Chicken and Mushroom Strogonoff (with a fresh mint touch)

Ingredients for the Recipe: (enough for 2)

• 2 chicken thighs (cut into small cubes)
• 200 grams of whole fresh mushrooms
• 1 and 1 / 2 cup of rice pilau
• 1 garlic clove, (finely chopped)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 / 2 cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons of "creme fraiche"
• 2 tbsp chilli oil
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of "chives" baby spring onion chopped baby 
• 1 / 4 cup of water with a teaspoon of Gravy (if you have no gravy, use the same amount of water with a tablespoon of plain flour ½ cube of meat stock) 
• Salt and mint leaves to taste

The preparation of this tested delicacy is very quick, it only needs a pan to cook the rice for about 12 minutes containing only salt and water, plus you will need a frying pan.
Place a tablespoon of olive oil in the frying pan until very hot. Once hot, add the garlic, the bay leaf and a pinch of salt, and stir-fry the garlic (which is pretty fast) adding the chopped chicken once the garlic is golden, stir regularly with a wooden spoon so that the chicken can be sealed all-over,  let the chicken gain a little colour, and at this stage add the wine, the chilli oil and the fresh mushrooms.

Continue stirring frequently for about 3-4 minutes, add the crème fraiche and a quarter cup of water with "gravy powder" (if you have no gravy use a quarter cup of water with half a cube of bouillon and a teaspoon of plain flour diluted, it will form a thick liquid "not too thick though" . 

Once it reaches boiling again, reduce heat and simmer it for 10 to 15 minutes. In the last five minutes add the chopped chives.
Serve and garnish with mint, which is also to eat as is super delicious and compliments the dish. If you fancy something more exotic arrange more chopped mint and use it instead of chopped chives. 

 YUM YUM! must try.

Drunk Duck with Chorizo With Herbed Oven Backed Potatoes and Veg

One more of my personal recipes, that is easy to make yet healthy and as always it has been tried and tested by me and my family, in order to guarantee a successful meal for you.

For this you will need: (for 4 people)

4 Duck full legs (drum and thigh)

5 Large potatoes (cut into eight parts length ways to form wedges)

4 Large carrots (peeled and sliced)

3 Garlic cloves (2 sliced, 1 minced)

2 large brocolli heads (cut into pieces)

20 slices of spicy chorizo (Portuguese or Spanish)

2 soup spoons of butter

1 lemmon (juice)

1 bunch fresh parsley (chopped)

1 Glass of white wine (cheap one will do, or even some old beer)

Salt, pepper, bay-leaves, olive oil and chilli powder (to taste)

To prepare this delicious meal, you place the duck in a container after making some insisions into the skin (see photo). Over it you poor the wine (or beer) and sprinkle it with some rock salt some pepper, a couple of bay leaves and some chilli powder. Place it in the fridge and let it marinade for two hours or more (as the more the better).

Later when you ready to make the meal take the duck out of the marinade and prepare it to go in the oven by inserting in the incisions a couple of slithers of garlic, a piece of bay-leaf and a slice of chorizo (each leg should have about 5 of these incisions), once done powder it with some chilli powder (or smoked paprika if you don't like it hot) another sprinkle of salt and black peper place in a tray (pyrex dish will do) and pour the marinade liquid around it. Place it in the oven which should have been preheated to 180/190 degrees Celsius, set it for 20 minutes.

After the 20 minutes have passed remove the duck from the oven and from the tray, and put the liquid marinade into a container place a wire rack into the pyrex and put back the duck on top of it basting it with some of the liquid marinade, and placing it in the oven for a further 30 (in which for each five minutes you baste them again). Simultaneously put the wedges in a bowl sprinkle it with rock salt, dried parsley, half of the lemon juice, chilli powder, the minced garlic and a bout 3 soup spoons of olive oil....toss these well together place them in a baking tray and place it in the oven with the chicken.

After 10 minutes, of the second oven stage of the duck place the carrots and the brocolli (in pieces) in a pan add about 1 glass of water cover it with a lid and place it on the stove on a medium to low heat once the water boiled.

It will all now be ready at the same time so all you need to do is dish it all together, in bain Marie melt the butter add the other half lemon juice and some fresh chopped parsley to pour over the veg (alternatively you can make a thick bechamel sauce, and pour this over the veg). How easy was that a meal, all in all 50 minutes from beginning to end.

Delicious Mushrooms Stew with Chickpeas and Quorn

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 4)

    * 1 pack of Quorn "pieces" (or soy) about 250 to 300grs
    * 200grs squash pumpkin (peeled and cut into cubes)
    * 1 can of chopped tomatoes (or fresh peeled tomatoes 400grs chopped)
    * 2 medium sweet potatoes (peeled and diced)
    * 2 red-skinned potatoes (peeled and diced)
    * 8 medium mushrooms (cut in quarters)
    * 1 can of beans (rinsed and drained)
    * 2 large carrots (peeled and cut into pieces)
    * 1 large onion (chopped)
    * A small turnip (peeled and cut in cubes)
    * 1 / 2 teaspoon turmeric
    * 1 red pepper (chopped)
    * 3 garlics (chopped)
    * A bunch of parsley (chopped, reserve some leafs for presentation)
    * Salt, pepper, and olive oil "sufficient"

How to prepare:

Place in a pan (on medium) a little olive oil + salt + pepper. Once hot, add the garlic, onion and carrot, stirring regularly until it starts going golden. At this stage add the can of chopped tomatoes, and as soon as they start to boil add the potatoes (both kinds), the turnip, pumpkin, beans, Quorn, turmeric and red pepper.

Place a lid not fully covered and cook covered over low heat for about a minimum 30 minutes, taste to see if this as you like and add to taste the salt pepper, as well as the mushrooms and cook another 4 minutes. Finally add the parsley and cook for another 1-2 minutes. 

Then you only need to serve and decorate the dish, when I tried this recipe I decided that it would be very good served with a nice  cold Rose Wine, or  a good sparkling white. Kisses and bon apetit! ...

Chocolate Cheese Cake

Ingredients for Recipe:

• 1 bar of dark chocolate, around 150grs (cocoa, min 50% max 65%)
• 250grs of whipping cream.
• 250grs of Mascarpone cheese.
• 70grs + 50grs of butter
• 10-12 digestive biscuits (crushed)
• White chocolate buttons (about 20)
• 1 cap of chocolate liquor
• (Optional 1 to 1 / 2 sheets of gelatin dissolved in 2-3 tablespoons of warm water)

Get two bowls and a cheesecake tin, put the biscuits in one of the bowls and completely crush them till resembling breadcrumbs, to these add the 70 grams of softened butter and the chocolate liquor as well as two tablespoons full of the chocolate ganache (see below on how to make this ganache, made with butter instead of cream ) mix well and put it in the cheesecake tin, pressing it with a smooth surface like the bottom of a glass, to about 1 cm thick.

In another bowl put the cream and whisk it until almost fully whipped, adding to it the powdered sugar, continue whisking until fully thick whipped. Aside mix chocolate ganache (also optionally add the dissolved gelatin, I prefer it without) with mascarpone cheese, after being well integrated pour it in the the whipped cream and mix lightly until well blended.

Now put this mixture over the pressed down biscuit mixture and spread it evenly with a spatula. Garnish it with white chocolate buttons and refrigerate a minimum 1 hour, better if it stays a few hours.

The ganache is very simple to make .... put the chocolate squares in a glass bowl immersed in a bain marie once melted, mix it with the butter 50g (+ or-) until well incorporated.

This is a recipe that I tried and would recommend to be tested by you too. I promise you  not to be disappointed.