Homemade Pizza

Yes! Homemade pizzas are far better than frozen ones… No doubt about it!!

base+10min prep+15min cooking

Ingredients:

Pizza base – 3 options:

• Quick + Easy: Buy a ready-made pizza base
• Still quite easy: Buy a pizza base mix (+water only).
• Hardest-but-tastiest:Make base with live yeast.
  • 2½ tsp active dry yeast
  • 280ml warm water
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 30ml olive oil
  • 390g bread flour (+extra for rolling)
  • ½ tsp salt

Pizza toppings:

• ½ jar of passata or tinned tomatoes (~400 g)
• salt & pepper to season
• 100 g mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• black olives, halved
• capers
• 125 g mozzarella, cubed/grated
• 50 g cheddar cheese
• mixed herbs (oregano, basil etc.)
• olive oil

Instructions:

Prepare Pizza Base

• Easy Option: Base ready
• Medium Option: Make as per instructions on packet – Mix pizza base mixture with warm water and knead* for 8-10 min. Roll out dough into a round base and leave to rise in a warm place for 10min (airing cupboard or warm oven on lowest setting and turn off).
• Hardest-but-tastiest Option: Dissolve yeast in the warm water and let stand for 5min. Add the sugar, oil, flour and salt, mix together with wooden spoon, then knead*, adding more flour if required until dough is no longer sticky, for 8-10min. Form dough into a ball and transfer to a lightly-oiled bowl and cover with cling film. Let the dough rise in a warm place (airing cupboard or warm oven on lowest setting and turn off) for 1½-2hrs. Punch air out of dough and roll out into a round base on a floured surface.

* Either knead by hand on a floured surface by folding dough in half and pressing layers together strongly with the heel of the hand, turning 90º and repeating, OR, use dough hook attachments on an electric mixer. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic… It can be quite therapeutic!!

Prepare Pizza Toppings

Transfer pizza base to baking tray (or pizza stone if you have one) and spread evenly with passata or tinned tomatoes, leaving only 1cm free around edge of base. Season with salt and pepper.

Layer the mushrooms, peppers, olives and capers evenly across the base, then top with the mozzarella and cheddar cheese.

Sprinkle with the herb mix and drizzle generously with olive oil before baking at 200°C for 15-20 minutes (or as stated on the ready-made base instructions) until golden brown. Mmmmm……

OTHER TOPPINGS (v): Roasted vegetables, artichokes, blue cheese, pesto, spinach, red onion, goat’s cheese, rocket, sundried tomatoes, pineapple, jalapenos.

 

Caprese Skewers

Fresh and delicious!

5 min

Ingredients:

• 2 large tomatoes (preferably organic)
• 2 mozzarella balls (125 g each)
• 6 tsp pesto
• extra virgin olive oil
• salt

Instructions:

Slice tomatoes and mozzarella balls thickly.

Layer tomatoes and mozzarella together alternatively, maintaining the layers of the tomato (as in picture).

Spoon over the pesto, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

TIP: You can use a wooden skewer to secure the tomato and mozzarella slices together.

Hummus

A popular Middle Eastern dip made from crushed chickpeas and tahini.

15 min

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas (400g)
• 4 tsp of tahini
• 4 tsp of natural yougurt
• 8 mint leaves
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed with ½ a tsp of salt
• paprika
• extra virgin olive oil
• parsley (optional)

Instructions:

Blend all the ingredients together in a suitable container.

Taste and add more of any ingredient if required (generally tahini/mint/salt).

Serve spread on a plate sprinkled with paprika, olive oil and parsley (as shown in picture).

TIP: Good for dipping toasted bread or pitta and raw vegetables, such as carrot or cucumber.

Tzatziki

A popular refreshing Greek meze, great for dipping!

1 hour rest + 15 min preparation

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp white or red wine vinegar
• salt
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 300g thick Greek-style yoghurt
• 1 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped

Instructions:

Spread the finely sliced cucumber out in a colander and sprinkle with the wine vinegar and salt. Leave to drain for one hour.

Thoroughly wash the salt off the cucumber and then squeeze out the water with a clean tea towel (or similar) and pat dry with kitchen towel.

Crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar with 1 tsp of salt.

Add the cucumber, garlic, yoghurt and mint to a bowl. Mix well and season to taste. Serve with warm pitta or flat bread.

TIPS: The tzatziki will taste even better if left to marinate in the fridge overnight.

 

Lemon Chicken

Tender Chinese-style chicken in a crispy batter with lemon sauce…The Best!

5 min + 30 min marinade + 30 min cook

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts (about 1lb/0.5 Kg)
• 1 red pepper
• 3 small sachets of Chinese lemon sauce (e.g. Red Dragon)
• vegetable oil
• Boiled rice

Marinade:

• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp salt

Batter:

• 2 large eggs
• ¾ cup cornflour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch white pepper

Instructions:

Cut the chicken into cubes and place in a bowl with the marinade ingredients for at least 30 minutes (the longer the better).

Whisk the batter ingredients together in a bowl until there are no more lumps. It should be a thick batter, so add more flour if too thin.

Heat 1 cm (deep) of vegetable oil in a wok (or deep fryer) until a drop of batter bubbles up immediately. Then turn down to medium heat.

Cut the chicken into cubes and place in a bowl with the marinade ingredients for at least 30 minutes (the longer the better).

Spoon chicken (with excess batter) into oil adding the pieces one by one and spacing them out in the wok. As soon as the batter bubbles up, turn the chicken over.

Turn frequently until golden brown, and then remove using a slotted spoon to a plate with kitchen towel. Repeat steps 4+5 until all chicken is cooked.

While deep frying the chicken, fry the pepper in another pan until soft. Then add the lemon sauce and heat through.

Gently mix the sauce and peppers with the fried chicken, and serve with boiled rice.

TIP: If the chicken gets cold while frying the other batches, preheat before serving by frying again for 1-2 minutes. You can also add slices of lemon with the pepper to give extra lemon flavour!

Chocolate & Cherry Roulade

One of the most delicious deserts EVER!!!!

35 + cooling + 10 min

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 225g plain chocolate
• 85ml water
• 1½ tsp instant coffee granules
• 5 room-temperature eggs
• 140g caster sugar
• greaseproof paper
• icing sugar and cocoa powder for dusting

For the filling:

• 1 can of cherry pie filling (or cherry jam with whole cherries in)
• 300ml double cream
• 2 deserts spoons caster sugar
• 2 capfuls of almond essence

Instructions:

Heat the oven to 175°C.

Cut a piece of greaseproof paper to fit the base and sides of a large baking dish (about 35×25 cm).

Melt the chocolate with the water and coffee granules in a saucepan over a medium heat (do not allow to burn). Stir until it forms a glossy mixture and then turn off the heat.

Separate the eggs into yolks and whites in 2 bowls (whites into a glass/metal bowl). Beat the yolks with ¾ of the sugar until pale and fluffy (only 1 min with an electric whisk).

Fold in the the partly-cooled chocolate mixture.

In the second bowl, whip the egg whites till the foam is firm but not dry (2-3 min with electric whisk) and then whisk in the rest of the sugar.

With a large metal spoon, add a small amount of whites to the chocolate-egg yolk mixture to loosen it. Then fold in the rest gently, trying to keep as much air in the mixture as possible.

Spread the mixture evenly in the lined baking dish and bake for 12-15 min until the top is firm but not burnt. Do not overcook or the cake will crack badly when rolled.

Slide the cake and parchment out of the baking dish and onto a wire rack. Leave to cool covered with a damp tea-towel.

When cooled, invert the cake carefully onto a piece of greaseproof paper dusted thickly with icing sugar (use wire rack to help you turn it).

Whip the cream with the sugar and the almond essence until it forms soft peaks.

Spread the cherry pie mix and then the cream evenly over the chocolate sponge then roll up the sponge cake using the parchment to help you. Peel away and place on serving dish seam-side down.

Sprinkle with icing sugar and cocoa powder to finish (hides all cracks!!).

Sponge recipe from “Leith’s Baking Bible” by Susan Spaull & Fiona Burrell.

Baked Cheesecake

Super easy-to-make cheesecake by our friend Mr. Batet…

50 min

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 3 natural yoghurt pots
• 9 level desert spoons (medium) of sugar
• 4 level desert spoons of cornflour
• 1 tub of cream cheese (Philadelphia etc.)

Instructions:

Preheat over to 175ºC.

Blend all ingredients together till smooth.

Pour the mixture into a baking dish (metal/ceramic).

Bake for 30-45 minutes until it is no longer liquid in the middle (a knife will come out clean) and it is not too burnt.

Cheese & Mushroom Croquettes

Tasty little spanish-style croquettes filled with a mouth-watering soft cheese sauce… Mmm…

30+20+20 min (about 3 hr with breaks)

Ingredients:

• 800ml milk
• ½ onion (not chopped)
• 5 cloves
• ½ tsp black peppercorns
• 2 bay leaves
• 50g mushrooms, finely chopped
• 150g cheese (gruyere or something similar)
• 100g butter
• 150g plain flour
• 3 eggs
• 250g fine breadcrumbs (blend breadsticks if you cannot find this)
• olive oil for shallow frying

Instructions:

Boil the milk, onion, cloves, peppercorns and bay leaves in a saucepan for 15 minutes.

Strain to remove all bits (onion, cloves etc.) and return only liquid to pan. Add mushrooms and boil for further 5 minutes.

In a separate saucepan melt the butter over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook briefly for 30 seconds.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the milk and mushrooms bit by bit, stirring continuously to avoid clumping.

Add the cheese and return to the heat until the sauce thickens (if it hasn’t already) and boils. Taste and season with salt as desired (usually around ½ tsp).

Turn off heat, and pour or scoop onto a baking tray/dish to cool completely.

To make the croquettes, shape 1 teaspoon of cold mix into an oval, scooping from one to another until well-shaped. Then gently dip into the egg and then the breadcrumbs. (You can keep half the mixture in fridge till the next day if you run out of time!). Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Heat about 1cm of oil in a frying pan and fry croquettes in batches of 5/6. Keep rolling over until golden brown on all sides and take out onto a plate with kitchen towel, keeping warm in a low oven if necessary.

Serve cold or warm as a main meal (serves 4) or tapas dish.

TIP: They are also tasty when mushrooms are replaced with ham.

Adapted from “Moro” by Sam & Sam Clark.