Tag: fresh

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Simple Recipes

Gazpacho – a Spanish Cold Soup

Tapping on my husband’s Spanish heritage, we often turn to cold soups to beat the heat.  Whether you serve it with croutons like a soup, or you serve it in a glass with ice and a straw like a bloody Mary, Gazpacho is certainly one of those dishes that keeps you cool. It’s also very practical when  all you have to do is just take it out of the fridge and prepare some garnishes to go with it. Tomato, cucumber and green pepper are the base of this soup, and while you can follow the recipe for guidelines, you can add more or less of each ingredient, to fit your taste.

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Meatless Monday, Simple Recipes

Easy Homemade Hummus

We just love Hummus. The well known Middle Eastern cream is versatile and perfect for every occasion. So much that we would hardly imagine a gathering without it served to accompany crudités or some crunchy bread. And we love homemade hummus even more, whether it’s the strong garlic flavour, or the extra virgin olive oil to do the trick, you have the power to make it your own and enrich it with your favourite ingredients.
All you need is a can of chickpeas and some tahini. In case you don’t have tahini, this recipe will tell you how to make your own using sesame seeds and sesame oil.

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Melanzane Parmigiana_Recipe
Meatless Monday, Sunday Lunch

Aubergine/Eggplants Parmigiana – a Classic Veggie Bake

Whatever the season, here’s a classic Italian veggie bake: Aubergine Parmigiana. As usual with typical dishes, this is a homemade tradition and every family has their own method and ingredients to make it. My friend Gianfranco from Puglia always says “You can be as beautiful as ever, but if you don’t know how to make parmigiana, you have no charm!” – this saying, applicable to men and women alike, illustrates how big a staple of the Italian kitchen this recipe is. Continue reading “Aubergine/Eggplants Parmigiana – a Classic Veggie Bake”

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sesame_tuna_sauce messine_recipe
recipes, Simple Recipes

Sesame Tuna and Modified Sauce Messine

Just as much as I easily find good cuts of meat in the Haringey wing of Seven Sisters, well sourced tasty fish is equally as impossible to find. So when I crave it, I make it a proper treat, spending a bit more, but trying to find some sustainably sourced fish. In this case, I got a chunk of tuna from Wholefoods, together with some sea asparagus, and I planned to make something very special with them.  Sauce Messine is a traditional French sauce used for fish – it’s in Elizabeth Davis’ book and I’ve made it a few times, although I almost never have the exact ingredients needed. As usual, I have allowed myself to make some adjustments and the result was simply delightful. This recipe serves two.

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Strawberries_and_cream_cupcakes
recipes

Strawberries and cream cupcakes

It might be a good year or just the wonderful local Turkish shop where I buy my fruit, but this year I had the best strawberries in a while. From mid May till now, I always
have a box in the fridge ready to dig into! Then, when a special co-worker was leaving, she said she likes Victoria sponges, cheese cake and cupcakes. So I decided to bake her a batch of these wonderful cupcakes made with strawberries and ricotta. Strawberries and cream cupcakes are the perfect summer recipe I found in the book Eat Me! By Cookie Girl, a great source of inspiration when I feel like baking something special and getting creative with the decoration! This time I knew I had to decorate the cakes last minute in the office – which is why I did as little preparation as possible and decided to go for a messy look, like in the photos! This will make 12 cupcakes.

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