Blog

  • Stamppot

    Stamppot

    Category: Pork

    Area: Dutch

    Ingredients:

    • 1.5kg Potatoes
    • 2 leaves Bay Leaf
    • 2 Shallots
    • 3 tbs Butter
    • 750g Kale
    • 2 Sausages
    • 500ml Milk
    • Grated Nutmeg
    • Pinch Salt
    • Pinch Pepper

    Instructions:

    Wash and peel the potatoes and cut into similarly sized pieces for even cooking.

    In a large soup pot, boil the potatoes and the bay leaves in salted water for 20 minutes. Discard the bay leaves.

    If you're not using a bag of ready-cut curly kale, wash the bunches thoroughly under cool running water to get rid of all soil—you wouldn't want that gritty texture in your finished dish. Trim any coarse stems and discard any brown leaves. With a sharp knife, cut the curly kale into thin strips.

    Peel and chop the shallots.

    In a frying pan or skillet, melt 1 tbsp. of butter and saute the shallots for a few minutes before adding the curly kale and 2 tbsp. of water. Season and cook for about 10 minutes, or until tender.

    Warm the milk on the stove or in the microwave.

    Drain, shake and dry the potatoes with kitchen towels before mashing with a potato masher or ricer. Working quickly, add the warm milk and the remaining butter. Season to taste with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

    Mix the cooked curly kale through the cooked mashed potato mixture.

    Top with slices of the smoked sausage and serve hot with your favorite mustard or gravy.

    Serve and enjoy!

  • Mustard champ

    Mustard champ

    Category: Side

    Area: Irish

    Ingredients:

    • 1kg Potatoes
    • 200ml Milk
    • 50g Butter
    • 2 tbs Mustard
    • Bunch Spring Onions
    • Bunch Spring Onions

    Instructions:

    STEP 1
    Boil the potatoes for 15 mins or until tender. Drain, then mash.

    STEP 2
    Heat the milk and half the butter in the corner of the pan, then beat into the mash, along with the wholegrain mustard.

    STEP 3
    Gently fry the spring onions in the remaining butter for 2 mins until just soft but still a perky green. Fold into the mash and serve. Great with gammon or to top a fish pie.

  • Vegetarian Casserole

    Vegetarian Casserole

    Category: Vegetarian

    Area: British

    Ingredients:

    • 1 Rapeseed Oil
    • 1 Onion
    • 3 cloves Garlic
    • 1 tsp Paprika
    • ½ tsp Cumin
    • 1 tblsp Thyme
    • 3 Medium Carrots
    • 2 small stalks Celery
    • 1 Red Pepper
    • 1 Yellow Pepper
    • 2 x 400g tins Tomato
    • 250ml Vegetable Stock Cube
    • 2 sliced Courgettes
    • 2 sprigs Thyme
    • 250g Lentils

    Instructions:

    Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan. Add the onions and cook gently for 5 – 10 mins until softened.
    Add the garlic, spices, dried thyme, carrots, celery and peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
    Add the tomatoes, stock, courgettes and fresh thyme and cook for 20 – 25 minutes.
    Take out the thyme sprigs. Stir in the lentils and bring back to a simmer. Serve with wild and white basmati rice, mash or quinoa.

  • Mbuzi Choma (Roasted Goat)

    Mbuzi Choma (Roasted Goat)

    Category: Goat

    Area: Kenyan

    Ingredients:

    • 1 kg Goat Meat
    • 1 kg Corn Flour
    • 2 Tomatoes
    • Pinch Salt
    • 1 Onion
    • 1 Green Chilli
    • 1 bunch Coriander Leaves

    Instructions:

    1. Steps for the Meat:
    Roast meat over medium heat for 50 minutes and salt it as you turn it.

    2. Steps for Ugali:
    Bring the water and salt to a boil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the cornmeal slowly, letting it fall through the fingers of your hand.

    3. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue stirring regularly, smashing any lumps with a spoon, until the mush pulls away from the sides of the pot and becomes very thick, about 10 minutes.

    4.Remove from heat and allow to cool.

    5. Place the ugali into a large serving bowl. Wet your hands with water, form a ball and serve.

    6. Steps for Kachumbari: Mix the tomatoes, onions, chili and coriander leaves in a bowl.

    7. Serve and enjoy!

  • Pad See Ew

    Pad See Ew

    Category: Chicken

    Area: Thai

    Ingredients:

    • 6oz/180g rice stick noodles
    • 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
    • 2 tbsp oyster sauce
    • 2 tsp soy sauce
    • 2 tsp white vinegar
    • 2 tsp sugar
    • 2 tbsp water
    • 2 tbsp peanut oil
    • 2 cloves garlic
    • 1 cup Chicken
    • 1 Egg
    • 4 cups Chinese broccoli

    Instructions:

    Mix Sauce in small bowl.
    Mince garlic into wok with oil. Place over high heat, when hot, add chicken and Chinese broccoli stems, cook until chicken is light golden.
    Push to the side of the wok, crack egg in and scramble. Don't worry if it sticks to the bottom of the wok – it will char and which adds authentic flavour.
    Add noodles, Chinese broccoli leaves and sauce. Gently mix together until the noodles are stained dark and leaves are wilted. Serve immediately!

  • Boulangère Potatoes

    Boulangère Potatoes

    Category: Side

    Area: French

    Ingredients:

    • 2 finely chopped Onions
    • sprigs of fresh Thyme
    • 2 tbs Olive Oil
    • 1.5kg Potatoes
    • 425g Vegetable Stock

    Instructions:

    Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Fry the onions and thyme sprigs in the oil until softened and lightly coloured (about 5 mins).
    Spread a layer of potatoes over the base of a 1.5-litre oiled gratin dish. Sprinkle over a few onions (see picture, above) and continue layering, finishing with a layer of potatoes. Pour over the stock and bake for 50-60 mins until the potatoes are cooked and the top is golden and crisp.

  • Chinon Apple Tarts

    Chinon Apple Tarts

    Category: Dessert

    Area: French

    Ingredients:

    • 320g Puff Pastry
    • 4 tbs Dark Brown Soft Sugar
    • 3 Braeburn Apples
    • 4 tbs Red Wine Jelly
    • 100ml Creme Fraiche
    • 1 tbs Icing Sugar
    • 3 Cardamom

    Instructions:

    To make the red wine jelly, put the red wine, jam sugar, star anise, clove, cinnamon stick, allspice, split vanilla pod and seeds in a medium saucepan. Stir together, then heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Turn up the heat and boil for 20 mins until reduced and syrupy. Strain into a small, sterilised jam jar and leave to cool completely. Will keep in the fridge for up to 1 month.

    Take the pastry out of the fridge and leave at room temperature for 10 mins, then unroll. Heat the grill to high and heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Cut out 2 x 13cm circles of pastry, using a plate as a guide, and place on a non-stick baking sheet. Sprinkle each circle with 1 tbsp sugar and grill for 5 mins to caramelise, watching carefully so that the sugar doesn’t burn. Remove from the grill. Can be done a few hours ahead, and left, covered, out of the fridge.

    Peel, quarter and core the apples, cut into 2mm-thin slices and arrange on top of the pastry. Sprinkle over the remaining sugar and pop in the oven for 20-25 mins until the pastry is cooked through and golden, and the apples are softened. Remove and allow to cool slightly. Warm 3 tbsp of the red wine jelly in a small pan over a low heat with 1 tsp water to make it a little more runny, then brush over the top of the tarts.

    Tip the crème fraîche into a bowl, sift over the icing sugar and cardamom, and mix together. Carefully lift the warm tarts onto serving plates and serve with the cardamom crème fraîche.

  • Corned Beef and Cabbage

    Corned Beef and Cabbage

    Category: Beef

    Area: Irish

    Ingredients:

    • 3 Lbs Beef Brisket
    • 10 Small Potatoes
    • 5 Carrots
    • 1 head Cabbage

    Instructions:

    1

    Place corned beef in large pot or Dutch oven and cover with water. Add the spice packet that came with the corned beef. Cover pot and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer approximately 50 minutes per pound or until tender.

    2

    Add whole potatoes and peeled and cut carrots, and cook until the vegetables are almost tender. Add cabbage and cook for 15 more minutes. Remove meat and let rest 15 minutes.

    3

    Place vegetables in a bowl and cover. Add as much broth (cooking liquid reserved in the Dutch oven or large pot) as you want. Slice meat across the grain.

  • Soy-Glazed Meatloaves with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes & Roasted Carrots

    Soy-Glazed Meatloaves with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes & Roasted Carrots

    Category: Beef

    Area: American

    Ingredients:

    • 5 Potatoes
    • 12 ounces Carrots
    • 1 Scallions
    • 2 cloves Garlic
    • 1 Slice Bread
    • 1 Garlic Powder
    • 2 Soy Sauce
    • 1 Ground Beef
    • 1 tsp Vegetable Oil
    • 2 tsp Sugar
    • 2 tbsp Butter

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash and dry all produce. Dice potatoes into 1/2-inch pieces. Trim, peel, and cut carrots on a diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick pieces. Trim and thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens; finely chop whites. Peel and finely chop garlic.

    2. In a medium bowl, soak bread with 2 TBSP water (4 TBSP for 4 servings); break up with your hands until pasty. Stir in beef, sriracha, scallion whites, half the garlic, salt (we used 3/4 tsp kosher salt; 11/2 tsp for 4), and pepper. Form into two 1-inch-tall loaves (four loaves for 4). Place on one side of a baking sheet. Toss carrots on empty side of same sheet with a drizzle of oil, salt, and pepper. (For 4, spread meatloaves out across whole sheet and add carrots to a second sheet.) Bake for 20 minutes (we'll glaze the meatloaves then).

    3. Meanwhile, place potatoes in a medium pot with enough salted water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil and cook until very
    tender, 12-15 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup potato cooking liquid, then drain. While potatoes cook, in a small bowl, combine soy sauce, garlic powder, 1/4 cup ketchup (1/2 cup for 4 servings), and 2 tsp sugar (4 tsp for 4).

    4. Once meatloaves and carrots have baked 20 minutes, remove from oven. Spoon half the ketchup glaze over meatloaves (save
    the rest for serving); return to oven until carrots are browned and tender, meatloaves are cooked through, and glaze is tacky, 4-5 minutes more.

    5. Meanwhile, melt 2 TBSP butter (4 TBSP for 4 servings) in pot used for potatoes over medium heat. Add remaining garlic and cook
    until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add potatoes and 1/4 tsp wasabi. Mash, adding splashes of reserved potato cooking liquid as necessary until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. (If you like things spicy, stir in more wasabi!)

    6. Divide meatloaves, mashed potatoes, and roasted carrots between plates. Sprinkle with scallion greens and serve with remaining ketchup glaze on the side for dipping.

  • Tunisian Orange Cake

    Tunisian Orange Cake

    Category: Dessert

    Area: Tunisian

    Ingredients:

    • 1 large Orange
    • 300g Caster Sugar
    • 75 ml Olive Oil
    • 280g Flour
    • 1 tbs Baking Powder
    • 4 large Eggs
    • 2 tsp Vanilla Extract

    Instructions:

    Preheat oven to 190 C / Gas 5. Grease a 23cm round springform tin.
    Cut off the hard bits from the top and bottom of the orange. Slice the orange and remove all seeds. Puree the orange with its peel in a food processor. Add one third of the sugar and the olive oil and continue to mix until well combined.
    Sieve together flour and baking powder.
    Beat the eggs and the remaining sugar with an electric hand mixer for at least five minutes until very fluffy. Fold in half of the flour mixture, then the orange and the vanilla, then fold in the remaining flour. Mix well but not for too long.
    Pour cake mixture into prepared tin and smooth out. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 160 C / Gas 2 and bake again for 30 minutes Bake until the cake is golden brown and a skewer comes out clean. Cool on a wire cake rack.