Prawn Cocktail (my fave version)

Ingredients
2 Egg Yolks
1 Teaspoon English Mustard
1 Teaspoon Mustard Powder
250ml Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons Tomato Sauce
A Splash of Tabasco Sauce
50g Ready to Eat Prawns (chopped to same size as peas/sweetcorn just reserve a few whole for decoration)
1-2 Tablespoons Sweetcorn
1-2 Tablespoons Peas
1-2 Tablespoons Carrots (chopped to same size as peas/sweetcorn)
1-2 Tablespoons Red Pepper (chopped to same size as peas/sweetcorn)

Equipment
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Balloon Whisk
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Metal Spoon

The Good Bit

1. Drop your egg yolks, mustard and mustard powder into your bowl and begin to whisk, slowly drizzle the oil in and whisk at the same time, you should get to a consistency similar to that of shop bought mayo then add in the tomato and tabasco sauce. (do not add all the oil in one go, it will spoil the mayonnaise)
2. Now stir in the prawns, peas, sweetcorn, carrot and pepper then spoon into glasses and decorate with the reserved whole prawns and serve (or have as a side in a salad)

Serves 4

Prawn Cocktail

Ingredients
2 Egg Yolks
1 Teaspoon English Mustard
1 Teaspoon Mustard Powder
250ml Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons Tomato Sauce
A Splash of Tabasco Sauce
50g Ready to Eat Prawns
1 Few Lettuce Leaves
2 Avocados

Equipment
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Balloon Whisk
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Metal Spoon

The Good Bit

1. Drop your egg yolks, mustard and mustard powder into your bowl and begin to whisk, slowly drizzle the oil in and whisk at the same time, you should get to a consistency similar to that of shop bought mayo then add in the tomato and tabasco sauce. (do not add all the oil in one go, it will spoil the mayonnaise)
2. Line 4 glasses with your lettuce leaves, then drop in the avocado, add on top a dollop of your seafood sauce and then arrange a few prawns on top and serve.

Serves 4

Crispy Potato Skins

Ingredients
4 Large Baking Potatoes
Olive Oil
100ml Creme Fraiche
1 Tablespoon Horseradish Sauce
2 Smoked and Peppered Mackerel Fillets
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 Oven Tray
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Mixing Bowl
2 Metal Spoons
1 Pastry Brush

The Good Bit

1. Preheat your oven too 200c 400f gas 6, scrub your potatoes and prick them, cook in the oven for 1 1/2 hours or until tender then remove and cut each into 6 to 8 wedges.
   
2. In the meantime mix together the creme fraiche and horseradish and season with salt and pepper. Scoop out the centres of the wedges leaving about 1cm of potato before you hit skin, brush them with oil and stick back in your oven for 25 minutes until golden.
3. Whilst you are waiting for that to do, break your fish into strips, dollop sauce into each of the potato skins and top with little bits of fish.

Serves 4

Courgette and Tomato Bake

Ingredients
4 Courgettes (sliced but not peeled)
4 Large Tomatoes (sliced)
1 Clove Garlic (crushed)
110g Mozzarella (sliced)
4 Tablespoons Grated Parmesan
Small Bunch Fresh Basil (roughly torn)
A Splash of Oil
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Garlic Press
1 Large Frying Pan
1 Ovenproof Dish

The Good Bit

1. Start by frying the crushed garlic in a little oil then add your courgette in 1 single layer in the frying pan (you may have to do a few batches here, get them golden on each side)
2. Pre heat your oven too 190c 375f gas 5. When that is done, lay them in alternating layers in your ovenproof dish with the tomato and mozzarella, so you get something that looks like the slates on your roof. Then sprinkle over some salt and pepper, basil and the parmesan and bake for 30 minutes

Serves 4 as a starter 2 as a main

Potato Tikka Soup

Ingredients

1 Onion

3 Tablespoons Tikka Curry Paste

750g Potatoes (cubed)

600ml Milk

1 Vegetable Stock Cube

A Splash of Oil

Coriander and Mango Chutney to Serve

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Chopping Board

1 Large Pan

1 Blender

The Good Bit

1. Cook your onion in a splash of oil for 3-4 minutes until softened, add in the tikka paste and cook for a further 2 minutes, now add in the potatoes and stir well coating them all over.
2. Add in your milk and stock cube, bring to the boil and cover, simmer for 25 minutes.
3. Allow the mixture to cool then pass through a blender, reheat when you are ready to serve and garnish with a sprinkling of chopped coriander and a dollop of mango chutney.

Serves 4

Omlette in Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

1 Onion (finely chopped)

2 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)

4 Eggs (beaten with a pinch of salt added)

150ml Milk

1 Tablespoon Fresh Rosemary (chopped)

150ml Vegetable Stock

1x400g Can Chopped Tomatoes

75g Gruyere (diced)

Grated Parmesan to Serve

Crusty Bread to Serve

A Knob of Butter

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Chopping Board

1 Frying Pan

1 Plate

The Good Bit

1. Fry your onion and garlic in the butter for 4-5 minutes until soft and beginning to colour then add your eggs, gruyere and milk and make an omlette (leave it to cook until it is almost firm all over the top surface) lift out and roll up on your plate and cut into inch wide strips.
2. Add the tomatoes, stock and rosemary to the frying pan and bring to the boil, allow to simmer for 10 minutes then add the omlette slices, warm through for 3-4 minutes then serve with a sprinkle of grated parmesan on top and crausty bread.

Serves 4

Italian Omlette

Ingredients

900g Potatoes (cut into thinish slices)

1 Tablespoon Oil

1 Onion (sliced)

2 Cloves Garlic (chopped)

6 Sundried Tomatoes (cut into slices)

1x400g Can Artichoke Hearts (drained and halved)

250g Ricotta Cheese

4 Eggs (beaten)

2 Tablespoon Milk

50g Parmesan Cheese

3 Tablespoons Fresh Thyme (chopped)

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Choppig Board

1 Pan (half full with boiling salted water)

1 Frying Pan

1 Spatula

1 Ovenproof Dish

1 Mixing Bowl

1 Fork

The Good Bit

1. Pre heat your oven too 190c 375f gas 5, now cook your potatoes in the boiling water for 5-6 minutes until just tender, at the same time fry off your onion and garlic in the frying pan with a splash of oil until they just turn soft 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes to the onion and fry for a further 2 minutes whilst you start to place a layer of the potato slices in the bottom of your ovenproof dish, then add a layer of the onion mixture followed by a layer of artichokes and ricotta.
3. Repeat this layering until you have run out of ingredients, finish with a layer of potato on top, beat togeter the egg, milk, half the parmesan, thyme and season with salt and pepper, pour this mixture over your potatoes and then sprinkle on the remaining cheese and bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve.

Serves 4

Chilli Polenta Chips

Ingredients

350g Instant Polenta

2 Teaspoons Chilli Powder

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

150ml Sour Cream

1 Tablespoon Fresh Parsley (chopped or use chives, i love chives in sour cream)

1 1/2 Litres of Boiling Water

Salt and Pepper

Equipment

1x2 Inch deep Baking Tray

1 Large Pan

1 Wooden Spoon

1 Mixing Bowl

1 Metal Spoon

Paper Towel/Kitchen Paper

The Good Bit

1. Bring your water to the boil then add in 2 teaspoons of salt, pour in your polenta in a steady stream stiring all the time, reduce the heat and keep stirring, after 5 minutes or so you should be able to stand your spoon in the mixture.
2. Once at this point, remove from the heat, stir in your chilli and a good seasoning of salt and pepper and then pour into your baking tray until you have a thickness of about 4 cm, now you want to allow this to cool.
3. Whilst you are waiting mix together your sour cream and parsely and place in the fridge, Now you want to cut your polenta into chip size pieces and fry them in a little oil on each side until crispy and golden (3-4 Minutes), then drain on kitchen paper and serve.

Serevs 4

Italian Potato Salad

Ingredients

450g New Potatoes (or small potatoes)

4 Tablespoons Natural Yogurt

4 Tablespoons Mayonnaise

8 Sundried Tomatoes (thinly sliced)

2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley (chopped)

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Chopping Board

1 Pan (1/2 full with boiling salted water)

1 Mixing Bowl

1 Metal Spoon

The Good Bit

1. Strat by cooking your potatoes for around 10 minutes until they are tender. Whilst they are cooking mix together the mayonnaise, yogurt, tomato slices and the parsley.
2. Drain your potatoes once they are cooked and then allow to cool before trying to cut, cut into 2 inch chunks then toss them into your sauce mix and stir in well, chill in the fridge for 20 minutes before serving.

Serves 4

Capri Salad

Ingredients

2 Beef Tomatoes

125g Mozzarella Cheese

12 Black Olives (pitted and sliced)

8 Basil Leaves

1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Chopping Board

1 Grill Pan

The Good Bit

1. start by cuting each tomato into 6 slices, then do the same as best you can with the mozzarella, now you want to start with a base of tomato, a slice of mozzarella and a few slices of olive and 1 basil leaf, repeat this layer twice and stack on top of each other, when you are done you should have 4 stacks, with 3 layers of tomato, cheese and olives to each stack (hiding the olives under the cheese on the top layer, you'll also have no basil for this layer).
2. Grill for 2-3 minutes until the cheese just begins to melt, drizzle over a drop of oil, and a drop of balsamic vinegar then season with salt and pepper and serve

Serves 4

Spinach Salad

Ingredients

100g Spinach

75g Radicchio Leaves (salad leaves will do)

50g Mushrooms (cleaned and sliced)

50g Parma Ham (torn)

100g Cooked Chicken (torn)

1 Orange (all the juice and half the zest)

1 Tablespoon Natural Yoghurt

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Equipment

1 SHARP Knife

1 Chopping Board

1 Screwtop Jam Jar

1 Serving Bowl

The Good Bit

1. Start by chucking all your leaves into the serving bowl and mixing well, then add in the chicken, mushrooms and ham and mix again.
2. Now, in your jar place the oil, yogurt, orange juice and zest, screw the lid on and shake well, then season with salt and pepper.
3. Pour your dressing over the salad and mix well before serving.

Serves 4

Yellow Pepper Salad

Ingredients
4 Rashers of Bacon/A Handful of Lardons (cooked and chopped into chunks)
2 Yellow peppers (de seeded and sliced)
8 Radishes (trimmed and cut into wedges)
1 Stick Celery (thinly chopped)
3 Plum Tomatoes (cut into wedges)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Fresh Chopped Thyme (1/3 tablespoon if using dried)
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Serving Bowl

The Good Bit

1. Leaving the bacon to one side, place all your ingredients into your serving bowl and mix well, then season with salt and pepper before finally sprinkling on the bacon/lardons.
   
2. Serve

Serves 4