Herbed Pancakes and Mini Spring Burgers with a tuft of Salad (Pancake day Gastro Feast)

Pancake day gastro feast... Only had a small dinner as had some more sweet pancakes to come after as desert...this was really enjoyable.

Recipe Ingredients: (good for 3-4 people)

• 1small glass of self raising flour
• 2 eggs
  
• 1 tea spoon of baking powder
• 2/3 of a glass with milk
• 3 soup spoons of olive oil
• 1 bunch of parsley (chopped)
• 1/4 tea spoon of garlic granules
• 400grs lean beef mince
• 3 spring onions (thinly sliced)
  
• 1 small onion (sliced)
• one bag of mixed salad
• 1 hand full of bread crumbs
• 2 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1/3 tea spoon paprika
• 1 soup spoon of smoked barbecue sauce
• also some barbecue and ketchup sauce to top burgers
• salt and pepper to taste
  

With so many ingredients sounds difficult...No? Well it is not.
Dead easy, pour the flour in a bowl and the baking powder, whisk well together, then make a well and in the middle put 1 egg, oil, garlic granules, salt and pepper and start to mix, as it gets thicker add the milk a little a the time and continue mixing it in until all the milk is used up (it should be the consistency of thick bechamel, so add more milk if needed). Lastly add the parsley and set it aside to rest.

In another bowl place the mince, and add: bread crumbs, 1 egg, barbecue sauce, spring onions (save a little for decorating), garlic "minced", paprika and salt + pepper (to taste). Mix it all in with your hands, and after make balls the size of golf balls, which then you squash to make the mini burgers, these are grilled in a hot griddle pan, and the pancake mix is made in a non stick frying pan (no oil needed as these already contain oil) two soup spoons per pancake should be the right size, make sure they are cooked on both sides.

Serve the burgers over the savoury pancakes, squeeze a dollop of BBQ sauce and Ketchup over each burger and add a little spring onions to decorate as well as normal sliced onions (you can also use mini tomato slices, cucumber etc. " i didn't have any in" lol) put also a tuft of mixed leaves salad in each plate and drizzle some olive oil balsamic vinegar and refined salt. there you are a nice little healthy pancake meal for your pancake day.!!!

Spring Onion and Parsley Macaroni Cheese

Receita em Português AQUI

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 4 people)

• 400grs Macaroni pasta
• 3 spring onions (chopped fine slices)
• 3 garlic cloves (2 minced, 1 crushed)
  
• 1 glass of milk
• 50grs butter
• 50grs cheddar cheese (grated)
• 1 bunch parsley (chopped coarsely)
  
• salt and black pepper (to taste)
• 1/3 spoon of nutmeg (powder, or grate it yourself)
• 1/3 of a glass with water and a heaped tea spoon of plain flour diluted in it
• 1 glug of vegetable oil
  

This is an easy and delicious winter recipe, that I make all the time when I haven't got much time. not very healthy but is comforting and is definitely a filler.

Put a pan with some boiling water a glug of oil, 1 crushed garlic and a little salt, put the macaroni inside let it boil for 7-10 minutes, once cooked drain and pass through it some boiling water, and drain it again and put it in the sauce.

The sauce is made as follows, put the milk butter a little salt and pepper and the nutmeg in a little saucepan, take to the stove on a medium heat once it starts boiling add the spring onions, and the flour diluted in water, stir it and let it thicken, once it reaches that stage which will take around 2 minutes add the grated cheese and the parley, stir it again for another 1 minute, that will thicken some more. Now place the sauce in the large empty pan where you previously boiled the pasta, add the drained pasta to it, put a little on and let it rest about 2 minutes and serve. If you like a better effect and some crispiness, you may put it in a little pirex tray add a little grated cheese on top and dust also some oregano and goes in the oven 200c for around 10 minutes or under the grill till golden brown on top around 3-5 minutes, you decide...I couldn't wait so I ate it like that.

"Valentino Hot" Chicken with chickpeas Wedges and Salad

Receita em Português AQUI

I call this chicken Valentino chicken as it has two discerning characteristics that live up to the name, is spicy hot and very red in colour..you'll see below why. :D

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 3-4 people)

• 400-500grs chicken thighs (skinless and boneless)
  
• 2 cooked beetroot's
  
• 1 medium onion
  
• 2 garlic cloves
  
• 1 large chilli (chopped "including seeds and veins")
  
• 1 chopped plum tomato tin
  
• 2 soup spoons of tomato concentrate
  
• 1/2 red pepper
  
• 1/2 chickpeas tin
  
• 1/3 glass of light red wine or rosé
  
• 4 spring onions (chopped finely)
  
• some olive oil
  
• salt and black pepper (to taste)

Place a pan on the stove at high temp, put enough olive oil in to cover the bottom of the pan, and once it is hot add: the onion, beetroot and red pepper, let these cook for a little while (about 3 minutes) and then piece by piece add the chicken and as soon as it seal on one side turn the chicken around to seal the other side too as this helps to keep the juices in keeping the chicken moist and tender. Chicken which you previously marinated in the (garlic, chilli and wine " see photo") for around 30 mins to 1 hr.

After the chicken is completely sealed ad the marinating liquid including the chillies and garlic into the pan, and together with that ad also the two, tomato paste and chopped plum tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer for a good 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally.

Now temporarily remove the chicken, put the sauce in a jug and blitz it with the blender, back into the pan with the sauce and add the chickpeas and put the chicken back there too, and now cook for a further 5 minutes so that the chickpeas heat up properly (as is already cooked in the tin), then arrange it on the plate with the wedges and a little salad or do it your own way. Cheers!!

Recipe Ingredients: (for the wedges, enough for 3-4 people)

• 400grs potatoes (cut lengthways in six, to form wedges)
  
• 1 soup spoon plain flour
  
• 1 pinch of fresh ground black pepper
  
• 1 pinch of fresh ground sea salt
  
• 1/2 tea spoon of chilli powder
  
• 3 spoons of olive oil

Place a pan with boiling water on the stove at high temp with a little salt, place the potato wedges inside and part-cook them (about 4-5 minutes) remove and drain the potatoes, and place them in a bowl, placing all the remaining ingredients in the bowl with the potatoes, toss them in the bowl not using any utensils, just toss them until they are fully covered by the ingredients.

Now scatter them in a tray and place them in the oven at 200c for about 15-20 until golden brown, and at this point they are ready to serve. Now these potato wedges are easy to make and very versatile, as you can pick and choose what aromatic herbs you put in if any you can put dry herbs or fresh, or even different powders...one of my favourite is paprika and garlic powder. Anyway have fun...that is what cooking is all about having fun and experimenting.

Bellow was another meal I made using some left overs from the above meal, I had a little sauce and chickpeas left as well as a couple of chicken pieces, so I cut the chicken in small bits, got the sauce (after heating it) and chickpeas in a blender added a couple of glugs of olive oil (extra virgin) blitz it to a smooth paste (to pesto consistency) . Cooked some pasta and and added the sauce with the chicken bits mixed in into the pasta (in this case spaghetti) also chopped up finely some spring onions and scattered over the top of the dish for added décor and taste. et voila...bon apetit...

Liver and Onions "classic" with Fresh cream and Spring Onion Mash

Receita em Português AQUI

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 2)

• 1 large onion (thinly sliced)
  
• 2 garlic cloves (thinly sliced)
• 2 bay leaves (cut in half)
• 1 glass of white wine
• 300grs ox liver
• 4 large potatoes (pealed and quartered)
  
• 4 spring onions (thinly chopped)
  
• 100mls single cream
• 1 soup spoon of butter
• a pinch of nutmeg powder (or grate a little)
• salt and pepper to taste (also a little milk if you find mash too thick)
• a glug of olive oil

I am aware you all may know this recipe already as is a classic, but I am sure some people do not.
Peal and quarter the four large potatoes, put them in a pan with water, place it on the stove on high, once reaches boil reduce it to min, and let it boil gently, should take about 15-20 minutes till fully cooked. Once cooked drain the potatoes, place them in a bowl and mash them, once that is done add the butter, fold it in till it melts and mixes well, then add the fresh cream (salt and pepper to taste) nutmeg and spring onions, fold it in again and the mash is done ...simple hey!!!

As to the liver you should start cooking this after you put the potatoes boiling so all comes out at the same time, but about an hour prior to cooking the liver you should have it marinading in a bowl with the wine garlic and a little salt. Put a pan on the stove on high with a good glug of olive oil.

Once it gets very hot add the onions and a little salt and pepper, keep stirring and allow the onions to caramelize a little, once that happens shift them to one side and add the liver slices one by one, and as soon as it seals turn them over, as soon as it seals on that side too, add the marinade liquid to the pan mix it all in with the livers, once it starts boiling the livers will release a little blood which will help to thicken the lovely sauce, be sure not to cook them for too long about 3-4 minutes after sealed should be sufficient as they should be pink in the middle (that is quite safe) and this way they will remain soft and tender.

If you prefer well cooked, so be it but be aware that the livers will be a lot harder consistency, the secret to softness is to me medium cooked, still pink in the middle, arrange it on the plate with plenty of sauce and some onions on top as well as some mash, which you can dip into the sauce and have fun...