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Easter

April 3, 2013 by potatoface

Easter is not much fun when you have to work or you are ill. This year I managed to do both. First working, then spending most of the time in bed feeling sorry for myself. Before I fell ill and before I was working (actually it was before Easter as well) I arranged to have Easter dinner with Boyfriend’s family, pretending it was Easter. It’s just a date after all and it moves every year anyway, so you don’t have to stick to it.

I made carrot and corriander soup, asparagus quiche and chocolate cake (with dark chocolate ganache, milk chocolate nest, white chocolate shavings, chocolate eggs and a chocolate bunny).Yum.

carrot and coriander soup

easter chocolate cake

easter chocolate cake

Category cakes, dessert, dinner, Party, soup | Tags: asparagus quiche,bunny,carrot and coriander soup,chococlate,chocolate cake,chocolate egg,Easter,yummy | No Comments
Pasta Alla Siciliana

March 14, 2013 by potatoface

The older I get the more I feel like Grusinskaya, a character played by Greta Garbo in ‘Grand Hotel’. Simply: ‘I want to be alone…’ I just want to hibernate and stay at home all the time, watch old films (heck ‘Grand Hotel’) and eat comfort food. I allow Boyfriend to join me sometimes because he’s really good in pretending I’m not grumpy and he thinks I’m not short tempered but funny. Yeah, I know…

There is only one way when it comes to comfort food and it’s the Italian way. And in this case i’m talking about Pasta alla Siciliana. Unfortunately I watch too many films so when I hear Sicily I think of all amazing films based there or around Sicilian families. The Godfather (‘In Sicily, women are more dangerous than shotguns.’ ‘Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.’- Where can you hear lines like that? Forget about it!), Cinema Paradiso (‘Life is harder then films’), The Leopard (‘Yes, love, of course! Fire and flames for a year, ashes for thirty. I too know what love is.’ – do you know what I mean?…Precious!).

I also love adjusting my menu to what I’m watching, and I got Sopranos Box for my birthday, so I’m expecting to make a lot of this pasta dish and long hibernating evenings….Lots of Italian wine too.

Pasta alla Siciliana

pasta (any, I use fusilli, penne, gnocchietti, orechiette, etc)

aubergine

2 shallots

3 cloves of garlic, crushed

olive oil

1/2 cup of sour cream or ricotta cheese

can of chopped tomatoes

pinch of red pepper flakes

salt and pepper

chopped handful of parsley

vegetarian parmesan

1. In a pan, warm olive oil and add chopped shallots. Wait till they are translusent, add garlic and pepper flakes.

2. Fry for 2-3 minets, then add diced aubergine. Cover and fry till aubergine softenes. Add chopped tomatoes.

3. In the meantime boil pasta.

4. When tomato sauce thickens, add salt and pepper, cream or ricotta (or both if you feel decadent), parsley and drained pasta. Mix well, add parmesan and serve with a bottle of wine (each) and Italian themed film on the side.

Buon appetito!

pasta alla siciliana

pasta alla siciliana

pasta alla siciliana

Category dinner, lunch | Tags: aubergine,garlic,olive oil,parsley,pasta,pepper flakes,ricotta cheese,shallots,sour cream,tomatoes,wine,yummy | No Comments
Golden Globes

January 16, 2013 by potatoface
When I was at the university me and my friends used to make a big night of watching any film awards, especially the Oscars.

We used to dress up like we were going to walk the red carpet, make some food and drinks (we couldn’t really afford champagne back then, so usually we settled for sparkling wine). And we used to watch the awards all night till early hours. We had so much fun doing that every year. Usually we were talking over it most of the time but I treasure moments of making fun of some of the speaches, coming up with the phrases we used later over and over again (‘Andrew, how lovely to see you from so far away’ – Oscars 2000)…Me falling of the chair when I heard the Award went to someone who in my opinion didn’t deserve it….Aaah, memories…

When I moved to UK we tried to keep up with the tradition and in my first year I watched it with a group of new friends and commenting on the whole thing with my friends in Poland via Skype or text messages. But then it all changed. It just wasn’t the same, we were all working so we couldn’t really stay up all Sunday night.

So this year I decided to bring tradition back and make the night out of the Gloden Globes (especially that I didn’t have to go to work next day).

Drinks were flowing, snacks were prepared – crostinis, popcorn, roasted nuts, macaroons and creme de la creme – orange cupcakes with chocolate and orange icing.

popcorn bags

table setting - gold theme

setting the scene

macaroons

house decorations

table setting

crostini

orange and chocolate cupcakes

Orange and chocolate cupcakes
- 150 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons orange extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
For the frosting:

200 grams of dark chocolate, 200 of double cream, 1 tablespoon of orange extract

Preheat the oven to 180 C

Using mixer, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the orange extracts and zest and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined.

Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner with batter. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to cool completely.

For the icing, temper chocolate, mix with cream and orange extract, cool slightly and when it starts setting, pipe onto your cupcakes or using palette knife spread on your cupcakes.
Category cakes, dessert, Party | Tags: butter,buttermilk,chocolate ganache,eggs,flour,Golden Globes party,orange zest,salt,sugar,yummy | No Comments
Christmas party

December 23, 2012 by potatoface

Have I mentioned I love Christmas? It’s the best pagan tradition adapted by Christianity…

This year, for the first time in 5 years, I got Christmas off from work, so me and Boyfriend flew to Poland (yay!)

Before we did, we invited a few friends over for ‘Christmas Dinner’ to celebrate with them.

The Menu

Beetroot soup with mushroom parcels

Beet and Goat Cheese Terrine with Rocket and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad

Spanakopita (Spinach and Feta in Filo Pastry)

Gingerbread Cupcakes

Mince pies in filo pastry

And lots and lots of red wine.

Recipes coming soon…

Category dessert, dinner, Party | Tags: butter,christmas party,cinnamon,cream,eggs,feta cheese,maple syrup,sugar,wine,yummy | No Comments
French themed party

August 15, 2012 by potatoface

To achieve a successful French theme party you need:

1. to befriend a French person, preferably with a family (so you can have a French person times three = more legitimate French party)

2. miniature Eiffel Tower,

3. A la French menu,

4. lots of wine,

5. no nonsense taking attitude,

6. lots and lots of wine and cheese,

7. stamina…

8.selection of French music.

Now, it’s definitely not a good idea to start with a little session called ‘two Cosmopolitans drinking two cosmopolitans’…which is me and my ex flatmate (Kamil, mentioned before in this blog) downing two cosmos before the French arrived. Three words of warning – next day hangover.

And try not to delete half of the photographs you had taken (!)

Anyway, setting the table for the French themed party in my case was more like fishing from a basket of clichés. Baguette here, Eiffel tower there, and voila! Sorted.

French theme party

french theme party

french theme party

For dinner I made green bean and goat cheese tart. The inspiration came from Anna Olson’s book ‘Fresh with Anna Olson’, I just turned it into a vegetarian dish.

Green bean and goat cheese tart

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

1 1/2 cups of flour

120 grams of unsalted butter

1/2 cup of grated parmesan

2-3 tablespoons of cold water

Filling:

200-300 grams of green beans, trimmed and blanched

2 eggs

3/4 cup of sour cream

black pepper

pinch of salt

herbes de provence

120 grams of goat cheese

1. For the pastry pulse the flour and butter in a food processor until crumbly (you can do it by hand, just try to be quick so the butter stays cold)

2. Add parmesan and water and pulse again. Turn the dough out, shape into a disk, wrap in a cling foil and chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.

3. Preheat the oven to 190 C. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a circle. Line the tart shell with the dough, trim the edges. Chill for another 30 minutes (trust me, it’s worth it).

4. Stab with a fork a few times (helps letting the air out while baking) and bake till it starts getting golden. Let it cool.

5. Reduce the temperature to 160C. Arrange the green beans, sprinkle herbes de provance.

6. In a small bowl whisk the eggs, sour cream, salt and pepper. Pour this over the tart filling and crumble goat cheese over the top.

7. Bake till the eggs are set. (Don’t engage into a long conversation if you don’t want to burn your tart)

8. Let it cool a bit before slicing.

green bean and goat cheese tart

I served it with a salad made of rocket and watermelon with lemon and olive oil dressing and shaved parmesan on top.

There was also plenty of wine, cheese, baguette, etc.

Dessert is a different story. I decided not to make a cake but biscuits. There were two : normal shortbread filled with raspberry jam and hazelnut shortbread filled with nutella. Yum!

Vive la France!

shortbread biscuits

shortbread biscuits

Category dessert, dinner, French theme party, Party, tart, Uncategorized | Tags: butter,cheese,cream,eggs,flour,goat cheese,green beans,herbs,parmesan,salt,wine,yummy | No Comments
Stuffed peppers

September 10, 2011 by potatoface

stuffed peppers

Apparently stuffed peppers have got less calories than a tic-tac. I don’t know if it’s true but I love them. They are tasty. And it’s always better to stuff peppers then get stuffed.

So whenever you feel like stuffing your face or simply kicking the stuffing out of someone, stuff peppers instead. Let the force be with you…

stuffed peppers

Stuffed peppers

Ingredients

3 peppers

brown rice (half a cup)

100 grams of mushrooms

1 courgette

100 grams of green peas (fresh or from a tin)

herbes de provence (or fresh basil, oregano and thyme)

salt and pepper

olive oil

100 – 150 grams of cheddar cheese

1. Cook rice.

2. Chop mushrooms, fry them in olive oil. Add chopped courgette, add herbs, salt and pepper. Add fresh green peas, if you are using tinned peas, wait till courgettes are soft.

3. Halve the peppers. Mix vegetables with rice and stuff the peppers. Grate cheese and sprinkle it on top of the peppers.

4. Bake in the oven (180 C) till peppers are soft and the cheese has melted.

5. Serve with salad and roasted potatoes.

Category dinner, lunch, starter | Tags: brown rice,cheese,courgettes,grean peas,herbes de provence,mushrooms,olive oil,pepper,peppers,salt,yummy | No Comments
Apple pie

September 6, 2011 by potatoface

apple pie

My sister always makes apple pie the same way. When I made it a few times here in England, people were commenting that it’s quite unusual. Well, it’s the traditional way to make apple pie in my house so maybe it’s just a family thing or maybe a Polish thing, I don’t know.

I know that I love it and Boyfriend totally digs it.

In fact I made it yesterday and it went so well, there’s nothing left.

My ex flatmate loved it as well, so this recipe is especially for him. For Kamil that is.

Apple pie

Ingredients

1-2 kg of apples (granny smith or golden delicious)

2 tablespoons of cinnamon

3-4 cloves

1/4 glass of brown sugar

half a cup (or half a pack) of butter

1 cup of sifted flour

2 eggs

few spoons of cold water

few spoons of vanilla sugar

1. First make shortbread crust. I never make sweet crust, but if you want to get high on an insulin rush, knock yourself out. Mix butter with flour, 2 egg yolks (sugar optional) and cold water. Use your hands to work the dough and form into a ball. Chill in the fridge.

2. Peel apples and grate them. Add sugar, cinnamon and cloves and cook until excess liquid evaporates. You can remove cloves after (highly recommended, you want a bit of spice but not to choke on it). Leave to cool.

3. Take your dough out of the fridge, divide into two parts(1/3 and 2/3). roll the bigger part on a slightly floured surface. Fit into a buttered tart dish, stab with a fork, prebake for about 15 minutes at 200 C.

4. Fill the crust with apples. Whisk the egg whites, add some vanilla sugar and whisk again till they are stiffer then some people’s upper lip. Spread on top of the apples. Use the remaining dough to sprinkle on top of the egg whites (like crumble, you can also use a grater and grate it like cheese. That’s what I do anyway).

5. Bake it at 200 C until meringue is baked and the crust on top is golden.

6. You can serve it hot or cold, with ice cream and on its own.

Category dessert | Tags: apples,butter,cinnamon,eggs,flour,sugar,vanilla sugar,yummy | No Comments
pasta with a greek twist

June 18, 2011 by potatoface

pasta with a greek twist

In one of my favourite tv shows one of the characters, who’s a musician, starts working in a restaurant and he says that working in a restaurant is like having a back stage pass – you have access everywhere.

Well, it’s not only that when it comes to food. Cooking is the most rock and roll thing ever. And so sexy too, take the aubergines for example…shiny, smooth, tasty. You can turn a simple thing into something amazing…

(more…)

Category dinner, lunch | Tags: basil,black olives,chopped tomatoes,courgettes,feta cheese,linguine,mushrooms,olive oil,pasta,red pepper,yummy | No Comments
Quick green pasta – energy efficient

June 15, 2011 by potatoface

If you don’t have a lot of time to cook but you still want to eat something fresh and home made, there is a solution. It is called pasta. I have a few life savers which are quick, easy and mouth watering, you only need about 10 – 15 minutes to make them.

One of them is green pasta. It’s not green because it’s so ecological, but because you put green stuff into it. Or maybe it is ecological if you think about how quickly it is made and how little energy you use to cook it.

(more…)

Category dinner, lunch | Tags: basil,courgettes,green,linguine,pasta,pesto,pine nuts,potatofaces,quick,spaghetti,tagliatelle,yummy | No Comments
Healthy crepes

June 8, 2011 by potatoface

healthy crepes

When you have a day off (for some people it is usually the weekend, for myself and Boyfriend it is a random day) you could make something different for breakfast. I quite often make crepes. They are a healthy version with oats and wholemeal flour and they are yummy. They are also good for brunch or lunch. When we’ve got friends staying over it’s always a winner.

(more…)

Category breakfast, brunch, lunch | Tags: bananas,blueberries,breakfast,brunch,cinnamon,crepes,eggs,flour,healthy,lemon,lunch,maple syrup,milk,oats,pancakes,strawberries,yummy | No Comments