Another quickie and once again delicious. Of course, you can add what you like to this to make it spicier, or include more vegetable goodness if you want or even some chorizo or equivalent meat. However, simple is sometimes the best.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of  chopped  onions
• 4 x cloves garlic, chopped
• 500ml chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 x 15oz can of black beans, rinsed, liquid removed
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander
• Rice (cooked as per normal instructions)

Method

1. Spray medium saucepan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat till warm.
2. Saute/fry onion, green onions, and garlic till tender, about 5 min.
3. Add beans and cook for 2-3 minutes
4. Add chili powder
5. Add in broth to saucepan and heat to boiling.
6. Reduce heat and simmer covered until broth reduces and is absorbed
7. Stir in coriander
8. Serve over rice
9. Dress with some coriander leaves

Another very quick and easy recipe this week, which I found yesterday and cooked last night. Very tasty indeed.

If you can’t find cod, or are concerned about overfishing, then any other meaty white fish should do.

Ingredients

• 1 lemon, quartered
• 4 pieces prime skinless cod portions, each weighing about 125g
• 3 fresh lemon thyme sprigs
• Salt and cracked black pepper
• 2-3tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 x 410g cans chickpeas, drained
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tsp ground cumin

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7.
2. Place the cod fillets in a roasting tin.
3. Squeeze the juice from the lemon quarters, and reserve.
4. Put the lemon quarters into the tin with the fish and thyme, then sprinkle with salt, pepper and a drizzle of oil.
5. Roast for 10-15 minutes on the top shelf or until the fish is cooked.
6. Place the chickpeas in a food processor with the reserved lemon juice, the garlic, cumin, some seasoning and the remaining olive oil.
7. Process for a few seconds so the mash still has some texture.
8. Heat the mash in the microwave on full power for 1-2 minutes.
9. Spoon on to warmed plates, top with a piece of fish and drizzle over a little oil.

Recipe from Waitrose

I’ve included Simple in the title because it is. After the more complex Baked Cheesecake last week, this recipe is far more simple. You can use beef rather than turkey if you want, reducing the cooking time if required, but turkey rocks and its lean meat.

Ingredients

• 1lb of ground turkey
• 1/3 cup Italian dressing
• 1/4 cup ketchup or barbecue sauce
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs – plain
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350F/180c.
2. Grease a loaf pan.
3. In a bowl combine all ingredients, using your hands to blend it all nicely.
4. Press into loaf pan and pat down to even it out.
5. Bake for about 1hr until the top is nicely browned.
6. Use a skewer to test that its cooked all the way through.

Serve with mashed potatoes – of course.

A more complicated recipe but only in that you need to keep an eye on temperature and time it well to get the perfect result. At the end of the day though, unless you burn it completely its going to look and taste great. Give it a go, you won’t be sorry.

Making the Base

To make the base we’ll use the one from the Banoffee Pie Recipe.

Ingredients

• One packet of McVities Chocolate Hob-Nobs (or similar-digestives will do)
• 2 tablespoons margarine (or butter)

Method

1. Crush the biscuits in a freezer bag with a rolling pin until they are reduced to crumbs.
2. Gently heat some margarine in a saucepan until liquid (or just leave some out at room temperature to soften).
3. Pour crumbs and liquid/soft margarine and mix in with the crumbs until they start to bind together.
4. Transfer the biscuit crumbs to a round dish (a large Pyrex dish is good) and pat with a spoon so that they cover the base.
5. Place in the fridge to set.

For the cheesecake filling:

Ingredients

• 1/2 pounds cream cheese (5 8-ounce packages)
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, optional
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 5 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon of honey (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Have all ingredients at room temperature.
2. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan
3. With an electric whisk or mixer, beat the cream cheese in a large bowl until creamy
4. Gradually add the sugar and flour; beat until smooth and creamy, scraping the beaters and sides of bowl, about 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Beat in the vanilla
6. Beat in the eggs and yolks one at a time, just until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl and the beaters after each addition.
7. On low speed, beat in the cream.
8. Add the honey and beat if desired
9. Scrape the batter into the crust and smooth the top.
10. Bake for 15 minutes at 500 degrees.
11. Reduce the oven temperature to 200 F and bake for 1 hour more.
12. Turn the oven off, prop the oven door open. Let the cake cool in oven for 30 minutes.
13. Remove to a rack and let cool completely in the pan before unmolding.
14. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably 24 hours before serving.

This week is slightly different, in that I’m going to give you tips as well as the recipe. The reason for that is because the line between excellent risotto and crap risotto is so thin that your dinner can be sublime one minute and not even rat fodder the next.

The main tip is time; you need to make time for this dish. It doesn’t take long, but you need to concentrate and follow the basic rules and at the end of it, you will be rewarded. The whole prep and cooking is 30-40 minutes, so its not like you’re going to have to stand over the pan for 2-3 hours, but a little committment will go a long way.

Getting down to the nitty gritty, the key to great risotto is measuring and controlling the addition of the liquids; specifically the stock which flavours the dish and helps to create that wonderful, creamy texture. Add a little at a time and stir in until it is all absorbed, then add some more and stir in until that is absorbed. Rinse/repeat. Stirring breaks down the starch in the rice which is then released into, and absorbed by the rice which makes the creamy goodness.

One extra bit of advice is buy the right rice. In the main it is easy as the packets are usually labelled Risotto rice, but if not look for Arborio or Carnaroli – both give a creamy texture, the former with a stickiness and the latter with more bite.

The recipe below is the simplest that I make regularly – adding peas gives you some of that 5-a-day vegetable goodness but still retains the ease of preparation. Adding other veg earlier in the process (ie cubed carrots; diced peppers; chopped asparagus tips) or seafood can make you look like a chef of the highest order. Mushroom risotto can be extremely delicious – buy some dried shitakes and you can use them to make stock to really infuse the mushroom flavour into the risotto.

 Ingredients

• a knob of butter
• one onion chopped finely
• 300g risotto rice
• 125ml of white wine
• 1 litre of hot chicken or vegetable stock
• 50-100g peas (frozen)
• shaved/grated parmesan cheese

Method

1. Heat the butter in the pan over a low heat
2. Add the onion and sweat until soft
3. Turn up the heat to medium and add the rice, stirring for a few minutes until all grains are coated
4. Add the wine and stir in until it is all absorbed
5. Add a ladle of stock and stir gently until it is absorbed
6. Continue adding stock a ladle at a time and stir until absorbed before adding the next – about 18-20 minutes in total
7. Add the peas towards the end and stir – again there will be liquid to absorb
8. Taste the risotto – the rice should be creamy but with a little bite
9. Remove from the heat and add the shaved parmesan
10. Serve immediately in flat plates to show off dish

Up Next: Baked cheesecake

Another simple one but truly delicious. We have this about once a week in our house because it takes about an hour all in and much less if you can cook the beans in the lamb without blanching/steaming first. If you have a lid for your pan then skip step 6.

Ingredients

• 1 large onion chopped
• 1 lb of ground lamb
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes (400g)
• 2 cloves of crushed garlic
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground cumin
• 1lb trimmed green beans
• Basmati rice, steamed/boiled to your liking

Method:

1. Saute the onions in a little olive oil in a pan
2. Add the lamb mince and brown (approx. 10 minutes)
3. Take a minute to extract the fat. A lot will build up so remove as much as you can
4. Add the tomatoes and their liquid
5. Add the spices and garlic
6. Blanch or steam the green beans (skip if you have a cover for the pan)
7. Add the green beans and stir well
8. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes (cover if you have one)
9. Serve over some basmati rice

Up Next: Risotto

I found this one when I was on the South Beach diet and I still use it to this day. This is such a simple recipe but looks pretty impressive. Honestly, there’s a bit of cooking, some mixing and then its all about piling things on top of each other and tossing in the oven. When done it looks and tastes fantastic.  Recipe from The South Beach Diet Cook Book.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 tsp ground oregano
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper 
• 4 skinless and boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsps virgin olive oil
• 1 cup chopped or sliced tomatoes
• 4 slices mozzarella cheese

Method:

1. Combine the ricotta with the oregano, salt, and pepper.
2. Rub the chicken with the garlic powder.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add the chicken and cook for 12 minutes per side.
5. Place the chicken breasts, side by side, in a large baking dish and allow to cool.
6. Preheat the oven to 350° F (180° C).
7. Spoon 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture and 1/4 cup tomatoes onto each chicken breast. Top each chicken breast with 1 slice mozzarella.
8. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of a breast registers 170° F (75° C) and the juices run clear.
9. Service with steamed vegetables and/or rice

Up Next: Lamb with Green Beans

This is quite  a simple recipe. You can use fresh crab, but if all you can get is tinned, then thats fine. As a matter of fact, the pics included with this one show that I did indeed use tinned. Anyway, here is what you need and what you have to do:

Ingredients

• 1lb crabmeat (lump)
• 3 slices of bread (crusts removed/chopped)
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon of worcestershire sauce (optional)
• 1 tablespoon of fresh parsley or 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley
• Vegetable oil

Method

1. Put crabmeat and bread in a bowl
2. Mix egg, mustard, mayonnaise (and worcestershire sauce if chosen) and pour over meat and bread
3. Gently work all ingredients together (don’t break up the lumps of crabmeat)
4. Form into cakes/balls (an ice-cream scoop or a 1/2 cup measure works here)
5. Put on wax/greaseproof paper covered tray and cover with plastic wrap
6. Store in the fridge for at least 2 hours (6 is better, or overnight works)
7. Fry cakes in vegetable oil (1 1/2 inches) for 4 minutes each side
8. Serve with rice and asparagus (or favourite vegetable)

As you can see, this is more like Crab breaks, but still very tasty.

Up Next: Chicken Capri

Before we get to the actual recipe, I have a story. Won’t take long, so please bare with me.

A few years ago, I wanted to make a dessert for Christmas dinner. I loved Banoffee Pie so that seemed like a good choice. Of course, what was required was a good recipe. So I searched the Internet and found a few. One instantly leapt out as the poster had exclaimed it was the “best banoffee pie recipe” they had ever seen and credited it to someone with a name that was familiar to me. Where the recipe had been found was on an old server where this person had worked so I wondered if indeed it was by my college friend. I went ahead and picked the recipe and made it.

It did indeed make a delicious pie that went down extremely well with all the guests, and after a quick exchange of emails where I thanked my friend for the recipe I got 3^rd hand, as I said, “if it was him” and it was confirmed that it was his recipe.

I am sure I have bought him some beers as a better thank you, although it didn’t seem enough on balance. Who knows, if you make this and like it as much as I did, perhaps you’ll send him a beer or two.

Anyway, thanks for indulging me and here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

• Tin (~400g) of condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk!)
• Three large bananas
• One packet of McVities Chocolate Hob-Nobs (or similar-digestives will do)
• Half-pint of double cream, or whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons margarine (or butter)

Method

• Crush the biscuits in a freezer bag with a rolling pin until they are reduced to crumbs.
• Gently heat some margarine in a saucepan until liquid (or just leave some out at room temperature to soften).
• Pour crumbs and liquid/soft margarine and mix in with the crumbs until they start to bind together.
• Transfer the biscuit crumbs to a round dish (a large Pyrex dish is good) and pat with a spoon so that they cover the base.
• Place in the fridge to set.
• Put the tin of condensed milk in a pan of boiling water (NB- don’t open the tin first!) and allow to boil for 2 hours . You should put a lid on the pan to prevent all the water boiling off.
• When done, remove the tin and leave to cool a little (you could pour cold water on it to cool the outside).
• When cool enough to handle, open the tin carefully – the condensed milk will have caramelised and may well shoot out the opening.
• Pour/spoon the toffee from the tin onto the biscuit base of the Pyrex dish. Place back in the fridge to cool.
• Slice the bananas and arrange them on top of the toffee.
• Whip the cream until peaking, then fold on top and smooth out.
• Dust with chocolate powder for effect. Keep in the fridge until needed, covered with cling-film.

Tips

You may want to make the biscuit base with a lip (a bit like a flan or Pavlova). Start the condensed milk boiling, and then do the base. Have a rest for a while, then pour out the toffee and start on the cream and bananas. Serve cut into wedges in a bowl.