Archive for October, 2009

Mackerel recipe

Fresh mackerel is such a versatile fish to cook with: its rich and oily flesh can take all sorts of strong flavours, from ginger and garlic to curry spices. Here it is simply grilled with a good dollop of Thai red curry paste to liven up the rich flesh and turn a simple fish into a sumptuous feast.

This mackerel recipe makes a nutritious as well as delicious supper recipe. Oily fish is one of the things we should eat regularly for its omega-3 fatty acids and B vitamins. Served with a fresh salad a grilled mackerel gives you an incredibly healthy supper that tastes great.

Grilled Mackerel recipe with Thai spices

Ingredients for four
4 fresh mackerel (weighing about 300g / 10oz each)
2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
2 tablespoons coconut milk
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper

For the salad
1 cucumber
100g/ 3oz cherry tomatoes
2 sprigs mint
a few drops Thai fish sauce
a squeeze lime juice
1 lime

Rinse the fish under the cold tap then pat it dry. Make several diagonal slashes in the skin of the fish on each side.

In a bowl mix together the curry paste, sugar, salt and pepper and coconut milk. Spread the resulting paste over one side of each fish.

Grill the fish for about 5 minutes and then turn them, coat the other side with the rest of the curry paste mixture and grill for another 8-10 minutes until the skin is crackling and the fish cooked.

While the fish is cooking make the salad. Halve the tomatoes and slice the cucumbers. Mix together the lime juice fish sauce and mint and toss with the cucumber and tomato.

Serve the mackerel with a lime wedge and a serving of salad.

Note

Oily fish like mackerel should be eaten when really fresh to be enjoyed at their best. Avoid buying any fish that look dull or floppy. A fresh mackerel has a sparkling rainbow sheen to its skin and firm flesh.

Tempted by the idea of fresh fish, but it’s too late for the fishmonger to be open? Why not try the fresh fish dishes at Loch Fyne restaurant in Nottingham.

Fish and Chips recipe

Fish and chips is still Britain’s favourite take-away, cod in batter and crispy but slightly soggy chips wrapped in paper with a tang of malt vinegar beating off the rival burgers, curries and Chinese takeaways hands down. Even small town has a fish and chip shop and you are bound to have your own favourite chippie, so why bother to cook fish and chips at home?

Cooking your own fish and chips certainly isn’t a fast food option, but it does mean you can use a lighter batter, choose your own fresh fish from a guaranteed sustainable source and feed a family more cheaply than buying from a takeaway.

Use a floury potato variety, such as Maris Piper or King Edwards for your chips rather than a waxy one. You can cook them as oven chips rather than deep-frying them if you want to reduce the amount of fat you are using, but don’t expect them to be the same as deep-fried chips.

Recipe for Fish and Chips

Ingredients

For the fish
4 pieces of skinless haddock, hake or cod fillet (about 650g / 1 ½ lb)
50g / 2oz self-raising flour
50 g / 2 oz cornflour
1 egg white
125 ml sparkling water, ice-cold
600ml sunflower oil for frying (or the amount recommended for your deep-fryer)
1 lemon cut in wedges to serve

Recipe for the chips

800g / 2lbs floury potatoes, e.g. Maris Piper or King Edwards

Peel the potatoes and cut them into fairly thick chips. Rinse them under the cold tap then drain. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil then add the chips. Simmer gently until they are just cooked through but not broken up. Carefully remove the chips with a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack. When cooled put them in the fridge to help dry them out some more.

If you are using one deep fat fryer or pan of oil you should preheat the oven, so that you can keep the fried chips hot while you are cooking the fish.

Heat the oil to 190C/375F to cook the chips. Put the chips in and cook for 10 minutes or so until golden brown. Drain the chips and put on a layer of kitchen paper into the preheated oven while you cook the fish.

Pat the fish fillets dry with kitchen paper. Dust with about 1 tablespoon of flour and shake off the excess. Bring the oil back up to 200C/400F.

Mix the flour and cornflour with a pinch of salt and pepper.

Whisk the egg white with a balloon whisk until frothy and full of bubbles but not stiff. Put the sparkling water onto the flour and mix briefly while whisking, but don’t worry about lumps. Add the egg white and whisk just enough to mix. You want to keep as many bubbles as you can for a light batter.

Dip two pieces of fish in the batter so they are coated, (or all the pieces if your fryer or pan is large enough to fit them all without being crowded) let the excess drip off and lower into the hot oil. Cook for about 5 or 6 minutes, turning half way, until the batter is crisp and golden. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on kitchen paper and keep warm in the oven while you repeat the process with the other two pieces of fish.

Serve with chips and a wedge of lemon.

Too much hassle to cook your own fish and chips? Try them at Shaws restaurant in Nottingham.

Carrot Soup recipe

A simple carrot soup with its sweet, earthy flavour and cheerful colour is great for winter lunches. Carrots are often the only vegetables that kids will eat, so this soup is also good for getting some nutrients into them with a few hidden extra veggies.

Carrot soup can also be spiced up for adults with a variety of extra flavours; it makes a perfect partnership with fresh and ground coriander, gets some extra kick from fresh ginger root and works well in combination with other vegetables like leeks and potatoes. Consider this as a basic carrot soup recipe and add in vegetables and spices that take your fancy or see suggestions for variations at the end.

Recipe for Carrot Soup

Ingredients
1 onion, sliced
450g / 1lb carrots, peeled and sliced
1 stick celery, chopped
25g / 1oz butter or 2 tablespoons oil
1.2 litres / 2pints vegetable stock
salt and pepper
parsley to garnish

Heat the oil or butter in a large pan and stir in the onions, celery and carrots. Cover the pan and cook the vegetables over a medium heat until they are starting to soften.

Season with salt and pepper and stir.

Add the stock and bring to the boil.

Turn the heat down and simmer until the vegetables are soft.

Liquidize in a food processor or blender to a smooth soup.

Taste to check for seasoning.

Serve garnished with chopped parsley.

Variations

Carrot and Coriander soup: add 1 teaspoon of ground coriander with the salt and pepper. Stir in 1 bunch of chopped fresh coriander after the soup has been liquidized.

Carrot and Ginger soup: Peel and grate 2.5cm/1 inch fresh ginger root and crush one clove of garlic. Cook with the vegetables. Serve with a swirl of natural yoghurt and a sprinkling of chopped parsley.

Carrot, Leek and Potato soup: Add 3-4 leeks and 2 medium potatoes to this recipe and cook with the other vegetables for a slightly thicker and more savoury soup.

Spiced Carrot and Lentil soup: Add 1 teaspoon ground cumin and 1 chopped red chilli to the vegetables. When the vegetables have softened add 140g split red lentils and stir in before adding stock. Serve with a swirl of yoghurt and a sprinkling of toasted cumin seeds.

Feel like a warm winter lunch that you don’t have to cook yourself? Try the tempting selection of lunch dishes at Belle and Jerome restaurant in Nottingham.

Devilish Chocolate Souffle Recipe

Hot chocolate soufflés with their light, fluffy tops and deep, dark and satisfying chocolatey interior are the ultimate in impressive desserts to serve at dinner. Good dark chocolate and free-range eggs are all you need for some really decadent chocolate indulgence that will wow your guests.

Soufflés have a reputation for being tricky, but it is really just that they need beating together and baking at the last minute that can be a problem when you are planning a dinner party. Try them out at an informal supper when you want to spoil your friends and you will find that they are easier to make than you suspected and even more delicious.

Recipe for Chocolate Soufflé

Ingredients to serve four

110g / 4oz really good dark chocolate
4 egg yolks
6 egg whites at room temperature
cream and icing sugar to serve

Put a baking sheet in the oven and preheat it to 200C / 400F.

Butter a 1.2 litre / 2 pint soufflé dish or four individual ramekins (250ml / 1 cup size)

Chop the chocolate into small pieces and put into a mixing bowl over a saucepan of water that is just simmering. When the chocolate has melted, beat it until smooth.

Whisk the egg yolks well and stir them into the chocolate.

In a clean dry bowl whisk the egg whites until stiff.

Fold the egg whites gently, a little at a time, into the chocolate mixture with a metal spoon, so as not to lose any air.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared soufflé dish and bake on the heated baking sheet until the soufflé has puffed right up and is springy to the touch. This should take about 20 minutes for the large soufflé and 10-12 minutes for the individual ones.

Serve immediately, as they will collapse in a few minutes and not look nearly so impressive. You can dust them lightly with icing sugar and serve with a jug of pouring cream alongside to douse them with.

Other things you can add to your hot chocolate soufflé:
2 tablespoons of rum or
2 tablespoons coffee liqueur or
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract  or
½ teaspoon of cinnamon
These should be mixed into the melted chocolate at the beginning of the recipe.

Not ready to attempt your own chocolate soufflés yet? Why not indulge your tastebuds by trying the wicked desserts at The Living Room restaurant in Nottingham.

Fruit Smoothie Recipe

Refreshing, delicious and healthy, fruit smoothies are so easy to make at home that you hardly need a recipe. All you need is a blender and some fresh ripe fruit and you can have a natural and tasty drink in seconds, which will provide you with loads of vitamins, anti-oxidants and minerals. Smoothies are a great way of getting kids to eat their daily five portions of fruit and veg without them even noticing that they are doing so.

In summer you are spoilt for choice with fruit to use in your smoothies: strawberries, raspberries, peaches, apricots. Even gooseberries and blackcurrants make wonderful smoothies, on their own or mixed with other fruits. In winter you can still make great smoothies using frozen berries, but you can also use bananas, mangos, kiwis, oranges, passion fruit, pomegranates and pineapples to add freshness and vitamins to your fruit smoothie.

You can make up your own smoothies with whatever fresh, ripe fruit you have available and mix them with yoghurt or fruit juices. When the fruit is properly ripe you won’t need to add sugar at all making your smoothie even healthier. In summer you can add crushed ice cubes to the mix for instant chill.

Here are a few smoothie recipes to start your imagination going:

Cranberry and Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup cranberries
1 cup raspberries
125ml / ½ cup cranberry juice
1 cup yoghurt

Blend until smooth. Taste to check for sweetness and add a little more juice if you need it a little sweeter.

Mango, Banana and Strawberry Smoothie
1 mango / 100g chopped mango peeled
1 small, ripe banana
3-4 strawberries
Juice of 1 orange

Blend all the fruit together until smooth.

Tropical Smoothie
1 small pineapple peeled and diced
1 banana
1 cup yoghurt
1 tablespoon dessicated coconut
1 cup pineapple/orange juice
1 passion fruit

Blend together until smooth.

Don’t forget you can add extra oomph to your smoothies with a little grated ginger root, or a dash of ground spice. Cardamom, cinnamon, and even coriander can work well to add variety to your smoothie recipes.

You can also turn your smoothies into a liquid health breakfast, by adding ingredients like nuts, flaxseed oil and wheat germ along with the berries and fresh fruit.

Don’t have your own blender at home? Go out and try the fresh and delicious smoothies at Tonic restaurant in Nottingham.

Simple Tiramisu Recipe

Rich, creamy and sinfully delicious, tiramisu has moved beyond its native Italy to take the whole world by storm. There is no one authentic tiramisu recipe, as in Italy you will come across countless versions. Some are thick and set like a trifle, others have a light and almost runny custard on top of the soaked sponge. What they all have in common is a strong espresso coffee to soak the sponge and a mascarpone custard to provide the richness.

This tiramisu recipe builds up layers of coffee sponge and mascarpone custard for a sumptuous dessert with the true Italian flavour, and is guaranteed to delight your dinner guests.

Recipe for Tiramisu

Ingredients
3 cups of strong espresso coffee, cooled
6 tablespoons Marsala, Amaretto or Italian coffee liqueur
3 tablespoons caster sugar
2 eggs separated
250 ml /1 cup whipped cream
250g / 8oz mascarpone cheese
1 packet sponge finger biscuits / savoiardi
cocoa powder to dust.

Beat together the egg yolks and sugar until they are pale and thick (about 3 minutes).

Beat in the mascarpone until well mixed in. Fold in the whipped cream gently with a metal spoon.

Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl until they form soft peaks. Fold them gently into the mascarpone cream. Add 3 tablespoons of the liqueur you have chosen, folding it in carefully so as not to lose the volume.

Put the cold coffee in a bowl with the rest of the liqueur. Dip each biscuit into the liquid for a couple of seconds on each side, without letting it get soggy. Place them into the bottom of the serving dish you will be using. Use half the biscuits for the bottom layer and keep the rest for the next layer.

Spread half of the cream over the biscuits and then make another layer of soaked biscuits. Spread with cream again and level it off. Sprinkle with a dusting of cocoa powder. Refrigerate for at least two hours before serving for the flavours to develop and the mascarpone custard to thicken.

Tiramisu Recipe Variations
Some recipes add a layer of grated dark chocolate on top of the cream.
If you don’t want to use any liqueur in your tiramisu, add the same quantity of strong coffee to the custard for flavouring.

Feel like indulging in tiramisu now without waiting to prepare it? Head out to one of the fine Italian Restaurants in Nottingham to see how the Italians make tiramisu.

Homemade burger recipe

A homemade burger is a completely different story to the kind you buy at a fast food joint. With homemade burgers you know exactly what is in them, can spice them as you like and shape them large or small. This recipe can also be used to make meatballs, just shape the mixture to the size you want. There are no preservatives and you can use good lean beef mince, so that you can even persuade yourself it’s a healthy option!

This is a basic but very tasty beef burger recipe that you can add to as you like. Once cooked, it is up to you whether you turn it into a cheeseburger with a few slices of cheddar melting irresistibly into it, or just pile it high in a bun with tomato relish and a few slivers of red onion.

Recipe for Homemade Burgers

Ingredients
1 kg / 2lb 3oz good minced beef
2 eggs
2 red onions chopped finely
2 handfuls of fresh breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
salt and pepper

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix together well with your hands. Form into burger shapes however large you like, but make them thicker and more rounded than the commercial hamburger.

Refrigerate the burger patties until you are ready to cook.

Cook on a barbecue or under a grill for 5 minutes or so on each side if they are large burgers, or bake in a hot oven until the outside is well browned (about 15 minutes).

You can eat these burgers slightly pink in the middle if you enjoy your beef rare, as you know the beef is good quality having made them freshly yourself.

Serve in a lightly toasted bun with whatever you like in a hamburger: salad, gherkins, onions, tomato salsa, ketchup, mayo, it is up to you.

Suggestions for other herbs and spices to use in your burger mix as well of or instead of the cumin and coriander if you prefer:

1 red chilli chopped fine, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, 2 cloves garlic, parsley chopped fine, lemon zest

Feel like someone else cooking for you tonight? Why not try the gourmet burgers at Fat Cat restaurant in Nottingham who offer 10 types of homemade burgers.

Mushroom Risotto Recipe

A true Italian mushroom risotto is creamy in texture and rich with a complexity of flavours: the background note of a good chicken broth, the vibrant flavours of the vegetable, meat or seafood you have chosen and the depth of fresh parmesan. It makes a deeply satisfying supper or an impressive first course to an Italian meal.

It is however a labour of love, as a risotto needs almost continuous stirring during its 30 minutes cooking, to develop the essential creamy texture. It’s no good just cooking some rice and stirring in some vegetable sauce afterwards, the vegetables must cook together with the Italian Arborio or Carnaroli rice so that the rice absorbs all the flavours.

This recipe features dried porcini mushrooms and makes the perfect showcase for their rich and earthy flavour, for a wonderful autumn or winter risotto. If you are lucky enough to have fresh porcini mushrooms you can use them too, just add them to the pan after the onions have softened and cook for a few more minutes before adding the rice.

Recipe for Dried Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients
25g / 1oz dried porcini mushrooms or ceps
1 litre / 1 ¾ pints good chicken stock or bouillon
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
60g / 2oz butter
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
400g / 14oz Italian risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli)
25g / 1oz freshly grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to season

Soak the mushrooms in 450ml / 1 pint of lukewarm water at least 30 minutes before you want to start cooking. Once the first lot of soaking water has turned dark brown, strain it through a sieve lined with kitchen paper and keep for later. Soak the mushrooms in fresh changes of water until they are soft and there is no sign of any earth or grit left in the water.

Bring the stock or bouillon to a gentle simmer.

Sauté the onion in half the butter and all the oil in a heavy based casserole until it has softened but don’t let it brown.

Stir in the rice until it is well coated and stir for a moment, then add the first ladleful of simmering stock. Stir until it has all been absorbed then add another ladle, continuing to stir almost constantly, so that the rice doesn’t stick to the pan. The heat should be lively but not so hot that it evaporates all the liquid and dries out the rice too quickly.

After about 10 minutes of cooking, add the soaked mushrooms and 125 ml / ½ cup of the mushroom soaking liquid you reserved earlier. Keep stirring frequently and add the mushroom liquid 125 ml at a time until it has all been absorbed. Use the chicken stock to finish the cooking and keep stirring and cooking until the rice is tender to the bite,, but still al dente and no longer chalky in the centre. The amount of time depends on the rice used and can vary from 25 minutes-40 minutes, so the best way to tell is by tasting the rice.

When the rice is tender and creamy remove the pan from the heat and stir in the grated parmesan and the rest of the butter. Check for salt and add more if needed, plus a few grindings of pepper. Serve immediately with a bowl of parmesan cheese alongside.

Feel like a good mushroom risotto, but don’t fancy standing over a hot stove for so long? Why not try the risotto at Strada restaurant in Nottingham.

Simple Sea Bass Recipe

Light, fresh and firm in texture, sea bass is the ideal choice for a quick weekday supper. Easy to cook all types of sea bass, from Chilean sea bass to Black sea bass can be served in so many ways: pan-fried, grilled, steamed or baked, and they go brilliantly with all sorts of different spices and herbs, so are very versatile. Who needs fast food if you have a couple of sea bass fillets fresh from the fishmonger?! They’ll be cooked and ready to eat in no time and are healthy too.

This recipe pan-fries the fillets, de-glazing the pan with balsamic vinegar, but you can grill the fillets and steam the vegetables if you prefer to keep things as fat-free as possible. Just brush the fillets with a light coating of oil before grilling and season them.

Pan-fried Sea Bass recipe

Ingredients
2 sea bass fillets
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
mange-touts
mushrooms
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Score the skin of the sea bass fillet just into the flesh several times about 1 cm apart. Blanche the mange touts in boiling water for 1 minute and set aside on a warm plate.

Chop mushrooms into quarters or slices depending on the size.

Season the Sea Bass with a little salt and pepper.

Heat a frying pan until hot and then add 2 tablespoon of oil. Put the sea bass fillets into the pan skin side down and then press them with a fish slice so they don’t curl up. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 3-4 minutes until the flesh has coloured to about 2/3 of the way up the fillet. Turn the fish and cook the other side for another 2 or three minutes until just done. Remove to a warm plate to rest and drizzle some of the oil and juices from the pan over it.

Turn the heat back up and fry the mushrooms in it for 2-3 minutes until they are just cooked.  Add to the warm plate. Deglaze the pan with the balsamic vinegar, letting it bubble and stirring so it picks up all the flavours from the pan.

Serve the sea bass fillet on a bed of mange-touts and mushrooms with the balsamic reduction drizzled over them.

Other flavours to add to your sea bass recipe:
•    Instead of using mushrooms to accompany your sea bass why not throw a handful of capers and a few anchovy filets into the pan after the fish is cooked, add a squeeze of lemon and scatter them over the fish for added depth of flavour.
•    Try other things to de-glaze your pan: white wine, sherry or just a good squeeze of lemon juice.
•    For baked sea bass, place the fillets in an oiled roasting tin, brush them lightly with oil and season with salt and pepper or other spices and bake at 200C / 400F for 15-20 minutes according to the thickness of the fish.

Want your meal cooked by somebody else tonight? Why not try some of the delicious fish dishes at Loch Fyne restaurant in Nottingham.

Prawn Dim Sum Recipe

Originally served as snacks to accompany Yum Cha (drinking tea) in the Chinese teahouses, dim sum were something to be enjoyed in the mornings with friends or on the weekend with family. Even today Chinese dim sum restaurants often only serve dim sum from early morning until mid-afternoon, when they change over to serving other cuisine as the evening meal.

The name dim sum covers a huge array of tasty dumplings, rolls, buns and other snacks and the best way to experience dim sum is to eat with a group of people and taste a variety of different dishes. Here is an easy dim sum recipe for steamed prawn dumplings and a dipping sauce to accompany them. Use this recipe as a base and experiment with different flavours and fillings. Beef, chicken, pork, prawns and vegetables are all authentic fillings, so all you need is a little imagination.

Prawn Dim Sum recipe

Ingredients
250g / 9oz raw king prawns, de-veined and peeled
50g / 2oz finely sliced bamboo shoots
1 tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon caster sugar
1 teaspoon salt
a grinding of pepper
16 gyoza or wonton wrappers
For the dip
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 red chilli chopped fine

Process the prawns to a puree in a food processor. Mix the prawn puree with the sliced bamboo shoots, rice wine or sherry, sesame oil, sugar, salt and pepper.

On a clean work surface lay out the wrappers and place a small spoonful of the prawn mixture in the centre of each. Dampen the edges of each wrapper with a damp finger and then press the edges together to seal.

Put the prawn dumplings on a sheet of greaseproof paper in a bamboo steamer. Cook over gently simmering water for 4-5 minutes until the mixture is completely cooked through. Serve immediately.

While the prawn dumplings are cooking mix together the dipping sauce and put it in a small bowl to serve next to the prawn dumplings.

Making dim sum at home sound too much like hard work? Why not eat at Chino Latino restaurant in Nottingham and enjoy a whole range of delicious dim sum.