bubbly banana coctail

Simplicity at its best.

You'll need:
one banana
a glass of milk
1/2 lemon
3 tea spoons of sugar
1 spoon of cream (optional)

Cut the banana and put in a container, squeze in the lemon (be careful not to let any pip in) add milk and sugar and blend! Bon Appetit!

Wherever my thoughts will lead me...

I got on the train back from work intending to buy ingredients for chili con carne, but then I started thinking...and came up with the above. This new invention of mine does not have its own name yet... it's mince lamb with chick peas, bromley apple sauce and cheddar with a hint of oregano. Bromley apples are very sour, so the end result is very unconventional, but it will surely appear on my menu again! I prepared it all on the pan, but I think it could benefit from a few minutes in the oven ;). Can be served with rice, but today I ate it with a recent discovery from a local Turkish shop - Iranian flat bread, yum!

 Bon appétit!

A variation on countryside style savoury tart

Remember my Countryside style savoury tart? Like I said tarts come in all shapes and sizes... This one is almost identical, but this time I added mushrooms and omitted olives and parsley.

Bon appétit!

Mint zucchini soup

Coming back in big style with something vegetarian for a change!! This is a slightly modified recipe from kwestiasmaku.com. A great combination of flavours. I liked it so much, that I made it four times in a row.

You'll need:
3 or 4 medium size potatoes
1 medium zucchini
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 1/2 glass of boulion (can be replaced by a cube)
a handfull of freshmint leaves
balkan/natural yoghurt
pepper
butter and oil
bread to toast

1. Chop the onions and garlic. Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Cut the zucchini into similar size cubes. Everything will be blended in the end so no need to be too careful about sizes.
2. Take a pot with a thick den. Put some butter in and let it melt. Add some oil and fry the onion until its nice and golden. When it's nearly ready, add garlic. I didn't add the garlic at the beginning, because if it is fried for too long it turns bitter. Allow it to fry for 30 seconds or so, and then add the potatoes and zucchini.
3. After two minutes start adding boulion.
4. Let it simmer until the potatoes are ready.
5. Chop the mint leaves. Leave a few for decoration.
6. Add the mint to the soup around 2 minutes before it's ready.
7. Leave the soup to cool down and then blend it (a blender looses its sharpness if used for blending hot stuff).
8. Once the soup is mixed into a cream form, warm it up again and transfer into a bowl. Add some yoghurt and bread toasts, et voila!

Bon appétit!

Haddock pasta bake

Next episode in the fish saga. Using smoked yellow haddock again. Definitely not for those on a diet ;) wonderfully spicy.

You'll need:
smoked haddock
sour cream
mature cheddar
penne
pepper cayenne
ground coriander
fresh coriander leafs
black pepper

Boil the pasta. Grate some cheddar, cut the haddock into small bits. When the pasta is ready, transfer half of it into a casserole, sprinkle with pepper cayenne, ground coriander and black pepper. Be careful, pepper cayenne is very spicy, so don't add too much. Add the haddock bits on top. Add some grated cheddar and half of the coriander.

Pour a few spoonfulls of sour cream over it. Add the second half of the pasta. Add some more spices as required and a few more spoonfulls of sour cream. Add grated cheddar on top and sprinkle with the rest of the coriander. Put in the oven for 15 minutes, et voila!

Bon appétit!

Lemon mascarpone pasta with smoked haddock

This is my take three on fish that follows my visit to Billingsgate fish market. It's a rather unusual combination of flavours, but to my mind it worked pretty well.

The third fish I bought last Saturday was smoked yellow haddock. I always wanted to try it because it has this amazing intensive yellow colour:

It was this colour that inspired me to make this dish.

You'll need:
smoked yellow haddock (I used maybe 1/4 of the fillet from the picture above)
100g mascarpone
1 lemon (one half might be enough if it's juicy, but then it all depends on how sour you the sauce to be)
fresh coriander leafs (could be replaced by parsley)
spaghetti

While your spaghetti is boiling, prepare the sauce. It's quick, so best start doing it when your pasta is nearly ready. Squeeze the lemon and add the juice to the mascarpone - both to be warmed up on a pan so that they are joined together to form a smooth sauce. Cut the haddock into small bits and chop the coriander/parsley.

Mix the pasta with the lemon mascarpone sauce and add the haddock on top. Sprinkle everything with coriander, et voila!

 Bon appétit!

Fishy classic

Whenever, one thinks of fish in the UK, the first thing that comes to mind is the famous fish and chips. Breaded cod is an ultimate classic here. This time however, I prepared what could have been seen as a classic fish dish in Poland some twenty years ago: fried herring with onions.

To my mind, fresh herring is a largely underestimated fish. Herring features in all sorts of marinaded forms, but as a fresh fish it is overlooked, seen largely as a fish of the poor (as a kid I had to steal from my dog to eat it). Yet, it is has very fine delicate meat and has not that many fish bones.

Herring is one of those fish that simply has to be served simple, any spices might only destroy its taste.

So, I only coated my herring with flour and fried it, just like that. I also fried some onion to go with it. I served it all with potatoes similar to those I previously, served with turkey (T is for turkey), but this time I added chili instead of rosemary, et voila!

Bon appétit!

Spicy red fish

The outcome of my little Saturday morning adventure, extra spicy.

You'll need:
One red fish (d'uh)
2 garlic cloves
coriander leafs
spicy crushed chili
butter
one (yellow) pepper
lemon

Chop the garlic cloves and some fresh coriander. Put part of the garlic and chili into fish's stomach, then fill it with coriander and add some butter. Sprinkle some more chili and garlic on fish's sides and wrap it in silver foil. Before you close the foil sleeve add some more butter. Put in the oven set for 200 degrees for around 40 minutes (time depends on the size of the fish). Slice the pepper and grill fry. When ready transfer everything on a plate, squeeze out some lemon over the fish et voila!

 

 

Bon appétit!

Billingsgate fish market

I couln't help but notice a scarcity of fish shops in the area that I live in. I mentioned it to a friend who suggested that I could go to a fish market near Canary Wharf. At first, I dismissed the idea as completely insane - why should I travel across London just to buy fish? But then my curiosity won with me.

Billingsgate fish market is the largest fish market in the UK. It dates back to 16th century. By19th century it was the biggest fish market in the world. Originally located on Billingsgate Wharf, it has been moved to the Isle of Dogs in 1982. Traditionally, only licenced fish porters were allowed to move fish around the market. However, a 'bitter battle' was fought against the rule stemming from the times of Henry VIII and it was finally abandoned this year (2012).

I have resolved to visit Billinsgate only to realise that the market is open from 4am to 9.30am (Mon-Sat). Can you feel my pain of waking up so early on a Saturday morning? I thought just as much.

Anyhow, there I was walking in the rain (of course it had to rain) making my way across still empty Canary Wharf to buy some fish. As I was approaching my destination, I could hear the seagulls, everything as it should be.

I was cold, I was wet, and ended up smelling of fish, but it was SO worth it!! I've never seen so much and so many different fish in one place!

You can find there anything from plaice almost the size of my umbrella to Jamaican skipper.

A few words of advice if you ever decide to go:
1. Wear old shoes, seriously.
2. Don't be surprised that if you simply say "2", you'll be given two boxes of fish.

PS. Can you recognise these beauties?

T is for Turkey!!

A very in-the-season idea for dinner.

You'll need:
1 turkey steak
1 pear
1  dark plum
2 slices of brie
3 potatoes
butter
2 garlic cloves
2 cardamom pods
rosemary
salt and pepper
olive oil

Let's start with the potatoes, as they take some time to make:

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes.
2. Put in a heatproof dish. It should have a lid. If you don't have one, no worries, simply cover it with silver foil.
3. Finely chop garlic and add to the potatoes. Add rosemary, salt and pepper. Stir. Add some olive oil and butter on top.
4. Put in the oven set for 200 degrees for about 45 minutes.
5. If you want your potatoes to have a nice golden crust, remove the lid/foil after 45 minutes and leave the potatoes for another 15 minutes in the oven set to a grill option. Mine does not have one, but the outcome was still plenty yummy:

6. Cut the plum into thin slices. You'll need some thin pear slices too. Cut the rest of the pear into 2cm slices.
7. 'Hammer' the turkey steak, so that it's nice and thin. You might want to use foil to avoid the mess.
8. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill fry on one side, so that it's no longer raw, but no more. It needs to stay flexible enough to bend it later on.
9. Remove the steak from the pan and add plum and pear slices on top of the fried side. Add the insides of the cardamom pods. Caradmom is very intensive, so 2 pods are enough. Put brie slices on top and bend the steak so that it forms a sack. You might need some string to keep it together. I realised that I don't have string when it was too late to go and buy some, but it turns out that need if the mother of invention so... I used parsley to tie it together.

10. Put your turkey sack and pear slices on hot grill pan. Make sure the meat is fried on all sides, et voila!

Grill fried pears are simly divine!! Brie will melt inside the turkey sack almost like butter in de volaille and cardomom will give the meat a very specific taste - delicious!

Bon appétit!

Countryside style savoury tart

Tarts come in all different forms. They can be both savoury and sweet. The only limit is one's imagination really. They can be eaten both hot and cold. You could prepare one to eat as a lunchtime snack or as a dinner course. It takes some time to make one (mostly because of the time it has to spend in the oven), but once done you can eat it over a few days. Of course, provided you can resist eating it all at once!

This one has a very classic taste. It has bacon, two types of onion, olives, cherry tomatoes and herbs in the filling.

You'll need:
5 eggs
4 spoonfulls of sour cream
250g of flour
150g of butter/margarine
1 medium white onion
1 medium red onion
250g (un)smoked bacon
12 cherry tomatoes
30/40 black olives
some freshly grated gouda
dried rosemary
dried thyme
fresh parsley

Pastry making:
You need to start by preparing your pastry dough. Mix flour with butter and one egg. It will need some kneading. When ready put it in the fridge for an hour. After that roll it out and fit into a flan dish. Don't forget to butter the dish first, otherwise the dough might stick to it. Cut the edges. Cover with foil  and put some dried beans or rice on top. This is to prevent the pastry from growing when put in the oven. Put in the oven set for 180 degrees for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes.

Filling:
When the pastry is in the oven you have time to prapere your filling.
1. Start by cutting the bacon into thin slices and chopping the onions.
2. Fry them all. I did it separetely, but you could mix them together if you wish.
3. Cut the tomatoes into halves, do the same with olives.
4. Break the remaining four eggs and stir them vigourously with a fork. Add cream and stir again. Then proceed to add the herbs into the mixture (parsley needs chopping beforehand).

Remove the pastry bottom from the oven. Spread grated cheese on it. Then put bacon, onions and olives on top.

Now pour the egg and cream mixture evenly over it. Put the tomatoes on top. It's ready to go into the oven again. The whole thing will be ready when the egg filling turns solid and golden brown. It might take around 30-40 minutes.

et voila!

Bon appétit!

Beef in blue cheese and mushroom sauce

Guess what? It's beef time again. This is my lastest take on it. It's quick, it's easy, and it's yummy!!!

You'll need:
150g beef
8 mushrooms (champignons de Paris)
150ml sour cream
40g blue cheese
lemon pepper
(olive) oil  
salt

1. Cut the beef into small cubes, mushrooms into quarters.
2. Make sure the olive oil on the pan is hot before you start frying. The easiest way to check if it's warm enough is to pour a few drops of water on it and see if there is any effect. When ready, transfer your beef into the pan and sprinkle with lemon pepper. Stir. Fry it for 3-4 minutes.
3. Once ready, transfer the contents of the pan into a plate and cover so that it stays warm.
4. Fry the mushrooms. Mushrooms like salt, but this time watch out not to add too much because blue cheese is already rather salty.
5. Add cream to the mushrooms and then blue cheese.Wait for the cheese to melt.
6. Pour the sauce over the meat. The juice from beef will nicely mix with the creamy sauce.
7. This dish tastes great with fresh cucumber on the side.

Bon appétit!

Beef theme continues...

This ain't a traditional English beef stew, or Polish gulasz or Hungarian pörkölt - though all of them served as inspiration.

You'll need:
400g beef
1 yellow paprika
200g mushrooms (champignons de Paris)
1 chopped tomato can/carton
1 glass of red wine
30 black olives
chilli
salt & pepper

1. Cut beef into small cubes, paprika into thin slices and mushrooms into quarters. Fresh mushrooms are firm and their underside is pinkish brown rather than dark brown.

2. Start by frying beef. Add some salt and pepper. No other spices are needed. Don't fry the meat for too long.

                                                    (Can there be anything better than the sight of raw red meat?)

 3.Once it turns brown add the tomatoes and soon after a glass of red wine. Allow to simmer under lid for 15 minutes. Then add the mushrooms, paprika and chilli. Leave to simmer for another 10 minutes. Add the olives at the very end, et voila!
4. Serve with fresh white bread.

Bon appétit!

PS. It tastes very differently on the second day as paprika becomes more dominant.

Time for 'festivity'

Apparently the name pierogi derived from a root meaning festivity or festival. Thus, the title of today's post.

What are these? These are ruskie pierogi, or Russian dumplings. Don't let the name mislead you - this is a traditional Polish dish.

You'll need:
flour (type 550 would be best)
water
3 potatoes
150g white cottage cheese (the original should be made with Polish twaróg, but it could also be made with ricotta)
1 onion
pepper

The preparation of pierogi looks more difficult than it actually is, and it actually doesn't take much time after one has had some practice.

You should probably start with the filling. Boil the potatoes and mash them when they are ready (no butter or cream to be added). Chop the onion and fry it. Add the onion and cheese to mashed potatoes and mix it all together. Add a generous doese of ground black pepper. Your filling is ready.

The dough for pierogi is unleavened. You simply need to mix flour with water. I'm not providing any precise measurements, because as my grandma puts it, "you need to feel it". Too much flour and the dumplings will be too hard (and their edges won't stick in the first place), too sticky and they will dissolve when boiled. You'll probably reach the right consistency when the dough no longer sticks to your hands.

Once your dough is ready, roll it out so that it's no more than 2mm thick. Back home I would use a wooden board which serves the fourth generation now to do that, but it's ok to do it on the table for as long as you make absolutely sure it's clean ;). Also, if you don't have a proper roller, don't worry - a wine bottle works equally well.

Find a glass with a sharp edge (a cup with a round edge won't do) and cut circles from the dough.

Put a spoonful of the filling in the centre of a circle.

Bend your dumpling-to-be into half and stick the edges together.

Use your thumb and index finger to create additional horn like edges, like the ones in the picture. This way your pierogi won't get destroyed when boiled.

If your preparation takes time, remember to cover your pierogi with a cloth, because the dough dries up very quickly.

Put your pierogi in salted boiling water, and wait for a few minutes. They will be ready around a minute after they reach the surface. Voila!

The best thing is that you can freeze them. Transfer them onto a plate and wait until they cool down. Once they do, they are ready for freezing.


Bon appétit!

A little something for garlic lovers

I got this recipe for carbonara  from a friend, who claims to have received it from an actual Italian. I hope he doesn't mind that I'm sharing it.

Most people think of carbonara as pasta with bacon in creamy sauce. This one is different. And in my humble opinion way better. Since it's very rich in garlic, I recommend it on days when you plan to be antisocial. While it's not the most romantic food in the world, its surely very tasty. A health warning though: you need to be well organised to succeed with this one. Timing is the key.

You'll need: (a portion for 1 person)
pasta (I used fusilli)
one egg
1/2 onion
2 or 3 garlic cloves
two bacon slices
finely grated hard cheese

1. Cut the bacon into small pieces, chop onion and garlic very finely.
2. Boil your pasta in salted water.
3. While pasta is boiling, fry the bacon. When it's no longer raw, add the onion. When it's almost done add garlic. Garlic needs to be added towards the end, because it goes bitter if fried for too long. Feel that smell? It's absolutely marvelous.
4. Put the egg in a glass. Mix yolk and egg white with a fork, so that the resulting mixture has a homogeneous consistency. Start adding the cheese while stirring continuously, so that no lumps form up. Keep adding the cheese until you can add no more (i.e. it's almost solid). I'm not giving any precise measurements because it really depends on the size of an egg. A rule of thumb is that the mixture will just about double in volume.
5. The point when the pasta is ready is critical. You need to be quick to succeed. Transfer the pasta into a strainer, and then put it back into the still warm pot. Add the contents of the glass and stir vigourously. The idea is that thanks to high temperature the egg will no longer be raw within seconds and it will nicely stick to the pasta together with cheese. Add the contents of the pan and stir again.

Bon appétit!