Author: Sophie

Lemon and garlic chicken and chips

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A family favourite, full of flavour but ever so simple to make, using oven chips as a shortcut, with harissa yoghurt to dunk into. More yummy than you’d ever imagine, given the simplicity of the ingredients. Literally winner winner chicken dinner. Feeds 4.

  • 4 chicken breasts
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • Generous sprig of fresh oregano
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 100g greek yoghurt
  • 1 heaped tbsp harissa paste
  • 1 kg chunky oven chips
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • Salt and pepper
  1. About an hour before you cook, mix the garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, fresh oregano (twisted and pinched a bit to release the flavour), salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the chicken breasts in a dish. Cover and refrigerate, turning once, until you need them
  2. Mix the yoghurt, lemon zest, harissa paste and a pinch of salt to a pleasing pale pink
  3. Pre-heat the oven to 200C fan (220C)
  4. Put the chips on an baking tray and stick in the oven. They’ll need about 30 mins (for some reason they always take at least 5 mins longer than the package says) so the timing should all come out about right
  5. While the chips are cooking, heat a large, oven-proof frying pan over a medium heat
  6. Remove the chicken from the marinade, shake off and place in the pan
  7. Cook without moving them for 10 mins until deep brown on the underside, then flip them over and put the pan into the oven for 15 mins. (If your pan isn’t ovenproof, just transfer to an oven dish)
  8. Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to rest while you put the chips in a big bowl and sprinkle with the paprika, garlic powder, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Gently toss the spices through lightly and you’re ready to go

Serve with something green (broccoli is usually our green of choice) and spoon the chicken juices over the top. Dunk everything in harissa yoghurt and feel happily full of delicous food.

Schinkenflekerl

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A childhood favourite and traditional family recipe for a sort of Austrian answer to macaroni cheese. This is eggy, hammy and pasta-y. Carb heaven! Some recipes add cheese, cream or onions – go ahead if you fancy any or all of them, or keep it simple as below. Feeds 2 generously.

  • 225g pasta shapes (traditionally little square flekerl)
  • Salt & pepper
  • 100g ham, diced
  • 50g salted butter, softened
  • 80g sour cream
  • 2 eggs
  1. Cook and drain the pasta. Run cold water over to cool it and drain again
  2. In a big bowl, beat together butter, sour cream, eggs and seasoning
  3. Add ham and cooked pasta and mix well
  4. Tip into flat ovenproof casserole dish
  5. Bake at 180C fan (200C) for 35 mins until the top is light brown and crisp

Smoked paprika and almond biscuits

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So crunchy. So savoury. So, so very more-ish. A perfect nibble with a large glass of bubbly.

  • 175g unsalted butter, softened
  • 175g mature cheddar, finely grated
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 175g plain flour
  • 2 tbsp cold milk
  • 150g whole blanched almonds
  1. Beat the butter together with the cheese, chilli, salt, paprika and garlic
  2. Add the flour and milk, stirring in and then working together with your hands to smooth, soft dough
  3. Mix in the almonds and form into a roughly sausage shape
  4. Dollop onto clingfilm and use the wrap to roll the dough into a cylinder about 4cm diameter, 30cm long
  5. Put your delicous dough sausage into the fridge to cool for at least 20 mins
  6. Pre-heat the oven to 160C fan (180C)
  7. Unwrap the dough and use a sharp knife to cut the dough into 1cm slices
  8. Place the beautiful biscuits gently onto a lined baking tray a few cm apart
  9. Bake for 25 mins until golden and then cool on a rack

This freezes really well. Just put the wrapped dough into the freezer rather than the fridge. And defrost before slicing

Pickled red cabbage

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Fragrant, piquant and PINK. Friend to cheese and salads and grilled meat.

  • 500ml malt vinegar
  • 90g of sugar
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 4 cloves
  • 5 allspice berries
  • 6 black peppercorns
  • 1 bay leaf
  • ½ red cabbage
  • 80g of salt
  1. Heat the vinegar, sugar and spices in a saucepan over a medium heat, stirring
  2. Once the sugar is dissolved (don’t let it boil though) take the pan off the heat. Cover and put on one side overnight to infuse. Doesn’t have to be in the fridge, just a quiet spot where the cat won’t knock it over
  3. Also, core, quarter and finely slice the red cabbage. Put into a bowl, sprinkle over the salt and toss together until well combined. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight
  4. The next day, rinse the salt off the cabbage and roughly dry on kitchen towel
  5. Spoon the cabbage into a sterilised jar or 2
  6. Strain the pickling liquid over the cabbage, ensuring that it’s fully submerged
  7. Seal the jar(s) and store in a cool, dry place or the fridge for 1 week before eating. It will keep for up to 1 month. It’s unlikely to last that long.

Slow cooker groundnut chicken stew

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Spicy, creamy, savoury and sweet. Enormously easy to make and beautifully tasty served on top of rice or next to some fried plantain. Feeds 2.

  • 4 chicken thigh fillets, cut into pieces
  • 1 tbsp veg oil 
  • 1 inch piece of ginger, minced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 red birdseye chilli, finely chopped (for less heat, use a large pinch of dried chilli flakes instead – for more, use a scotch bonnet chilli, finely chopped)
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
  • 1 tbsp tomato purée 
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes 
  • 250ml chicken stock (or half a stock cube and 250ml water)
  • 100g crunchy peanut butter (ideally no added salt)
  • Pinch of sugar
  1. Heat the slow cooker to low
  2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat, then fry the ginger, garlic, onion and chilli for 5-7 mins, until soft but not coloured
  3. Add the tomato puree and mix well to coat before tipping in the tinned tomatoes, sugar, stock, coriander, bay leaf and peanut butter
  4. Season with salt and plenty of ground black pepper
  5. Bring to the boil and then tip the contents of the pan into the slow cooker. Add the chicken and sweet potato then mix well and cover
  6. Cook for 6-8 hours on low. The chicken will be tender, the gravy will be thick and aromatic

Turkish tomato dip

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A recipe brought back from my parents’ holiday to Istanbul in 1997. You will 100% want to dip toasted pitta in this. And crisps. Maybe your fingers – just don’t get caught.

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 2 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced/grated
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • Black pepper
  • Handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
  1. Heat the oil in a thick-bottom pan over a low heat and cook the onion for 8-10 mins until completely soft
  2. When translucent, add the garlic and chilli
  3. Cook for a further couple of mins, then add the tinned tomatoes, sugar, salt and pepper
  4. Cook over a low heat until most of the moisture has evaporated
  5. Add the coriander and stir in
  6. Leave to cool to room temp and then serve

Spiced beef and chickpea stew

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A marvellous marriage of a British beef stew and a Moroccan tagine. Sounds delicious – definitely is.

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 500g beef shin, cut into chunks
  • 2 large onions, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 beef stock cube
  • 2 tsp harissa paste
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 1 heaped tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • Salt and pepper
  • 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses
  • 1 preserved lemon, skin only, diced
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 200g green beans, cut into pieces
  • Handful of green olives
  1. Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan over a medium-high heat
  2. Brown the beef in batches, removing it to a plate on one side
  3. Lower the heat and add onions
  4. Cook for 5 mins, stirring occasionally
  5. Add garlic and continue to cook for further 5 mins until soft and golden.
  6. Add spices, crumbled stock cube, harissa and tomato puree, and stir together. Cook for 2 mins while the kettle boils.
  7. Add approx 500 ml boiling water and the pomegranate molasses
  8. Season well with salt and pepper
  9. Bring to the boil and then cook over very low heat for an hour
  10. Add preserved lemon and zest, stir in and cook for another hour
  11. Add chickpeas, olives and green beans, cook for a further 30 mins.
  12. Serve with a pile of lovely cous cous

Chai tea

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Fragrant, aromatic spiced tea, traditionally drunk with milk but I prefer mine without – but with a teaspoon of sugar added.

  • 2 tbsp green cardamom pods
  • 4 whole star anise
  • 6 3-inch cinnamon sticks
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 2 tsp whole cloves
  • 2 tsp whole black peppercorns
  • 2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 6 tbsp dried ginger pieces
  • 50g loose black tea
  1. Preheat oven to 140C fan (160C)
  2. Split the cardamom pods open lengthwise with a sharp knife.
  3. Spread out cardamom, star anise, cinnamon, fennel, cloves, peppercorns, and coriander in one even layer on a small baking sheet
  4. Toast the spices in the oven for 5 mins, or until you can smell them
  5. Tip the toasted spices into a pestle and use the mortar to crush them into small pieces (although it might be easier to break up the star anise and cinnamon with your fingers). The pieces should be small enough so they fit into a teabag or infuser
  6. Mix the toasted spices, ginger pieces and black tea together in a bowl and transfer to a large glass jar to store

Dried ginger

  • Peel the ginger root using a spoon (trust me, it works amazingly!) Slice into thin pieces and place in a single layer onto a baking tray or plate. Either dry for a couple of hours in the oven set to 100C fan, turning occasionally. Or in the microwave in 1 minute bursts. It will shrink a lot and should be hard and stiff! Cool the dry ginger before storing. Use for ginger tea or chai as above.

Raspberry cheesecake

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Tart, sweet, tangy and creamy, this delectable cheesecake is a study in yummy contrasts.

  • 150g ginger nut biscuits (or digestives if you prefer)
  • 60g butter, melted
  • 600g cream cheese
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 175g golden caster sugar
  • Zest of ½ lemon
  • 2 eggs
  • 150g sour cream
  • 350g raspberries
  • 1 tbsp icing sugar
  1. Heat the oven to 160C fan (180C)
  2. Crush the biscuits and mix well with the melted butter
  3. Press the buttery crumbs into a 20cm spring-form tin and bake for 5 mins, then put on one side to cool
  4. Beat the cream cheese with the flour, sugar, lemon zest, eggs and sour cream until light and fluffy.
  5. Stir in half the raspberries and pour the mixture into the tin
  6. Bake for 40 mins and then check – it should be set but slightly wobbly in the centre. Leave in the tin to cool
  7. Put the rest of the raspberries in a pan with the icing sugar
  8. Heat until they start to break apart and then press through a sieve
  9. Once the cheesecake is cool, de-tin it and drizzle with the raspberry sauce before serving

Puff pastry pantry pizza

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As well as being delightfully alliterative, this quick and simple supper is a brilliant user-up of leftovers. Basically a savoury puff pastry tart with pizza flavours, sprinkled with anything you like.

  • 320g pre-rolled puff pastry sheet
  • 4 tbsp tomato puree
  • Drizzle of sriracha
  • 3 or 4 pizza-type complimentary toppings (such as ham, sweetcorn, roasted peppers, pickled jalapenos, olives, roast aubergine, artichokes, sliced spring onion – pretty much anything you like)
  • 150g grated cheese (cheddar, emmental, smoked cheese, mozzarella, gruyere, blue cheese)
  1. Pre-heat oven to 180C fan (200C)
  2. Unroll the pastry, leaving it on the paper sheet that comes wrapped around it
  3. Lay the sheet flat onto a baking tray
  4. Spread the tomato puree evenly over the base, leaving a naked inch around the edges
  5. Drizzle with as much sriracha as you like
  6. Top with your selection of toppings and then sprinkle evenly with cheese
  7. Bake for 25-30 mins until puffed, browned and melty
  8. Lift it off the baking tray, cut into squares and eat up quick before someone else nicks it off your plate!