This is one of the most rewarding meals and it is put together in LESS THAN 30 MINUTES!!
6-8 chicken breasts, bone- and skinless 125ml olive oil half an onion, chopped 60ml lemon juice 30ml apple cider vinegar 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 125ml cup packed with basil leaves 60ml cup packed with mint leaves 15ml rosemary, chopped 3 anchovy fillets/15ml anchovy spread
Preheat your oven to 220℃. Place the chicken on a baking sheet and drizzle over some olive oil. Rub the oil all over the breast and season with salt and pepper. Roast the chicken for 15-20 minutes, remove from the oven and cover with aluminium foil to rest. Set aside. For the herb dressing: Add the oil, onion, lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, herbs and anchovy to the cup of a blender and blitz at high speed for one minute.
Arrange the chicken on a serving platter and spoon over the herb dressing.
about 16 ripe, fresh figs 1 large burrata cheese 100g prosciutto 45ml honey thyme leaves, chopped
Preheat your oven to 200℃. Cut off the stem at the top of each fig, stand it upright and cut a cross in the top of each one, but don’t cut through to the base. Slice the Burrata into slices with a serrated knife ….. as best you can .. Put about half a slice of cheese into the cross you have cut – you can piece it together as it will melt. Now lay the prosciutto flat and half each slice in its length. Thread the ham through and around the fig and place in an ovenproof dish. Drizzle the honey over once all the figs are done and scatter over the thyme. Roast the figs for 8-10 minutes until the cheese has melted. Serve immediately as a canapé or an indulgent treat.
Add the yoghurt, garlic, mint and lemon rind to a small bowl. Season with salt and whisk to mix. Divide the mixture between 2 serving plates and set aside.
Pour the olive oil into a small pan, add the butter and allow to melt over a medium heat. Add the smoked paprika, chilli flakes, Szechuan pepper and cumin to the pan and stir around for a minute or so. Take the pan from the heat and set aside.
Place a saucepan on high heat and fill it 10cm deep with water. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a very low simmer. Crack one egg at a time, into a cup and gently slide it into the simmering water. Wait about 20 seconds before adding the next egg. Poach the eggs for 3 minutes, remove them with a slotted spoon and set 2 eggs on the yoghurt mixture. Spoon the spicy butter over the eggs and drizzle the rest on the plate. Serve with small pita breads to mop up the sauce.
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and spray a ceramic dish with cooking spray. Set aside. Slice the sweet potatoes into very thin slices – not thicker than 2mm. Arrange the slices in a single layer overlapping slightly, in the oven dish. Mix the two cheeses together and sprinkle a quarter of the cheese on the sweet potato. Keep going with the layers until you have a quarter of the cheese left. Set aside. Add some vegetable oil to a saucepan set over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook while stirring, for about 1 minute. Pour in the cream, thyme and nutmeg and simmer the mixture for about 5 minutes. It should thicken slightly. Add the last quarter of the cheese to the saucepan and stir through until melted. Season the cream with salt and pepper and pour it over the sweet potatoes. Place the dish in the oven and bake until golden brown and bubbly – about 45minutes. Check that it is fully cooked by inserting a sharp knife in the centre. Remove the gratin from the oven, rest for 15 minutes and serve.
This is a delicious tartare sauce made from the easiest ever homemade mayonnaise!!
Mayonnaise: 250ml oil of your choice – I like a specific brand of olive oil but you may use any seed oil you like) 2 egg yolks 15ml English mustard 60ml lemon juice
Add the oil, yolks, mustard and lemon juice to a mixing bowl and blitz at high speed with a stick blender. Keep going until you have a thick and creamy sauce. Season with salt. You may keep the mayonnaise in a glass jar in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Tartare sauce: 250ml homemade mayonnaise a handful of basil leaves 4 gherkins, chopped 15ml capers, chopped
Add the mayonnaise and basil leaves to a mixing bowl and blitz with a stick blender. Add the chopped gherkins and capers and mix through. Check the seasoning and serve with fish.
1 x 200g packet of coconut biscuits (Tennis biscuits) 80g butter, melted 800g cream cheese 250g crème fraîche 180g caster sugar 40g flour 4 eggs grated rind of 3 lemons 100ml lemon juice 10ml vanilla Meringue: 4 egg whites 70g sugar a pinch of salt
Preheat your oven to 140℃ and spray a 22cm loose-bottom cake tin with cooking spray. Break the biscuits into the bowl of a food processor and blitz to crumbs. Drizzle in the melted butter with the engine running. The mixture should resemble wet sand. Spoon the biscuit mixture into the prepared cake tin, spread it out evenly and press it down on the bottom with the back of a spoon. Set aside. Add the cream cheese, crème fraîche, caster sugar, flour, eggs, lemon rind, lemon juice and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until you have a very smooth mixture. Set aside. Wrap the outside of the prepared cake tin with aluminium foil, place the tin in a roasting tin and pour 2-3cm water into the roasting tin. Place in the oven and bake for 1,5-2 hours, until set like wobbly jelly. Turn off the oven, open the door and allow the cake to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate the cheesecake in the baking tin for 3-4 hours.
Meringue: Add the egg whites, sugar and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (without the bottom touching the water). Whisk the mixture by hand until the sugar has dissolved and it burns your finger when you touch it. Transfer the bowl to the mixer and whisk at the highest speed until firm, glossy peaks form. Spoon or pipe the meringue onto the cheesecake and flame with a blowtorch before serving.
250g smoked bacon 125ml yoghurt 125ml mayonnaise a squeeze of lemon juice 45ml olive oil 80ml milk 100g + 100g feta cheese 3 cos lettuce (or other crunchy lettuce) 125g sugar snaps 250ml frozen peas, thawed 1 avocado pear, sliced
Dice the bacon and cook until done and slightly crispy on the edges. Set aside to cool. Add the yoghurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, olive oil, milk and 100g of feta cheese to a blender and blitz on high speed until smooth. Set aside. Arrange the lettuce on a serving plate. Scatter over the sugar snaps, peas, avocado pear and bacon. Spoon/drizzle the dressing over the salad. Crumb the remaining 100g feta on top, add a few grindings of black pepper and serve.
Preheat your oven to 180℃. Place the chicken in a large oven dish, spacing them so that they aren’t crowded. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the mayonnaise, chutney, water and curry powder into a jug and whisk together. Pour over the chicken. Chop half the apricots and sprinkle on the chicken. Cover the oven dish with aluminium foil and place in the oven to cook for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and scatter the rest of the apricots over. Cook the chicken (without the foil) for another 15 minutes. Spoon the liquid over the chicken from time to time. I serve this dish on couscous which is great for absorbing the abundance of sauce. A tomato and basil salad is the perfect pairing for a great weekday dinner!
half an English cucumber, cut into chunks 1 large onion, peeled and quartered 3 cloves of garlic, minced 8 ripe tomatoes, quartered 1 red chilli, chopped 30ml olive oil 80ml apple cider vinegar a bunch of basil leaves, chopped
Add all the ingredients to a blender and blitz together. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning – it is soooo important! Refrigerate the soup until you want to serve it. Spoon into soup bowls and serve with ice cubes and a fresh crusty bread.
100g pistacchio nuts, roughly chopped about 16 medium figs 50ml honey
For the pastry: Add the butter and sifted icing sugar to the bowl of a food processor. Run the machine until the mixture is well combined and pasty. Add the flour and pulse until the mixture resembles wet sand. Scrape down. Drizzle a few drops of the egg into the bowl with the engine running. Add a few more drops at a time until the mixture comes together. (You may have egg left and that is okay – the less you need the crispier the pastry!) Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap it with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 190℃. You will use a 22cm loose-bottom flan tin but do not spray or butter the tin! Roll the pastry to a 3mm thickness and line the bottom and sides of the tin. Dock the pastry with a fork and bake blind for 15 minutes. Remove the baking paper and weights/beans and set aside to cool.
For the Crème Pâtissière: Add the corn flour to a mixing bowl. Pour a small amount of the milk into the owl and stir to make a slurry with the corn flour. Add the egg yolks and half the sugar. Whisk by hand until the sugar has dissolved. Set aside. Pour the rest of the milk and the rest of the sugar into a small saucepan. Set over medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Take the milk from the heat as soon as tiny bubbles start to appear around the edge of the saucepan. Drizzle the warm mixture onto the egg mixture in a very thin stream while whisking continuously. Now pour the mixture back into the saucepan and place on a medium-low heat. Stir until the mixture is thick and smooth. Allow to cook for about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour the mixture into a shallow bowl, place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface and allow to cool completely.
Whisk the mixture by hand once it is at room temperature, until it is smooth. Spoon it into a piping bag and pipe into the prepared pastry shell. Scatter the chopped pistachio evenly over the surface. Cut a cross into the top third of each fig and place the figs side-by-side on the pistachio. Drizzle the honey over the figs before serving.
My Whisk and I 