Focaccia

I am absolutely loving Lorraine Pascale's new series "Baking Made Easy" and have put her book on my Amazon wish list with massive hints being dropped that it would make a lovely Valentines or Mother's Day Gift. Hint Hint Hubby & Darling Children !

I couldn't wait for the book and have been inspired to make this gorgeous and so ridiculously simple focaccia bread as Lorraine says, it is great for sharing, and made even better with the use of a really fine extra virgin olive oil. This is delicious served warm as a starter or indeed as a meal in itself with fresh tomatoes, artichokes and cold meats. We had ours dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, just as a snack, whilst it was still lovely and warm.

I will definitely be making this on a regular basis and look forward to trying many of Lorraine's recipes.

Buon apettito

Ingredients

• 500g/1lb 2oz strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting

• 2 tsp salt

• 1 x 7g/⅛oz sachet fast-action dried yeast

• 80ml/3fl oz olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

• 150-250ml/5-9fl oz warm water

• vegetable oil or oil spray, for oiling

• 1 bunch fresh rosemary

• large pinch sea salt

Preparation

1. Dust a large flat baking tray with flour.

2. Put the flour into a large bowl, add the salt and yeast, then add the olive oil, plus enough warm water to make a soft but not sticky dough. The dough should feel quite loose and not tight and difficult to knead. If the whole amount is added it may appear that the dough is beyond repair, but gently kneading by way of scooping up the dough, scraping any sticky bits on the surface and slapping it back down again for a few minutes will see the dough begin to become ‘pillowy’ and more manageable. The more water that can be added (the full 250ml/9fl oz is great) then the lighter the bread will be. But it can take some perseverance. Also resist the temptation to add more flour as it will make the dough too heavy.

3. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes by hand on a lightly floured work surface or for five minutes if using an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. The dough will feel stretchy when pulled. To test if it is ready, make a ball with the dough then, using a well-floured finger, prod a shallow indent in the side (no more than ¾cm/¼in). If the indent disappears by way of the dough springing back then it is ready to shape. If the indent stays, knead for a few minutes longer.

4. Shape the dough into an oval and place it on the prepared baking tray. Flatten it out to about 30cm/12in long and 20cm/8in wide. Cover the dough loosely with oiled clingfilm, making sure it is airtight.

5. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.

6. Leave the dough in a warm place for about an hour, or until it has almost doubled in size. With a floured index finger press holes in the dough at regular intervals, about 4cm/1½in apart in rows across the dough, pressing right down to the bottom. Cut 3cm/1¼in sprigs of the rosemary and push them into the holes. Sprinkle some sea salt over the dough and place in the top third of the oven. Bake for about 25–30 minutes, or until the bread is well risen, pale golden-brown and feels hollow when tapped underneath.

7. Remove from the oven, drizzle with the remaining olive oil and leave to cool on the baking tray.

You can follow the method above, or you may like Lorraine to show you how it is done:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/rosemary_and_sea_salt_12392

Chocolate Gooey Stack

I went to Pudding Club last night, my first ever Pudding Club and the first time of meeting the lovely ladies there and amazingly I won! I was so chuffed and actually couldn't believe it as competition was tough. My money was on a lovely raspberry mousse cheesecake, which I really must get the recipe for.

How did all this come about I hear you ask, well all thanks to Twitter is the answer. I am a bit of a Twitter addict and I follow local people, anyone involved in food, anything that interests me and I love to Twitter what's going on and my thoughts. Over the last few weeks I have been chatting to a few ladies that live in Oxted and Limpsfield and have had great fun getting to know them via Twitter. Nancy(sparkie7) decided that January was rather boring and gloomy and decided to get us all together for Pudding Club. What more can a girl ask for, great company, wine and puddings, heaven.

Very kindly The Crown in Old Oxted (thanks to Nancy's contacts, LOL) allowed us to meet up and hold our first ever pudding club. They provided us with plates, cutlery and even a judge, there lovely Chef and Staff. It was a very busy night for them, as they were celebrating Burns Night, but they made us feel so welcome and even gave us a generous helping of Haggis, Nips & Tatties, which was lovely.

It was a lovely evening, meeting everyone was so much fun and I can't wait until the next one. Thank you ladies and the Staff at The Crown.

Buon appetito

"THE WINNING PUDDING"

FOR THE MERINGUE DISCS:

• 6 large egg whites

• 300g golden caster sugar

• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder

• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

• 3 baking sheets

FOR THE CREME PATISSIERE:

• 6 large egg yolks

• 100g golden caster sugar

• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder

• 2 tablespoons plain flour

• 300ml full-fat milk

• 300ml double cream

• 100g the best dark chocolate, melted

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 20g pistachios, chopped, I gave mine a gold dust finish with a crushed Crunchie & gold edible glitter, I love a little sparkle, what girl doesn't?

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 140ºC/gas mark 1.

2. Line the baking sheets with parchment and draw a 20cm circle on each one. The simplest way to do this is simply to find a bowl or cake tin with the desired dimensions, plonk it on and draw round it. I made mine in a circle the first time, but wanted something a little different for Pudding Club and so did squares. You can have fun, maybe hearts for Valentines and top with Raspberries.

3. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then add the sugar a spoonful at a time, beating in well after each addition. Believe me - and I speak as someone often criminally impatient - it does make life easier to go slowly here. Sprinkle over the cocoa and vinegar and then fold in gently but firmly.

4. Divide the dusky meringue between the 3 circles, spreading evenly. You don't need to worry too much about beating the air out of them as you smooth; I find they withstand a modicum of brutality. Don't you just love it when Nigella uses words like brutality to describe baking!

5. Cook for 1 hour, then turn off the oven, leaving the meringues in until cool. Often, I just make them before I go to bed and leave them in the switched-off oven overnight. It makes for less hanging about. And as long as you keep them airtight, with sheets of baking parchment in between, you can do these a good week or so in advance.

6. Now for the creme patissiere: beat the egg yolks and sugar together, then add the cocoa and flour, whisking well. Warm the milk and cream in a saucepan, then, whisking, pour this onto the eggs and sugar before pouring everything back into the saucepan on the heat and, stirring constantly, bring it to the boil. When the mixture has thickened, take it off the heat and stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla.

7. Let it cool now, but avoid putting it into the fridge as it will become too solid. You can stop it forming a skin either by covering with buttered baking parchment or greaseproof paper or by sieving a layer of icing sugar over. What I often prefer to do, however, and which cuts out more waiting around, is to plunge the saucepan into a sinkful of iced water and just keep stirring: it doesn't take long to get cold.

8. To assemble the cake, place one of the meringue discs on a flat plate (I rather like those tea-shop cake-stands, though preferably in glass), spread with a third of the chocolate cream, then carry on layering. Scatter over the chopped pistachios, which will gleam out, a tender grass-green against the dark chocolate. Then just cut in: and you'll find that it gives the illusion of a fine layering of multi-stacked, custard-bellied wafers; this is because each meringue, with its soft innards and crisp carapace, looks and tastes like three layers, not one.

Word of advice, if you want to make this in advance, you can make the meringues and keep them in an airtight container with parchment in between, but I would only do this for about a day, not a week as the recipe suggests. Make the creme patissiere on the day, leave it to cool, but don't put it together until you really have to, as it starts to dissolve the meringue, which is lovely and gives the centre that lovely mousse like texture, but over time it will become a bit soggy.

It is a little hard work and possibly one of the trickier desserts on the blog, but its a chocoholics dream.

Serves: 10-12

Ravioli Ricotta e Spinaci

You may think that cooking could never be romantic, but I can tell you that it is, Hubby and I have just spent the most lovely evening making ravioli together. Every third weekend we are very lucky to be able to lose the Children for the weekend and spend some quality time together, we believe that after 6 years together, it is what keeps our relationship fresh and fun, we don't forget who we are as a couple.

Weekends alone always include lovely food and good wine and this one is no exception. My lovely Son Olly brought me a pasta machine for my Birthday and I have been dying to try it out and the perfect recipe had to be my latest addiction to Antonio Carluccio's, ravioli ricotta e spinaci. I love Antonio Carluccio and love his restaurants and have had this meal a few times and I was really pleased to find the recipe on his website.

I must admit, I didn't expect it to turn out any where near as good as the restaurant,(especially as vast amounts of wine were consumed and Puccini was blaring out, all obviously helping to set the mood) but with a little team work with Hubby it was actually perfect. Pasta I know is time consuming to make and not something that you have time for every day, but when you have time, give it a try, its really rewarding and most of all, have fun, we did. The couple that make pasta together, stay together!!

Buon appetito

(Above photo of the legend himself, Antonio Carluccio)

Serves 4

160g 00 flour

240g Semolina

5 Whole eggs

300g Cooked spinach, drained and with as much water as possible squeezed out

600g Ricotta Cheese

Pinch of Nutmeg

To Taste Salt and Pepper

1 Egg Yolk

200g Grated Parmigiano Reggiano

A little vegetable stock

A knob of butter

A few leaves of fresh sage

A little reserved pasta cooking water

Start by making the dough: Pour the flour and semolina onto the worktop and make a well in the middle. Break the eggs into the well and mix well with a fork. Now start slowly drawing in the flour from the sides. Knead for at least 15 minutes until you reach a smooth texture. It is important that you do so because by kneading, the dough will become strong and the eggs will get blended perfectly so that you end up with a smooth dough of a uniform colour. Wet your hands when kneading if you feel the dough is too dry. This will stop you adding too much water to moisten the dough and making it too soft. Cover the dough with cling film and leave it to rest for at least 30 minutes. You can rest the dough overnight.

For the filling: Finely chop the spinach, mix in the ricotta, the seasoning and the egg yolk. Mix well until you get a smooth paste. Taste to make sure you filling is well seasoned before you start making the ravioli.

To make the ravioli: Roll the dough quite thinly. Keep dough not in use covered either with a damp cloth or cling film to stop it drying out. Cut a disc with a round cutter, (or a square with a pasta cutter) put a spoonful of filling in the middle, brush the edges with water and cover with another disc of pasta. Press gently with your fingers all around the pasta disc to get rid of the pockets of air.

To make the sauce: Fresh egg pasta cooks in 2 – 3 minutes, so don’t walk away from it, and make sure you start your sauce at the same time as you start cooking your pasta.

Cook the ravioli in a large pot of boiling salted water. There is no need to add any oil. Meanwhile put some vegetable stock in a saucepan, add the butter and sage and let it melt. You can also mix butter and oil. When the pasta is ready drain, making sure that you keep two or three tablespoons of the pasta cooking water. Transfer the ravioli to the saucepan with the retained cooking water and sauté in the melted butter for a few seconds until the sauce thickens up. Take the saucepan off the heat, add a generous sprinkle of Parmigiano, let it melt and serve immediately.

Smoked Gammon with Swede & Potato Bake

I love my job, but I also love the days that I have at home. Today was just perfect, got the school run done, cleaned the house from top to bottom ready for our weekend alone, did all the washing and then did what I love to do most, bake and cook. The sun shone through the house and Puccini blared away to keep me company.

I spent the day trying out a new dessert ready for Pudding Club next week, which I will put on my blog shortly and cooked an amazing dinner for Hubby to come home to. All went well and all in all I'm feeling pretty chuffed with myself. Hubby was late home I may add, so Olly & I ate alone and did think about eating the whole dessert before he got home, but hey, we are not that mean !!!

Buon appetito

Serves 4

2tbsp olive oil

Knob of butter

1 large onion, thinly sliced

3 garlic cloves, finely sliced

1/2 large swede (about 300g), peeled, quartered & thinly sliced

3 large potatoes (about 400g), peeled & thinly sliced

Large handful of fresh flatleaf parsley, finely chopped, plus extra for sprinkling, i didn't have any, but it tasted just as good without

2tbsp plain flour

200ml chicken stock, hot

Drizzle of double cream

40g grated cheese

4 smoked gammon steaks

Preheat the oven to 180c/fan 160c/gas 4. Heat half the oil and the butter in a frying pan and gently fry the onion for 10 minutes until soft and starting to colour. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool.

Add the swede, potatoes, parsley and flour to the bowl, season with plenty of salt and pepper, then toss well. Transfer to a large ovenproof dish, pour over the stock and cream, stir, then top with the cheese.

Bake for 40-50 minutes until tender and bubbling. A few minutes before the end, heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and fry the gammon steaks for 2 - 3 minutes on each side until golden. Serve with the bake, sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Tagliatelle with Parsley & Hazelnut Pesto

Yesterday was "International Day of Italian Cuisine" and this year´s official dish was Pesto alla Genovese, one of the world's most famous uncooked sauces that originated in Genova, in the Region of Liguria. Pesto is one of the most reproduced sauces with many variations found around the world, but a true, authentic Pesto Genovese is not like any other sauce.

Chefs from more than 40 countries took part in creating authentic Pesto alla Genovese on January 17th, but any Italian Food lover could join in the celebration. The purpose of the International Day of Italian Cuisine is to create a worldwide celebration of authentic and quality Italian Cuisine, and to defend it from poor quality misinterpretations.

Pesto alla Genovese can be easily prepared at home using fresh basil, pine nuts, aged Parmigiano Reggiano, fresh garlic cloves, sea salt, and good quality extra virgin olive oil. The only tools you will need are a sturdy marble mortar and wooden pestle if making the pesto in the traditional way, but I know as sacrilegious as it is, its far easier and quicker to use a food processor.

Anyway, I couldn't not take part and as I already have a basil pesto recipe on the blog I decided to make this yummy parsley and hazlenut one instead.

http://dianastaveley.blogspot.com/2010/06/rocket-pesto-homemade-by-hubby.html

Boun appetito

Serves 4

350g tagliatelle

80g pack flat-leaf parsley

100g toasted hazelnuts

50g Parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), grated zest and juice 1 lemon

100ml olive oil

Cook the pasta in salted, boiling water according to pack instructions.

Put the parsley, hazelnuts, Parmesan and lemon zest and juice into a food processor and whizz to a paste. With the motor still running, gradually drizzle in the olive oil. Season, if you like, with salt and pepper.

Drain pasta, return to pan and stir in pesto. Divide pasta between serving bowls and serve.

You can always double the quantity of pesto, cover with a layer of oil and keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Add your own flavours, like watercress and walnuts or pine nuts and rocket. What ever you decide I am sure you will agree, making your pesto is just so easy, rewarding and so worth the effort.

Traditional Greek Lamb with Pasta

Yesterday Hubby and I attended the Rush Oscars, a very glamourous event, plus as we were VIP guests we received the complete star treatment. The awards were given out at the Piccadilly Theatre and then Rush had hired the whole of Tiger Tiger Haymarket for the after show celebrations. A perk of Hubby's job, which, if you follow my blog is a job that my Hubby adores and our whole life seems to evolve around dotSomething or dotOther.

We decided that we needed to eat late afternoon, so we were prepared for the vast amounts of Champagne we were about to drink and fancied something resembling a roast dinner, but with a twist, easier to prepare and with far less washing up, this Greek lamb dish was just what we needed. The smell as it cooked was amazing, giving the house that lazy Sunday feeling.

Well we had an amazing evening, met some lovely people and got to bed in the early hours of the morning, so feeling a little jaded today, but hey, all in line of the duties of a good wife.

Buon appetito

Serves 4 - 6

1 - 1.5kg leg of lamb, cleaned & some of the fat trimmed off

6 cloves of garlic, peeled

12 cloves

12 whole black peppercorns

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon dried oregano

extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

1 - 2 cups warm water

200g kritharaki pasta, I couldn't get hold of this, so used Orzo instead

2 large tomatoes, chopped, or 400g tin chopped tomatoes, we used fresh

grated myzithra, kefalotiri, kefalograviera, to garnish,again I couldn't get hold of any of this so used parmesan, it is optional, so don't worry if you don't have any cheese

chopped flat-leaf parsley to garnish, again this is optional, so feel free to leave it out

Preheat the oven to 180c

Cut six incisions in the lamb and fill each one with a clove of garlic, two cloves and two peppercorns. Rub the lamb all over with salt, pepper and oregano and drizzle with plenty of olive oil.

Place the lamb in a youvetsi (clay baking dish) and add 1 cup of warm water. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. You can use any large casserole dish, we used our large Ikea saucepan, it worked just as well.

About 10 minutes before the end of this cooking time, place the kritharaki/orzo in a pan of salted boiling water and cook for 8 minutes or until almost cooked. Drain.

Remove the lamb from the oven and place the kritharaki/orzo around it. Spoon the tomato over the kritharaki/orzo and season with salt and pepper. Return to the oven and bake, uncovered for a further 30 minutes until the lamb is cooked and coming off the bone. Check the water level occasionally and add more water when the first cup has evaporated. Remove from the oven and leave to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

To serve, sprinkle some grated cheese of your choice over the kritharaki and a little on the lamb, followed by the parsley if you are using it.

Conchiglioni con Ricotta e Spinaci - Shell Past with Ricotta and Spinach

Yesterday was one of those days where you wonder why you bother, I had a busy day rushing around, work was stressful, my head ached, my shoulders were in knots and I just wanted to flop when I got home.

Lucky for me, one of my best friends is an amazing Sports Masseuse and she very kindly popped round to give me a quick massage. It was heaven and just what I needed. Thank you so much Linzi, you are a star. I was so relaxed afterwards that I was floating and cooking dinner was the last thing that I could be bothered with, but luckily for me tonight's dinner was just so easy to make. Hardly any prep, simple and on the table in no time.

Sometimes the most simple of dishes, with few ingredients can be the ones that surprise you the most, this dish is just like that, it takes minutes to make but doesn't disappoint on taste. We enjoyed it last night as a main meal, with crusty bread and a nice glass of crisp white wine, but I think serving just a few shells, filled nicely with the sauce would make a lovely starter.

Buon appetito

Serves 6 (As a main meal)

50g unsalted butter

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

500g English spinach, washed & blanched (see instructions below), squeezed dry & coarsely chopped

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

150ml thickened cream

700g ricotta

300g conchiglioni (If you can't find this is the Supermarket, try an Italian Deli)

Freshly grated parmesan, to serve

Place the butter, oil and onion in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onion is soft, then add the spinach and grated nutmeg. Stir in the cream and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring gently, then add the ricotta, season to taste and remove from the heat.

Meanwhile cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente, with the large dried shells, thats about 13 minutes, but check your packaging for timings. Drain, place in a large serving bowl, add the ricotta and spinach sauce and toss well. Serve immediately with sprinkled parmesan. Hubby and I always like freshly ground pepper on ours as well, you could even try a little freshly grated nutmeg to serve if you like it.

If you are serving as a starter, drain the pasta well, fill the shells individually with the sauce and serve in a pretty small bowl.

How to blanch spinach :-

1. Fill a large pot with water, bring it to a boil, and add your packaged or separated, pre-washed spinach leaves.

2. Blanch the spinach for approximately 30 seconds—or until they turn a brilliant green.

3. Remove the spinach from the pot with a slotted spoon and drain.

4. Plunge the leaves into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

5. Squeeze out all of the excess water or you'll ruin your sauce or recipe with too much liquid.

6. The spinach doesn’t look that great when you've completed the blanching process, but it will taste wonderful. One large bag will reduce to a small ball of leaves. So don’t panic, it will be fine.

The Perfect Roast Chicken

I know I am probably boring you with such tedious recipes, recipes that everyone may know how to cook, but I do get a little carried away sometimes and I need to remember why I started this blog in the first place and thats recipes for my Children to be able to cook where ever they are in the World.

I remember when I left home at 19, I couldn't cook at all and I thank my lucky stars that I had Jasmine to give me confidence and to introduce me to Italian food. I must admit whilst the Children were little I cooked to get by, but over the last 10 years my confidence has grown and I now cook because I just love food.

So I hope you enjoy my blog and I hope my Children enjoy cooking the recipes on here.

Boun appetito

• 1 x approximately 1.6kg chicken, preferably free-range, organic or higher welfare
• 2 medium onions
• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks of celery
• 1 bulb of garlic
• olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lemon
a small bunch of fresh thyme, rosemary, bay or sage, or a mixture

To prepare your chicken
• Take your chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before it goes into the oven
• Preheat your oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9
• There’s no need to peel the vegetables – just give them a wash and roughly chop them
• Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled
• Pile all the veg and garlic into the middle of a large roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil
• Drizzle the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper, rubbing it all over the bird
• Carefully prick the lemon all over, using the tip of a sharp knife (if you have a microwave, you could pop the lemon in these for 40 seconds at this point as this will really bring out the flavour)
• Put the lemon inside the chicken’s cavity, with the bunch of herbs

To cook your chicken
• Place the chicken on top of the vegetables in the roasting tray and put it into the preheated oven
• Turn the heat down immediately to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and cook the chicken for 1 hour and 20 minutes
• If you’re doing roast potatoes and veggies, this is the time to crack on with them – get them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking
• Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and if the veg look dry, add a splash of water to the tray to stop them burning
• When cooked, take the tray out of the oven and transfer the chicken to a board to rest for 15 minutes or so
• Cover it with a layer of tinfoil and a tea towel and put aside. Now is the time to make your gravy

To carve your chicken
• Remove any string from the chicken and take off the wings (break them up and add to your gravy for mega flavour)
• Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast
• Cut through the joint and pull the leg off
• Repeat on the other side, then cut each leg between the thigh and the drumstick so you end up with four portions of dark meat
• Place these on a serving platter
• You should now have a clear space to carve the rest of your chicken
• Angle the knife along the breastbone and carve one side off, then the other
• When you get down to the fussy bits, just use your fingers to pull all the meat off, and turn the chicken over to get all the tasty, juicy bits from underneath
• You should be left with a stripped carcass, and a platter full of lovely meat that you can serve with your piping hot gravy and gorgeous roast vegetables

Serve with http://dianastaveley.blogspot.com/2011/01/roast-potatoes-with-feta-rosemary.html, they are a match made in heaven.

Just a quick note here, this is a lovely Jamie Oliver recipe and the cooking guide lines are probably spot on, but I tend to follow his preparation instructions, but I cook to the time that is stated on the packaging the chicken came in, but as usual its up to you.

Brodo - Stock

As you all know I love Italy, the food, the culture, the people, being brought up by an Italian Mother-in-Law I am slightly biased but I love their family values and as old fashioned as it is, I have instilled this into my children.

Every evening we sit as a family round our table to eat something freshly cooked by either myself or Hubby, we chat, we laugh, we share.

The family that eat together, stay together.

Buon appetito

(These photographs were taken in Vernazza in Italy, October 2009, I just love the picture of the pants drying outside the window, so typically Italian )

Makes about 6 litres

Now I know that there are some really great ready made stocks on the market, but just incase you feel the urge to make your own or can't bear to throw things away, here is a recipe from the lovely Luciana Sampogna, as she says in her book, "Brodo is what every Italian needs in the kitchen". She says that "stock, parmesan and pasta", are the three things that Italians can not live without ! For me its olive oil, balsamic and feta, what are your three things?

This does make rather a lot, but just freeze the stock in small portions so that you always have some on hand.

To make:

Beef Stock

2 large carrots, chopped

2 large onions, peeled & quartered 2 celery sticks with the leaves, chopped

500g beef soup bones

1 chicken carcass

1 piece of parmesan rind

Chicken Stock

2 chicken carcasses, eliminate the meat.

Vegetable Stock

Simply eliminate the meat.

Seafood Stock

Add a couple of handfuls of prawn shells instead of the meat. Taste the stock after 30 minutes of cooking and, if it is to strong, remove the shells & continue cooking.

Place all the ingredients into a stock pot or large saucepan, add 8 litres of water, season well and simmer over a medium heat for 2 hours.

Strain the stock and enjoy the vegetables and meat as a light snack. Italians never like to waste anything. My Hubby when make chicken stock will save some for stock but also turns the meat & vegetables into a lovely soup, so nothing goes to waste.

Cool the stock, then refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze in small quantities for up to 3 months.

Roast potatoes with Feta & Rosemary

It was my birthday on Saturday and my gorgeous Hubby spoilt me rotten. My day started with breakfast in bed, my favourite french toast with figs, very indulgent I know but hey, it was my birthday. I had a lazy morning opening presents & cards, then got ready to get our train to town.

Hubby had booked us tickets to the afternoon performance of Priscilla Queen of the Desert and it was fantastic. I laughed so much and it is so over the top camp you can't help but have a ball, I would definitely go again. We then popped to Harrods as I needed a dress for a black tie event we are attending and then off to Carluccios for dinner, heaven. At Carluccios we shared a Antipasto Massimo and then I had OssoBuco alla Milanese and of course a bottle of Prosecco and Limoncello's.

Well once home, another bottle of Prosecco was opened so by Sunday I was in need of some comfort food. Sunday dinner was soothing roast chicken, savoy cabbage and roast potatoes with feta, all very restorative.

I must add one more thing here, thank you Hubby for your fear of heights. When we arrived at the theatre our seats were in the heavens, Hubby took one look, went white and went and got us upgraded to the best seats in the house. So even phobias can be of use sometimes.

Boun appetito.

Serves 4

1kg potatoes, peeled and cut in half

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

3 tablespoons chopped rosemary

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

50g Greek feta, crumbled

Preheat the oven to 180c

Place the potatoes in a saucepan of salted boiling water and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes until they are slightly soft. Drain and place in a baking dish. Use a fork to break them up a little into rustic shapes.

Sprinkle with salt, pepper and the rosemary and drizzle with the olive oil. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes or until golden brown, turning them occasionally so they cook evenly. About 10 minutes before the have finished cooking, scatter on the crumbled feta. Serve hot.

I added about three times the amount that the recipe states of feta, as we all love it in our house and served the potatoes with savoy cabbage and roast chicken. Just what I needed.

Baklava

Baklava, I am in love with you. And that's all that needs to be said !!!

Only joking, but I do think that I may have a little addiction going on here. I tried baklava the first time in Skopelos and it was love at first bite. The Greeks cover everything in syrup and that is my idea of heaven.

I have always wanted to make baklava, but thought that working with the phyllo (filo) may be a little tricky, but as long as you take your time, treat the pastry gently you can't go wrong and it is so worth the effort.

So forget the calories and enjoy.

(Photo below taken in Skopelos, July 2009)

Makes about 30

150g almonds, crushed but with some texture

150g walnuts, crushed but with some texture

(The recipe doesn't state this, but most baklava recipes have pistachio's in them, so next time I make this I am going to just do a three way mix of all the above nuts up to 300g)

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

22 sheets of phyllo/filo pastry, cut to the dimensions of your tin

150g unsalted butter, melted to golden brown

30 or so cloves for decorating (I hate cloves so I leave this part out)

Syrup

360g sugar

2 tablespoons honey

Strip of lemon peel

Juice of half a lemon

2 or 3 small cinnamon rolls

Preheat the oven to 180c/350f/gas 4.

To make the syrup, put the sugar, honey, lemon juice, lemon peel and cinnamon in a saucepan with 1 cup of water and bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer for 5 to 6 minutes then take off the heat and cool.

To make the baklava, mix the almonds, walnuts, pistachios, sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl. Have the phyllo sheets ready, covered by a tea towel to prevent them drying out. Brush the base of a 22 x 30cm ovenproof dish with butter. Depending on your phyllo size, they do alter from manufacturer to manfacturer, you may have to find a dish to suit the size of your phyllo.

Lay 1 sheet of phyllo on the bottom and brush with butter. Cover with another sheet, brush it with butter and continue in this way until you have a neat stack of 10 sheets lining the bottom of the dish.

Spread half of the nut mixture over the phyllo, patting it down firmly and leveling the surface. Cover with another 2 sheets of phyllo, buttering each one. Scatter the rest of the nuts over evenly and press gently down.

Now lay down the last 10 sheets of phyllo, buttering each one as you go and finishing with the last layer buttered.

Using a small sharp knife, cut diamonds on the diagonal of about 6 x 6 cms. Cut all the way through the layers of phyllo as this will make it easier to lift out the pieces when serving.

Flick just a little cold water over the top to prevent the layers from curling up. Stud the center of each diamond with a clove if you like them.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden on top.

Gently pour half the syrup all over the baklava. Wait for it to be absorbed then pour over the rest. Leave to cool totally before serving.

Baklava will keep, unrefrigerated, for at least a week, covered or in an airtight container.