Easiest Chix Pie

Ingredients
olive oil
1 tbsp butter
2 chicken breasts, cut into 1/2in slices
6 oz button mushrooms
1 1/4 cup chicken stock
2 celery stalks, sliced
1 heaped tbsp flour
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp creme fraiche
salt and pepper
puff pastry
1 egg

To make...

Preheat oven to 400F.

In a large saucepan heat olive oil and butter. Add chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Next add flour, sliced mushrooms and celery and stir to combine. Add mustard, creme fraiche and season with salt and pepper. Poor in chicken stock and stir everything together. Continue to simmer over medium heat till it begins to thicken.

Roll out puff pastry on a lightly floured surface making sure it is slightly bigger than the baking pan you are using.

Poor pie filling into baking pan then top with puff pastry folding in the edges (rustic looking). Brush the top of the pie with a beaten egg.

Bake pie in oven for about 15 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden.

Serve with some traditional British peas and carrots. :)

Caramel Mud Cake

Ingredients

250g unsalted butter, chopped
200g white chocolate, chopped
2 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs, beaten lightly
2 cups flour
2/3 cup self raising flour
Frosting...
125g butter, chopped
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 1/2 cups sifted icing sugar, maybe more


To make...
Preheat oven to 300F. Grease and line the base and side of a round cake pan. 
Combine the butter, chocolate, sugar, and water in a medium saucepan, whisk over low heat until the chocolate is melted and the sugar is dissolved. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and cool for 15 minutes.
Whisk in vanilla and eggs, then combine sifted flours. Pour mixture into cake pan and bake in oven for about 2 hours. Cover cake loosely with foil if its over browning. 
Cool the cake in the pan covered with a clean tea towel.
To make frosting...
Melt the butter in a small ban, stir in the brown sugar and milk then bring to a boil.  Cook, stirring for about 3 minutes, cool completely. Stir in enough sifted icing sugar to give a smooth spreading consistency. Spread completely cooled cake with caramel frosting. 

Gnocchi in Tomato Sauce with Mozzarella and Basil

Ingredients
2lbs of potato
1 cup of flour
2 eggs
1 can of plum tomatoes
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
basil leaves
1/2 cup buffalo mozzarella, cubed
salt and pepper
olive oil
1/2 onion finely chopped
garlic clove, minced


To make gnocchi...


Bring a pot of water to a boil and add potatoes. Cover and cook until potatoes can easily be pierced with a fork. Drain potatoes into a colander and toss to allow the skin to begin to flake off and the potatoes to quickly steam dry. Using a kitchen towel rub the potatoes to peal off any of the remaining skin. Pass the potatoes through a food mill and into a large bowl. Add flour, eggs, and salt and gently fold together with a rubber spatuala. Don't over work or you will end up with tough gnocchi.

Role out the dough into a long snake, using a knife cut the dough into equal sized pieces. Place the gnocchi on a large floured baking sheet. Once you have made all your gnocchi use the back of a fork to role the pieces on to create the famous ridges.

Cook your gnocchi in a large pot of salted simmering water just until they float to the surface about 2 minutes. Its quick!

To make sauce....


Chop of the onion and garlic really fine. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan then add the onion and garlic and cook till fragrant. Add tomatoes and break up with your wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper and add a dash of balsamic vinegar. Add a tbsp of chopped basil and allow the sauce to slowly simmer while you finish cooking your gnocchi. Once the gnocchi is cooked use a spider to fish them out of the water and add them to your tomato sauce. Add the cubes of mozzarella and sprinkle over some extra basil.

Serve Gnocchi with some freshly grated parmesan cheese. :)

Triple Chocolate Semifreddo

Ingredients
2450 g dark chocolate
3 eggs
1 egg yolk, extra
1/2 cup of sugar
1 3/4 cup of cream
1/2 cup milk chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup white chocolate, chopped
1 cup of crushed chocolate chip cookies

To make...
Place the dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until melted and smooth, set aside.
Place the eggs, extra yolk, and sugar in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk for 5 minutes or until the mixture is thick and pale. Remove form the heat and beat with an electric mixer for 5 minutes or until cool. Fold through the melted dark chocolate and set aside.
Place the cream in a bowl of an electric mixer and beat until soft peaks form. Fold the egg and chocolate mixture and the white and milk chocolate chunks through the cream. Pour the mixture into a cake tin that has been lined with plastic wrap. Then sprinkle over the crushed chocolate chip cookies in an even layer. Cover and freeze for 4-6 hours or until firm.
To serve invert cake tin onto a plate or cake stand and remove plastic wrap. Cut pieces of semifreddo like a cake and enjoy! :)

Spinach Rissoto

Ingredients
basic risotto recipe
2 tbsp butter
olive oil
nutmeg, for grating
6 oz spinach
salt and pepper
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
4 oz ricotta
1/2 lemon


To make...
First make your basic risotto recipe, then heat a saucepan until medium hot, add a tablespoon of the butter and a splash of olive oil and a good grating of nutmeg. When the butter has melted ass the spinach, cook until wilted about 5 minutes. Whiz the cooked spinach in a food processor or with a bar mix to chop finely, and season with salt and pepper to taste.


Meanwhile preheat oven to 350F. Spread the ricotta on a small baking pan, rub with extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in oven for 10 minutes until golden brown.


Add the chopped spinach to your risotto base adding extra stock one ladleful at a time until the rice has cooked. Rice should be soft, creamy, and oozy. 


Turn of the heat and beat in the rest of the butter and the parmesan, then stir in the baked ricotta. Add a good squeeze of lemon juice, then check the seasoning and add some salt and pepper if needed.