Bicerin (Serves 1)

As the evenings are closing in and the days are getting colder, I think we may all need a little ‘pick-me-up’ to take us through to Christmas… and so this week I thought I’d share a Bicerin!..

A Bicerin is a luxurious coffee-and-chocolate drink topped with cream that originates from Turin. Rather than being mixed together like a ‘mocha’, the espresso and hot chocolate are poured in layers and topped with whipped cream – so initially through the light cream you taste the sweetness of the velvety chocolate this is then followed by the punch of espresso coffee; it is heavenly! I first tasted it at Caffè Al Bicerin when I visited Turin a few years ago. Caffè Al Bicerin is a beautiful little cafe with just 6 or so tables, the interior is wonderfully antiquated and dimly lit by candles on white marble tabletops. It really is a ‘must-see’ place if you visit Turin (I would definitely recommend a long weekend in this historic Italian city!). The cafe is not only renowned for having invented the Bicerin, but it is also famous for its other delicious sweet treats such as Zabaione – but that’s another story… (I will be sharing that recipe in the future!).

Back to the Bicerin… If you love coffee and chocolate (and cream!), you can’t go wrong with this recipe. It is important to make it with the very best, strong espresso coffee and velvety hot chocolate; I think that the following recipe is pretty authentic!.. Enjoy!

50ml double cream

½ teaspoon icing sugar

125ml full fat milk

50g chocolate, roughly broken up

½ tablespoon caster sugar

75ml hot espresso coffee

1. Firstly whip the cream with the icing sugar until is just forms soft peaks.
2. Put the chocolate, milk and caster sugar in a small saucepan, whisk until it begins to boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for a minute, continue whisking, ensuring that the chocolate has melted.
3. Pour the hot espresso coffee into a heatproof glass. Carefully and slowly pour the hot chocolate over the top. Finally, top with a generous dollop of whipped cream. Heaven!

With the arrival of November, there can be no denying that we are in the midst of autumn. Although the mornings and evenings are darker, I think most of us appreciate the clear, bright skies we often get at this time of year, which along with the beautiful gold and red of the leaves falling from the trees make it a rather special time of year. I have been trying to embrace this autumnal beauty, but unfortunately, with the drop in temperature, it seems that the ‘common cold’, is doing the rounds in my area, so I’ve also been busy fending it off (and doing lateral flow tests!). We’ve all been there…that horrible feeling of the beginning of a cold – an itchy nose, dry throat and that general malaise when all we want to do is snuggle up on the sofa with either a good book or a film, but then there’s dinner to cook! So, with this in mind, I thought that this week I would share some recipes which are not only comforting and warming but also super quick and easy, so if you do have that ‘coldy’ feeling, you’ll have a quick dinner option and still have time to snuggle up on the sofa!… Menu One is ‘Chicken Open-Pot Roast’, it’s one of those recipes that I turn to time and time again when I want a quick, hands-free supper. You don’t need any accompaniments – it’s all in the pot! Menu Two is ‘Casserole of Lamb & Pomegranate Molasses’, the secret to the wonderful flavour of this casserole is the addition of the pomegranate molasses, their tangy sweetness really adds incredible depth to the dish – it’s the perfect meal when you’re feeling under the weather! Finally, Menu Three is ‘Garlic Mushroom Linguine’, there’s not much to this recipe, yet it always pleases, what’s not to like – mushrooms and garlic are a match made in heaven and it will be on the table in 15 minutes!…

To suit my mood, the music in my kitchen has been pretty relaxed. One of my favourite albums of all time is Carol King’s ‘Tapestry’, it always lifts my spirits and I often turn to it when I’m feeling under the weather. So, my newest playlist features a few tracks from this album; ‘Music to Cook to….MenuMusic Sixteen’ starts with some upbeat songs then slips into some mellower music – it’s a little like my energy levels at the moment!…listen to it here – Enjoy!

Have a good week, see you next week for my Tuesday Treat!…

Menu One

Chicken Open-Pot Roast (Serves 4)

This is one of those recipes that I turn to time and time again when I want a quick, hands-free supper. You don’t need any accompaniments – it’s all in the pot! By keeping the lid off the pot the skin of the chicken becomes beautifully crisp and golden. This recipe is taken from Rachel Allen’s cookbook ‘Easy Meals’!

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 chicken jointed or 6-8 chicken thighs with skin

450g new potatoes, unpeeled, halved if large

2 small leeks or 1 large leek, trimmed and cut into 3cm lengths

250ml chicken stock

1 sprig of tarragon, plus 1 tablespoon chopped tarragon leaves

2-3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Put the olive oil in a casserole over a high heat, then season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and place skin side down in the hot oil. Cook for about 5 minutes or so until a deep golden brown (you may find it easier to do this in batches). Flip over and quickly sear the underside before removing to a plate.
2. Add the potatoes and leeks to the casserole, stir around in the hot fat for a couple of minutes before returning the chicken, skin side up.
3. Pour in the stock and add the sprig of tarragon. Bring to the boil, then place the casserole, uncovered, in a preheated oven, 200’c fan. Cook for about 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender.
4. Remove from the oven and stir in the chopped tarragon, Dijon mustard and lemon juice (to taste) and serve immediately.

Menu Two

Casserole of Lamb & Pomegranate Molasses (Serves 4)

This is my new favourite casserole, taken from my new favourite cookbook (yes, another!!), ‘French Countryside Cooking’ by Daniel Galmiche. The secret to the wonderful flavour of this casserole is the addition of the pomegranate molasses, their tangy sweetness really adds incredible depth to the dish. This recipe is quick enough to cook midweek for the family but special enough to serve to guests – a great dish to have up your sleeve! It is delicious served with ‘Creamy Garlic Mashed Potato’ (recipe below).

20g unsalted butter

2 tablespoons sunflower oil

1 onion, roughly chopped

2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

1 kg boneless shoulder or neck of lamb cut into large cubes

500ml lamb or chicken stock

1 sprig of rosemary

1 handful of good-quality stoned black olives

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

Grated zest of 1 lemon

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Heat the butter and oil in a casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5-8 minutes until soft but not coloured.
2. Turn up the heat to high, add the lamb and sauté for 12-15 minutes until golden brown on all sides. Add the stock and rosemary and bring to a simmer, then cover with a lid without closing it completely (a little gap will allow the condensation to escape so that not too much liquid is produced) and simmer over a gentle heat for 1¾ hours, making sure that the liquid is barely simmering rather than bubbling.
3. Check that the lamb is tender and that the liquid is reduced by half, no more, (if not continue to cook for a further 15 minutes). Add the olives and pomegranate molasses and cook gently for a further 10 minutes until the sauce is lovely and shiny. Finally, add the lemon zest to taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve with ‘Creamy Garlic Mashed Potato’ (recipe below).

‘Staple Side Dish’ – Creamy Garlic Mashed Potato (Serves 4)

In this recipe, I have simply added an extra garlic clove to my ‘Favourite’ Mashed Potato recipe to enhance the flavour of the garlic

1kg potatoes (floury, such as Maris Piper)

100ml full-fat milk

100ml double cream

3 garlic cloves, sliced

Sea salt and black pepper

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into even sized chunks. Steam until completely cooked through.
2. Put the milk, cream and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat.
3. Mash the potatoes, adding the milk mixture a little at a time. Season well with salt and pepper.

Menu Three

Garlic Mushroom Linguine (Serves 4)

There’s not much to this recipe, yet it always pleases, what’s not to like – mushrooms and garlic are a match made in heaven!…I particularly like this recipe with chopped tarragon, but if you can’t get hold of it, chopped parsley also works well.

400g linguine or spaghetti (gluten free if required)

50g butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 garlic cloves, chopped

500g chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced

Juice of ½ lemon

20g fresh tarragon (or parsley), chopped

Sea salt and black pepper

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese to serve

1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions until al dente. Drain well.
2. Meanwhile, heat the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan and fry the garlic for a minute or so. Add the mushrooms with the lemon juice and cook for 10 minutes, stirring once or twice until tender. Season generously with salt and pepper.
3. Add the drained pasta to the pan with the mushrooms, adding the chopped tarragon (or parsley), toss well and serve with the grated Parmesan.

Almond ‘English’ Macaroons (Makes about 20)

These biscuits always remind me of my late mother-in-law, Deitha, she was a wonderful traditional cook and at Christmas time would always cook me a batch of these delicious biscuits! They aren’t quite as fancy as their ‘French cousin’ the Macaron, which come in chic colours, but they are just as moreish and in my opinion, slightly more satisfying with their crisp exterior and wonderfully chewy middle. Even better, unlike the French macaron, they are incredibly easy to make, you just need to bake them on confectioners edible rice paper as it adds to the chewy texture – it is readily available online if you can’t find it in your local supermarket.

200g ground almonds

250g caster sugar

1 rounded tablespoon ground rice

1 tablespoon orange flower water

Few drops of real almond extract

3 large egg whites

Sheets of edible confectioners rice paper (approx. 4 x A4 size)

About 20 whole blanched almonds

You will need 2 large baking sheets

1. Mix the dry ingredients together, apart from the whole almonds, in a large bowl. Then add the orange flower water, almond extract and egg whites. Beat vigorously to form a soft paste.
2. Line the baking sheets with the rice paper (shiny side up). Take a large walnut-sized piece of the paste, form into a round patty and place on the rice paper. Repeat with the rest of the paste, leaving plenty of room between each patty. Put a whole almond on the top of each one.
3. Put the baking sheets in a preheated oven, 170’c fan, for about 20-25 minutes until they are a light golden colour.
4. Leave to cool on the rice paper, then gently tear the macaroons from the rice paper sheets, leaving a disc of paper in place on the bottom of each one.

I can’t believe that we’re already approaching the end of October…and of course, that means that we will soon be celebrating both Halloween and Guy Fawkes Night! It only seems like yesterday that I was posting recipes with last year’s celebrations in mind. In comparison to last year, this year we should be able to celebrate in a more ‘normal’ fashion and at least children should be able to ‘trick or treat’ (reminder to myself  – ‘get some sweets in the house!’). We can even have friends around to our houses, so with this in mind, I thought that I would post some recipes which not only have flavours to suit the festivities but are ideal for sharing with both friends and family…

Menu One is ‘Whole Butter Chicken with Sweet Potatoes & Red Onion’, I think that the bright orange colour of this roast makes it perfect for a celebratory Halloween dinner, although it would be good at any time of the year. The subtly tandoori spiced chicken is cooked on a bed of sweet potatoes, cherry tomatoes and onions; at the end of cooking you are left with a wonderfully sweet tomato sauce – it’s delicious! In my mind, Guy Fawkes Night deserves sausages (it’s a campfire thing!), so Menu Two is ‘Sausages with Grapes’, it’s a wonderfully simple yet an incredibly tasty dish from Skye McAlpine’s cookbook ‘ A Table for Friends’. It helps to buy the best sausages you can, but the sweetness of the roasted grapes makes it a winning dish and a real crowd-pleaser, it is great served with traditional mashed potato or with, as McAlpine suggests, ‘Fennel & Parmesan Purée’. This week it’s also time for a ‘Blast from the Past’ recipe, so for Menu Three, I’m sharing one of the first recipes I ever shared, ‘Tarragon Chicken Pie’; it’s a delicious pie, perfect for ‘family-style’ dinners. Finally, a celebratory cocktail – with its blood-red colour a Cosmopolitan is perfect for a Halloween evening at home!…

Even if you’re not celebrating the festivities, I hope that these recipes make it on to your shopping list over the next week or so …Enjoy!…

(Don’t forget to check out my ‘Eating Out’ page, I’ve been enjoying a mix of restaurants recently…)

Menu One

Whole Butter Chicken with Sweet Potatoes & Red Onion (Serves 4)

Here a subtly tandoori spiced chicken is cooked on a bed of sweet potatoes, cherry tomatoes and onions, and at the end of cooking, you are left with a wonderfully sweet tomato sauce. It is a great family dinner dish from Rukmini Iyer’s cookbook ‘The Roasting Tin Around the World’, in which all the recipes are simply cooked in one dish – minimum effort, maximum flavour!…

1 x 1.5kg chicken

50g butter

1 cinnamon stick

5 green cardamom pods, bashed

5 cloves

10cm ginger, grated

4 cloves garlic, crushed

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large 5cm chunks

2 red onions, quartered

500g cherry tomatoes with their vines

1 lime, zest and juice

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

2 teaspoons ground cumin

4 heaped tablespoons natural yogurt

1 tablespoon sunflower or olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt flakes

150ml double cream

To Serve: lime juice, sea salt flakes and fresh coriander, roughly chopped.

1. Place the butter, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, cloves, half of the grated ginger and garlic into a large roasting tin. Put it in a preheated oven, 180’c fan, for 3-5 minutes to let the butter melt and the spices toast.
2. Remove the tin from the oven and add the sweet potatoes, red onions and cherry tomatoes (with their vines) and place the chicken on the top.
3. Mix together the lime zest and juice and the smoked paprika, turmeric, cumin, yogurt, oil, salt and the remaining ginger and garlic. Slather this mixture over the chicken and return the tin to the oven, cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
4. Take the tin from the oven, remove the vines and squash down the tomatoes with a wooden spoon. Stir in the double cream, then return it to the oven for a further 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
5. Taste the sauce and adjust the flavours with salt and lime juice as needed. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving, scattered with the chopped coriander.

Menu Two

Sausages with Grapes (Serves 4) – with Fennel & Parmesan Purée

Kids and adults alike will love this dish, it’s a real crowd-pleaser. I have taken the recipe from Skye McAlpine’s cookbook ‘A Table for Friends’, she, in turn, took it from one of her favourite cookbooks…so it is one of those recipes that has done the rounds, and for good reason!…It is a dish that deserves the best pork sausages you can find and really needs little else, although some mashed potato (recipe here) would be good, or as McAlpine suggests, Fennel and Parmesan Purée (recipe below).

1 tablespoon olive oil

8 pork sausages

500g red grapes

240ml white wine

1 teaspoon cornflower

1. Heat the oil in a deep frying pan or casserole over a low heat and add the sausages. Cook, turning occasionally until they are browned all over.
2. Snip the grapes into small bunches, add these to the sausages, then pour in the wine.
3. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes until the sausages are cooked through and the wine has evaporated by half. Remove the sausages and grapes to a serving dish with a slotted spoon, leaving behind the cooking juices.
4. To make the sauce, mix the cornflour with a tablespoon of cooking liquid in a small bowl, then add this to the juices in the pan. Bring to the boil, stirring, and simmer for 2 minutes until thickened. Serve with the sausages and sweet grapes.

Fennel and Parmesan Purée (Serves 4-6)

This is a good way of serving fennel during the colder months, it’s a comfort food recipe a little like mashed potato, only less stodgy and more ‘elegant’. It’s very simple to make; once the fennel is cooked you just have to whizz it in a food processor!…

2 litres of vegetable stock

5 medium fennel bulbs, quartered and leafy fronds reserved

50g butter

1 tablespoon double cream

70g Parmesan cheese, grated plus extra shavings to serve

Sea salt flakes and black pepper

1. Place the stock in a large saucepan and bring to the boil, add the quartered fennel bulbs, cook at a gentle simmer for about 20 minutes until the fennel is tender.
2. Drain the fennel then place in food processor /blender and blitz until smooth.
3. Stir in the butter, cream and grated Parmesan, adding salt and pepper to taste.
4. Serve with the reserved leafy fennel fronds and a few shavings of Parmesan scattered over.

‘Blast From The Past’ Recipe

Tarragon Chicken Pie (Serves 4)

This is an absolute favourite in our house and one which Felix insists that I cook when he is back from university! It is a recipe that I picked up from a magazine years ago and have tweaked over the years.

I’m gluten free, so unfortunately these days I can’t eat the pastry, but the filling is a treat in itself. I usually serve this with buttered new potatoes. I use ‘Jus Rol, Ready Rolled Puff Pastry’, they have started to make a gluten free puff pastry, I haven’t tried it, but I have heard mixed reviews so for the moment I will continue to be an unselfish ‘head cook’ and stick to the normal pastry that both Nick and Felix love! I prefer to use fresh chicken stock, but you could use a stock cube.

320g pack of ready rolled puff pastry (see note above)

1 tablespoon olive oil

15g butter

3 spring onions, chopped

1 shallot, chopped

75g diced pancetta

500g chicken breast, cut into bite size cubes

225ml chicken stock (see note above)

250g frozen peas

8-10 sprigs of tarragon

3 slices of Prosciutto ham, each slice rolled and cut into 2cm pieces/ribbons

2 tablespoons of double cream

Sea salt and black pepper

1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon of milk (for a glaze)

1. First of all, take the pastry out of the fridge as it needs at least 20 minutes to come to room temperature. Preheat the oven 200’c fan.
2. Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan, add the spring onions, shallots and pancetta, fry for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper and fry for another 5 minutes.
4. Pour in the chicken stock and peas, bring to a simmer, and add the chopped leaves of 6-7 of the sprigs of tarragon. Cook for 5 minutes until the peas are tender.
5. Stir in the prosciutto and the cream, pour into a pie dish. Sprinkle over the chopped leaves of the remaining tarragon.
6. For the pastry top, gently lay out the pastry. Cut it into a circular shape to top the pie dish. I find that by cutting strips of the remaining pastry, pressing them around the rim of the pie dish and then topping with the pastry top, helps the pastry rise – see photo. I also cut out a few leaves for decoration, but obviously, this doesn’t affect the flavour so if you’re in a hurry I’d leave this out! Lightly score the pastry with a criss-cross pattern to help it rise and make sure you cut out a deep cross in the centre to allow the steam to escape during cooking. Brush over with the egg and milk glaze.
7. Place in the preheated oven, bake for 25-30 minutes.
8. Serve with new potatoes.

And a Little Treat…

A Cosmopolitan Cocktail (Serves 1)

2 tablespoons vodka

2 tablespoons 100% pure cranberry juice (unsweetened!)

1 tablespoon Cointreau

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon sugar syrup

1 lime wedge (plus a lime wheel to garnish if desired)

1. Place the vodka, cranberry juice, Cointreau, lemon juice, and syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake 15 seconds until cold. Strain into a martini glass.
2. Squeeze with the lime wedge and serve, garnished with a lime wheel.

Salted Miso Brownies (Makes 16)

We all have a favourite recipe for brownies, this is without doubt mine…I urge you to make them – they will become your new favourite too! The addition of the white miso and salt gives them an incredible salted caramel flavour whilst the chia seeds create a dense and fudgy consistency. Admittedly, they don’t look like the smartest of brownies, but as I have often said, ‘looks can be deceiving’, and in this case they definitely are!…This magnificent recipe is from Meera Sodha’s cookbook ‘East’.

5 tablespoons milled chia seeds

150g flavourless coconut oil

250g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces (I use Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate)

350g light brown Muscovado sugar

120g plain flour (gluten free if required)

3 tablespoons white miso

¾ teaspoon flaky sea salt

*20cm square cake tin, lined with greaseproof paper

1. First of all put the chia seeds in a small bowl, add 270ml water and set aside.
2. Place the coconut oil and chocolate pieces in a saucepan over a low heat. Stir occasionally until melted. Take off the heat and mix in the sugar, flour, miso and salt. Finally, add the ‘bloomed’ chia seed (and their water), mix well.
3. Pour into the prepared, lined tin and gently shake to distribute the mixture evenly. Bake on the middle shelf of a preheated oven, 180’c fan, for 40 minutes. The brownies will be still wobbly in the middle but they will settle down and become deliciously fudgy as they cool. Cool completely before cutting into 16 squares.