Morello Cherries & Walnut Cake

Morello cherries in syrup are on offer at Aldi at the moment so had to buy some. These cherries are also known as sour cherries and wild cherries, they are quite tart on their own. In fact, they are mainly found sold in syrup and ready pitted. Russia, Ukraine and Turkey are the main producers of this fruit. Friday night after work I wanted to bake, as you do haha and found this recipe online, so I tweaked it a bit and this delicious cake came to be. It is sweet, sour, crunchy, moist and the Marsala really gives it that unique taste. I prepared it in less than 15 minutes. We do not like frosting and icing that much so we do not frost our cakes, that is why the picture looks the way it does, we love our cakes fresh out of the oven!! Give it a go, you will need...

• 350g Morello cherries, drained
• 120g chopped walnuts
• 200g caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 60ml Marsala
• 150g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease a 22cm round cake tin or alternatively line with baking paper. 
2. Place sugar, eggs and Marsala in a bowl and mix with an electric whisk for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Set aside.
3. In a larger bowl combine the flour, salt, walnuts and baking powder, mix well. Fold in the egg/sugar mixture until everything is combined well. Now fold in the cherries and mix well again.
4. Bake into the preheated oven for about 45-50 minutes or until you insert a skewer and it comes out clean.
5. Cool into the tin for about 10 minutes and take out of the tin and serve. Maybe with some cream or ice cream. :)

Enjoy!!

R&A

Figs & Walnuts

This snack is a real delicious treat if you feel like something sweet and crunchy at the same time. Amanda's mum used to prepare these for her as she loves them a lot and are one of Amanda's favourite treats. Dried figs are very common in Malta and we were chuffed to find them at Asda. Without doubt, Figs and walnuts is one of those matches made in heaven. apart from preparing them to snack on, they can be served as starter with some Parma ham or as dessert after a good meal. You will need...

• 1 Packet of dried figs
• Walnut halves

Snip the woody part off the fig using scissors, slice the fig lengthwise, do not go all the way and put a walnut half in the middle of it. Press gently with your fingers and serve.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Spinach, Carrot & Ricotta Timbales

I created these as a light lunch with some ingredients that we had left over in the fridge and pantry. They turned out so tasty and we could've eaten at least two more each. They are not that hard to prepare. The only tricky bit is rolling the bread slices and layering the ramekins, so not really rocket science. We do love a kick in our dishes so I put some Scotch Bonnet hot sauce in there but this is optional. You can even add a milder hot sauce maybe like Tabasco. Completely vegetarian, you can serve them as a starter, light lunch or even party food to impress family and friends. For four ramekins you will need...

• 125g ricotta
• Grated half carrot
• 60g cooked spinach
• Salt & pepper
• Hot sauce
• ¼ tsp paprika
• Pinch garlic granules
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 10g salted butter
• Oil spray or butter, for greasing
• 4 slices of white sandwich bread
  
  

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Using a sieve, squeeze out all the moisture out of the spinach. In a bowl add all the ingredients except the butter, bread & oregano. Mix them well until well blended. Set the mixture aside.
3. Grease well 4 ramekins, we used oil spray.
4. Remove the crusts from the bread slices and flatten each slice with a rolling pin, make sure it’s very thin. Using a glass or cookie cutter cut a circle disc off the centre of each of the flattened bread slices and place the disc at the bottom of the ramekin. With the remaining pieces of bread, line up the ramekins’ sides tightly and fill each ramekin with about a tablespoon of the mixture, divide the mixture between the 4 ramekins.
5. Divide the butter into 4 equal pieces and put a piece of butter on top of the filling in each ramekin. Now chop the crusts finely and sprinkle on the ramekins. Gently press down with your hand to create a seal. Sprinkle some dried oregano on top.
6. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until top is golden.
7. Take out of the oven and leave to set for 10 minutes. Now either serve warm in the ramekin or invert on a baking sheet and bake for a further 10 minutes to get a crispy crust all around.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Sausage & Onion Tomato Sauce

A family favourite, this sauce became one of my favourites when I was a kid and stayed that way since then. In Malta my mom used to prepare it using the unique Maltese sausage but here in England we use local sausages such as Lincolnshire sausages and also Cumberland sausages. It is very easy to prepare and wanted to share this recipe with you. For four people you will need...

• 8 Lincolnshire or Cumberland sausages (if using Maltese sausages use 4)
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 500ml thick tomato passata
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil
• Grated Kefalotiri or Parmesan, to serve

How to...

1. Heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil in a shallow pan, add the sausages and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. 
2. Now add the onions and cook until onions are soft and transparent. Season with black pepper.
3. Add passata and simmer covered for about 20 minutes.
4. Serve with cooked pasta and sprinkle with the grated cheese and more black pepper.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Lasagne Nostrane - Our Lasagna

Lasagne are one of the best baked pasta dishes ever created, it is the proper Italian comfort food. Warm, saucy, cheesy mmmmmm!! Amanda & myself certainly love the most common version, the ones with a rich tomato based meat sauce and a silky smooth home-made white sauce. You can , obviously, use the stuff from jars that have been produced wherever, whenever and most importantly using a lot of preservatives to keep them in the jar for ages, but nothing beats a delicious freshly made meat sauce and/or white sauce. I have been meaning to put our take on the classic lasagne for ages so here it is and as I said it is quite rich so we nearly always have leftovers which Amanda and myself have for lunch the following day. You can also leave the lasagne to cool down and divide it into portions and freeze them to whenever you need them. Our take on lasagne is heavily influenced by Amanda's mother, I can remember that whenever she used to prepare it for us, I always (without fail) asked for seconds. Please try and do your own meat and béchamel sauces as they are so tasty and surely more genuine. Give it a go, you will need...

For the meat sauce

• 500g lean beef mince
• 500ml tomato passata
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste dissolved in 200ml boiling water
• Worcestershire sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 Knorr beef stock pot or Oxo cube
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Vegetable oil

For the white sauce

• 50g butter
• 50g plain flour
• 700ml whole milk, at room temperature
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 200g ham, chopped
• 200g Edam or Cheddar cheese grated
• Small bunch of parsley, finely chopped (optional)

• 12-15 sheets uncooked lasagne

1. Start preparing the meat sauce by heating some oil in a saucepan along with the garlic. As soon as the garlic turns golden add the mince, Worcestershire sauce and some freshly ground black pepper and cook the mince until brown, drain excess fat in a bowl or leave all fat to evaporate and mince is dry, about 10-15 minutes. Now add the passata, tomato paste in boiling water, sugar and stock pot or cube and give it a good stir. Simmer covered on medium heat for about 20 minutes. Take off the heat and set aside.
2. Now it's time for the white sauce, melt the butter and add the flour on low heat. Stir constantly until you get a golden but not brown roux. Now, start adding the milk to the roux gradually, make sure you keep stirring all the time so as not to get any lumps. Keep stirring until you use all the milk and until you get a thick silky sauce. Season with some black pepper. Now add most of the grated cheese (leaving some aside), chopped ham and parsley (if using) and stir well always on low heat until the cheese is melted. Take off the heat and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven at 180°C.
4. To assemble the lasagne, get an oven dish (preferably rectangular) and spread some meat sauce, lay 3 lasagne sheets and then cover with white sauce, sprinkle some grated cheese, repeat the process until you use all the sauces, cheese and lasagne sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the top is golden. Serve hot!

Enjoy!!

R&A

Chilli Beans, Corn & Chilli Wraps

I had a couple of these wraps for lunch this week. I always vary my lunch and I very rarely have the same lunch twice. Usually I come up with something in the morning, considering I am an early bird and always wake up before my alarm clock. I go through my pantry, fridge and food cupboards and see what I can come up with. I must say I do love my spicy food and this recipe is quite hot so if you want a milder version just omit the fresh chilli pepper. I used canned chilli beans which I really love as they are delicious and a good spicy alternative to baked beans. I also like to take everything at work with me and freshly prepare them at the start of lunchtime but you can always pre-prepare them at home. It's a great idea and do not be scared of using tinned chilli beans as they are not that hot :) For 4 wraps you will need...

• 290g can Chilli Beans 
• 1/2 can of sweet corn
• 1 fresh red chilli, sliced
• Watercress (or other salad)
• Sour cream or Hummus if vegan
• Wheat Tortillas

1. Mix the beans and corn in a microwavable bowl and heat for about 2 minutes. 
2. Warm each tortilla for about 40 seconds each, sprinkle some watercress, add two or three tablespoons of the bean & corn mixture, add some red chilli slices, a couple of dollops of sour cream, wrap up and eat. Easy!! :)

Enjoy!!

R&A

Maltese Imbuljuta tal-qastan - Boiled Chestnuts with Cocoa

This Maltese recipe is a traditionally served after Christmas midnight mass or even as a warm drink on New Year's Eve. The aroma of spices and citrus certainly fills the home with a sense cosiness and homeliness. After cooking, the chestnuts are usually mashed and served warm. In my family we used to add evaporated milk to our cocoa chestnuts, this makes the drink taste even better. Also my parents used to booze it up a bit by adding some whisky!! It also is prepared using dried chestnuts, so if using fresh chestnuts, make sure you adjust the method accordingly. The result is just exquisite and when we recently prepared this recipe it soon triggered nostalgic memories of our childhoods when our mothers used to prepare it for us. Give it a go! You will need...

• 500g dried chestnuts, soaked in water for 24 hours
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• Peel of half an orange
• Peel of half a tangerine or clementine
• Whisky, to taste (optional)
• Evaporated milk, to serve

1. Start by cleaning well the pre-soaked chestnuts from all the brown bits they might have left on them and discarding the water that they were soaked in. 
2. Put the chestnuts in a pot and cover with water. Add the sugar, cocoa, cloves and citrus peel and stir well.
3. Bring the chestnuts to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about an hour or until the chestnuts are soft.
4. When chestnuts are cooked, add the whisky if using and stir again. Remove the citrus peel from the pot and roughly break the chestnuts with a masher. 
5. Serve hot in bowls or mugs equalling the amount of chestnuts and cocoa liquid. Add evaporated milk to taste.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Brungiel Mimli - Maltese Stuffed Aubergines

In Maltese cuisine stuffed aubergines and stuffed marrows are very popular. They are usually stuffed with a minced beef mixture and baked into a hot oven. The smell of them cooking is a classic which one can smell across Maltese towns and villages on a Sunday morning. My mum used to top them up with a slice of cheese and I used to loved them, to be honest when I was a kid I only used to eat the stuffing and obviously get told off for leaving the aubergine on the plate. Now I can say that aubergines are one of my favourite vegetables. Actually, it is quite impressive the fact how your palate starts to settle down when you get older and eat foods that you used to hate when you were a kid. Anyway, try this dish and you won't regret it, they are very easy to prepare. For 2 people you will need...

• 2 large aubergines
• 400g lean beef mince
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
• 2 tablespoons grated Kefalotiri or Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 2 slices Edam cheese
• Olive oil, for frying

How to...

1. Start by slicing the aubergines lengthwise. With a teaspoon carve out an oval shaped hollow at the wide end of the aubergine. This is where you will put the stuffing. Set them aside. Chop the aubergine flesh. 
2. In a large pan on medium heat, heat some olive oil and fry the fennel seeds until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the onion and aubergine flesh and fry until onion is soft and transparent, about 10-15 minutes. When onion is cooked add the beef mince and cook until cooked thoroughly about 20 minutes. Drain any excess fat. Set aside and let cool down for about 10 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
4. Rinse the aubergines from all the salt and pat dry using kitchen towel. 
5. In a large mixing bowl add the onion/beef/fennel mixture, mixed herbs, parsley, salt & pepper, grated cheese and beaten eggs and mix well until well combined.
6. Fill the aubergines and top with half a slice of Edam cheese. 
7. Place into an oven dish, pour a glass or two of water and bake into the preheated oven for about 45 minutes or until aubergines are tender.
8. Serve hot with roast potatoes.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Green Olive Dip

In Malta as is all of the Mediterranean for that matter, olives are part of our daily diet. We use them in salads, pizza toppings, sandwiches, stuffed, to produce olive oil and more. In this tasty and quick recipe we just whizzed up a delicious dip, paste, pâté, tapenade, call it whatever you like. You can serve this at a dinner party with some crackers, use it in salads or even in recipes like our delicious Pasta & Aubergine Bake. Olives are very healthy, in fact they are a great source for Vitamin E and they are great for snacking. Give this recipe a go and am quite sure that everyone at home will love it. You will need...

• 300g green pitted olives, roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• A small bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil

How to...

1. Put all the ingredients in a food processor and blitz slowly whilst adding the olive oil until you get the desired consistency. Do not put too much as you do not want it too oily and runny.
2. Serve with bread, crackers or whatever you prefer.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Our Bramley Apple Pie

I have loved apple pie since I was a young kid. Amanda was not a big fan of it but recently she started to fancy it. I believe it is one of the most famous desserts in the Western world and it is frequently served with custard, cream or vanilla ice-cream. Mmmmmm, delicious, I want a warm slice now!! Lately we started using ready-made pastry as it is of good quality and it really saves you time in the kitchen. Try this pie out, it is quite easy to do, we sliced the Bramleys using our food processor but you can easily thinly slice them with a knife. We also soaked our raisins in fresh orange juice for about an hour so they plump up and get a unique distinctive flavour. If you have leftover pastry and apple mixture, you can do other small pies! For a 24-25cm pie you will need...

• 1kg Bramley apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• 140g caster sugar
• 4 tbsp flour
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground aniseed
• 70g raisins
• 1 juice of an orange
• 1 sheet ready-made shortcrust pastry
• Flour, for dusting

1. Start by soaking the raisins in the orange juice and set them aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
3. In a large mixing bowl put the sliced apples, sugar, 4 tablespoons flour, cinnamon & aniseed and mix them well until apples are coated in sugar and flour. Set aside.
4. Dust the work surface with some flour and roll the pastry sheet, cut it in half and thin it out until it is half size in thickness.
5. Grease a 23 to 25cm pie dish and put half the pastry sheet on the dish, make sure it is loose. Now fill the dish with abundant apple mixture and cover with the other half of the pastry sheet. Seal well the edges and snip the top of the pie with scissors in various parts so as the steam can escape. Sprinkle with some extra sugar.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for about 35-40 minutes. Take out of the oven and leave to set for about 15 minutes.
7. Slice and serve cold or warm, plain, with cream, custard or even vanilla ice-cream.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Dutch Stamppot with Merguez Sausage

This Dutch dish is a very simple one but very tasty, it is basically mashed potatoes and vegetables. In Holland it is sometimes served with Rookwurst (a smoky Dutch sausage) but we used Merguez which is a North African spicy sausage. If you cannot find Merguez you can also use fresh chorizo if you like or even Cumberland sausages. Traditionally the potatoes are boiled apart but recently potatoes and veg have been boiled together and then mashed. Dutch people love making a hole in the middle of the mashed veg and pouring gravy in it. This dish is very similar to Bubble & Squeak (in England) and Colcannon (in Ireland). It is quite a filling dish and very easy to prepare. You will need...

• 500g potatoes, diced
• 400g pumpkin or butternut squash, diced
• 4 medium carrots, sliced
• 2 large parsnips, sliced
• 1 large turnip or swede, chopped
• 1 leek, washed and sliced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 200g kale or Savoy cabbage, washed and shredded
• 50g butter
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 4-6 Merguez sausages [or Cumberland sausages]

1. Place all the chopped vegetables, apart from the kale in a large steam pot and steam for 20 minutes. [Alternatively, boil the vegetables].
2. Cook the sausages to your liking, we grilled ours. 
3. Whilst the sausages are cooking, steam the kale for 7½ minutes.
4. When the vegetables are cooked, drain well and roughly mash them with the butter, salt & pepper. Add the steamed kale and stir in the mashed vegetables.
5. Serve the mash in the middle of the plate and top with the cooked sausages. You can also serve with gravy or a spicy chilli & tomato sauce!

Enjoy!!

R&A

Caribbean Halo

Who doesn't love a piece of delicious and moist cake? We made this cake yesterday and it turned out a super hit. It is absolutely divine and heavenly. We used fresh coconut, which made it even better tasting and obviously that wee bit of booze just gives it that kick. We named it Caribbean Halo for obvious reasons, sweet banana, exotic pineapple, fragrant coconut, rum turn this cake into a tempting delight. You will need...

• 280g [2 cups] plain flour
• 100g [½ cup] caster sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 banana
• 400g can pineapple cubes in own juice (weight including juice)
• 1 cup fresh coconut flesh, chopped or 2 tbsp desiccated coconut
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1 tot rum or brandy

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
2. In a blender or food processor, blend the banana, rum or brandy, pineapple with juice and coconut for about 20-30 seconds until the coconut pieces get smaller. If using desiccated coconut you can omit the use of a blender and use a masher to mash everything instead.
3. In a large bowl sift the flour, add the sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and mix them with a wooden spoon. Add the fruit mixture and raisins to the bowl and mix well until all the ingredients are well incorporated.
4. Pour into a well greased Bundt pan and bake into the preheated oven for 35 minutes.
5. Take out of the oven and let the cake rest in the tin for 15 minutes and then turn onto a cooling rack.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Tartiflette Savoyarde

I first had Tartiflette from my friend Didier's French restaurant. I instantly fell in love with it. It is French cuisine at its best, butter, cream and obviously Reblochon cheese. Reblochon is a French cheese that comes from the Alps region of Haute-Savoie, originally in the Thônes and Arly valleys. It is made from unpasteurized cow's milk and is very soft in texture and nutty in taste. This simple dish is a delectable unique taste of France and the distinctive taste of Reblochon makes it a must for everyone who loves and appreciates French cuisine. Give it a go and am quite sure you will love it. For 4 people you will need...

• 1 Petit Reblochon (200g), sliced in 1 cm slices
• 200ml crème fraiche
• 500g potatoes
• 150g bacon lardons
• 1 large onion, sliced
• Butter & olive oil for frying

1. Start by cooking potatoes with the skin on. Make sure you do not over cook them. Use a skewer to check if they are cooked. As soon as the skewer goes through take them off the heat. Peel them carefully and slice them in 1cm slices.
   
2. Heat some butter and olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onion until translucent and soft. Add the bacon lardons and cook until brown. 
3. Take the onion/bacon mixture out of the pan and in the same pan fry the potato slices until they are golden.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
5. Put half the potato slices in a buttered small oval oven dish  and pour half of the cream and scatter half of the onion/bacon mixture. Repeat the process until you use all the potato slices, cream and onion/bacon mixture.
6. Now to finish the dish, place the Reblochon slices on top and bake for about 15-20 minutes until the cheese is melted. Serve hot with a glass of good French white wine.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Baked Imqaret - Maltese Date Pastries

Imqaret are a very famous deep fried sweet Maltese treat. There used to be just one place where Maltese people used to buy them, "il-Gabbana ta' Bieb il-Belt' but later on they could easily be found at village feasts and local markets' mini-stalls. We missed them so much that we had to make our own. We chose to bake them and used already made pastry. If you want to make your own pastry it is quite easy to do and you can always deep fry them!! The deep frying method does give it a unique taste but in my opinion the taste is in the filling. The delicious orange blossom water that we Maltese have been using for ages, from curing a poorly tummy to creating delicious tasty sweet pastries and the use of aniseed give these pastries their unique taste. Try them out, they are exquisite!! We used only 250g dates but feel free to double the amount to make more. You will need...

• 250g dates, pitted and chopped
• 1-2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp grated orange zest
• 1 tsp orange flower water
• Pinch ground cloves
• ½ tsp ground aniseed
• 1 ready-made sheet shortcrust or sweet pastry
• Flour, for dusting

1. Start by blending all the ingredients, apart from the pastry obviously in a food processor. Add the water bit by bit, you do not want a very liquid mixture. Do leave the mixture a bit lumpy. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
3. Dust your kitchen bench with flour and roll the pastry sheet, using a flour dusted rolling pin roll out the sheet so it becomes thinner. Cut into two long strips, put the mixture in the middle alongside the pastry strip leaving an inch on each so you can seal easily. Wet the edges with some water and cover with the other strip of pastry and seal well, packing the date mixture well. Slice into diamond shapes or slices (see picture) and bake into the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. 
4. Serve hot or cold.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Chicken Miso Ramen チキン味噌ラーメン

We love Asian food and not long ago we went to a Japanese food restaurant and we stuffed ourselves with Japanese food. We also had Ramen which is one of our favourites as it is so filling, warm and such comfort food. We decided to have a go at preparing our own and the result was quite delicious I must say. Amanda and myself loved it. It is quite easy and quick to prepare. Unfortunately we had no Nori seaweed but we used some spinach instead! Ramen is not one dish, it is actually a broth based soup with toppings, usually the broth is either fish or meat based. Make sure you serve it in a large bowl!! Give it a go, it's delicious!! For 3/4 people you will need...

• 1 litre chicken stock
• 500ml pork stock
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 1 thumb sized piece fresh ginger, sliced
• 100g miso paste (white or red miso)
• 3-4 chicken breasts, grilled and sliced
• 2-3 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 200g sweetcorn
• Roasted Sesame seeds
• Some cooked spinach or nori seaweed
• 2 eggs, hard boiled
• 2-3 servings of ramen noodles or 300g Chinese style noodles

1. In a large pot, put all the stocks, ginger slices and miso paste and bring to the boil. Leave it on a slow simmer for about 20 minutes.
2. Cook the noodles as per packet directions, drain and cool down by rinsing under a cold water tap. Set aside.
3. Prepare two or three large soup bowls. Ladle the broth into the bowls until two-thirds full. Drop 100g of cooked noodles in one side of the broth. On the noodles place the sliced chicken breast, add the sweetcorn, chopped spring onions, eggs, sesame seeds and spinach as shown in the picture above.
4. Serve hot!!

Enjoy!!

R&A

Chocolate & Banana Loaf with Flax Seed

We discovered flax seeds not long ago and I must say they have a distinctive taste which I loved. Flax seeds are meant to be very healthy and are classified as a power food. Flax seeds are nothing but Golden Linseed which if bought from health stores as such will cost much cheaper than buying the milled flax seeds. Just freshly grind your own when you need them, they can be used in baking, savoury and sweet dishes, and also to sprinkle on salads. They add quite a crunchy texture, do make sure that you grind them though as all the nutritious stuff is in the seed itself and your body will not absorb the nutrients through the seed. This delicious chocolate banana loaf can be served with a warm cup of tea with or without some cream or even ice-cream!! Give it a go, the unique taste of linseed will give this loaf a delicious flavour. You will need...

• 80ml (1/3 cup) milk
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 225g (1 ¾ cups) strong wholemeal flour
• 65g (½ cup) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• Pinch ground cloves
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 150g (¾ cup) caster sugar
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp flax seeds (linseed), ground
• 1 tbsp porridge oats

1. Start by mixing the milk and vinegar in a small bowl and set aside so it curdles (about 30 minutes)
2. Preheat the oven to 190 deg C. Grease a 9x5 in loaf pan and set aside.
3. In a bowl mix the flour, cocoa, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt and set aside.
4. In another bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until creamy and smooth, I used an electric mixer. Mix the mashed bananas, milk/vinegar mixture, olive oil and vanilla extract and mix well.
5. Now mix the contents of the two bowls, add the liquid mix to the dry one and stir until you incorporate all the ingredients into a moist batter. Pour the batter into the loaf tin.
6. Bash the flax seeds into a mortar & pestle or spice grinder and grind coarsely. Spoon the ground seeds on top of the batter and using a clean teaspoon, stir into the batter with a slow movement so as the seeds are in the batter.
7. Sprinkle with the porridge oats and bake in the preheated oven for an hour. Leave to set for 10 minutes, carefully remove the loaf from the tin and then serve warm or let cool completely.
   

Enjoy!!

R&A

Spinach & Mozzarella

I love spinach and this dish is quick and easy to make if you need a quick side dish or a quick snack in my case! In Italy they used to market the frozen version of this dish and that's where the idea came from. Sometimes, my mum used to prepare this for us after we came back from school and always used to ask for a second helping. Give it a go, for two persons as a side or one person as a snack you will need...

• 1 fresh mozzarella ball, diced
• A handful of frozen spinach, defrosted
• A pinch of ground nutmeg
• Salt & pepper, to taste

How to...

1. Squeeze out all the water out of the spinach and put in a pan.
2. Turn the hob on high heat and add the mozzarella dice to the spinach.
3. Add the nutmeg, salt & pepper and stir until the spinach is warm and mozzarella melted. Make sure you keep stirring continuously to avoid the melted cheese from sticking to the pan.
4. Turn off the heat and serve hot!!

Enjoy!!

R&A

Veggie Loaf with Millet

When I was a kid my mum used to do a very healthy vegetable loaf which all of us used to love. It contained millet which is a high-protein grain which is mainly grown for use as bird seed. This grain is highly nutritious and is a staple food in most African countries, India, China, Burma, North Korea. Interestingly enough it is also used to prepare Tongba which is a millet-based alcoholic beverage in Nepal. Millet grain is usually found in health food stores (in Malta we used to buy it from Good Earth and here in England we buy it from Holland & Barrett or Grape Tree. Anyway, this loaf is very tasty and filling and we used to love it when we came back from school. It is 100% vegetarian and if you want to turn it into a vegan dish just omit the cheese and egg and add a teaspoon of Marmite instead of the cheese and more millet instead of the egg, to bind the loaf. Make sure the vegetables are fresh and that are evenly and finely chopped to ensure that everything cooks evenly. If you still cannot find millet you can use bulghur or even barley! I grated the courgette, carrot and mushrooms using my food blender grater attachment. So easy!! Give it a go, it is so tasty that you will certainly do it again!! You will need...

• 65g millet grain
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 3 celery sticks, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 courgette, finely chopped
• 100g white mushrooms, finely chopped
• 1 ripe tomato,de-seeded & finely chopped
• 100g sweetcorn
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 100g grated mature Cheddar cheese (or a tsp of Marmite for a vegan option)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Fine sea salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 beaten egg, for binding
• Steamed broccoli florets, to serve
• Fresh tomato sauce, to serve

How to...

1. Start by cooking the millet by adding it to about 250ml boiling water and simmer it for about 20 minutes until fluffy.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C/Gas Mark 5.
3. In a large bowl mix well the cooked millet with all the other ingredients.
4. Now line a loaf tin with greaseproof paper and carefully pour all the mixture in the tin. Make sure you pack it tightly by pressing down with a spatula.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for around 50 minutes. Let it set for about 15 minutes, then carefully turn it upside down. Take off the paper, slice and serve with some steamed broccoli and some freshly prepared tomato sauce (we made a basil & garlic tomato sauce). 
   

Enjoy!!

R&A

Caprese Beef Burger

We love burgers...who doesn't? I must say we do love making our own. When we feel like tasting nothing else but the juicy taste of beef, all we put in the burger is just good quality lean minced beef, salt & freshly ground black pepper...nothing else!! Here we simply served them on a toasted bun with a Caprese salad, fresh milky mozzarella, fresh ripe tomatoes and a fresh basil leaf! Give them a go...very easy to prepare!! For 4 burgers you will need...

• 500g extra lean minced beef
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

To serve

• 1x 125g mozzarella ball, sliced
• 1x ripe beef tomato, sliced
• 4 fresh basil leaves
• 4 sesame seed topped burger buns

How to...

1. Put the beef in a bowl and season with salt & pepper. Mix well with your hands into 4 patties. 
2. Grill for about 3 minutes on each side.
3. On the same grill pan or grill, toast the split buns and put a burger on each bun, top with a mozzarella slice, tomato slice and a basil leaf.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Pretzels - Laugenbrezeln

One of Amanda's favourite breads/snacks, Pretzels are delicious German bread that some say were first baked by German monks long time ago. Their toppings vary from sweet to savoury, coated or sprinkled. We prefer the traditional savoury ones sprinkled with coarse sea salt. Personally I thought that pretzels are hard to prepare but after doing them for the first time I can confirm that they are easy to prepare. We prepared them know to commemorate the start of the Oktoberfest season in Germany, we also prepared some Obatzda, a German Camembert based spread which is served with the Pretzels. We will post the recipe for Obatzda in our next post. Give these home-made Pretzels a go and you and all your loved ones will love them. You can top them up with sesame seeds, poppy seeds or even grated cheese. If you love them sweet you can dip them in melted chocolate...why the heck not!! So, for about 10 medium sized Pretzels you will need...

• 500g plain flour
• 1 packet instant yeast (7g)
• ¼ teaspoon sugar
• 350ml lukewarm milk (2 minutes in the microwave)
• ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

• 1½ litres water
• 2 tablespoons bicarbonate of soda

• Coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

How to...

1. In a large bowl mix the flour, yeast and sugar. Add the milk and salt and knead into a sticky dough (you might want to flour your hands). Knead for 5 minutes, put back into the bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave to rise in a warm/dry place until doubled in size, about an hour.
2. On a lightly floured surface, knead for about 10 minutes and shape into a 20cm sausage shaped roll.
3. Cut 10 equal pieces from the roll and re-roll into long strands. Shape the pretzel by twisting the ends towards the centre of the strand.
4. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
5. In a large pot, bring the 1½ litres of water with the bicarbonate of soda to a rolling boil, leave to boil for about 10 minutes. Now carefully drop each pretzel into the boiling water separately, leave for about 30 seconds and take them out with a slotted spoon. Put them on a baking tray covered with greaseproof/baking paper and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Repeat the process for the remaining nine pretzels. 
6. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes.
7. Serve warm
8. Enjoy!!

R&A

Salmon & Pumpkin Stir-fry Asian Style

We love salmon, we love Asian cuisine, it is pumpkin season and this recipe is the result of all these three combined. This recipe has a variety of ingredients that give this stir-fry different textures, saltiness and sweetness. As I said earlier it is indeed pumpkin season and we try to include it in our cooking as much as we can during this season. It is so delicious, we love it. WE also used salmon fillets in this recipe but you can use any fish fillets you like, you can also try steak fish like Amberjack (Aċċiola in Maltese), Grouper (Ċerna), Swordfish (Pixxispad) or Wreckfish (Dott). Fish is quite versatile so feel free to use whatever you find fresh at the market.  We served this stir-fry on top of some delicious thick rice noodles but again you can use regular egg or wheat noodles. So if you feel in cooking your fish in a different way than usual, give this a go, all the ingredients can be found on the international food aisle at your supermarket. For 2 people you will need…

• 2 Salmon fillets of about 150g each, skinned, boned and sliced
• 250g cooked pumpkin
• 50g bean sprouts
• 50g bamboo shoots, thinly sliced
• 50g water chestnuts
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• ½ teaspoon minced fresh ginger or galangal
• Juice of half a lime
• 2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (optional)
• 1 teaspoon palm sugar (or brown sugar)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 package rice noodles
• Sesame oil

1. Preheat the oven to 240°C.
2. Start by cooking the pumpkin. Chop about 400g of uncooked pumpkin in large pieces (do not peel at this stage). Put them skin facing up into an oven tray, add half a cup of water and bake into the preheated oven for about half an hour. When cooked, carefully peel the skin off, it should peel off easily. Slice the pumpkin flesh into slices and set aside.
3. In a wok or large pan, heat the oil and throw in the garlic, ginger and shrimp paste (if using). Stir-fry for about a minute until fragrant.
4. Add the fish, rice wine or sherry, soy sauce, sugar and cook, always stir-frying continuously, until fish is cooked, about 5-8 minutes.
5. In the meantime, start cooking the noodles as according to the package, drain and set aside.
6. Add the bean sprouts, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and pumpkin and cook until they are warm. Stir fry to mix all up. Add the lime juice and stir again. Serve into a deep medium sized serving dish.
7. In the same wok/pan, add the noodle and dress with sesame oil. Stir fry for a minute and serve.
8. Plate the noodles and top with the fish stir-fry.

Enjoy!!

R&A

Pumpkin & Sweet Pepper Soup

Pumpkin season is upon us! Since pumpkins are so cheap and so versatile, my mind starts going crazy in the kitchen to come up with new ways to cook it. So far we used it in 3 recipes. We made the traditional Maltese hearty vegetable soup called either Minestra or Kawlata if cooked with a ham shank. Another recipe we made was a recipe Amanda came across on the net which really intrigued us, Pumpkin pie cupcakes, these turned out delicious, just like mini sweet pumpkin pies. Incidentally today is the first day of autumn and I came up with this delicious soup which is very easy to prepare, as are all soups after all! Our tips for a perfect soup are, not too much liquid and slow cooking. We put bacon to add saltiness and balance the sweetness of the pumpkin and vegetables. If you would like a vegetarian version of the soup omit the bacon and add a couple of tablespoons of light soy sauce instead. Give it a go, you will need…

• 400g Peeled Pumpkin, chopped into cubes
• 2 Potatoes, chopped
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 1 Carrot, finely chopped
• 1 Green pepper, finely chopped
• 1 Red pepper, finely chopped
• ½ Savoy cabbage, shredded
• 8 small tomatoes, skinned and chopped
• 4 smoked back bacon rashers, chopped (use soy sauce instead if vegan or vegetarian)
• 2 litres vegetable or ham stock
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil

How to...

1. Heat the oil in a large pot. Add the onion, carrot and chopped peppers and cooked until soft stirring frequently until soft, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the bacon if using and continue to cook until bacon turns brownish.
3. Add the pumpkin, potatoes, cabbage, tomatoes, thyme, black pepper and stock and stir well. Simmer on medium heat for about an hour or more if you like.
4. When done, blend the soup in a blender or with a hand-held blender even and serve warm.

Enjoy!!

R&A