Month: November 2015

Simple Smokey Chicken Drumsticks & Coconut Curry

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A healthy and comforting mid-week meal that’s easy to rustle up on a cold winter evening. Chicken drumsticks are far cheaper than breasts but in my opinion have a much better flavour as the meat is cooked on the bone. When marinaded in warm, smokey spices then oven baked, chicken becomes beautifully soft and is perfect in the rich coconut sauce. This is one of my quick weeknight favourites, and I’m sure it’ll become one of yours too.  (Serves 4-5 people) Ingredients 8-10 chicken drumsticks For the chicken marinade 1 tbsp smoked paprika 1 tsp cayenne pepper 1 tbsp garam masala 1 tsp red chilli powder 20ml coconut oil For the coconut curry 2 banana shallots 1 inch piece root ginger 2 garlic clove 2 hot green chillies 1 tsp coconut oil ½ tsp turmeric 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tbsp garam masala 1 tin reduced fat coconut milk 1 small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped Method Mix together all the marinate ingredients in a large oven proof dish. Add the chicken legs and rub with …

Salted Peanut & Sesame Dark Chocolate Truffles

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All those toasted seeds and nuts give a roasted aroma and the perfect crunchy texture for smooth, buttery chocolate ganache. Although it might sound a bit strange sea salt heightens the wonderful deep flavour of dark chocolate. You cannot beat a good chocolate truffle and they always get demolished by my dinner party guests, even when they’ve just devoured a side splitting 3 courser – I believe everyone has that extra stomach reserved solely for chocolate. The other great thing about truffles is that they are really easy to rustle up. You can make them in advance and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to serve them. Serve with post meal coffee, a cup of masala chai, or a sweet dessert wine or dry sherry. Yum! Makes around 50 truffles For the truffles: 300g 70% dark chocolate 50g salted butter 300g double cream For the  coating: 6 tbsp sesame seeds 6 tbsp salted peanuts 1 1/2  tsp sea salt flakes Break up the chocolate into pieces, cut the butter into cubes and put both into …

Mango & Lime Lassi Possets

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My inspiration for this dish came from the delicious mango smoothies (lassis) you find all over India, freshly made on the roadside by wallahs who hand pick the sweet mangoes from the trees and hand squeeze them to a pulp. Over in India there are lots of different ways to prepare lassi; sweet, salted fruit based or yoghurt based- but they all contain lots of sweet spices. My favourite combination is mango with earthy cardamom and cinnamon, sharp lime and savoury, salted yoghurt. I’ve taken these key elements and come up with a set dessert for a perfect post spice sweet. It’s rich but still light, and not too sweet. Such a crowd pleaser! Serves 4 Ingredients 100ml mango pulp from a can (works just as well as fresh mango) 2 limes 150g soft light brown sugar 300ml double cream 200g full fat greek yoghurt a pinch of salt 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground cardamom a pinch of ground nutmeg a pinch of dried rose petals (optional) Add the zest and juice from both …

Halwa Spiced Carrot Cake with Condensed Milk Icing & Gold Leaf

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Styled and shot by Lauren Miller (www.laurenmiller.co.uk) (@millerisere) and Faye Wears (www.forksknivesblog.wordpress.com) (@forks_and_knives) Halwa is the most amazing Indian dessert – it’s a carrot-based, nut ridden version of our rice pudding made with loads of condensed milk, saffron, cardamom and golden sultanas. I thought how amazing it would be to have all of the flavours that make halwa taste so fab baked into a  light, spongy carrot cake. So I tried it. And it worked a dream! My fool proof carrot cake recipe has taken many forms in my kitchen (usually depending on what dried fruit and nuts I have in my cupboards) but this version is very special. It has a bold, aromatic taste that works really well with sweet carrots and orange zest. If you can’t get hold of cardamom powder, you can use ground cinnamon or allspice instead. Condensed milk is an essential ingredient in halwa, and here it gives a lovely shine and gooey texture to the icing, which trickles beautifully down the sides of the cake. It’s a perfect wintery treat Ingredients For the …

Turmeric Glazed Pulled Lamb Samosas & Green Chutney

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Styled and shot by Lauren Miller (www.laurenmiller.co.uk) (@millerisere) and Faye Wears (www.forksknivesblog.wordpress.com) (@forks_and_knives) Say goodbye to deep fried soggy samosas this Diwali! My lamb samosas are baked instead of deep fried and are made using filo pastry, creating a perfectly light, crispy case for the juicy, slow cooked lamb shoulder inside. An egg wash mixed with turmeric is a great way to achieve a fantastic bright yellow finish to these samosas, as well as making the pastry extra crispy when you tuck in. Green chutney is the perfect dip – crammed with fresh herbs, chillies and zingy lime! (Makes 12 samosas) 400g lamb shoulder, diced 5 tbsp yoghurt 3 shallots, peeled 3 garlic cloves, peeled  3 inch piece of ginger, peeled  2 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp turmeric 1 tsp garam masala ½ tsp red chilli powder 3 tbsp groundnut oil 1 lamb stock cube 1 large onion, peeled and really thinly sliced 1 small bunch of coriander, finely chopped 12 sheets of filo pastry 3 tbsp oil, for brushing 1 large egg 1 tsp …

10 minute flatbreads with smoked salt, hazelnut dukkah & ghee – a Diwali celebration recipe

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All photographs styled and shot by Lauren Miller (www.laurenmiller.co.uk) (@millerisere) and Faye Wears (www.forksknivesblog.wordpress.com) (@forks_and_knives) It’s Diwali time! The Indian festival of lights takes place this Wednesday 11th November and I just can’t wait. I have been busy creating some delicious recipes inspired by the rainbow of colours and flavours that Indian food has to offer. These dishes are perfect for a celebration with friends and family and are all really quick and simple to prepare. I first came across dukkah whilst in Egypt with my family. We could smell it as we walked into the restaurant. You tear off a chunk of warm freshly baked flatbread, dunk it in quality olive oil and then into this amazing blend of roasted nuts, spices and herbs and devour. It is such a simple but fabulously tasty dish to plonk in the middle of the table over drinks and chats. So, I have adapted this great dish that I first tried in Egypt and given it an Indian twist. The great thing about dukkah is that you can put …