Delicious appetizers: Aubergine & Salami stack

What you need!
Serves 6 to 8 big people

• 2 aubergines
• 4 tbsp Genovese pesto
• 4 large, ripe tomatoes
• Maldon sea salt (plus table salt for extracting the moisture from the aubergines)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 24 thin-cut slices of Milano salami

Make it!

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 2/- 150ºC/300ºF. Slice the aubergines into thin rounds and arrange in a colander in layers, with table salt sprinkled over each layer to extract the moisture. Put the colander on a plate and leave to sit for about an hour, until beads of water -have begun to appear on the surface of the aubergine.
2. Rinse the aubergine slices under a running tap and thoroughly squeeze like a sponge so they are limp and rather rubbery. Swipe each piece with a little pesto and set aside. Finely slice the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.
3. Alternate the aubergine, tomato and salami in layers so that they form towers, securing each tower with a toothpick. Place on a baking tray and cook for 30-35 minutes.
4. Test the aubergine to make sure it is well-cooked and soft before removing from the oven to cool a little.
5. Serve the stacks on their own or with a handful of fresh baby salad leaves, tossed in balsamic dressing.

Recipe by Rosie Lovell via Marie Claire

Heavenly Chicken Pasta dishes

I'm thoroughly uninspired cooking wise these days, but since the weather has cooled down, it's time to cook something a little more substantial, hearty and in a jiffy. Check out these 2 different chicken pasta recipes.

Chicken Pasta Heaven via UKTV Food

What you need! Feeds 4 hungry people

· 1 aubergine, roughly chopped

· 3 leeks, sliced

· 4 red onions, peeled, quartered

· 5-6 tbsp olive oil

· 3 red peppers, deseeded and roughly chopped

· 6 tomatoes, quartered

· 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, thyme or sage

· 1kg penne pasta

· 100g butter

· 5 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

· 3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

· 500g mascarpone

· 200g cooked chicken, strips

Make it!

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6.

2. Place the aubergine, leeks and red onions into a large roasting tray and drizzle over two tablespoons of the olive oil. Mix well to coat, then roast in the oven for 15 minutes, or until starting to soften.

3. Add the peppers, tomatoes and herbs to the roasting tin, mix well and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add another tablespoon of olive oil if the mixture looks a little dry. Return the tray to the oven for a further 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and starting to caramelise around the edges.

4. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente. Drain the pasta and return to the pan. Stir in the butter and toss well to coat.

5. In a small bowl, mix together the parsley, the remaining olive oil and the garlic until well combined.

6. Remove the roasted vegetables from the oven and tip them into the pan with the pasta, then add the cooked chicken strips. Drizzle over the parsley, olive oil and garlic sauce and mix well.

7. Stir in the mascarpone cheese until the pasta is coated and the sauce is creamy and smooth. Pile into pasta bowls and serve immediately.

Came across this Kraft recipe via Group Recipes.

What you need to feed 4 hungry big people:

• 1-1/2 cups multi-grain penne pasta, uncooked
• 1 pkg. (9 oz.) fresh spinach leaves
• 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 tsp. dried basil leaves
• 1 jar (14-1/2 oz.) spaghetti sauce
• 1 can (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained
• 2 oz. (1/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA, 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese, cubed
• 1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
• 2 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese

Make it!

• HEAT oven to 375ºF.
• COOK pasta as directed on package, adding spinach to the boiling water the last minute.
• COOK and stir chicken and basil in large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium-high heat 3 min. Stir in spaghetti sauce and tomatoes; bring to boil. Simmer on low heat 3 min. or until chicken is done. Stir in cream cheese.
• DRAIN pasta mixture; return to pan. Stir in chicken mixture and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Spoon into 2-qt. casserole or 8-inch square baking dish.
• BAKE 20 min. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Bake 3 min.

Gordon's Cheesecake: Divine

Saw this on BBC Goodfood today - gotta try it out!
Feeds 8 with a sweet tooth
What you need:

• 175g caster sugar
• 450g soft cream cheese
• 1 vanilla pod
• 75ml lemon juice
• 175g crème fraîche
• 475ml double cream

SWIRL

• 150g dark chocolate
• 150ml double cream

BASE

• 8 digestive biscuits
• 25g melted butter

Make it!

1. For the base, crush the biscuits and mix them with the melted butter. Press into the bottom of a 20cm spring-form tin. Chill.
2. For the filling, mix the sugar, cream cheese and seeds from the vanilla pod together. Whisk the lemon juice with the cream and crème fraîche to soft peaks. Fold everything together. Keep the mixture cool until you need it, but don't chill it.
3. For the swirl, melt the cream and chocolate together in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Cool the mixture until it is cold enough not to melt the filling and thick enough to hold a trail.
4. Spoon or pipe a layer of cheesecake mix over the biscuit base, then drizzle a thin stream of chocolate mix in a swirl on top, then repeat until you have three layers of each. Stick a thin knife blade or skewer into the cheesecake and swirl the mixtures together. Don't be tempted to smooth the surface down or it will look muddy. Chill for at least 5 hours and keep chilled until you need to cut it.

Make mine a 'Fish n' Chips'

I cannot begin to tell you how much i miss Fish n' Chips loaded with salt n' vinegar on the pier stylee or Claphams Fish Club shop... sigh. That, and a good pie, not beta, i mean like a chicken and mushroom pie, oooh and whilst i'm on a roll a good Cornish Pasty or even West Cornwall's Steak and stilton pasty, yum. These are proper lard-fest foods, but i'm a foodie, so on tonight menu I bring you beer battered fish and chips with peas (not a fan of mushy - reminds me of school dinners).

Jamie's Dinner has a taste-tastic recipe which i've made numerous times and is a crowd pleaser - only you can't really cook this recipe for more than 4 peeps unless you have a huge deep fat fryer.

What you need:
• Sunflower oil for deep-frying
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 225g nice white fish fillets, pinboned
• 225g flour, plus extra for dusting
• 285ml pint good cold beer
• 3 heaped teaspoons baking powder
• 900g potatoes, peeled and sliced into chips

Make it!
Pour the sunflower oil into your deep fat fryer or a large frying pan and heat it to 190ºC/375ºF.
Mix the salt and pepper together and season the fish fillets on both sides. This will help to remove any excess water, making the fish really meaty.
Whisk the flour, beer and baking powder together until nice and shiny. The texture should be like semi-whipped double cream (i.e. it should stick to whatever you're coating).
Dust each fish fillet in a little of the extra flour, then dip into the batter and allow any excess to drip off.
Holding one end, lower the fish into the oil one by one, carefully so you don't get splashed – it will depend on the size of your fryer how many fish you can do at once.
Cook for 4 minutes or so, until the batter is golden and crisp.

Meanwhile, parboil your chips in salted boiling water for about 4 or 5 minutes until softened but still retaining their shape, then drain them in a colander and leave to steam completely dry.
When all the moisture has disappeared, fry them in the oil that the fish were cooked in at 180ºC/350ºF until golden and crisp. While the chips are frying, you can place the fish on a baking tray and put them in the oven for a few minutes at 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4 to finish cooking.
This way they will stay crisp while you finish off the chips. When they are done, drain them on kitchen paper, season with salt, and serve with the fish and mushy peas.

Sweet!!! No Bake chocolate cheesecake

I heart cheesecake with all my life and i can eat not just singular pot fulls of the stuff, i can probably manage a half portion of an 18" round dish in one single sitting. Disgusting, no? Sweet, yes! I'm all for easypeasy cheesecake - ie. no bake kind and having scoured the net, i found a few recipes i will be experimenting with to kick start a rather sweet Friday soiree.

This one is from one of my fave sites - BBC Goodfood, although i did spot some similar yummy ones over at All Recipes and UKTV Food.

Feeds 8 hungry big people.
What you need:

• For the base:
• 4oz gingernut biscuits
• 4oz hobnobs
• 4oz unsalted butter

• For the filling:
• 200g extra light philly cheese - at room temperature
  
• 300ml tub of double cream
• 200g galaxy chocolate - I used dark chocolate which i melted before crushing biscuits
  
• Garnish (optional):
• Melted dark chocolate to make swirls
• Grated white chocolate

Make it!

First of all grease base of tin - melt chocolate.


Make the base- melt butter and add crushed biscuits. Press down in the bottom of the tin.


Whip the cream then and add philly cheese( which should be at room temperature.) Mix well then add melted chocolate and add topping to tin.


Now garnish as desired and chill overnight to set.

Summer Chickpea Salad a la Jamie O

There comes a time in the Greek calendar when excess is out and getting trim again is in and all the magazines, TV ads are spurring a whole load of interesting 'lose weight' diet plans including tea bags which will apparently make you lose weight.
This week (and it's only Tuesday) I've heard the word 'Diaita' or 'diet' whispered so many times, it's becoming the thing you 'must' do and start now. Hitting the beach o'clock is not far off so i can understand the craze at the moment.
Diet is such a dirty word, i just don't believe in it, so I just eat according to what makes me feel good with the occasional 'excess' of sweet candy and cake love. Ok, admittedly since i've been living here it's been a bit of an occupational hazard of mine to try out new chocolates, new flavours and well much more... But detoxing is pretty good for you though and once a year i like to get rid of the yucky toxins in my body by eating more healthily & cutting out certain types of food (be it meat and sugary snacks etc) - I'm just not really one for juices, or liquid diets! I'd probably fall flat on my face after day 2 of juicing or whatever! And don't get me started on leafy salads - ugh! I love a salad like anyone else but just not the plain boring leafy type - it's all about variety for me!

So anyhoos, here's something that's yummy and fulfilling from Jamie Oliver's book 'Jamie's Dinner's'.

"This salad is a great one for making up as you go along; you can use different spices, sun-dried tomatoes and spicy chorizo sausages, for instance."
Starters - feeds 4 hungry peeps
What you need:

• 1 small red onion, peeled
• 1–2 fresh red chillies, deseeded
• 2 handfuls of ripe red or yellow tomatoes
• 2 lemons
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 x 410g jar or tin of chickpeas, drained, or around 4 large handfuls of soaked and cooked chickpeas - I find that if you soak and drain your own it tastes way better than the tinned stuff!
• a handful of fresh mint, chopped
a handful of fresh green or purple basil, finely ripped
• 200g/7oz feta cheese

Make it!

First of all, finely slice your red onion. Once that's done, finely slice your chillies then roughly chop your tomatoes, mixing them in with the onion and chillies. Scrape all of this, and the juice, into a bowl and dress with the juice of 1½ lemons and about 3 times as much good extra virgin olive oil. Season to taste. Heat the chickpeas in a pan, then add 90 per cent of them to the bowl. Mush up the remaining chickpeas and add these as well – they will give a nice creamy consistency. Allow to marinate for a little while and serve at room temperature.

Just as you're ready to serve, give the salad a final dress with the fresh mint and basil. Taste one last time for seasoning – you may want to add the juice from your remaining lemon half at this point. Place on a nice serving dish and crumble over the feta cheese.

Santorini's speciality: Fava dip

Ok, so I'm allowed this as i'm substituted ingredients to make it vegan, except that when i made it this morning i actually forgot it was on the hob (whilst doing other stuff) so it went a bit mushy. Draining the water out was not easy task, resulting in a Fava style soup than dip. So no pictures from me today. This, however, is what it's supposed to look like and it is yummy with fresh, warm bread!

What you need:

- 1 cup of fava to 2 - 2 1/2 cups water approximately - 1 1/2 small onion - extra olive oil - 1/2 a lemon, salt

Make it!

- wash the fava lentils well - set to boil in a large non-stick cooking pot, (medium heat) adding enough water to create a thick paste. - keep checking in case the fava has dried out - half way though cooking time add a roughly chopped small onion & 2 tablespoons of olive oil (optional) - salt to taste - when the fava is cooked, remove from fire & allow to cool - blend or mash the mixture well - scoop the amount you want into a serving dish & place the remainder of the mix in the fridge to use later - SERVE with an extra lashing of olive oil, half a squeezed fresh lemon & 1/2 a roughly chopped onion to dress ** Fava dip can be served warm or cold Recipe from Santonet.gr

Iman Biyaldi - Stuffed Aubergine

Feeds 4 hungry big people
What you need:

• 2 medium aubergines
• 50ml olive oil
• 2 medium onions, peeled and cut lengthway
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 4 whole cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 4 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp coarsely ground black pepper
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 40 g flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 300 ml hot water

Make it!

1. Slice Aubergines lengthway and scoop out the meaty fleshy bit, leaving 1.5cm thick edge.
2. Heat the oil and saute the onions with the aubergine flesh for around 5 minutes til soft.
3. Add the cumin seeds, garlic, tomatoes, tomato purée, pepper and salt and simmer for a few minutes
4. Spoon the mixture into the aubergine 'shells'
5. Place the aubergines into an ovenproof dish and carefully pour round the hot water.
6. Cover with foil and bake at 200°C/gas 6 for 40 minutes or until aubergines are tender, topping up the water if it evaporates too quickly.
7. Sprinkle with parsley & serve.

Taken from The Vegetarian Society – (recipe created by the Cordon Vert cookery school) www.vegsoc.org

The fast is on

All week this week I'm going pretty much vegan, I've managed to kick start the day with muesli & soya milk and have avoided coffee all morning. Who know what might happen later. (I'm not a fan of black coffee).

Also, aside from making some traditional Greek Vegetarian dishes this week I wanted to branch out and try out a few different dishes such as the ones below.

Summer Chickpea salad - This is a lovely easy recipe from Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's Dinners' book.
Serves 4 hungry peeps
• 1 small red onion, peeled
• 1–2 fresh red chillies, deseeded
• 2 handfuls of ripe red or yellow tomatoes
• 2 lemons extra virgin olive oil sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 x 410g jar or tin of chickpeas, drained, or around 4 large handfuls of soaked and cooked chickpeas - I'll be boiling my own from a packet.
• a handful of fresh mint, chopped a handful of fresh green or purple basil, finely ripped
• 200g/7oz feta cheese - I won't be using cheese!

Make it!:
First of all, finely slice your red onion. Once that's done, finely slice your chillies then roughly chop your tomatoes, mixing them in with the onion and chillies. Scrape all of this, and the juice, into a bowl and dress with the juice of 1½ lemons and about 3 times as much good extra virgin olive oil. Season to taste. Heat the chickpeas in a pan, then add 90 per cent of them to the bowl. Mush up the remaining chickpeas and add these as well – they will give a nice creamy consistency. Allow to marinate for a little while and serve at room temperature. Just as you're ready to serve, give the salad a final dress with the fresh mint and basil. Taste one last time for seasoning – you may want to add the juice from your remaining lemon half at this point. Place on a nice serving dish and crumble over the feta cheese.

I love how chickpeas are so versatile, you can play with so many different flavours, here's a recipe for Chickpea curry from the bbc.

Ingredients - serves 2 hungry peeps

1 tbsp oil or knob of butter
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp cumin powder
¼ tsp coriander powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp red chilli powder
1 fresh tomato, chopped
1 x 400g/14oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
5cm/2in piece root ginger, grated
pinch of garam masala
pitta breads or plain basmati rice, to serve

Make it!

1. Heat a deep saucepan or a medium sized wok and add the oil or butter followed by the onions and garlic.
2. Fry the mixture till the onions are caramelised. Then add the salt, cumin, coriander, turmeric and red chilli powders. Mix for a minute and tip in the tomato. Cook the sauce until it begins to thicken.
3. Add ¼ cup of water and stir. Then tip in the chickpeas and mix. Mash a few of the chickpeas while cooking. Cover and simmer for five minutes. Then add the ginger and the garam masala. Cook for another minute.
4. Serve with pitta breads or plain basmati rice.

Vegetarian Lancashire Hotpot

This is a very simple dish to make in a large amount. This recipe will feed about 20 people: Crikey! Might have to edit the ingredients quantity.

• For the sauce, take four chopped onions, a clove of crushed garlic, a chopped green chilli, about 50g/1 3/4oz tomato purée, 100ml/3 1/2fl oz tomato ketchup, a splash of vegetarian gravy browning, a bottle of red wine and about 100ml/3 1/2fl oz vegetable stock.

Make it!:

• Sauté the onions, garlic and chilli in a little oil until they are soft, then add all the other ingredients and boil for about 30 minutes. Blend until smooth - this gives you a sauce.
• Now take plenty of vegetables - you can use butternut squash, asparagus, baby onions, broad beans, whatever you like - and boil them briefly until just cooked (except for the squash which you should roast). Once the vegetables are cooked, spoon a portion of them onto each serving plate and spoon over the sauce.
• To make the topping, very finely slice some baking potatoes, leaving the skin on, then blanch until the slices are just tender. Lay them out on a baking tray, brush with loads of butter and stick under a hot grill until crisp and golden. Pop a few slices on top of each serving of hotpot.
• If you don't want to put out individual portions you can mix it altogether in one pot and serve with a ladle.

What else is on the menu?

Lots of fruit & Veg for sure. I also love a Banana Soya shake - adding strawberries is awesome!
I love the simplicity that wild greens or steamed Broccoli has when you load it with Olive oil & Lemon juice and a little salt as a side dish. Olive oil will be off the menu this week so Canola or sunflower oil will have do the job instead.

Another easy fave is a chopping up a whole load of veg - aubergines, courgettes, carrots - whatever you want and adding a can of chopped tomatoes, crushed garlic, a little Oil, Salt & pepper and just throwing it all in an ovenproof dish on 180 degree setting for 45mins-1hr -yummy. I do tend to use fresh tomatoes instead of canned tommies where possible.

Other inspirational dishes come from my dear friends Bustaurant in London - this menu is amazing - I can never choose one dish so I always order a few things oh and lots of dessert. The Rootmaster is a vegan restaurant which uses the finest organic ingredients - suppliers who use the traditional methods of farming, they are incredibly environmentally friendly, recycling and re-using where possible and the booze is amazing by the way - organic and biodynamic all the way.

Orange & Ginger Chicken Casserole

Dinner inspiration can be difficult at times, I get bored easily and need variation taste bud wise.
In comes Fay to rescue the day... I picked up 'Fay's Family food' last year (via Amazon) on hearing that it's chock full of easy & simple recipes. I'm not a fan of the pretentious malarky with gazillion ingredients, I just want healthy and delicious if you know what i mean. Well I haven't been let down yet, tonight i checked out the Orange and Ginger chicken casserole.

Feeds 3 hungry big people

Ingredients
For the marinade:
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp finely grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
zest of 1 orange
3 table spoons olive oil

6 Organic chicken thighs, skin off
1 large onion, chopped
3 large carrots, roughly chopped
150ml chicken stock
juice of 2 oranges
1/2 table spoon olive oil

What you need to do:

1. mix all of the ingredients in a bowl & toss the chicken into it. Cover & leave for 30 minutes - longer is good.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 180 C (fan), 200 C, gas mark 6, then transfer the chicken and marinade into a hot, non-stick frying pan & seal on both sides, which will only take a few minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in the oil, fry the onion and carrot in a separate, ovenproof casserole dish on the hob, until soft, about 10 minutes.
4. Combine everything by putting the browned chicken, stock and orange juice into the casserole for 45-60 minutes: when the chicken is pierced, the juice should run clear.

Tiramisu: Quick n' easy version

Ok, so i've never made Tiramisu, but i sure have eaten bucket loads of the yummy Italian Dessert.

I didn't have mascarpone (and i'm not entirely sure where you can buy it in Athens) so i used good ole Philly instead. I also did a search for a recipe using a mascarpone substitute and found this one on Kraft.

What You Need! (feeds 12 hungry people)

2 pkg. (3 oz. each) ladyfingers, split, divided

2 Tbsp. MAXWELL HOUSE Instant Coffee

1 Tbsp. sugar

1 cup boiling water

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Fat Free Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups thawed COOL WHIP LITE Whipped Topping - I used approx 500ml of whipped cream instead

1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

Make It!

ARRANGE 1 package of ladyfingers on bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish. Dissolve combined coffee granules and 1 Tbsp. sugar in boiling water; brush 1/2 cup onto ladyfingers in dish.

BEAT cream cheese in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Add 1/2 cup sugar; mix well. Whisk in COOL WHIP.

SPREAD half the cream cheese mixture over ladyfingers in dish; top with remaining ladyfingers. Brush with remaining coffee mixture; cover with remaining cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle with cocoa powder. Refrigerate 4 hours.

Before making this i also checked out a few other Tiramisu recipes. I also added a rather large tablespoon of Tia Maria to the coffee mixture and a little more sugar to the cream cheese/whipped cream mixture too. Worked a treat.

Pastitsio with Penne

I heart pastitsio big time. This is a typical Greek favourite dish equivalent to lasagne basically with layers of meat, pasta & a thick, fluffy béchamel layer on top, what's not to like? Whilst working and having the tv on in the background, my whole focus switched from laptop to tv in a nano second, they were halfway through making pastitsio on cooking show on Star channel. I was drooling at this point. The version the cooks were making was with penne pasta as opposed to the usual long tubular macaroni and a different kinda Bechamel sauce.

Here's the recipe in Greek, will translate in a short while!

Υλικά για ένα ταψί 24 Χ34 εκ.

400 γρ. πένες ή άλλο κοντό ζυμαρικό - 400g Penne

1 κρεμμύδι ξερό ψιλοκομμένο - 1 onion chopped finely

2 σκ. σκόρδο ψιλοκομμένες - 2 cloves garlic chopped

800 γρ. κιμά ανάμεικτο (χοιρινό και μοσχαρίσιο) - 800g minced beef

½ φλ. λευκό κρασί - 1/2 cup white wine

400 γρ. ντοματάκια κονσέρβας - 400g tomato conserve/tinned tommies

1 ξυλάκι κανέλλα - 1tsp ground cinnamon/1 stick

1 δαφνόφυλλο - 1 bay leaf

1 ματσάκι δυόσμο - 1 bunch of spearmint

½ φλ. κεφαλοτύρι τριμμένο - 1/2 cup grated Kefalotyri cheese

2 κ.σ φρυγανιά τριμμένη - a bit of fine breadcrumb

Αλάτι, πιπέρι, - salt & pepper

Για την κρέμα - Krema/Bechamel sauce

1 κ.σ μαργαρίνη ή βούτυρο - 1 spoon margarine/butter

1 φλ. αλεύρι για όλες τις χρήσεις - 1 cup all purpose flour

1 λίτρο ζεστό γάλα - 1litre hot milk

2 αυγά - 2 eggs

½ φλ κεφαλοτύρι - 1/2 cup grated kefalotyri cheese

Μοσχοκάρυδο - nutmeg

Διαδικασία

Σε αντικολλητική κατσαρόλα καβουρδίζουμε το κιμά , προσθέτουμε το κρεμμύδι ,2 κ.σ ελαιόλαδο . αφήνουμε να σοταριστούν όλα μαζί και προσθέτουμε το σκόρδο. Σβήνουμε με το κρασί. Βάζουμε τα ντοματάκια ψιλοκομμένα , το δαφνόφυλλο, τη κανέλα. Αλατοπιπερώνουμε ,βάζουμε και 1 φλ. νερό και αφήνουμε τον κιμά να βράσει. Όταν το μίγμα μείνει με λίγο ζουμάκι το αποσύρουμε από τη φωτιά και προσθέτουμε το κεφαλοτύρι και το δυόσμο.

Παράλληλα βράζουμε αλ ντέντε τις πένες . σουρώνουμε τις πένες και τις ενώνουμε με το κιμά. Ετοιμάζουμε τη μπεσαμέλ με το ελαιόλαδο: ζεσταίνουμε το γάλα σε ένα κατσαρόλι. Σε άλλο σκεύος ζεσταίνουμε το ελαιόλαδο ,ρίχνουμε το αλεύρι και ανακατεύουμε σε χαμηλή φωτιά ώσπου το μίγμα να σκουρύνει ελαφρώς. Προσθέτουμε σταδιακά το ζεστό γάλα ανακατεύοντας διαρκώς για να μην σβολιάσει. Αφήνουμε τη σάλτσα να πήξει και νοστιμίζουμε με αλάτι, πιπέρι και μοσχοκάρυδο. Αποσύρουμε από τη φωτιά και προσθέτουμε τα αυγά –ελαφρά χτυπημένα- και το κεφαλοτύρι.

Στρώνουμε στο ταψί το μίγμα ζυμαρικά, κιμάς . Από πάνω στρώνουμε τη σάλτσα και πασπαλίζουμε με την τριμμένη φρυγανιά. Ψήνουμε σε προθερμασμένο φούρνο στους 200 βαθμούς μέχρι να χρυσίσει η επιφάνεια , περίπου για 40 λεπτά. Αφήνουμε το παστίτσιο να κρυώσει λίγο πριν το κόψουμε σε τετράγωνα κομμάτια

Ok, I'm not going to translate this literally word for word as my Greek is terrible, the basic instructions are as follows:

Preparation:

Make the Meat Sauce

Sauté the onions until translucent in 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed frying pan. Add meat and continue to stir until lightly brown. Add the tomatoes, cinnamon, cloves, garlic, salt, and pepper and stir well to combine. Reduce heat and simmer until liquid has been absorbed, about 30-35 minutes. This is very important - the meat mixture should be as dry as possible without sticking to the bottom of the pan. Set meat mixture aside, uncovered, and allow to cool.

Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly grease a baking oven dish 24x34

Prepare the Pasta

While the meat is simmering, prepare the pasta. Cook until slightly underdone, drain, toss with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to prevent sticking, and set aside.

Making the Krema/Bechamel sauce

Heat milk up, spoon a cup full into a bowl and add flour, whisk until flour is combined and thick, add more milk if necessary (ie mixture is too dry). Pour thick milk flour mixture into the pan of hot milk and whisk away until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat, whisk in the 2 eggs, add the grated cheese and add salt & pepper if required.

Spread the breadcrumbs evenly on the bottom of an oven proof dish. Use 1/2 the pasta for the first layer and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the grated cheese mix in a little of the meat sauce. Add remaining pasta. Remove bay leaves from the sauce, add the meat sauce evenly over the pasta, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the grated cheese. Carefully pour the béchamel over the top and use a spatula to spread evenly.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top of the sauce is golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool before cutting the pieces or it will not hold!

Something for the weekend: Banana Coconut Muffins

The weekend always starts with a wholesome, slightly lardy breakfast of smoked ham, fried eggs and lashings of syrup. Ok, maybe not every weekend... but we prefer to have naughty food to kick start the mornings.


I've got a whole loada ripe banana waiting to be used in my usual banana nut muffin, but I feel like mixing it up a bit and use coconut instead of nuts and oats. Yum!

Found an awesome recipe which had lots of positive reviews from Recipezaar. This recipe turned out perfect, moist, and simply delectable!

Ingredients (yields 8 muffins)

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Direction:

• Preheat oven to 375°/180. Line muffin cups with paper muffin liners.
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Whisk together bananas, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and 1/2 cup coconut in a large bowl until combined well, then fold in flour mixture until flour is just moistened.Divide batter among lined muffin cups and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup coconut.
• Bake until muffins are puffed and golden, about 25 minutes.
• Transfer muffins to a rack and cool slightly.

Easy Peasy, yummylicious Vanilla Cupcakes

Having experimented with different variations of vanilla cupcakes, I came across this 'Simple white cake' recipe from allrecipes.com which had well over 750 reviews, all which were positive. It's also a recipe that is easily adaptable for cupcakes and different flavour experimentation too. I'm mid baking at the moment so well see how they turn out, i'm hoping to go for light, fluffy and not too dense. There's nothing worse than a dense tasting cupcake that's feel heavy. I noticed that in some UK 'fairy cake' recipes they don't use milk, which i think is the magic ingredient.

Recipe by Scottosman on Allrecipes.com

Ingredients (makes 12 cupcakes)

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x9 inch pan or line a muffin pan with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven. For cupcakes, bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cake is done when it springs back to the touch.

Quick buttercream recipe from Allrecipes
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 3 drops food coloring, or as needed (optional)

Directions

1. Cream room temperature butter with a hand mixer, the paddle attachment of a stand mixer, or a wooden spoon until smooth and fluffy. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar until fully incorporated. Beat in vanilla extract.
2. Pour in milk and beat for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add food coloring, if using, and beat for thirty seconds until smooth or until desired color is reached.

General Tso's Chicken

Having to decide what to cook for dinner for 7/8 people can be difficult, yet the basis of any Chinese meal consists of Jasmine/white rice, vegetable dish and meat dishes. Jasmine rice - check Vegetables - check - Gai Lan and also Choy Sum Meat - I saw this glorious dish over at Lizzie's blog - Hollow Legs so i'm gonna make General Tso's Chicken. I'll also be making Char Siu one of my faves for sure. Here's the recipe for General Tso's Chicken

General Tso's Chicken

Serves 2

To marinade the meat:

3 or 4 chicken thighs with the skin on, deboned and chopped into pieces

1 egg yolk

2 tbsp cornflour

2 tsp light soy sauce

1/2 tsp dark soy sauce

Mix this in a bowl and leave to sit whilst you prepare the other ingredients.

For the sauce:

1 tbsp tomato puree

4 tbsp water

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 tsp dark soy sauce

1 1/2 tsp light soy sauce

1/2 tsp cornflour.
- I decided to add a bit of Chinese Rice wine for an extra oomph

The rest:

6 - 10 dried chillis, snipped into 3cm pieces, discarding the seeds

2 tsp finely chopped ginger - or crushed

2 tsp finely chopped garlic - or crushed

1 spring onion, sliced for garnish

2 tsp sesame oil

Oil for deep frying

It looks like a long list of ingredients, but you just need to mix the sauce materials up for the last minute cooking.

Deep fry the chicken in 2 batches until the chicken is golden and crispy. Set to one side. Empty out the oil, reserving 2 tbsp. Fry the chillis briefly and then add the ginger and garlic. Fry until it's all fragrant, and then add all the sauce in, and then the chicken. When it is thickened, turn off the heat and serve, with the sesame oil and spring onion to garnish.

What to do with left over katsiki

Xpovia polla!
Wishing you all a fantastic, tip top,
ready to rock 2010!

I guess Moroccan Lamb Tangine with lemon cous cous is what i'll attempt to do in the current state i'm in.

I did make this delicious not so long ago when Athens went through a cold phase, but it is super sunny today- what an amazing start to the new year. I followed this recipe from BBC website by Rachel Allen. The cooking time has been shortened as the meat is already cooked and quite tender -bonus!

For the lamb tagine
4 tbsp olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
4 onions, peeled and chopped
4 tsp grated, fresh ginger
1½ tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
3 tsp ground cinnamon
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3kg/7lb shoulder of lamb, boned, fat removed and cut into 4cm/1½in cubes
2 tbsp tomato purée
2kg/4½lb ripe tomatoes or 4 X 400g/14oz can tomatoes, coarsely chopped
4-5 tbsp honey
For the couscous
1 large or 2 small pomegranates
800g/1¾lb couscous
6 tbsp olive oil
2 lemons, juice only
1 litre/1¾ pints boiling chicken stock or water
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tbsp chopped, fresh mint or coriander
To serve
1 lime, cut into wedges
bowl Greek yoghurt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas 2.
2. For the lamb tagine, heat a large ovenproof casserole or heavy saucepan on a medium to high heat.
3. Add the olive oil, garlic, onions, ginger and spices and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then cook, covered, on a low heat for about ten minutes, until the onions are soft.
4. Add the lamb, tomato purée, chopped tomatoes and honey into the saucepan, stir throughly.
5. Bring to the simmer and place in the oven for 1½ hours, until the lamb is tender.
6. Remove the lid of the saucepan halfway through the cooking time to let the liquid reduce and thicken.
7. If the sauce is still a bit thin, put the saucepan on the hob on a medium heat and without the lid. Stir occasionally and let the liquid reduce until a thick sauce begins to appear.
8. Meanwhile, for the couscous, cut the pomegranates in half and scoop out the seeds using a teaspoon and remove the white membrane around the seeds.
9. Place the couscous in a bowl and mix in the olive oil and lemon juice.
10. Pour the boiling stock or water onto the couscous and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
11. Allow the couscous to sit in a warm place for 5-10 minutes until the liquid has been absorbed.
12. Stir the chopped herbs and pomegranate seeds into the couscous.
13. To serve, place the tagine on serving plates with couscous and a wedge of lime. Serve alongside a bowl of thick Greek yoghurt.

Gingerbread House

images via Flickr

Yup, tis the time of the year which means maybe getting to grips with all things Christmassy. I love the idea of a gingerbread house, how very Hansel & Gretal or a bit Shrek...and the endless possibilities of decking a gingerbread house is just too fun. One can go super tackyrific or uber creative.
Been scouring the net once again for some recipes, and found one on Times online and the other from my fave website BBC Goodfood.

Rachel Allens Gingerbread House recipe - Times online

Ingredients

300g butter; 125g caster sugar; 125g soft dark brown sugar; 225g golden syrup or treacle; 725g plain flour; 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda; 3 tsp ground ginger; 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the icing for the gingerbread boys and girls:

175g icing sugar; 1-2 tbsp boiling water

For decorating the gingerbread boys and girls:

Smarties; chocolate buttons (milk or white chocolate); gold and silver balls

For the “glue” and icing for the house:

2 egg whites; 500g icing sugar; plus extra for dusting

For decorating the house:

Hundreds and thousands; Chocolate buttons (milk and sugared chocolate); Jelly Tots; Dolly Mixtures; sugar strands; Flake bar for the chimney; Piping bag and nozzles

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Line two baking trays with parchment paper. In a large saucepan, melt the butter with the sugars and golden syrup. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger and cinnamon into a large bowl. Add the melted butter and sugar and mix together. Knead the mixture for a few seconds until it comes together, adding a teaspoon or so of water if necessary. Flatten the dough into a round about 2cm thick, wrap with clingfilm and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

To make the gingerbread boys and girls, remove the dough from the fridge, dust the work surface with flour and roll to about 5mm thick. Cut out using boy/girl cutters, transfer on to the trays and cook for 12 minutes until they are slightly firm. Place them on a wire rack to cool. To make the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl, add the water and beat until the icing comes together. Using a small palette knife, spread the icing all over the gingerbread boys and girls. While the icing is still slightly “unset” on the biscuits, arrange the decorations, then set aside for the icing to set.

To make the gingerbread house, first make templates in paper (click here to see dimensions)These are handy not just for now, but for when the dough is cooked and you need to trim the walls and roof to ensure that all the edges are straight. Now place a sheet of parchment paper on the work surface, dust with flour and roll out about a quarter of the dough to 5mm thick. Place one of the paper templates on the dough and cut around it with a sharp knife, then slide the dough, still on its parchment paper, on to a baking tray. Repeat with remaining dough until you have a front and back wall, two side walls and two roof panels. Re-roll any leftover dough to make into boys and girls — there should be enough for 6-8. Carefully trim excess paper from around each piece on the baking trays.

Bake all the sections in the oven for 12-15 minutes. Allow to sit for a few minutes on the baking trays to firm up. One by one, lift the pieces, still on the paper, and trim around the template to give clean, sharp edges. To make an open door for the house, cut one out of the front wall and cut out windows, if you wish. Place on a wire rack for a few minutes, then turn over and peel off the trimmed paper. Leave all the pieces to cool completely.

Meanwhile, prepare a board for the house to sit on. To make the icing “glue” for the house, place the egg whites in a large bowl, sift in the icing sugar, then stir to make a thick, smooth icing. Spoon into a piping bag. To assemble the house, pipe icing along the vertical wall edges to join the walls together. Using a bowl to support the wall from inside, hold the walls gently in place until the icing is dry. Leave the roofless house to dry for at least 30 minutes until the icing is firmly set. Once dry, remove the supports and pipe a thick line of icing along one side of a roof piece and along the top edge of all the walls. Stick the two roof sections together at an angle and set the two pieces on top of the house. Hold the roof in place for a few minutes until it dries, then leave it for a further 30 minutes.

While the roof is drying, attach the door to the doorway by running a line of icing glue down one side and along the base. Stick a piece of a Flake bar on to the roof as a chimney. Using the icing, pipe around the windows and stick sweets around the door and on the front of the house. To make snow on the roof and icicles, squeeze out a pea-sized blob of icing. Keeping the pressure on, pull the nozzle down and then pull away, leaving a pointy trail of icing. Using the icing, stick milk chocolate and sugared buttons on to the roof for tiles. Glue the gingerbread boys and girls around the house, then scatter the board with sugar strands.

BBC Goodfood recipe by Jane Hornby

Gingerbread ingredients

• 250g unsalted butter
• 200g dark muscovado sugar
• 7 tbsp golden syrup
• 600g plain flour
• 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 4 tsp ground ginger

Decoration:

• 200g bag flaked almonds
• 2 egg whites
• 500g icing sugar , plus extra to dust
• 125g pack mini chocolate fingers
• generous selcetion sweets of your choice, choose your own colour theme
• 1 mini chocolate roll or a dipped chocolate flake
• few edible silver balls

Method:

1. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a pan. Mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger into a large bowl, then stir in the butter mixture to make a stiff dough. If it won't quite come together, add a tiny splash of water.
2. Cut out the template (see below to download). Put a sheet of baking paper on your work surface and roll about one quarter of the dough to the thickness of two £1 coins. Cut out one of the sections, then slide the gingerbread, still on its baking paper, onto a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, re-rolling the trimmings, until you have two side walls, a front and back wall and two roof panels. Any leftover dough can be cut into Christmas trees, if you like.
3. Pick out the most intact flaked almonds and gently poke them into the roof sections, pointy-end first, to look like roof tiles. Bake all the sections for 12 mins or until firm and just a little darker at the edges. Leave to cool for a few mins to firm up, then trim around the templates again to give clean, sharp edges. Leave to cool completely.
4. Put the egg whites in a large bowl, sift in the icing sugar, then stir to make a thick, smooth icing. Spoon into a piping bag with a medium nozzle. Pipe generous snakes of icing along the wall edges, one by one, to join the walls together. Use a small bowl to support the walls from the inside, then allow to dry, ideally for a few hours.
5. Once dry, remove the supports and fix the roof panels on. The angle is steep so you may need to hold these on firmly for a few mins until the icing starts to dry. Dry completely, ideally overnight. To decorate, pipe a little icing along the length of 20 mini chocolate fingers and stick these lengthways onto the side walls of the house. Use three, upright, for the door. Using the icing, stick sweets around the door and on the front of the house. To make the icicles, start with the nozzle at a 90-degree angle to the roof and squeeze out a pea-sized blob of icing. Keeping the pressure on, pull the nozzle down and then off - the icing will pull away, leaving a pointy trail. Repeat all around the front of the house. Cut the chocolate mini roll or dipped Flake on an angle, then fix with icing to make a chimney. Pipe a little icing around the top. If you've made gingerbread trees, decorate these now, too, topping each with a silver ball, if using. Dust the roof with icing sugar for a snowy effect. Lay a winding path of sweets, and fix gingerbread trees around and about using blobs of icing. Your gingerbread house will be edible for about a week but will last a lot longer.