18 | April | 2012

Tandoori Chicken

This recipe is one of my favourite ones because it’s so tasty and easy to make. I love going out to an Indian restaurant, however it is so rewarding & cozy to have this at home. The kids love it too!

8 skinned chicken legs
4 tbsp Lemon Juice
3 Garlic Clove
1 inch piece peeled and coarsely chopped Fresh Ginger
1 Green chilli
8 tablespoons Greek yogurt or plain yogurt
2 tsp ground Cumin
2 tsp Garam masala
2 tsp Paprika
or
6 tsp of ready-made tandoori spice (available in most supermarkets)
2 tsp Salt
4 tbsp melted ghee/clarified butter (see recipe under clarified butter)
For garnishing:
Lemon Wedges
Raita (see recipe under raita)

Make a few light incisions in the skinned chicken legs using a knife.
Put the chicken in a ovenproof dish. In a large bowl, add lemon juice, garlic, ginger and green chilli. Combine to the paste the yogurt, ground cumin, garam masala, paprika or the tandoori spice, salt and the melted ghee.
Mix all the ingredients well until smooth, then add and cover the chicken legs (mix well so it’s well covered).
Let it marinate at room temperature for about 5 hours or overnight in the fridge. Make sure to take it out at least 2 hours before cooking so the chicken is at room temperature.
Place chicken in a pre-heated oven at 325 F/ 165 celsius.
Let it roast for 1 hour, turning twice so it’s evenly roasted. For the last 10 minutes or less, turn up the oven heat to 210 degrees to sizzle up the chicken. Take it out from the oven and grill it for a few minutes on a griddle to have the ‘charcoal grilled’ effect (optional).
Serve with lemon garnishing, pilau rice (see recipe under pilau rice) and raita.

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18 April 2012

Pilau Rice

This recipe for Pilau rice is a hit every time I do it. It’s easy, wholesome and delicious. Here are the ingredients:

500 grams basmati rice
4 cloves
1 small cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon salt
a good pinch of turmeric
60g Butter or Ghee
1 finely sliced onion
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 – 5 cardamom pods
litre boiling water

In a large saucepan, melt the butter or ghee and throw in the cloves, cumin, bay leaves, cinnamon stick and cardamom pods.
After a few minutes add the sliced onion and turmeric. Fry gently untill the onion is slightly golden.

Now add the rice to the pan and mix well.

Add the boiling water and salt, bring it to a boil, then lower to the lowest possible heat and cover tightly for 25 minutes max. No cheating! You can’t lift the lid or the rice won’t cook well.

When cooked, you can put a clean tea-towel on the rice then cover with the lid until served.

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18 April 2012

My raita with cucumber & peppermint

Takes 5 minutes to make!

Half an onion finely chopped
1 and a half greek yogurt
1/2 cucumber chopped in small squares
A bunch of chopped peppermint leaves
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon of salt

Mix all the ingredients together and served chilled.

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18 April 2012

Scotch Eggs

I simply love a good scotch egg. A fresh boiled egg wrapped in a golden breadcrumb and sausage wrapping. It’s the ultimate snack or meal for anytime of the day.

Makes 8

8 organic farm eggs (to be boiled)
2 eggs (for the dipping)
8 sausages (remove the skin)
200 grams white breadcrumbs
lemon zest of half a lemon
1 tablespoon mustard
parsley (finely chopped)
50 grams flour
Frying oil (I use frial or canola)
salt & pepper

Boil you eggs in boiling water for 8 minutes. Cool under cold water, peel the eggs and place aside.
Prepare the sausage meat by squeezing the sausages – take a sharp knife and slice them open. Put in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, salt, pepper, chopped parsley and mix well. Shape 8 balls of the sausage mixture and flatten on parchment paper. Place the egg in the middle of the flattened sausage meat mixture and wrap the egg slowly until it is evenly covered (don’t cover your egg too thick or it won’t cook through properly). Repeat with the other eggs.
Now you can prepare the 3 ingredients to assemble your eggs. Beat the 2 eggs, prepare the flour on a plate and the breadcrumbs in another plate. First roll the egg in the flour, then the egg, then the breadcrumbs (I use white sliced untoasted sandwich bread that I blitz in the food processor). Repeat again.
Fry the eggs in the oil in a heavy-based pan for 5-6 minutes, or until it is golden.
Serve with HP sauce, ketchup or simply nothing!

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18 April 2012

Cake pops

I recently started doing these for my son’s birthday in March, then I carried on doing them for my daughter’s birthday last week. They look so pretty and delicious, it’s an irresistible attraction for any occasion. You can make any variety of cake pops – the classic one are shaped round like a small golf ball, but you can pretty much make them in any shapes you like. I bought a very cute cake pop mold in the shape of a cupcake, you can order one at MyLittleCupcakePop.com. They always end up being the main attraction at a birthday party, and you can cover them in a plastic wrap (like the ones they ahve in lollipop candy stores) and tie it up in a pretty ribbon – perfect gifts for your little guests when they leave the party.

Here’s the recipe for a standard cake pop made with chocolate cake.

Chocolate cake
Candy sticks
Chocolate icing
Chocolate for melting (dark, milk, or white – it’s your choice!)
Colourful sprinkles, dried coconut etc… for decorating
Polystyrene or cardboard box to stick the pops

Bake a chocolate cake (any cake will do, even leftover cakes). When the cake is cooled crumble it all up. (If you wish to only use half of your cake you can keep it in the freezer for next time).

Add 2 tablespoons of chocolate icing (either bought from store like Betty Crocker), or even better home-made chocolate frosting (see recipe). Add enough so the consistency is not too moist so you can roll the dough into small balls.

Put your chocolate balls on a plate or a Tupperware and leave it to cool and harden in the fridge for 30 minutes. They will be firm and easy to work with.

When the balls are ready, melt the chocolate of your choice in either a microwave-safe bowl or in a casserole over boiling water. Once melted, dip the tip of the candy stick in the chocolate and stick it in the center of the chocolate ball. Then proceed with the entire pop cake. Dip it gently until all covered and wait a few seconds to let it drip. Repeat with remaining cake pops. Stick each cake pop in the polystyrene or cardboard to let them drip and dry, and decorate to your liking with multicoloured pearls, dried coconut and candies. Let it stand in the fridge or a cool place for 15 minutes if possible.

Oreo cookie cupcake pop

This is so good & simple!

2 packs of Oreo cookies

Cream cheese

Chocolate for melting & dipping

Cupcake cake pop mold (see picture)

Crumble the Oreo cookies in the food processor along with 2-3 tablespoons of cream cheese (I use kiri or Philadelphia cheese). Be careful not to process the mixture too fine – I like to keep the Oreo cookies chunky so you can see the white and brown of the mixture.

Take enough dough to fit in the mold and press firmly till you achieve the desired shape. Once finished, put the cupcake pops on a parchment covered plate and store in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Do the same as above for the chocolate melting.

When ready, dip the tip of the candy sticks in the darker chocolate (milk or dark – it’s your choice) and stick it in the center of the base of the cake. Then proceed in the dipping – make sure to only dip the part that is the base of the cupcake. Then let it drip a few seconds and proceed with the others. Once finished melt the white chocolate and add a few drops of your favourite colour (pink for me!). Dip the top part of the cake in order to achieve a ‘cupcake’.

Stick each cake pop in the polystyrene or cardboard to let them drip and dry, and decorate to your liking with multicoloured pearls and candies. Let it stand in the fridge or a cool place for 15 minutes if possible.

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18 April 2012

Delicious scones

250 g all-purpose flour
3 g cream of tartar
2 g baking soda
2g salt
50 g butter (softened)
25 g white sugar
120 ml milk
20 ml milk (for glazing)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Sift the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt into a bowl.
Rub in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in the sugar and milk to mix to a soft dough.
On a slightly floured surface, knead and roll out to ball-sized portions (a bit bigger than golf balls, but if you like your scones bigger than a tennis ball size). Place on the prepared baking sheet. Brush with milk to glaze.
Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 10-15 max (depending on size of balls) minutes then cool on a wire rack. Serve with butter, clotted cream and jam. My kids prefer nutella!

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18 April 2012

Chocolate cake à la crème de marron (chestnut cream)

For chestnut cream and chocolate lovers, this is the business! This cake, so popular with my family and friends, is rich in chocolate flavour with an underlying taste of chestnut vanilla cream. Pure satisfaction.

Perfect for any occasions, I baked it for my husband’s birthday today!

435 grs tin sweetened chestnut purée (available in most supermarkets)
140 ml double cream or crème fraîche
50 grs butter (softened)
5 egg whites
80 grs caster sugar
300 grs dark chocolate , melted
6 tbsp plain flour

Pre-heat oven to 150C

Mix the chestnut puree with the double cream/crème fraîche and butter. Melt until smooth. Whisk the egg whites in a bowl and gradually add the caster sugar (when the egg whites start becoming firm) to make a meringue mixture.
Mix the chestnut mixture with the chocolate and flour and fold in the meringue mix. Spoon into a lined caked tin (24cm approx.) and bake for 50 minutes. Let the cake set at least 1 hour. I usually bake it well in advance so it becomes like ‘velvet’ in texture by the time I serve it. Serve with whipped cream.

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