Cranberry Craisin Muffin... Mood = Merry

I don't know about you, but winter is one of my favourite times of the year. I love wearing the scarves, thick puffy coats and my lovely DOMAKAYA hat and Gloves that my friend KOKO makes. I Love the twinkling lights strewn along the streets of London and the Christmas vibe that is in full force over here. It puts me in such a good mood and for some reason i get very inspired to cook.

Now in this amazing time, there are also amazing foods to indulge in and i am like a bulldozer, non stop baking and non stop eating! On thanksgiving i made my client some muffins and they were just so moorish and juicy and full of colour and bite. they were covered with a lovely streusal topping which was an added bonus.

I used 2 kinds of cranberries for this and use vegetable oil instead of butter. The fresh cranberry gives this a sour and bursting punch, and the craisin (dried Cranberry) gives this a sweet and chewy texture. Both work together so well and make this a muffin not to be forgotten.

Recipe:

250g Mixed Fresh Cranberries and Craisins
150 ml milk
240g flour
115g caster sugar
115ml vegetable oil
2 eggs
1/4 t Bicarbonate of Soda
1/4 t salt
1 t Vanilla extract

Streusal:

35 butter
50 Flour
60 Sugar

Method:

• Make your struesal first but mixing together the flour and butter to make a resemblance of breadcrumbs, like a crumble topping. then add the sugar and set aside

• Mix the oil and sugar together

• Add the eggs.

• Add the milk and mix well, scraping down the sides!

• Add the sifted flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda.

• Add the vanilla and then add the cranberry mix.

• Line a muffin pan with cases and fill all the way to the top.

• Coat each muffin with the streusal and place in a hot oven at 180 degrees C.

• Cook for about 20-25 minutes.

Eat warm with tea or just whenever you are feeling festive!

Love the holiday Season!!!!

Gemista ..... Mood = Stuffed, Literally!

As you already know i am close to opening my new place.... And whats the best thing to do before opening; try new recipes with my business partners mother. Sia is a wonderful cook, as my mother is, and apart from her being Greek, that's the only difference between them. They have soul, passion and most importantly they love to eat.

Sia had been here for a few days and i didn't want to impose myself on her but i had to! I wanted some recipes for my Deli/Restaurant. And this one is not to be missed!

Gemista (pronounced Yemista) is a dish that i had in the island of Tinos this summer. It is simple but oh so delicious. It is stuffed vegetables with its own stuffing, rice, tomato sauce, salt and pepper mixed with the stuffing of other vegetables as well. On this occasion, Sia made aubergines, tomatoes, green peppers and long red peppers. In the mix was all the insides of these beauties, parsley and seasoning.

Who knew that such simple ingredients could create such a wonderful dish that is so moorish and so ridiculously tasty!

I was totally up for this as i am going to serve things that i have learnt during my experience these last 10 years and also new things that are suitable for this environment. Food that can be made in advance and prepared and packed for lunches, take aways and also sit down lunches and dinners.


This is a great option for someone who is vegetarian. And i am not a vegetarian, but this is on the top of my list. This dish is best served at room temperature to let all the flavours settle and soak.

Recipe:

4 aubergines
2 tomatoes
4 green peppers
2 long red peppers
2 full spoons of raw rice per vegetable
700ml tomato sauce (split evenly)
1 bunch of chopped parsley
2 potatoes peeled and cut in to large chunks
1 large onion chopped
150ml olive oil
salt and pepper

Method:

• Cut the tops of the aubergines off and keep them.

• Begin to scoop out the filling of the aubergine to leave a hollow center.

• Keep the filling of 1 aubergine and chop it up.

• Take out the centers of the tomato and also add them to the chopped aubergine.

• Add the rice, half the tomato sauce, salt, pepper, olive oil and mix with chopped onion and parsley.

• Mix this all together and have a taste to see if the flavour is satisfactory.

• Fill the veg within an inch of the top and close with the top of the vegetable.

• If you can fit the aubergine top in, just trim around the edge and seal it, like a cork in a bottle.

• Place the long red pepper and aubergines lying flat and the green pepper and tomato on its bottom.

• Get some more of the tomato sauce and mix with a little olive oil, and salt, also a spoonful of sugar and mix. Add a teacup worth of water to dilute it and pour around and on top of the vegetables.

• Add the potatoes and place in the oven for about 1 hour and a half for at 180 degrees.

• Turn half way through and then again just before serving.

• You want the vegetables to be browning and almost falling apart. ALMOST!

I ate this dish for the next 3 days as she made so much and i have to say each day i ate it tasted better and better.

Easy to make, and wonderful to taste!

Smokey Apple Rhubarb cake.... Mood= Sweet and Tarty!

I am exhausted! Really really exhausted. But all in the name of a good cause. I am about 4 weeks away from opening my own place and i am so excited. I have picked my packaging, designed my logo and got a colour scheme going that is very fresh but serious! I am so excited.

When you see everything coming together the way it has done for me, it makes it all so real and also so scary at the same time.

Christina (my business partner) and I were sitting working today getting our final things together, when i decided to get up and make this cake that i have been dreaming of for AGES! I had rhubarb in my fridge and had a lovely selection of apples roaming around my fruit basket and everything was JUST on the edge of doom.

I decided to make a really moist, sweet, smoky, tart spongy cake with caramelised apples and sticky rhubarb. YUMMY!

This cake is such a comfort to eat and so easy to make. You will make this again and again. The combination of the fruit and the seasoning so to speak make this such an indulgent cake.

Recipe:

5 Apples (1 large Bramley, 2 Pink lady, 2 Cox)
200g Red part of Rhubarb
1T of cinnamon
5T Golden caster sugar

330g sifted plain flour
1t baking powder
1t salt
240ml olive oil
370g golden caster sugar
60ml buttermilk
2.5 t Vanilla extract
4 eggs

Method:

• Peel and core the apples. Cut them into medium size chunks.

• Add chopped up rhubarb and mix with the apples, 5T of sugar and 1T cinnamon.

• Leave in a bowl till you need it.

• Preheat your oven to 180.

• In your kitchen aid, mix the buttermilk, oil, vanilla and sugar together.

• The add the flour, baking powder and salt sifting it into the mixed wet ingredients.

• Add one egg at a time. (it looked like choux pastry for a while then combined together well).

• Scrape down the bottom and the sides of your bowl to make sure it is all incorporating well.

• Get a 30cm cake loaf tin or 11" loaf tin and line it.

• Take your cake batter and place half of it in the tin (it may look thin and not enough but trust me it will rise alot).

• Add half the mix of apples and rhubarb and scatter.

• Add the rest of the mix and then scatter the rest of the rhubarb and apple mix all over the top.

• Place in the oven and cook gently for about 1 hour 15 minutes or until your skewer comes out clean.

• When it is ready, let it cool for about 10 minutes in the tin and then take it out and serve lovely soft slices with a dollop of cream.

Cant wait to make this for my mum when she gets back home from her travels!