, oregano, thyme, lemon juice, vegetable oil and sugar. Stir to combine. Drizzle the spice mixture over the chicken pieces. Turn the pieces and smear the spices over the chicken with your hands. Peel the onions and cut into wedges. Cut the potato into quarters. Add the onion and potato to the roasting dish and mix through with your hands. Place in the oven and roast for 50minutes. Take the chicken from the oven, sprinkle with the parsley and serve with a crisp salad.
Beignets are French doughnuts that are really easy and straightforward to make. Once you have tasted a fresh, warm beignet it will become your favourite in-between treat!
190ml warm water 62ml + 62ml sugar 10g instant yeast 1 egg 125ml milk 10ml vanilla 4 X 250ml flour 5ml salt 45ml butter, very soft vegetable oil for frying icing sugar to dust
Pour the warm water into the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Add 62ml sugar and sprinkle the yeast on the water. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk the egg, milk, vanilla and remaining 62ml sugar together in a small mixing bowl and add it to the yeast mixture. Turn the mixer to a slow speed and gradually add the flour and salt. Add the butter and incorporate. Increase the speed to medium and mix/knead for about 4 minutes, until the dough comes together in a ball. Place the dough, which will be very soft, in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise for about 2 hours or until doubled in size. Pour about 5cm of oil into a saucepan and place on the heat. The ideal temperature is 179 – 180℃. Lightly dust a work surface with flour and roll the dough to a thickness of about 1,5cm. Cut into 5cm X 5cm squares and fry until golden. Dust the warm beignets with icing sugar. Serve with another dusting of icing sugar and a cup of coffee.
These pork sausages in an apple and marmelade gravy makes the ideal weeknight dinner: quick, easy and delicious!
16 pork sausages 3 red onions 3 apples 1 head of garlic 15ml wholegrain mustard 125ml marmelade 200ml apple juice 20ml cornstarch 200ml chicken stock a handful of sage leaves
Preheat your oven to 180℃. Pour some vegetable oil into a shallow casserole dish, add the sausages and brown them over a medium heat. Remove the sausages and set aside. Peel the onions and apples, cut into quarters and remove the cove from the apple. How half each quarter onion and apple. Keep about 8 apple pieces aside. Half the head of garlic horizontally and place it cut-side down in the casserole. Add the onion, apple and mustard and fry for about 4 minutes. Remove and set aside with the sausages. Add the marmelade and apple juice to the casserole and stir until the marmelade has melted. Add the cornstarch to a small bowl and add a small amount of the chicken stock to it, while stirring to dissolve. Pour the cornstarch mixture and the rest of the chicken stock into the casserole and add the rest of the ingredients, except the extra apple pieces, that you have kept aside. Cover with a lid and place in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the lid, stir the dish and cook for another 15 minutes. Take the casserole from the oven and add the rest of the apple pieces and sage leaves. Stir through. Serve the marmelade and apple sausages on a creamy mashed potato or steamed couscous.
This salad is more of an idea than a recipe, perfect for that little something on the side with a rich dish. Crispy and fresh.
For the salad:
4-6 Zucchini 10ml Olive oil 30ml Lemon juice Parmesan shavings Salt and Pepper
* Use a vegetable peeler to shave ribbons from zucchini down the length of the vegetable. * Combine the olive oil and lemon juice to make a salad dressing and toss the zucchini ribbons thoroughly. * Place dressed zucchini in a bowl and shave parmesan over until you have enough. | * Season with salt and pepper.
This is a refreshing drink to have on a summer’s day and a real crowd pleaser. Add a shot of vodka or tequila and serve with aperitifs!
500ml water 2 sprigs rosemary about 15cm long 125ml sugar 125ml honey 300ml fresh lemon juice 1,5 litre cold water
Pour the water into a small sauce and bring to a boil. Add the rosemary, cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce to a simmer, for 10 minutes. Take from the heat and remove the rosemary. Stir in the sugar and honey. Pour the mixture into a jug and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Add the lemon juice and 1,5 litres cold water. Chill the lemonade for at least an hour. Serve over ice and top with fresh lemon slices and a sprig of rosemary.
Pour the milk into a small saucepan, add the sugar and turn the heat to medium. Warm the milk to just before boiling point. Turn down the heat to the lowest setting and add the chopped chocolate. Simmer the mixture for 5 minutes while whisking/stirring continuously. Take the saucepan from the heat and add the hot espresso and vanilla. Stir through and serve hot.
about 1,8 litre chicken or vegetable stock 15ml + 30ml butter 10ml vegetable oil 1 onion, finely chopped 3 cloves of garlic, minced 3 x 250ml butternut, cubed 500ml arborio rice 125ml white wine 125ml parmesan cheese, grated 30 sage leaves, chopped
Pour the stock into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low. Put another saucepan on medium heat and add 15ml butter and the vegetable oil. Add the onion and cook for 2 – 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cubed butternut and cook until the butternut begins to colour around the edges – about 7 minutes. Add the 30ml butter and the rice and stir through to coat the rice for about 2 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until most of it is absorbed by the rice. Add about 250ml (a cup) of the hot stock to the rice and stir continuously until most of the stock is absorbed. Add the remaining stok 250ml at a time but allow the rice to absorb the liquid before adding more. Stir the risotto often and cook until the butternut is tender – about 25 minutes. Stir in the parmesan and sage and season with salt and pepper. Serve hot!
These polenta/maize canapés can be made a day in advance and is such a good example of plain and simple food that delivers on fabulous flavour! Make all the components the day before and assemble before serving.
200g mushrooms, chopped 45ml butter a handful of thyme
100g feta cheese, crumbled about 100ml milk
For the polenta squares: Grease a standard roasting tin with butter and put aside. Cook the polenta according to packet instructions but replace the water with chicken stock. Fry the chopped onion until it has caramelised, add the garlic and fry for another minute. Add the onion and garlic to the polenta as soon as it is full cooked and mix through. Spoon the polenta mixture into the prepared roasting tin and level the surface with the back of an oiled spoon. Cover with cling wrap and set aside to cool completely.
For the mushroom topping: Place a frying pan on high heat and add the mushrooms, butter and thyme. Cook until the mushrooms have caramelised all over, take from the heat and set aside.
For the whipped feta: Add the feta and about half of the milk to the mixing container of a stick blender and blitz together. Add some more milk to get the mixture to a thick, creamy consistency that will “sit” on the polenta.
To assemble: Turn the polenta out onto a chopping board and cut into squares of about 3cm X 3cm. Spoon about half a teaspoonful of the whipped feta on to each polenta square. Top the feta with thyme-mushroom. Arrange the squares on a serving platter.
A warm South African desert with a zesty twist. This recipe serves 6 to 8 people comfortably.
Blood Orange Slices:
200g Brown sugar 125ml Water 125ml Blood orange juice 2 Blood oranges, sliced.
Pudding:
125ml Milk 30ml Butter 15ml Apple cider vinegar 3 Eggs 220g Brown sugar 15ml Smooth apricot jam 180g Flour 2,5ml Bicarbonate of soda A pinch of salt
Sauce:
120g Butter 60g Caster sugar 125ml Blood orange juice Finely grated zest of one blood orange 250ml Cream 125ml Brandy
For the blood orange slices:
* Put a small saucepan on medium heat and add the sugar, water and blood orange juice. * Stir until the sugar is dissolved and allow to cook for 5 minutes. * Add the blood orange slices and cook for another 20 minutes. * Set aside.
For the pudding:
* Preheat the oven to 180℃ and spray 6-8 ramekins. * Add the milk, butter and vinegar to a saucepan and heat until the butter has melted. Set aside. * Add the eggs to the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and turn it on medium speed. * Add two tablespoons of sugar to the eggs at a time, with the engine running, until all of the sugar has been incorporated and the mixture looks fluffy. * Add the jam and beat until incorporated. * Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a mixing bowl. Add about one third of the flour mixture to the egg mixture, alternating with the milk, until the batter is combined. * Scoop about 125ml of batter into each ramekin and bake for 25 minutes.
For the sauce:
* Add the butter, caster sugar, blood orange juice and zest to a saucepan and stir until the sugar is dissolved. * Bring to a boil and cook for about 5 minutes until the sauce is a caramel colour. * Pour the cream and brandy into the sauce while whisking continuously. * Simmer for about 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly.
* Remove the baked puddings from the oven, poke holes into it with a toothpick and spoon about 60ml of the sauce over each pudding. * Place one or two slices of blood oranges on top of each pudding and bake for another 10 minutes.
Chocolate ganache: 160g dark chocolate, chopped 180ml coconut and cows milk 30ml honey 15ml coconut oil a pinch of salt
Making the pastry: Melt the chocolate and set it aside. Add the butter, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla and milk to the bowl of a food processor and process to mix. Add the chocolate in a thin stream while the engine is running. Add the sifted cocoa and flour to the mixture and process until the mixture forms a smooth ball of pastry. Wrap the pastry in plastic wrap and rest for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Roll out the pastry between two sheets of baking paper to a thickness of 3mm. Line a loose bottom tart tin and then line the pastry case with tin foil. Freeze for one hour. Preheat your oven to 180℃. Bake the pastry case with the foil lining for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. Set aside to cool completely.
Making the blueberry custard: Add the berries, lemon juice, 250ml coconut milk and honey to the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Pour the 30ml coconut milk into a small bowl and add the cornstarch and agar-agar. Stir to dissolve. Pour the blueberry mixture into a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil. Drizzle the cornstarch mixture into the blueberry mixture while whisking continuously until smooth and it starts to thicken. Pour the blueberry custard into the cooled tart shell and allow to cool. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Making the ganache: Add the chocolate, milk (pour whatever you have left of the coconut milk into a measuring jug and then fill up with dairy milk to 180ml), honey and coconut oil to a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan with simmering water. Stir until the chocolate has melted and you are left with a smooth mixture. Pour over the blueberry custard. Refrigerate the tart for 4 hours before serving.
My Whisk and I 