Patel Paella

Album 'It's Blitz' Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Feeds 6-8

500g Paella rice
2 litres of water with two pinches of saffron
1 fish stock cube
half an onion finely chopped
pack of cooked prawns
pack of mussel meat
1 tsp turmeric
3 tsp paprika
1 red pepper
half green pepper (not really my favourite!)
8 chicken drumsticks stabbed a few times to let the juices in
frozen peas
black pepper
dried mixed herbs
pinch of salt
one fat garlic clove
4 tomatoes

FIRSTLY

2 litres boiling water with saffron and fish stock put aside

CHOP

garlic
onion
peppers
tomatoes

FRY

onions with veg oil
garlic
tomatoes
rice

ADD

stock
drumsticks
turmeric
2 tsp paprika
mixed herbs

LOW HEAT 25 minutes

Test rice
Add a bit more water if needed

INVOLVE

the peppers
prawns
mussels
peas
salt
black pepper
1 tsp paprika

Check the chicken and rice.

Leave off the heat and heads will roll once it's served.

Sorry couldn't help but get that in :)

Sunshine on a Rainy Day

Album 'Renaissance the Classics 2008'
(but on repeat is Zoe)

In Wolverhampton this weekend and mum is teaching me how to make samosa's (on blog tomorrow) in return I am cooking Paella tonight and made this wonderful Swiss roll.

It was so bright this morning which was so wonderful to wake up to, but later the clouds and rain took over..boo

Oven 190°c

Grease and line a Swiss roll tin, make sure you leave some paper hanging out because you need to flip it over once its done. My mistake was using a baking tin, if I had a Swiss roll tin it would have rolled a lot nicer.

Sometimes you have to work with what you have got.
Like no electric hand whisk

Whisk 4 eggs and 100g caster sugar for 10 minutes until it's doubled in size.

Fold in the flour (100g wholemeal self raising flour) in small batches

Pour in tin, spread evenly and bake for 12 minutes.

OK, so I googled how to do this and was getting anxious because I didn't want the sponge to fall apart.

READ CAREFULLY

Cut another piece of greaseproof paper a bit larger than the tin and sprinkle caster sugar on it

Once sponge is golden brown and springs back, take it out of the oven

TIP it out on the greaseproof paper with sugar on

Slowly and I mean really slowly tear off the greased paper on top, do it in strips if you want. Don't do it like your waxing, you will tear the sponge!

Then place on top of the hot sponge another large piece of greaseproof paper.

Fold in the sides of the paper and lift up and flip it over.

Leave it to cool for 30 minutes.

In a bowl whisk a whole tub of mascarpone with one tablespoon of Morello cherry jam and one teaspoon lemon curd.

Spread on the sponge and add some fresh sliced raspberries and sliced strawberries.

Roll tightly and then push the paper away and hold the sponge securely.

Press the sponge at the end with the paper and then peel it off.

Dust with icing sugar and decorate with lemon curd and blueberries.

Upside Down Your Turning Me..

Album 'Diana'

Hey, I'm in one of those obsessive blogging moods.

It's the music, honestly a song pops in my head and next thing you know I run downstairs and start cooking!

So from 12 - 1 it was 'Upside Down' by Diana Ross, this meant an upside down cake.

But how do you make an upside down cake look pretty? I don't think you can, it will be sticky, syrupy and moist.

Its not a secret, what you have to do is cover the bottom of the tin with sugar and melted butter. Then line your fruits ontop.

Make the sponge, spoon over and bake.

I am avoiding eggs and butter in my cakes at the moment, not sure why. I want to see if I can make a sponge with other ingredients.

Oven 190°c.

Melt 80g butter in saucepan and stir in 50g brown sugar

Quickly take off heat

Pour in tin and rub at the sides

Line with slices of pear, apple and pineapple rings.

Sponge

1 mashed banana

half a tin of pineapple chunks and juice

100g caster sugar

150ml vegetable oil

1 tsp strawberry essence

200g Plain wholemeal flour

2 level tsp baking powder

Pour in tin over fruit and bake for 35 minutes.

Once out the oven tip it upside down and leave it in the tin to cool completely.

T L C

The Crazy, Sexy, Cool...

Tomato, Lettuce and Cucumber.

The three essentials in:

Salads
Sandwiches
The fridge
Anything else?

Maybe I might even make a bold comment like: the most common vegetables we eat in the week.

They look after us when we can't be inspired to create a funky salad and they sound good.

Imagine their fanmail...here I get a bit weird and get to know the vegetables...

Tomato
Contains 3 anti oxidants.
Rich in potassium.
Don't peel them!

When I walk into the kitchen, Tomato is getting ready to be grilled, I take a seat opposite and start...

Mita, 'So Tomato thanks for taking the time out from your family, how are you?'

Tomato, ' Alright, yes the family are well; ripening by the day you know, the little ones just want to be red and not green anymore.'

Mita, ' Sure, so what do you think it is about you that makes you so popular in the kitchen?'

Tomato, 'I'm just so easy you know, eat me raw, chop, mash, grill, puree, whisk and loads of other things you can do to me. I think people will find me easy to cook because I act as a base for a lot of sauces.'

Mita, 'Good point, personally I have to include fresh tomatoes in my curry. Apart from being used in cooking what else do you do?'

Tomato, ' Stop your making me blush! Well there is a story we heard about my great great great grandfather...not sure if I should tell you its pretty gruesome.'

Mita, 'Well that's up to you, you can test how gruesome the story is on me?'

Tomato ' Ok ok...so he was a beef tomato, a big chap. He was pretty old too, and was going to be used in a stew. The cook poured boiling water on him, skinned him and mashed him. We were all sitting in the bowl sweating. It was just so bad.'

Mita 'Oh.'

Tomato, ' Then the cook put in two tablespoons of paprika and added him to the meat. When her boyfriend was served the stew he refused to eat it because apparently, Hungarian goulash should not contain tomatoes, but potatoes. The stew was thrown on the wall and to this day the stain is still there.'

Mita, ' Ouch what a waste. Some people just don't understand how much effort goes into preparing a meal.'

Tomato, 'Hmm and now the same cook is going to grill me and then serve me on toast with avocado.'

Mita 'Yummy, I mean oh dear!'.

Lettuce
The darker the leaf is, the better it is for you.
Very low in calories.
Romaine Lettuce contains the most vitamins.
Iceberg contains vitamin K(bone builder and heart protector) and choline (brain health nutrient).

Mita, 'Hey Iceberg you look wet where have you been?'

Lettuce 'I love to be washed Mita, and water on me just feels great, how are you? I'm privileged to be on this blog!'

Mita, 'You are too kind, so how are you?'

Lettuce, 'Not too bad, I think today is my last day so just making sure I am clean.'

Mita 'Sorry to hear that, what are you going to be in?'

Lettuce, 'BLT, well at least I am with Tomato. Bacon gets on my nerves, so greasy and thinks its delicious because its meaty.'

Mita, 'Well I love a good BLT but prefer a TLC with tuna.'

Lettuce, 'Interesting, how some people have to accompany us with some sort of meat. That's what happens when we go on tour.'

Mita ' When is your next tour anyway?'

Lettuce, 'We will be travelling with the Foo Fighters soon, they are so cool and have great taste.'

Mita, 'oh dear I think the sandwich is ready.'

Lettuce, 'Great, one tip I want you to tell your friends, no scrubbing, just wash and then pat me dry. I love it.'

Cucumber
Soothes skin irritations.
Contains vitamin C.
Hydrating.
Cools you down



Cucumber, 'Yo Mita your looking good, how are you?'

Mita, 'Ha! Thankyou, what's on the menu?'

Cucumber, 'This cook is so boring, not like you. What would you do to me?'

Mita, 'Cucumber you are cheeky, why is the cook boring?'

Cucumber, 'He is going to peel me and serve me to his kids! PEEL! You know how good my skin is, and how I help yours!'

Mita 'That does sound awful, but I use you on my eyes sometimes when I sleep.'

Cucumber 'It's all about using me raw, not like Courgette. Hate her.'

Mita 'She has done well but doesn't have a big fan base like TLC.'

Cucumber, 'Who do you prefer Mita?'

Mita 'You of a course!'





Wow, that was like a psychedelic food bad comedy sketch.


xx


Over and out :)

5ive Will Make You Get Proud Now...

When I get an idea about a blog post or recipe I whip out the iPhone and start typing in my notes.

Notes, lifesaver.
Predictive text annoying.

So here is what I typed coming back from Ibiza....

You know the feeling on one of these cheap flights, it's two hours and you nap. When you wake up, your mouth is all dry and you can't use the bathroom because they charge you £1.



Yes I feel like that, but inspired to write because I don't want to look at the girl next to me she looks like she is going to heave up something.

O gosh...Where is that pound....

Remember the band 'Five'? I had the hots for Richie...I have some weird crushes.

To this day my friend Clare won't live down my crush on Jackie Chan. Serious ..all his own moves in most of his films...impressive for his age!I can just about jump down four steps without twisting my ankle.

I wonder if I've had my 5 today..

Five a day,hard work isn't it....try looking after kids and getting them to see it's important.

It's 6pm and so far:

Half an avocado
1 Banana
1 apricot
1 carrot

What does this add up to? Yes you will find out I am pretty slow at maths. I think I'm going to go for 4 out of my 5 a day (it was just the avocado messing with my head)

You only have to eat 5 lovely things and I think it's pretty important. Mixing fruit and vegetables can be fun and delicious. Try a simple stir fry or raw salad for dinner with a glass of pure juice (concentrated is cheaper but awful).

When I land I want to eat something that contains potatoes.

The trolley that went passed didn't offer any fruit and veg. And the only magazine they offer is OK, honestly I am so bored of seeing Cheryl Cole.


I think the message here is eat responsibly, spotify Five, and spend a bit more money when booking a flight anywhere in Europe.


Sent from my iPhone