Pan Fried Sea Bass with a Chive, Lemon & Paprika Dressing. Served with Garlic, Chive and Sour Cream Baked Potato Balls, and a Chorizo & Tomato-White Wine Sauce.

So, I’m literally down to one post a month…*hangs head in shame*. I promise to deliver more exciting recipes on a more consistent basis, but I never once anticipated how much time, effort and commitment it would take to keep up with my fellow food bloggers with regular weekly posts. Anyway, this week I’m back with a new dish totally inspired by a recipe that appeared on my Facebook news feed – fish and chorizo. What an odd combination I thought, much like the weirdos who think it’s totally acceptable to eat carbs on top of carbs, i.e Lasangne and chips (fries), or even worse, shepherd’s pie and chips. Just no people!

Despite the oddity of the dish, I was excited to try something new. A firm lover of both chorizo and fish I knew only great things were destined to come. I sat at my desk, opened up my note pad and started brainstorming different ideas. Within a few minutes I had concocted this wonderful dish; Pan Fried Sea bass with a Chive, Lemon &  Paprika Dressing. Garlic, Chive and Sour Cream Baked Potato Balls, and a Chorizo & Tomato-White Wine Sauce.

This dish has a real Spanish feel to it and is really easy to prepare. With many layers, each offering robust, mouthwatering flavours, it’s a real contender for any plate of food served at a five star Michelin Restaurant 😉

Ingredients

180g Fresh Sea Bass Fillet
60g Chorizo
3 Medium Sized Potatoes (chopped)
125g Baby Plum Tomatoes (chopped)
1/2 Large Onion (finely chopped)
3 Garlic Cloves (crushed)
1 Lemon (freshly squeezed Juice)
2 Small Handfuls of Chive (finely chopped)
1 Large Tablespoon of Sour Cream
100g Tenderstem Broccoli
1 Teaspoon Paprika
1 Teaspoon Oregano
1 Teaspoon Chilli, Garlic & Pepper Seasoning
100ml Olive Oil
Salt
Crushed Black Pepper
1 Small Glass of Pinto Grigio

Method/Instructions

Garlic, Sour Cream and Chive Baked Potato Balls:

1. In a large pot, cover potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil, then lower heat to maintain a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender. Drain and either return to the same pan, or place in a large bowl for combining with other ingredients.

2. While the potatoes are still hot, add 2 crushed garlic cloves, a small handful of finely chopped chives, a large spoon of sour cream and mix until thoroughly combined.  Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

3. Using your hands, roll mixture into 2-inch balls and place onto an oven tray. Make sure the tray is lightly covered in a olive oil, this will help the balls crisp up on the outside.

4.You can leave these to set in the fridge for a few hours until they’re ready to be baked, or, you can cook them straight away. Bake in the oven at 200c for 35 minutes until golden brown. They should have a crispy exterior and inside, smooth and creamy.

Chorizo, Onion, Tomato and White Wine Sauce:

1. Finely chop the onions and chorizo into half inch pieces. Heat 100ml of olive oil in a pan and sweat the onions together with the chorizo until golden, then add the tomatoes. Cook for a further 3 minutes before adding 1 crushed garlic, a teaspoon of oregano, and chilli, garlic & pepper seasoning. Next, add the white wine and bring to a low simmer for 20 minutes.

Pan Fried Sea Bass with a Chive, Lemon and Paprika Dressing:

 1. To make the dressing, squeeze the juice from one lemon, add a small handful of finely chopped chives and a teaspoon of paprika.
2. Season the fillets with salt, black, pepper and paprika, (both sides) and dust lightly with flour.

 

3. Lightly coat the base of a non-stick frying pan with olive oil then place the pan over a medium-high heat.

4. Once the oil is hot, place fillets in the pan skin-side down. Using a spatula, press down on the fillets to prevent curling and to ensure even cooking of the skin.

5. Cook for 3–4 minutes until the skin is nicely golden and crisp then carefully turn the fillets over to cook for 2- 3 minutes. 30 seconds before you remove the fillets from the pan, pour the lemon & chive dressing over the fillets and then serve.

And don’t forget to garnish with some broccoli, I literally blanched these for 3 minutes – I like my greens to have a bit of a crunch, it also adds a nice bit of colour.

  Bon appétit!

Deliciously Decadent : White Chocolate Sponge Cake with a Cream & White Chocolate Ganache Topped with Crushed Almonds, Walnuts & Pecans!

I’m certainly no Mary Berry or Martha Stewart when it comes to baking, but there is something I find so wonderfully gratifying about mixing eggs, flour, butter and sugar in a bowl and knowing in a mere 60 minutes I will have myself a classic sponge. I’ve slowly learnt that baking the perfect cake takes patience, precision, and practice, LOTS of practice. I’ll be totally honest, I’ve had my fair share of baking disasters, and boy when it goes wrong it goes hideously wrong. From sunken middles, to burnt tops, to soggy bottoms to explosions in the oven, to evacuating the entire home, I was utterly relentless in trying to become the “Great British Bakeoff”….or something to that effect 😉

If you’re a white chocolate fan then you will absolutely fall in love with this cake. It’s seriously chocolatey, extremely moist and every mouthful almost melts in your mouth. The rich, silky-smooth ganache and crunchy toppings of walnuts, peacans and almonds makes this cake an almighty winner.

Ingredients

150g white chocolate (I used Nestle Milky Bar)
100g butter
125ml (1/2) milk
165g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
2 teaspoons (10ml) vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
50g (1/3 cup) self-raising flour
75g (1/2 cup) plain flour

 Cream & White Chocolate Ganache
100g white chocolate
44g single cream
Small handful of walnuts, almonds and pecans (crushed)

Method/Instructions

1. Pre heat oven to 140 degrees (160 if non-fan assisted)
2. Grease cake tin and line base and sides with baking paper
3. Bring about an inch of water to a simmer in a saucepan. Set a heatproof bowl in the mouth of the pot
4. Place chocolate, butter, milk and sugar into the large heatproof bowl over low heat, stirring frequently

5. Remove from heat when chocolate and butter have melted, and stir mixture until completely smooth. Allow mixture to cool at room temperature for 15 minutes.
6.  Next, add vanilla and eggs to chocolate mixture and stir until well combined

7. In a separate bowl mix together the two flours. Slowly pour chocolate mixture into the flour and stir until smooth (no lumps).

8. Pour mixture into prepared cake tin and bake for about 1 hour 20 minutes. When ready, stick a knife into the centre of the cake, once removed it should be clean without any batter attached. If not, further baking may be required. Leave cake to cool for half an hour at room temperature before adding the ganache.

Cream and White Chocolate Ganache

Melt white chocolate in a pan over a very low heat, stirring frequently. When the chocolate has completely melted, remove from heat and quickly stir in single cream. If the ganache is quite runny, set it aside at room temperature to thicken slightly before using.

Remove cake from tin and place on a plate. Spread the ganache on the top and sides of the cake until it is completely covered.  Next, add your crushed nuts covering  the top and sides of cake (this part does get very messy)

 Leave in the fridge for a couple of hours so the ganache has time to set. Store cake in an airtight container in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.

Enjoy this bad boy with strongly brewed cup of tea 🙂

It’s A Brunch Kinda Thing: Spicy Garlic Salmon with Chilli Spiced Asparagus and Poached Egg

As odd as it may sound I have always found something slightly pretentious about asparagus. When I was younger I  referred to them as “Posh Green Old Lady Fingers”. I envisioned middle aged women, wearing body-skimming, sleeveless black dresses with white opera gloves accessorised with big hats, Louis Vuitton sunglasses, chain smoking long cigarettes. They’d be sipping Earl Grey tea, munching on asparagus whilst gossiping about their neighbours delinquent teenager and discussing grown up things like taxes and duck confit. Sounds likes really bad Audrey Heburn movie, but hey, you could say I had a vivid imagination.

The first time I cooked Asparagus I was a student living in halls, in a tightly confined shared kitchen surrounded by empty Domino’s pizza boxes and half drunken bottles of Sainbury’s Basic Rose – delightful! I had no idea what I was doing with these odd looking green things and I ended up blanching them until they were anaemic, limp and slightly diseased looking. Sadly, there was nothing refined or “chichi” about my asparagus and it tasted absolutely vile.

Luckily, I’ve mastered the art of serving up some pretty decent “Posh Green Old Lady Fingers” and the best way is to gently season; garlic and chilli, add a drizzle of olive oil, roast or stir fry and finish off with a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve with my spicy garlic salmon and the quintessential poached egg 🙂

Ingredients

x2 Salmon Fillets
x1 Egg
x1 Bundle of Asparagus (6 or 7)
x4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
x2 Teaspoons Thyme
x2 Teaspoons Garlic Pepper & Chilli Seasoning
x3 Teaspoons of Crushed Garlic (dried)
x2 Teaspoons Black
x1 Teaspoon Salt
x2 Teaspoons Garlic Paste
x1 Teaspoon Dried Crushed Chilli

Method/Instructions

Salmon:

1. Heat oven to 180 degrees
2. Mix together in bowl/plate soy sauce, thyme, chilli and garlic pepper seasoning, dried garlic, salt & black pepper.
3. Add salmon fillets to the marinade and leave for half an hour

4. Heat olive oil in a non stick pan (medium heat), place the salmon skin-side up and cook until golden brown on 1 side for about 4 minutes. Turn the fish over and cook until it feels firm to the touch and the skin is crisp

5. Arrange fillets on a baking tray and spoon some of the mixture over each piece, cook for a further 8 minutes in the oven. Once cooked, your salmon should be a beautiful, crisp, golden brown colour

Preparing the Asparagus 
1. Trim the ends of the asparagus
2. Heat olive oil, garlic paste and dried chilli in a non-stick wok

3. Add asparagus and continue to cook until it begins to soften and colour (3-4 minutes)
4. Season with salt and pepper; toss until well mixed.

Poached Egg

(OK, so it took me 3 attempts to get this right, however, there is a trick to poaching the perfect egg)

1. Simmer water on steady heat
2. Crack eggs individually into a ramekin or cup
3. Create a gentle whirlpool in the water to help the egg white wrap around the yolk.
4. Slowly tip the egg into the water, white first. Leave to cook for three minutes,
5. Remove from pan and drain on a tea towel. Season with salt & black pepper.

Time to serve:

Place the asparagus on a serving plate, add salmon and top with poached egg. Drizzle on some olive oil and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

And there you have it, Spicy Garlic Salmon with Chilli Spice Asparagus and Poached Egg. It’s light, fresh and whatever your mood, it makes for a perfect brunch/dinner.

Enjoy 🙂