Healthy chia seed jam

use this as you would jam without the sugar and additives. Chia seeds can hold upto 20 times their weight in liquid so they thicken anything, here ive used it to thicken fruit puree so it turns into a jam consistency. Chia seeds are also a powerhouse of antioxidants and nutrients and almost all the carbs in them are fibre so you're allowed chia pudding and jam on low carb days.


Ingredients
makes a few tbsp.


a large handful of your favourite berries
1tbsp chia seeds
1tbsp maple
a pinch of vanilla


Method
Blend the berries into a puree and stir in the chia, vanilla and maple.
cover and leave in the fridge for the chia to swell and thicken. This should take 4 hours but you can leave it overnight.
keeps in the fridge for days.

Four utterly delicious and clean salads

So as you all know im an avid fan of meal prep. Most of my meals I prepare in advance because im so busy. The below four salads are great to grab on the go in Tupperware usually paired with protein of some sort. The flavours are bursting and fresh. Salad no longer means a bit iceberg and a slice of tomato. These are inspired from all over the world and contain only fresh, raw, clean ingredients.

 

The four salads are:

 

• Moroccan inspired carrot salad
• South American guacamole
• Slow roast squash, feta and spinach salad
• Superfood rainbow quinoa salad

 

I haven't given methods because making a salad is pretty self explanatory, just throw all the ingredients into one.  All salads serve 3 large (heaped palm sized) or 4 smaller portions.

 

Moroccan inspired carrot salad.
This goes great with marinated meats, its so fresh and delicious while packing lots of vitamins, minerals and superfoods from the pomegranate and chai.

 

Ingredients
2 grated carrots
1/2 red pepper finely sliced
2 grated or finely sliced radishes
1 small bunch of coriander or mint finely chopped
1/2 pomegranate (seeds only, get them out by bashing the back of the pom with a spoon)
juice of 1 lemon
small lick of extra virgin olive oil
2tsp toasted sesame seeds
2tsp toasted cumin seeds
sprinkling of chai seeds
salt and pepper

 

South American guacamole
packed full of good fats I enjoy this for breakfast with an egg white omelette before the gym.  Also great on rye bread for a snack.

 

Ingredients
1 large or 2 small very ripe avocados chopped chunky
1/2 red onion very finely diced
a handful of cherry tomatoes quartered
1 small bunch of parsley or coriander
1 chilli finely chopped
juice of 2 limes
salt and pepper

 

Slow roast squash, feta and spinach salad
This is simply delicious, especially when the garlic slow roasts with the squash and you can mush it up and add it to the salad. Pure comfort food, packed full of low glycemic (good) carbs, protein from the feta and iron from the spinach

 

Ingredients
1 small organic squash, I get the Tesco finest ones, cant remember what the bloody hell they are called by my god they are good, look like a normal squash but have a name beginning with a P and are a dark orange.. don't bother peeling the squash, do that after its roasted because its easier, chop into quarters and roast the squash in coconut oil, salt, pepper for 1 hour on medium until tender and slightly charred (I start it off high for 20 minutes then turn it down low) Once cooked scoop the flesh and chop roughly.
1/2 bag baby spinach
1/2 pack feta cheese (make sure its feta not the low fat and not the greek style)
2tbsp pine nuts toasted
2tbsp pumpkin seeds
optional:

1 stick of celery chopped

1/2 red pepper chopped
a handful of sugar snap peas chopped

 

Superfood quinoa salad
This is my staple salad, I always have a bowl of this in the fridge, it goes with absolutely everything and is also substantial on its own. This salad is also a great protein source for veggies. make sure all your veg is finely chopped for this, you can have it chunky if you want but it has a better overall texture if its a very fine dice.

 

Igredients
1/2 cup quinoa cooked as per pack instructions
1/2 can of black eyed beans drained (don't cook them)
1 stick of celery finely chopped
A small handful of cherry tomatoes finely chopped
1/2 a pepper finely chopped
1/4 bag of finely sliced baby spinach
A few florets of very finely chopped broccoli (raw so cut it small)
1/2 pomegranate seeds (see above tip)
juice of 1 lemon
small lick of extra virgin olive oil

 

1tbsp each of
chai seeds
pumpkin seeds
flax (linseed)
toasted pine nuts
toasted peanuts, almonds or cashews (not the salted ones)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prawns with nam jim dressing and crunchy salad

Nam Jim is a traditional Thai dressing is hot sour and tangy, try it over rare seared beef with sesame seeds, absolutely stunning.

 

Ingredients

for the tempura batter and prawns

1 egg

1 cup ice water/cold water

1 cup all purpose flour, sifted

half a dozen large king/tiger prawns, shelled but with tail on

for the nam jim

2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons palm sugar
2-3 red shallots or half a small red onion chopped
3-4 bird’s eye chillies (to taste)
2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves or 1 fresh root
Pinch of salt

For the salad

1 carrot

½ small white cabbage

A small handful of sugar snap peas

A small handful of beansprouts

1 sheet of medium egg noodles

2tsp Sesame oil

2tsp Sesame seeds

1tsp honey

2tsp soy sauce

Method

For the nam jim - In a large pestle and mortar, crush the garlic with the salt, add the coriander and chillies and roughly pound. Stir in the sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and finely chopped shallots.

For the salad - Cook the egg noodles as per the packet instructions, its usually simmer for 10 minutes until tender.

Cut the carrots into quarters lengthways then using a sharp knife, a food processor attachment or a mandolin slice the carrot as thinly as possible, so you have long thin slivers of carrot. Do the same with the cabbage.

Toss all the ingredients together in a large bowl.

For more flavour gently toast your sesame seeds in a dry pan over a medium heat until they are golden. This releases lots more flavour than adding them un toasted.

For the tempura batter Beat an egg in a bowl. Add ice water in the bowl. Be sure to use very cold water. Add sifted flour in the bowl and mix lightly. Be careful not to overmix the batter. Coat the prawns in flour then into batter and fry in vegetable oil until golden.

 

Feta baked with tomato and oregano

I love this side dish, although its substantial enough to eat on a summers night with loads of bread and butter.
I originally started this recipe with loads of fresh tomatoes baked with oregano and a little wine, i added the cheese later when i wanted a side dish for roast chicken that wasnt too "Sunday dinner like"

Ingredients
makes enough for 2

1x 400g of tomatoes
2 large vine tomatoes
1 block of feta cheese around 100g
1 pinch of chilli
1 garlic clove crushed
extra virgin olive oil
1tsp oregano
a little parmesan for the top (optional)

Method
first you need to make a kind of quick tomato sauce.
heat a little veggie oil in a pan and sweat the garlic, that means cook it without colouring or burning it, so nice and gentle.
Add the chilli, oregano and tinned tomatoes, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes to get all the flavours going.
season to taste.
Now to your baking dish, i like a nice 2 person gratin dish but pyrex is also fine and also you can make little individual ones of these if you like.
Crumble the feta into the dish and pour over the tomato sauce.
top with sliced tomatoes and grated parmesan and bake on 200 (gas mark 6) for 20 minutes until golden and bubbling.
Serve with crusty bread for a great side dish for chicken or fish or a great starter on its own.

Sticky BBQ pork ribs with bean salad from This Morning

A good BBQ sauce recipe is golddust! Ive been using this one for years and it never fails!  It works just as well with any meat and is a perfect dipping sauce for nachos, corn on the cob and lots more BBQ favourites!

Ingredients

Serves 6

For the ribs:

3 racks (approx. 550g each) of pork spareribs (You want to serve around 3 ribs per person)

1 onion, finely diced

80g soft brown sugar

80ml dry sherry

1 inch piece of grated fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves crushed

200ml tomato ketchup

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

100ml soy sauce

1 pinch of chilli flakes

1tsp ground cumin

For the salad:

1 can of your favorite beans, i like butterbeans, drain and rinse them.

A handful of vine tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 large courgette, diced  

1 small red onion , chopped very finely

Coriander and parsley , chopped or torn

The juice of 1 lemon

1 red chilli, seeds in if you can stand it, finely chopped

Olive oil

Sea salt and pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

Method:

For the sauce heat a little oil in a large saucepan and cook the onion gently until its soft.  Add the garlic, cumin, chilli flakes and ginger and cook for 1 minute, still on low.

Turn the heat upto medium, add the rest of the ingredients and simmer uncovered on low heat for 15 minutes, until thick.  The marinade can be made in advance and keeps perfectly well in the fridge, covered or in Tupperware.

While this is doing put your ribs in a pan of boiling water and simmer for the same time it takes you to make the marinade (around 20 minutes)

Pat your ribs dry and brush generously with the marinade.

To cook the ribs, BBQ for 20 minutes over hot coals; or roast on an oven set to 220 (gas mark 7) for 40 minutes.

Whichever way you cook them brush them with more marinade and turn them as they cook, at least twice!

Making the salad couldn’t be simpler, gently fry the courgette until golden in a little oil and then add all the ingredients to a large bowl.

Toss everything to combine then taste the salad, does it need perking up with more lemon, salt or pepper? If so go for it.  You can make the salad in advance, its best served room temperature for the flavors to mingle so take it out of the fridge 30 minutes before serving.

Serve the charred sticky ribs with the bean salad and an extra bowl of the marinade on the side for dipping.

Messy fingers ahoy – don’t forget the napkins!

Traditional mulled wine

Everyones winter favourite and so simple to make, choose this on a winters evening, Christmas eve wrapping presents is my preferred time, or when your putting the tree up.

Ingredients

Serves 4-5

1 bottle of full bodied red wine

1 vanilla pod

75g of caster sugar

2tbsp golden syrup

4 cloves

2 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

1 orange, peel only (use a potato peeler to remove thick strands of the peel)

Method

Add a good glass full of the wine to a saucepan with the rest of the ingredients.

Boil viciously until the wine has reduced by half.  This is really important to infuse the wine with all the flavours.

Add the rest of the wine, turn the heat off and leave for an hour or so to fully infuse.

This method ensures only a small amount of the alcohol in the wine is burnt off (in the initial infusion)

To serve warm gently, never boil.

The softest confit of belly pork with skin roasted potatoes

This is one of those dishes where the quality of the ingredient speaks louder than anything! Which i LOVE as it yields absolute maximum flavour and minimum effort. I usually serve this with one of the following or sometimes a few of the following: mushroom fricasse, apple and onion veloute, cabbage and bacon, kentish apple tart, maderia roasting jus etc etc. Most of the recipes can be found under the acompaniments section however feel free to ask if theres something you cant find.   Below ive taken a pic of the potatoes i simply roasted to serve with the pork.  They were tossed in salt and pepper and olive oil with a little garlic and rosemary. Beautiful.

Ingredients
Serves 4

1kg belly pork

1 star anise

1teaspoon of corriander seeds

1 teaspoon if sea salt

Sprig of rosemary

½ teaspoon of whole black pepper corns

2 pints of duck or goosefat, if you dont have 2 pints use what you have and top the rest of the liquid up with vegetable oil.

Method

Pre heat oven to gas mark 2

In a pestle and mortar grind the star anise, corriander seeds, salt and pepper into a fine dust.

Lay the pork skin side down and rub half of the mixture into the flesh.

Turn the pork over and rub the other half on the skin.

Place the pork in a roasting tin.

Warm the duck fat/oil mixture in a pan until its just simmering.

Pour over the pork (dont score the skin)

Submerge the rosemary sprig in the oil.

Cover the baking tin with foil and add to the oven for 3 hours undisturbed.

When the 3 hours are up remove the pork from the liquid and pat dry on both sides.

Score the skin in diamond patterns with a sharp knife.

Heat a frying pan and add a little of the oil leftover from the roasting tin.

When its smoking hot add the pork skin side down for 3-5 minutes to let the skin crackle. Dont move the pork just leave it.

If the skin isnt crackled enougth for your liking simple add the pork to a roasting tin, skin side up and roast for 15 minutes on gas mark 8.

Allow the meat to rest before carving. The skin will crispen a little more as its cooling down.

And thats it! SO simple but my god so delicious!

You can prepare this dish upto a day in advance. Simply re heat in a hot oven for 20 minutes, skin side up.

Yorkshire Puddings

Ive just posted a pic on twitter of my Yorkshire puds and thought, hold on Stace why dont you just blog them, so here goes.

Yorkshire puddings are the simplest thing to make its only 3 ingredients but its the method that really makes the puds special.

You need a scalding hot pan, im talking setting your smoke alarm off hot!

If your oven isnt great what i used to do when i lived at my mams (hers was rubbish) was put a piece of tinfoil over the door before i closed it to keep the heat in.  Worked every time.

Ingredients
makes 12
3 eggs
250g plain flour
300mls milk
1tsp salt.

Method
whisk the eggs salt and flour together and gradually beat in the milk until you have a smooth batter.
You can make the batter in advance if you like, loads of people reckon its better if its been made in advance but i think its an old wives tale.
Pre heat your oven to its hottest setting about 30 minutes before you want to bake the puddings.
put around 1 tablespoon of oil in each hole of your tin and put it in the hot oven.
after 20-30 minutes of heating the tin and oil you want to transfer your batter to a jug so its easier to pour and working really quickly (close the oven door when your doing it to keep the heat in) pour the batter into the holes, it will sizzle up and splutter so be careful.
Put the tin back in the oven and close the door carefully, dont slam it, that might be another old wives tale but i always do it incase i knock the air out of the puddings.
Right so 20 minutes on the timer! carve your beef, warm your plates and bang! Right before serving get your burnishing yorkies out of the oven and serve immediately!

Safe.

Bearnaise sauce

I cant believe i didnt already have this on, its my favourite sauce for steak!  Its basically a hollandaise with tarragon mixed in except you dont whisk this over hot water (with a hollandaise you make a sabayon i.e whisk the eggs over boiling water to make it lighter)  a bearnaise is the same recipe without all the carry on!  Truly the ultimate sauce for a steak or a piece of salmon.

Ingredients
Serves 22 egg yolks (save the whites, they will freeze very well for months)
2 tablespoons of white wine or white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
125g of butter melted
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon of dijon mustard
tarragon to taste, i like quite a bit, a tablespoon i suppose...

Method
In a saucepan heat the wine and lemon juice over a high heat until its reduced to half the volume, i.e 2 tablespoons of liquid.
Pour the hot liquid over the egg yolks, add the mustard and seasoning and whisk to combine for a few minutes to make the sauce light.  You will notice the colour of the egg yolks starting to change to a lighter yellow as you whisk.
Now continuing to whisk pour in the melted butter in a slow steady stream until its all combined.
You will notice there will be a solid white matter at the bottom of the container which you had the melted butter in, DONT put this into the sauce, stop before it tips in, this is the fats from the butter which seperate during melting.
Stir in the tarragon, taste for seasoning, add more tarragon if you like, and serve either in a put on the side of the plate or poured over the steaks/fish

Quick and easy coleslaw

So I only discovered a few years ago that a coldsore was called a coldsore and not coleslaw, i remember thinking god a facial herpes named after a food thats not too clever,  Anyway, a proper coleslaw is the simplest thing and it’s ten times better than shop bought, ok so I’m going to say that but its like the first time you make your own pork pie and think, “I didn’t think it could get better than a Melton Mowbray but…”

Ingredients
3 onions, grated
3 carrots, grated
1 small white cabbage, shredded
1 tbsp grain mustard
3 tbsp mayonnaise (homemade or from a jar) or as much as you like to loosen the coleslaw
Juice of 1 lemon
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl, and season with salt and pepper to taste! PHEW hard work or what! 

Mussels with white wine (can be done with pasta)

This is a versatile dish as its kind of 2 meals in 1, the mussels themselves are perfect with a chunk of French bread and butter and a green salad, but to make them more substantial and to eak out the mussels if you are feeding a few people, the simple addition of pasta to the sauce gives the dish a different dimension.  They also make a great starter.
A quick note about mussels, getting fresh shellfish is really really important, if you eat a baddie then you’ll know about it, they can make you very poorly.  You need to eat mussels alive.  You can test if they are alive or not by following the below steps.

BEFORE COOKING:
If the mussel is closed its good and you can use it.
If the mussel is open give it a sharp tap and if it closes then its alive and you can use it, if it doesn’t close then its dead and you must discard it.
AFTER COOKING:
If any mussels have remained closed discard them, they are dead.

 Ingredients
Serves 2
A glug of olive oil
1 garlic cloves, crushed or chopped
2 shallots, sliced
400g mussels in shells, beards removed (get your fishmonger to do it for you)
100ml white wine
70ml double cream
A bunch of chopped fresh parsley
300g pasta of your choice, I like spaghetti or linguini
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lemon juice only.
Method
Cook the pasta as per the pack instructions in lots of salted boiling water, get this on first as the mussels will only take 5 minutes.
For the mussels, heat the olive oil in a lidded saucepan over a medium heat. Add the garlic and shallots and sauté for two minutes, until softened.
Add the mussels and white wine, stir well and place the lid on. Allow the mussels to steam for 3-4 minutes, then remove the lid and check that all the mussels have opened. Discard any that have not opened.
Remove the mussels from the pan into a separate bowl.
Add the double cream, fresh parsley and cooked pasta to the pan and stir adding the lemon juice, salt and pepper..

Add the pasta direct from the water it was boiled in to the mussels pan, a bit of water wont hurt it.  Drizzle with extra virgin oil and a little more parsley.

Leek puddin

This is a real Northern favourite of mine.  I had planned to do it in the final of MasterChef but i was shit out of luck and didnt make it ha!!

I especially like it with pork but simialrly i love it leftover with cold mashed potatoes,  kind of like my own little bubble and squeek!  Seriously this is fantastic! Its like a soft sweet stuffed dumpling with a crisp top!  A must for any pork lover!! If your a veggie use veggie suet.

Ingredients
Serves 2
100g self raising flour
50g suet
2 leeks
a good knob of butter
a glug of double cream, about 50-100mls
30g of strong cheddar cheese
1tsp of your favourite mustard,
Salt and pepper

Method

Pre heat oven to gas mark 5 (190)

Make the suet up by mixing the flour some salt and pepper and the shredded suet and binding the mixture with a little water until its slightly sticky and comes together in a ball.

Clean the leeks, thinly slice them and sweat them in a large pan with a little olive oil and the butter.  Put a lid on the pan.

Stir in the cream, cheese and mustard, check for seasoning, if it needs more pepper go for it.

Roll the suet out on a floured surface to no more than 2cm thick,

Line 1 large or 2 individual pudding basins with the suet (don’t forget to lightly grease the pudding basins and don’t forget to leave some suet for the lid)

Fill the suet lined pudding basin with the leeks mixture.  Wet the edges of the suet and place the lid.

Bake in the oven for 25 minutes for individual puddings or 40 minutes for a large pudding.  The top should be crisp and bubbling on the edges.

Turn out the puddings, they always come out clean as the suet is very thick and the basin will have been greased.

Enjoy with pork and mash YUM!

Dauphinoise potatoes

Creamy, pungent, rich and delicious!  These potatoes are a real treat and go perfectly with rich meats such as game, beef or lamb. They are particularly good reheated the next day when the flavours have really penetrated the potatoes.  In plain English that means i eat them cold out of the fridge with loads of white bread and butter and they are IMMENSE!

The perfect potato variety for these is a waxy variety, so the potato slices retain their shape during cooking.  I would recommend you use Maris Piper for this dish.

Ingredients
Serves 4
3 medium potatoes
1/2 pint of milk
1/2 pint of double cream
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 small pack gruyere cheese

Method
Peel and slice the potatoes as thinly as possible, use a mandolin if you have one.

Put the potatoes in a large sauce pan and cover with the milk and cream, season with 1 teaspoon of salt and loads of black pepper.  Seasoning really makes this dish so dont be tight on the salt.

Crush the garlic into the mix and gently heat, do not boil or the milk and cream will boil over.

After about 10 minute the potatoes should just be starting to get a little soft.

Transfer the mixture to an ovenproof dish and level out the potatoes so they cook evenly.  You can add as much or as little of the liquid as you like but bear in mind the liquid will reduce so make sure you put some liquid in.  I usually put all of the liquid in to start with.

Sprinkle the potatoes with the grated cheese to just cover the top.

Bake in an oven on gas mark6 (200) for 40 minutes or until golden and bubbling.  Pop tinfoil over for the first 20 minutes.

If you find the potatoes are too liquid you can carefully remove with a spoon or drain some of the liquid off about 15 minutes before the end.

Serve immediately.

Peppercorn sauce

This is the sauce i had to do on MasterChef during the 10 minute pressure test, which i aced, theres one thing i can do and thats cook a friggin good steak! The sauce is really quick and is a perfect accompaniment for steaks or roast beef.  Remember when making this that pepper is a spice and it benefits from being gently dry fried to release its full flavour.

Ingredients
Serves 4 portions
300mls double cream
A few tablespoons of whole black peppercorns (if you don’t have whole, ground from the pepper mill will be fine)
50mls of brandy
1tbs Dijon mustard

Method
If not already ground - grind up the peppercorns in a pestle and mortar or in a pan with a rolling pin or hammer.

If you have previously cooked steaks make the sauce in the pan after the steaks have been cooked.  That way you get the flavour from the steaks in the sauce.
In a hot pan gently fry the peppercorns for 30 seconds to release their flavour.
While the pan is piping hot add the brandy, this de glazes the pan i.e gets all the flavour from the bottom of the pan.  BE CAREFUL when doing this as the brandy may flame up, if it does don’t panic, it will go out itself after a few seconds when the alcohol has burned off.
After a few seconds (don’t let the brandy reduce to nothing but it should be reduced by aprox half the volume) add the cream to the pan and turn the heat down to its lowest setting.  If you are using an electric hob, take the pan off the hob for a few seconds while the heat reduces so you don’t boil the cream.
Stir in the mustard, warm everything through and serve.