5 November 2017

Pasta that packs a punch.

I love pasta. It's the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. If I could have pasta for breakfast, lunch and dinner, every day, I would. And sometimes folks, I do.

Today I had pasta for brunch. I am a leeeeettle bit hungover and I just want carbs and I want them now. ASAP. So this dish is just perfect. It's fresh, it's fast, (f)uncomplicated (...) and FANTASTIC!!!!!!


Put your pasta on to boil.



Dice up your tomatoes real small and pop them in a bowl
Squeeze-in/chop your garlic
Grate your parmesan
Slice your basil

Lie on the floor for a little break because this manual labour is making you a bit nauseous but actually when your head hits the ground your world spins and you want it to swallow you so you just get back on with the pasta and hope that the carbs will soak up the hang.

Sprinkle in some salt
Drizzle some oil
Add a handful of rocket





When your pasta is done, mix it in with the goodies and TA DA the most diiivine, speediest (and most garlicy) pasta dish in the world.



INGREDIENTS

SERVES 1

  • pasta, as much as you can fit in your bowl
  • tomatoes, a handful
  • garlic, a clove, smashed
  • basil, a handful, sliced
  • parmesan, a lot, grated
  • rocket, a handful
  • oil, a generous and prolonged drizzle
  • salt, a hefty pinch

7 November 2016

SUNDAY BRUNCH IN BARNSBURY

I must admit today's post is a cop-out. It's a restaurant review.

I actually don't think I've cooked since my new course started in July. I can, however, not only recite to you every single dreary legal form you will ever encounter in your whole entire life, but I can also tell you what is on the top right corner of its fifteenth page and whether it is still legible through your tears (I kid, I kid).

It's been a dire few months but I've still managed to eat well, with great people. This is one of the occasions where I ate well but with awful people. Nightmare.

In pretty Barnsbury is a charming restaurant called Sunday. It is quite possibly the best brunch spot in the world.



Do not be put off by the enormous and daunting queue around the corner, it is 5,000% worth the wait. It's been blogged about left right and centre (the IndependentVogue, etc.) and is an instagrammer's dream.

The dishes are attractive, enormous and exquisite. The staff are friendly and super speedy. It's just lovely.







































Anyway enough talking. You'll have to wait long enough once you get outside.
Let's ogle some v instagrammable pictures of food.


These are the crispy courgette fritters with great hunks of halloumi, a generous portion of avocado, a poached egg, yogurt and dukkah (£11)...

This dish is the pulled pork waffle benedict, yuzu hollandaise and avocado (£12).

This is my personal fave even though I dessspise sweetcorn - you've got your chubby, fluffy corn fritters, great chunks of kiln-smoked salmon, half an avocado chopped in a v. aesthetically pleasing manner, a slice of tomato and a generous wallop of crème fraiche (£11.50)

A half portion of the fluffiest, yummiest buttermilk pancakes with berry compote, crispy bacon, maple syrpup and crunchy honeycomb butter to share cause what is brunch without pudding amiright!!?!? (£6)

And here are some old pics from the gazillion times I have frequented this delightful spot...

Eggs Benedict with ham hock... I've ordered these once and never again. They're usually my go-to at brunchtime and don't get me wrong they were dellllicious at Sunday but I think it's an amazing sign when each and every other brunch option is more exciting than this classic. GO SUNDAY!



This is the insane Brioche French toast, vanilla crème fraîche, banana and salted caramel (£10)
Pic speaks for itself.



More pancakes for good measure...





And this is another time I ate the corn fritters and really went for it on the saturation front.

There is also an extensive drinks menu and alcohol is served from 10.30am - haaaallo Aperol Spritz and Bloody Marys (.... sorry if my spelling is a little skewiff #omg #cuffme #drinkinglegend)

PS. My favourite thing to do when I'm at a restaurant, and something I encourage everyone to do if you aren't already, is to search the restaurant on Instagram, click on 'Places' and select the restaurant. That way you can stalk everyone else's pictures of their meals and choose one that will compliment your own feed and rake in the likes. But I'm warning you not to do this for Sunday on an empty stomach cause the hanger will be uncontrollable. 


This picture is just to prove that I have friends.

169 Hemingford Road, Islington, London
Closed Mondays, 8.30 - 6pm Tuesday to Friday, 9 - 6pm Saturday and Sunday

20 April 2016

Easy Peasy Lemon Gratey Springtime Pasta

Today I woke up and thought SPRING IS HERE. So, very unlike me I pulled on some sweats (and when I say sweats obv remained v glam in my pink leopard print sports top and pastel juicy shorts duh), rummaged under the stairs and found a leaf blower. I feel like this is the British version of a machine gun. Never have I felt more like a power-wielding absolute legend. I didn't manage to take a self-timer but trust me - I. looked. sick. Honestly, this could be the highlight of my 2016 so far.


But leaf-blowing / vacuuming ain't easy work. I'd say I worked off at least 3.5 nobbly bobbly's worth of cals, which is ideal, because I had two for breakfast. So in honour of (me deciding it's officially) springtime and my extreme morning manual labour, I found a way to make eating cheesy pasta feel fresh, light and perfect for ringing in this sweet springtide. 

It's also really easy and rather speedy. 

1. Boil some water
2. Slice half an onion into long thin strips
3. Melt a lil nub of Lurpak garlic butter (omg heaven cannot stop eating) in a pan
3. Add the onion slices and sweat 'em down till they are soft and caramelised

(Please note I said I found a way of making cheesy pasta feel fresh and light.) 

5. Put the pasta in the pan and cook away
6. Slice some tomatoes, ribbon (I am aware this is not a verb, hater) a courgette using a spiraliser (or a peeler if you are not an instagram fad follower) and chop up a handful of parsley

7.  When the onions are all scrumptious and caramelised...

8. ...Add some hunks of feta and cook on a low heat till it melts (that feta melts is possibly most certainly the best thing I have ever discovered)
9. Grate in the rind of a lemon
10. When the pasta is ready, drain it, reserving a little of the pasta water
11. Put the pasta back into the pan with the reserved water and add the melted feta-onion, parsley, tomatoes and courgette ribbons
12. Plate it up and grate on some parmesan 
13. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper 
13. Eat it in a garden that you have just hoovered apart from that one stinking stubborn leaf on the table that is making me so angry right now I can't even put it into words

You can totally sprinkle on some chilli flakes if you're feeling adventurous and maybe even a lil lemon juice while you're at it. But I couldn't be sacked and I enjoyed it anyway.

Also I have very much made up the ingredient quantities so taste as you go or you may end up with something entirely tasteless. Apologies :) 

SERVES (ME SO PROBABLY) 2 PEOPLE

INREDIENTES
  • half a white onion
  • a little chunk of garlic butter
  • 200g tagliatelle
  • a handful and a half of tomatoes
  • 1 courgette
  • a handful of parsley
  • 100g feta
  • 1 lemon, rind
  • a grating of parmesan
  • a pinch of salt and pepper



13 January 2016

Oriental Salmon with Cucumber Ribbons, Grated Carrot, Every Herb in the World and Avocado on Rice

Before you read about my tantalising tangy teriyaki salmon recipe I'd be super grateful if you could have a wee watch of Match4Lara's video and like the Facebook page. In December 2015 Lara was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia and now needs a stem cell transplant to save her life. Her Chinese-Thai/Italian heritage makes it extremely hard to find a stem cell donor as matching types are an inherited trait. Only 3% of donors on the public stem cell registries are of mixed race. You will probably have seen the campaign on the national and international news and all over Facebook! We can continue to help by sharing her story but most importantly, by joining a national bone marrow registry. Click here to see how you can sign up.

Thank you beautiful friends x

~~~

I've moved back home. The great thing about this is that all my meals are free, beyond delicious and cooked for me. The bad thing is I'm getting fat. Like pre-university two tonne tessie fat. My mum's cooking is better than anyone's in the world but we tend to eat towards midnight, are not illiberal with the butter/oil/cheese/naughtymeats/carbs and I have never been one to say no to seconds.

So, while she's away I've stolen my dad's card and have put us all on a mum-detox.

1. Pre-heat the oven

    I don't actually know how hot it should be because my oven is 25 years old and only has one 
    setting 

    Jamie Oliver says 200°c, 400°F, gas 6 

2. Place your salmon fillets skin-side down in foil on a baking tray and drizzle each with soy and
    teriyaki

3. Wrap the foil up tight and place the fillets in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes

4. Put the rice on to cook 

5. Grate your carrot and ribbon your cucumber
    I use the ribbon setting on my spiralizer. If you don't have one (pleb) you can use a vegetable 
    peeler to shave thin slices





6. Squeeze on the juice of a lime, lots and lots of soy and teriyaki, a few drops of mirin and fish sauce



7. Slice your spring onions all the way up the greens and roughly chop the coriander and mint

8. Mix in half of each and a handful of beansprouts



9. Drain the rice, rinse it with boiling water to get rid of the starch and lay it all out on a plate like so
   (absolutely stunning AMIRIGHT)



10. Layer on the veg and pour on the sauce so it seeps into the rice (YUMMO)


11. Place on the salmon fillets and drizzle over any juices





12. Cut up your avocado... better than I did



13. Use the remaining coriander, mint and spring onions to sprinkle over the top (/cover the
      monstrosity you have just created)



And serve (to your sister who is taking the detox seriously and is actually doing exercise. Hate.)








Don't mind my half eaten salmon... I forgot to snap a pic.


And there we have it. Simple to make. Leaves you feeling like a new person. Great for upping your inner glow, energy levels and bowel movements (hehe hope no-one read that but it's true).

SERVES 4

INGREDIENTS

Salmon
  • 4 salmon fillets
  • a drizzle of soy sauce
  • a drizzle of teriyaki sauce
Vegetable medley
  • 200g jasmine rice
  • 5 carrots, grated
  • 1 cucumber, ribboned
  • 1 lime
  • lots of soy sauce (probs like a quarter cup, mebe a third)
  • lots of teriyaki (same same)
  • a couple of drizzles of mirin (hehe v scientific)
  • 5 dashes of fish sauce
  • a handful of beansprouts
  • 3 spring onions, sliced
  • 1 avocado

11 January 2016

Garlic-oily parmesan-ladden basil-strewn antipasto pasta

HAPPY 2016 MY LITTLE SPRINKLETTES (all superstars have names for their fans, obv)

I'm sure you're all hitting the gym and eating healthily. Good for you. I'm certainly not. If you are, please do not continue reading this post. This recipe (/ list of ingredients you must chop and put in a bowl) is an India Lyons special and is simple, extremely moreish and utterly divine. One for the more gluttonous among us. A large bowl of garlicy oil covered vegetables, nutty parmesan, fresh basil and oodles of pasta.



I know I told you to stop reading if you are all "new year-new me" but I know you won't have because you are a total sprinklette and so, for you special people, I have used courgetti. It has nothing on pasta but this sauce is beyond scrumptious and could be paired with disgusting food like sweetcorn or cannellini beans and you'd still lick your bowl and want more.

1. If you are not afraid of gluten, start cooking your delectable spaghetti

2. Drain and chop your green olives

3. Chop all your anitpasto vegetables, conserving their oily goodness in your bowl



2. Chop the fresh tomatoes in quarters, chop half the basil and crush the garlic cloves into the veg

3. Season with salt, pepper and chilli flakes and stir everything up



4. Drain the pasta or prepare the courgetti (do a little courgetti willy dance) and stir through the vegetables

5. Plonk some basil leaves on the top, serve up and shave on copious amounts of parmesan

Happy eating,
B

SERVES 5

INGREDIENTS

  • 280g jar, mixed mushroom antipasto
  • 280g jar, sundried tomatoes
  • 280g jar, chargrilled peppers antipasto
  • 350g jar, green olives
  • 28g bag, fresh basil
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • a courgette each, or spaghetti 
  • a dash of salt, pepper and chilli flakes
  • a hefty sprinkling of parmesan
  • a handful of fresh baby plum tomatoes







14 September 2015

Chicken, Olive and Preserved Lemon Tagine

My sincerest apologies for once more plaguing your newsfeed with food. I gave you a break but now that I'm back to stuffing my face at home I'm once again justifying it by clogging your social media with pictures of my daily gluttony.



The best part about this meal that I chomped down is that not only did I not have to come up with it myself but I also didn't have to write it down. This is a mama Rachel recipe. If you know me well you will now read this post with care and then make it yourself because everyone knows she is the best cook in the world, truly second to none. You will also know that each evening she cooks enough for 1,000 people despite there only being 4 of us so take the quantities with a pinch of salt (not literally because we are a salt-obsessed household and any more salt than in this recipe will likely give you a heart attack).



I've written the methods for each dish separately but remember if you are going for the whole fanfare you must multitask and do the dishes simultaneously.

TAGINE

1. Finely dice a white onion and sauté it with some olive oil until soft and caramelised
top tip: if the onion starts to burn before it's soft, add a little water and keep them cooking




2. Add a chicken stock cube to 500ml of boiling water and stir until the cube is dissolved



3. Rachel says add a pinch of saffron. Set aside. I say I have neither the time nor the money to add saffron so I'm going to set this stage aside. Boo-ya.

4. Add the chicken to the onions and cook on both sides until browned



5. Chop up some coriander stems



7. Add the coriander stems to the pan with the crushed garlic, spices, stock and stir it up



8. Add 2 chopped preserved lemons, stir them in and put on the lid, leaving it to simmer



9. After 30 minutes add the olives and the two final chopped preserved lemons and simmer for 5 minutes more

10. Chop coriander leaves and sprinkle over

HERBY COUSCOUS

1. Cook the couscous according to the packet instructions
Giant couscous cooks differently from normal couscous - I tend to boil it for 6 minutes in a stock cube




2. For the dressing add all the ingredients to the processor and blitz



3. Drain the couscous and leave it to cool

4. Chop the tomatoes, cucumber (get rid of the wet centre), mint and parsley, the rest of the bag of baby spinach



5. When the couscous is cool, add the chopped veg and gently mix to combine




5. Garnish with a few whole mint leaves

QUICK HUMMUS

1. Add the garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and half the chickpeas to the processor and blend until all is smooth. Keep the tahini far, far away - in a cupboard, back on the supermarket shelf or for best results... in the bin.



3. Add the other half and pulse until roughly puréed

4. Tip onto a plate and garnish with a drizzle of oil and a sprinkle of parsley



TZATZIKI
It pains me to give you instructions for making this because this is a weekly source of contention between myself and my mother. I resolutely believe that there is nothing better than store-bought tzatziki and have to throw a toddler-like tantrum in the supermarket to compel her to buy it. In the same vein, she will throw a tantrum with me if it isn't included.

1. Grate the cucumber and place in a sieve lined with kitchen paper, gently squeeze to get out as much of the juice as possible and then leave to drain for 5 minutes

2. Drain water off the yogurt

3. Into a bowl add the yogurt, salt, chopped mint, crushed garlic and cucumber and stir it all together



HALLOUMI & BREAD

1. Slice up the halloumi and fry in a pan

2. Heat up the bread in the oven

Et voilà.






Although there are about 5,000 ingredients in this, I promise that it is worth it.

SERVES 1,000 (or 4)

INGREDIENTS

TAGINE
  • 1 white onion, finely chopped
  • Olive oil, a glug
  • 1 pinch saffron
  • 1 chicken stock cube or a teaspoon of chicken bouillon
  • 2 chicken breasts
  • 4 chicken thighs  (you could do all thighs or breasts if you preferred)
  • 1 X 28 g pack of fresh coriander (stems finely chopped and leaves) 
  • 4 cloves of garlic crushed
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon coriander
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • ¼ tsp ras al hanout (optional)
  • ¼ teaspoon sumac (optional) 
  • 4 preserved lemons, with the insides scraped out and chopped
  • A handful of green and black olives, stoned & rinsed 
HERBY COUS COUS
  • 200 Giant cous cous
  • 1 x chicken stock cube or a teaspoon of chicken bouillon
  • ½ cucumber, peeled and deseeded and chopped
  • 4 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 X bag baby spinach (add a handful to the dressing)
  • ½ pack mint 
  • ½ pack parsley, chopped (hold a few whole leaves back for garnish)
for the dressing
  • 2 spring onions
  • handful of baby spinach leaves 
  • leaves of 4 springs of mint
  • leaves of 4 springs of flat leaf parsley
  • juice of half a lemon
  • pinch of salt
HUMUS
  • 1 can chicken peas – drained and rinsed 
  • ½ lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed 
  • A pinch of salt
  • Parsley, to garnish
TZATZIKI
  • 2 Tablespoons o% greek yog
  • 2 Tablespoons o% regular fat-free yog
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cucumber grated and squeezed
  • 2 springs of mint leaves chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
HALLOUMI
TARAMASALATA
TZATZIKI
FLATBREAD