Lemon Tart

Lemon Tart

Recipe

Ingredients:

Pastry Base

• 250 g plain flour
• 125 g salted butter, cold, diced
• 90 g caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 orange

Lemon Filling

• 6 lemons
• 250 g caster sugar
• 100 g vanilla caster sugar
• 9 eggs
• 300 ml double cream

Method:

Make the Pastry

• Rub the cold, diced butter into the flour until you have a breadcrumb-like consistency. Or blitz in a food processor. 
• Stir through the caster sugar and orange zest. 
• Crack in the egg, then mix and press into one ball of dough. 
• Do not knead it, but make sure it combines without cracks.

Rest the Pastry

• Wrap the pastry in cling film and chill in the fridge to rest for an hour. 
• Preheat an oven to 180 degrees C.

Roll and Bake

• Roll the rested pastry on a floured surface to the thickness of 1/2cm. 
• Lay it into a loose bottomed round baking tin (24cm across).

• Ease it into the corners, lay in a sheet of baking paper and fill with baking beans. 

• Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, before lifting out the beans and paper and returning to the oven for another 5 minutes.

Lemon Filling

• Zest the lemons and squeeze the juice out of them into a large bowl. 

• Whisk in the vanilla caster sugar and caster sugar, then the eggs until smooth, before finishing with the cream.

Pour & Bake

• Position the blind baked pastry case onto the shelf of the oven and turn the temperature down to 160 degrees C. 
• Pour the lemon filling through a sieve into a jug to make it easier to pour, then fill up the tart case right to the top (the reason for doing it in the oven). 
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until the lemon filling has a slight wobble in the middle, then remove them from the oven and leave to cool to room temperature.

~ Serve & enjoy!

Fettuccine Alfredo

Fettuccine Alfredo

Recipe

Ingredients:

• 75 grams Fettuccine per serving (or more if you have a big appetite)
• 200 mls of heavy cream per serving
• 2 garlic cloves
• A handful of basil leaves
• A small cube of butter
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan per serving

Method:

• Finely chop garlic & basil leaves and set aside.
• Boil fettuccine as per directions on the packet.
• Melt butter in a hot pan.
• Saute’ garlic in butter till lightly browned / soft.
• Add salt & pepper.
• Stir in heavy cream till simmering.
• Add pasta and stir till coated.
• Add chopped basil & Parmesan and mix till smooth.

~ Serve & Enjoy!

Note: I served my Fettuccine Alfredo with pan grilled chicken breast. Method is simple. Made slits on chicken breast and marinated it in ginger garlic paste, Knorr Aromat All Purpose seasoning and white pepper to taste for 15 minutes. Then grilled on a grill pan, medium heat around 7-8 mins each side. 

Italian-Seasoned Chicken with Creamy Mushroom Sauce & Jacket Potato

Italian-Seasoned Chicken with Creamy Mushroom Sauce & Jacket Potato

Recipe

Italian-Seasoned Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon combined fresh / dried rosemary, thyme & oregano
• ½ teaspoon grated lemon rind
• 1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 chicken breast
• Cooking spray

Method:

• Pre-heat oven at 425’F / 220 ‘C / 200 'C fan.
• Marinate chicken in dried spices, lemon rind & juice, minced garlic & olive oil for 30 minutes.
• Heat a grill pan and fry chicken breasts, each side for 3-4 minutes until its nicely browned.
• Now place these chicken breasts in a baking tray coated with cooking spray.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of the breast registers 155°.
• Remove chicken from pan; let stand for 10 minutes.
• Serve with creamy mushroom sauce.

Creamy Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 15g/½oz butter
• 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
• 225g/8oz button mushrooms, wiped and sliced
• 150ml/5fl oz crème fraîche
• 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

• Heat oil and butter in a frying pan and add onion.
• Sauté onion until softened and transparent.
• Add garlic & mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until mushrooms are tender.
• Stir in crème fraîche and parsley and heat through.
• Season to taste.
• Serve with your Italian seasoned chicken.

Jacket Potatoes with Sour Cream & Chives

Ingredients:

• 2 baking potatoes
• 140ml sour cream
• ¼ tsp whole-grain mustard
• ½ tsp coarse salt
• ¼ tsp white pepper powder
• 40g freshly chopped chives
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method:

• Heat oven to 220 'C / 200 'C fan / gas 7.
• Rub a little oil over each potato, poke the skin with fork and put on the top shelf of the oven.
• Bake for 20 mins, then turn down the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and bake for 45 mins-1 hr until the skin is crisp and the flesh soft.
• Meanwhile add the sour cream to a bowl with the whole-grain mustard, salt, white pepper and chopped chives, reserving a teaspoon of chives to sprinkle on top.
• Stir all the ingredients together.
• Take the baked potatoes out of the oven and cut a cross in the top of each. Slightly squeeze each one so it opens out and place into the serving plates.
• Fill the potatoes with sour cream sauce and sprinkle the remaining chives over the top.

¬ Bon Appétit!

Pesto Pasta with Chicken

Pesto Pasta with Chicken

Recipe

Ingredients:

For Pesto:

Yield: 1 cup

• 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan

For Pasta:

Serves: 2

• 150gm farfalle / bowtie pasta
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 skinless, boneless chicken breast fillet.
• Dried crushed chillies to taste
• Knorr Aromat All Purpose Seasoning, to taste
• 15gm oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• ½ cup homemade pesto (or shop bought if you prefer)
• 1 packet asparagus
• ½ cup shredded parmesan

Method:

For Pesto:

• Combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped.
• Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth.  (If using immediately, add all the remaining oil and pulse until smooth).
• Season with salt and pepper.

For Pasta:

• Cook pasta according to package instructions; drain.
• Slice chicken breast into thin strips.
• Drain & slice sun dried tomatoes.
• Cut off 4 inch tips of asparagus and finely chop rest of the stalks.
• Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.
• Sauté garlic until tender.
• Stir in chicken and season with crushed chili flakes & Knorr Aromat seasoning.
• Add in asparagus and cook until chicken is golden, and cooked through.
• Cover the lid until asparagus is tender to your taste.
• In the same skillet, add in pasta, sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan and pesto.
• Toss to coat evenly and until pasta is heated through.

¬ Enjoy!

Tip:

To save Pesto for later: If freezing, transfer to an air-tight container and drizzle remaining oil over the top. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw and stir in cheese.