Crispy Homemade Fish & Chips

We love fish & chips!  – it was surprisingly simple to make, and so delicious.

The secret to the ultra-crispy batter is a combination of baking soda and bubbly soda water, this is what gives the first the crispy texture you are looking for!

For a cocktail party, try cutting fresh fish into small bits for bite-sized fish and chips to dip in tartar sauce.  

The tartar sauce was homemade.  It was the first time I make it! Below is the link to the site I got it from. 

Crispy Homemade Fish & Chips

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose flour, divided
500gr of preferred fish fillets 
1/4 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
1/2 cup soda water
canola oil, for cooking
Salt, pepper, paprika, per taste

Method

Put 1/4 cup of the flour into a shallow dish. Cut the fish fillets on a slight diagonal into 1-inch wide strips.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/2 cup flour, baking soda, salt and other spices and soda water – the mixture should have the consistency of thin pancake batter.

In a heavy pot, heat about two inches of oil until it’s hot but not smoking. Pat the fish strips dry with paper towel and dredge in the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip one or two pieces at a time in the batter to coat well and gently place in the oil. Cook, turning as needed, for 4–5 minutes, until deep golden and cooked through. Transfer to paper towels to drain and cool, then sprinkle with salt.

Serves 4.

The chips/fries were made oven baked and you can check its recipe here 

Recipe for the tartar sauce found here

ENJOY!!

Simple Orange Cake

This cake is super simple and so delicious.  Not very sweet, and so soft.  Great for breakfast, snack or tea party!

Simple Orange Cake

Ingredients + Method:

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

vanilla

rind of 1 orange

1/4 cup oil

3 tablespoons sour cream or yogurt

Whisk all the above together

Add to the wet ingredients:

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

juice of one orange

Continue to whisk these last ingredients and then pour into a greased and floured pan and bake in preheated 177 C oven for 25-40 min depending on oven.

ENJOY!!

Tri Color Pasta Salad

Quick, easy and delicious salad.  Full of color and taste!  

Great for parties and side dish wish any meal, and also with barbecue.

 Tri Color Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 350gr tri-color rotini dried pasta - cook and drain as instructed in package
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 1 can black olives, sliced
• ¼ cups red onion, finely diced
• 3/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 8 fresh basil leaves, cut into strips
• 4 tablespoons basil pesto
• 2/3 cup creamy Caesar dressing
• 2 teaspoons sauté spice (equal parts black pepper, salt, and garlic powder)
• ½-1 cup toasted pine nuts (I omitted this, but next time will use!)

Directions

1. Cook pasta and coat with Caesar dressing while warm. Add the rest of the ingredients (minus the pine nuts) and toss. 
2. Top with toasted pine nuts. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

ENJOY!!

Cheese, Olive and Turkey Ham Bread

This bread is no type of bread where you need to use yeast of any kind and wait till if foams up.  You don't need to wait any minute to place it in the oven.  It is as if you are baking a cake, but turns out savory type of cake.

A cake filled with olive, turkey ham and cheese.  Great to be cut into slices and placed in a tray presented at any kind of party.  This bread is soft, tasty, and not dry at all.  Great for breakfast, snack, party food, anything really.!

Ingredients:

1-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2¾ teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
4 eggs, at room temperature
½ cup whole milk
6½ tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons small-diced turkey or chicken ham
170 gr Cheddar, Gruyere, or Emmental cheese, coarsely grated (about 1½ cups)
2/3 cup pitted sliced black olives 

Method: 

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. Butter and flour an 8½-x-4½-inch loaf pan.

2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.

3. In another bowl or in a large measuring cup, lightly beat the eggs, then whisk in the milk, olive oil, and ham. Pour the liquid ingredients over the flour mixture and stir gently to blend. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the cheese and olives. Scrape the batter into the pan.

4. Bake the loaf for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 190 degrees C and continue to bake the loaf for another 35 minutes or so, until it's puffed and golden, and a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let it rest for 5 minutes, then turn it out. 

Turn the loaf right side up and let cool completely on the rack.

ENJOY!

Bread Pudding

Don't know what to do with leftover baguette? Don't throw them away, make this super easy recipe and its ingredients for sure are in your pantry!

Delicious served hot, and if you want to add other spices like nutmeg, go ahead!

Bread Pudding

Ingredients 

6 slices day-old bread 

2 tablespoons butter, melted 

1/2 cup raisins (optional) 

4 eggs, beaten   

2 cups milk   

3/4 cup white sugar   

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon   

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Break bread into small pieces into an 8 inch square baking pan. Drizzle melted butter or margarine over bread. If desired, sprinkle with raisins.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Pour over bread, and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped.  

ENJOY!!!

Caesar Salad

Easiest and most famous salad.  Can be done as side dish with anything or even as a snack.  You can add chicken, shrimp, anything you want as meat.  Usually chicken is the most asked addition to the salad, but plain is also delicious!

Caesar Salad

Ingredients

Around 10 cups of lettuce cut in slices

1/3 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese

Croutons(I did these homemade, but you can buy ready made ones)

Dressing

Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise

3 tbsp mustard

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 garlic clove - peeled

2 anchovies (you may need to add another one) [optional]

around 4 tbsp of olive oil

1/3 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese 

Method

Mix in a bowl the lettuce, cheese. Set aside.

Blend all ingredients of the dressing and they are ready to be mixed with the salad - check if you need another anchovy - the taste should reach the perfect saltiness - adding too many anchovies can lead the sauce to taste like fish!.  Salt is not needed because anchovies are already salty. 

Add the croutons and mix slowly. 

PS: You can do this salad without the anchovies, but these add the secret flavor to the salad itself. 

ENJOY!

Beef Strips with onion and Mashed Potato Balls Gratin

This recipe was invented by a cousin of mine.  She is a genius chef! all her food is so delicious! 

The first thing that caught my attention was the look of it.  Seriously, so gorgeous.  Why ruin it? hehehe, but then again, it tastes amazingly good as well, so it's ok, go ahead, and have a piece!

The dish has beef which surely can be substituted with chicken if you want, and the rest are basic ingredients.  Go ahead.  Do it.  And report back!

Beef Strips with onion and Mashed Potato Balls Gratin

Ingredients

1kg of beef (tender) cut into strips (or chicken)

2 onions - cut into sliced wedges (cut it a little thick because they will shrink)

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 kg of potato, peeled and washed (6-8 potatoes)

Handful of parsley, chopped

Handful of coriander, chopped

1 tsp of garlic in powder

1tbs of butter

Few tbsp of milk

Salt

Pepper

Shawarma condiment (optional) (This is a Lebanese condiment, its ok if you don't have from it)

Shredded mozzarella cheese

Bechamel

2tbsp butter

2tbsp flour

500ml milk

Grated nutmeg

Sprinkle of Paprika

Salt 

Bay leaf (optional) and half an onion

Method for the beef

Stir fry the onions until golden with little oil.  Set aside.  On same pan, stir fry the beef, sprinkle salt, pepper and shawarma condiment along with the minced garlic.  Once cooked pour on them cooked onion and flip them around.  Turn off the heat once cooked and put them on a rectangular pirex, set aside.

Method of the mashed potato

To cook quickly the potato, slice the potatoes in medium slices and put to boil with little salt.  Once tender, sift them to remove water.  

In a bowl pour in the butter, parsley, coriander, garlic powder, and few tbsp of milk (as per your desire) and put the cooked potatoes on it.  The heat from the potatoes will melt the butter.  Start mashing the potatoes with a potato masher.  Pour salt and pepper and mix them with your hands until well incorporated.  Start making balls and put the balls on top of the beef/onion mixture, one next to the other.  The size of the ball depends on how you like it, can be small, medium or big.

Method for the Bechamel

Melt in a pan the butter, pour the flour and mix quickly it will become as a paste.  Pour in the milk and keep mixing.  If you get pieces like it did not dissolve, just use a hand mixer and keep mixing to boil.  Sprinkle nutmeg, paprika, and salt.  Sometimes in bechamel sauce I put in it a bay leaf plus half an onion (excluding the nutmeg and paprika) it gives an amazing taste, remove them before serving.  Pour in the cream and mix, and set aside to be served.

Pour the bechamel slowly on the potato balls, all around the pirex, and then sprinkle with grated cheese.  Gratin it for few minutes.  Serve hot.

ENJOY! 

Crepe with Nutella and sliced bananas

Crepes are these little thin pancake that are well known everywhere, mainly in France, which is where they come from.  They are good for breakfast or dessert, or seriously, anytime of the day.  They can be filled with sweet ingredients, or savory ones.  They are easier to make than you might think!

 

You can use jam, peanut butter, or nutella and banana stuffing, or any other fruit you like to use! how about nutella and strawberries? topped with sweetened whipped cream?? AHH!!

Also, this recipe suits well for savory stuffing like ricotta and spinach, and bolognese sauce, sooo delicious - I always make these for lunch.  Let alone it being so tasty just sprinkled with sugar and drizzled with honey.  OMG!

 

This crepe recipe is what I always use and I personally think its the best!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• Nutella
• Slices banana (or any other fruit)

Directions

1. Mix everything in a large bowl.
2. Pour 1/4 cup of the mixture into a lightly buttered pan heated at medium.
3. Tilt the pan and turn so that the mixture evenly coats the entire bottom of the pan.
4. Cook the crepe until golden brown on the bottom, about 2 minutes.
5. Flip and cook the other side until golden brown.

Pour nutella on an opened crepe, use a spoon to even it out around it, top if with banana or really, any other fruit you like to.  Fold it, or roll it, or just eat it the way you like it!

ENJOY!