I decided to sneak in two more recipes for Weekend Cookbook Challenge: Nigella Lawson.

I'm tired of winter, though it really wasn't a bad one for NYC. Nonethe less I want more BBQ meat. But not having a BBQ living in an apartment was a problem, however I found the next best thing in Nigella's Maple Chicken and Ribs from Nigella Express. They were super easy to make and pretty tasty.


Maple Chicken'n'ribs
Adapted from Nigella Lawson, Nigella Express
12 pork spare ribs
12 chicken thighs, with skin and bones
1 cup apple juice, as sharp as possible
4 tablespoons/1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick, halved
6 unpeeled garlic cloves

Put the ribs and chicken pieces in a couple of large freezer bags or into a dish.
Add all the remaining ingredients, squelching or everything together well before sealing the bag or covering the dish.

Leave to marinade in the refrigerator overnight or up to 2 days.

Take the dish out of the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 200C/400 degrees F.

Pour the contents of the freezer bag into 1 or 2 large roasting trays (making sure the chicken is skin side up) and place in the preheated oven and cook for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, by which time everything should be sticky and glossed conker-brown.


The best fried dessert I have tasted were at the Chip Shop. They were mini fried Mounds bars. The fried Oreos I sampled at the Lady of Mt. Carmel festival were mushy instead of melty. I decided to try stick to fried Mounds and made some for dessert using a Nigella Bites recipe. I omitted the pineapple though. They were good, but make sure the oil is pretty hot. I think next time though I will try pancake batter.




Deep-Fried Candy Bars with Pineapple Recipe
Adapted from Nigella Lawson's Nigella Bites

Approximately 2 quarts sunflower or other oil for deep frying
1 ripe pineapple
1 cup self-rising flour
About 1 cup soda water
8 fun-sized Mounds bars (see Note below)

PREPARATION:
Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer to maximum heat.

Cut the top and bottom off the pineapple, and then quarter it vertically. Trim the woody core off each segment, and then lay it skin-side down, and slice the flesh in half lengthwise, stopping when you feel the skin.
Then cut it across into slices and run the knife between the flesh of the fruit and the outer husk. The pineapple pieces should then come away easily. Squeeze the outer skin of the pineapple over the cut fruit to get every last bit of juice.

Measure the flour into a bowl, and whisk in 3/4 cup of the soda water to make the batter, adding the rest of the water if the consistency is still too thick: you want this just thick enough to adhere easily. The best way to check is to turn a Mounds bar in it: if the batter sticks well enough, it's fine. I just use my fingers for this, but tongs work well, too.

Plunge the batter-blanketed Mounds in the hot oil and fry for about 3 minutes until the batter's puffed and golden. Remove to pieces of paper towel to absorb excess grease, then pile up on a plate to sit on the table alongside the cut-up pineapple.

Working in a high traffic area is not always so terrible. We have a lot of companies who give out free samples of new products. This time Kellogg's was handing out their new chocolate and mandarin cereal bars. Though I don't like that particular food combination nor do I eat cereal bars on a regular basis or at all; I thought I would give it a try. Hey it was free. They were surprisingly good and though I don't see any nutritional value in them I'm not going to pooh pooh anyone that enjoys them. I'll probably buy a box for my brother who although is health conscience does like the chocolate and orange flavor combo.

Hey all just a reminder if you still want to participate in Weekend Cookbook Challenge it's been extended till the 28th. So email me your Nigella Lawson recipes. Thanks.

So been loving pizza lately. Really anything flat. Pancakes, crepes, etc. My
office building's elevators have televisions which provide little news and trivia updates. I read that in the Netherlands there is a pizza called Double Dutch
(wonder if its eaten jumping rope....HAH bad joke). Its double the ingredients of cheese, onion & beef. Then I did a little Google search to find out what types of pizza are offered in other countries. Click here to see.

I'm really appalled by the video circulating of the treatment of those cows.
I know the video is from two years ago and no one got sick from the meat
(which was sent to fast food joints and schools) but that's not the point.
I eat meat but that doesn't mean I want the animal to be beaten the crap
out of it before it gets slaughtered just so I can get nourishment.

My local supermarket is pretty good when it comes to having exotic fruit. Anyone recognize any of them in the photo to let me know what they are or good to try?

I think I have tried the star fruit. It was so so.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!



If you still would like to participate in this round of Weekend Cookbook Challenge 25: Nigella Lawson, the deadline has been extended till February 28.

Allen from Eating Out Loud invited me to participate in a Food Fight. Thanks Allen. This round's theme was ingredients from our pantry. I couldn't think of any better recipe than the one I found Christina's food blog Bread And Water. It is a Giada De Laurentiis recipe.

I tweaked the recipe just slightly by adding home made pesto to it instead of the basil and garlic. Since the pesto already has both ingredients. Plus I used Farfalle
instead of tagliatelle. Lastly I just couldn't bring myself to smash those peas.

I also thought it would be a perfect to also submit to Presto Pasta Nights. So I got two uses out of the recipe.

I always have those ingredients the recipe calls for on hand and Niel really really liked it so it's going to be a keeper.

Tagliatelle with Smashed Peas, Sausage, and Ricotta Cheese
Adapted from a recipe by Giada De Laurentiis



1 pound fresh or dried tagliatelle pasta (or other wide, long pasta)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound hot Italian sausage, casings removed
1 pound frozen peas, thawed
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1 bunch fresh basil leaves chopped (about 3/4 cup)
1/4 cup fresh grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 teaspoon salt

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes if dry or according to package directions if fresh. Drain pasta reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.
Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet heat the olive oil and garlic over medium-high heat and add the sausage. Use a wooden spoon to break up the sausage into bite-sized bits. When the sausage has browned, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside. Add the peas to the pan and, using the back of the wooden spoon, smash the peas. Turn off the heat. Add the ricotta cheese along with the cooked pasta and toss to coat, adding the pasta cooking water in 1/4 cup additions, if needed, to make the pasta moist. Return the sausage to the pan. Add the basil, Pecorino Romano cheese, and salt. Toss gently to coat and serve immediately.

In honor of Chinese New Year as well as all I have been wanting to eat are pancakes; plus I had some scallions in the fridge that needed to be used soon, so I made one of my and Niel's favorite appetizers scallion pancakes.

I used Ming Tsai's recipe and they were tasty!

Scallion Pancakes with Ginger Dipping Sauce Recipe Courtesy of Ming Tsai



2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup sliced scallions
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 cup canola oil
Salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup ginger dipping sauce, recipe to follow

In a bowl, sift flour. Slowly add water in a steady stream while mixing with a wooden spoon. Keep adding water until a ball is formed. With the same procedure, one can use a food processor with a metal blade. Let ball of dough >relax for about 30 minutes and cover with damp cloth.
On a floured surface, roll out dough into a thin rectangle. Brush on oil mixture, cover with scallion and season with salt and pepper. Carefully roll dough like a sponge cake. Cut into 4 pieces. Take one piece and twist 3 times. Make a spiral out of this and roll again and flatten to achieve a 5 to 6 inch pancake. In a hot non-stick pan, coat with canola oil and pan sear both sides until golden brown. Cut into wedges and serve immediately with dipping sauce.


GINGER DIPPING SAUCE:
1/4 cup thin soy sauce
1/4 cup Chinese chinkiang vinegar
1/4 cup sliced scallions
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sugar


Combine all ingredients.

For Weekend Cookbook Challenge 25 I couldn’t think of any other better theme than Nigella Lawson.

I would say I have made about seven Nigella Lawson recipes though I only took photos of four. I just find her shows so enjoyable. The dishes look and taste good. Plus I just feel at rest when watching her show. These are enough reasons for me to try more Nigella's recipes.

I chose Steak with Lemon and Thyme for this round; a recipe from her latest cookbook and Food Network show Nigella Express. Yes stews and casseroles are perfect for this time of year but I just want a bit of summer. And I thought a BBQ would be a great choice and an indoor grill would do just fine to cook it.



The recipe was easy to make, very tasty. The only thing I did differently was marinate the steak ahead of time. I served it with a baked sweet potato and corn.

Steak Slice with Lemon and Thyme
courtesy Nigella Lawson, 2007

1 rump steak (1-inch thick) weighing approximately 1 pound 4 ounces
Oil, for greasing
5 stalks fresh thyme to give 1 tablespoon of stripped leaves
2 bruised cloves garlic
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
1 teaspoon Maldon salt or 1/2 teaspoon table salt
Good grinding fresh pepper

Cut away the fat from around the edge of the steak while you heat a griddle or pan.
Brush the steak with oil to prevent it sticking to the griddle or pan, and then cook for 3 minutes a side plus 1 minute each side turned again (this gives you pretty griddle marks) for desirably rare meat; the lemon in the post-hoc marinade 'cooks' it a little more.

While the steak is cooking, place the thyme leaves, garlic, oil, lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper in a wide shallow dish.

Once the steak is cooked, place it in the dish of marinade for 4 minutes a side, before removing it to a board and slicing thinly on the diagonal.

Depending on where one lives in the world, this day has a few different names. In the UK, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and Australia it is known as Pancake Day. Germans call it Fasnacht. In Poland it's called Paczki Day. Sweds refer to it as Fettisdagen. In France and New Orleans it is called Mardi Gras. However in most parts of the US it is known as Fat Tuesday. But the proper name is Shrove Tuesday. Historically it was the start of the 40-day Lenten fasting period. When the “faithful” confessed their sins. To Shrive means to hear confessions.

Milk, eggs and butter had to be used up no later than today. By adding a bit of flour to those ingredients people ate pancakes today.

Wherever you are today enjoy some pancakes for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner. I myself would like some crepes with Lingonberry Jam or my mom's savory blintzes.

Here is the vegetarian version of the Pita Pizza's I made a few weeks ago. All I did was add jarred, roasted red peppers and basil on top. Of course mozzerella cheese was still added. I'm sure the pizza would have been fine without the cheese but then I would call them vegan Pita Pizza's.

Remember still plenty time to post and email me your recipe(s) for the Nigella Weekend Cook Book Challenge.