Roast chicken with preserved lemons and olives

Do you remember a month or so ago I posted how to preserve your own lemons? 4 weeks later, I return to Spain and there were those jarred lemons, sitting in the same place, totally transformed. If I think about it, they probably made there way into 8 out of 10 dishes that week.

This one was my favourite, served with quinoa, grilled leeks and peas. 

Serves 3 or I suppose 6 if you had one each.

6 chicken thighs

1 preserved lemon

1 pot of natural yogurt (200g)

1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp coriander, 2 tsp Garam masala

4 cloves of garlic, crushed/grated

zest and juice of one fresh lemon

parsley

Salt and pepper

Black Olives

Mix dry spices into the yogurt with the lemon juice and rind, salt and pepper and garlic.

Pop back in fridge, covered, for at least 4 hours.

Oil a hot griddle and brown the thighs until caramalised (6 minutes)

Now roast the chicken with any left over marinade in a hot oven (190C) for approx 20 mins, depending on size of thighs.

Chop preserved lemon (having scraped out the pips and pith) and toss in grill pan. Now,  sprinkle on the top with chopped parsley and olives.

Chocolate Hazelnut Brownies

Happy Easter Everyone! I've been asked by my friend Ebony for a brownie recipe this morning. Whilst I am still working on mine, I did try these last week for a picnic. I chose the recipe purely for the crackled shiny crust which is so pretty but it was also a fine tasting brownie! It is a recipe from Signe Johanson's Scandinavian food blog - see here 

Makes 12 brownies

• 125g butter
• 75g cocoa powder
• 175g chocolate-hazelnut spread
• 2 whole medium eggs
• 1 medium egg yolk
• 150g icing sugar
• 50g flour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp salt
• optional for a deeper flavour: 1 shot espresso (purists will scoff at this though)
• 50g halved or chopped toasted hazelnuts, also optional

Preheat the oven to 150 C. Line a 15 cm x 30 cm brownie tin or a 20 cm x 20 cm square baking tin with two sheets of baking parchment, lined perpendicularly. This makes it easier to remove the brownies from the tin after they’ve been baked.

Melt the butter and add the cocoa powder along with the chocolate hazelnut spread. Stir to mix together and set aside while you assemble the rest. In a medium bowl place the eggs and icing sugar, lightly whisk with a fork or whisk to break up the eggs and mix the sugar in but don’t whisk until fluffy. Add the chocolate-hazelnut butter mixture, stirring so that this incorporates with the egg and sugar mixture. Add the flour, vanilla extract and salt (and coffee and/or hazelnuts if using) and stir a few more times. It should look like a very dark, treacle-y mixture.

Pour this into the prepared tin and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 20-22 minutes. If you bake the brownies in a 20 x 20 cm tin they will be a fraction thicker than in the longer rectangular tin so they may need 2-3 minutes longer to bake through. The brownies will be quite thin, only 1 inch or so thick so they don’t need much baking time but keep checking after 18 minutes. It’s always better to slightly underbake brownies as they cool in the tin after you remove them from the oven and this extends the baking process. Also the chocolate flavour is more intense if you don’t bake the brownies all the way through.

Allow to cool completely before slicing.

Roasted Beetroot, sheeps' cheese & pesto on sourdough

Beetroot is in that marmite/coriander/gherkin type food group, isn't it? You'll find that lots of people don't like it. My mum still calls it 'Beep rupe' when I'm about, it's what I used to call it when I was a little girl. These foods that some people can't stand just so happen to be in my own personal group of 'makes life taste better'. I've managed to convert a handful of friends with roasted beetroot though, it tastes nothing like its boiled or pickled partner. 

There's no denying how beautiful it is either. My new favourite snack is toasted sourdough with soft cheese, beets tossed in lemon, fennel seeds and smoked salt, courgettes/asparagus and drizzled with a garlicky home made pesto. Heaven on toast. This particular orange and rosemary cheese was made the day I bought it from a small sheeps' cheese supplier, properly pimped up snack!

 Chopping board aftermath

Aubergine Parmigiana

I love the dark, glossy skin of an aubergine. I love how they absorb flavour, hold their shape and round off a dish without the need for meat. In this recipe I char-grill them or even better, barbeque. The smokiness really intensifies the flavour of the dish.

I made this one in my brownie tin, so just served six with a big side salad. 

I love North End Road market in Fulham where every bowl of fruit or veg is a pound and I've always been impressed with the quality, but best to use straight away! 

Here is a shoddy phone shot of one of the many stalls, not very glamorous but neither is the market, but you get the perk of THE BEST FALAFEL from a stall at the end.  

 Slice 4 aubergines 5mm thick, brush them with oil and char-grill on both sides until dry

 I pop them on a cake rack so they don't go soggy when piled up out the pan

Fry off 2 small red onions and 4 cloves of garlic in olive oil, a pinch of dried oregano, s n p. Meanwhile skin and chop about 12 tomatoes and reduce or 2 cans if you like and then tip them onto onions and let simmer for 10 mins. I add a splash of red wine vinegar and a little rose harissa at this stage.

Line your dish with foil and then layer the tomato sauce, aubergines and about 150g of grated parmesan and 50g of mozzarella and basil leaves.

Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake! If the tomato sauce and aubergines are still hot, this only takes 20-30 minutes at 180c

Before and after shot..

Fresh flowers for decoration

It is such a beautiful day in London, no time to be inside blogging. This evening though.. I know I've slacked ;) Here is a pic of a birthday torte I made and decorated with flowers. Later we sliced in half and sandwiched Dulce de Leche ice cream inside!

Vegan Cocoa Coconut Bites

It's Monday, and for this day only, it is easy to fool yourself you can eat like a Saint after that weekend.

I just came across a blog called www.sproutedkitchen.com It is the most beautiful collection of recipes based on wholefoods and will become by Monday inspiration. This recipe is Sara's and I promise you, vegan treats can be delicious. My friends didn't even notice. Her recipe is here

Makes 20-25

Because these are vegan, they can also be enjoyed raw. You can scoop them into balls, chill them for about an hour, and enjoy as such. I baked mine at a low heat, because it gives them a texture of somewhere between truffle and cookie and I really love that. A crisp crust and a soft center. Perfection.

1 1/2 cups dried, unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup natural cocoa powder

1/3 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup grade b maple syrup

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

In a mixing bowl. Combine the coconut, cocoa powder and rolled oats together. Stir in the maple, coconut oil, vanilla and optional dash of cinnamon. Mix to coat everything evenly. Set in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 215'.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a mini scooper or your hands, make 1 inch balls and set them on the baking tray (they don't spread, ample space between is not important). Bake them on the middle rack for 20 minutes. Remove to cool.

Lentils & rice with eggs and asparagus

I have been on a week-long soup 'n' painkiller diet. 

You see, I had my wisdom teeth out on Monday and things were a little bit miserable and sore for a while. Who am I kidding, it still hurts, but I'm on the mend and I guess what I’m trying to say is, sorry I’ve been dormant all week. I’m back.

When you’ve been starved all week, you over indulge. It started on Friday night, BYO and burritos in Soho with the girls. Saturday- lunch from the Southbank market, walked off round the Tate and back to The scooter bar for beers in what was a tease of sunshine and then to a Malaysian Supperclub by Wild Serai meeting wonderful new people over chilli crab. Sunday was a lovely day too, spent with the family in the country, walks and a Rib roast. If that wasn’t enough, yesterday Reiko invited a few of us to the soft opening of Sticks n Sushi in Wimbledon, which was beautiful. I can see myself becoming a regular there.

So after all that, my appetite for blogging is back. Time to share a lunch I made last week in Spain. It is sort of like Kosheri. 

Serves 4

Steam 2 cups of rice with a little bit of butter and simmer away 1 cup lentils ..meanwhile

Fry 1/2 cup chorizo and 1/2 cup onion (I didn't use garlic here but you could)

Add some chopped kale to the pan.

Fluff up the rice in a bowl, add the lentils, chorizo, onions and kale. Season with salt and pepper, 1/2tsp cinnamon, 1/2tsp nutmeg.

Bring a pan of water to the boil and add 4 eggs. Simmer for 6 1/2 mins and peel. Griddle some aspagus and tuck in. Delish warm, cold or as leftovers.