Beer Onions - great for the BBQ

As we head into barbecue season these are a great accompaniment to grilled meats - fantastic with sausages - a great all rounder.
Made with beer - you want something dark, but not too bitter.
The onions are cooked slowly - you are looking for the sweetness to come out.
You can make these in bulk - and I find they keep in the fridge for a good few days.

50g butter
1 tbsp oil
2 large onions - sliced
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
150ml beer

1 Melt the butter and oil in a large heavy bottomed pan that has a lid.
2 Add the sliced onions - give a good stir and cook gently, for 10 minutes, with the lid on.
3 With the onions now well softened, add the beer, honey and mustard.
4 Cook gently with the lid off until the beer has reduced and you are left with a relish like consistency - as in the photo.
5 Enjoy hot or cold - really great with sausages!!

Asparagus wrapped in pancetta - one for the BBQ

This is a really quick, really straightforward recipe - it's so simple it doesn't really need a recipe.
The 'bundles' can be cooked on the barbecue - which gives an added flavour - or under the grill.
The English asparagus season runs from St Georges day to the summer solstice and we are promised a bumper crop this year.
I used pancetta in the photo - but you can use any thinly sliced bacon, prosciutto or pancetta.
When the pancetta is cooked the asparagus will be cooked.
I have finished with a shop bought balsamic vinegar glaze (from Waitrose) - which works brilliantly to cut through.

1 bunch asparagus
1 pack pancetta
To dress - Balsamic vinegar reduction

1 Bend the asparagus spears until they break and throw away the woody end (younger, smaller asparagus may not require this)
2 Arrange the asparagus into small bundles - how many spears will depend on their thickness, probably a minimum of 2, a maximum of 5.
3 Wrap the bundles in the pancetta
4 Secure one end of the pancetta with a cocktail stick for cooking
5 Cook on the barbecue or under the grill.
6 As soon as the pancetta is crispy you are ready to remove the cocktail sticks and serve.
7 I drizzle with the Balsamic Vinegar glaze

Enjoy

Szechuan Style Prawn

This is a great, authentic tasting dish- the heat can be turned up a bit by adding more chilli flakes - or perhaps a fresh red chilli, sliced.
Really straightforward to make - and check out some of the other chinese dishes on the blog to try it with.
The level in the recipe is warm - rather than hot!

Serves 4

600g cooked, peeled large prawns
1 tin chopped tomatoes
3 large onions - sliced
1 tbsp grated ginger
3 tbsp oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sugar
3 tsp chilli flakes
salt and pepper

1 Heat the oil in a heavy casserole
2 Add the onions and ginger and cook until the onions are soft and translucent.
3 Add the tomatoes and soy sauce, sugar and chilli flakes.
4 Season and leave to simmer on a low heat until you have a smooth, thick sauce - approximately 20 mintues.
5 Add the prawns to the sauce, and warm through.
6 Check the seasoning and serve.

Prawn Cocktail - back to the old school!

For Valentines I decided to go back in time - with an old school favourite - prawn cocktail, followed by a T-bone steak!

For the prawn cocktail I struggled to find the appropriate glasses - but managed to source a couple in a local charity shop.

For the basic sauce I reverted to my old recipe for mini prawn cocktails:

500g prawns

200 ml mayonnaise

3 tbsp tomato ketchup

1 tbsp lemon juice

Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper

1 Make the marie rose sauce. The only thing that is important here is to add everything to taste. Put the mayo and tomato ketchup in a bowl and mix, add the lemon juice to taste, and a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, which adds a background hint of heat.

2 Season the sauce and then add your prawns and mix well.

For the salad - I had thought it was traditionally just iceberg or little gem lettuces - but found there were lots of different versions. This was what I went for:

3 little gem lettuces

10cm piece of cucumber

1 avocado

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 Cut the cucumber lengthways - use a spoon to scoop out the seeds

2 Cut the cucumber into small dice

3 Peel the avocado and cut into cubes.

4 Place the avocado and cucumber into a bowl with the lemon juice and toss well

5 Shred the little gems and mix well with the avocado and cucumber.

6 Split between four bowls - leave a dip in the middle to scoop in the prawns.

7 Dress with a lemon slice, or a prawn with the shell on for full 70's points - and perhaps a sprinkling of cayenne pepper.

Get some Demis Roussos on the gramaphone - live the dream........

Leek, Onion and Potato Soup

As the snow is threatening to arrive it is time for some real comfort food.
This is one of the first things I ever made - and remains a real favourite - sometimes nothing else will do!
The recipe is based an old one of Delia's - I use veg stock instead of chicken - and don't add chives at the end - but pretty much everything else remains the same.

4 large leeks
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 onion chopped
50g butter
1 ltr veg stock
275ml milk
salt and pepper (generous)

To serve
2 tbls cream



1 Trim the leeks, cut in half lengthways, and slice finely.
2 Rinse in a colander and set aside
3 In a large sauacepan, melt the butter, and add the leeks, potato and onion. Stir well so that they all get coated in the butter.
4 Season well with salt and pepper, then cover and let the vegetables sweat over a low heat for about 15 minutes.
5 Add the stock and milk, bring to a simmer, and then cover on a gentle simmer for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are getting soft.
6 Blend with a hand blender / liquidiser
7 Serve with a swirl of cream

I always have this soup hot - though it can be served cold as Vichyssoise (though not quite so good in the snow........)

Potato, cauliflower, parsnip and pea vegi curry

This is a good vegetarian curry - there is enough going on that you do not miss meat in this recipe.
It can be made with left over veg - eg roasties and parsnips after a roast - but I made with raw. You would reduce the cooking time if using left over veg.
The addition of the coconut milk makes a hot, sweet curry. I used the reduced fat coconut milk - it is January after all.......

2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 tbsp minced garlic ( or two crushed cloves)
1 tbsp minced ginger ( or 1 tbsp chopped fresh)
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp ground tumeric
1 tsp garam masala
500g potato - peeled and cubed
500g parsnips - peeled and cubed
1 small cauliflower - broken into florets
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 can reduced fat coconut milk
100g frozen peas
Juice 1/2 lemon

1 Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, once it begins to soften add the garlic and ginger, and cook gently for 5 minutes.
2 Add all the dry spices, and cook with the onions for 1 minutes, stirring, making sure all of the onions are coated.
3 Add the potatoes, parsnips and cauliflower, and toss to coat in the spices.
4 Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for a couple of minutes.
5 Stir in the coconut milk and bring back to the boil.
6 Simmer for 15 - 20 minutes - until the potatoes and parsnips are just tender.
7 Add the peas, and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
8 Check the seasoning - and serve with rice or naan.

Tandoori chicken (healthy!)

It is always difficult to replicate your favourite take away dishes at home. If it were that easy we wouldn't order it in!
This is a healthy chicken dish - that gives you all the flavours of tandoori chicken - without needing a tandoor oven at home.
It's not authentic tandoori chicken - but it is a good version.
I use chicken thighs for my recipe - but you can use breast if you prefer.
This is also good served cold, in salads, wraps etc.

6 chicken thighs (5-700g)
500ml fat free yoghurt
3 tablespoons tandoori masala spice mix
3 garlic cloves crushed ( or 1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic)
2cm ginger, crushed ( or 1 tbsp minced ginger)
2 green chillies, finely chopped with seeds
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and pepper

1 In a large bowl mix all the ingredients together- apart from the chicken.
2 Cut the chicken into large bite size pieces - or strips if you prefer
3 In an oven proof dish large enough to take all of the chicken - pour in a layer of the yoghurt mix, to cover the bottom of the dish.
4 Place all of the chicken in the dish - in a single layer if possible.
5 Cover with the remaining yoghurt mix.
6 Massage the chicken to ensure it is entirely covered.
7 Cover with cling film and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight.
8 The following day heat the over to 200c / 400f / Gas 6.
9 Place the dish in the oven and cook for 20 minutes.
10 Take out of the oven and allow to cool until you can handle the chicken.
11 Take out all of the chicken - and remove any large lumps of marinade. You can discard the remaining marinade.
12 Place the chicken on a grill rack and grill under a hot grill until one side has browned - and serve.


(The chicken is cooked at the end of stage 9 - but looks a bit anaemic - hence the browning under the grill.)