Grilled chicken, halloumi and chorizo fajitas with mango salsa

Grilled chicken, halloumi and chorizo fajitas with mango salsa

• 1 Mango
• 1/2 Red onion finely diced
• 3tbsp fresh chopped coriander
• 1 Mild red chilli deseeded and finely chopped
• 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt & Pepper
• 200g Halloumi cheese
• 8 Chicken fillet strips
• 100g Sliced chorizo 
• 4 Flour tortillas
• Lettuce (shredded) cherry tomatoes (halved)

Method :-
First make the salsa, dice the mango (hedgehog method works best) and add the onion, coriander, chilli, olive oil, salt and pepper, mix to combine and set aside.

Pre-heat your grill to medium, place the chicken fillets on a foil lined tray and cook for 6-7 minutes turning once.  Add the sliced Halloumi to the tray and cook for a few minutes until the cheese starts to brown, turn over the cheese and continue cooking until the other side is also browned.  Whilst the chicken and cheese is cooking, heat a small frying pan and fry the chorizo until it crisps up.

Heat your tortillas according to instructions, place some of the lettuce and tomatoes on each of the tortillas and divide the chicken fillets and cheese onto each tortilla and top with the mango salsa.  

This is a light, fresh and zingy dinner; if you want to go the veggie option remove the chicken and chorizo.  For the chicken I dusted the fillets with Cajun spices to pep it up a bit, also you can spritz flavoured oil onto the Halloumi. 

Creamy pasta with prosciutto and basil

Creamy pasta with prosciutto and basil

• 400g pappardelle
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
• 125ml single cream
• 40g finely grated parmesan, plus extra to serve
• 12 slices (180g) prosciutto
• 200g ricotta
• 2 cups basil leaves, plus extra to serve
• Sea salt & cracked black pepper
• 4 soft boiled eggs

Method:-

Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 7-8 minutes or until al dente.  Drain, reserving 250ml of the cooking liquid and set aside.  Heat the oil in the saucepan over a medium heat, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.  Add the cream and the reserved water and cook for 1 minute.  Return the pasta to the pan with the parmesan, prosciutto, ricotta and basil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to combine.  Divide the pasta between 4 plates, top with a soft boiled egg, extra basil leaves and grated parmesan.

To soft boil the eggs, bring a medium pan of water to the boil and cook for 6 minutes, once done drain under cold running water to stop the cooking process.  Take care when peeling the eggs as they will be very soft!

For this recipe I made my own fresh pasta which really made the dish.  This is a quick and easy light dinner ideal for those summer evenings.

Recipe courtesy of Donna Hay

Cobb Salad

Cobb Salad

• 2 Chicken breasts
• 1 Large pinch of sweet smoked paprika
• Olive oil
• Sea salt & Ground black pepper
• 4 Slices of pancetta
• 2 Large eggs
• 1 Romaine lettuce
• 1 Ripe avocado 
• 125g Cherry tomatoes halved
• 1 Punnet of cress

For the dressing

• 50g Stilton cheese
• 1/2 Bunch of fresh chives
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 2tbsp Greek yoghurt
• 50ml Buttermilk
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2tsp Worcestershire sauce

Method:-

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.  Place the chicken into a snug fitting dish with the paprika, drizzle of olive oil and a little salt and pepper, toss well until the chicken is coated and the place in the oven for 25 minutes.  Place the pancetta over the top of the chicken and return to the oven for 10-15 minutes until cooked through.

Bring a small pan of water to the boil and cook the eggs for 6 minutes for soft-boiled.  Remove from the heat and run under cold water in order to stop the cooking process.

To make the dressing, crumble the Stilton into a large jug.  Finely chop and add the chives along with a glug of extra virgin olive oil and the remaining ingredients.  Whisk well, season to taste and pop in the fridge until needed.

Once the chicken is cooked, remove from the oven and leave to one side to cool slightly. Remove the outer leaves from the lettuce then roughly chop and place into a medium sized bowl.      Halve the avocado and remove the stone, peel and roughly chop and place into the bowl along with the cherry tomatoes.  

Shred the chicken with two forks and add to the lettuce along with the crumbled pancetta. Carefully peel the soft boiled egg and place on salad. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix through, snip the cress on top and serve.

This is a light tasty lunch and for more of a cheese flavour, add extra cheese to the dressing to really pep it up. Recipe from Jamie Oliver.

Grilled chilli chicken and slaw burgers

Grilled chilli chicken and slaw burgers

• 80g Asian chilli jam
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1.5 tsp sesame oil
• Pack of chicken fillets (3 per person)
• 150g mayonnaise 
• 1/2 tbsp lime zest
• 1 tsp lime juice
• 1 white baguette 
• 150g shredded cabbage
• 1 carrot shredded
• Handful coriander leaves chopped
• 1 small red chilli finely chopped
• Lime wedges to serve

Method :-
Place the chilli jam, soy sauce and 1 tsp sesame oil and chicken in a bowl, mix to combine, cover and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.  Add the mayonnaise, lime zest, juice and remaining sesame oil to a bowl and and mix together and set aside.  Preheat a char-grill pan over a medium heat, brush with olive oil.  Cook the chicken for 5 minutes each side or until cooked through.  Spread the baguette with the mayonnaise and fill with the chicken, cabbage, carrot, coriander and chilli.  Serve with the lime wedges.  I accompanied this with oven fries topped with umami rush and some extra mayo on the side.  Really tasty Saturday night dinner, fresh and zingy and left me wanting me more.

Recipe courtesy of Donna Hay & credit to Laura Santtini for the umami rush (which is amazing)

Pork, bacon & chorizo burgers with pulled pork

Pork, bacon & chorizo burgers with pulled pork

For the pork

• Pork shoulder (size depending on how many you are feeding, 5kg serves approx. 10)
• Olive oil
• Sea salt & ground black pepper
• 2 heaped teaspoons of smoked paprika

For the burgers (makes approx 6)

• 1 ½ teaspoons cumin seeds
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup diced shallots
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp thyme leaves
• 2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
• 2 chiles de arbol finely diced
• 2 lbs pork mince
• Salt & Pepper
• 120g finely diced chorizo
• 4 slices smoked bacon finely diced
• 6 burger buns

 Method:-

Preheat your oven to the highest temperature, score the pork skin about 1cm deep all over with a sharp knife (if not done already).  Drizzle over a little olive oil, season generously with salt, pepper and the paprika and rub in to the pork.  Place the pork into a roasting tin (I suggest lining the tin with foil) then place in the oven, turn the heat down to 160 degrees and cook for 4 hours, basting occasionally.  After 4 hours turn the heat down to 150 degrees and cook for a further 2 hours or until you can pull the meat apart easily.  Remove the crackling and leave to one side and pull the pork apart using two forks, cover with tin foil until needed.

Whilst the pork is cooking, in a medium pan, toast the cumin seeds over a medium heat for a few minutes until the seeds release their aroma and darken slightly.  Pound the seeds in a mortar or grinder until coarsely ground.  Return the pan to the stove, add the olive oil and heat for a couple of minutes, add the shallots, turn the heat down to medium and cook for a few minutes until they start to soften.  Add the garlic, thyme, cumin, sliced chile, a few grinds of black pepper and a couple of pinches of salt.  Cook for 3-4 minutes until the shallots become translucent, set aside to cool.  In a large bowl combine the pork, chorizo, bacon, shallot mixture & parsley, season with a few grinds of black pepper and a few good pinches of salt.  Shape the meat into 6 burgers, chill in the refrigerator if not using right away.

You can either BBQ your burgers, grill them or fry them in a frying pan with a little olive oil.  Once cooked through, place your burger onto a toasted bun and top with the pulled pork.  For this recipe, I mixed the pulled pork with Kankun Chipotle sauce to give it extra flavour, I also topped with burger with smoked cheese and served with slaw and spicy wedges.  

These burgers are perfect for a summer bbq and always go down a treat.   

Strolling Rigatoni with Cherry Tomatoes and Goat’s Cheese

Strolling Rigatoni with Cherry Tomatoes, and Goat’s Cheese

• 1 cup halved Cherry Tomatoes 
• 1 sliced Yellow Pepper
• 250g Rigatoni Pasta 
• 1/2 cup Onion, diced
• 1 Garlic Clove, diced 
• 1/2 bunch Basil, chopped 
• 1 tbsp Black Olives, chopped 
• 1/2 roll Goat‘s Cheese 
•  Pine Nuts 2 tbsp 4 tbsp
• Sliced Chorizo (optional)

Method

Heat your oven to 200 degrees and cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Cut the top and bottom off the pepper and then cut into strips. Toss in 1 tbsp of olive oil, ¼ tsp salt and a pinch of pepper. Lay out on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 15-20 mins until starting to brown at the edges.

Boil a pot of water with ½ tsp of salt for your pasta. Finely dice the onion and garlic. Roughly chop the basil.

Cook the pasta for 10 mins or until ‘al dente’.

 Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to a pan over a medium heat. Once warm, add the onions and sliced chorizo and cook gently for 5 mins. Add the garlic and a few good grinds of black pepper and cook for another minute.

 Cut the olives in half length ways and add to the pan along with 2 tbsp of pasta water. Tip: Adding pasta water is a classic Italian trick and adds some salt and starchiness to give you a bit of a sauce.

 When the pasta is cooked, it’s time to combine everything. Add the roasted tomatoes and peppers to the pan with half the crumbled goat’s cheese and all but 1 tbsp of the chopped basil. Add the pasta and toss everything together.

Serve the pasta with the remaining goat’s cheese crumbled on top, the remaining basil, the pine nuts and a drizzle of olive oil

Recipe courtesy of Hello Fresh

Esquites with beef brisket and new potatoes

Esquites with beef brisket and new potatoes

• 4 corn on the cob
• 1/2 red onion finely diced
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander
• 4 tbsp crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise 
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• Salt & pepper
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• Few slices of jalapeño peppers finely diced
• Kankun habanero sauce

Heat a large frying pan with a tablespoon of vegetable oil.  Slice the corn off the cob, place into the frying pan and cook for several minutes, add the garlic and stir.  Cook for 10 more minutes, stirring occasionally.  Once done, put the sweet corn into a large bowl, add the coriander, red onion, mayo, pinch of salt, few grinds of black pepper, lime juice and a good few dashes of habanero sauce (more or less depending how hot you like it) along with the feta cheese (reserving some to top the dish) and jalapeño peppers, stir thoroughly and serve with your dish.  

For this dish I served alongside BBQ beef brisket and jersey new potatoes tossed in butter.

This is a fresh and summery dish, great for bbq's and for eating Al fresco.

Spaghetti with tuna stuffed peppers

Spaghetti with tuna stuffed peppers

• 1 tin of tuna in olive oil
• Half a red onion finely diced
• 4 Tablespoons of mayonnaise 
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• Jar of peppadew  peppers
• 2 Tablespoons of juice from the peppers
• Spaghetti (vary portion depending on amount of guests)
• Small jar of pasta sauce of choice 
• Few grinds of black pepper

Method :-

Drain the tuna and break up into small pieces into a bowl, mix with the olive oil, lemon juice, mayonnaise, pepper juice and diced red onion.  

Drain the peppers and stuff with the tuna mixture.  Bring a large pan of water to the boil and cook the pasta for 10-12 minutes.  Whilst the pasta is cooking heat through your pasta sauce, a chilli/tomato sauce is good.  Once the pasta is cooked, drain and plate up, placing the stuffed peppers amongst the pasta and drizzle with the pasta sauce.

This is a quick and easy yet tasty dinner. Enjoy....

Kankun Beef Tostadas

Kankun Beef Tostadas

• 6 Fried tortillas
• 1 Cup of warm re-fried beans
• 2 Cups of cooked and shredded skirt steak, chicken or your favourite meat, veggie or seafood
• 3 Cups shredded romaine lettuce
• ½ Small onion, diced
• 1 Cup of crumbled fresco/fresh Mexican cheese (Feta & Parmesan are good substitutes)
• ½ Cup sour cream
• Kankun Sauce

Method:-

Spread a 2 tbsp of re-fried beans on one side of each the tostada (tortilla).  Add the shredded meat, top with lettuce, sour cream and the crumbled cheese.  Serve immediately with your Kankun Sauce of choice.

Kankun Chipotle Chicken

Kankun Chipotle Chicken

• 2 Chicken breasts
• ¼ Cup of lime juice
• 1 Garlic clove minced
• 2 Tbsp of honey
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 2-3 Tbsp of Kankun Chipotle Sauce

Method:-

Place the garlic, lime, honey and Kankun Chipotle sauce into a large bowl and mix thoroughly.  Add the chicken breasts, making sure they are well covered, season with salt and pepper and leave to marinate for at least 15 minutes or overnight. 

Preheat your grill to a moderate heat, place the chicken breast onto an oven tray and grill until cooked (15 minutes or so).  Serve with Mexican rice, or as I have done, in a tortilla bowl with homemade guacamole and salad.