Cheeky Cherry Fizz

A great glass of fizz for a party, girls night in or pre dinner drink.

25ml Kirsch
25ml Cherry Juice
125ml Prosecco
Cherry to garnish

Pour measured Kirsch and Cherry juice into chilled champagne or cocktail glass of your choice.  Top up with Prosecco and garnish with Cherry to serve.

Creamy Polenta

A very different but tasty accompaniment to a main meal.  I served mine 'wet' with a seared rib eye steak however, it would be just as tasty with  a slow cooked ragu or 'hard' with some chicken and a salsa or sauce.  The herbs are optional but I think give real extra flavour.

Serves 4 - 6 (dependent on how hungry the bellies are!)

2 litres of Stock (Chicken or Vegetable)
250g Polenta (coarse Cornmeal)
50 ml Single Cream
50g Butter
2 tbsp chopped Herbs e.g. Oregano, Basil and Thyme
50g grated Pecorino (Parmesan or Grana Padano are also suitable)
Maldon Salt to taste
Cracked Black Pepper to taste

Bring the stock to a gentle boil in a saucepan, slowly pour the Polenta in a steady stream into the stock constantly whisking to ensure there are no lumps.
Once the Polenta starts to thicken reduce the heat so that it is 'gently blipping' for approximately 20 minutes ensuring a whisk every 5 minutes to keep lumps from forming.  Add additional stock should the mixture become to thick.
Just before serving beat in the Cream, Butter, Cheese and Herbs (if using) and season to taste.
Pour into a serving dish or individuals plates to serve 'wet'.  In addition this can be poured into a shallow pan or tin and allowed to cool.  Once set the Polenta can be cut into fingers or wedges and gently fried in olive oil until crispy and golden.

'Cincinnati Style' Chili

A tasty and different take on a chili - a pleasant change from the usual 'TeX-Mex' variations. Loosely based on Greek - American Immigrant ingredients. This should not look like a 'thick' chili, the texture should resemble a stew or soup.

Recipe serves 8 (half for smaller portions or just freeze for later!)

1kg Minced Beef
2 Onions, finely diced
8 Cloves Garlic, finely sliced/crushed
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tbsp Salted Butter
1 tin Plum Tomatoes, crushed
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp Nutmeg
2 tsp Paprika
2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
2 tsp Thyme
2 tsp Chili Powder or 4 small dried Red Chilies
Beef Stock Cube
Water

Heat oil and butter together in a casserole pot until combined and gently saute the onions and garlic until soft and golden. Add water to half way up pot and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.
Add mince ensuring that you separate the strands before putting in pot. Allow to simmer for an hour.
Crush tomatoes and add to pot with all the herbs and spices. Crumble in stock cube and fill pan 3/4 with water and allow to simmer for 2/3 hours depending on desired thickness.

Seasoned Chicken and Pork

This is loosely based on a Filipino adobo dish and makes a great meal served over steamed white rice, preferably Basmati and Pak Choi.

1 Chicken Breast, cubed
1 Pork Shoulder Steak, cubed
1 Red Chilli, finely sliced
4 Cloves Garlic, crushed
4 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Sesame Oil
2 tbsp Vinegar
2 tbsp Honey

Marinade the cubed chicken and pork in the remaining ingredients overnight, then remove the meat from the marinade and fry until golden. Pour the marinade back into the pan with half a pint water and simmer until the sauce is reduced and the meat is tender.

Boozy Brownies

These Brownies have always been very popular amongst my friends, great for a party buffet style and also great for a dinner party served with some crème fraiche or even vanilla ice cream. Be aware that dependant on your oven, you may need to adjust the cooking time accordingly. I don't tend to worry about whether the butter used is salted or unsalted, salt has a natural tendency to bring out the natural flavouring in chocolate and I've made this recipe with both varieties and the outcome is not affected.

4 Eggs
150g Butter
300g Caster Sugar
1 tablespoon Golden Syrup
70g Plain Flour, sifted
80g Cocoa Powder, sifted
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
200g Dark Chocolate(Min 70% Cocoa), broken
50ml Southern Comfort

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius. In a pan on a low heat (this must be low otherwise you will burn ingredients), melt chocolate, butter and golden syrup together. Once melted add sugar and southern comfort and gently mix until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is smooth, remove from heat. In a bowl sift the flour, baking and cocoa powders together. Pour the chocolate mixture into the dry ingredients and loosely combine, then beat in eggs until you have a batter consistency. Pour into a brownie pan / sandwich tin, if you use a silicon one you will not need to grease! Bake in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes (again as stated earlier adjust if necessary according to your oven). Allow to cool and cut into 16 squares.

Chicken Pilaf

A great quick one pot dish, measurements are approximate as I use the 'eyeball' method! You can replace the Chicken with Quorn pieces for a vegetarian version.

4 Chicken Breasts

Few lugs Olive Oil

1 tsp Paprika

1 tsp Garlic Granules

1 tsp Oregano

1 tsp ground Black Pepper

1 small dried Chilli, crumbled

2 cloves Garlic, grated

300g Basmati Rice

1/2 can Kidney Beans

1 cup frozen sliced Mixed Peppers

1 cup Sweetcorn

Chicken / Vegetable stock, to cover

Salt, to season

Slice the breasts into small pieces and coat with all herbs and spices. Drizzle on oil and rub to combine, marinade overnight. In a skillet/ non stick pan, saute chicken mix and once coloured add grated garlic. Add beans, peppers and sweetcorn and cook for a few minutes. Tip in rice and add stock so it is just covering the ingredients. Cover with foil and replace lid, turn heat to lowest setting and steam until liquid absorbed (around 15/20 minutes). Do not be tempted to mix about as this will cause dish to go sticky!

Pretty simple but very flavourful. This should serve approximately 4 people.

Tasty Spiced Chicken

Here is a tasty chicken recipe which always goes down well with my friends. The trick is to get your butcher to portion the bird for you saving you lots of time and worry. Ensure that it has at least 18 hours in the marinade - preferrably 24. This is nice served with some steamed basmati rice and some roasted sweet potato and carrots or steamed cabbage and carrots.

You will need:

1 chicken cut into 10 pieces (wing, leg, thigh, breasts halved)

1 bulb garlic (cloves peeled)

1 scotch bonnet chilli

4 spring onions trimmed

Handful thyme leaves

1 tbsp all purpose seasoning

1 tsp groung black pepper

Pinch nutmeg

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Few lugs oil (olive or groundnut)

Place all the items except for the chicken in a blender and blitz until a smooth paste. Pour this over the chicken and massage into the meat. Cover and marinade in fridge. Place in an oven-proof dish and bake at 160 degrees centigrade for 4-6 hours, pouring in a cup of water half way through to loosen gravy. The chicken should be tender and juicy and falling off the bone.