Creamy Prawn Curry

To keep them soft and tender take care not to overcook the prawns.

What you need

500 gr tiger prawns
1,5 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground tumeric
5 cm cinnamon stick
4 cloves
7 cardamon pods
4 bay leaves
2 cm of ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp chilli powder
180 ml creamy coconut milk (I prefer a block of coconut, mixed with warm water)

How to prepare it

1. Peel, devein and clean the prawns. Leave the tail on. Put them in a bowl and mix with the lemon juice. Leave them for ten minutes and rince them under cold water. Dry the prawns with a (paper) towel.
2. Heat the oil in a wok and fry the onion until lightly browned. add the tumeric, cinnamon, bay leaves, cloves, cardamon, ginger and garlic. Fry for 1 minute.
3. Add the chilli powder, creamy cocomut and salt (to taste). Slowly bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the prawns are cooked through and the sauce is thick (for about 5 minutes).
4. Enjoy with some basmati rice and garlic naan.

Garden fresh vegetable risotto

This is a lovely dish to make from your own garden vegetables.

  

What you need

- 350g fresh runner beans, cut into long thin strips
- 50g butter
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves
- 1 onion, very finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3-4 sprigs fresh thyne
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 bay leaf
- 300g risotto rice
- 200ml dry white wine
- 800ml hot vegetable stock
- 200g peas
- 100g fresh fava beans
- 3 small zucchinis, cut in small peaces
- 200g feta cheese, drained and crumbled into small pieces
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- parmesan cheese

How to prepare it

1. Fill a saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Add the runner beans and return to the boil. Cook for one minute then drain in a colander under running water until cold.
2. Mix the mint with two tablespoons of the olive oil and set aside.
3. Melt 25g of the butter with the remaining oil in a large non-stick saucepan and fry the onion and garlic for five minutes until softened, but not coloured. Stir in the thyme, lemon zest, bay leaf and risotto rice and cook for a few seconds more until the rice is glistening. 
4. Pour the wine in to the pan and boil over a medium heat until the liquid has reduced by half. Slowly start adding the stock, stirring well between each addition. Simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the liquid has almost all been absorbed before adding more. Cook until the rice is tender.
5. Remove the thyme from the rice and add the fresh peas, fava beans and zucchinis 5 minutes befor finishing.
6. Remove from the heat and stir in the feta. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with a lid and set aside.
7. Add the remaining butter to the risotto and stir. Spoon into deep plates sprinkle with the minted olive oil. Top with the runner beans and parmesan and serve immediately.

Sizzled Lamb Chops

A delicious and quick lamb dish for two persons.

What you need

• 1/2 kg 2 cm-thick lamb chops (about 1 pounds), fat parts roughly trimmed
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• Pinch of dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 5 small garlic cloves, halved
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoons minced parsley
• Pinch of crushed red pepper
  

How to prepare it

1. Season the lamb with salt and pepper and sprinkle lightly with thyme. 
2. Heat the olive oil in a large pan until hot. 
3. Add the lamb chops and garlic and cook over moderately high heat until the chops are browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes. 
4. Turn the chops and garlic and cook until the chops are browned, about 2 minutes longer for medium meat. 
5. Transfer the chops to plates, leaving the garlic in the pan.
6. Add the water, lemon juice, parsley and crushed red pepper to the pan and cook, deglaze the pan, until sizzling for about 1 minute. 
7. Pour the garlic and pan sauce over the lamb chops.
8. Serve immediately.

Chicken cabbage rolls

This is a great snack for a picknick.

What you need:

• 1 chinese cabbage
  
• 500 gr chicken breast
• 2 eggs
• 2 leaves of kaffir lime leaves
• 2 red chillies
• 2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
• 100 gr peanuts
• 2 dried chinese wood ear mushrooms - sliced (optional)

How to prepare it:

1. Soak the cabbage leaves for 2 minutes in boiling hot water and rince them with cold water immediately.
2. Soak the wood ear mushrooms for 20 minutes in cold water.
3. Cut the chicken breasts in small pieces and grind them in a kitchen machine.
4. Cut the lime leaves very fine and add to the chicken.
5. Cut the red chillis in rings and add to the chicken
6. Add the eggs, fish sauce and peanuts and mix in the kitchen machine.
7. Put some foil on the table and put a blanched leave of the cabbage on the foil. Add some chicken on one side of the cabbage leave, add the wood ear mushrooms and roll the foil. Repeat untill the mixture is finished.
8. Take a ricestreamer with boiling hot water and add the rolls on the tray. Steaam the rolls for about 30 minutes.
9. Take the rolls from the pan and leave to cool down.
10. Release the rolls from the foil and cut in 2 cm pieces.
11. Fry them on a hot grill plate or on the barbecue for about 3 minutes.
12. Serve with sweet chilli sauce: ENJOY!

Jamaican stewed veal kidney

This is great Jamaican style cooking - a real treat. You have to use a hot pepper like the sweet tasting scotch bonnet. The hot taste will desolve by stewing a while, but the outstanding taste of the pepper will remain.

Kidney meat is not that popular in most parts of the western world, but it is rich in nutrients and proteins, it  contains omega 3 fatty acids. The meat is also known to contain anti-inflammatory properties and to be good for the heart.

What you need

• 1 veal kidney
• 1,5 medium onion (roughly chopped)
• few small carrots (roughly chopped)
• 1 tomato (roughly chopped)
• 1/2 scotch bonnet (chopped)
• 1/2 sweet pepper (chopped)
• thumbsize ginger (grated) 
• 1/4 tbsp majoran
• 1/4 tbsp thyme 
• 1 tbsp basil
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp pimento seeds
• 2 tbsp vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 50 gr butter
• 2 cups of water
• 1 tbsp salt 
• 1 tbsp parsley
• 1/4 cup ketchup

How to prepare it

1. For the kidney: remove the fat, cut in bitesize pieces and rinse with cold water.
2. Mix in the marinade for all ingredients except for olive oil, butter, water, salt parsley and ketchup.
3. Cover with foil and pu in the refrigerator.
4. After about one or two hours take out the kidneys and leave the marinade apart.
5. Heat the butter and olive oil and fry the kidneys in batches for a few minutes. Just to close the skin of the kidneys.
6. Take out the kindneys and fry the marinade, just translucent. Then add the kidneys again.
7. Add the water until the kidneys are just under water.
8. Add the parsly and salt.
9. Cover with a lit for 20 minutes and after you remove the lid, the cook until the sauce has thickened. If necessairy you can add a bit of flour to bind (just a teaspoon or so).
10. In the last few minutes add the ketchup and mix well.
11. We served it with mashed pototoes.

Vellutata di zucchini e patate

Who told you this soup can only be prepared in winter? I will give you this recipe for a light and delicious zucchini that we eat in summer. To add it to the end of the Parmesan cheese makes it even more delicious.

What you need

• 5 medium zucchini (roughly sliced)
• 3 small potatoes (halved or quartered)
• 1/4 white onion (roughly sliced)
• 1 tbsp soup herbmix (like Vegeta)
• 500 ml of water 
• 100 ml of cream
• Grated old cheese or emmenthaler
• Grated Parmesan cheese
• Black pepper to taste
  

How to prepare it

1. Heat a large pan with water (just to cover the vegetables).
2. Add the courgettes cut into pieces, the potatoes peeled and cut into pieces, the Vegeta herb mix  and the quarter of white onion cut.  
3. Cover and cook over low heat for about 40 minutes.  
4. Add the cream and old cheese.  
5. Use the blender to create a cream. 
6. If too dense, add little water until you reach the most liked texture.  
7. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, add the black pepper.
8. Serve hot.

Toast with stewed octopus

 What you need:

• 1/2 kg octopus, cleaned
• 1 lemon, zest and juice only
• 2 garlic cloves, bashed
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1/2 dried red chilli pepper
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, thickly sliced
• 1 or 2 bay leaves
• 180ml red wine
• 3 ripe tomatoes, cut in cubes
• 2 tbsp good quality tomato puree
• 3 tbsp fresh flatleaf parsley, chopped
• bread to serve

How to prepare it:

1. Clean the octopus and bash it with a meat hammer, to tenderise the octopus.
2. Rinse well under cold water and pat dry. 
3. Cook a pan of water and drop the (parts) of the the ocopus in for 10 seconds. Repeat 3 or 4 times. Let it cool down a bit.
4. Cut the meat in 4-5cm pieces and place the octopus into a freezer bag with the lemon zest, juice, garlic and thyme and mix until well combined. Chill in the fridge to marinate for one hour.
5. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan, add the onions, red chilli and fry for five minutes, or until softened.
6. Stir in the marinated octopus and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the bay leaves and red wine. Bring to the boil and cook until the volume of wine has reduced by half.
7. Add the tomatoes, tomatoe puree and return to a simmer, then cook gently for 1-1½ hours. The ocotpus is finished when very tender. 
8. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. 
9. Stir in the parsley.