Greek Pastitsada

This rich and hearty chicken in tomato sauce served over spaghetti has became a real favourite of late. 

It's not authentic in recipe I'm sure, but is absolutely my interpretation of this Greek classic that I've only ever enjoyed on the islands of Corfu and Kefalonia - the Ionian Islands. 

Aside from frying off the chicken, I make this in the slow cooker too and the slow cooking really improves the depth of flavour and makes the house smell great too - win, win. The below serves four.

Here's how:

• x6 Chicken Thighs
• x1 tin chopped tomatoes
• x1 onion
• 2 tbsp capers
• Handful green olives
• x2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2tbsp tomato puree
• 1 glass of red wine (I use whatever is open, and worst case white wine works too)
• Fresh rosemary needles 
• Chicken Stock Cube or Stock Pot
• Salt and black pepper
• Spaghetti

Firstly season the chicken well and then fry off in a pan with a little hot oil until the skin side is crisp and brown then add to the slow cooker.

Dice the onion and mince the garlic and add to the slow cooker. 

Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, red wine, capers, cinnamon and add to the slow cooker. 

Slice the green olives and add with the chicken stock cube (but no excess liquid to make up stock). 

Season the dish then stir to mix everything together, add the Rosemary needles then pop onto to cook for 2 hours on the high setting or four hours on the low setting. 

When getting ready to serve, cook the spaghetti or any pasta you prefer to al dente. 

I like to remove the chicken thighs, and set aside at this point. Then before draining the pasta, I  add 1 tbsp of the cooking water to the Pastitsada dish to loosen, then add the drained pasta directly into the Pastitsada sauce and mix well until every strand is well coated. 

Then I dish up the pasta first, and add a piece of chicken (or two for hungry people) on top of the pasta. Enjoy!

Other Greek inspired dishes you may enjoy:

• Prawn Saganaki
• Lamb Kleftiko 
• Moussaka 
• Chicken Souvlaki
• Greek Stuffed Tomatoes
• Pastitsio
• Beef Stamna
• Soutzoukakia
• Spanokopita

Quick Prawn Tacos with Pineapple Salsa & Guacamole

Tacos are a family favourite around here with absolutely ANY filling but these prawn ones with zingy pineapple salsa and guacamole make for a really fresh and tasty change.

They are quick and simple to prepare so ideal for a midweek meal when there's less time. The below serves four and the salsa and guacamole can last in the fridge for a few days - but I doubt it'll last that long.

Quick Prawn Tacos with Pineapple Salsa & Guacamole

Here's how:

For the prawns:

• 350g king prawns
• Zest & juice of x1 lime
• x1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp hot paprika
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp honey
• Pinch salt and black pepper

Pineapple Salsa:

• 60g pineapple (fresh, frozen or tinned works)
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 large red chilli
• big handful coriander

Guacamole:

• 1-2 ripe avocados
• 1 red onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tomato
• handful coriander
• Salt
• Juice of x1 lime

x8 Mini tortilla wraps

Firstly marinate the prawns in all of the above ingredients in a bowl and set aside for ten minutes whilst you prepare the salsa and the guacamole.

For the salsa, I simply add all of the ingredients to my Nutribullet and blitz for a thin salsa. If you prefer a chunkier consistency you could just chop everything or grind in a pestle and mortar. 

For the guacamole, the avocados are added to a mortar (or just use a hardy bowl) and add a generous pinch of sea salt and the lime juice. Dice the tomato into small chunks and finely dice the red onion and add to the mortar. Mince in the garlic and then roughly chop the coriander before adding both to the mortar then grinding with the pestle. I like a thick and chunky consistency for guacamole so only do to combine everything, but if you prefer smooth just do for longer. You can do with a fork and bowl too if you don't have a pestle and mortar.

Now in a pan add a drizzle of oil (olive, vegetable, rapeseed works well) and add the marinated prawns. Cook for approximately one minute on each side or until pink all over and remove from the pan. It's really easy for prawns for overcook so as soon as they're pink get them out of there to avoid rubbery overcooked prawns!

The tortilla wraps, I like to warm in the microwave for 30 seconds, then place each one into a toast rack (or you can place folder over a sauce bottle) for a minute to get the 'taco' style shape. 

Then pop onto a plate and load up with the prawns and serve your salsa and guacamole on the side or over the top. Enjoy!

Over Tex Mex style recipes I have shared include:

• Lamb Tacos
• Speedy Chorizo Nachos
• Prawn & Chorizo Jambalaya 
• Spicy Beef Quesadillas with Avocado Salad
• Easy Salmon Tacos
• Slow Cooked Mexican Beef

Turkish Eggs

Turkish Eggs is a really lovely brunch or breakfast dish which is especially good after a night of over indulgence as it has a fiery kick to it. 

The below serves 2:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 red onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 large tomato
• 1 tsp pul biber
• 1 tbsp tatli (red pepper paste) - you can use tomato puree here if you're unable to find Tatli
• 4 tbsp fat free yoghurt
• 3-4 eggs
• 1 lemon
• Handful dill fronds

Boil a full kettle of water for the eggs and yoghurt. 

To make the sauce, finely dice the onion, garlic and tomato and saute in the olive oil on a medium heat until beginning to soften, then add the pul biber and tatli and season well with a pinch of salt and a generous amount of black pepper and allow to cook down for 15 minutes. 

Place the yoghurt into a bowl and place over a small pan of just boiled water to warm through, and stir. 

For perfectly poached eggs, I use the same method every time which results in a runny yolk - although not perfect rounds, we don't mind it rustic around here. Place just boiled water in a saucepan, add a pinch of salt and a drop of white wine vinegar and use a spoon to make the water swirl a little before cracking in each egg and cooking for exactly 3.5 minutes. 

To gently remove the eggs once cooked, I use a slotted spoon and place onto a plate with some kitchen towel or a clean tea towel to remove any excess moisture. 

Now spread the sauce over a plate or a bowl, add half of the yoghurt to each, right in the centre, then the poached eggs. Scatter over some dill fronds and squeeze over the lemon juice. 

Finish with a few more pul biber flakes and serve with some crusty bread or a slice of toast. Enjoy!

For some more brunch inspo I've included some favourites below:

Shakshuka

Smoky Sausage and Bean One Pot

Tomato and Feta Baked Eggs

Smoky Chorizo Beans on Toast

Pancakes

Salmon & Dill Pancakes

Yoghurt Berry Pancakes

Creamy Mushrooms on Toast

Chicken Shish Stuffed Peppers

These delicious stuffed peppers are a hearty and healthy family meal especially when served with a big salad and if you wish some flatbreads and dip, such as Cacik, Tzatziki and Spicy Salsa.

If you are looking for a vegetarian alternative you could replace the marinated chicken with cubed courgette and aubergine and reduce the cooking time a little too. 

The below serves a family of 4 with a salad, breads and dip.

Chicken Shish Stuffed Peppers

Here's how:

• 3 chicken breasts
• 4 bell peppers (any colour)
• 1 red onion
• 100g green olives
• 2 cloves garlic
• Olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp pul biber 
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2 tbsp tatli (you can use harissa here or tomato puree if you can't source)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tin of tomatoes 
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 packet of microwave rice 
• Handful dill 
• 1 ball of mozarella
• Salt
• Black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees.

Firstly cube the chicken, place into a large bowl with 1/2 tbsp olive oil and add the cumin, pul biber, cinnamon and paprika, the juice of one lemon and 1 tbsp of the tatli (or harissa or tomato puree). Give it a mix and allow it to marinate while you prepare everything else.

Now finely dice the red onion and mince the garlic and add to a pan with a 1 tbsp of olive oil.

Roughly chop the green olives and add to the pan - this with the garlic and onions will provide the base for your sauce. 

Whilst that is softening, cut the peppers in half and remove any seeds or membrane and place into a baking tin, cavity side up and set aside.

Once the onions, garlic and olives have softened, add the marinated chicken to the mix and allow to sear on all sides. 

Once you can no longer see pink flesh, add the chopped tomatoes, the additional tbsp of tatli (or alternative), the honey and season generously. 

Leave on a low-to medium heat for fifteen minutes or until the sauce has begun to thicken. 

Now remove from the heat and add in the microwave (or other cooked) rice and the dill and give it a good stir.

Now spoon the mixture generously into the halved peppers, they should be just overflowing. 

Cover the dish with the peppers in foil and place into the oven for 35 minutes. 

Take the baking dish out of the oven, remove the foil and pull the mozarella into slices and add a little to each pepper. Return to the oven for five minutes or until the cheese has melted. 

Remove from the oven and allow to stand for a few minutes then dish up. Enjoy!

If you love Turkish-inspired recipes, you will love the below:

Lamb Shish Kebabs

Adana Kebabs

Healthy Chicken Shish

Mini Turkey Koftes

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus and Cacik Dips

Beef Kofte

Harissa Chicken Kebabs

Forrero Rocher Slow Cooker Fudge

This is a delicious and super easy fudge recipe perfect for a festive treat. 

I recently discovered the lovely Donna of What The Redhead Said's incredible collection of Slow Cooker Fudge recipes which have been frankly addictive. 

Donna is the Queen of fudge and I implore you to check out her wide range of recipes; my favourites so far from her have been the Terry's Chocolate Orange Fudge (winning festive combo) and the Mint Aero Fudge (although I used the cheaper Lidl Aero imitation and it was fab). She has a list of at least 30 different recipes and I will be working my through but in the meantime I wanted to share this Forrero Rocher Slow Cooker Fudge recipe which has taken full inspiration from Donna in basis and method and was made for my good friend Steph who loves the gold wrapped chocolates. 

It was an experiment with a very happy ending and I can admit that the entire portion was devoured this weekend and a request for more has been put in. 

Forrero Rocher Cooker Fudge

Here's how:

• 300g Forrero Rocher
• 200g milk chocolate (I used Dairy Milk)
• 1 tin condensed Milk

Break up the milk chocolate and add to your slow cooker. 

Open the tin of condensed milk and add to the slow cooker, scraping out everything. 

Take 200g of the Forrero Rocher and cut in half and add to the slow cooker. Leave the other 100g set aside, you can cut these in half too. 

Keep the lid off of the slow cooker and put onto the highest heat and set a timer for ten minutes, at which point you should give a good stir, then repeat until the fudge has been cooking for 40 minutes. 

Line a baking tin with some greaseproof paper or clingfilm, then spoon the fudge into the dish until it's covered and fairly even. 

Add the remaining Forrero Rocher and dot all about the tin to decorate. Allow to cool then place into the fridge for at least a couple of hours. 

Remove from the fridge and use a sharp knife to cut into cubes and portion up. Enjoy! 

Arrabiata Soup

This is a really simple lift from my tried and tested Roasted Tomato and Basil Soup which is made embarrassingly often in our house.

The 'arrabiata' or angry element is the addition of fantastic fiery red chilli which makes for a warming, delicious soup ideal for a winter's day. You can remove the seeds of the chilli to reduce the heat but we prefer it hot!

The below makes enough for x2 large portions. 

Arrabiata Soup

Here's how:

• 500g tomatoes (can also use x1 tin chopped tomatoes)
• 1 red onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 large carrot
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 large red jalopeno chilli
• 800ml vegetable stock
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Black Pepper
• Basil stalks

To garnish:

• Grana Padana (or any other hard cheese)
• Basil leaves
• Black pepper

To begin whack the oven on at it's highest temperature. 

Halve the tomatoes and the red onion, peel the garlic cloves and place all on a baking sheet. Season and drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil then place into the oven on the high heat for 20 minutes or until everything is just charred (blackened) a little.

In the meantime, drizzle a little olive oil into a saucepan and place on a low heat.

Dice the carrot, slice the celery and the red chilli and add to the saucepan and allow to gently soften down - this is the base for your soup.

Once the tomatoes, onion and garlic are softened, add to the saucepan with a few basil stalks and pour over the vegetable stock. Season well and allow to cook for twenty minutes.

Remove from the heat, allow to cool right down then blitz until smooth. 

When wanting to serve, return to the heat and bring up to temperature slowly. 

Ladle into bowls and then if you like to, garnish with slithers of Grana Padana (I use a vegetable peeler for this) and a few basil leaves and season with a final flourish of black pepper. Enjoy!

Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

I have been making these for over 10 years and they are absolutely moreish as they are but I think they are greatly improved by dipping into milk or dark chocolate for a final delicious flavour hit that makes them an unbeatable biscuit. 

I vary between milk and dark chocolate depending on the audience. These ones have been made specifically for my girls, Bridget and Beatrice who love the creamy milk chocolate but if I was making for me, I'd be sure to dip in a good quality dark chocolate and then would sprinkle over some sea salt flakes too.

This makes about 25-28 biscuits and they keep for up to a week in a sealed container, but I bet they don't last that long.

Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

Here's how:

• 85g crunchy peanut butter
• 130g salted butter (room temperature)
• 165g demerara sugar
• 1 egg
• 225g plain flour, sifted
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 75g peanuts (you want the plain ones not salted or dry roasted)
• 100g milk chocolate

Firstly pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees and line two large baking trays with greaseproof paper.

On a chopping board, take the peanuts and use a large knife to roughly chop then set aside.

In a mixing bowl, add the peanut butter and place into the microwave for 20-30 seconds, until it has softened a little. 

Now add to the mixing bowl, the demerara sugar, butter and egg and cream together. 

Now add the plain flour and baking powder and mix together until you have a good biscuit dough.

Finally add the chopped nuts and mix through.

With clean hands, take a small section of the dough, about a teaspoon fall, and roll into a small ball in your hands, then place onto the baking sheet and repeat. Leave a few cm between each ball. 

Place into the hot oven for exactly 12 minutes, or until golden brown then remove from the oven and carefully transfer each biscuit or cookie onto a wire rack to cool fully. 

You will have to do two batches to get them all cooked but please note you can of course freeze half the mixture until next time once rolled into the balls - they will take a little extra cooking time from frozen though. 

Once the biscuits are cooled, melt the 100g milk chocolate, or dark if you prefer. 

Gently dip each biscuit into the chocolate, covering one half of the top of the biscuit then return to the wire rack to allow the biscuits to cool. Enjoy!

If like me, you love a cookie or a biscuit, here are a few more of our favourites:

• Chocolate Chunk Cookies
• White Chocolate & Cranberry Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies
• Chocolate Hobnobs
• Monte Carlos Biscuits
• Mini Eggs Cookies