A twist on risotto

Again I must begin by apologising for my recent lack of posts, life just got in the way :-) But I'm back!

So tonight I surprised myself with this recipe. It was born of some leftover brown rice, a few small slices of chorizo and a fridge full of cheese. I based this on a risotto, but the brown rice, chorizo and chilli really give the dish an oomph of flavour.

Brown rice pea and spinach risotto

A bowl full of cooked brown rice
Chorizo, chopped into small pieces
1 teaspoon of olive oil
Frozen peas and spinach, handful each
Chunk of gruyere cheese cut into small pieces
1 pickled or regular chilli (mild)
A pinch of salt and pepper
A sprinkle paprika

1. In a teaspoon of olive oil heat the chorizo. Add the chilli and fry for about 5 mins
2. Add the spinach and peas and cook until they are fully heated through
3. Add the rice and a splash of water, to stop the rice from going dry and crunch. Mix together and fully heat through
4. Add the cheese and mix until completely melted. Add paprika and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot, maybe with a cheeky glass of white. Perfect and a bit different to your usual risotto!

My mother's adobo

I was one of those kids blessed with parents that could cook well.  Really really well. Often we would choose to stay home, rather than go out for dinner, as food at home was simply better. And I guess my love of food came from this!  I spent much of my younger years in the kitchen, sometimes helping, sometimes eating and sometimes coming up with new recipes (microwave cheese doughnuts, yum).

My mother is half Spanish and half Filipino, and her cooking has influences from both places.  She has a number of crowd pleasing favorites, with one of my favorites being adobo.  It is a typical Filipino recipe, usually made from chicken and pork and a sauce of vinegar and soy sauce.  Make sure you use white vinegar - I once made this with malt vinegar and it was really weird and not very nice.

This recipe is really flexible.  If you are not on a diet, treat yourself and use a pork cut that is quite fatty like pork belly - it really makes it much more tasty.  Also leaner cuts of pork can end up becoming quite dry.  Alternatively for a more healthy version, just use chicken - skinless thighs are probably the best choice.

My mother's adobo

Serves 4
5 chicken legs and/or thighs - with or without skin
3-400 g pork - belly pork is ideal - cut into chunks
3-4 big cloves garlic - minced
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/3 cut soy sauce
1 cup water
3 bay leaves
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 tbsp oil
3-4 handfuls of fresh or frozen spinach

1.  In a heavy pan, heat the oil and brown the chicken and pork.  Do this in batches if necessary.  Put the meat to the side.  If there is too much fat left in the pan, pour some of it out.
2.  Add the minced garlic and lightly fry for minute or two.  Add the vinegar and bring to a boil.  Then add the soy sauce, meat, bay leaves and black peppercorns.  Add enough water so that the meat is just about covered in liquid and stir.
3.  Bring to a boil, then turn it down and simmer covered for about 45 minute to an hour (or until the pork is really melting and tender - the longer you leave it, the better it gets).  Taste the sauce - if it is too strong, add some more water, and if it is too mild, a bit more soy sauce.
4. Add the spinach and cook for another 5 minutes.  Then it is ready to eat!

This dish is served best over white steamed rice or rice noodles.  And always make sure you make extra - it is especially good when eaten the next day!

Yummy breakfast - chessy egg cups!

So I got the idea for this from Annie's Eats, which I saw on a friends post on Facebook. I couldn't wait to make them, they looked so good and is my favorite combination - cheese and eggs! I particularly like that it makes cute little portions.

I made a slight change to make it vegetarian - instead of bacon I used sundried tomato.  I used the dried type, rather than the one in oil, as the oil would probably have made it too wet.

Cheesy egg cups

Serves 2

4 eggs

Shredded cheese

1 sundried tomato, finely chopped

2 slices of oval bread

1. Preheat the oven to 200

2. Grease a 4 hole muffin tin with butter.  

3. Cut each slice of the bread and place each half into each muffin hole of the tin.

4. Sprinkle a bit shredded cheese and sundried tomato in the center of each slice of bread.

5. Break one egg per muffin hole and carefully place on top of the bread and cheese. This is surprisingly tricky so be careful!

6. Bake until the eggs are cooked through - approx 10 mins.

7. Lift the egg cups out and serve - 2 per person

Mac and cheese - comfort food at it's best!

America is home of comfort food.  Everything about typical American food is comforting, filling and perfect for when you need a great big food hug.  Philly cheese steaks are dreamy with a side of curly fries.  Sausage gravy - the world's best hangover cure.  Jambalaya and gumbo warms the soul.  Clam chowder on a cold winter day is necessary.  But my absolute favorite has to be mac and cheese.

There are so many different variations of mac and cheese.  There are the packet ones - Kraft and Velveeta (I always have at least one pack of each at home, specially brought over from the US).   The side options from places like Boston Market (how I miss Boston Market!) and KFC.  Or the gourmet ones that you get at Thanksgiving, made with 4 or 5 different cheeses and often with added ingredients like bacon and/or onion to make it extra special (heart attack on a plate!)

My personal favorite is mac and cheese as a main course (when it is served as a side, I end up eating too much and feeling ill) made with Velveeta and filled with loads of other ingredients.  Every single English person I have ever introduced this to was initially a bit horrified by the bright yellow cheese (as you can see from the picture below!), but after tasting it, understood how very good it is.  It cures any hangover, warms a cold day and is easy and quick to make - comfort food at it's very best!

Ingredients
1 x pack Velveeta (any shape pasta / any cheese flavour)
1/2 an onion, finely chopped
3-4 frankfurters, chopped
Frozen chopped spinach
Mushrooms, chopped
Chillies, to taste, finely chopped (optional)

1.  Cook the pasta as instructed.  Set aside
2.  In a pan put a bit of oil and lightly fry the onions until they are translucent
3.  Add the frankfurters and mushrooms and fry for another 10 mins or so.  Add the chillies and spinach (if it is frozen, cook until it is fully cooked through)
4.  Add the cheese sauce and pasta and stir

That's it - serve warm in a big bowl and enjoy (and if there is any leftover, it is good cold as a snack!)

Brussels - La Tortue du Sablon

I apologise for my lack of recent posts.  I have been oh so busy what with summer, friends visiting, trips abroad, festivals and carnivals.  But now that we've had our last bank holiday, the weather is getting cooler and summer turns to autumn, I will have a lot more time to post regularly!

I thought for this one that I'd do a review of a restaurant in Brussels.  Before going, I had read that while there is not a whole lot to do in Brussels, the food is one of the best in Europe.  So when our hosts asked what type of food we wanted for lunch, the immediate answer was the typical Brussels meal - moules frites!

We decided on La Tortue du Sablon, which translates to the turtle of the Sablon - one of the most prestigious and attractive areas in Brussels.  It is a beautiful little restaurant specialising in seafood.  On arrival we were offered a glass of champagne with a hint of lavender - don't mind if I do!  For food there was a choice of menus - the set menu of the day, a couple of other set menus or the a la carte.  Two had the set menu, one had a specially made vegetarian set menu and I had the moules frites.

The set menu consisted of a starter of fois gras rolled in crushed hazel nuts and a main course of half a lobster served on a salad of greens and beans.  The vegetarian menu began with vegetable tempura, served with wasabi cream, followed by raclette covered with truffles.  The moules came in a white wine, garlic and cream sauce, with a side of french fries (of course!)

All of the food was well cooked and a real delight.  I have to say that with food like this, because I really like quite aromatic food, I can find it quite bland.  This meal though was well balanced and delivered on everything.  Overall though, the best part about the visit was the service.  When we explained that was had a vegetarian, the chef came out from the back to explain what he could make to ensure that the customer was happy and the waiter was extremely friendly and attentive, without it feeling like we were being constantly watched.  A very pleasant meal!

Rice and kimchi at Bibimbap

Bibimbap - what a name!! It was almost worth going there just for that. It was actually our second choice on this Thursday evening, but the wait for Polpetto was just too long and we were too hungry. This place had been recommended just that week by a foodie friend, so I was keen to try it anyway!

As the name suggests, the food is of Korean origin. Korean food seems to be getting more and more popular now adays. Suprising really as it is all quite spicy and very flavourful - possibly unappealing to those with a more delicate pallette.  But I guess it's just like Thai and Vietnamese food, which have both grown significantly in popularity over the years.

We began with a shared starter of vegetarian dumplings and kimchi, which were both totally delicious. We then followed that up with a bi bim bap.  Bi bim bap refers to a dish of rice with various toppings served in a hot, heavy stone bowl. There are quite a few vegetarian choices on the menu - from a selection of mushrooms, healthy vegetables, tofu or kimchi - a spicy pickled cabbage. Meat eaters can choose from chicken, spicy pork, seafood or beef - cooked or raw, which cooks in the hot bowl. You also have the option of having it exta meaty and/or with a fried or raw egg on top. I went for the spicy pork while my companion tried the tofu. Hot sauce and miso paste arrive on the side and are a great addition.

I was impressed, the meal was really good - filling and tasty without being overwhelming and the hot bowl is great as it keeps you food warm for the duration of the meal. Perfect for eating and chatting!  Overall this is a nice quick place for a decent and inexpensive meal - for two courses and a glass of wine, you can expect to pay just over £15 per head.

Afternoon tea at the Connaught

My mother has always wanted to go for tea.  The Ritz or something like that.  Although I'm not really into sweet foods, I was also interested so offered to take her for her birthday this year.  Ideally I wanted to go to the Langham or the Goring, but as expected both were fully booked For months.  So after a bit of research I settled on the Connaught - which was a great choice!  The hotel is conveniently located in Mayfair and while the tea room is relatively small, off the entrance of the hotel, the windows are large making the room very bright and airy.

The feast began with a choice of tea - I went for Earl Grey while my mother chose Jasmine - and a selection of sandwiches and pastries.  The pastries included chocolate and caramel mousse, which was was the best, a strawberry tart, was also good, and the raspberry and pistachio one was interesting - a good interesting - to name a few.  The savory sandwich selection included foie gras in brioche, which was divine, and a mini smoked salmon sandwich.

That was followed by a selection of scones and jam.  The selection of jams was huge - we went for the safe choice with the raspberry and exotic with pineapple.  The scones were lovely - we had requested only the plain ones and they were really light and airy.  Finally came the cake and by this time I was very full.  I had to have a mouthful of each - the berry cake was not to my taste, very perfumed and overly sweet.  The chocolate cake on the other hand had a lovely deep, dark, lingering chocolate taste.  I was done with sweet food by then though, so a bite was more than enough.

I was most impressed with the service.  Not only was it impeccable, but they also gave us a lovely surprise!  In the comment section when making the online reservation, I had noted that we were celebrating my mother's birthday.  Halfway through the tea they brought over her very own chocolate and caramel mousse pastry on a plate with happy birthday written across it in chocolate.  Happy birthday mother!

Wright Brothers take 2!

So for our second visit to Wright Brothers, we went for mine and my mother's birthday.  She had said she wanted seafood, so this was the obvious choice.  We were going to meet somewhere for a drink first, but being a Friday night and raining cats and dogs, we ended up all meeting in the bar of the restaurant.  The restaurant was very accomodating and offered to seat us whenever we wanted (even though it was an hour until us reservation).  We had a quick drink and headed down to enjoy our fish feast.

When I had previously come to the resaurant, we had opted to not have a fruit de mer plate.  Mistake.  So this time it was the first thing we ordered.  You have a number of options to choose from.  We went for a selection that included fin de clare oysters, langustines, prawns, brown shrimp, crab and mussles.  The selection was amazing.  The oysters were perfectly sized and unbelievbly fresh.  The prawns were amazing, I've never had so much taste in something so small. And the crab was a real winner with everyone.

We also ordered a selection cooked food.  Rather than each having a plate, we shared everything (so we could taste everything).  The mulles marines came in a lovely sauce, delicious with the bread.  The cod with chorizo and butter beans was perfectly cooked and delicious.  But the total winner of the evening?  Fried oysters!  Hot, creamy, smooth and tasty.  I could have eaten them all night!

So once again, Wright Brothers have impressed.  And to finish?  Well, a cheese plate of Neil's Yard cheeses of course!

One pot lentil chicken!

Apologies for the lack of posts.  It has been a busy few weeks, what with festivals, flu, work and Ibiza.  I'm now back, needing a bit of rest and relaxation.  And what a better way to do it with good food...

So during the week, I like to try and take food with me for lunch to work a few times a week.  It's mainly because deciding what to eat (and we have LOADS of choice around our new office) can be super time consuming, especially since I'm so picky.  I'm also trying to be healthy and I have a feeling the lovely wraps from Doughmasters or the massive portion of chicken chili fried rice from the Japanese Canteen is not exactly low in fat.

So I've come up with this lovely, filling and relatively healthy one pot chicken meal with lentils!  It's easy to cook, so great for making on a Sunday evening, and tastes even better after a day in the fridge.  You can add as many different types of vegetables to it, whatever you have in your fridge/freezer.  I like it both served hot or cold with a handful of baby spinach leaves.

One pot chicken

Serves 4-5

6 skinless and boneless chicken thighs
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp dried thyme
sprinkle of paprika
sprinkle of white pepper
2 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs olive oil
1 bay leaf
3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
chillies (optional)
 150 ml red wine

6 sundried tomatoes, finely chopped

fresh or frozen vegetables (peas, carrots, spinach, broccoli, courgette, aubergine etc, chopped into rough cubes)

1 can chickpeas

3 handfuls of brown rice

3 handfuls of puy lentils

500 ml chicken stock

1.  Marinate the chicken thighs in the olive oil, soy sauce, spices, chillies, garlic and onion.  Leave in the fridge for at least an hour, but overnight if you have time.

2.  In a very hot pot, brown the chicken thighs then remove.

3.  Deglaze the pot with the red wine.  Add the remaining marinate plus the onions, garlic and sundried tomatoes.  Simmer for a few minutes

4.  Add the rice, lentils, chicken and stock to the pot and bring to a rolling boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer covered for 45 mins or until the lentils and rice are almost tender.  If the mixture becomes too dry, add a bit of water and stir.

5.  Add the chickpeas and any vegetables.  Cover and simmer for another 5 mins or until the vegetables are tender.

6.  Serve hot or cold with a handful of salad and chopped tomatoes and sprinkled with sliced fresh coriander.

Simple Thai dinner

I've found that more and more I cook Asian dishes.  Thai, Chinese, Filipino, Indian - I just love the spices.  And coriander is a flavour I really enjoy - I even occasionally use it in scrambled eggs to jazz it up!  Yes, I know I'm strange.

The other thing is I like my food super spicy.  So this particular evening I was on my own and decided to try and cook some fish.  This is something that I hardly ever do - not because I don't like fish but because I'm never really sure how to cook it and what to do (there were a couple unfortunate incidents).  So this time, to make it as easy as possible, I used a recipe I'd made many times, but instead of adding chicken I used fish.

Fish Thai green curry
Serves 4
2 large pieces of cod (or any other white fish) cut into chunks
2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
1 can of coconut milk
Soy sauce/fish sauce to taste
1 teaspoon cane sugar (optional)
Chillies, finely chopped (optional)
1 handful of fresh coriander
1 tablespoon vegetable
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach
Rice (I like brown rice, but you can use Jasmine or any other long grain rice)


1.  Cook the rice as per the instructions on the packet
2.  In a heavy pan, heat the oil.  Add the onions and fry until translucent then add the garlic.  Fry for a few more minutes.  Add the curry paste and fry for a few more minutes.
3.  Add the coconut milk and cane sugar - stir until it becomes a smooth sauce. Add the frozen peas, spinach, chillies and coriander.  Bring to a boil.
4.  Reduce to a simmer and add the fish.  Cover and simmer for 7-10 mins, until the fish is fully cooked.
5.  Taste and add soy sauce (or fish sauce) as necessary.  Serve hot over rice.

How do asparagus grow?

So a couple of weeks ago I learnt something new...how asparagus grow!  I have to say, I'd never really thought about it too much, but I suppose I thought they either came off bushes.  Like peas maybe.  Or possibly like strawberries.  Or maybe underground, like potatoes.  But that's all wrong, they grow completely differently to that!

Near my parents house, there is one of those farms where you can pick your own fruit and vegetables.  As it was late May they had asparagus and strawberries (although it is a bit early for strawberries - they are generally at their best between June and August, but they have come early this year with the hot weather).  The strawberries, as expected, come from very low bushes.  Suprisingly though, the asparagus were in a very dry looking area.  The plants are very small and the asparagus grow straight up from the grown.  Picking is a loose term for them because you actually just snap them off.  It was amazing, hundreds of asparagus around me poking up from the ground!  Within minutes we had half a kilo of them.

So to celebrate this, I had to cook a dish worthy of this delight.  The obvious choice would have been asparagus with poached eggs and holandase sauce.  But as I had some smoked salmon and I wanted something a bit more healthy, I went for asparagus and avocado toast with smoked salmon!

 Asparagus and avocado toast with smoked salmon
Serves 2
A few slices of smoked salmon
20 asparagus spears
1 large avocado (or two small)
1/4 onion, finely chopped
4 slices of bread (best for this is a whole wheat or seeded loaf)
Pinch of salt
Tabasco (optional)

1.  Scoop the avocado into a bowl and mash lightly.  Add the finely chopped onion, salt and Tabasco to taste and mix.
2.  Toast the bread then spread the avocado mixture on the slices.
3.  Lightly steam the asparagus - this takes a couple of minutes.  Do not overdo it!
4.  Layer the asparagus on the toast.
5.  Serve with the smoked salmon on the side or on top of the asparagus and ENJOY!

The bake off - happy birthday Jemma!

This post is a little late, but still worth posting!  The idea of the bake off came from a somewhat drunken royal wedding day.  A friend of mine gave me a large amount of preserved cherries.  The question was what to do with them?  Well let's use them for a bake off of course - the challange was this:  Cook something for Jemma's birthday party that incorporates the cherries.  The contestants, myself (of course!) and my university friend Craig.

Now because we came up with this idea while drunk, I never thought it would actually happen.  But while I lay in bed waking up slowly the next morning, I hear Craig rush out to the shop at 9:30am.  He is gone for ages, and when he finally comes and I heard bang, crash, bang in the kitchen.  Could it be?  Yes, he was already steps ahead of me, with his ingredients bought and his cake well on it's way.  Right, it's time to get up and get cooking!

Craig decided to go for an ice cream cake.  His cake consisted of a layer of chocolate cake, a layer of mint chocolate chip ice cream, and another layer of chocolate cake, all encased in icing and decorated with smarties and cherries.  Ambitious and brave!  It started well, the cake layers were baked and looked impressive.  Now for the ice cream - onto one of the layers (with lots of foil and a bit of mess) then into the freezer.  An hour later, the ice cream had not set.  A second hour later and still not set...

In the mean time, I began on mine - I decided to go for a berry pavlova.  Not only can I not pronounce it properly, but I'd never made pr even eaten one.  The idea of course came from Saturday Kitchen a few weeks back.  I don't have an electric mixer and really I should have been put off when I read online that this should not be attempted by hand.  But instead this just made it more of a challange!  So in go the egg whites and I whisk.  And whisk.  And whisk.  Add sugar and whisk more.  More sugar, more whisking.  Over an hour later, and with a sore arm, I'm beginning to get peaks.  A bit more whisking then into the oven.  180C for an hour and then turn the oven off and leave it to cool in the oven for hours.  All I can do now is hope that the merange is light and fluffy!

At this point the tension and fighting talk meant we needed to get out of the house to break the tension.  So out to the park for some lunch and relaxing.  Nice!

A couple of hours later back in the house and finally the ice cream had sort of set.  So second later of cake on top and quickly on with the icing before the ice cream melts.  Then on with the decoration and back into the freezer.  I have to say, at this point the cake was looking very impressive and I was begining to doubt my ability to win.  So I pick up my game.  Out come the cherries, which need destoning.  Then I find some strawberries and raspberries in the fridge and throw those in too.  Lightly mix the fruit with the greek yogurt, add a touch of sugar and it's ready to go!

The journey to the party, which was a good 30 mins taxi ride was interesting. Craig asked the taxi driver to make sure the cake got there as quickly as possible.  We get there sacely and Craig convinces someone who works at the pub to put his cake in the freezer for safe keeping.  Now all we can do is wait until showtime.  About an hour later, there's bad news.  The freezer that Craig's cake is in is actually a fridge and it's melting quickly.  So out it comes and it's judgement time!

Little did we know there were two categories - best looking and best tasting.  The ice cream cake wins best looking while the pavlova wins best tasting!  So it's a tie.  I'll get you next time Craig...

Oooooh Udon!

Koya got quite a lot of promotion when it opened.  Lots of people went and lots of people waited outside to get in.  And lots of people enjoyed it.  It's mainly udon with a few other specialities.  They make udon in house, when the udon runs out, that's it for the day.  Even if you walk by now, there are still queues outside.  So finally I gave in.

My friend an I showed up around 2pm (after my hair appointment.  Note:  do not go here if you are unable to hold your hair back - it makes eating very difficult!)  Although there was a queue outside, it moved really quickly and we were inside in less than 5 minutes.  The decor is minimal and wooden.  Fits in with my thoughts of Japan.

There are so many different types of udon:  Hot udon in hot broth.  Cold udon with sauce - to dip or to pour.  Cold udon with hot  broth.  There is also donburi - food served over rice with a side of miso soup.  And a large selection of side dishes such as roast duck, fish and chips, pork belly and a selection of salads and pickles.

My friend and I went for vegetable tempura and hot udon with hot broth - smoked haddock udon and mushroom and walnut miso udon.  The smoked haddock udon was really good - full of flavour with a generous helping of fish.  The mushroom and walnut miso was also good, albeit a bit bland after a while. Both felt very healthy and satisfying.  I have to say I was disappointed by the tempura - the batter, although it looked good, was a bit too greasy for my liking. I guess though, if you are going to a specialist udon restaurant, then stick to udon!

Quiche - bake sale special!

So at work, we were asked to bake some items for a bake sale.  I have to say I was a bit nervous, especially after all my talk about loving cooking and food.  I'm also not a huge sweet fan, so when my colleague said she was making something savory, I just had to follow suit.  Decision decisions, cheese twists, cheese scones, tarts and quiche - my choice was made!  Quiche it will be.

To ensure that my quiche would be eaten by at least one person, I asked another colleague what type of quiche he would like.  Cheese, onion and spinach were the suggestions.  A sprinkle of sundried tomatoes and we are there!  And yes, I used pre-made pastry - sorry, I just did not have time to make my own...

Sundried tomato, cheese and spinach quiche

1 packet of rolled pastry

4 sundried tomatoes, finely chopped

2 eggs

250g low fat creme fresh
Cheese of your choice, grated
Spinach, chopped and wilted
Half an onion thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to season
Pinch of parsley

1.  Get the pastry out of the fridge and leave for approx half an hour to ensure that it is soft.
2.  Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Roll the pastry out so that it is an inch bigger on every side that your pan.
3.  Grease your pan with oil and then carefully put the pastry in the pan, ensuring the pastry reaches the edge of the whole pan.  Cut off any excess.  Layer with grease proof paper or foil and fill with baking beans.  Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes then leave to cool.
4.  In a bowl, mix the sundried tomatoes, eggs, creme fresh, grated cheese and onion.  Add the pinch of parsley and salt and pepper to taste.
5.  Pour the mixture into the pastry.  Cook in the oven for another 20-25 mins (or until set and golden brown on top)
6.  Serve hot or cold and with a side salad for a full meal!

Eating and drinking in Rome!





Lunch in the sun - Penne Arrabiata

           


Lots of vino!



Gelato - from the best place in Rome!

     



Pizza!

    


YUM! Spaghetti al vongole

 
 


Arrabiata, one more time!

   



Look at the colours!  Tomato And Buffalo Mozzarella Salad







Teaching Italians how to make Jagerbombs...

 


Pizza with lots of cheese and chili.  Drool.

   




And finally - my all time favourite, rigatoni alla carbonara!

 

To buy or not to buy - a bread making machine

I remember being young and trying to cook bread with my mother.  I also remember that it often did not come out well and it was a whole lot of work.  But fresh bread is such a luxury.  I love the way bread smells as it's cooking and then breaking into a warm piece and eating it with just melting butter.  You just can't beat it.

So when my friend told me about her bread machine, I was very interested.  It's a Panasonic Bread Machine SD255.  You basically put in a number of ingredients, press a few buttons, wait a bit and presto, fresh bread.  Various different types of bread depending on your mood (and ingredients!).  You can time it so that it makes the bread for a specified time later.  Just put all the ingredients in, set when you want it to be ready for and that's it. Amazing - fresh bread for weekend breakfast!  But best of all?  It also makes pizza dough!

Homemade spring vegetable pizza

For the dough:

- 300 g flour

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast

- 170 ml water

Put all the ingredients in the breadmaker.  Once the dough is ready, roll it out on a try and put it in a 180 C oven for 15 mins.  Take the dough out and stretch it out over the tray again - it will have shrunk a bit in the oven. 

Now for the toppings!

- Tomato sauce

- Pesto

- A selection of vegetables, such as asparagus tips, mushrooms, onions

- Dried chili flakes to taste

- Fresh buffalo mozzarella

- Fresh Parmesan

- Fresh basil

Cover the dough in your chosen sauce - we went for half tomato, half pesto.  Then arrange the vegetables and mozzarella cheese to your liking.  Sprinkle the chili flakes, herbs and finally grate some Parmesan over the top.  Pop it in the oven for another 15 mins or until the cheese is golden brown.  Enjoy with a cold glass of white wine!

A nice surprise on a cold Saturday

I love a good food surprise. A couple of Saturday's ago we went to visit a venue for the wedding (it was beautiful, unfortunately we can't afford it) then we were supposed to meet a friend. Unfortunately the friend had to cancel so we had a free afternoon. Bonus, let's go to a museum! On the way I was struck by hunger. And this hunger was huge (and of course turned me into a massive grump-a-lump!) so en route to museum we HAD to find food.

Walking around Clerkenwell during the weekend is like walking around a ghost town. Nice, except if you are really hungry. Down this road, around that corner, up that street and hey presto - Smiths if Smithfield! Bubbling with action and sound, this place is an oasis in a dry urban desert.

It was about 3:30pm so we had no trouble getting a table (although it was still quite busy). It's a very open space with a bright airy feel and loud music. The weekend menu consists of a range of English and American brunch specials such as all day fry-up, eggs Benedict, mac and cheese, pancakes and a personal favorite, corned beef hash. There was also a large range hot and cold sandwiches. Drink choices include the usual brunch choices - bloody Mary's and mimosas, coffee and juices - as well as the more unusual - big kids alcoholic milkshakes.

We went for a bloody Mary each and an SOS Club - chicken, bacon, egg mayo, tomato and lettuce in thick slices of bread - and a halloumi sandwich - with tapanade, lemon and rocket in focusia bread. The drinks were lovely with lots of tomato juice (hate it when there is too much ice and not enough juice!) and well flavoured with lemon wedges and a stick of celery. I have to say, the sandwich was probably one of the best club sandwiches I have ever had. I admit a am no club sarnie specialist but looking around, it seemed a popular choice. It was huge but filled with lots of juicy chicken, salty bacon and just enough egg mayo to give it sauce but not make it too goopy and sickly. The halloumi sandwich was equally nice: simple and tasty with the peppery flavour of the rocket complementing that of the cheese. The only minor downfall was a lack of lemon, which would have helped minimise the salt in the cheese.

The main thing that let the place down was the stroppy, inattentive waitress. I don't like complaining about waiting staff. I've done my time and it can be a very tiring and trying job. But this woman was a bit much. She did not crack a smile the whole time and it took us a good 15 mins to catch her attention to as for the bill and another 10 mins just to pay the bill. Hopefully she was just having a bad day! Overall a great place. I'll defo be going back soon to try the corned beef hash and mac and cheese!