Mussels with leeks, dijon mustard and cider

I made these mussels for my dad a few weeks ago, he brought home some lovely mussels and I wanted to try something different with them. This is a great recipe with the sweetness of the leeks and the bold flavor of the dijon mustard. I would definitely recommend trying this one.

How to prepare mussels:

• Make sure they are fresh and eat them on the day you buy them.
• Throw away and mussels which are broken and ones which do not close if tapped or lightly squeezed.
• Do not soak the mussels in water as they will drown, give them a few rises instead to get rid of any dirt or grit.
• Clean the mussels under running water - take a knife and remove any barnacles from the outside shell, also pull out the 'beard' which is the fibers which emerge from the mussels shell (you can pull this out or cut it off with a knife).
• You can store them in a bowl under a damp cloth in the fridge until they are needed.

Serves: 2 as a main or 4 people as a starter

Ingredants:

• 1kg mussels
• A small knob of butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large or 2 medium leeks, finely sliced
• 200mls of cider
• 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 2–3 tablespoons double cream
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Chopped parsley

Recipe:

1. In a large saucepan melt the butter with the olive oil, add the leeks on a medium heat and allow to soften (not to colour as they will get bitter).
2. Turn up the heat then add in the cider and mussels and cook with the lid on for 2-3 minutes or until the mussels have opened up.
3. The stir in the cream, mustard and season with salt and pepper. Stir though some parsley and its ready to serve with crusty bread to mop up that great sauce.

Enjoy :) 

Marinated shark steaks

My dad loves fish and always goes to the market in Bury St Edmunds every Wednesday and Saturday to see what they have in. He brought some shark steaks last night so we tried them on the BBQ with this great marinade, you can also use this marinade for any fish or meat. The shark was lovely, a little like tuna but meatier. 

Ingredients:

• 2 Shark steaks
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice
• 1-2 cloves of minces garlic
• 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup of olive oil

Serves 2

Recipe:

1. Mix all of the marinade ingredients in a bowl, pour over the marinade and leave for 1-2 hours. You can leave it longer or over night if you had the time.
2. Cook on the BBQ or grill until the shark is cooked, this should take 10-15 minutes on the BBQ.

Serve with a fresh salad and enjoy!

Chorizo and broad bean bruschetta

I love broad beans and as they are in season right now I made this great bruschetta for dinner, its a really quick simple supper and its healthy too. Great also as a starter as a dinner party or a light lunch on a sunny day.

Ingredients:

• 150g broad beans
• 125g chorizo, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
• Ciabatta loaf
• Salt and pepper to season
• Parmesan to finish

Serves 2

Recipes:

1. Double pod the broad beans and set aside, for more information on how to do this see my last blog post.
2. In a frying pan cook the chorizo (you won't need to add any oil to the pan) and cook on a medium heat until it is crisp. Remove the chorizo and leave the oil in the pan.
3. Then add a little more olive oil to the chorizo oil and cook the onion for 10 minutes untill soft, then add the garlic for another 5 minutes. 
4. Add the broad beans and chorizo to the pan and warm through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Slice the ciabatta and toast.
6. On a plate add the toasted bread and pile with the broad bean mix, drizzle over olive oil and finish with a sprinkle of  parmesan.

Enjoy!

How to double pod broad beans

I love broad beans but some people don't, I think that is because most people don't double pod them! If you don't they just look grey and their grey skins are not very inviting. So give double podding a try, you can then use them in soups, pasta dishes and much more. My next blog post will be a  and broad bean bruschetta which is a great and healthy meal.

• First remove the beans from their pods.
• Put boiling water into a pan and boil the broad beans for 5 minutes, then drain.
• Place the beans into a bowl of cold water.
• Then you can just pop the beans out of their skins, out will come 2 halves of bright green broad beans.

Creamy bacon, mushroom and asparagus pasta

I made this recipes up last week after deciding I wanted a cream pasta for dinner but couldn't find any recipes which weren't too heavy. I love pasta, and this is such a quick and easy dish. You can swap the asparagus for peas or anything you like. Great served with some garlic bread.

Serves 2 (can easily be doubled up to serve 4 people)

Ingredients:

• Half a pack of smoked bacon chopped (you can use unsmoked if you prefer)
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 1 small glass of cider or white wine (if you prefer not to use wine or cider you can use a little chicken stock)
• Handful of chestnut mushrooms thinly sliced
• 125g asparagus sliced into inch long pieces
• 250g fresh pasta
• 142ml double cream
• Some fresh parmesan
• a small handful of parsley chopped

Recipe:

1. On a medium heat cook the bacon in a little oil until crisp and set aside.
2. Using the same oil you used to cook the bacon soften the onions for 10 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes until the garlic is just beginning to colour.
3. Add in the cider (of what ever you prefer) and allow for the alcohol to cook off (this should take 5-10 minutes).
4. Cook the asparagus for 3 minutes and set aside into a bowl of cold water.
5. To the sauce add the cream and mushrooms and allow to thicken for 5 minutes (do not cook for too long otherwise the sauce will split) then add in the asparagus so it can warm through. Season and add in the cooked bacon.
6. In the meantime cook the pasta as pre the packet instructions and drain.
7. Mix the pasta and sauce together and serve with parmesan and the parsley.

I hope you like this recipe as much as I did, please let me know your thoughts!

Vegetarian Cornish Pasties

Wikipedia states "Side-crimped pasties gave rise to the suggestion that the miner might have eaten the pasty holding the thick edge of pastry, which was later discarded, thereby ensuring that his dirty fingers (possibly including traces of arsenic) did not touch food or his mouth".


I made these for our Jubilee picnic and they were really tasty. They are great for picnic's, lunch or a quick snack. These pasties are filled with cheese, potato and Marmite which is a match made in heaven!


Ingredients:

• 500g potato, grated
• 200g mature grated cheddar
• 100g breadcrumbs
• 1 bunch of thinly sliced spring onions
• 2 eggs
• fresh chopped herbs
• 500g short crust pastry
• 2 tbsp Marmite

Recipe:

1. Mix the potato, cheese, breadcrumbs, spring onions and 1 egg in a bowl.Sprinkle over salt and pepper to taste and add in some fresh chopped herbs (use any you have, I used chives and parsley) and mix again.
2. roll out the pastry so it is just slightly thicker than a pound coin (3.5 mm). Cut the pastry into circles using a 16-17cm round plate as a template, you will probably have to re-roll the pastry a few times.
3. Warm the Marmite in a small pan with a splash of water so it is runny. Brush the pastry with the Marmite leaving a 2-3cm boarder.
4. Divide the fillings between the middles of each circles, then beat the left over egg and brush around the boarder of the pastry. Bring up the 2 sides and crimp - if you don't know how to just watch this video  http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/techniques/crimping_pasty .
5.  If you want to freeze the pastry to cook later just pop them on a tray in the freezer until hard, then put into a freezer bag until required.
6. Warm the over to 160°C and brush the pasties all over the beaten egg. Cook for 50 mins - 1 hour until golden brown.
7. Eat warm with brown sauce and lots of salad (or what ever you fancy!).

Coronation chicken sandwich

I love coronation chicken sandwiches so I had to make these for the Queens diamond jubilee picnic me and my family had! Perfect for lunch, in a picnic or no bread with lots of salad.

Ingredients:

• Poached chicken - 2 legs and 2 breasts (see my recipe for poaching) or any left over cooked chicken you have cut into chunks
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3 tablespoons Greek yoghurt
• 3 tablespoons mango chutney (to taste)
• 3 teaspoons mild curry powder
• Small bunch of coriander chopped
• Crusty bread

Serves 4 people

Recipe:

1.  Add the chicken, mayonnaise, yoghurt, and mango chutney to a mixing bowl and mix gently. Add the curry powder a little at a time to taste, then add the coriander. Give it one final mix and make into sandwiches.
2. There ready to eat! You can add in dried apricots and raisins if desired, I like my sandwiches with crisp lettice inside.