Pina Colada Smoothie

“But Where’s The Rum?”

The Pina Colada is one of the best cocktails ever made.  It is a beautiful drink and relieves stress better than most over the counter medications.  Even this version, which does not have alcohol.  This may not be a real pina colada because there is no rum, however the coconut and fresh pineapples maintain the dreaminess of the original version.  Rum is good in moderation but pineapple and cream is fantastic in large gulps.  Also this is a great drink for Baby Showers.  No one is taking away my go to drinks when I start a family.  LOl.

This recipe was taken from Levi Roots’ Sweet (Octopus Publishing Group Ltd, 2012).

Ingredients:

400g fresh pineapple, 200g coconut cream, 200ml pineapple juice, 50g Greek yoghurt, juice of 1/2 lime, 4 tbsps demerara sugar. (Levi also recommends crushed ice to serve but it was still quite chilly the day I made this)

Method:

1. Whizz all of the ingredients in a large blender.
2. Scrap out the remaining smoothie with a spoon and lick off your fingers.
3. Enjoy and don’t worry ’bout a thing.

Sweet potato and chickpea curry

Sweet Coconut

My go to curries usually feature coconut, I love sweet curries especially on fragrant rice or with a herbed naan.  I will never forget the first curry I ever made from a student cookbook,  looking back I realise how far I have come and how confident I have grown in the kitchen.  I am more willing to explore new flavours and go completely out of my comfort zone.   I found an Indonesian based curry paste in a local supermarket and decided to try it with an Indonesian curry recipe I found in one of my student cook books.  I do not have a great deal of experience with curries in terms of cooking but when my taste buds are excited that’s enough for me to recognise good food.

Ingredients:

Indonesian Based Curry Paste, 2 tbsp oil, 600g sweet sweet potato (peeled and cut), 125ml vegetable stock, 300g tinned chickpeas (rinsed and drained), 400ml coconut cream, 1/4 tsp sugar.

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan.
2. Add the curry paste and cook stirring for 5 minutes until fragrant.
3. Add the onion and cook for a further 5 minutes until softened.
4. Add the sweet potato and stock cook for 10 minutes or until the sweet potato is almost cooked through.
5. Add more stock if required.
6. Add the chickpeas, coconut cream, sugar and salt for seasoning.
7. Bring to the boil stirring constantly then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
8. When the sauce has thickened serve with chosen side.

 

Three Bean Chilli topped with Sweet Potato

Low on Equipment

I remember when I first started cooking I didn’t have many utensils, at least not as much as I do now.  A few pans and one big oven dish.  Learning how to make the most of having very little is an important life skill and this dinner really reminds me of that.  This is a healthy, tasty, frugal and easy meal to make with only a few pieces of kitchen equipment. The sweet potato topping also means your carbohydrates for the night are sorted.  Don’t be put off by the amount of ingredients, just think of it as extra flavour and enough to

This recipe was adapted from The Really Useful Student Cookbook (Murdoch Books UK Ltd, 2000).

Ingredients:

110g dried black beans, 1 tbsp oil, 1/2 large onion (finely chopped), 1 garlic clove (crushed), 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp ground coriander, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 200g chopped tomatoes, 180ml vegetable stock, 200g chickpeas (rinsed and drained), 200g red kidney beans (rinsed and drained), 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1/2 tbsp sugar, 2 large sweet potatoes (boiled, skinned and mushed), 30g cheddar cheese, a handful of cherry tomatoes.

Method:

1. Place the black beans in a large pan and cover with water.
2. Bring the beans to the boil and set aside for two hours.
3. Drain the beans and cover with fresh water.
4. Boil for one more hour until the beans are tender and not mushy.  (It’s a long process but if you want it done right then just trust me.)
5. Drain the beans.
6. Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onion on the medium heat stirring for 5 minutes.
7. Reduce the heat and then add the garlic and spices.
8. Add the tomatoes, stock, chickpeas, kidney beans and black beans and combine with the onion mixture.
9. Bring to the boil then simmer for 20 minutes stirring occasionally.
10. Add the tomato paste, sugar and salt and pepper to taste.
11. Leave half for another day and place the other half in an oven dish.
12. Top the chilli with the sweet potato cheese and tomatoes.
13. Heat in the oven until the cheese has melted.

Cute Turkey Burgers

Yam Chips

A few years ago a good friend of mine introduced me to frying yams for a snack.  They were tasteless.  I was so frustrated that such an important vegetable could taste so disgusting.  Unfortunately I forgot about blandness when I served the yam chips with this delicious burger,  a perfect lesson and reminder that a little flavour goes a long way.  Only a little seasoning is needed for the burgers and although the burgers are fried the amount of sugars and fats are severely reduced so served with yam chips/ fries the meal is healthier and cheaper than a standard fast food outlet menu.

This recipe was taken from The Burger (Parragon Books, 2012).

Ingredients:

350g fresh turkey mince, 4 tbsps wholemeal breadcrumbs, 1 red onion (finely chopped), 1 apple (peeled and diced), 2 tbsps finely chopped fresh parsley, sunflower oil (for frying), salt and pepper, burger buns.

Method:

1. Place all the ingredients apart from the buns and oil in a large mixing bowl.
2. Form together into patties.
3. Fry in a grill pan, if there are any traces of pink place in a grill until well done.
4. Place in burger buns with sauces and sides of choice.

Saffy’s Filling Condiments:

• Avocado
• Red Onions
• Sweet Relish
• Peri Sauce
• Mayonnaise
• Apple Chutney

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sweet You

I have been writing a lot of poetry lately and one poem was based on self empowerment and exploring the sweetness that transcends between performer to the audience.  Art is for sharing and we all know that sharing is caring.  I think that cooks are like performers in this respect by giving sweetness to their guests.  Nigella Lawson is definitely well known for her homely comforting sweet treats, so I didn’t need to think twice about choosing her chocolate chip cookies.  The cookies taste best warm so don’t take too long to eat them.

This recipe was taken from Nigella Lawson’s Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the heart of the home (Chatto & Windus, 2014).

Ingredients:

150g soft unsalted butter, 125g soft light brown sugar, 100g caster sugar, 2 tsps vanilla extract, 1 egg, 300g flour, 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 326g chocolate chips.

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees C.
2. Beat the sugars and butter together.
3. Beat in the vanilla and egg until the mixture is creamy.
4. Slowly mix in the flour and bicarbnate of soda and then fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Shape the cookies and place on a baking tray with a baking sheet.
6. Bake for 15 – 17 minutes.
7. Cool on a baking sheet for 5 minutes on a wire rack after baking.