Shakshouka

Shakshouka is a traditional Middle Eastern dish of eggs cooked in a tomato and pepper sauce which is often eaten for breakfast served with pita bread for dipping. I don't often cook first thing in the morning -making toast is about as much as I can manage when I've just woken up!- so I made this as a main course instead served with salad and bread.Typically this is made in one large pan on a hob or over a fire, once the sauce is cooked the eggs are broken into it and when they are cooked it is served, I made mine slightly differently. After I'd made the sauce I poured it into individual dishes, I broke an egg over the top of each of them and then finished them in the oven. It might not be the 'proper way' to make shakshouka but it worked really well, the only tricky part was making sure the egg white was cooked but the yolk was still runny!

The recipe is adapted from this one from Riverford Organics which I originally got from a recipe card in our organic fruit and vegetable box.

Shakshouka recipe (Serves: 3-4)

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Onions, Finely chopped
• 4 Cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 Yellow pepper, chopped into small-ish chunks
• 1 Red pepper, chopped into small-ish chunks
• 1/2 tsp Black pepper
• ½ tsp Each cumin and coriander
• 1 Fresh red chilli pepper, Chopped (optional)
• 400g/1 tin Chopped tomatoes
• Sea salt
  
• 3-4 eggs (1 per person)

Method:

• First preheat your oven to gas 4/180c
• While the oven is warming up you can make your sauce. First, I a large frying pan over a medium heat fry your onions until they are softened. (about 5 minutes)
• Add your garlic and chopped peppers to the pan, give everything a good stir and fry for a couple of minutes more.
• Next add your black pepper spices and chilli (if using) to the pan and mix well.
• Pour in the tomatoes, season well with salt and leave to simmer for a couple of minutes - until everything is soft and well cooked.
• That's the sauce made, now pour the sauce into three of four oven proof dishes (if you'd prefer use one large dish)
• Make an indentation in the sauce mixture and break an egg into each one, try not to break the yolk!
• Bake for around ten minutes until the white is firm but the yolk is still soft, it may take less time depending on your oven so keep an eye on them!
• Serve with bread for dipping and enjoy!
  

Chocolate Caramel Mousse Pots

Everyone should have a good recipe for chocolate mousse in their repertoire, it's simple, elegant and can be prepared well in advance, the perfect dessert for entertaining. These Chocolate Caramel Mousse Pots have a layer of salted caramel at the bottom and are finished off with whipped cream, the flavour is intensely chocolatey and very rich. You couldn't eat much of this but served in small glasses they are the perfect end to a meal.

Recipe: Makes four individual portions.

For the salted caramel layer:
45g Light brown sugar
15g Butter
40ml Double cream
A large pinch of sea salt

For the mousse:
100g Good dark chocolate
3 Eggs, seperated.
40g Granulated or castor sugar
Whipped cream to finish
Method:
To make the caramel:

• Mix the sugar with a tablespoon of water and heat in a small pan over a gentle heat until it has melted and become liquid.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, followed by the cream and the salt.
• Pour into the base of four ramekins or glasses.

To make the mousse:

• Break up the chocolate and place it in a heat proof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
• Once the chocolate has melted take it of the heat, allow it to cool slightly the beat in the egg yolks making sure they are well incorporated.
• Meanwhile in a seperate bowl whisk the egg whites until they hold soft peaks, add the sugar and continue to whisk for another minute.
• Fold a spoonful of the egg whites into the chocolate using a metal spoon, be careful not to knock the air out of the mixture.
• Fold the rest of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and pour the mousse over the caramel in the ramekins or glasses.
• Leave the mousses to set in the fridge for at least 2 hours before topping with whipped cream.
• Serve.

Tortilla Española

Last year I set out on a cycling trip across Spain following the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago De Compostela, a journey of 550 miles crossing two mountain ranges along the way. The journey completely changed the way I view Spain, for one thing, I discovered (the hard way) that Spain is not always hot and sunny! I also found that the culture of the people changed significantly as I moved around, and that each region is fiercely proud of it's identity.

Food of plays a major part in Spanish culture and each region has it's own specialities, from the fantastic fish dishes in the north to the world famous paella in the south. Of course each region claims their food is the best and most authentic! It was all very confusing for me as I don't speak a word of Spanish, choosing what to eat at restaurants usually meant pointing at the menu and hoping for the best!

If there was one dish that could be found anywhere, was always the same and always delicious it would have to be Tortilla Española. It's strange how the simplest of dishes can taste so good and Tortilla is certainly simple. Onions and potatoes are fried in olive oil to which beaten eggs are added and cooked into a thick omelet which can be cut into wedges. It is very good hot but is more commonly served cold either in cubes as tapas or in bigger slices as a meal on it's own.
I think the trick to making a good Tortilla is to cook everything slowly, I cooked the onions over a very gentle heat for a whole 4 hours until they were deliciously sweet and soft, it's not necessary to cook them that long but you definitely want to take it slow. Cooking the eggs gently is also important to ensure that they don't burn but become wonderfully golden.
Tortilla Española recipe (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 2 Large onions chopped.
• A large handful of New Potatoes. (you could use any other potatoes chopped)
• 8 Medium eggs whisked.
• Olive oil.
• Optional extras such as peppers, mushrooms, Chorizo or ham could be added if you wish, I added a red pepper.

Method:

1. First boil the potatoes until fully cooked, drain and chop into disks.
   
2. In a large frying pan fry the onions gently until they are fully cooked and soft but not coloured, Add any extras now as well such as peppers.
3. In a large bowl mix the onions and potatoes with the beaten eggs, season with salt and pepper.
4. Wipe out the frying pan, add a splash more olive oil (make sure there's enough to stop the eggs sticking) and pour in the egg mixture.
5. Fry very gently for about 10-15 minutes until it's cooked at least half way through.
6. To finish your Tortilla you can attempt to flip it like the Spanish do or play it safe and cut the pan under the grill for 5 minutes to cook the top.
7. You could eat you Tortilla now or leave until it's cold, either way it's delicious!
   

Speedy Spaghetti Carbonara

When I've been out all day and come home tired and hungry I turn to Carbonara to satisfy the hunger pangs. Why? because it's incredibly quick and absolutely delicious, I've yet to find a single person who doesn't enjoy a good Carbonara. This simple meal of bacon, eggs, Parmesan and pasta is universally popular and the great thing is I almost always have all the ingredients at home, so there's no need to go shopping.English and American versions often add cream, Italians don't and as it's their invention I do it there way, although I can't deny the creamy version does taste good too. I've also added some courgette to mine 1. because it was lurking in the fridge and needed using and 2. because I don't like having no vegetables at all in a meal.
I learnt the trick to making a decent carbonara sauce from watching Jamie Oliver. It is important to take the pasta off the heat before adding the eggs, this prevents them from scrambling and gives you a silky smooth sauce. The other important thing to remember is to add freshly ground black pepper, lots and lots of it, this dish needs it!

Courgette carbonara recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 400g spaghetti or other pasta
• 250g bacon chopped
  
• 2 courgettes chopped
  
• 4 eggs lightly beaten
  
• Large handful of parmesan grated
• Finely chopped parsley (optional)
• Salt and pepper

Method

• Put your pasta on to boil.
• While the pasta is cooking fry your bacon and courgettes in a large pan.
• Once your pasta is cooked remove from the heat and toss in the beaten eggs, work quickly and make sure all the pasta is coated.
• Add the remaining ingredients reserving a little parmesan and mix well.
• Serve with a sprinkling of the reserved parmesan.
  

At last I made a Cheese Souffle!

There are some recipes that scare me, usually they are recipes that seem far too complicated, or I have heard horror stories of it all going horrendously wrong. One such recipe was Choux pastry, even though I really wanted to try it, I could see myself making a complete mess and throwing it all in the bin!! But I overcame that and found it to be really easy.
Another recipe that has me shaking with fear is Souffle, I can just see it collapsing the second I open the oven door, or simply not rising at all.
Well after thinking "I really should try it" for over a year I finally got the courage to give it a go. The recipe I used is by Keith Floyd for a cheese Souffle, I served it with Jersey Royal potatoes and a salad.Contrary to popular belief souffle is very simple to make, it comprises a simple bechamel sauce into which egg yolks and the flavour of choice is added, to this fold in stiffly beaten egg whites and bake in the oven. For a sweet souffle it is exactly the same except a sweet custard base is used.
I am pleased to report that my souffle was a success, while it didn't rise quite as much as I hoped, it did rise and tasted really good, next time I might add chopped bacon and some leeks or mushrooms for more flavour. This makes an excellent light summer meal.

The recipe can be found here: Cheese souffle
Note: it is crucial that you eat this as soon as it is cooked as it starts to collapse immediately!