It's On!

If I am not in labour this Sunday I think I will check out the new market in my neighborhood.
Bring it on Clapton.

www.chatsworthroade5.co.uk/

Mascarpone Dreams

Roast squash with mascarpone, Parmesan & sage
For lazy days - so easy to make

1. Spoon olive oil into each half of butternut squash, add the dried sage and finely chopped garlic. Salt & pepper.
2. Roast at 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 for 40-50 minutes or until tender and toasted around the edges.
3. Spoon the mascarpone into the hollows and stir, season and scatter with Parmesan. Stick in the oven for another 15 minutes till cheese melts nicely. Add fresh chopped parsley on top and serve. Chives work too.

Fruity Indoors BBQ

Exotic Quinoa

Mango Blueberry & Quinoa Salad is inspired by a similar salad available at M&S
but with more ingredients added.
It is an absolute winner and friends keep asking for the recipe.

Quinoa Salad:
• quinoa
• cucumber
• red rice
• 1 red pepper finely chopped
• lemon & basil oil dressing (see recipe below)
• beans, chickpeas or similar - optional
• blueberries
• 1 mango
• rocket well chopped
• dried cranberries
• a few coconut pieces
• sunflower seeds or mixed seeds


Lemon & Basil Oil Dressing:
• basil infused oil
• lemon juice
• garlic puree
• honey
• lemon zest
• salt & pepper
you can add crushed chilies (optional) for a spicier version
Simply prepare the quinoa and rice and combine all the ingredients. adding the dressing in the end.

Winter in the Med

Mediterranean stuffed peppers in the oven are quick, easy, yummy and comforting.

Here is what you need:
• 50g brown basmati rice
• 1 each red, orange and yellow pepper
• 1 bag watercress, roughly chopped
• a handful of baby plum tomatoes chopped
• 50g/2oz pitted black olives, chopped
• 50g/2oz drained sun-dried tomatoes
• 50g/2oz cheddar cheese, grated
• feta
• 25g grated Parmesan

Cook the rice in boiling salted water for 20 mins or according to pack instructions and drain.
Preheat the oven to 200C/fan180C/gas mark 6. Cut the peppers in half , length-ways and cutting through the stalks. Remove the seeds and discard; place them in a roasting tin, cut side up.
Mix the rice, watercress, olives, feta and sun-dried tomatoes and fresh tomatoes together with half the cheddar cheese. Season to taste. Spoon the mixture into the peppers and scatter over the remaining cheddar and all parmesan.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the peppers are tender. Serve with salad.

Swedish Chef

People have different opinions about IKEA and I respect them all.
I also understand the love-hate relationship others have with the place and what it represents.
But we have to congratulate the IKEA chaps on their new coffee table book. It is so clever and beautiful and inspiring.
Have a look here: www.demo.fb.se/e/ikea/homemade_is_best/index.html

Gigantic

No I am not going to start waving flags suddenly, believe me this came as a surprise.
As a kid I used to hate gigantes, those farty big beans that my grandmother would cook with such pride, devotion and zest.
Then I loved them suddenly , one hot summer night in Ios, with ouzo. But I was drunk so I forgot everything about them.
Last weekend a friend came over to stay with us which was a good excuse for a BBQ and a little dinner party. He offered and cooked Gigantes beans in the oven, 'plaki' as they call them in Greece. My boyfriend went ballistic. Why have I never cooked that masterpiece for him in the past?
Well this weekend I finally did. Being lazy, I used canned butter beans, nothing of the patient soaking overnight process that grandma loved and was such an important part of her 'Gigantes' ritual.

Ingredients

300 grams gigantes beans or butter beans
2 bay leaves
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup of olive oil
6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and blended or 1 can of whole tomatoes (500 grams)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/3 cup white dry wine
1 cup of parsley, finely chopped
2 stalks celery ribs, finely chopped
3 big carrots, finely chopped
fresh oregano, finely chopped
A few sprigs of dill, finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon thyme honey (optional)
2 cups water

Directions:

Soak beans in plenty of water, overnight. Or use canned beans if you are lazy like me.
Drain and add fresh water and bring to a boil and remove any froth with a slotted ladle. Drain them again and add fresh water and bay leaves and bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer until almost cooked (about 1 hour and 30 minutes) and then drain and discard the bay leaves.
Preheat oven at 180o C 350o F.
Heat olive oil in a sautéing pan and sauté onions and garlic until translucent.
Add chopped celery, carrots, parsley, fresh oregano and beans and mix.
Add wine, honey, tomato, salt and pepper and water and mix.
Cover the sautéing pan or cook in a casserole dish in the oven for about 1 hour and 15 minutes until the beans are soft and the sauce is thick, mixing at regular intervals.

Serve with olives, feta cheese, tzatziki and bread.

Bananarum A

There is nothing worst for a woman's silhouette than being pregnant + discovering that apart from cooking, baking is amazing too.
It 's all downhill from now on my friends, all the way to Fatland.

First ever attempt to bake was more than successful, boyfriend suggested to get a stall at Broadway Market and sell them. Ha, as If I don't have anything else to do on a Saturday!

So for gluten free Bananarum-a Muffins you will need:

Ingredients:
100g Caster Sugar
100g Butter (at room temp or microwaved for 5 sec.)
2 Eggs
3 Large Ripe Bananas
170g Rice flour
50g Corn flour
1 tsp Gluten free Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
2 shots of Dark Rum
chocolate flakes


Preheat the oven to 200C. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Use a small electric hand mixer. Add both eggs and mix well until you have a smooth light & airy mixture.
Mash the bananas one at a time and add them. Mix well between each banana until they disappear into the mixture. These hold the muffins together really well and allow this recipe to be made without xanthan gum or another binding ingredient.
Mix the rice flour, corn flour, baking powder and salt together in a separate bowl. Sift this mix into the butter and egg mixture bit by bit, mixing in between until you have a thick but even consistency and all the flour mix has disappeared into the wet mix. Pour in the rum gently. Add the chocolate flakes and mix again very well.
Spoon into muffin cases until even. The baking powder will make them rise so don't make them overflowing.
Bake for 20-25 mins until golden brown.

Elderflower I Adore You

Being pregnant is good for my liver but oh how I miss you alcohol!
There are always ways to trick myself and the super non-alcoholic champagne I got from Fresh & Wild can be used for this cocktail.
Normal people of course can use proper champagne.

Ingredients:

• 3 oz Champagne
  
• 2 oz elderflower liqueur or cordial
  
• club soda or soda water
• lemon twist for garnish

Preparation:

1. Pour the liqueur/cordial and Champagne over ice in a chilled glass.
2. Top with club soda.
3. Stir well
   
4. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Sweet Potato Mash with Haloumi and Chili

Dead easy this one. And a winner.
Steam the sweet potatoes and the parsnips and then mash them with a fork and add a bit of butter and milk. Play it by the ear, that is the easiest method for the best mash. If it looks thirsty, feed it with more milk and salt and pepper.
Fry the sliced haloumi till it goes dark on both sides and put on top of the mash. Prepare the 'sauce' separately by chopping the chillies and fry them for a few minutes, squeeze the limes and add the lime zest. Then just pour on top of the mash and haloumi.

All in all you will need:
3 big sweet potatoes
3 parsnips
milk
butter
chilies
haloumi
1 lime

Oh What A Joy : At Bonnington

There are not many advantages about staying temporarily South of the river. Commuting to work to begin with kills me. But beggars can't be choosers and until I move back East later on in the Summer I have to stay South, enjoy the fact that I am not paying rent and not moan. In other words 'shut it'. With places like the Bonnington Cafe this can be truly very easy.
I paid a visit today in the afternoon on my own and it was so enjoyable I am dying to take all my friends there and share the experience.
A few minutes walk from Vauxhall station, this lovely place has a different chef every day and serves vegan and vegetarian food which was the best choice for one of the hottest days of the year. Today Ana ignoring the heat wave had cooked a menu that made me want to order EVERYTHING. In the end I got the delicious carrot and ginger soup for just £2 and a watermelon and lime fresh juice for just £1,50. I also got a takeaway polenta with walnuts for later on, which i enjoyed in the park. Then I was smiling like an idiot for the rest of the day.
I am going again on Tuesday!

Would Pinchy Want It That Way?

Oh yes, I had something like the perfect day last Monday. To begin with I had the day off and was feeling physically well after a very long time. I met an old friend who was in London for business in the morning, then had a very long walk, then went to the cinema and then found myself at this restaurant alone, menu in hand, just because of the poster on the wall: JUNE! LOBSTER MONTH. I am such an easy target sometimes.
I did call my partner to join me, who is a vegetarian, 99% of the year . He did come but did not try the lobster. I did. And it was delicious. But I must admit that it looked very cute and I found myself feeling a bit like Homer Simpson. And in reality it was not as delicious as the lobster I had in Crete 5 years ago, or the one my friend caught in 2003. It was a lobster that was designed to end up in my plate and that was a very sad thing to realize.
But I have no regrets. It was part of the almost perfect day Monday.

National (Crypto) Vegetarian Week 2010

Though I am not a vegetarian I must admit that I had great fun at the National Vegetarian Week event at the Window in Islington this evening. My lovely friend and I had the chance to try really tasty canapes, sushi, a fantastic quinoa mini- dish and other vegetarian delicacies and had a very interesting chat with the Window's chef, Annie. There was also a chance to learn how to properly roll sushi, but with just simple use of eye contact both my friend and I, agreed in eating, rather than enrolling.

Talk Of East London

Towpath Cafe is on 42 De Beauvoir Crescent, by Regents Canal off Kingsland Road and its cheap, simple, full of charm and the best place to have breakfast on a sunny day.

Fairly new and not spoilt yet, but it is a matter of time and the city for this beauty to be discovered. Go!

Back To Auberginia

Baked aubergines are the simplest tastiest dish for spring in the book.
Just wash them, get rid of the top and bottom bit and cut them in little triangle pieces. Spread olive oil into a baking tray and place the pieces in, add a generous amount of salt, splash with more olive oil, crushed garlic and dried herbs like marjoram and basil and leave in the oven for an hour on medium heat (about 180 degrees). Halfway remember to add pepper.
I made this last night, told my boyfriend on the phone about it and by the time he got back home I had eaten the whole lot! I think he will not forget easily. So I m cooking it again today.

Toaster Envy

Oh my, isn't it beautiful?
This transparent toaster is from Magimix BUT it costs £160 so I think I will stick to my good old toaster for now, the one that electrocutes me from time to time.

Happy In Whitstable

Just an hour and a bit away from London, Whitstable in Kent is pretty and the fish market is fairly cheap and interesting.
There is also a farmers market with the best pear juice on earth and the biggest Calamata olives in England!

Invest In This Book

How to Feed Your Friends with Relish

by Joanna Weinberg

Atsukos Kitchen

There is a very interesting course taking place at the Grocery, on Kingsland Road every Tuesday by this japanese lady. A friend is attending already and she is very excited. I am tempted to book a place for the next 5 sessions starting end of February. Especially after viewing this photo. Mini okonomiyaki. What a brilliant idea!

Spring Vegetables with Crème Fraîche and Chives

This recipe is easy & tasty. I had to put some 'spring' spirit in this cold weather conditions so cooked it last night and served with quinoa.
Choose four vegetables. I went for broccoli, baby carrots, butternut squash, and purple cauliflower.
Chop one big Spanish onion and saute in a big pan with olive oil. Then add the vegetables and a bit of water. Stir and add more water till the vegs are tender but not too soft.
Salt and pepper on top and half a cup of crème fraîche and some chives. Et voila!