Halloumi Aubergine Burgers with Harissa Relish
This recipe can be found on page 34 of the June Issue of Good Food Magazine. A tasty alternative to normal burgers. I found the taste to be one of a sweet and sour nature, each ingredient complimenting the other and nothing over powering.
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, very finely sliced
1/2 aubergine, cut into 8 round slices
250g block halloumi, cut into 8 slices
1 tbsp soft brown sugar
1 roasted red pepper from a jar, chopped
2 tsp harissa
4 ciabatta rolls, halved and lightly toasted
4 tbsp houmous
1. Add 1 tbsp of the oil to a pan and tip in the onions. Cook over a high heat for a few minutes, then turn down the heat and cook until soft and golden - about 8 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat another tbsp of oil and fry the aubergine for a few minutes on each side until tender. Set aside. In the remaining oil, fry the halloumi until golden.
3. Tip the brown sugar, pepper and harissa into the onions. Cook for 1 minute until the sugar has melted. While the relish is cooking, spread the rolls with houmous, laying halloumi and aubergine slices on top. Spoon the sticky, spicy relish over and serve.
Saint Helenian Fish In Savoury Batter
A superb dish if you are looking for something light, but also filling. The batter makes the fish taste that much better and another speedy dish to make if you are a little light on time. This recipe can be found in Take A Breaks My Favourite Recipes Magazine, Issue 7 and was submitted by Donna Chambers of Lymington, Hants. I served this dish with a nice basic salad and some home made Irish Soda Bread.
113g plain flour
1 egg
142ml milk
1 onion, finely chopped
handful of chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
1 chilli, chopped (optional)
a little drop of yellow food colouring
fish of your choice, de-boned & sliced (I used haddock)
vegetable oil, for frying
salt and pepper to taste
Method
1. To make the batter, sift the flour and seasoning into a bowl. Make a hollow in the centre, add the egg and beat with a wooden spoon. Gradually mix in the milk, beating steadily until the batter is smooth and free from lumps.
2. Add the onion, parsley, mixed herbs, chilli (if using) and food colouring to the batter and give it a good stir.
3. Dip the fish slices into the batter and fry in hot oil, turning once, until golden brown.
Coffee & Walnut Cake
Now I don't actually like coffee in any way, shape or form, but seeing as this was the next recipe to make in my Baked & Delicious Magazine, my OCD wouldn't let me skip past it. The husband was happy though as he loves his coffee. So this recipe can be found in Issue 5 of Baked & Delicious, Page 10.
175g (6oz) unsalted butter at room temperature
175g (6oz) caster sugar
3 eggs
175g (6oz) self-raising flour
5tsp instant coffee dissolved in 2tbsp hot water
75g (3oz) walnuts, chopped
4 tbsp apricot conserve or jam
For The Butter cream
125g (4oz) unsalted butter at room temperature
250g (9oz) icing sugar, sieved
2 tsp instant coffee dissolved in 1 tbsp hot water
Decoration
Walnut halves, coffee beans or chocolate coated coffee beans
Equipment
2 x 18cm (7") sandwich pans, buttered and dusted with flour (optional if using silicone)
Method
Step 1 - Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Butter and flour the sandwich pans (essential if not using silicone bake ware). Use an electric whisk to beat the soft butter and the caster sugar to the consistency of whipped cream.
Step 2 - In a jug, lightly beat the eggs together and then whisk them into the creamed mixture a little at a time. If the mixture threatens to curdle, add a little flour from the measured quantity.
Step 3 - Use a large metal spoon to fold in the flour, the hot coffee and finally the walnuts. Divide the mixture between the sandwich pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until springy to the touch. Run a knife round the edges and turn onto a wire rack to cool.
Step 4 - To make the filling, beat the butter until creamy and gradually whisk in the sifted icing sugar. Add the coffee and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Spread one sponge with apricot conserve or jam, then cover the jam with half the buttercream and the second sponge. Top with the remaining coffee butter cream and decorate with walnut halves and coffee beans.
Midweek Mediterranean Pasta
And so, to tonight's dinner. Another recipe from Take A Break's My Favourite Recipes Magazine, Issue 7. Very easy to make and a simple way to get veggies into your kids. The recipe states that it serves 4 but it more than served my family of 7, with leftovers! The recipe was submitted by Amy Harding of Tipton, West Midlands. Now I wasn't 100% sure how to further cook the pasta meal after step 1 :/ so once I had cooked the pastas, I put them into a big flameproof casserole dish and added the other ingredients. I did find that it was a little dry even with the tin of chopped tomatoes so I also added a mugful of boiling water, covered and then simmered it all for about 20 minutes, until the peppers and onions had softened.
1/2 x 250g pack unsmoked streaky bacon (I used normal bacon as not a huge fan of streaky)
250g pack tri-colour fusilli pasta
250g pack tagliatelle pasta
190g jar red pesto
1 red pepper, de-seeded and chopped
1 orange pepper, deseeded and chopped
1 large onion, diced
3 chicken breast fillets, cooked
227g can chopped tomatoes
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
50g Parmesan, grated
Garlic bread, to serve
1. Grill the bacon. Cook the pastas in salted boiling water for 10-15 minutes or according to the pan instructions, then drain well.
2. Add the jar of pesto, the peppers and the onion to the drained pasta. Once grilled, set the bacon aside on kitchen paper to cool.
3. Chop the cooked chicken and bacon pieces and add them to the pasta, along with the tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning and half of the Parmesan. Cook until piping hot, serve with garlic bread and scatter the rest of the cheese on top.
Enjoy and let me know with a comment if you try any of the meals.
Fran x
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