Monday, July 28, 2014

PEA SOUP

Ohhhh, it has been hot recently.(Thank you English heatwave!) I'm not moaning, in fact, I'm absolutely loving it!I just struggle to stand by the oven for longer than 10 minutes!So no baking for a bit(sorry husband :)) I much rather spent time in my garden, look after my veg patch, which in result earned me a nice tan :) :) :) yupppie!

Using the last pea pods from my garden I made this lovely soup, which has got lots of benefits - it's super green, it's super healthy, it's super quick and it's super tasty!







RECIPE:

serves: 2

INGREDIENTS:

250g shelled peas
1 garlic clove(small), crushed
350g vegetable broth(would be perfect) or water
2 tbsp (heaped) natural yoghurt
pumpkin seeds and thyme to serve with
salt, pepper

METHOD:

1.Place the vegetable broth or water in a medium pan and add peas, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Bring to boil and simmer for around 5 minutes.Remove from the heat and place in a blander(or use an immersion blender) and puree until smooth.

2.Serve warm(in this weather - no way!) or room temperature(oh yes - much better) with natural yoghurt, thyme and some pumpkin seeds.

Note:

Raw garlic gives it a strong taste, if you not a big fan of garlic just leave it out or to make it less strong, stir fry it in a pan for a couple of minutes.



Sunday, July 20, 2014

Raspberry trifle

Should I be worried about myself?Talking specifically..... about the way I feel about the food. I get so super excited that I just want to tell my family, friends, neighbours, that man walking the dog every morning on my road, kids playing in the park, everyone on facebook, twitter, instagram......about that delicious something I've just eaten. What is more, I go shopping and I feel like shouting to everybody in Sainsbury's to buy the ingredients for that amazing dish I've tried. I've got this urge to share the food I love, to share my passion!Please tell me I'm not just the freakiest freak in the world and some of you feel the same!

Last weekend I went to my favourite garden centre, wandering around the narrow paths I spotted  few raspberry bushes on one side. There was quite a lot of ripe fruits on their branches....ok....I looked around....nobody's about...I know it's wrong.......I don't care.....I'm gonna just have one.....Felt like a criminal for a sec but as soon as I tried it I thought ''I'm in heaven- raspberry's heaven''. I felt like shouting to people ''Guys,come here, you must try this raspberries!Everyone!You must buy this raspberry bush!!!''.(I would've probably been writing to you from a mental hospital if my common sense hadn't stopped me). I just like to share with what I love :) It's not a crime is it?

So now everyone, for raspberries off you go!!!!We gonna make some awesome trifles!





RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:

1 packet clear raspberry jelly (mine was 75g)
150 g raspberries + few wild strawberries or other fruit if you wish

for custard cream:

500ml milk(of your choice)(best - room temperature)
1 tbsp butter
vanilla seeds, scraped from 1 pod
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp flour
2 egg yolks

METHOD:

1. Prepare the jelly with the instructions on the packet.Cool down but make sure it doesn't thicken. Place few (3-4) raspberries in each glass and pour  jelly over them so it fills about half of the glass. Place in the fridge to settle.

2. Custard: Put a medium pan over a small heat. Add 300ml milk, vanilla seeds, butter and sugar.(don't let it boil) In a separate bowl mix well the remaining milk with egg yolks and flour. Pour the mixture into the pan and bring it to boil, mixing all the time as it thickens. Leave it to cool down.

3.Spoon the custard over the jelly, squash few raspberries using the fork and spoon it over the custard and decorate with couple of fresh fruits.

ENJOY!

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Garlic,tzatziki and BBQ sauce

Creamy garlic, smoky BBQ, refreshing tzatziki. Three of my favourite sauces.You can eat everything with them or them with everything, whichever way you fancy :) Enjoy!


GARLIC SAUCE:

INGREDIENTS:

300ml double cream or natural joghurt
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 TBSP freshly chopped dill
salt, pepper

METHOD:
In a bowl, stir double cream or joghurt, add garlic and dill.Season with salt and pepper and mix.



TZATZIKI SAUCE:

INGREDIENTS:

300ml natural joghurt
1/4 cucumber, grated
6 radishes, grated
1 TBSP chives, chopped
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil (optional)
salt, pepper


METHOD:
In a bowl stir natural joghurt, add  cucumber, radishes and chives. Sprinkle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and mix.



BBQ SAUCE:

INGREDIENTS:

4 big tomatoes, ripen and sweet variety
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp honey
1 TBSP tomato puree
2 TBSP wine vinnegar
salt and pepper

METHOD:
Place the tomatoes in a pan with boiling water(do this using a table spoon) for a few seconds.Next peel the tomatoes, the peel should remove without a problem.Chop the tomatoes and place them on a sieve to drain. When they ready place them on the frying pan with the rest of the ingredients and simmer for around 30 minutes until the sauce thickens.Leave to cool.

 



Sunday, July 13, 2014

Yoghurt cake with currants

In this post I would like to take you to Poland....my Poland......a land of delicious food and even more delicious bakes...land where juicy and succulent fruit are at your fingertips....land where I come from and miss every single day.

This is my mum-in-law recipe and she knows how to bake :) Simple, yet so tasty.





RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:

2,5 cups self rising flour or plain flour + 2tsp baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup natural yoghurt(room temperature)
0,5 cup melted butter(not warm - cooled down) or oil
2 eggs(room temperature)
handful of ground almonds
250g mix currants or any fruits

CRUMBLE:

1 cup plain flour
100g butter(cold)
0,5 cup sugar

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160Fan/4 GAS

2. Make the crumble first. Cut the butter into smaller squares and add them and the sugar to the flour. Mix with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.Place in the fridge.

3. Sift flour(with baking powder if needed) into a medium bowl. In a separate bowl place eggs, add butter or oil, natural yoghurt and sugar and mix together until smooth. Poor it over the flour and mix with a spoon or fork - do not over mix(only until all ingredients are combine).

3. Grease the baking tray, poor the mixture, sprinkle it with ground almonds(it will prevent the fruit to go too soggy) and top with fruits and crumble.

4. Bake for 40-45 min.