maple syrup

burrata salad with peas

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I don’t eat a lot of cheese but when I do it is usually pecorino, Parmesan or on spesh occasions, burrata. Once you try burrata you wonder why you have never ever had it before because its one of the most delicious things in the world on every level. It’s a soft pillow of creamy, delicately flavoured gorgeousness, a mozzarella which has stepped up its game and become the beautiful twin. It has double cream in the centre of it, so when you break it open with your fingers the middle flows out of it like the sauce escaping from a hot chocolate fondant pudding. Peas are great too, so I married them off to each other and added a simple dressing with lemon. This salad should take minutes to make and makes a great starter or snack…or as a side dish with my midnight spaghetti.

Recipe

Serves 2 or one as a main course.

Ingredients: 

1 lemon juiced
1 or 2 burrata or mozzarella balls
A sprig of mint very finely chopped
A cup of thawed frozen peas (no need to cook)
Crunchy salad leaves (I use red chicory or treviso radicchio)
Salt and pepper to taste
½- 1 teaspoon of maple syrup
2 tablespoons olive oil


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melanzane parmigiana

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I have never met anyone that doesn’t love Melanzane Parmigiana. This is pretty much the recipe my Italian grandmother passed on to her children and with nearly all of my recipes I look at loads of versions of them and take the best bits from each one to create what I think is the perfect hybrid, and that’s what I’ve done with this Sicilian recipe. I really love aubergine and this version of melanzane parmigiana that I have created is great because it’s spot on in the flavour department. It’s low carb and great with meat and/or salad because its really satisfying as well as delicious. You could also serve it with pasta. Tonight, I’m testing it on friends (cooked the night before and reheated in their oven) I’ll get back to you on what they think.
Yes! They really really loved it……

Serves 6 (but you can halve the ingredients)

Ingredients:
4 aubergines sliced into thinish slices , approx one pound coin thick which can be lengthwise or in discs
2 tablespoons of olive oil plus more for the aubergines
1 red onion finely sliced
2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil
2 400g tins of plum tomatoes
a sprig of oregano or a teaspoon of dried
3 cloves of minced garlic
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons of maple syrup
200g of thinly sliced mozzarella
100g of freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper

How:
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Oil a baking tray, place the slices of aubergine on the tray in a single layer and make sure the upper side of the aubergine is sprayed or brushed with oil too.
Bake for 20-30 minutes until brown, you may have to do this in batches. Then set aside.
In a large saucepan, fry the onion gently in the olive oil for about five minutes.
Add the tomatoes, garlic, basil, oregano, maple syrup and red wine vinegar.
Gently bring to the boil and let it gently bubble for about 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Like a lasagna, in a deepish baking dish layer the aubergine in a single layer first and then sprinkle with some Parmesan and slices of mozzarella then a layer of tomato sauce, repeat until all the ingredients are used up.
To get a crispy top, finish with a layer of the aubergine topped with the Parmesan, bake at 180°C for 40-50 minutes or until getting brown, you might want to put tin foil over the top for the first 20 minutes if you don’t want it too crispy, however I like it a bit burnt as the cheese goes a bit Welsh rarebity. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: if you want it a bit less oily, you can boil the aubergines whole for 20 minutes, allow to cool and then slice and put them in the recipe.

 

panzanella

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This traditional Tuscan salad really tastes of the summer. It’s really tomatoey because the juices of the tomatoes go into the dressing. Combine it with my aubergine spaghetti and you have a perfect dinner combo.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:
1 kilo of tomatoes chopped into smallish pieces
2 teaspoons salt
1 large sourdough loaf cut in half and chunks of the middle ripped out and put on a baking sheet (leave the crust)
10 tablespoons of olive oil
1 red onion very finely diced
2 cloves of minced garlic
½ a teaspoon of Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons of maple syrup
2 tablespoons of sherry vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
A sprig of basil
A sprig of parsley

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pea mint and feta salad

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I’m a pea-a-holic and nothing thrills me more than peas in a recipe, so I made this salad as a homage to the pea, which incidentally,  is one of the highest fibre vegetables.
I eat this on home made bruschetta but if you do eat meat, it’s excellent with Lamb chops or roast chicken.

Serves 4 as a side dish.

Ingredients:
1 cup of frozen petit pois, thawed overnight in fridge (by the way, they don’t need cooking)
1 small bunch of fresh mint finely chopped
1 shredded cos lettuce
Juice and zest of a lemon
2 teaspoons maple syrup
50 ml of olive oil
1 clove of crushed garlic
½ block of crumbled feta cheese

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slow roasted tomato with runny eggs brunch

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This recipe is my favourite brunch. I love the combo of crunchy and creamy and sweet and savoury. But more interestingly,  rosemary is, according to the centenarians in the Italian town of Acciaroli, the secret to a long life. They should know, they have 300 of them out of a population of 2000.

For 2.

Ingredients:
250g of baby plum tomatoes
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons maple syrup
A small sprig of Rosemary
A small sprig of parsley very finely chopped
3 eggs
2 slices of sourdough bread
Salt and pepper to taste

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chocolate and pear ice cream

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My challenge was to make an easy chocolate ice cream that was a proper hit of chocolate, rich and creamy and really healthy. You don’t need an ice cream maker and the ingredients are simple. The pears make the flavour and texture work really well. My friends really like it… and it’s delicious with strawberries or raspberries. Perfect if you want a chocolate fix and still want to fit into your bikini (or speedos). A lovely follower of mine on Instagram called Sue added a smashed up bar of good quality dark chocolate at the end and said it made it deluxe.

Makes 1/2 litre.

Ingredients:
1 big pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ripe pears
3 tablespoons maple syrup
½ cup soya milk (I use Bonsoy) or coconut milk/cream
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

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japanese fine beans

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These delicious peanutty fine beans were part of a sushi meal I had at a Japanese restaurant in Spitalfields. They went so well with the sushi and were the highlight of the meal, so I have try to guess what the sauce was, and after a few attempts I think I’ve nailed it and think it’s just as delicious. It’s an easy recipe and the sweet and savoury sauce is sublime…and makes an excellent side dish..do try it.

Serves 2-3.

Ingredients:
200g approx of fine beans topped and tailed
1 heaped tablespoon of peanut butter
1 teaspoon of soya sauce
1 teaspoon of maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil
1/4 garlic clove chopped
1/4 teaspoon of grated fresh ginger

japanesefinebeans_ingredients
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carrot salad with orange flower water

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Yes I am obsessed with carrots. Here’s another carrot salad recipe, just in case you are also a carrot person. Fragrant, fresh and delicious, this salad will transport you straight to Marrakesh

Serves 4 as a starter.

Ingredients:
500g carrots, peeled and grated
2 large juicy oranges or 4 clementines
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons of orange flower water
Juice of 1 orange
3 tablespoons of maple syrup
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

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