It’s been about a year and a half since I started the blog and I have had so
much fun writing it. I've found that by writing about my kitchen escapades I
have been pushed to try new things and really thing about what I’m putting in
my food. I'm also cooking out of a larger kitchen of late but that will all change again once we move (sigh).
In terms of dieting I’m afraid it hasn't been massively successful. I
continue to do the 5:2 diet more for the benefits relating to cancer and
dementia prevention rather than weight loss. A lengthy kitchen refurb (3 months
of takeaways and microwave meals take their toll), a back injury have limited my success in respect of the latter.
Still, I’m not going to give up and resign myself to a lifetime (and wedding day)
of flabbiness.
So what about the year ahead? We have recently moved from Wales to Sussex
and I've started my pupillage after 4 years of seemingly endless
applications so it seems like now is the best time to wipe the slate clean and
start again. I’ll continue with 5:2 where possible but I've also found in the
last month that cutting out added sugar has really helped me increase my
energy, I’m losing weight and my skin seems to be looking brighter too. For
someone who loves a bit of cake it is no mean feat and I've had a few weddings
and social events where I wasn't quite so vigilant. Still, it’s going generally OK and I’m also now getting back into exercise. I've set myself a manageable target
of 20 minutes a day; surely I can stick to that… right?
What can you expect over the next year? More vegetarian recipes that
are hopefully something a little bit different and certainly varied. There will
be less of the cakes (but not completely – I can’t resist the odd treat) and
more of the veg. I also promise to try and be more consistent in my posts, this
has been a very busy year and doing without the kitchen certainly doesn't help
when you write a food blog. So this year I pledge to try harder to maintain not
just my weight loss but also the recipe posting too.
Now to the important bit… the
competition!
To celebrate the fact that I’m still blogging, and also the fact that
Big Cook Tiny Kitchen has over 500 likes on Facebook I thought it was time to host
my first giveaway. I've chosen a copy of Antonio Carluccio’s The
Collection, quite simply because it is a veritable Bible of Italian food. Just
enter below and I will send the winner their very own copy.
(NB postage and
packaging is paid for within the UK but for those outside there may be a charge
for shipping costs).
What's your favourite Italian Recipe?
San Marzano roasted tomato passata, Half and roast them with a little olive oil and a tiny amount of salt. Nothing else. Reduce, finely grate some lemon zest into the sauce and simmer gently for a minute or two more. Serve pronto over al dente penne, Bosh THAT one Stoker.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds delish but who are you Anon? x
Deletevegetarian arancini, use a meat free ragu in the middle. banger.
ReplyDeleteOr big mushrooms roasted in tomato passata with garlic with mozzarella, served with ciabatta and balsamic vinegar. another banger.
I love arrancini too. Last time I made Butternut Squash Risotto, I made the left overs into arrancini and serve with a simple tomato sauce. Twas lovely : )
DeleteDoes sourdough pizza bufala count as a recipe? Sourdough base rolled thin, topped with tomato sauce, bufala mozzarella chunks, into a hot wood fired oven for 3 minutes, fresh basil and black pepper to finish and a cold beer to wash it down... Mmm! Alec
ReplyDeleteThat absolutely counts, it's a classic : )
DeleteMake you own paneer ( lemon juice as a coagulant i think is better than vinegar etc) there's loads of recipe versions but for this, overcook it so that when you've given it a really good pressing it sets hard. Right?! next.... So, cube it ( not smaller than half inch on any one side) and gently fry on at least four sides in a combination of butter and veg oil ( not olive...... and don't worry about the calories, you've just made it from the bestest full cream milk you can find anyway) until browned and then you can start playing. Home made paneer tends to crumble easily when cooked which is ok but not if you want a good dente style chew. Even meat eaters like this... Paneer will soak up the flavours juice of your sauce so no need to have included herbs etc when you made it. You can make your own curry sauce or add to a decent off the shelf one ( none of this carrageen stuff or thickeners. Best stuff is star anise, cardamom (manummanum) . These really get into the the centre of the cubes. Once the sauce is prepped separately, add the paneer cubes always treating them gently, heat slowly, stir carefully and let cool, then if you can stand it, let it sit in the fridge overnight and gently reheat again. Rice/peshwari or garlic naan, mango chutney... you're in.
ReplyDeleteThe main secrets 1/ the frying to hold it together 2/ be gentle with it from the moment after pressing so it doesn't go back to cottage cheeseness 3/ reheat clool, reheat cool... peter
oops. bit Indian that.
ReplyDeleteDelicious sounding but you're right, it's a little off toopic ; )
Deletecombine easiest panna cotta recipe you can find adding pre melted ( microwaved will do) white chocolate during the heating process (afetr adding ground pistachios and before you add the gelatin substitute...agar agar is okay , some people reckon vegan jel is best for panna cotta.let it cool and almost set and quickly pipe into cannolis.. then try and fit a whole one into your mouth, sideways. You can add lemon zest if you fancy too but watch out for any curdling.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds amazing!
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