The big pancake

Lately I've had pancakes on my mind because Jasmine T makes me read this to her most nights...

I can tell you now, if one of these pancakes went rolling off,

a mother

seven hungry, little boys

a man

a cat

a cock

a duck

and a cow

would definitely be running to catch it.

What you need (makes about 8 pancakes, enough for about 2 1/2 people)

1 cup SR flour

1 cup of milk

1 egg

pinch of salt

a mashed banana - the blacker the better

a handful of blueberries (optional)

The do

Dump the flour, egg milk and salt into a mixing bowl and whisk until all the lumps are gone. Add the banana and blueberries and mix in with a fork.

Heat a nonstick frying pan on high - when it's red hot throw in a knob of butter and swoosh it around the pan. Add half a ladle of mixture to the pan to make each pancake, taking care not to over crowd. When it starts to bubble a little on the surface, give the underside a little peek and if it's golden brown flip it over. Cook for a minute or so then transfer onto a plate. Keep going until all the mixture is gone.

Gobble them down with a big dollop of of Rachel's coconut yoghurt and a little maple syrup or honey.

Not only are these deeeelicious, they are perfect for making use of fruit that is past it's best - apples or pears instead of banana would also go down well.

Tune
Pumped Up Kicks Foster the People

The spears are here

It's asparagus season! Time to get amongst those green spears of goodness!

Here's a super quick recipe that will ensure you spend less time in the kitchen and more time making the most of the extended daylight playing frisbee in the park.

This is a bastardisation of çilbir, a Turkish dish of poached eggs and yoghurt. I had this at Providores in Marylebone a few years ago and it is deeeelicious. For this you'll need some kirmizi biber (dried Turkish chilli flakes), but if you don't have any to hand - which is very likely as it involves a special trip to a Turkish grocer - a quarter teaspoon of paprika and a teaspoon of normal chilli flakes instead would also be quite tasty.

What you need

(serves 2)

1 bunch of asparagus

eggs, however many take your fancy

5 big spoons big spoons of thick greek yoghurt (I used Total)

1 garlic clove, crushed into a paste with salt using the side of a knife

50g butter

1 teaspoon chilli flakes

The do

Boil a full kettle. Place the asparagus in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. After a few minutes, check for doneness - this will vary depending on how thick the asparagus is. If it needs more time let it mellow for a little longer. When done, rinse with cold water, drain and divide between two plates.

Mix together the garlic and yoghurt, then pile on top of the asparagus, making a little well for where the egg/s will sit.

Poach the eggs, and when done, drain, then place in the yoghurt wells. In a small frying pan, heat up the butter. When it starts to go a light brown colour, add the chilli flakes, swoosh around for a little longer to let the chilli colour the oil, then spoon over the eggs and yoghurt.

Enjoy with some crusty bread.

Nerd alert: Thanks to this brilliant book that I received for my birthday a few years back (thanks Cam!) I learnt that the chemical that causes the unsettling odour in the urine of some of those who eat asparagus is actually a close relative of that in skunk spray. Pong!

Guerrilla brekkie

Nearly a month in, I'm still struggling to hit my stride with this kitchen. So far I haven't been able to manage anything too complicated because of the state of disarray it has been in.

This weekend we've moved some shelves in which has improved things big time stylee, so I've felt inspired to make a brekkie with more wow factor than Weetabix.

What you need (for two hungry peeps)

Two big handfuls of baby spinach

Two handfuls of chestnut mushrooms, quartered

2 eggs

big fat slices of Cholla bread (or any other bread will do)

soy sauce

a big teaspoon of thick cream or creme fraiche

chives

dill

mayonnaise

The do

For your eggs, bring a medium sized saucepan of water to the boil then reduce to a simmer.

In a small bowl, mix together about a tablespoon of mayonnaise with a big teaspoon of chopped dill. (Clearly this is no substitute for hollandaise but who really makes hollandaise at home?)

In a small frypan, heat a big knob of butter and fry the mushrooms over medium heat, when they are 3/4 done put the eggs in the pan of water to poach. Now throw half a cap of soy sauce into the mushrooms, fry for a further minute or so, take off the heat, then stir in the cream and dish out onto plates.

By now the eggs should be ready. Pop your toast down, quickly rinse out the mushroom pan, put it back on the heat, then throw the washed spinach into the hot pan and cook until wilted and soft. Dress with some olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Plate it all up and you are good to go. Bonus points if you can juggle the coffee making as well!

Tunes
Adam and Joe (6music, Saturday 10-1)

New digs!

It's been so long since I last posted , I'd be amazed if any one was still checking in on this poor little blog! If you are, thanks, and sorry for neglecting you.

It's been a bit of a busy time for us - we've moved out of our little pad, been homeless for a bit whilst we made our new home habitable, screwed up my visa application so I was almost deported and FINALLY moved in couple of weeks ago.

So to christen the new kitchen in true Lily and Chew style, I have attempted to make savoury hot cross buns to commemorate the crucifixion of the big JC. All you need is a decent white bread dough recipe. Add a good handful of chopped chives and as much mature cheddar cheese and you can be bothered to grate, then leave to prove for about 20 minutes before separating into bun-like balls. With the tip of a sharp knife, mark a cross into the top of each one and sprinkle a little more cheese on top before baking for around 20 minutes at about 200 (our new oven is gas and I still have to get my head around the whole conversion thing).

Enjoy fresh out of the oven with LOADS of butter.

Hola Borough burrito

Last time I visited Borough market on a Saturday I had a nervous breakdown trying to hack through the hordes of tourists lining up for samples. On a Thursday afternoon, however, it's an entirely different story. Having just restored my field of vision by having my fringe cut, I wasted no time collecting a few of my old faves; organic eggs and oakcakes from Neal's Yard Dairy, Comte cheese, saffron from Brindisa and pesto from Borough olives.

So this morning, with these exciting ingredients at hand, I whipped up what I guess could be a Borough market burrito.

My Borough burrito

Makes enough for 2.5 people

What you need

1 pack of North Staffordshire Oatcakes (available from Neal's Yard Dairy for £1).

Note: These oatcakes are not the biscuity kind - they are floppy and spongy, about the size of a side plate, and look like a crumpet that has been run over by a steam roller several times. If you can't handle the crowds, or live in Australia, the usual Old El Paso-style small tortilla wraps will do perfectly fine.

4 eggs, lightly beaten

about 6 cherry tomatoes, cut in slices

a few thin slices of Comte cheese (or tasty cheddar would work well too)

a small handful of chives, chopped

The do

Lay the Comte on the oatcakes and grill until the cheese melts. While this is happening, scramble the eggs in a small pan. When the oatcakes are ready, distribute the chopped tomato on each one and then pile the eggs on top. Garnish with the chives, then roll up like a cigar.

My kind of Easter egg

Yikes! Is it really Easter already? I've been a busy bee since I last blogged, which explains the lack of posting activity...but hey, four whole days with Carters around sure makes it easier to do a bit of catching up.

To kick off the Easter bank holiday we enjoyed a fried egg on toast with piccalilli. The quickest and most delicious breakfast, lunch or can't-be-arsed dinner.

What you need
piccalilli
an egg
some cheddar cheese
toast

The do
Heat a fry-pan, drizzle some oil and crack an egg into the pan. While this is happening, put on some toast and thinly slice a couple of pieces of cheddar and lay on to the toast. When the egg is done, place it on top of the cheese and then spread a teaspoon of piccalilli on top.


After breakfast we visited the totally amazing John Soane museum - be sure to go early in the day, as the queues get pretty long in the afternoon. There is also a nice cafe around the corner called the Fleet River Bakery that does decent coffee and other treats.

Bumbling around Belgium

Last year we took advantage of the Eurostar seat sale and booked ourselves some cheap tickets to Belgium. Then the snow came. After a few tweaks to our train schedule we finally made it to Brussels where it was a million times colder than London. After spending the morning trying to get out of the weather, we hopped on a train to Antwerp. For some reason, maybe because of the snow, the platform display wasn't working so well, and we ended up on a train traveling in the opposite direction. After about an hour we cottoned on, and quickly hopped off the train which by now was in nowheresville, and hightailed it back to Brussels...again. (Mental note: when you ask someone 'is this the train to Antwerp?' and they say 'yes', they might be on crack)



With Saturday a bit of a lost cause, I was hoping to get in on the sale action the following day, but unfortunately, like most European cites, everything is closed on Sunday.
A few vintage shops along Klosterstraat were open, so we spent some time ducking in and out of shops to get out of the snow. It was so cold it reminded us of Russia, minus the stone-faced locals. Then we stumbled across Ra, and if I wasn't frozen solid I would have jumped up and down with joy...







The clothing is gorgeous but the highlight was the cafe. There's a little loft section you could climb up a ladder to get to, and a cute friendly Italian greyhound trotting around. And most importantly...they do all-day breakfast on Sundays.
We shared an eggs florentine and a tofu miso soup - I'm aware this is a crazy combo but after a few days of frites, beer and waffles I was keen for something cleansing. The eggs were perfectly poached and came in a cute little fruit scone.



The next day we grabbed a beautiful (in both look and taste) hot chocolate at Bar Choq. Would have loved to have tried their coffee too because it looked like it was made with a lot of care and love. All the more reason to visit again...

9.12am Crumpet with lots of butter and honey

`

It's been a long time since I've eaten a crumpet and I don't know why because they are soooooo damn good. Oozy sweet honey and butter dripping out of a warm spongy crumpet with a strong cup of tea. The perfect food for a frosty morning.

First breakfast of the year

After a quick 10 minute clean up of yesterday's soiree, I got down to the business of cooking our new year's day breakfast. Our first meal of the year; scrambled eggs, rosemary mushrooms and semi-homemade baked beans.

Cheat's homemade baked beans with scrambled eggs and mushrooms
(makes about 4 serves)
I buy the Whole Earth baked beans because I like their cinnamony smokiness, but the problem with this is they tend to take centre stage, and today I want them to to be a bit more of a supporting act so I'm going to simplify the flavours by mixing them with some other beans for some textural variety and adding some tomatoes.

What you need
1 can butter beans (drained)
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 can drained baked beans (I used the Whole Earth ones)
1 small sprig of rosemary (stick removed, chopped)
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

The do
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a saucepan, throw in the bay leaf, rosemary, tomatoes straight from the can and the drained butter beans. Let it all bubble away for about the time it takes to fry up your mushrooms with some garlic, butter and rosemary, wash a few champagne glasses and take the recycling downstairs. Add the drained baked beans (don't stress too much about draining off all the sauce). Season with salt and pepper and simmer until the eggs and toast are ready.



We enjoyed our first breakfast of the year in our pyjamas, listening to the food show on radio 4 and discussing our new year's resolutions, one of mine being to blog more.

A sticky situation

Getting up this morning was easy because I knew there was a home-baked brioche in the breadbox calling out my name. While I was waiting for the toaster to do its work I came to the sudden realisation that we were out of jam. Another frantic rummage in the fridge yielded one of those little pots of jam you get in fancy hotels. Yippeee!
Now that breakfast has been saved, I'm thinking about where that pot of jam came from...did I bring it home from a holiday somewhere? Am I turning into my grandma? Arrrgghhhhh!!

Quick boxing day breakfast

This post is about two months late, but better late than never I guess!

My last post featured our excellent Christmas cheese board, and I just wanted to share with you our boxing day breakfast - raclette-style cheese on toast. All you have to do is grill some sliced bread on one side, then on the un-grilled side pile on the raclette cheese and some sliced picked onions and cornchions. Put back under the grill until browned on top.

Eggs in purgatory ... tagine style

Eggs, tomatoes and smoked paprika all cooked in my latest kitchen acquisition, the tagine.

home sweet homefries

Ahhh. How I love you April and March - a time where there are more bank holidays than you can poke a stick at. What better time to read the paper and chow down on a big breakfast that will fill your heart with the joy of living.
Here's an easy addition to your breakfast spread that I became OBSESSED with when I was in New York. The dudes at B&H dairy (127 2nd Avenue, NYC) do it best. And while you're there, try the excellent home-made soups and challah french toast; or anything else on their menu because it's ALL vegetarian.



Chop up some waxy potatoes (like desiree) and boil until soft - I never peel them. While that's happening chop up some onion.

When you can poke a fork through the potatoes - drain, and run under a cold tap.
Get a frying pan really hot and pour in a few good lugs of olive oil.
Fry the onion for a minute then add the potato. Stir. Let the potato burn a little then stir again. Repeat a few times. The skin will go crispy, the crumbly bits will go crunchy.
Season with salt and pepper. Serve with the usual breakfast suspects - spinach, eggs, avocado, baked beans etc...

Congee-nius

All this week I've been surrounded by A LOT of snotty human beings
- and I don't mean the cantankerous kind.
Dudes! Stay at home and keep your skuzzy germs to yourself!
That's what sick leave is for!
Miraculously, I have managed to ward off illness by taking a mixture
of zinc and vitamin C each morning.
For those of you who have succumbed and joined the snotty ones,
get someone to make this for you. You'll feel better straight away. I promise.

Congee (Chinese porridge)
Comfy rating: four stars

I make this with the congee setting on my rice cooker.
If you don't have one of these, get one NOW. Or just make it in a pot like this:

What you need
1 cup white rice, rinsed
6 cups water
(sometimes I add a stock cube for more flavour)
White pepper

Put rice and water in a large deep saucepan, bring to boil.
Cover (leave a little gap for steam to get through) and simmer on the lowest heat setting until all rice grains are broken and has the consistency of porridge.
Add in salt or stock cube and mix well.
Serve porridge in a soup bowl or a deep dish with chopped spring onions and fried shallots (from Chinese grocer)
Sprinkle white pepper over it.
Serves 2 to 3


In Hong Kong I ate congee for breakfast with Chinese donuts. YUM.

You can serve this dish instead of rice with steamed Chinese greens, stir-fried tofu, eggplant etc.. it's up to you.
There are also lots of great condiments that go well with this, like fermented tofu and thousand year old egg (if you are feeling brave), Chinese black olive paste and pickles. For a Japanese vibe you could add Ume (pickled plum).



FACT.
Congee is a grain based, usually rice, medicinal porridge served for centuries in traditional Chinese homes. It is used to promote good health and long life. It is used specifically to help the body recover from various ailments. Congee is an excellent whole-grain hot breakfast alternative.

Benefits of a congee breakfast
It can jump start your digestive system. Its long cooking time breaks down the grain, making it very easy to digest and assimilate, providing your body with the nutrients it needs. It also builds energy and enhances metabolism.

This weekend at Borough Market: best eggs in town

Sleep and dreams being my favourite things, there are very few activities I'd get up early for on a Saturday morning (much less leave the house for). But when the craving hits for Spanish scrambled eggs at Brindisa, there's nothing for it but to set the alarm and haul my lazy head out of bed.

Even though Brindisa is at the end my street it still requires considerable effort to dress, buy the paper, face the world and get there with a reasonable chance of being seated before the strict kitchen cut off time of 11am. It can't be done with too much of a hangover: finding the right person to get you a table is a challenge; everyone moves very fast; the proliferation of shiny-haired people with babies can be daunting (as can the Borough Market crowds generally); and a bubble bap at Maria's inside the market is often a better option for the bug-eyed and dehydrated.

But this weekend, with my moon in the sign of can-do, I dragged dazed sweet cousin Annie off the couch at 9.30, shushing her confused mutterings with the promise of a perfect plate of Saturday morning sunshine.



The Brindisa breakfast menu only has a few things on it (most around £6), including chorizo, egg and chips for the meat-eaters and lavender honey on toast for the vegans. But there's really only one plate that matters, my heart having long ago been lost to a pile of deliciously fluffy, golden scrambled eggs with country toast, tomato, manchego cheese and wild mushrooms, accompanied by a cafe con leche that is better than most coffee in town. Annie was a little sceptical at first, likening her pile of mushrooms to the snake pit in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but she couldn't fault the flavour.

This weekend the eggy pile was as delectable as always, albeit a little smaller than usual. So I followed it with a rich, dark hot chocolate made with 70% solid Barcelona chocky. Sweet, dreamy love in a cup, it's so thick you'll need to spoon the ends out. If you get hooked on this or any of the other Spanish produce, you can buy most of it at the Brindisa stall in Borough Market.

And if you miss the 11am brekky deadline, no drama. Just go grazing in the market for a while then come back after noon when their tapas menu kicks in.

Add an avo to your day

Avocado on toast (ripped off from Cafe Gitane)

I can't go to Cafe Gitane everyday to enjoy this because, sadly, I don't live in New York. But I've tried my darndest to replicate it at home.

Toast some grainy bread.
Spread a generous amount of avocado on the toast.
Sprinkle some chilli flakes and Maldon sea salt on the avocado. Squeeze some lemon and drizzle some olive oil on top.

When eggs get too eggy on a Sunday morn...

...try some scrambled tofu

Serves 2
What you need
1 tub of tofu from the Tofu dude at Borough market
1/2 an onion
a few sundried tomatoes
Veg stock cube (I use the green organic Kallo ones, if in Australia the Massel ones)
turmeric


Roughly mash 1 packet of firm tofu in a bowl, keeping the tofu in large chunks.
Chop half an onion.
In a frying pan, fry the onion in some oil on med/high heat, add tofu and a few chopped sundried tomatoes.
Dissolve a veg stock cube in 3/4 cup of boiling water. pour stock onto tofu. Sprinkle some turmeric into the pan. Don't go too crazy otherwise your teeth will resemble a heavy smoker's.
Turn up the heat, fry and stir the mixture until the liquid has evaporated. Be careful not to break up the tofu too much, otherwise it will resemble spew.
Once the liquid has left the frypan, add some chopped spring onions or chives and stir through.
For the dairy tolerant - grate some good tasty cheese and stir through.
Serve with your favourite brekkie trimmings and lots of freshly ground black pepper.

A happy holiday brekkie for five people you love.

During my last trip home, the gang and I enjoyed the tranquil surrounds of Wilson's Prom.
Laura and Lisa fussed over a delicious Roast Veg and Polenta stack with balsamic gizz, rosellas pecked at Adam and Will's pasta sheets as they dried on the veranda railing. Ollie skillfully applied bronzer to my face, and I made Corn Fritters with Avocado Salsa and Rocket.




What you need:
2 to 3 corn cobs or 2 tins of good canned corn (Don't get the cheap stuff. Pay the extra p's)
1 or 2 eggs
plain flour
salt and pepper
chopped spring onions or chives

Shave the corn from the cob into a big bowl (or drain the canned corn).
Break the eggs into the bowl and razz it with a fork. Splash a bit of milk or soy milk into the mix.
Add spring onions and salt and pepper.
Sprinkle some flour into the mixture. Mix well. Keep adding flour and soy milk, mixing until it's all battery. It shouldn't be too thick or too runny.
Heat a frypan, when hot, add a splash of oil.
Add two tablespoons of the mixture to the pan and shape roughly into a round - make them too big and you'll find the flipping manoeuvre difficult.
Repeat, but don't overcrowd the pan. Turn down to a medium heat. After a little while, flip the fritters and cook the other side.
Keep warm on a plate in an oven on low heat.

While all this is going on, cube a couple of avocados into a bowl. Cut open some tomatoes, scoop out the pips and slimey bits. Chop, and add to the cubed avo. Rip up a big handful of basil leaves and throw them in too.
Mix gently with a fork. Squeeze a lemon over the mixture and some salt and pepper. (If you don't have lemon, balsamic is also good)

Serve the salsa on or next to the fritters with a handful of rocket.

Some other things you can throw on the plate:
Cooked baby spinach
A dollop of sour cream
a few teaspoons of pesto

Eat whilst comtemplating Oliver's ponytail, and listening to the sound of crashing waves.