Chicken Machboos

This weekend's Formula 1 Grand Prix is in Bahrain which was never going to be easy in terms of thinking of something to cook for my blog challenge Formula 1 Foods. I turned to the internet to search for recipes and one in particular kept coming up - a type of curry, usually with chicken, called machboos. Apparently it's the national dish of Bahrain and is a spiced chicken and rice dish with a blend of Arabic spices. It's similar to an Indian biriyani.



I found many recipes for this which were all slightly different and ended up choosing different elements of each; for instance my boyfriend doesn't eat chicken thighs or legs so I used breast; I didn't have any of the specific spice blend so mixed together what I had that went into it, and I have to admit making a big change that probably changed this dish quite a lot - rather than cooking the rice together with the chicken I used microwavable rice and added it afterwards. That is probably sacrilege but I didn't have much time (not getting home from work until 7pm and that's if the trains are running on time, which usually they are not) and I am hopeless at cooking rice from scratch!



So the recipe I used, pieced together from various others, was:

to serve 2:

1 onion, chopped

1 glove garlic, crushed

2 chicken breasts, diced

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp turmeric

squeeze of lemon juice

1 tbsp. oil

200ml chicken stock

200g tinned tomatoes



Fry the chopped onion and garlic in the oil in a large pan then add the spices.



Add the chicken and fry until cooked through.



Add the tomatoes, stock and lemon juice and cook until the sauce has reduced by half.



Serve with rice

I'm sending this to Formula 1 Foods, the blog challenge I host - you've still got a few days to add any Bahrain or Formula 1 inspired recipes!

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Movie Night: Chocolate Marshmallow Popcorn and a Beer Glass Review

Last April I bought my boyfriend a popcorn maker for his birthday and a recipe book, as he loves popcorn and I thought it would be fun to add some more interesting flavours – even though I knew I would be the one using the recipe book! That was right around the time we were preparing to move house so the popcorn maker ended up being packed – and then our house purchase was delayed, and stuff ended up in a storage unit. When we finally moved at the very end of August, the rest of the year was taken up with decorating and getting the house how we wanted it. So it was only very recently that the popcorn maker saw the light of day.

I’d bought a bag of ‘raw’ popcorn and was amazed at the tiny amount we needed to put into the popcorn maker to make a massive bowlful of popcorn. I know you can make popcorn in a saucepan but this machine was far more fun, and very quick. You do need a big bowl underneath to catch the popcorn as it comes shooting out!

I did have a look through the recipe book but as it was quite last-minute, I didn’t have a lot of the ingredients to hand and some of the recipes involved making the popcorn, covering it with toppings and then baking it in the oven, which I didn’t want to do as we wanted popcorn right away! So instead I threw together a couple of things and decided to share this in a post as it really did taste wonderful.

I simply made a chocolate sauce, by melting chocolate and butter and adding a little golden syrup, and stirring it through the popcorn along with some mini marshmallows. The chocolate cools quite quickly, so while you might get a little messy eating this, it’s not that bad. Popcorn is pretty healthy and you don’t need to add much chocolate or marshmallow to feel like you have a really indulgent snack.

The perfect accompaniment for your bowl of popcorn and a movie is a tall glass of your favourite tipple, whether it’s beer or a soft drink. I was recently sent a selection of products to review by Flamingo Gifts, a website that offers unique gifts for all occasions, ranging from funny novelty items to leading brands like Bombay Duck, Ted Baker, Orla Kierly and Sass and Belle. They also have a large range of Lolita glasses, which I’ve loved ever since I was given a martini glass for a birthday present several years ago. These glasses are beautifully decorated, all hand designed and painted in varying themes. They come in gift boxes and really do make wonderful gifts. Flamingo sent me this movie-night themed beer glass, which is large enough to hold a pint and the designs on the side make it feel very special – perfect for the man in your life to use on movie night. Just don’t forget the popcorn!

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Mini Egg Chocolate Brownies

Cadbury's Mini Eggs are very popular in my house and the fact that they are only available around Easter makes them extra special! I bought a couple of packets and wanted to use them in baking - then my boyfriend ate them, so I bought some more - then he ate those, so I bought some more! Eventually I got around to choosing a recipe and for me there was one clear winner - Mini Egg chocolate brownies.



You can add Mini Eggs to any chocolate brownie recipe; I used Nigella's everyday brownies recipe which you can find here.

In retrospect what I should have done is saved some of the mini eggs and added them on top of the part-baked brownie five minutes before the end; this would have ensured there were some to decorate the top as they all sank in! You can see the mini eggs inside the brownies though.

I am sending these to Alphabakes, the blog challenge I co-host with Ros of The More Than Occasional Baker; the letter I have chosen this month is B.

I am also sending these to Simply Eggcellent, hosted by Dom at Belleau Kitchen, as his theme this month is chocolate.

The theme for Tea Time Treats, hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage and Jane at The Hedgecombers, is also chocolate.

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Restaurant Review: Kipferl, Islington

There’s a little street in Islington called Camden Passage which has lots of lovely little cafes and shops, and sometimes a market selling everything from antiques to jewellery. I spent a work day with an agency we use not far from there and my colleague and I decided to go out for a quick lunch somewhere a bit different to what’s on offer near our usual base in the City. He spotted Kipferl, a Viennese café, and as we have both been to Vienna we were keen to try it.

Kipferl started out as a delicatessen, run by Austrian Christian Malnig, and has expanded to two full cafes (the other one in Kensington). It prides itself on being a proper Viennese coffeehouse, where you can sit with a coffee and read the newspaper for hours without being hassled to buy anything else. The man at the next table was working on his laptop (and eating lunch) but I overheard him say he pretty much rented that table to work at!

As well as proper Austrian cakes like Sachertorte there are both small and large dishes suitable for lunch and dinner (they also do breakfast). I was tempted by a Wienerschnitzel but decided I wanted a smaller dish at lunch, though still something Austrian. I chose the sausage and sauerkraut, which offered a choice of sausages – a pair of Wieners or Debreziners, or one cheese-stuffed Kaesekrainer, which sounded delicious – and it was. The sauerkraut was perfect – probably an acquired taste but having lived in Germany in my teens and 20s I love the taste of the pickled cabbage. It also came with some rye bread, which unfortunately I found very dry (I know it’s supposed to be but I’ve had much better), plus little pots of mustard and freshly grated horseradish, and some pickles. I’ve never had fresh horseradish, though I love horseradish sauce; on it’s own it is a bit strange and I wasn’t quite sure what I was supposed to do with it – sprinkle it on the sausage, or eat it by itself?

My colleague had a similar dish but with the two Wiener sausages and salad instead of sauerkraut; they were each priced around £6-£7 and made a pretty filling lunch.

If you’re looking for something a bit different to the usual sandwich and want a friendly, relaxed café where you can while away the afternoon (though in our case we went straight back to work) then you could do far wurst.

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Restaurant Review: Drake Manor Inn, Buckland Monachorum, Devon

Several years ago one of my closest friends moved to a tiny village in Devon - and I mean tiny. it doesn't have a single shop, but what it does have is a pub.



The Drake Manor Inn is the centre of the community; my friend worked there for a while and even got to know her husband there. 'The pub' as everyone calls it (it almost doesn't need a name) hosts the village New Year's Eve party, serves as the venue for community meetings (like the local cider makers club) , sells pints of milk as there is nowhere else nearby to get one if you've run out and even offers accommodation ( one room above the pub).



An English folk singer who I won't name as I don't think he'd appreciate it grew up there and his parents still live there, and he has been known to give impromptu performances in the pub.



I'd been to the pub a few times when visiting my friend and remembered the very low ceilings and the outdoor toilet (men's - thankfully the ladies is inside) but had never eaten there. This time I was visiting my friend and her new baby during the day so said I would treat us to lunch and she suggested the pub. I later found out that was the fourth time that week she had eaten lunch there!



I was impressed by the breadth of the menu and the sound of dishes like chicken with a spice rub; not as run of the mill as I had expected. In fact the pub prides itself on its food. I was going to have a baguette or the plough mans until my friend recommended the vegetarian lasagne - butternut squash, spinach and goats cheese. It came in a round dish piping hot from the oven on a plate with salad and garlic bread. The lasagne - homemade of course - was delicious. My friend had the same thing while my boyfriend, the world's most un adventurous eater, had a cheese burger. He had been expecting something snack sized as it was under the 'pub bites' section of the menu and only cost about £6 or £7, whereas the main meals part of the menu had a more expensive pulled pork burger. But his meal was huge!



The meal for three plus soft drinks came to £32- excellent value for money as we weren't even hungry by dinner time (though my mum, who we then went on to visit, cooked us dinner anyway).



If you remember to duck when you stand up, and can find somewhere to park, this is a great place to stop for lunch or go for a drink - it's the sort of place where everyone knows everyone else, but rather than strangers being eyed with suspicion, they are greeted, asked where they are from and drawn into the conversation. And you may be surprised at who you end up talking to - what were the chances that the man at the bar (who my friend knew as Geoff from down the road) was the now-retired West Country correspondent for - my former employer, the Daily Telegraph?

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How to Make Edible Glue for Cake Decorating

Edible glue is an essential tool for any cake decorator. It's what you use to stick sugar flowers onto cakes; to fix arms and legs onto sugarpaste animals and to stick any sort of decorations onto fondant-covered cakes.



You can buy edible glue in little pots which can cost anywhere between £2-£3, or sometimes you can get them for £1 from a show like Cake International, which is coming up at the end of this month. I quite like this one from Culpitt, a reputable brand, which you can buy from Amazon from £2.05.



A little does go a fairly long way and the little pots usually come with a brush in the lid which is handy, but after a while they will dry up, and if you are doing a lot of cake decorating, it can get expensive.



So did you know that you can actually make your own edible glue very easily? Simply mix one part CMC powder to 20 parts water and that's it. You can get 100g of CMC powder for about £5 and that will last you a very long time - and you can also use the powder to make Mexican paste to use for modelling (explained if you click on the link).



It's best not to use the glue right away - you can if you need to, but it is quite runny, and benefits from a few hours to set a little. You can keep it in the fridge for quite a while; use a paintbrush or fine makeup brush to dip in to the glue and apply. It's as simple as that!

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Salmon with Linguine and Leek Pesto

I was looking for a springtime pasta recipe and came across this recipe for salmon with linguine and ramp pesto. I'd never heard of ramp but according to Wikipedia the allium tricoccum is known as many things, including ramp, spring onion and wild leek. I don't think it's actually the American word for spring onion though as that's scallion. I had some leeks in my fridge and decided that would be close enough and I would give it a go!

I didn't have Asiago cheese (whatever that is) but did have parmesan in my fridge, and a packet of sliced almonds that needed using up. So I decided to throw the whole lot together and make my own springtime pasta!



To serve 3-4, you need:

1 leek, sliced

2 tbsp. oil

30g grated parmesan

30g flaked almonds

handful of fresh parsley

approx. 4-6 tbsp. oil

to serve: linguine

salmon fillet



Cook the pasta according to pack instructions and cook the salmon fillet in whichever manner you prefer - pan fry, poach, oven roast or even microwave. This is really just the recipe for the pesto...



Slice the leek and add to a large pan with 2 tbsp. oil. Heat until the leeks are softened but not browned.



Transfer to a food processor along with the parmesan, almonds and parsley, and pulse for a few seconds. With the motor running, slowly add the oil until it reaches your preferred consistency.











Toss through the cooked pasta and top with the salmon. Enjoy!



This had a different flavour (obviously) to pesto I'd had before but thanks to the parmesan and nuts it was still definitely a pesto, and I really enjoyed it.

I'm sending this to Credit Crunch Munch, hosted this month by Jo's Kitchen on behalf of Helen at Fuss Free Flavours and Camilla at Fab Food 4 All. Parmesan isn't cheap but I'm sure a lot of people like me have half a packet hanging around to be used up, and as this recipe only used things I already had open in my fridge, hopefully it counts!

This recipe is a good way to sneak in some veg so I am sending this to the Extra Veg challenge, hosted by Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary. The challenge was started by Helen at Fuss Free Flavours and Michelle at Utterly Scrummy.

Leeks are in season so I am sending this to Simple and In Season, hosted by Ren Behan.

The recipe uses fresh parsley so I am sending it to Cooking with Herbs, hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage.

Finally I am sending this to Pasta Please, hosted by Family Friends Food on behalf of Jacqueline at Tinned Tomatoes as the challenge this month is for springtime pasta recipes.

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