Friday 27 May 2011

Slow Cooked Chicken Wings

I finally got a Slow Cooker. I've heard soo much about them crockpots before but never really bought one. But i found this slow cooker at Sainsburry's at a 70% off so i just went for it.



Hmm, i looked and looked and looked but never found a crock pot chicken wings recipe online. So i took the plung and decided to just go for it. I marinated the chicken wings in tandoori paste and a tablespoon of olive oil.



Then to give it some colour i fried em on the griddle pan. Look at that gorgeous colour!



Then i popped em into the slow cooker put it on high for 4 hours.




And voila there ready! Love Love Loved them they we're sooo moist and just fell off the bone. Served that with some basmati rice.

Gotta Give em a try!

Friday 20 May 2011

Date and Walnut Cake

Recently having discovered this cake i can really tell you one thing i absolutely love it!

I personally hate date just because growing up i hated the fact that it was really chewy and got stuck to my teeth especially the ones that had cavities. Not a nice feeling at all trust me :S

The other day i came across this cake at sainsbury's. 

So i had it with tea the next morning and not only did i not taste the dates at all, it had this wonderful crunch to it. I loved the walnuts on top. Ahh it was just heaven.

I decided to replicate it at home. Didn't exactly manage to but this is even better!

First, set your oven to Gas Mark 4/175C/350F 

So, Ingredients:

240g (1 1/2 cups) pitted dried dates, halved
310mls (1 1/4 cups) water
100g (1/2 cup) dark brown sugar
80g butter, cubed
Melted butter, for greasing
300g (2 cups) self-raising flour
1 1/2 tsp mixed spice
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 x 100g pkt walnut pieces

Mix everything up and keep some walnuts to sprinkle on top. Then Bake em in the oven for 50-60 mins.




Arent they gorgeous?


Pizza Time

Its the weekend and ideally you'd order a pizza.. Hmm, naah! Lets just make it at home! Nothing beats homemade pizza.

So what do we need?

Dough:
300g Bread Flour
1    tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Yeast
170ml Water

I use a pizza stone nothing can get pizza base crispy in a couple of mins.

So right before you put the dough together just switch oven to Gas Mark 8/450F/230C 

When the dough is ready top with your favorite sauce topping and cheese. I usually top it with mixed herbs and cracked black pepper.

Remember in pizza less is more!  Don't top it with too many topping or you'll end up with a soggy base and thats not tasty at all!!






Yum Yum!


Bonne apettite!

P.S Give this post a thought the next time you want to order a pizza!

Friday 13 May 2011

Hot Rolls from the Oven

Don't you just loved it when you wake up to hot rolls from the oven with a dollop  of butter.. Yum Yum!!

Nothing beats that:


Right;

Ingredients:


1 tsp Yeast
450g Bread Flour
1/2tsp Sugar
25g Butter
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Egg
250ml Water (for a slightly denser roll try 125ml water and 125ml milk)


  • Divide roll into 8-10 pieces and shape into baps. 


  • Place on a greased baking tray and allow to prove at 40C/90F until it doubled in size (approx 20mins).


  • Dust with flour


  • Bake in a preheated oven at 220C/425F/Gas Mark7 for 15mins or until golden brown.




Thursday 12 May 2011

Sheesh Kofta and Rice





Ingredients:

500g Minced Lamb
2 tbs Dried Parsely
1/2 tsp Sumac
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Black Pepper

Mix these all up and shape into a kofta shape or into a Patty. And fry on a very hot griddle.

Serve immediately on some fragrant rice and a hummus or tahini.

Sunday 8 May 2011

Fennel Biscotti

Yeah you read it right! Dried Cake!
Love love love love these there a staple at our home
They smell lovely and taste amazing but very light and crunchy usually have
these with tea. Oh my what more can u ask for?

Hmm, the recipe?

Right lets get started,

Its has the same batter as a sponge cake just a bit heavier. This will turn out to be a bit dense.

Dry Ingredients:
675g   All-Purpose Flour
2 Tbs  Fennel Seeds
1 tsp   Baking Powder
375g   Icing Sugar
2 Tbs  Custard Sugar

Liquid Ingredients:
5 Large Eggs
1 Cup  Sunflower Oil
1 tsp    Vanilla Extract

Before doing  anything preheat the oven at Gas Mark 4/350F/176C Degrees

Then beat together the oil and sugar until creamy


Beat in one Egg at a time..


Nice and fluffy!


Then add the dry ingredients in batches:


Keep beating its going to feel very dry at first and you might think oh no its ruined
but keep beating and it will come together and look like this


I usually use a 9 Inch x 13 Inch pan lined with parchment paper. Then bake it for 40 - 45 mins until golden brown.



Once it looks like this, switch oven off and let it cool completely.



Then place on a cutting board and using a serrated knife cut into blocks
Place the blocks in a baking sheet and put em under the grill for another while until there golden on all sides.



And enjoy with a lovely cuppa tea!