Squid, Chorizo & Baby Potato Salad with Lemon Oil

I am SO excited that I found a new fishmonger locally to me! I am so delighted as I rarely get the time to go to Billingsgate Fish Market for good supplies of fresh squid! I bought two large ones. You can easily make this dish with frozen squid rings though - which you can buy pretty much anywhere.

This is a simple salad which packs a huge punch of flavour and will leave your taste buds so happy! And it doesn't take long to cook. And its easy peasey.

Ingredients:

2 squid, cleaned and sliced
100g cooking chorizo, sliced
400g baby potatoes, halved
1 red pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 chilli, sliced (optional)
90g rocket, baby leaf or pea shoot salad leaves

For the Lemon oil:

1 lemon
60 ml (1/4 cup) olive oil

Method;

To make the lemon oil, pare the rind off the lemon in large bits, making sure to avoid the white pith underneath the skin. Put into a saucepan with the oil and heat until hot but not boiling. Take off the heat and leave to cool. Chill.

Boil the potatoes for about 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and cover with a tea towel.

Put the chorizo into a pan and cook for about 6-8 mins, stirring. The oil should release from the chorizo, but if you need a little more, add 1 tsp. oil. Then add the pepper and onions and stir fry for five minutes, adding the garlic (and chilli, if using) for the last minute. Then add the squid and cook for a further 3 minutes. Add a little black pepper and taste to see if it needs salt.

To serve, place the salad leaves on a plate. Add the potatoes to the pan with the chorizo mix and stir through, off the heat. Add the chorizo & squid mix on top of the salad. Drizzle with the lemon oil and serve. Delicious!

Cajun Style Sausage Stew

Sorry I have been so quiet recently.. After a spell of illness, I then decided to go on a diet, as I feel I have been sampling too many of my own recipes! I am actually still on this diet until Friday night, so I will give you a dish I made last week for The Bloke. 

Its definitely April showers here in London, and along with the rain, is cold. Salads are not really the time or the place. But a stew IS. So here I have made a Cajun Style Sausage Stew. I made loads so he could re-heat it on days where I was being all good. All he had to do was cook some orzo. Or rice would be good too! Or mashed buttery potatoes.

Ingredients:

6 large sausages
12 bacon wrapped chipolatas
1 tbsp. oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
1 chilli, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. chilli flakes
3 tbsp. flour
500ml chicken stock (cube is fine)
1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
400g tin chopped tomatoes
salt & pepper
spring onion, chopped, to serve


Method:

Set the oven to 200 C and put the large sausages in a large tray. Cook for 12 minutes. Then add the chipolata sausages and continue to cook both for a further 30 mins. Remove from oven and set to one side (on kitchen paper to drain any excess fat).

In a large pan, add the oil, onions and peppers. Cook for about 12-15mins until softened. Then add the chilli and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the paprika, thyme and chilli flakes and stir through. Now add the flour and cook for 1 minute while making sure the flour is coating everything.

Add the stock, about 100ml to start and mix well. Then add the remaining stock with the chopped tomatoes and season with salt & pepper. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Then add the sausages, half cover with a lid on simmer, and leave for about 20 minutes. The sauce will be thick and delicious, ready to be served with pasta (I used orzo), rice or mashed potatoes. Filling, comforting and very tasty! Garnish with a little chopped spring onion, if liked.

 

Note: This amount makes enough for about 6 servings

Sausage, Kale and White Bean Soup

Soup Saturday was back with a vengeance at the weekend. I actually had a few sausages leftover (uncooked) so I started with them. Thinking vaguely Italian.. I added a few other ingredients. Kale is becoming so popular now that I think I might have a go at growing some this year. Partially as I love it, but it also contains a plethora of vitamins and dietary minerals. So you can feel good about yourself!

Its still quite cold in April, so a good, chunky soup is a must. This one is lovely. Cannellini beans are best for this. I used black eye beans as they were all I had in the cupboard! They worked well but cannellini would be better.

Ingredients:

3 pork sausages, skin removed
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped finely
1 carrot, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large potato, peeled and chopped 1cm pieces
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. oregano
1.2 litres  chicken stock (cube is fine) 
400g tin white beans
100g kale, shredded

Method

In a large pan, add the oil and the onions and cook on a medium heat. As they are cooking, crumble in the sausage meat and cook until the sausage is no longer pink. Add the carrots, potatoes and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add the flour, with some salt, pepper and the oregano. Stir and let cook for a couple of minutes to cook out the flour.

Then add a little of the stock. Incorporate and then add the rest of the stock. Turn up the heat to boil and then leave to simmer for about 20 minutes.

Add the beans and kale and cook for a further 3 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning and add black pepper and salt as you like it.

Serve (if liked) with cheesy croutons on top. Delicious!

Sausage & Spinach Stuffed Pork Wellington

Well, its a bit like Pork Wellington, but instead of having the stuffing around the meat - its inside the meat. A very simple but impressive dish and so tasty! Just a few vegetables and some gravy and you have a delicious Sunday dinner!

Ingredients:          (Serves 4)

1 pork fillet (about 550g)
3 pork sausages (casing removed)
100g fresh spinach
handful pine nuts
1/4 tsp. black pepper
pack of ready rolled puff pastry
1 egg
10g butter
little oil


Method:

Put the spinach into a pan and put on a low heat with the lid on, stirring occasionally until wilted. Drain in a sieve and press out the water. Then chop and put into a bowl. Let cool. Add the sausage meat, pine nuts and pepper and mix well with a fork.

Set the oven to 170 C. Pat the pork fillet dry with kitchen paper and using a sharp knife, butterfly the fillet. To do this, you need to cut the fillet lengthways - but not all the way through. Open it like a book and do the same again to the thick pieces. So the pork is opened up. (If you feel like its not big enough, you can put between 2 pieces of cling film and gently hit with a rolling pin to flatten and spread out a little more).

Put the stuffing in the centre of the pork (lengthwise) and roll up. Tie with string to secure. Heat 10g butter and 1 tbsp. oil in a flameproof roasting tin and pop on the hob. Add the pork and fry each side to brown and then put in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven, cut off the string and leave to cool.

Open the pastry and lay the pork in the centre. Wrap the pastry around it and seal with a little beaten egg. Make leaf shapes from excess pastry and lay over the top. Brush with egg and cook at 200 C for 30 minutes.

Serve with gravy and veg of your choice. A delicious weekend treat!

Kazandibi (Turkish Milk Pudding)

I loved this recipe, as I am a huge fan of custard. And you can make this delicious custard type dessert either set (like this recipe) or hot and creamy as a standard sweet custard. And it contains NO eggs!! The main ingredients are cornflour, sugar, milk and vanilla. So simple too. It comes out a white, milky colour instead of the usual yellow custard which is a nice change.

I had this dessert at a Turkish restaurant called Otto in Wanstead in London and it was delicious, so I had to try it myself. Topped ( as they did) with cinnamon and served with ice cream, its so tasty.

I have added mastic, but this can be made just the same without, if you don't fancy it or can't find it in the shops. Mastic is a resin from the Greek mastic tree and adds a subtle pine flavour, which I particularly like. But you can just use vanilla extract if you choose.

Ingredients:

7 cups milk
3/4 cup cornflour
1/4 cup '00' pasta (fine) flour - you can also use rice flour
1 cup caster sugar + 3 tbsp. for caramel
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. vanilla.
pinch of mastic, crushed (optional)
cinnamon powder

Method:

Put one cup of the milk in with the cornflour and flour. Whisk well to remove any lumps. Set to one side.

Put the remaining 6 cups of milk into a saucepan and boil. When it gets to boiling add the sugar, vanilla and mastic if using. Turn the heat down to medium and cook through, stirring until its thickened. Pop on a lid and leave to cool for 15 mins or so.

Then get a flameproof 9 inch pan and add the butter, sugar and a splash of cold water. Turn up the heat and let the sugar caramelise. It should take about 5-7 minutes. When the caramel is medium brown, carefully add a ladleful and a half of the custard ( it will splutter a bit). Let this cook without stirring on a medium heat for a few minutes to become a crust. Turn off the heat and let it cool for about 10 minutes. Then ladle the remaining custard on top. Again, leave to cool completely and then put in the fridge for about 5-6 hours, or until completely set.

To serve, Cut a slice with a knife and using a palette knife, invert the slice crust side up onto a plate. Cover generously with cinnamon powder and serve with ice cream. Delicious!.