Rustic Potato and Fennel Tortilla. Simplicity at its best!

Perfect as a side dish or a veggie main course!

This is a recipe that I cooked for my mums 50th dinner party! I knew I was cooking a meat main course for my guests which I didn’t mind but I wanted something other than the side salads to be my main course, I decided on doing a tortilla because it is a perfect potato side dish to match the chicken I roasted and also it would be filling enough for me!

I’ve made plenty of tortillas over the years, usually a vessel for using up everything and anything that is in the fridge at the end of the week, but my favourite is still a simple potato, onion and garlic tortilla. I decided to add fennel for two reasons, one – it made it that extra bit special for the occasion, and two – my sister hadn’t tried fennel before and this was a perfect way to show it off!

I personally prefer cooked fennel to raw fennel due to the fact that it becomes mellow and sweet rather than sharp and aniseedy. It doesn’t over power the tortilla in anyway as long as you cook it down enough first.

This recipe brings back happy memories of being sat around the table by the pool in Spain tucking into a feast of salads, tortilla and tapas style dishes. Spain is where I learnt how to make tortilla and its now a staple recipe in my house

Serves 6

Gluten free, Vegetarian, Dairy Free

Warning: this recipe may make you want to stick a summer dress on and brave the cold for an alfresco lunch!

4 Large Potatoes
1 Fennel Bulb
1 Large Onion
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Teaspoon Fennel Seeds
8 Eggs
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil

Wash the potatoes then slice into 2cm thick slices (leave the skin on) and boil in a large pan for 5-6 minutes until soft to touch with a fork but not so it is easy to break apart. Once cooked drain and put to one side for a moment.

Thinly slice the onion and fennel, reserve the fennel fronds for decoration or to add to a side salad. In a large frying pan drizzle a little olive oil and on a medium heat and add the onion and fennel for 5 minutes then crush in the garlic, add the fennel seeds and a splash of water. Keep stirring these ingredients until everything is softened and juicy, approx 10 mins. You don’t want it to colour too much so a little trick is to add a small splash of water if it starts to brown, this slows the cooking slightly and cools everything down, just make sure the water has evaporated at the end.

Add the slices of potato to the pan and mix everything together with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add a sprinkle of salt and a good grind of pepper and cook until the potatoes have crisped up a little bit, around 5-6 minutes.

Spread everything around the pan so that it is evenly distributed and make sure the potato slices are flat (or at least that the top is even and smooth).

Crack the eggs into a jug or bowl and beat them well, then pour the eggs over the potato and fennel mix and using your wooden spoon gently push down through gaps in the potatoes to allow the egg to get in between everything.

Turn your grill on to a medium heat.

Cook the tortilla on the hob, gently giving everything a nudge every now and then to cook it evenly, for 4- 5 minutes until you can see that most of the egg is set. Transfer the pan to under the grill and finish it off for 2-3 minutes until the egg is completely set and the top is golden grown.

Turn out onto a large plate and allow to cool then slice it into 6 pieces.

You can make this in advance and then serve it cold or you can reheat it in the grill or the oven. This is perfect served with a red pepper and ricotta sauce (recipe coming soon)

Mushroom and Mixed Herb Fluffy Omelette

I finally learnt how to make an Omelette! In the past I would beat the eggs and pour them in the pan but after a few seconds I don’t know why I would just panic and scramble them. I blame the omelette  challenge on Saturday Morning Kitchen because the chefs would frantically break up the eggs in the pan and I had no idea how after that they would create an omelette! Oh well, I now realise the best thing to do for the most simple omelette in the world is to beat your eggs in a bowl, pour them into a non stick pan, swirl them around a bit so they cover the bottom of the pan, and leave to cook on a medium heat then you can fold it in half at the end if you wish.

This omelette though is a bit more special (fussy) but totally worth it. To make a super fluffy omelette I first separate the eggs into two bowls, then you whisk the egg whites untill they are stiff and then stir them back into the beaten egg yolks and cook first on a hob and then finished under a grill. You have this crazy meringue effect going on at first but the end result is just lovely! It’s much prettier than the basic technique and its more filling and I think a much nicer texture.

When I went to the supermarket last week they had big bunches of mixed fresh herbs for 10p, this is the sort of thing I always look out for even if you haven’t planned to buy them because herbs can enhance any meal, also they are good to freeze for future recipes. These particular ones were labelled as “Stuffing Herb Mix” but I think they all go perfectly with mushrooms! They included Sage, Thyme, Rosemary and Curly Parsley. ‘Woody’ herbs in particular like rosemary and thyme are a match made in heaven with mushrooms, they bring out the correct amount of earthiness but keep an element of sweetness there too.

You can use just one of the herbs or all four it is up to you! I used a small amount of all four since I had them to hand You could also use dried herbs mixed with fresh which would be just as delicious.

You get a lovely crispy bottom and a fluffy top!

To make one large Omelette

Vegetarian, Wheat and Gluten Free, Dairy Free

3 Eggs
Splash dairy free milk
5 Large chestnut Mushrooms (approx 1 cup sliced or a large handful!)
1 Spring Onion
1 Sprig thyme, 2-3 leaves sage, small bunch parsley, 1 sprig rosemary
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil

Slice the mushrooms and spring onions, and prepare your herbs by removing the thyme and rosemary leaves from the stalks, finely slice the sage and roughly chop the parsley (save some for garnish if you wish).

Heat some oil in a frying pan and add the mushrooms and herbs and season with some salt and pepper. Cook untill the mushrooms are golden brown and wilted but not over cooked (don’t let them shrivel). Once cooked take them out of the pan and put to one side.

Separate the eggs so that the yolks are in one bowl and the whites in another. Beat the egg yolks to break them up and mix with a dash of milk just to loosen the texture. Whisk the egg whites untill they are just stiff then pour in the egg yolk mixture and gently combine.

Reheat the frying pan with a little oil and pour in the egg mixture, gently swirl the pan to evenly distribute the mixture and cook untill the bottom is set and golden brown in colour.

Top with the mushroom mixture and the chopped spring onions and put it under a hot grill for 1-2 minutes until the top is also set and the omelette is cooked through. Fold in half and garnish with a little extra fresh parsley then eat!

Kale and Tomato Herby Fritatta: Vegetarian Breakfasts

I thought I’d focus on my two favourite breakfasts this week, eggs with kale and tomatoes and also baked beans on toast. Recently I’ve just been stirfrying the kale and serving it with scrambled eggs for minimum fuss but I prefer a fritatta because it is neater and more of a complete meal.

When it comes to breakfast I think simple is best, you’ve just woken up and you fancy a slice of toast and a cup of tea. Only problem is that’s not a very balanced start to your day and I personally prefer to start my day with a filling, nutritious meal including eggs and greens.

You may think it’s a bit extreme to eat kale for breakfast but I promise you that stirfried and seasoned, this dark green leaf is so delicious mixed with the creamy eggs. If you simply can’t do it then swap the kale for spinach, another iron rich green which is perfect at breakfast time.

So to keep this fritatta simple I kept the ingredients quite minimal, just enough to make this a bit more special than just your average egg dish but still simple non the least. You can make one large fritatta to share between two or you can make two mini ones like I have.

Serves 2

2 Large handfuls Kale
Small Bunch Parsley
Small Bunch Mint (approx 12-15 leaves)
2 Garlic Cloves
4 Spring Onions
4 Large Eggs
2 Tomatoes

Wash and chop the kale and herbs and crush the garlic cloves. Heat some oil in a frying pan and then stirfry the kale, herbs and garlic with a pinch of salt for around 2-3 minutes then add the chopped spring onions and continue to cook, stirring often, untill the kale has wilted. Around 5 more minutes.

Place thin slices of tomato into the bottom of two small round pie dishes/ tart dishes and then fill with the kale mixture.

Beat two eggs and then pour the eggs over the kale into the dishes. Use a fork to just move the kale around to allow the eggs to run down and fill the dish.

Place under a hot grill for 12-15 minutes untill the top and sides are firm, then turn it out on to a baking tray and place back under the grill untill the tomato lined bottom has browned and the egg is cooked through.

What’s your favourite breakfast? Do you like kale? I will post the recipe for my home made heinz style baked beans later in the week

My food budget and diet assessment: Focusing on variation vs costs!

Recently I have seen our weekly food bill double (if not more) and it didn’t feel like we had more food in the house. I know with the economy at the moment people have complained about the prices of food and household items going up but because I bought a lot of fresh, un packaged goods such as loose fruit and vegetables I thought I had escaped! I also put this increase in our food costs down to the fact that, due to reading so many health blogs, I have become very aware of the quality of food I was buying. Sure I can spend £25 a week on a food shop and we’ll live off  basics tomato soup, pastas and casseroles but was I making everything nutritionally balanced? Was the cheapest product on the shelf, for example bread, actually full of sugar/ salt etc where as the loaf that is 50p more is much better for you.

So I’ve gone from being a cost scruteniser to a label reader and it may be costing us more but I feel like I am making a difference. I read a quote by Martin Lewis (Money Supermarket Expert) who said “Don’t ask “What’s the cheapest way to get all the goodies I want?”. Instead ask “On my £XYZ budget, what’s the best value I can get with it?”“. I really agree and I realised that when doing my food shop I have been buying some organic produce or better quality where it is important but now I need to assess if there is anything I am buying which I don’t need OR do I need to re-adjust my budget to make sure we are eating the best foods for our bodies.

I’ve also recently been very keen to add more variety to our diet and to take in as many different fruits and vegetables each day as possible. I’ve always had a good balanced lunch of salads or soups made from vegetables and grains etc so I haven’t changed this. For evening meals I have just been making sure to vary the dishes each day and use as many different coloured vegetables as I can each meal. It sounds strange but I used to be very anti variation, I felt it was a waste of time adding extra fruits to things like cereal when I could just chop up a banana which only cost me 10p. I thought an apple and a banana every day would do the trick, but the more I learn and the better I feel I think it’s safe to say that I now want as many fruits as I can afford chopped up on that cereal!

Saying that, breakfast was my weakest meal of the day (even though it was my favourite) so here is how I have been trying to change it -

Breakfast:
Before – Porridge made with water and a handful of dried cranberries mixed in – cheap as chips but bland and not much variety, fibre from the oats though!
Now – Overnight porridge oats made with soya milk, bananas, strawberries, flax seeds and cinnamon – calcium, potassium, vitamin c, magnesium and more.

Before – Fruit Juice – vitamins (depending on the juice)
Now – Smoothie with coconut water, greens and berries – Iron, fiber, vitamins, calcium, riboflavin etc

Before – Fried Egg Sandwich with butter and ketchup
Now – Fried Egg wrap with mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach or scrambled eggs with various toppings

Even Scott has been changing his breakfasts as we both started to feel better for our healthier start to the day. Instead of having a few slices of toast and butter Scott now has a smoothie before work, then he has muesli with yoghurt later on in the morning.

It may physically be more food than we were eating before but it is better quality meals which are more exciting than before. Also I have noticed a big difference in my day from having a better breakfast, I’m not hungry untill much later in the day and I have more energy!

So now to look again at my food budget, I do not want to stop buying all of these lovely fruit and vegetables which are enhancing our diet so instead I have started shopping at the market on a weekly basis. I take along £5- £10 and see what I can get for my money. This is much cheaper than buying at the supermarket, also you get bigger quantities of the produce at the market so often what I buy will last us the whole week.

I have increased the amount I allow myself to spend at the super market on other items but I try to balance buying cheap items such as porridge oats with more expensive items like organic bread. That way your food shop is more under control and will not be too expensive. My weekly budget has gone from £25 to £40 and I have adjusted my “takeaway/ pub” budget accordingly! I know my priorities

If you want to see more tips on cooking within a budget then why not check out the guest post I did over at Foodies 100 – “A Round up of 5 brilliant budget cooking blogs”.

Mushroom and Sage Mini Quiches

The thinking behind this recipe was that I wanted to make something which could be served as a substantial canape for a party. With the christmas season fast approaching it’s time to start planning these things! I find shop bought Quiche a bit stodgy and often quite bland so I decided to recreate the dish using filo pastry, so that it’s still quite healthy, and also I have changed the filling so that there is no cream, butter or cheese! But don’t worry there is still plenty of flavour from the lovely mushrooms and sage.

One tip for this recipe though – Do not used sweetened soya milk by accident!! I did when I wasn’t paying attention and it was only when my husband asked why the kitchen smelled like custard I realised!

Makes 12 mini Quiche

1 Large Onion
12 Sage Leaves/
4 Garlic Cloves
300-400g Mushrooms (If you want to keep this cheap use button or closed cup but you can also use chestnut/ wild mushrooms)
1/2 pack Filo Pastry (defrosted)
2 Eggs
400ml Soya Milk
Salt and Pepper
Spray Olive or Sunflower oil

Slice the onion, sage and crush the garlic then soften them in a pan with some spray oil for 2 minutes then add the mushrooms, some seasoning and a tiny splash of water. Stir it together untill soft.

I used a cupcake tin (see picture below) and sprayed oil into each hole so the sides and bottom are greased. For the pastry take 1 sheet of the filo and cut it into 8 squares (you may need to check this with the size of your tin as they may vary and you may need bigger squares), spray each square with oil and place two together so you have a 8 pointed star. Place this into a hole in the tin and press down gently so that it is in the hole and ready to be filled. Complete this so you have 12 pastry cases ready. There is no need to blind bake filo pastry because it is so thin.

In a jug add the eggs and beat them untill smooth then add the milk and some black pepper. Spoon the mushroom filling into the pastry cases and then pour over the milk and egg mixture.

Put into a preheated oven at 170c for 25-30 minutes untill browned and the filling has set. Place them on a wire rack to cool down slightly then serve warm. These can be kept in the fridge and reheated to crisp up the pastry again.

I have also made a squash and broccoli Quiche so that recipe will be coming soon! These Quiches are really easy, delicious and very inexpensive to make so they’re perfect for a christmas party on a budget! x