Aromatic Stuffed Peppers in Tomato Sauce.

It's a staple in our household, takes a little effort to prepare, but once all the ingredients are put together, there is nothing else to do , but to let it cook , nice and slow. In this case I use lamb and beef mince meat, of course any meat could be used if desired. My advice is to serve 2 peppers on their own, or one pepper and some mash potato. Any leftovers are freezable, raw or cooked. Important thing to remember, that peppers vary greatly in size, I normally use basic medium sized ones, if using different size adjust the volume of the meat filling. 

8 peppers of different colors

250 gr minced beef

750 gr minced lamb

1 egg

50 ml of milk

a pinch of salt

a pinch of paprika

a pinch of black pepper

1 red chilli

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

fresh parsley , chopped

fresh rosemary, chopped

a small green cabbage chopped

1/2 cup basmati rice

For the sauce:

2 tins of chopped tomatoes in tomato juice

3 tbsp of tomato puree

a splash of olive oil

4 bay leaves

pinch of salt

pinch of sugar

Set aside cabbage and rice until later, put all the rest of the ingredients together in a food processor or a big mixing bowl and mix well.

Add the rice and cabbage.

Mix the filling well. Prepare the peppers, cut the tops off but don't throw them away, clean out the seeds.Fill the peppers with the meat filling and put them in the pot, nice and snug, so they all are standing up.

Pop the pepper tops back on, mix all the tomato sauce ingredients together and pour over the peppers, place the bay leaves between the peppers. It might look as there is not enough sauce, do not worry, during cooking more juices will be released.

Two ways to cook: in the oven, gas mark 4/180C for a couple of hours.

On the hob, the lowest heat possible, also for a couple of hours.

Make it the day before or in the morning , the flavour just gets better!

Strawberry and Chocolate Conserve with Prosecco.

This is a slightly frivolous recipe for an old boring strawberry jam, or frankly speaking, an excuse to open a bottle of Prosecco! One of my treasured childhood memories, is that of my grandmother making the summer jam, she had a massive pan , that took over all four burners on the cooker. The jam making was at least a two day long process, our job was to stir it now and then, WITHOUT licking the  spoon! This little conserve is lovely as a present for Christmas (it seems too early to think about it now, but the strawberries are in season for a short while), or serve it with ice-cream, pancakes,cakes or just a toast.The quantities that I use here make about 710 ml of jam, so adjust your jars accordingly , and/or  if desired make a bigger or a smaller amount. In July/August substitute the peaches for strawberries , in September use pears and instead of Prosecco use Brandy.
700 gr strawberries (washed and halved or quartered)
350 gr of jam sugar (important to use the jam sugar, as it has pectin added, in USA it's called Gelling sugar)
juice of half a lemon
50 ml of Prosecco
4 tbsp of good quality cocoa
Put the strawberries in the pan with sugar , lemon juice and Prosecco, we will use the cocoa in the very end.
Let the fruit stand for an hour and release its juices.

After that, cook on the very low stirring from time to time, for about 30 min.

Switch off, allow it to cool down, repeat the process, remove the foam from the top of the jam. Leave to cool down again, I usually leave it overnight.

The last step: bring the jam to the boil again, on the very low heat.

Add all the cocoa powder , stir in well.

 Cook for a further 5 min., pour in the sterilised jars and give it a day or two to settle. On the other hand, use as a hot sauce if any extra left!

The reason why I don't have a bottle of Prosecco on display here, is that it got accidentally drunk!

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chunks Cookies.

Right now I should really be packing my suitcase for work, but writing about cookies is more appealing! If someone had told me even a year ago that I will be baking american style cookies I would have laughed at them, I thought it was a long and tedious process. How wrong was I! As everything genius in this world , it's super simple!

200 gr unsalted butter (softened)

150 gr white sugar

160 gr brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

320 gr self-raising flour

pinch of sea salt

150 gr chocolate chunks/buttons (i make my own , by breaking a chocolate bar in a blender)

2/3 tbsp of peanut butter

Also we will need, a couple of baking trays, an ice-cream scooper or just a big spoon and some baking paper. 

Preheat your oven gas mark4/175C.

Whip the butter and all of the sugar for about 5 min.

Add vanilla extract and eggs, continue mixing for another 5 min.

Add flour, mix in.

Mix in peanut butter and chocolate, the cookie dough is done! 

Pop it in the fridge for a few minutes, it's easier to scoop when the dough is a bit set.

Place the baking paper on the tray and scoop out 5 or 6 dough balls , make sure you have enough space between them. 

Place in the oven and bake for about 10-15 min. Don't overcook, the cookies should come out looking a bit undercooked in the middle. Allow them to cool down on the tray, they will harden, but hopefully be just nice and gooey in the middle.

This mixure goes a long way, make more dough balls, freeze, use when needed straight out of the freezer, just bake for a bit longer!

A glass of milk, anyone? 

Chicken with Spicy Ratatouille Served with Asparagus and a Poached Egg.

This one is for the lovely Masha, who is passing her final exams at the uni ! Easy and delicious dinner.
500 gr of chicken , cubed
1 tin/ 250 gr of chopped tomatoes in tomato juice
2 onions
1 aubergine
1 courgette
a pinch of paprika
a pinch of salt
a pinch of black pepper
100 ml of white wine
3 bay leaves
2 garlic cloves
1 red chilli
This is a one pot meal.
Brown the chicken in the ovenproof dish , add the chopped onions and the chopped vegetables, chilli and all the spices.When it all is nice and golden pour in the wine in and add the chopped tomatoes in the tomato juice. Preheat the oven gas mark 7/220C, put the dish in and cook for about 30 min. Stir occasionally.Just before serving squeeze the garlic and add it to the chicken and ratatouille pot.  Serve with a poached egg or two and fresh, steamed asparagus!

The Best Ever Chicken Farmhouse Pie with Cider.

This is truly the tastiest recipe for a humble chicken pie. It makes enough for 4 adults ,cook and serve it in individual pie dishes  with plenty of bread to mop up the sauce.Firstly make mash potato for the top of the pie, keep the mash a bit dry, it will absorb some of the sauce later.For mash potato you'll need:
1 kg of potatoes
100 ml of double cream
1 tbsp of wholegrain mustard
70 gr of grated cheddar
1 tbsp of butter
salt to taste

Set the mashed potatoes aside, it's time to make the pie filling.We will need:
500 gr chicken tighs , cubed
500 gr chestnut mushrooms, chopped
2 medium leeks, chopped
200 ml double cream
1 pint of cider
2 bay leaves
fresh parsley, chopped
salt to taste
Brown the chicken in the pan , add mushrooms and leeks and stir fry for a minute, add the cider, turn down the fire, cover and cook for 15 min. Stir in the cream, add the parsley and bay leaves, cook for a further 10-15 minutes.

Switch off, set aside, preheat the oven gaz mark 5 ,190C. Get the pie dishes buttered.Fill them up with the creamy chicken filling.

 Put the mashed potatoes on the top and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the top is golden brown!

Enjoy!