All posts tagged: food photography

Blood Orange, Red Chard and Stilton Salad

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During the summer months, I eat a lot of creative salads, but in the winter I usually go for more substantial dishes. However, when you can combine blood orange, red chard and stilton, Im all for eating salads during the winter! Juicy blood oranges can be found at the moment in the shops. I got mine in my local farm shop along side the delicious red chard, which really brightens up salads with its colourful deep red stems. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Serves 2 2 extra large handfuls of red chard, washed 1 blood orange 150g good stilton (add more of less to suit your taste) 2 tbsp mixed seeds, such as pumpkin and pine nuts 1 tbsp olive oil ____________________________________________________________________________________ Segment the blood orange, (here’s how) and try to capture most of the stray juices. Cut the stilton into randomly sized chunks and toss with the washed leaves, seeds and blood orange segments. Finally drizzle the renaming blood orange juice and olive oil over the finished salad. Serve with a few slices of good bread, for example …

Blueberry and Orange Polenta Cake

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Blueberry and Orange Polenta Cake A couple of years ago I tasted the most heavenly polenta cake with a rosemary sirup in the cafe of The Scottish National Galley of Art. The soft texture and sticky sirup was a cake triumph! And even after thinking about this cake more than one should think about cake, it’s taken me this long to give polenta a go myself. If you need a gluten free friendly cake, this is a good start. Adapted from Sainsburys Baking Collection. ____________________________________________________________________________________ 100g unsalted butter 100g caster sugar 2 large eggs 100g almonds 50g cashews 90g fine polenta zest and juice of half a orange 1 ½ tsp baking powder 100ml of crème fresh 100g blueberries ____________________________________________________________________________________ Preheat your oven to 180 °c /fan 160 °c / gas mark 4. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin. In a food processor, whiz the almonds and cashews to a fine dust, set aside. Cream the butter and sugar together, until soft and fluffy. Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after …

Poached Duck Eggs with Avovado and Spinach

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Poached Duck Eggs with Avocado and Spinach I love poached eggs and my darling boyfriend always makes them for me as a wee treat. So until I decided to poach a duck egg, I hadn’t actually done it before. (I’ve made every other kind of eggs, I just want to say) And as expected, it was delicious, with just a little bit more flavour than a chickens egg and bigger, of course! This is a smashing dish to serve for brunch, or as a light lunch. I used my spelt bread recipe for a wholesome side kick to the tasty egg. Spelt recipe here ________________________________________________________________ Serves two people: 2 duck eggs 1 avocado, sliced a couple of slices of good bread a handful of mushrooms a handful of spinach 1 tbsp olive oil plus extra for frying salt, paprika and pepper to taste ________________________________________________________________ Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Meanwhile fry the mushrooms in olive oil. Assemble the spinach leaves, avocado and mushrooms on the bread and drizzle with the olive oil. …

Jerusalem Artichoke and Goats Cheese Tart with Pine Nuts and Homemade Pesto

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Jerusalem Artichoke and Goats Cheese Tart with Pine Nuts and Homemade Pesto Jerusalem Artichokes, a relative of the Sunflower, are in season during the winter months from October to March and are therefore a great vegetable to enjoy right now. They are rich in vitamin C and K and originate from Mexico, but thrives in the British garden. In this recipe I have combined a sharp counterpart in form of the Goats Cheese, to the mild tasting Jerusalem Artichokes. And adding homemade pesto gives the whole dish a rich feel. I also used my ‘birthday present eggs’! They were a gift from my good friends’ chickens! ____________________________________________________________________________________ Short Crust Pastry 200g plain flour 100g butter, cubed 2-3 tbsp cold water pinch of salt Filling 400g jerusalem artichokes, peeled 3 large handfuls of spinach 2 eggs 150g goats cheese 250ml single cream tsp ground nutmeg half a lemon, juiced 3 tbsp homemade pesto, recipe here pinch of salt and pepper ____________________________________________________________________________________ In a large bowl, use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until …

Winter Warming Chickpea and Coconut Water Curry, with Homemade Peshwari Nan

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Winter Warming Chickpea and Coconut Water Curry, with Homemade Peshwari Nan At my birthday, someone brought round a carton of coconut water….and left in in my fridge. I wasn’t immediately sure what to do with it, however after tagging along to by boyfriends gig with Nell Bryden, a lovely New York singer/songwriter, I saw her gulping down litres of the stuff and assumed it was tasty! Yet on returning home the next day and the coconut water soaked my pallet, I was surprised how icky it actually was served straight. There was no way I would be able to finish the whole carton, I thought to myself. So whilst making curry in the evening, I came upon the idea of using it in place of regular water. It lends itself really well in this recipe, with the subtle coconut flavour and ever so slightly salty taste. Worth a go, but just use regular water if you haven’t been laden with a big old carton that you don’t know how to shift! ____________________________________________________________________________________  Serves 4 a …

Homemade Peshwari Nan with Coconut and Pistachio

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Homemade Peshwari Nan with Coconut and Pistachio Making your own homemade nan is extremely satisfying! Ill not be going back to shop bought nan after having attempted these. The flavours are gorgeous and the texture is soft and fluffy. Sprinkling the baked nan with chopped pistachio give’s the bread a splash of fantastic colour. I used this recipe, but changed the filling to what I associate with Peshwari Nan. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Dough 250g plain flour plus extra for dusting 1 tsp sugar ½ tsp salt ½ tsp baking powder 130ml milk Filling  2 tbsp olive oil 30g chopped pistachios 50g desiccated coconut 1 tsp pilau rice spice mix 2 tbsp juicy sultanas 1 tbsp ground almonds 2 tsp agave syrup or sugar 1 drop red food colouring (optional) 1 tbsp salted butter melted, for serving ____________________________________________________________________________________ Sift together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Mix the milk and oil together in a separate bowl. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients. Combine the …

Chai Cinnamon Buns

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Chai Cinnamon Buns These buns are truly heavenly, especially when it is snowing outside! They are time consuming, but worth the effort on special occasions or at the weekends when you have extra time. With this recipe, I have merged two great taste experiences together, Canadian Cinnamon Buns and Indian Chai to form the perfect Chai Cinnamon Bun. After graduating from Art College, I traveled around India and Nepal with my friend Mary for 3 months. We saw wonderful things, from the snow peaked Himalaya, farmers washing their buffalo’s in the Ganges River to the glistening walls of the Taj Mahal, all along the trip drinking many cups of Chai. See more here and here Authentic Indian Chai is made using a wonderful blend of warming spices and sweet honey steeped in milk then boiled. In India it’s served in tiny cups sometimes made of clay that can be bought from street sellers for 5 rupees (penny’s!). After gulping down the tea, it’s customary to smash the little clay cups on the ground and walk on. …

American Style Blueberry Pancakes

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American Style Blueberry Pancakes When my boyfriend and I took a month out of our schedule and headed to California, we ate a lot of pancakes. Not because we ordered them as such, but whenever we ordered eggs or any other breakfast dish, pancakes came on the side, whether you wanted them or not! I had so many, I haven’t made my homemade version since getting back. But the other day my lovely friend Dorte reminded me of them once more, this time with added blueberry’s. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Makes roughly 8 small pancakes, or 4-5 medium ones. 135 g plain flour, preferably organic 1tsp baking powder ½ tsp salt 2 tbsp sugar 130 ml milk 1 large free-range egg 2 tbsp butter, melted 100g blueberrys extra butter for frying _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Start by melting the butter on low heat and leave to cool for 5 min. Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, then add the salt. Whisk the milk and eggs together and pour the mixture into the flour and stir. Then add the …