considering the weather has taken a sudden turn for the worst, the wooly hat, mittens, scarves and wellies are back out again, and what better way to compliment a long winter walk with the dogs than my heart warming witner veg soup ?!
this is the birthday cake i baked for my beautiful baby niece who turned three today :)
it’s a chocolate cake, with strawberries and cream in the middle. and it was yum!
so last night i quickly whipped up a sticky sweet honey and soy glazed pork stir fry. scrummy :)
so this was the main course for my mother’s birthday meal, a gorgeous steamed thai-style fillet of salmon, served with steamed veg, and coriander rice. deeeeeelicious !
so it was my mother’s birthday on Wednesday, and I cooked her a lovely meal, starting with salmon & creme fraiche blinis served with ice-cold champagne (of course!)
so I treated myself to my favourite breakfast the other day - gooey poached eggs on mustard toast!
so simple but so delicious, the mustard and egg really goes well together :)
this was the main course i ordered. now unusually for me this was a veggie dish. however some of my followers had requested more veggied dishes so here is one !
it was a gorgeous spicy butterbean, carrot and chickpea burger, served on a toasted ciabatta with melted cheese on top, accompanied by a refreshing potato salad, and a delicious bbq pickle!
this was our second starter of the evening, a salad with crumbly, strong mature stilton, beautifully spiced poached pear and lightly toasted walnuts. the flavours all complimented each other wonderfully and i gobbled this starter up!
so i went to my favourite pub ever (again!) with my parents, and had a beautiful meal.
this was our first starter, it was the crunchiest, softest calamari, served with a gorgeously garlic aioli mayonnaise, on a bed of peppery rocket.
delicioso !
now this is a bit of a cheeky post, something a little bit different - a special post for a special occasion! this week i had the extremely fortunate chance to attend a wedding…can you guess who’s? well in actual fact it was my parents wedding :) they re-married after having initially being married 21 years ago, getting divorced for 10 years, then getting back together.
talk about ross and rachel / meant to be / fate ?!
so whilst this isn’t a traditional student cooking recipe post, i thought i would share with you the food i had on this joyous joyous day !
we had reserved a table for very close members of family at our favourite little country pub ‘The Royal Oak’ in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, which serves the most beautiful gastro pub food in the world. coupled with a friendly down to earth atmosphere that is coutnry through and through (our springer spaniel rosie and all other dogs are welcome to roam around the pub freely), this pub makes a great venue for all occasions.
then came the drinks of course….
and then our food - i ordered a gorgeous ‘paprika smoked pork open sandwich, served with fries and a watercress salad’. absolutely to diieee for !
a beautiful beauutiful day, and many congrats to my parents - love you guys so much :)
nigfeatures asked: amazing blog! i would however, like to request more vegetarian recipes!
thank you :) I will endeavour to make sure i cook more vegetarian recipes so that you too can enjoy my food !
so this is one of my more classy dishes, that maybe you would cook for your housemates or a potential date with a special someone. it’s got the wow factor and tastes delicious, but is still relatively cheap and easy to do. it’s a beautiful chicken breast wrapped in pancetta, stuffed with pesto philadelphia. served with good old roast potatoes and a deliciously flavoursome traditional ratatouille. students do not fear! i will guide you through this dish step by step so that you can create the illusion that you’re making a truly gourmet spectacular dish!
Ingredients: (serves 2)
2 chicken beasts
4 strips pancetta/parma ham
dollop of philadelphia
2 teaspoons of green pesto
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 aubergine
1 tin tomatoes
1 courgette
jar of olives (optional, i know some people are fussy with olives!)
4 potatoes diced
1) firstly get your diced potatoes (skin peeled) and par-boil them for 10 minutes
2) whilst these are boiling, chop up all of your ratatouille veg (onions, garlic, courgette, aubergine and olives)
3) drain your potatoes, and put them into a roasting tin, and rub them with olive oil and salt
4) whack them in a hot oven for a good hour, until they’re crispy and brown
5) now pour your veg into a pan and add the tin tomatoes, and let this bubble away gently for a good 20 minutes
6) whilst the ratatouille is simmering away nicely, and the potatoes are roasting, this is the time to prepare your chicken
7) firstly slice a pocket in the side of the chicken breast
8) now mix together your philadelphia and pesto
9) stuff this into the chicken breast
10) now wrap the whole chicken breast in the pancetta
11) place this on a baking tray and put in the oven for 20 mins, until the chicken is white throughout
12) now assemble your dish! pick out the crispiest potatoes, ladel on your ratatouille and serve your chicken breast, which should be oozing with melted pesto creamy cheesy goodness!
so today is pancake day - happy pancake day everybody! i hope you’re all gorging yourself on deliciously fluffy pancakes with some devilicously naughty toppings :) if you’re a little undecided on how to make the perfect pancake, how to toss it without it hitting the ceiling/landing on the floor and what topping to have, then follow my “nutella & banana pancake” recipe. it’s simply perfect!
Ingredients: (makes approx. 6 pancakes - depending on how thick you like them!)
2 eggs
50g butter
200ml milk mixed with 75ml water
110g plain flour
jar of nutella
3 bananas
1) mix your eggs, milk and flour into a nice smooth runny batter
2) chop up your bananas into little chunks
2) melt the butter in the pan, making sure it’s evenly coated
3) ladel a spoon of batter into the pan, tilting the pan so the batter covers the whole pan
4) after a few minutes of the pancake cooking, gently lift the edges of the pancake with your spatula to make sure it will come away from the pan when you flip it
5) give the pan a bit of a shoogle and shake to make sure it’s not sticking
6) then confidently with lots of space, calmly and gently flip your pancake!
7) slide your pancake onto a plate, then lather on your nutella onto the warm pancake, and as the nutella gently melts, sprinkle with the chopped banana
8) then scoff it down and lick the plate clean :)
so i was feeling in a bit of a mexican mood on a friday night in with my friends, so decided to make a delicious baked enchiladas dish to quench my greasy cheesy mexican craving !
they’re very easy to make and make a great party, sharing type dish. perfect for a night in with friends, everyone can get stuck in and involved and help themselves to as little or as much as they want !
Ingredients: (serves 4)
2 tins of tomatoes
1 tablespoon of paprika
3/4 chicken breasts depending on size
10 tortilla wraps
onions
garlic
peppers
spinach (optional)
grated cheese (as much as you want!)
1) firstly chop up all your veg and chicken into little chunks
2) fry off your vegetables and chicken for 5-10 minutes until everything is golden brown and yummy
3) mix together in a separate bowl the tomatoes and paprika and give a good mix
4) add half of the tomato mix, and half the grated cheese to the chicken and vegetable pan, let this bubble away for a further 5-10 minutes
5) add the spinach and let it wilt gently for a minute or two
6) then spoon dollops of the enchilada mix into your tortillas, fold up into fajita shapes and place in a big baking oven dish
7) do this with all of your tortilla wraps, and then cover the tortillas with the rest of the tomato sauce and cheese
8) bake for 20 minutes until the cheese is all melted and gooey !
9) then stuff your face with this classic mexican treat :) bon appetit !
this is my student take on an italian classic - spagehtti bolognaise. everyone loves a bit of spag bol right ?! well here is a nice easy recipe for a nice bit of home-comfort food. nothing better than a big hearty bowl of scrummy pasta, sprinkled heavily with cheese in my eyes !
Ingredients:
1 onion
1 tomato
1 tin of tomatoes
pasta
200 grams of mince beef
cheese
herbs (for seasoning!)
salt & pepper
1) chop up the onion and tomato, and whack it into a pan with a good drizzle of olive oil. cook for 10 mins
2) then add the tin of tomatoes, and some herbs, salt and pepper for a bit of extra flavour. let this simmer on a medium heat, bubbling and reducing away for a good 15 mins
3) whilst this is reducing, boil the kettle and put the pasta on
4) then add the mince to the lovely, juicy tomato sauce and let the mince cook for a good 5-10 mins
5) when the spaghetti is cooked, mix with the sauce, pour onto your plate and then grate lots of yummy cheese on top.
spaghetti bolognaise student style - done ! bon appetit :)
