24 November, 2006
· Filed under Food & Recipes, Reviews
In 2005, I had some colourful moments at smoothie making back at the “hob”. In late 2006, the smoothie returns (but to London) and is powered with all new technology… introducing the “Multiquick MR 4000″ by Braun (a hand blender, £15). Having striking similarities to an electric toothbrush, this baby is a welcome addition to our kitchen weaponry.
EAT
No doubt, smoothies are a healthily and fun way to enjoy fruit. Let your creative imagination (with fruit) run wild!
Some of my favourite smoothies include a handful of mixed berries (frozen) and feijoa (unheard of in London). The standard base (for a 250mL serving) is 1/2 banana, 1 apple or pear and 50mL of boxed juice. Tonight’s smoothie was orange, mango and passionfruit. Mmmm chunky!
PS: in case your thinking all I’ve done is in the past week or so is eat – then your not far from the truth. Gotta get plump for winter; is the Heathrow injection finally settling in?
21 November, 2006
· Filed under Food & Recipes
Okay, claiming my pasta is “amazing” is just hype, but I’m trying my best. Historically, I don’t do pasta. So, a few weeks back, I thought it would be in my best interest to do a few past dishes. In fact, I did the same recipe two days in a row. Coupled with the standard “spag bowl”, I’m pretty much over my pasta fetish for now.
I’ll share with you what I built for dinner during that week (yes, I cook, but in a manly way). The recipe was adopted from my sister’s cookbook, featuring some drastic improvements/mods.
Courgette Sauce with Lemon and Rosemary
+ Asparagus, Bacon, Herb & Pork Sausage, Thyme
- Servings: 2-3
- Total time: 35 minutes, if you’re good with the tools
Core method:
- Cook 2 cups of pasta in a pot, adding salt and a dash of olive oil – drain and rinse
- Cook four strips of bacon and two chopped sausages (thin variety) in a pan, remove from heat and set aside
- In the same pan on a medium heat, using olive oil, fry 1 onion with 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- Add rosemary, thyme, pepper and the chopped rind of 1 lemon to the pan, cook for 5 minutes
- Add 1 medium courgette and 5 stalks of asparagus (chopped in thin strips 3cm long), cook for 7 minutes
- Add the bacon and sausage back into the pan, mix and heat well
- Serve the contents of the pan upon the pasta and fold together
- Garnish with cracked pepper and parmegano, or a hard cheese of your choice
Extension:
- If you like your pasta saucy, then add 3/2 cups of water, 1/4 cup milk and 3 tablespoons of flour to a bowl and mix well (I also added a dash of lemon juice, lol)
- Add the mixture to the pan after step 6 of the core method – cook on a medium heat for a few minutes
- Stir in extra water to adjust the consistency to your liking
Okay, it’s hard to judge my own cooking, since I know I have to eat it anyway. Plus I’m not awfully fussy after a hard gym session (althought I can detect a bad dim sum). Overall, the pasta turned out well – with no hassles or wasted food. Try if you dare… or not. I’m still alive :)
21 November, 2006
· Filed under London, The Real World
Today I saw a big macho muscly dude air drying his feet with a hair dryer. Yeah hmmm.
