We all love a good curry… this much is fact. Whether it is a Vindaloo, Korma or Chicken Tikka though, really is a matter of personal taste.
When I was a kid my dad used to make lovely, fragrant chicken curries, which had stewed for hours to create a thick, aromatic curry sauce, juicy chunks of chicken breast and creamy potatoes.
Just like my dad has adapted the curries of his childhood and made them his own… so have I.

I have no idea whether this curry is similar to any traditional ones, all I know is, it’s yum. - I used chunks of stewing lamb for this particular curry, because I think that it’s unique, strong flavours lend themselves beautifully to this spicy dish. Feel free to use chicken or beef if you aren’t a great lover of lamb though.

SERVES 4
PREPARATION 10mins
COOKS 2hrs

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INGREDIENTS

• 500g stewing lamb, cut into chunks
• 250ml chopped tomatoes
• 1 onion, sliced
• 500ml beef or lamb stock
• 150g frozen peas
• 2 medium size potatoes, peeled and sliced
• 1-2 fresh chili, finely chopped (depending on how hot you want it)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced or finely chopped
• 10 curry leaves
• piece of fresh ginger the size of your thumb, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
• rapeseed oil
• salt and pepper to season

Steamed rice, plain naan and lime pickle to serve.

PREPARATION METHOD

1. In a small bowl mix your chili, garlic, chopped ginger and dried spiced (apart from the curry leaves) with the tomato paste and a little oil to make a smooth paste.
2. In a large saucepan heat a little oil. Once hot, fry your spices and curry leaves over a medium heat for a few minutes. This helps release all the aroma and natural oil and rounds the flavours nicely.
3. Add the onion and fry with the spices for a couple of minutes until soft. Turn up the heat and add the lamb. Fry until the meat is well sealed, brown on all sides and coated in the spiced oil.
4. Now mix in the chopped tomatoes and simmer over a medium heat for approximately 10 minutes, then pour in the stock. Give it a good stir and cover with a lid.
5. Cook your curry for about 1 hour over a low to medium heat, stirring occasionally to stop from sticking. If the liquid reduces down too much add a little water.
6. After 1 hour add the potatoes and simmer for a further 30-45 minutes. The potatoes will help thicken the gravy. You are aiming for a thick and glossy curry. 
7. Mix in the peas, season to taste and cook for a few more minutes until the peas are warmed through.

And that’s it. It takes a little while to cook but requires hardly any attention and is absolutely divine.
Serve over steamed rice with some naan and lime pickle and of course an ice cold glass of beer.

Enjoy!

What do you feed two hungry blokes who spent all afternoon lugging around heavy fridges? - Yep, that’s right, meatballs.

I know that pretty much every supermarket now sells ready made meatballs… for about quadruple the price of a pack of minced meat. Now seriously, why would you do that to yourself. Just buy some good quality minced meat (whatever you fancy: beef, pork, lamb or turkey) and season it the way you like.

Meatballs are dead easy to make and pretty versatile when it comes to finding suitable sides. The obvious solution would be to make meatballs and spaghetti but I decided to try something different. So I cooked up some simple, fragrant lemon and thyme rice and roast veg to accompany my beef meatballs. Make a bit more and take to work for lunch the next day.

SERVES 4
PREPARATION 20 mins
COOKS 45 mins

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INGREDIENTS

For the meatballs

• 500g lean beef mince (you can use any type of mince)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or crushed
• a handful of chopped parsley
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• pepper to season
• 1 tsp plain flour

For the tomato sauce

• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 onion, sliced
• a handful of chopped basil
• 1 small glass of red wine
• 3 sprigs of thyme, leaves only
• salt and pepper to season

For the roast veg

• 1 courgette, sliced
• 2 tomatoes, quartered
• 1 pepper, sliced
• salt and pepper
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• olive oil

For the rice (the secret is to measure your rice by volume and not weight!)

• 280ml white rice
• 560ml chicken stock
• juice of 1 lemon
• 4 sprigs of thyme, leaves only

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180˚C.
2. In a large bowl, mix together all your meatball ingredients. I use my hands, because it allows for a better mix. Sprinkle some flour on a large plate or baking tray. Wet your hands with some warm water and form 24 meatballs, by rolling the minced meat mixture between your hands. Set aside. Wash your hands thoroughly afterwards.
3. Fry your onions in some olive oil for a few minutes until soft. Add the wine and cook until the wine has reduced to half. Mix in the chopped tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Place your vegetables on a baking tray, drizzle with some olive oil, season with salt and pepper and scatter the sprigs of thyme on top. Cook in the pre-heated oven for 30 minutes.
5. Heat some olive oil in a separate pan. Fry your meatballs for approximately 3 minutes on each side, until brown. Add the basil and thyme to the tomato sauce and give it a good stir before placing your meatballs on top of the sauce. Cover with a lid and cook for approximately 20 minutes on a low - medium heat (giving it a stir every now and then).
6. Add your rice to a saucepan and cover with just boiled chicken stock. Cover with a lid and simmer at a medium heat for 15 minutes, giving it a gentle stir every now and then to avoid sticking. Don’t be tempted to add more water, as this will make your rice go soggy (yep, I made that mistake and had to start all over again :( ) - When done, stir in the lemon juice and thyme leaves. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside for 10 minutes. The kitchen towel will absorb all the steam and give you lovely fluffy rice.

And that’s it - serve your meatballs and tomato sauce with the lemony rice and sweet roast veg and a nice glass of strong red wine.
Enjoy!

A letter to my baby sister:

Dear Scolly,

this post is for you… after weeks of nagging and primarily in memory of those summer holidays spent at home, when you’d sleepily waddle out of your bedroom and mumble: “What’s for breakfast?”. And every morning I’d cook us up an omelette, filled with various treasures found in Mum and Dad’s fridge.
Now that you’re grown up and slowly turning into a little chef of your own, you can add our summer holiday breakfast omelettes to your growing recipe book.

Love you lots,
Heidi xxx

SERVES 2
PREPARATION 10mins
COOKS 10mins

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INGREDIENTS

• 4 eggs
• a dash of milk
• 3 slices of honey roast ham, chopped
• a handful of grated cheddar
• a sprinkle of chopped basil
• salt and pepper to season

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Whisk the eggs with the milk and a little pepper.
2. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan. Once hot pour in your egg mix. Immediately turn the heat down to medium.
3. Sprinkle your ingredients over the egg mix and cook for a couple of minutes until the bottom is cooked but the top is still liquid.
4. Carefully fold your omelette in half and cook for a further 3-4 minutes. Take off the heat and cover with a lid for a couple of minutes while you get your plates ready. Season to taste. 

The cooking time is really dependent on the power of your stove. The trick is to take the eggs off the heat when they still look pretty runny. The heat of the pan will continue cooking them. And there’s nothing worse than a dry omelette.

Serve with toasted sourdough bread or a side salad and a nice cup of tea :) Happy cooking, Etta x

I think it just might be that time of year, when the weather gets warmer, the jackets thinner, the meals lighter and seafood is in season. I am a strong believer in getting good quality produce. I understand that for most of us local is often not affordable (although more often than not this is actually a myth) but we try to at least go national. Making sure you only pick good quality products is particularly important when it comes to seafood, fish, meat and dairy. So most of the year prawns are a REAL treat. But spring is the time when you should indulge in these little things of loveliness, because they’re on offer everywhere and they are soooo good. There’s no need to smother them in copious amounts of sauce or cheese or anything like that. Just some lemon juice and olive oil work wonders.
Now this is what we had the other day and I would have it every day of the week if I could. It’s light and healthy and reminds me of the fact that spring is here.

SERVES 3
PREPARATION 10 mins
COOKS 15 mins

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INGREDIENTS

• 250g fresh or frozen large prawns (to defrost your prawns, simply fill a large bowl or your kitchen sink with cold water and leave them in there for about 1hr. Mine floated, so I had to keep them pushed down with a glass bowl ;)
• 1-2 chillis, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• juice of 1 lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• olive oil
• splash of white wine or dry vermouth
• fettuccine for 3 (approximately 75-100g per person), cooked to instructions
• a handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered
• a handful of chopped basil or parsley to garnish

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Get your pasta started.
2. Mix the chillis, garlic and lemon zest with a little olive oil and fry in a pan over a medium heat for a couple of minutes. 
3. Add the prawns and wack up the heat. Mix thoroughly and cook for a further 5 minutes, until the prawns are warmed through. Now add the wine and half the lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Cook for a few more minutes, then stir in the tomatoes. Once your pasta is done, drain it and add to the prawns. Mix with pasta tongs or two forks until everything is well combined. Add the remaining lemon juice, a generous amount of olive oil and the basil/parsley. Give it a final mix and serve.

This dish is soooo simple and absolutely divine. Enjoy with a glass of crisp white wine or cava/prosecco. Etta x

I am by no means a health freak, nor am I one of those girls who wastes her time constantly checking the calorie content of every packet I pick up. However, and because I believe in a balanced and healthy diet, and because yesterday’s puff pizza was as sinful as can get, I decided to get some veggies into me.
I’ve never cooked pearl barley before and thought, why not give it a go. It was definitely worth it. The stew ended up being like a creamy risotto - without all the butter and cheese.

The label will most probably tell you to rinse the barley before using it in order to get rid of any excess starch. I decided against it, which helped my stew thicken beautifully.

This dish will take a little while to cook. And that is: to cook, not to prepare! It is one of those meals that require zero of your attention, apart from the occasional stir. So go off, pour yourself a glass of vino and watch an episode of CSI and tadaaa… dinner’s ready. Enjoy!

SERVES 4
PREPARATION 10 mins
COOKS 60 mins
………………………………………

INGREDIENTS

• 200g pearl barley
• 450-500g chicken thigh fillets, diced (you can also use chicken breast),
  at room temperature
• 2 baby leeks, sliced (or one big leek)
• 150g frozen peas
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 4 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 large glass of white wine
• 500ml chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp Worcester sauce
• Parsley to garnish (optional)

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Fry your garlic, carrots and leeks in a little olive oil until soft then add the chicken and fry for about 5 minutes until lightly browned.
2. Add the pearl barley and stir until it’s coated with the olive oil and the juices from the chicken. Pour in the wine and leave to reduce to half. Add the thyme and bay leaf and top up with the stock.
3. Leave to simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally and making sure your mixture doesn’t dry out. If it does, add a little water.
4. Add the peas and Worcester sauce, mix thoroughly and simmer for a further 15-20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with a garnish of parsley if you want.

This dish is comfort food as comforting as it gets, super healthy and just incredibly good.

I’m a real sucker when it comes to puff pastry. I mean who can resist  a light, buttery, fluffy croissant, straight from the oven. Especially when it’s filled with beautiful ingredients, such as ham ‘n’ cheese, Belgian chocolate or marzipan.
We happened to have some puff pastry in the freezer and loads of stuff, that needed eating, in the fridge… and so the idea of the puff pizza was born. - If you’re incredibly health conscious, stop here and come back tomorrow for the healthy chicken and spring vegetable stew… but if you don’t care and the yum factor is all you seek, please read on.

You can throw anything onto your pizza. Below is what I did. ENJOY!

SERVES 4 (the two of us ate all four portions :-S Does that make us pigs?)
PREPARATION 10 mins
COOKS 15-20 mins
………………………………………

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pack of rolled puff pastry (these come on baking paper and are ready to bake)
• 1/2 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 4 pepper-dew peppers, chopped
• 1 tbsp chopped olives
• 1 ball of mozzarella, torn
• a handful of fresh basil
• a handful of fresh spinach
• 150g dried chorizo, sliced

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 200˚C. Fry your garlic on medium heat in a little olive oil for about 2 minutes (make sure you don’t burn it). Add the tomatoes, peppers and olives and cook until reduced by a quarter and all the watery bits have evaporated.
2. Spread out your puff pastry on a large baking tray and set aside.
3. Fry your chorizo for a few minutes until the outside starts to brown (no need to use oil as there is plenty in the meat). Don’t chuck the oil, you’ll be needing that.
4. Spread your tomato mix all over the puff pastry base leaving an edge of about 2.5cm/1inch. Cover in all you ingredients, finishing with the mozzarella, basil and spinach.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Then drizzle with the remaining chorizo oil.

Now devour this sinful dish of deliciousness. It’s plenty for four but I guarantee that two of you can finish this easily. :)

I woke up the other morning and was craving vitamins BIG TIME… I have no idea how I came up with this weird mixture. Why the hell would you put spinach into your smoothie? - But trust me it worked. It was floral, sweet and fruity in a really fresh and grassy way and just what I needed. The jasmin green tea makes all the difference! Don’t be put off by it’s looks. Yes, I know it looks like pesto! It is delicious and will give you that morning vitamin kick you need.

MAKES 1 large glass
TAKES 2 minutes

………………………………………

INGREDIENTS

• 2 small apples, peeled, cored and diced
• two handfuls of spinach
• 200ml of jasmin green tea
• 1tbs of honey
• a handful of fresh mint (optional)

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Chuck all your ingredients into a liquidiser and whiz until all your ingredients are well combined. You might have to give it a shake half way through.
2. Pour over ice or enjoy on it’s own. You’ll have to stir it every now and then as the pulp tends to separate from the liquid.

You can be creative with your fruits and teas. Try fruit tea with pears or earl grey with citrus fruits. Enjoy! :)