Coffee Honey Glazed Carrot Coins
Thursday, April 25, 2024These glossy carrot coins, flavoured with strong coffee, Kahlúa, honey, balsamic and chilli pepper flakes, and topped with a sprinkling of chopped mint leaves and toasted salted hazelnuts, are pretty enough for a special meal. Coffee and carrot-- an unexpected combination that works. The smokiness of the coffee works great with the sweetness of the carrots and honey, creating a spectacular side that goes great with burgers, casseroles or some grilled chicken. Use other herbs (parsley, dill or thyme) if you don't appreciate mint. You might need to keep an eye out for those big fat carrots for this recipe.
Roasted Red Onion Salad with Honey Pecans and Apple Vinaigrette
Sunday, April 07, 2024This is an utterly simple, yet quite unlike any other salad. The humble onion gets a makeover with honey glazed pecans and apple vinaigrette. I have roasted them in oven, but if you are blessed with a grill, then grill them on medium for 7-8 minutes until lightly softened and charred. The recipe works just as well with other types of onions, but red one looks prettier. Walnuts, hazelnuts or pine nuts are great substitutes for pecans. They are excellent with grilled fish, or kebab and flat bread.
Cumin and Fennel Hasselback Carrots
Saturday, March 16, 2024This healthy, budget-friendly carrot side dish, adapted from tesco, is fun to make and so flavourful with a lovely tender and sweet interior. They are one of the best side dishes to add on your dinner table and re-heat well too, so they're great for making ahead!
Upside-down Carrot Loaf with Honey and Fennel
Wednesday, March 06, 2024A fun twist to a classic pineapple upside down cake. Sweet, rich and delicious, the upside-down cake is one of the easiest cakes you can make. Honey caramelized carrots, Greek yoghurt and fennel seeds add sweet, unique flavour making this carrot loaf cake moist, yet light in texture. It tastes best when served warm with some sour cream and toasted fennel seeds.
Honey Harissa Carrots and Chickpeas with whipped Feta
Monday, February 05, 2024Delicious, harmoniously balanced spicy-sweet-smoky roasted carrots and chickpeas on a bed of creamy whipped feta and Greek yoghurt. This Middle-Eastern inspired, restaurant-worthy side dish is a real crowd-pleaser and a great option for last-minute entertaining. If you don’t have carrot tops for the salsa verde, simply use fresh parsley. Use rainbow carrots if you could find them. Great to serve with flatbreads to scoop up the feta sauce.
Wholegrain Quick Beer Bread with Greek Yoghurt and Honey
Friday, October 06, 2023A quick and simple recipe for wholemeal beer bread made from just a few of pantry ingredients. It does not require yeast or kneading. It's so delicious either plain or buttered. Good with soups, chilli or salads. Makes excellent toast too. Flavour of bread will change, depending on type of beer used. I used Pilsner, if you prefer a more robust, pronounced bread flavour, then use darker beer, like stouts and porters. Feel free to include some spices and herbs to the batter if desired.
Carnival Squash with Parmesan and Honeycomb
Friday, September 22, 2023A hybrid between sweet dumpling squash and the acorn squash, the carnival squash (or carnival pumpkin) is nutty and sweet in flavour. They are excellent in salads, soups, or roasted as a side dish. The skin of carnival squash is bright, has so many varied patterns and completely safe to consume.
Roasting brings out the best in this squash. And honeycomb and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano are just really special touches that take this autumn squash to the next level. This definitely deserves a place on your dinner table this season.
Bread Triangles with An Old Bread Soaker
Thursday, August 17, 2023An exceptional bread, made with sourdough, with a fresh, smooth and tender crumb and cracking crispy crust. Using old bread to make new bread is certainly nothing new. The practice of adding an “old bread soaker” to dough has been used in Europe, especially Germany, for hundreds of years.
A soaker is when an ingredient soaks in water for a period of time. The process lasts anywhere between 2 and 20 hours before adding to the dough. It enhances the flavour of the ingredients, prevents dry ingredients from soaking up water in the dough, and allows large grains to be used for making bread. Typical ingredients that are soaked include grains (cracked, whole, flour and flakes), seeds and many more. Here I am using old bread that has been diced and toasted. It’s a great use for leftovers from previous bread and also gives a depth of flavour to the new breads with a moist crumb and helps the water absorption of the dough and thus, improve the shelf-life of the bread.
An autolyse(oh-toe-lease), aka autolyze, autolysis, or dough autolysis, is the gentle mixing of the flour and water in a bread recipe, followed by a 20 to 60 minute rest period before adding other ingredients. This hydrates the flour, which encourages enzymes to begin gluten development. Salt can be added at autolyse, along with your sourdough starter. Autolyse hydrates the flour, which encourages enzymes to begin gluten development, which makes the dough less sticky and more workable. Besides that, the bread using autholyse will look nicer, taste beter and keep longer.
Apricot Salad with Roquefort and Honey Thyme Vinaigrette
Sunday, August 13, 2023This delightfuly and complex midsummer salad hits all the taste notes by using endive for the bitterness, tri-coloured lettuce for freshness, Roquefort, one of the most-prized French blue cheese for the saltiness, fersh apricots and honey for the sweetness and lemon for the tartness. Perfect to serve as a delicious meal or as a side dish. Roquefort, a world-famous blue cheese with pungent smell and a sharp tang, is traditionally made of sheep's milk. If you find this "King of Cheeses" is too strong for your taste, use other types of blue cheese or creamy tangy Lesbos Feta.
Icelandic Rye Bread
Thursday, July 20, 2023Icelandic rye bread, or rúgbrauð, a staple of Icelandic cuisine, is traditionally baked underground, buried in a bubbling geothermal pit for 24 hours. Since I don't have a hot spring in my back yard or live in a geothermal area, baking the bread in a simpler and more convenient modern oven is an ideal alternative way to get to taste this iconic Icelandic Rye Bread, which you would think it's healthy. Well, not this one as it contains a whole cup of honey and molasses in it, but it's DELICIOUS with a light caramel note and dense texture. Since it’s leavened with baking powder and baking soda, it’s very easy to throw together. This delicious traditional rye bread can be served in a variety of ways, topped with smoked fish / lamb, skyr, cheese or even just butter or simply with your favourite toppings. Store leftover bread tightly wrapped at room temperature for several days or up to 3 months in the freezer.
I adapted the recipe from King Arthur Baking, as 2-hr-baking time seems reasonable for me. Other recipes suggested baking at 100C/200F for 6 hours. Alternatively you can make this in a slow cooker, covered with aluminum foil, for 4 hours. I haven't tried it myself yet, so if you do please let me know how it turns out!
Walnut Boule with Wild Yeast Water
Thursday, June 08, 2023Rich, wholesome with roasted walnuts, combined with medium rye flour gives this rustic, hearty artisan boule a darker colour and more robust rye flavour. It's perfect for any sandwich or toasted and slathered with butter and honey for a deliciosu and fulfilling breakfast. The bread is naturally leavened with wild yeast water - the most organic, natural and fascinating way of leavening bread. The bread has a thin, super crispy crust that crackles in your hand with even a gentle squeeze and a soft open crumb with some nutty bites.