Homemade beef burgers

Makes 8 (just about - they tend to shrivel somewhat):

• 500g mince
• thyme
• parsley
• 1 egg
• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• salt & pepper

Blend onion, garlic, thyme and parsley.
Mix together in large bowl with rest of ingredients.
Grill.

Chinese Chilli Chicken

For the sauce (which is the interesting bit):

• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2.5cm/1in piece fresh root ginger, peeled, finely chopped
• 1 red chilli, de-seeded, finely chopped
• ½ red pepper, de-seeded, sliced into strips
• 2 tomatoes sliced
• 5 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 1 tsp light brown sugar
  

Blend sauce ingredients until smooth.
Cook some chicken and peppers/courgettes and spring onions.
Add the sauce and 2 tbsp soy sauce.
Serve with rice. Unless you don't like rice.

Chicken Carbonara

Not exactly gourmet food, but quick and easy.

Cook pasta.
Cook a couple of rashers of bacon, some chicken and 2-3 spring onions.
Stir in the cooked pasta and then add some single cream.
Season.
Add chopped parsley and serve a few seconds later.
Grate some parmesan over the top.

Chicken With Cashew Nuts

• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 2 chicken breasts, sliced
• groundnut oil
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 yellow pepper, sliced
• 1/2 red pepper, sliced
• 3 tbsp chicken stock
• 2-3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 spring onions
• 4 tbsp cashews
• steamed rice to serve

Place egg and cornflour in bowl. Season lightly and mix thoroughly.
Add chicken and coat well.

Fry in hot oil for 4-5 mins until golden. Remove.
Fry onion until just starting to soften.
Add peppers and fry for 1 min.
Add chicken again and fry another 2 mins.
Add stock and soy sauce.
Simmer until chicken is cooked.
Add spring onion slices and cashews, season, and serve with rice.

Very tasty, and quick.

Spanish Omelette With Chorizo

Peel and thinly slice about 4 potatoes.
Place in boiling water for about 2-3 minutes with a little salt.
Remove and dry.

Fry with olive oil in frying pan until starting to brown.
Add half a chopped onion.
When the potato is almost done and the onion is softened, add in 6-7 slices of chorizo.

Beat 5 eggs, and season. Add to the pan.
Once it is nearly set, place under a grill until it is set but not coloured.
Grate cheese over the omelette and grill until coloured.
Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Serve with salad.

Julia's Fish Gratin

Feeds 2 hungry pigs:

• 75g gruyere cheese.
  
• 75g emmenthal cheese
• 3 tsp dijon mustard
• 4-5 tbsp single cream
• salt and pepper
• 18 cherry tomatoes
• 1.5 tbsp chopped basil
• 750g flat fish such as lemon sole or plaice, filleted and skinned
  

Preheat oven to 180C/4.
Grate all cheese, and place all cheese, mustard and cream into bowl and mix.
Season.
Half tomatoes, add basil and a little salt. Mix.
Spread half cheese mixture into gratin dish.
Lay half of the fish on top.
Place all of tomato mixture on top of fish.
Place second half of fish on that, and the rest of the cheese on top of that.

Transfer to oven for 20-30 mins.
Serve with potatoes and green salad.

Quick tuna with pasta

• 1 tin tuna
• Tin tomatoes
• Red onion
• Garlic
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp honey
• Drop of red wine
• Red pepper.
• Black pitted olives
• Capers (just a few)
  
• Herbs (perhaps basil, oregano, parsley)
• Salt and pepper
• Pasta
• Sugar to taste
  

Place sliced onions in bowl with honey and red wine vinegar.
Fry onions. When getting soft, add pepper slices. As softens add chopped garlic.
Fry briefly and add red wine.
Leave to reduce.
Add tomato puree, tuna and tomatoes.
When mixed add olives and capers.
Cook for 2 mins and add herbs, salt and pepper.
Cook for another 1 min and taste. Add small amount of sugar if need be.

Serve with pasta.

Moussaka

• 1 large aubergine
• 1 onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 400g/500g minced lamb
• 2 tsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 45ml dry white wine
• 150ml chicken stock
• 1 tsp oregano
• 25g butter
• 25g plain flour
• 450ml milk
• 80g cheese grated

Slice aubergine. Sprinkle with salt and leave to stand. After 20 mins or so, drain, rinse and dry the aubergine slices.

Heat oil and fry onion and garlic until soft.
Add lamb. Fry.
Add tomato puree, cornflour, wine and stock. Cook until thickened. Sprinkle with oregano.
Turn mixture out into overn dish (suggest shallow but large one).
Layer aubergines on top of the mixture.

Melt butter, stir in flour and cook for 1 min. Whisk in milk, bring to boil and simmer until thickened, stirring continuously.
Remove from heat and stir in half the cheese.

Pour sauce over aubergines.
Sprinkle with remaining cheese and then bake 6/200 (or just on if you're using my oven) for 30 mins until golden brown.

Chicken and Leek Pie

Make up the puff pastry.
For 1 pie, use:

• 130g plain flour
• pinch salt
• 100g cold butter
• 70ml water

Mix flour and salt. Can also add in a small amount of gluten substitute mix in place of a bit of flour.
Cut butter into small cubes and mix butter into flour without breaking up lumps (this is important as otherwise you get a strange puff/shortcrust mix).
Mix to stiff dough with water.
Roll dough into rectangle. For top third and bottom third together. Turn pastry sideways continue to roll and folder 4 times, leaving pastry to rest for 15 mins between each one.
Wrap in clingfilm to rest in fridge for 30 mins before using.

Make up sauce. Use chicken stock and cream (approx 2:1 ratio). Also add about 100ml white wine.
This sauce was a bit thin so possibly add some cornflour to thicken slightly.

In oven dish place leeks, chicken, thyme, parsley, garlic.
Pour over the sauce. Add salt and pepper.
Cover with pastry.
Cook for about 45 mins.
You may need to think about softening the leeks, but depends on how long you cook for.

I did find the sauce lacked a bit of depth, so need to think about how this could be improved. Julia didn't agree though!