I’ve been obsessed with making my own pizza all summer long. If you follow my instagram account you will have seen me devouring them. Homemade pizza is such a joy and puts a smile on the face of anyone that eats it. A thin crispy crust, covered with fresh vegetables and and cheese, and eaten outside. I decided to  switch it up a bit this time and go for a Thai style pizza. The sauce was made with coconut milk and peanut butter, then I layered it up with chicken and lovely Thai vegetables. Served with my tomato salad and a homemade Pimm’s it was perfection. An awesome, easy, and fresh dinner to share with your loved one or friends.

Ingredients (makes 3 large pizzas)

Dough 

500g flour (I used the one for dumplings and noodles.)

2 teaspoons of salt

1 teaspoon of yeast (I used bobai brand that comes in 8g packages)

4 table spoons of olive oil

14 oz ice cold water

Sauce

1/2 a can of coconut milk

3 tablespoons of peanut butter

2 tablespoons of sweet chili sauce.

Topping

1 chicken breast

1/2 an onion

1 egg plant

1-2 chillies

150g of grated cheese

A bunch of cilantro (고수)

A handful of basil leaves

Directions 

1. Make the pizza dough using my recipe here.

2. While the dough is resting, cook your chicken breasts with a little garlic and oil. I also added some Thai seasoning I bought on i-Herb. Then slice and roast your egg plants. Grate the cheese, and slice the onion and chillies. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius.

3. Roll out the dough to the size of your pan, then sprinkle with flour before placing the dough on top. Cover the base with the sauce and bake in the oven for 10 minutes to cook the dough. If you don’t do this and you pile on everything on top first the dough will stay raw in the middle.

4. Once the base has cooked, layer it up with cheese and all your lovely vegetables apart from the basil leaves and cook for another 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and is golden brown. Sprinkle the basil leaves on top then serve.

I am all about garlic, and mushrooms for that matter, and this is one of those random dishes that I really miss from home. A lovely mushroom, coated in garlic butter, breaded and deep fried. Oh my they are perfection, dipped in some garlic mayo or sweet chili sauce what could be finer? I had pretty much forgotten all about my love of deep fried mushrooms until I decided to try them out myself. They were actually super easy to make, and the taste was undeniably amazing. I think mine were far superior to any I have had before, did I get lucky or am I just brilliant? Who could say for sure, either way I nailed it. The best part was that The Fat Boyfriend doesn’t even like mushrooms, so he had one and very generously let me eat the rest. It was the best day ever!

Ingredients

10 – 12 Mushrooms (but feel free to double up, you wont be sorry)

1 stick of butter

5 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon of fresh parsley

A pinch of salt and pepper

1 egg beaten

3 tablespoons of flour

8 tablespoons of panko crumbs (or bread crumbs)

1 teaspoon of paprika

500ml of soy bean oil (enough to cover your pan, at least an inch deep)

Directions 

1. To make the garlic butter, melt the butter in a saucepan and crush or grate the garlic into it. Add the parsley, salt, and pepper, and let it cook for a minute before removing from the heat. Add the mushrooms to the melted butter and give it a good stir to make sure they are coated. Let the mushrooms sit in and soak up the butter while you do the next step. Take a plate or tray and put a piece of grease proof paper on it. Then put the mushrooms on the paper and put them in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes. The butter will freeze and keep them coated.

2. When the mushrooms have set, sprinkle on the flour and toss them in it a little and then pop them back in the freezer while you prepare the egg and bread crumbs. Put the beaten egg in one bowl and the breadcrumbs and paprika in another. I usually make a nice breadcrumb mix using panko crumbs, nutritional yeast, some oats, and some quinoa. I feel it gives a nice range of textures but just plain panko crumbs is fine too.

3. Put the soy bean oil in a wok or large pan and heat it to about 180 degrees (if you don’t have a thermometer this is about medium on a gas range). Dip the mushrooms into the egg, making sure they are completely coated. Then gently toss them in the bread crumbs. I usually find it’s easier to coat them all first and set them on a tray before frying so you aren’t trying to do three things at once. Fry them in small batches for a couple of minutes on each side until golden brown. Then remove and drain on a piece of kitchen roll before serving with your favourite dip. Voilà breaded mushrooms.

I have been dreaming about a fish finger sandwich for weeks now, and I only just got around to making it. However it was more than worth the wait and lived up to all my expectations. Served in a nice fresh baguette, I used some gourmet beer batter pieces of cod that I bought at High Street Market. I smothered the whole thing in tartar sauce and served it up with some home-made mushy peas. Fresh peas are in season a the moment and I picked some up from my local roadside ajumma, she even threw in 3 free chillies (score). I served up this glorious sandwich with my home-made chickpea fries, because I just can’t get enough of them right now.

Ingredients

2-3 fish fingers per sandwich

1/2 a baguette

Tartar sauce

A few pieces of lettuce

2 cups of fresh peas

A knob of butter

A splash of milk

A small handful of fresh mint

Salt & pepper to taste

Directions 

1. Boil the peas for 10 to 15 minutes until soft. Then strain and put them in the blender while they are still warm and add the knob of butter so that it melts. Add the milk, mint, and salt and pepper and blend until fairly smooth. Don’t overdo it though, it’s best when it still has a bit of texture.

2. You can either deep fry your fish fingers or cook them in the oven. My oven was on the fritz so I deep fried them. Plus I was making the chickpea fries too, so it seemed churlish not to. I cooked mine at 180 degrees for about 8- 10 minutes turning them halfway through.

3. When all is ready pile up your sandwich with lots of tartar sauce, some lettuce and those lovely fish fingers. Chips are optional but always welcome.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I love coffee. Despite not joining the coffee world until I was 25, I have now become an ardent fan and have been making up for lost time ever since. I really don’t think I could make it through the day without a cup or two. If it wouldn’t leave me financially bankrupt  I would probably drink about 3 ice vanilla lattes a day, but the 5,000 price tag generally puts me off. The other problem is that there are no coffee shops in the barren wasteland of countryside that I work in, which really seems to limit my coffee intake. That’s why I am thrilled to have come upon this method. It’s cheap and I can whip up a coffee before I leave for work and take it with me.

Now I am no slouch in the kitchen and I’ve always figured it must be pretty damn easy to make my own bloody coffee, but alas I’ve never quite managed it until now. Vanilla syrup is insatiable easy to make or buy. Milk and ice are everywhere, it’s just the coffee that posed a problem. I bought a little coffee maker on Craigslist but the espresso just wasn’t quite good enough. I was waxing lyrically with my friend about the lack of a good espresso in my life when I was round his house one morning using his incredibly expensive hand pulled contraption, when he suggested cold brewing. A quick search on the tinternet and all my problems were solved. It’s so easy a monkey could make it. This cold brewed method provides the best coffee base for my latte ever. You could also drink it as an americano.

Ingredients

1 cup of ground coffee

4 cups of cold water

1 jar

1 coffee filter

Directions

1. Measure out your coffee beans and grind as finely as possible. If you don’t have a coffee grinder or blender attachment then buy them from your favourite coffee shop and have them grind them for you.

2. Measure out one cup of coffee grounds. Then put them in your jar and top with the four cups of cold water. If you want your coffee even stronger you can just use 3 cups but I find this works perfectly. If you are planning on drinking it straight you may want to add more water depending on your preference. Give the jar a shake then put it in the fridge for at least 8 hours or overnight.

3. Strain your coffee through a filter or use a mandu cloth bag that you can get in all supermarkets and places like Daiso. You can then keep the strained coffee in the fridge for at least 5 days. Also if you don’t throw away the coffee ground you can use them to make a revitalizing and cellulite busting scrub.

4. Use your lovely cold brewed coffee to make your favourite coffee drink and go about your day with a superior air of thrift and smugness as you pass all those people lining up for 5,000 drinks.

Oh brownies I do love a brownie, good, bad or even mediocre. I’m even prepared to eat slightly burnt ones that have fallen on the floor. Now don’t get me wrong I love the luxury of an out and out decadent brownie which is stuffed to the brim with melted chocolate and butter like this one. But sometimes my fridge is bare of butter and chocolate. That’s where a box mix fix comes in. I will always pick them up if I see them on sale but rarely seems to happen these days. However I just found out you can make them for virtually nothing at home. If you get your chocolate chips for free on i-herb like I do then you are laughing. Just measure out your ingredients, chuck them in a zip-lock bag and just put add eggs and oil when you are ready to go. I decided to be a little more fancy and store mine in jars because a) I didn’t have any zip-lock bags b) jars are cool and c) I have a lot of jars which I went mad buying after first discovering Pinterest then subsequently never used. It’s suggested to give away these cuties as gifts, I’d probably have to adjust the size of the recipe and not eat them myself but a good idea in theory.

So you may have noticed that my brownie is a little rustic this week, mainly because I dropped it on the floor. Did I have a little cry about this, yes, yes I did. I have made brownies for the past 3 weeks in a row intending to write a post about it but the first one I burnt beyond repair (but still ate), the second one got eaten before a picture was procured and this one was dropped and slightly burnt, but I decided to suck it up and show it to you anyway as we all make mistakes and it doesn’t make me a bad person. It just means that the damn temperature gauge on my oven is broken and I drop things sometimes.

Ingredients

65g of flour

45g of cocoa powder

200g of white sugar

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

100g of chocolate chips

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/2 a cup of oil

Directions

1. Weigh out all your dry ingredients and put them in a mixing bowl or store them in a zip-lock bag or jar for later.

2. Preheat your oven to 170 degrees Celsius and line a baking tray with baking paper or skip this if you have decent bake wear.

3. Measure the oil and add the eggs and vanilla extract and whisk. Then add to the dry ingredients and mix until the mixture is combined. No need to over mix here. You can also add in any extras at this point, for ideas see my note at the bottom.  Then pour into your tin and bake for 20-30 minutes (depending on how you like it) or until a tooth pick comes out clean(ish).

When your brownie is done leave to cool for ten minutes before removing from the pan. Under no circumstances drop the brownie on the floor and have a tantrum like I did. It’s seriously not cool past the age of 27.

This is a quick and easy brownie recipe that you can whip up in minutes with minimum effort when you are in the mood for a treat. It’s not the kind of brownie I’d try to make if I wanted to impress other bakers. Don’t get me wrong it’s still yummy just not amazing. You can pimp it up in various ways, add nuts, a couple of spoons of peanut butter, some white chocolate chips, or my latest favourite is to add a teaspoon of the orange extract that I bought on i-Herb. Can’t beat orange and chocolate goodness. You could also use this brownie base for a variety of other desserts like my Chocolate Trifle or Peanut Butter Brownie Cheesecake.

After retrying it at Mi Casa I haven’t been able to get this dish of my mind. It’s so simple to make I figured it was high time that I gave it a try myself. Fried potatoes, covered in a rich tomato sauce, and topped with home made aioli. Easy and incredibly tasty.

Ingredients 

6-8 potatoes

2 tablespoons of corn flour

1 tablespoon of flour

1/2 a teaspoon of celery salt

1/2 a teaspoon of pepper

250g of cherry tomatoes

2 red peppers

2 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon of mixed herbs

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Aioli

1 egg yolk

2 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon of mustard

1/2 lemon (juiced)

300ml olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Start off by boiling your potatoes in salted water for 15 minutes until soft. Then strain and leave to cool.

2. While the potatoes are cooling preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Put the cherry tomatoes, red peppers, garlic, and olive oil in a pan and roast for 15-20 minutes until soft.

3. When the tomatoes, garlic, and peppers have roasted, pop them into the blender along with your mixed herbs and blend until smooth. Then set aside.

4. To make the aioli put the egg yolk and mustard in a bowl and whisk together. Add the oil very slowly, about a teaspoon at a time and make sure the last portion of oil has been incorporated before adding the next bit. Keep adding the oil until it has thickened and has the texture of mayonnaise. Squeeze in the lemon, add the crushed garlic, and add salt and pepper to taste. The aioli will keep for about a week in the fridge in a sealed container.

4. Once the potatoes have cooled cut into chunks then pop in a bowl with the cornflour, flour, celery salt and pepper and toss together. Heat some soy bean oil in a wok or frying pan and fry the floured potatoes in batches until crispy and golden brown. Then drain on kitchen paper to remove the excess oil.

5. Pile up the potatoes on your plate, top with your home-made tomato sauce and drizzle with the aioli and enjoy.

Ingredients

300g of Sugar

1 teaspoon of corn flour (corn starch)

Directions

1. Put your sugar and corn flour in your blender. Blend for a minute or two. You will see it change into that lovely snow white powder.

2. Use as needed. Voilà so easy and simple but a real life saver!

I love ribs. I am a huge rib fan. I could eat a million. Lovely soft pieces of pork slathered in a BBQ sauce is my idea of heaven, and who doesn’t like gnawing on bones?  I occasionally buy them frozen from the supermarket, or order them in restaurants but for some reason I rarely make them from scratch. Earlier in the week I was having a look around the small Korean supermarket near my work , and spotted these beauties. Since it was pay day I figured I would treat myself and a few hours later, I was eating some of the best ribs I have ever had.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons of rib rub (homemade or bought)

200ml of Coca Cola (or Pepsi)

5 tablespoons of BBQ sauce

1 rack of ribs

Rib Rub

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

2 tablespoons of paprika

1 tablespoon of cumin

1 tablespoon of garlic powder

1 tablespoon of onion powder

1 teaspoon of celery salt

1 teaspoon of black pepper

1/2 a teaspoon of sage

1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

Directions

1. To make the rub rub, mix all the ingredients together then store in an airtight container. This will keep for a few months at least. If your spice rack is bare you can just buy a packet, no one will judge you.

2. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celcius. Then rub the spice rub on the ribs, making sure they are all coated.

3. Put the ribs in a pan, then pour the coke into the bottom of the pan. Then cover tightly with foil.

4. Put the foiled container in the oven and cook for 2 hours.

5. After 2 hours the meat should be falling off the bone. Turn the oven up to 200 degrees Celsius. Next smother the BBQ sauce on the top of the ribs. Then bake in the oven with the foil off for another 20 minutes, until the ribs are all glazed and sticky perfection. Serve on their own, or with coleslaw and fries Mmmmm.

This is pretty much the best chicken cashew that I have ever had. It tastes better than one from a restaurant, or even the streets of Thailand . It’s also exceptionally easy to make and mega, mega cheap. You can pretty much source all the ingredients from your local Korean supermarket too. The only thing a tiny hard to get is the dried chilies (말린고추), but most supermarkets should have them. If you cant find them just use regular chillies , don’t deny yourself the pleasure that is this dish of delightfulness.

Ingredients

3 chicken breasts (trust me you will want this many)

5 tablespoons of cornflour

3 tablespoons of flour

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 inch of ginger (optional)

1 red pepper

6 mushrooms (optional)

2-3 small dried chillies

100g of cashews

A bunch green onions

Oil for frying (soy-bean or grape-seed, not olive oil)

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

2 tablespoons of soy sauce

1 tablespoon of sweet soy sauce

6 tablespoons of oyster sauce

1 tablespoon of sesame seed oil

Directions

1.  Mix the flour and cornflour together, then season it with salt and pepper then set aside.

2. Chop the chicken breasts up into bite size pieces and coat in the seasoned flour. Heat the oil up very hot then quickly fry the pieces of chicken. They only need to be browned on the outside, no need to cook them the whole way through. When they are done remove from the oil and set aside.

3. Drop the dried chilli into the oil and fry for a minute or so. How much chilli you use, really depends on how hot you like it. Remove from the pan and place with the chicken.

4. Pour away most of the oil leaving a tablespoon or  two and return to a medium heat. Chop the onion and add to pan. Chop the garlic and ginger and add them too. Stir regularly.

5. Chop the mushrooms and pepper and add to the pan as well. After frying for a minute or so, add the chicken, chillies and cashew nuts.

6. While the chicken and vegetables are cooking, make the sauce. Put the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar and sesame seed oil in a bowl and whisk together. Pour the sauce into the pan and make sure everything is coated. Cut the green onions into pieces and stir and turn off the heat. Serve with plain white rice, or egg fried rice if you are feeling really special.

These are just a little something I knocked up with the left over pastry from the quiche. But I always used to make them when I was child. Growing up we didn’t have the well stocked kitchen that we have now. So what I would make all depended on what was available in the cupboards. We always seemed to have the stuff to make these though, plus they were my dad’s favourites. There is nothing better than a cheese straw coated in delicious dip. I think I shall be making them more often!

Ingredients

Pastry (see recipe here)

4 tablespoons of parmesan cheese

50g of grated cheddar

1 beaten egg

Directions

1. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese on your rolled out pastry then cut into strips.

2. Preheat the oven to 2o0 degrees then put them on a baking paper lined tray

3. Brush the straws with beaten egg and sprinkle on the cheddar.

4. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until they are golden brown and snap when broken. Serve with a delicious home-made dip.