Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes

for the cupcakes

• 150g room temperature unsalted butter
• 150g vanilla sugar (that is a homemade version and can be made with a vanilla pod planted in a jar of caster sugar)
• 3 eggs (take out of fridge ahead of time so it's room temperature)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsb xanthan gum
• 150g gluten-free white flour
• dash of organic full fat milk

Preheat oven gas mark 5
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy then beat in the eggs one at a time.
Add in the baking powder, xanthan gum, flour and milk.
Pour into cupcake liners in a cupcake tin and bake for about 20-30 minutes or until golden brown on top and a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool and then frost.

For the cream cheese frosting

• 150g cream cheese
• 150g softened butter
• 110g icing sugar
• 3 tbsp good quality berry or fig marmalade. I used my friend's Serafim 's mother's excellent fig marmalade.

With a hand mixer, mix together cream cheese and butter until combined.
Add marmalade to the cream cheese-butter mixture.
Sift in the icing sugar and mix well with a spatula. Chill in fridge for at least an hour before use.
Spread on top of cupcakes with the spatula. Decorate with a couple of raspberries on top or other.

Roasted Broccoflower With Prawns

Broccoflower is a piece of art. You will not want to eat it, it's that beautiful, but at some point in it's life it has to happen.


• 1 broccoflower cut into florets
• Salt and cracked black pepper
• 250ml olive oil
• 1/4 cup currants
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 24 large green king prawns, peeled
• 1/2 cup coriander leaves
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
• Lime wedges, to serve

Preheat oven to 200C.
Place broccoflower florets on a roasting tray and season well. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until cooked.
Mix currants and vinegar in a saucepan, bring to the boil, then drain.
In a small frypan over low heat, dry fry cumin, coriander and paprika until fragrant. Add garlic, chilli flakes and 120ml oil and cook until garlic is golden. Remove from heat and season.
Heat remaining oil in a large frypan and stir-fry prawns until almost cooked. Add spice mixture and cook until just heated through. Stir in currants and herbs and remove from heat.
Top cauliflower with prawns and serve warm or at room temperature with lime wedges.
Serves 6 and they will all ask for more.

To The Pacific

Ignore any tasteless 'easy on the fig' jokes the punters might crack, based on a recent review of the place in Time Out. The fig toastie is actually delicious.
This is a little diamond in Hackney which survived the week of the riots and is serving good coffee and more, with some cool calypso tunes. Went sans baby which was a good idea as it is not ultra spacious and also I wouldn't like to see the little one chewing their lovely postcards from all over the world.
Walking distance from home. So happy about this place!
Do not fret guys: I will keep M. away or strapped in his buggy.
The Pacific Social Club :
8 Clarence Road
Hackney
E5 8HB

Kounoupidi Kapama Oh What Is That

That is cauliflower cooked in tomato sauce with cinnamon and cheese on top. My grandmother used to cook that a lot and I hated the smell of cooked cauliflower back then. She used to top it up with feta cheese but I think parmesan works much better.
By the way, I love cauliflower now.
Ingredients
• 85ml olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• garlic cloves, crushed
• 8 tomatoes, seeded and chopped or just a can of peeled tomatoes if you are lazy like me
• large pinch of ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 75g parmesan, grated

Heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil in a heavy based frying pan and sauté the onion and garlic for 3-4 minutes, or until the onion has softened.
Add the chopped/tin tomatoes, cinnamon and oregano and season with salt and pepper. Stir and simmer, covered for 5 minutes.
Add the cauliflower to the tomato mixture, cover, and simmer for a further 10-15 mins or until the cauliflower is tender. There is an alternative way to cook this, just by steaming the cauliflower in advance for 10 minutes and add to the mix. I prefer this method to be honest.
Sprinkle over the lemon juice and grated parmesan. the cheese has melted. Capers will go well with this too. Serve warm with rice, quinoa or pasta.

Must Remember This Mushroom Pilaf Recipe

It will only take 30 minutes to cook this beauty.
Ingredients:
a couple of cups of quinoa
olive oil
2 cloves of finely chopped garlic
200g of different sorts of mushrooms

1 large finely chopped onion

juice of 1 large lemon
1 tablespoon dried basil
a bunch of fresh oregano finely chopped

Firstly make the quinoa. Usually 15 minutes boiling time is enough but check with packet. While the quinoa cooks, chop the vegetables.

When the quinoa is done set aside but keep warm. Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and the chopped onion and stir over medium heat until slightly softened. Add in the mushrooms. Season with sea salt and pepper. Cook till the mushrooms feel tender. In a cup mix the lemon juice with the herbs and set aside. When the mushrooms are ready scoop the quinoa in the mixture and then pour over the lemon and herbs mix. Toss well. Goodnight.

New Joy

Happy Kitchen just opened in London Fields and it' s food heaven.
Vegan, gluten free & organic. That does not mean that everything tastes like cardboard. The opposite. Super friendly staff, the best brownies EVER, and cherry smoothie. Need I say more?

Feta Saganaki Is Not A Japanese Recipe

It sounds Japanese but is Greek and I am homesick (again) so I cooked it today. With sesame seeds and honey. For a moment I was magically transferred to my favorite place in Athens, eating with Anna. Here is the way to make it :

• 250g feta
• 1 small egg
• 1/2 teaspoons ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoons ground paprika
• olive oil

• flour (used gluten -free all purpose and it was great)
• sesame seeds

• 1 teaspoon oregano

• 3 tablespoons honey

Cut the feta into long chunks, so they look like little fingers and place in the freezer for 15 minutes. It is very important to do that so they wont break while cooking.

Mix the egg, pepper, paprika and oregano in a bowl and beat well. Roll each piece of feta in the egg mixture, then roll in the flour. Once you have done all of them, roll each piece in the egg for a second time, then roll in the sesame seeds.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, and cook the feta on each side until golden. Once they are ready remove and drizzle with a little honey and serve immediately.

Generally speaking feta saganaki is harmful for your heart to have every day and for your figure too, but if you serve it with something healthy like asparagus you can reduce the levels of guilt.