All about that base...

Indian restaurant style curry base.

The secret to a great Indian restaurant quality curry? It really is all about that base.  To re-create that takeaway standard curry to impress family and friends, you need a good onion gravy base. When I finally realised this,  I scoured the internet, looked through old-school Indian recipe books and watched numerous Indian chefs in action on YouTube. Some bases required too many ingredients I just didn't have but after watching a few chefs in action, I settled on a simple onion, ginger and garlic gravy that won't cost you much to make. 

This recipe makes 3 x 225ml portions of base. Each portion on base will make a curry serving around 4 people. If you aren't cooking for 12 don't worry- you easily can pop it into three separate containers and freeze for another time. 

Ingredients: 

• 600g onions (about 6 large onions)
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 6 pieces of ginger (dice sized)
• 2 tablespoons of tomato puree/ pasata
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoons turmeric
• 1.5 teaspoons chili powder
• 1.5 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoons curry powder
• 3 teaspoons vegetable oil

Method: 

1. Roughly chop the onions and place in a large saucepan with the garlic and ginger.

2. Cover with water (approx 800ml), bring to the boil and cover.

3. Continue to simmer on a low-medium heat for 30-35 minutes until much of the water has reduced

4. Stir in the salt, spices, tomato puree and oil.

5. Simmer for a further 10 minutes.

6. Take the saucepan off the heat and use a hand blender or upright blender to blend into a smooth gravy.

7. Divide the curry base into 3 x 225ml portions and store in the fridge or freezer.

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Mama's Pasta Salad

Peanut, ham and tomato pasta salad.

This recipe marks the official start of summer! My mum used to make this as a side dish when I was growing up to accompany BBQs on a warm summer's day and to me, it was the best bit!

It's a simple mix of pasta, tomatoes, peanuts, spring onions, ham and salad cream but the combination is surprisingly satisfying and is always received extremely well by guests.

Serves 4-6 (as a side) 

Ingredients:

• 250g pasta (of your choice)
• 100g smoked ham 
• 100g good quality tomatoes
• 2-3 spring onions 
• 2 tablespoons peanuts 
• 3 tablespoons salad cream 
• Black pepper

Method: 

1. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.

2. Drain the pasta and set aside to cool.

3. Chop the tomatoes, ham, spring onions and add to the cooled pasta.

4. Add the peanuts and salad cream and stir thoroughly. 

5. Serve in a large dish and help yourself! 

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Tomato and goat's cheese tart

Roasted tomato and goat's cheese tart.

This is tart is perfect as light summer dinner or if you are asked to contribute a dish for an event. The beauty of this dish is in its simplicity- this recipe relies on a few good ingredients, goat's cheese, sweet vine-ripened tomatoes, thyme and puff pastry. What's even better is that it's impressive enough to bring to an event to make it look like you've made a real effort, yet simple and cheap enough to whip up when you are under time or budget pressure.

I actually discovered this Delia classic when I spontaneously invited a vegetarian friend round for dinner one summer's evening, I quickly scanned my Mum's recipe books for easy vegetarian dishes and found this bad boy. I have made this tart for several occasions since, including for a work pot-luck lunch and as a vegetarian option at a BBQ.

Ingredients:

• 750g vine-ripened tomatoes
• 150g soft goat's cheese
• 3 tsp fresh thyme
• Pre-rolled puff pastry
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Olive oil

Pre-baked tart

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees celsius.
2. Line a large baking tray with grease-proof paper.

3. Unroll the pastry and place on the baking tray. 

4. With a knife score a line around the outside of the pastry, 1cm in from the edge and not deep enough to go all the way through.

5. In a bowl, cream the goat's cheese, chopped thyme and garlic together and season well with salt and pepper.
6. Spread the cheese mixture evenly over the pastry base up to the scored line.
7. Next, thinly slice the tomatoes and arrange over the tart (see image).
8. Arrange a few remaining sprigs of thyme over the tart and season with black pepper.
9. Place in the oven and roast for 50- 55 minutes.
10. Once the edges are golden brown and the tomatoes have shrunk a little in size, take out of the oven and serve hot or cold!

TOP TIP! Keep an eye on your tart to make sure the pastry edges don't burn. If they are getting a little too well done, cover the tart with tin foil for the remaining time in the oven. 

Summer buffet

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Roasted Pumpkin Pasta

Roasted pumpkin, goats cheese and tomato pasta.

Although not authentically Chinese, this recipe was inspired by my time in Shanghai. Don't get me wrong, the food in China is super tasty, wonderfully affordable and incredibly convenient but sometimes you just need a taste of home from time to time, and this was ours.

This roasted pumpkin, spinach, pine nut and goat's cheese pasta dish was simple and comforting, but of course China being China, we didn't make it ourselves, the German-owned cafe down the road did. The young timid Chinese waiter's face used to light up when we walked in, not only because he was in love with my housemate with long wavy blonde locks, but because our order was simple- "liang-ge (two) pumpkin pastas". 

Serves 2

Ingredients: 

• 200g pasta of your choice
• 250g pumpkin 
• 50g goat's cheese (feta also works well) 
• 100g spinach
• 2 tablespoons tomato and mascarpone pasta sauce
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts
• 1 garlic clove 
• Olive oil 
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method: 

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius. 

2. Dice the pumpkin into 2cm cubes 

3. Place the pumpkin cubes on an aluminium foil lined baking tray.

4. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

5. Roast for 30 minutes 

6. Towards the last 10 minutes, start cooking your pasta according to the instructions on the packet.

7. When the pasta has around 5 minutes to go, start on your sauce!

7. Chop your garlic and fry in a large pan with some 2 tsp olive oil over medium heat.

8. After 1 minute, add two tablespoons of the tomato mascarpone pasta sauce and stir.

9. Add two thirds of the pine nuts (leaving the other third for garnish at the end) 

10. 

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Indian Takeaway: Chicken Korma curry

Chicken korma served with pilau rice and chipati.

This recipe is for a British Indian Restaurant standard Chicken Korma. It's rich, sweet, creamy and full of flavour!

There are two parts to this recipe: first, the curry gravy base and second, the sauce that gives it that magic chicken korma taste. The curry base is very versatile and can be used as a base for many different takeaway quality curries. The curry base part of the recipe actually makes 3 x 225ml of curry base and can be stored in three separate containers and put in the fridge or freezer for another time or another curry!

Serves 4

Ingredients: 

Curry Base

• 600g onions (about 6 large onions)
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 6 pieces of ginger (dice sized)
• 2 tablespoons of tomato puree/ pasata
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoons turmeric
• 1.5 teaspoons chilli powder
• 1.5 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoons curry powder
• 3 teaspoons vegetable oil

Chicken Korma

• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 450g chicken breast
• 2 tablespoons of coconut powder (desiccated coconut ground in the food processor)
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons almond powder (flaked almonds ground in the food processor)
• 200ml single cream

Method:

Steps 1-7 are for the curry base

Steps 8-12 are for the korma part

1. Roughly chop the onions and place in a large saucepan with the garlic and ginger.

2. Cover with water (approx 800ml), bring to the boil and cover.

3. Continue to simmer on a low-medium heat for 30-35 minutes until much of the water has reduced

4. Stir in the salt, spices, tomato puree and oil.

5. Simmer for a further 10 minutes.

6. Take the saucepan off the heat and use a hand blender or upright blender to blend into a smooth gravy.

7. Divide the curry base into 3 x 225ml portions and store in the fridge or freezer.

8. Now for the chicken korma part! Heat the oil in a pan on a medium heat and cook the diced chicken breast until sealed.

9. Add one portion of curry base (225ml) and stir on a medium heat for 2 minutes.

10. Next, add the coconut powder, almond powder, sugar and stir for a further minute.

11. Stir in the single cream and continue to simmer on a medium- low heat for 15 minutes, stirring often.

12. Once the curry has thickened, turn off the heat, serve and enjoy!

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Mozarella, chili and lemon crostini...

These colourful crostinis are a great alternative to the usual tomato bruschetta. So simple to put together, serving these as appetizer alongside a crisp glass of white wine or spritz cocktail, you'll be transported back to that pavement cafe on a warm Italian summer evening in no time.

The pan toasted ciabatta is rubbed with garlic and drizzled with olive oil, then topped with creamy mozarella seasoned with black pepper, sea salt, lemon zest, chili and basil to make this good looking Italian appetizer.

Serves 4-6 (2 crostini each)

Ingredients:

• Loaf of ciabatta
• 2 buffalo mozarella balls
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 red chilli 
• Zest of one lemon 
• Olive oil
• Fresh basil  

Method:

1. Slice the ciabatta into 8-12 pieces (depending on size of the loaf/ how many people you are serving)

2. 

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15 minute oriental-style salmon

Oriental style salmon with pak choi and cashews

This dish packs a punch and can be whipped up in just l5 minutes. It's extremely simple to make and you won't need many additional ingredients that aren't already in your store cupboard.

The salmon is cooked with a creamy sweet chilli crust, topped with few cashews for that extra crunch and sweetness.

The pak-choi is cooked Chinese style- in a bit of garlic and soy...just the way I like it! This provides a lightly salted base for that sweet chilli salmon and makes the whole dish come alive.

Sprinkle a few extra cashews around the outside and voila, a masterchef dish to impress!

Ingredients:

Salmon
Cream cheese with chives
sweet chilli sauce
Cashew nut (unsalted)
pak choi
soy sauce
garlic
oil
spring onion.

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Stuffed courgettes

Roasted courgette, couscous, tzatziki 

Don't be fooled, this is no ordinary stuffed-vegetable-dish. The flavours in this recipe are fresh, exciting and will even impress the non-vegetarian dinner guests. The subtle flavours of the roasted courgette, sun-dried tomato couscous and peppers provide a delicate setting for that salty goats cheese. The additional sweetness of the dates offsets the salty cheese beautifully and adds an element of surprise to the dish. 

My boyfriend actually created this recipe and I was so impressed I stole it off him and have now made it more times than him. 

This is great served as a starter (serving half a stuffed courgette per person served with some fresh tzatziki), as a side dish, or main dish (serving a whole courgette per person with some homemade coleslaw).

For this dish, I cheat a little bit. I buy a packet of Alfez sun-dried tomato flavoured couscous which is available in most supermarkets (UK & Dutch, see image). However, you can of course make your own using 150g plain couscous, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3 chopped spring onions, 1 tablespoon concentrated tomato puree, 80g finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes, 1 tsp garlic puree, fresh herbs (chopped parsley would work well) and salt and pepper to taste.

Ingredients: 

• 4 medium (equal) sized courgettes
• olive oil
• 1 red or yellow pepper
• 1 (200g) packet flavoured couscous
• 50g dates
• 75g goats cheese
• lemon juice (optional)
• salt and pepper

Method:

1. 1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
2. 2. Chop the ends off and carefully slice the courgettes length ways.
3. 3. With a spoon (or an apple corer) remove the flesh of the courgette (see image).
4. 4. Repeat with all 7 remaining courgette halves.
5. 5. Place in a large oven dish, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
6. 6. Cook in the oven for 20- 25 minutes.
7. 7. While the courgettes are cooking, prepare the couscous filling.
8. 8. Add water to the couscous and set aside (according to the instructions on the packet).
9. 9. Finely chop the pepper, goats cheese and dates.
10. 10. Stir the chopped pepper, goats cheese, dates into the couscous.
11. 11. Add a squirt of lemon (optional) and stir throughly. 
12. 12. Fill each of the roasted courgettes halves with generous portion of the couscous, and lightly drizzle with olive oil. 
13. 13. Return to the oven to bake for a further 10 minutes.
14. 14. Remove from the oven, serve and enjoy! 

Serving suggestion: Serve half a courgette as a starter with some fresh tzatziki dipping sauce or serve a whole courgette as a main dish with some homemade coleslaw and crusty bread on the table. 

Alfez sundried tomato couscous

3 medium courgettes ready to roast

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Salted caramel brownies

This is one for all the chocolate lovers out there. I love chocolate and come from a family of chocolate enthusiasts, but crazily enough I've ended up with a boyfriend who despises it. On the plus side, it's meant I've had to expand my baking repertoire beyond the realms of chocolate, coffee and caramel (yes he hates coffee and caramel too), but on the downside, it means I sometimes forget to go back to basics and bake with my favourite ingredient and that's CHOCOLATE.

These brownies are everything a brownie should be: rich, moist, fudgy and the addition of salted caramel gives it that je ne sais quoi.

Ingredients: 


Method: 

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My little Alsace obsession...

Flammkuchen: 'classic' and 'blue cheese and walnut'

Could flammkuechen be Europe's best kept secret?

'Flammkuechen' or 'tarte flambee' originates from the Alsatian region of south-west Germany and east France. It's a super light bread dough rolled out thin and traditionally topped with creme fraiche, onions and bacon, although many variations now exist.

Over the past couple of years flammkuechen has become my 'thing'. Weeknight dinners, drinking food, BBQs, lunch time treats, I can literally find any excuse to whip up a few of these delicious crowd-pleasing alternative pizzas. They are so versatile, can be topped with anything you fancy and take minutes to prepare.

I'm so passionate about them that at one point I even wanted to start my own flammkuechen restaurant. But don't just believe me, try them for yourself! This recipe is for the 'classic' bacon and onion flammkuechen. I have many favourite toppings (which I will be sharing with you on this blog) but everyone seems to agree you just can't beat that light, creamy base topped with sweet onions and salty bacon, served with a crisp glass of white wine.

Ingredients: 

• 200g plain flour + extra for dusting (wholemeal also works well) 
• 2 tablespoons of oil 
• 125ml water
• 200g creme fraiche
• 2 large onions 
• 100g bacon (the really thin bacon works well) 
• 1 tablespoon butter
• salt and pepper

Method: 
1. Preheat the oven on the highest temperature.
2. Lightly grease two large baking or pizza trays.
3. Add the flour and a pinch of salt to a large mixing bowl.
4. Add the oil and water and mix well into a (non sticky) dough.
5. Cut the dough in half and use a rolling pin to roll each half into a large thin base. 

6. Place the bases on the trays and pre-bake the base for 3-4 minutes.
7. Finely slice the onions and cut up the bacon.
8. Melt the butter in a frying pan on a low-medium heat.
9. Gently 'sweat' the onions until soft.
10. Add the bacon and fry for another 2 minutes.
11.. Spoon and evenly spread half of the creme fraiche onto each of the bases.
12. Evenly distribute the onion and bacon topping and season with pepper.
13. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the edges look crispy.
14. Remove from the oven, cut into pieces and ENJOY!

Serving suggestion: Serve with some white wine or good beer. Warning flammkuechen are very light and extremely moreish, make plenty if feeding a crowd. :-)

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Moules Frites Mondays...

Mussels in a garlic, onion and white wine broth

Moules Frites Mondays... or Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays...

This recipe is so deliciously simple you can have restaurant standard mussels anytime you like.

I discovered this recipe one day at work (recipe hunting during my lunch break to get me through the Monday blues). This was during the summer when my sister and I were living together in Geneva, Switzerland. I wanted a recipe that was inexpensive, simple enough to be able to cook in our tiny swiss kitchen and unbelievably tasty. After munching our way through all the mussels, we mopped up the rest of the sauce with a baguette and french fries. In fact, we loved this evening so much that we renamed Mondays 'Moules Frites Mondays'

Mussels can be daunting to cook if you don't know how, but this recipe gives you a step-by-step low down on how to prepare and cook your mussels.

This recipe was taken from K.Martin's recipe on food.com and it's such a winner, I haven't changed a thing (sometimes I don't have fresh herbs on hand so I leave them out). The sauce is a garlic, onion, butter and white wine broth and is a perfect summer dinner served with a fresh baguette, french fries and a leafy salad.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• Approx 1.5- 2kg live mussels 
• 475ml dry white wine 
• 4 small onions 
• 4 cloves garlic 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 6 tablespoons butter 
• Fresh herbs (optional)

Method:

Preparing your mussels

1. If your mussels are live, they should be tightly closed. If there are mussels which are open or slightly open, tap the mussel on the counter and see if it shuts by itself. If it does close up, keep it (it's live). If it remains open- discard it (it's dead)
2. Place the live mussels in a large colander and rinse with water.
3. Scrub and de-beard any mussels that have mud, seaweed or stringy 'beards' hanging out of them. You can de-beard a mussel by grabbing the stringy beard part with a piece of kitchen paper and holding the mussel tight with the other hand and firmly ripping it off.
4. You are now ready to cook your mussels! If you want to prepare your mussels in advance, just place the cleaned mussels in a bowl, place a damp cloth covering them and store in the fridge. You should use them that day.

Cooking your mussels

1. Finely chop the onions and garlic and place in a large pan on medium heat.
2. Add the wine and salt and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Add the mussels, cover with a lid, and turn the heat up to high.
4. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the mussels have opened.
5. Add the butter (and optional herbs) and stir.
6. Turn off the heat, serve and enjoy!
7. Don't eat the mussels that didn't open.

Serving suggestion: Don't forget to dish up that delicious broth and serve with some crusty bread or fries (or both) and a leafy salad. 

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