Pea pancakes

I’ve realized that I’ve been craving vegetables more and more each day, instead of meat: the more I eat vegetables, the more I want to eat them, in all sorts of ways – every time I see a great vegetarian recipe around I want to try it immediately.

(That said, I’ll cook Jamie Oliver’s roast beef tomorrow for lunch. :D My husband saw a bit of the show days ago while I was watching it and has been craving that dish ever since, with all the trimmings, including the Yorkshire puddings – I have made Jamie’s yorkies and they’re oh, so good).

Back to the vegetables, I saw these pea pancakes on Valli Little’s stunning cookbook and right away thought that they would be great for a snack – I had everything in my fridge and pantry to make them, and on top of it all it would take me moments to put them together, even making the ricotta from scratch, which is super easy and I highly recommend you try – I doubt you’ll ever buy ricotta again.

The pancakes turned out delicious, light and fluffy, and I ate them with sweet chili sauce, as per the author’s suggestion – she also suggests the pancakes to be served with bacon, but even though I’m crazy about it I don’t think it was necessary here.

Pea pancakes
slightly adapted from the über beautiful Delicious. Love to Cook

120g frozen peas
2 eggs
200g fresh ricotta – I highly recommend using homemade
¼ cup finely grated parmesan
1 teaspoon olive oil + more for frying the pancakes
¼ cup (45g) all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 spring onions, white part only, finely chopped

Cook the peas in boiling salted water for 5 minutes, drain and refresh under cold water. Drain well and set aside.
Place eggs, parmesan, ricotta, 1 teaspoon olive oil, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Stir in the peas and spring onions, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat ½ tablespoon of olive oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Scoop two tablespoons of mixture per pancakes and place onto the pan, pressing each to 1cm (½ in) thickness. Cook for 3 minutes each side or until golden.
Serve immediately.

Makes 6

Sticky chicken wings and comfort zones

I admire people who step out of their comfort zone: it’s not an easy thing to do, not everyone’s ready for it, so kudos to those who do it. But at the same time I wonder that if you’re doing something really well, why not l keep doing it?

Life is about balance, I suppose.

That came to mind when I saw the poster for Cronenberg’s Maps to the Stars – there he is again, working with Robert Pattinson (the guy who made it impossible for me to watch more than 30 minutes of Cosmopolis). Oh, David, enough already – it’s fine to change things every now and then, I admire you for that, but cut the crap and go back to working with Viggo, please. Go back to that talented comfort zone, I beg of you.

When I want something good for lunch and don’t have time to search around I stay in my foodie comfort zone and turn to the usual suspects: Nigella, Martha, Jamie – they rarely disappoint. Bill Granger is part of that list, too, with his always easy and delicious recipes, like these chicken wings that are dead simple to make and will have you licking your fingers as you eat them.

Sticky chicken wings
slightly adapted from the delicious Holiday

4 ½ tablespoons mirin
4 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
3 teaspoons granulated or caster sugar
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
juice of 1 lime
freshly ground black pepper
16 chicken wings, tips removed and halved at the joints
thinly sliced spring onions, to serve

Combine mirin, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, ginger, cumin, lime juice and black pepper in a shallow, non-metallic dish. Coat the chicken pieces with the marinade, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or up to overnight).

Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a large baking sheet with a double layer of foil and brush the foil lightly with canola oil. Lift the chicken pieces from the marinade and place them onto the prepared sheet, without overlapping. Roast for 30 minutes, turning once.
Meanwhile, pour the marinade into a small saucepan and simmer until reduced by half. Pour it over the chicken and roast for 10-15 minutes longer or until chicken is sticky and deep golden brown. Sprinkle with the spring onions and serve at once.

Serves 4

Chicken teriyaki

I’ve been cooking for as long as I can remember and in certain periods of my life I did not have much time to spend in the kitchen – I needed delicious yet quick meals for weeknights.
On my days as a single lady I used to make lots of pasta – both my dad and my sister are crazy for it and dinner would be on the table in less than half an hour.

Recently I’ve been trying my hand at Asian recipes and some of them are absolutely delicious – and equally fast. This chicken teriyaki is a great example: it has instantly become a favorite of my husband’s – a.k.a. "the picky eater" – and it took me moments to put it together.

Let me tell you something: if my husband liked it, picky people everywhere will probably like it, too. :D

Chicken teriyaki
slightly adapted from the wonderful Nigella Kitchen

2 tablespoons sake
¼ cup mirin (sweet Japanese Rice wine)
¼ cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
4 spring onions, white part only, sliced
splash of sesame oil
800g (1¾ pounds) chicken thigh fillets (no skin or bones), cut into bite-sized pieces
½ tablespoon neutral vegetable oil
freshly ground black pepper
handful of parsley leaves, chopped
rice, to serve

In a bowl large enough to hold all the chicken pieces, mix together the sake, mirin, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, spring onions and sesame oil. Add the chicken pieces and turn to coat each one of them in the sauce. Leave for 15-20 minutes.
Heat the oil in a large, shallow frying pan (with a lid) and, using a perforated spoon, transfer the chicken pieces to the pan and sauté until they look cooked on the outside.
Pour the marinade over the chicken, bring to a boil, then cover and turn down the heat, cooking for 5-10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thick.
Stir in with freshly ground black pepper and the parsley. Serve immediately with rice.

Serves 4-6 – I halved the recipe above and Joao and I ate every little bit of it. :)

Soba noodles with sesame seeds - a super quick meal

This is such an easy dish and it tastes so great that I had to share it with you – perfect for those nights when all you need is a shower, a quick dinner, your couch and Detective Stabler, I mean, Law&Order SVU on TV. :)

Soba noodles with sesame seeds
from Nigella Fresh

75g sesame seeds
salt
250g soba noodles
2 teaspoons rice vinegar (mirin)
5 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons sesame oil
5 spring onions

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over high heat until they look golden brown; transfer to a bowl.
Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add some salt. Put in the soba noodles and cook them for about 6 minutes (or according to packet instructions) until they are tender but not mushy. Drain then refresh under cold water to stop them from cooking any further.
In the bowl you are going to serve them in, mix the vinegar, soy sauce, honey and oil. Then finely slice the spring onions and put them into the bowl with the cooled, drained noodles and mix together thoroughly before adding the sesame seeds and tossing again.

Serves 2