Recipe: Thai-inspired red curry meatballs

Wing Yip kindly sent me over a hamper to help celebrate Healthy Eating Week which starts today. Thai-inspired food is always my first choice when I'm looking to lighten up my meals. They're so easy to pack with veggies, low-fat coconut milk makes it still feel naughty and I find the dishes always so filling. The basis of this dish was taken from an old favourite BBC Good Food.

Serves 4

Ingredients
500g of organic lean beef mince
1 small knob of ginger, grated
1 egg
1 tbsp of sunflower oil
1 tbsp Mai Siam Thai red curry paste*
1 can low-fat coconut milk
1 bag of sugar snap peas
1 bag of baby corn
1 red pepper
20g fresh basil plus a little to garnish
Juice of one lime plus one to cut into wedges to serve
1/2 pack of Chinese noodles*

Method
1. Put the mince in a large bowl with the grated ginger, egg and season generously. Mix together well and shape into meatballs. Put to one side.

2. Heat the sunflower oil in a large wok and brown the meatballs for five minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3. In the same pot, add the curry paste, fry for one minute before pouring in the can of coconut milk. Bring to the boil to help create a smooth sauce.

4. Pop all the vegetables in the pan for ten minutes then return the meatballs to the pan. Simmer for around five minutes until the vegetables are cooked and the meatballs are warmed through.

5. Bring a bowl of salted water to bowl before popping in the noodles for two minutes. Drain once cooked.

6.  To serve, squeeze in the lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Tear up the basil leaves before stiring through. Serve over the noodles.

As always I would love to know if you attempt the dish so please do send me a tweet.

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Recipe: Thai green meatballs

During this cold snap - although hopefully set to change! - there's nothing quite like a spicy curry to help blow the winter cobwebs away and put some hairs on your chest. A Thai curry is one of the ultimate comfort food dishes for me so when Heck got in touch to offer me the chance to try their new Thai bites veggie balls, it was a dish I immediately created. The delicious balls (lolz) are made from a tasty combination of Thai pesto, sweet potato and sticky rice making them vegan, dairy free and gluten free.

Feeds 2

Ingredients
1pack of Thai bites veggie balls*
1 can of half-fat coconut milk
1 lime, zest and juice
2 crushed cloves of garlic
A pinch of chilli flakes
2-3 teaspoons of Thai green curry pas (depending on how hot you like it)
1 pack of sugar snap peas
1 pack of mini corn
1 bunch of spring onions
1 tablespoon of olive oil

To serve
A bowl of brown rice - I used Uncle Ben's microwavable rice because I'm a lazy one

Method
1. Put the oil in a big casserole dish and cook the sugar snap peas and mini corn for about 5 minutes.

2. Add the crushed garlic and spring onions before cooking for a further 5 minutes.

3. Put in the coconut milk, veggie balls and chilli flakes. Give it a good stir for a couple of minutes.

4. Add the paste, give the mixture stir and bring to the boil. Once boiling, cook for about 10-12 minutes on a high heat. Keep stirring to ensure nothing sticks to the base of the pan.

5.  Spilt the rice between two bowls and serve the curry.

As always let me know if you make it and tweet me a picture. Happy cooking!

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Three places you should eat in Derry

We were last in Derry over three years ago and the food scene has completely evolved in such as short amount of time. It looks to have become such a foodie place with a massive emphasis on using local ingredients. There are so many different places we were dying to try out but sadly we couldn't fit them all in which means we're just going to have to book a trip back next year. These are my three favourite restaurants we managed to try.

Blackbird
Pyke N Pommes seems to be a Derry institution and the food truck is based along the Quay. But they've recently started serving their food in the Blackbird pub so you don't have to eat your burger in the rain! As soon as I glanced at the menu I knew I was going to opt for the Legendary burger with a side of crispy sweet potato fries. The burger was a little too well done for my liking but it was still absolutely delicious. The Wagyu beef patty topped with addictive pickled red onions, american cheese, juicy tomatoes and fresh lettuce. A beast to eat and I had to cut it in half to try and eat it ladylike...We also went back a separate time for a drink so I can recommend the gin selection too. It always makes me happy when I spot a bottle of Sipsmith on my travels to remind me of home!

The Grillroom restaurant at Di Vinci's
We were lucky enough to be invited by the Visit Derry tourist board to enjoy a meal at Di Vinci's hotel. Thank you to you both! Offering a traditional menu, we tried their new Spring dishes. I had a yummy tomato bruschetta to start. Piled high with fresh chopped tomatoes and drizzled with a green pesto sauce, it was the perfect introduction to the menu. I couldn't get enough of the parmesan chips that came with the main course - I could have eaten at least two bowls! A more detailed review is coming within the next few weeks so keep an eye out.

Harry's
I have been desperate to make it to Harry's Shack in Portstewart for about a year and was all booked in to finally tick it off the list. But on the Thursday before we were due to be in Derry, the brand opened a new restaurant in the city. Five minutes walk from our hotel. It was fate so I quickly canceled the Portstewart one and booked us in the Derry one. It was absolutely incredible. Specialising in seafood, I opted for the Lemon Sole for my main with a side of the creamiest mash I've ever tasted. The deconstructed lemon and blackberry meringue was just the ticket to finish off one of the best meals I've had.  I would go back in a heartbeat and it's top of my list next time I'm back in the city.

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Recipe: sweet potato and chickpea vegetarian stew

I'm trying to make a conscious decision to eat less meat and adapted some of my cookbooks to be vegetarian. I find it encourages me to be a lot more adventurous with my meals as it's so easy to just go for meat, potatoes and veggies. I omitted the chicken from the original recipe and bulked it up with more beans and vegetables. It was delicious and even better the next day when I had the leftovers for lunch. Definitely something I'd rustle up again.

Recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson's Chicken Cosimo

Feeds 6

Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon of plain flour
1 bag of chopped butternut squash
1 can of butterbeans
1 can of chickpeas
1 large onion
500ml of vegetable stock
1 pinch of sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of ground turmeric
1 teaspoon of sweet paprika

Method
1. Pour the olive oil into a large casserole dish and cook the chopped onion until soft but not quite browned.

2. Stir in all the spices and flour before popping in the sweet potato and butternut squash. Cook for ten minutes.

3. Pour in the chicken stock and give it a good stir. Bring it to the boil.

4. Once boiled, add the drained chickpeas and butterbeans. Give it another stir.

5. Pop the lid on and put it in the oven for around 25 minutes until the sweet potato is tender.

6. Take out the oven and leave it for ten minutes with the lid still on. Then serve. I enjoyed it with some crusty bread.

As always I would love to know what you all think and do send me a tweet with a picture if you make it!

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Join in with the Great British Bake Off

GBBO seems to have gripped the nation again and taken over my Wednesday night. Again. It's given me the baking bug and I've been back in the kitchen after a bit of time away. Whenever I put aside the time to rustle something up, I always wish I make more of an effort. I love looking on the internet and seeing what type of recipes are out there. As well as my 50+ cookbooks... But sometimes I just go back to some of my favourites.

The Apple cider cake above is always a crowd pleaser. It has a great sweet taste and the added cider makes it so light and fluffy which is what you're always looking out for in a cake. If you fancy something a little bit more fruity then this coconut and lime loaf will be a winner. Taken from one of my favourite cookbook author Levi Roots,  the extra lime glaze helps to give it a bit more of a zing - which is always a good thing!

Not all baking treats are for those who have a sweet tooth. These savoury breakfast bars are great to make on a sunday and have throughout the week - much healthier than grabbing a bacon butty at the train station. They're substantial and really filling so won't make you reach for the biscuit barrel before lunchtime.

Finally if you want to make a showstopper then this ultimate chocolate cake is the one to attempt. The lashings of white and chocolate milk buttons paired with creamy milk chocolate fingers, makes it a chocoholic's dream. Set aside a good few hours over a lazy weekend for this one as it's no mean feat. But when the outcome is the below, you really don't mind putting the hard graft in!

Let me know some of your favourite bakes to make as I'm always on the look out for some new ideas! And some new blogs to drool over! If you run out of time to make your own creations, head to the Biscuiteer's discount page to to enter a completion - it ends on 23rd September.

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Recipe: cous cous, rocket and feta salad with harissa dressing

I've only recently become a salad convert. I used to avoid them like a plague but I think I just hadn't experimented much. Warm vegetables, cous cous or pasta, leaves and a good dressing is what works for me. A little bit of cheese makes everything ten times better too! Lakeland sent me a handy Kilner salad on the go airtight jar. With a small metal cup that slots in the top, it's the perfect trick to combat a soggy salad. No more sacrifices for lunch at work!

Ingredients:
1/2 bag of mixed salad leaves
100g sweetcorn
50g cous cous
100g feta cheese

For the dressing:
1/2 teaspoon of harissa paste
A pinch of sea salt
3 tablespoons of olive oil

Method:

1. Cook the sweetcorn in a pan with boiling hot water. This should take about 10 minutes. Let it cool down.

2. Cook the cous cous according to packet instructions. Let it cool down.

3. Layer the heaviest items first. So start with the cous cous then the sweetcorn, and salad leaves.

4. Put the chopped feta cheese in a separate tub.

5. To make the dressing, mix all three ingredients together and pour into the silver dish that slots into the top of the jar.

It couldn't be simpler! It's a really filling salad for a work lunch - the salty feta cheese and spicy harissa work perfectly together. As always, I'd love to know if you make it so please do tweet me.

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Recipe: grilled avocado barley bowl with Lakeland

Lakeland got in touch to see if I wanted to try out the new Davina McCall range and test them out with a recipe. Always one for kitchen equipment, I said yes and soon a parcel arrived. Consisting of a pair of kitchen scissors, crinkle cutter, grater, peeler and a pairing knife, they were the perfect addition to my kitchen. I decided it was time to try out a recipe from one my favourite cookbooks at the minute, A Modern Way To Cook by Anna Phillips - the recipe called for most of the items to be used. So what did I think? I loved the bright colours as I think aesthetics are everything in a kitchen, they felt sturdy to withhold my clumsiness and were simple and quick to use whilst preparing a meal. Who has time for complicated equipment on a week night? The price point is great too - good quality at a really reasonable price.

Serves 2 with leftovers for lunch

Ingredients
1 large avocado
300g pearl barley
1/2 bag of baby spinach
50g chopped walnuts
Zest and juice of one lemon
100g feta cheese
200ml plain fat free Greek yogurt
A handful of roughly chopped fresh basil
A few pinches of sea salt
A pinch of black pepper

Method
1. Rinse the pearl barley under cold water then boil it in a saucepan. Include a good pinch of sea salt, the juice of half a lemon before putting the squeezed lemon half into the pan too. Cook for around 25 minutes.

2. Cut the avocados in half - leaving the skin on but discarding the stone. Put them cut side down in a griddle pan and cook until they have black griddle marks.

3. To make the yogurt sauce, mix the chopped basil leaves with the zest and juice of the remaining half a lemon. Add a good pinch of sea salt and pepper for some extra flavouring.

4. Wilt the spinach in a frying pan.

5. Once the pearl barley is cooked, drain away the water and crumble in the feta cheese and chopped walnuts. Add the wilted spinach to the dish and mix it all together.

6. Divide between two bowls - remembering to keep some aside for lunch leftovers! Top with the grilled avocado and spoon on the yogurt mix.

As always I'd love to know if you try this recipe out, drop me a tweet to let me know!

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Recipe: Thai vegetable curry soup

Thai is fast becoming my favourite type of food to eat. It's always so quick to cook, packs a punch with the flavours and lets vegetables take centre stage. So when I found a Thai curry paste in the selection that Goldfish Sauces sent over, I knew I wanted to make some kind of soup. Packed full of my favourite veggies, it tasted quite similar to a red Thai curry. It was the perfect fresh, light summer dish for a warm evening.

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 pack of rice noodles
1 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 aubergine
A bunch of spring onions
1 pack of baby sweetcorn
1/2 of sugar snap peas
60g Goldfish sauces Thai Curry paste*
1 can of reduced fat coconut milk
1 litre of vegetable stock
A handful of chopped basil

Method
1. Heat up the olive oil in a large wok and place all the veg in it. Cook for around ten minutes.

2. Once tender, add the stock, curry paste and the coconut milk. Bring to the boil and leave to simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Stir in the chopped basil.

4. Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to the packet instructions.

4. Once cooked, divide the noodles between four bowls. Then spoon in the broth before dividing the vegetables equally.

5. It's as simple at that! Tuck in and enjoy!

As always, let me know what you think or if you made it via a tweet. I'd love to know!

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Recipe: Japanese turkey katsu curry

Goldfish brand got in touch and offered me some curry concentrate sauces with a cooking challenge to rustle up some delicious meals. Challenge accepted! Goldfish Brand have been making curry sauces for over 30 years and were founded by Mr Lee for professional chefs. As soon as I spotted the Japanese style curry sauce I immediately had a kind of Katsu curry planned. I wanted to make it a little healthy so opted for lean turkey escalopes and a cornflake coating instead of bread crumbs. The curry sauces are delicious, it tasted just like my favourite Wagamama dish. We opted for a thick sauce like you get in the restaurant. They're really simple to use and you just mix with water. You just add more water depending on how thick or thin you prefer the sauce.

On another note, anyone else struggle to make curries look photogenic?!

Serves 2

Ingredients
2 turkey escalopes
1 egg
A handful of cornflakes
200g white rice
100g Japanese style curry sauce*
300ml water
1 tsp of olive oil

Method
1. Put the rice in a pan of boiling water and cook for 15 minutes.

2. Crush the cornflakes into crumbs using your hands. Coat the turkey escalopes in the egg before coating in the crushed cornflakes. Put to one side on a white rack.

3. In a small saucepan, mix the curry sauce and water together until it has dissolved completely. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 2-3 minutes.

4. Fry the escalopes in the olive oil 3-4 minutes each side depending on their thickness.

5. Drain the rice, put on a plate and plate the escalope on top. Pour over the sauce.

As always I would love to know if you attempt this, make sure you drop me a tweet! Use the hashtag #curryoncooking

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Recipe: Apple cider cake

When Waddlegoose offered to send me some of their cider to try, I immediately thought of baking with it. Coming in two delicious flavours, crisp apple and fruity berry,  the first flavour seemed the perfect one to create a cake. The flavoursome new launch from Aspell, gave the cake a delicious flavour without being too over-powering. It's even better the next day served with a steaming hot cup of tea!

Taken from a Paul Hollywood recipe

Ingredients
100g unsalted butter
100g unrefined light muscovado sugar
2 free range eggs
225g plain white flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp of cinnamon
150ml of cider

For the glaze
Icing sugar
Cider

Method

1.  Heat the oven to 160 degrees - adjust the temperature if you don't have a fan oven. Grease a cake pan and line with baking paper.

2. Beat the better and sugar together using an electric hand mixer. Once fluffy, beat in the two eggs.

3. In a separate bowl, shift the flour, cinnamon and bicarbonate of soda together.

4. Using a metal spoon, fold in a third of the flour into the beaten mixture. Then half the cider. Fold in another third and then the rest of the cider. Finally fold in the final third of flour.

5. Transfer the mixture into the prepared cake tin. Cook for around 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it as mine was ready within 20 minutes.

6. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 20 minutes before taking it out and leaving it to cool full on a wire wrack.

7. Once cool, it's time to make the glaze. Mix icing sugar and cider together to create a thin glaze. How much you use is depending on your taste. Pour over the cake before leaving to dry.

8. Tuck in and enjoy!

As always please do tweet me if you try this cake at home. It's definitely one I'll be trying again!

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Recipe: Prawn pad thai

Borderfields got in touch and asked me to put together a recipe using one of their oils. I racked my brains and decided to make something from one of my favourite cuisines. The garlic infused oil was the perfect accompaniment to use in a pad Thai. The flavour really came out in the vegetables and added a tasty spice to the dish. It would be great to add a subtle twang to a curry too.

This recipe was adapted from Fay Makes It Easy. Such a good book and all the recipes are so simple!

Serves 2

Ingredients:
2 tbsp of Borderfields garlic infused oil*
1/2 pack of flat pad thai noodles
1/2 bag of beansprouts
1 pack of tenderstem broccoli
2 mini pak choi
Half a pack of spring onions
1 pack of king prawns
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
A handful of coriander
A sprinkling of chopped salted peanuts (optional)

Method:
1. Chop the spring onions and broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Shred the park choi.

2. Heat up the garlic oil in a wok and then add all the vegetables including the bean sprouts too. Cook for around 2-3 minutes.

3. Add the prawns and cook through.

4. Cook the noodles according to the packet instruction.

5. Add the soy sauce and fish oil to the dish. Give it a good stir.

6. Once the noodles are cooked, drain them in cold water and then add to the wok. Mix everything together.

7. Divide between two bowls. Sprinkle on the chopped coriander and some chopped peanuts if you wish - then tuck in!

As always I'd love to know if you made this, please do tweet me!

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Recipe: Ultimate mac and cheese

Mac and cheese is one of my all-time favourite comfort dishes. It's so hard to get right but when it's cook to perfectly, it tastes heavenly. Just not the most photogenic of food dishes! So when I was kindly sent some Norwegian Jarlsberg cheese I decided to attempt it for the first time. I used a Jamie Oliver recipe as a base. Jarlsberg is a great cheese to use because it still keeps it's intense nutty flavour when it's melted.

Feeds 4

Ingredients:
20g butter
1.5 heaped tbsp plain flour
4 tsp of lazy garlic
3 bay leaves
1 pint of semi-skimmed milk
300g macaroni pasta
1 pack of cherry tomatoes
4 rashers of bacon
Splash of Worcester sauce
150g grated Jarlsberg cheese*
100g grated parmesan cheese
1 big handful of breadcrumbs
Olive oil

Method:

1. Grill the bacon under the grill until it is nice and crispy. Once cooked, put aside to cool down.

2. While the bacon is cooking, melt the butter in a large saucepan over a low heat, add the flour then turn the heat up to medium. Keep staring until you get a paste like mixture.

3. Add the garlic and keep stirring until the garlic is nice and golden. Add the bay leaves.

4. Slowly add the milk and keep stirring until the sauce is lovely and smooth. Bring the mixture to a boil and then leave it to simmer. Stir occasionally so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. Preheat the oven to around 200 degrees.

5. Boil some water and add the pasta. Cook to the packet instructions.

6. Meanwhile roughly chop the tomatoes and bacon. Season them with salt and pepper to your taste.

7. Once the pasts is cooked, drain it and add it to the sauce. Then add the grated cheeses, tomatoes, bacon and Worcester sauce.

8. Make sure the sauce isn't too thick as it will thicken in the oven. Add some water if you need too.

9. Transfer the mixture into a oven-proof casserole pan before popping in the oven for around 30 minutes until the mixture is bubbly and golden brown.

10. Whilst it cooked, heat some olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat before popping in the breadcrumbs. Stir and toss the breadcrumbs around until they're crispy but not too burnt!

11. Sprinkle some breadcrumbs over the finished mac and cheese for a lovely cranky topping before tucking in. Enjoy!

As always, please do let me me know if you give this a whirl and drop me a tweet!

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