Archive for the ‘Breakfast’ Category

Nectrarine & Blackberry Smoothie

Saturday, September 4th, 2010

The missus and I have been on a bit of a detox for the past couple of weeks, in part due to our impending nuptials, and to be honest, it’s been a bit miserable. No booze, no bread, no dairy, no sugar, no caffeine, no red meat…no fun.

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But necessity being the mother of invention and all that, I’ve been having to find new ways to entertain my taste buds. This refreshing smoothie is a result of this experimentation, and proof that every cloud has a silver lining.

The grapefruit juice gives a slightly bitter but pleasant aftertaste, and the mint keeps it fresh. I like it cold too, so I’ll put the fruit in the fridge for a few hours / overnight before I make it.

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Ingredients

2 ripe nectarines, stoned and quartered

100g blackberries, washed

10 mint leaves

150ml fresh grapefruit juice

1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

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Banana Bread

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010

I’m not a big fan of the over ripe banana. I love them when they’ve just changed from green to yellow, but as soon as those dark brown spots appear on the skin, I’m over it. The flesh goes a bit cotton wooly, and I find them hard to eat.

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But thanks to my introduction to banana bread in Australia, those spotty old fruits finally have a use. This recipe uses four of the buggers, and a little kick of rum for background flavour.

Ingredients

4 medium sized ripe bananas (spotty with soft flesh)

250g plain white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

250g golden caster sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

125g unsalted butter

2 eggs

2 tablespoons dark rum

Method

First up, set your oven set to 175 c and then grease a medium sized (19 x 11 cm) loaf tin with unsalted butter.

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Smoked Mackerel Omelette For Two

Friday, May 21st, 2010

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One of the other dishes I was thinking about for the previous post was this omelette for two. I thought it could work quite well in that it combines seaside ingredients with the romantic nature of Lou and Liam’s retreat. However, fish for brekkie isn’t to everyone’s tastes, so this is the kind of dish you can enjoy at any time of the day.

There’s only one mackerel fillet in the mix so the flavour isn’t too strong, and  I use a bit of zero fat Greek yoghurt in the eggs to help keep the omelette moist in the middle. The little bit of  sharpness the yoghurt gives also works well with the oily fish.

Ingredients

4 large free range eggs

2 tablespoons 0% fat Greek yoghurt

1 mackerel fillet (around 70g)

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped chives

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

Handful of grated Parmesan

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive oil and butter for frying.

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Summer Porridge

Monday, May 17th, 2010

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As mentioned in the previous post, my friends who run a lovely boutique B&B in Margate have asked me to contribute a dish for their breakfast menu, and this is it.

Lou and Liam opened the doors of The Reading Rooms last year after restoring the amazing grade II Georgian Town House where it’s situated and appearing on Ruth Watson’s Hotel Rescue on Channel 4. It’s a really relaxing and luxurious place. Insanely comfortable beds, stylish decor, beautiful bathrooms and they cook a mean breakfast too. And that’s where I come in.

As well as the full English and pastries on the menu, they’re going to offer this alternative to a warming winter porridge. The oats absorb most of the liquid, becoming lovely and plump, and the apple juice’s natural sugar means no need to add anything extra, unless you’ve got a sweet tooth. I like to serve it with chopped summer berries.

Ingredients (serves 2 / 3)

120g jumbo porridge oats

250ml apple juice

250g low fat natural yoghurt

2 apples, peeled and grated (I like granny smiths, but anything juicy with a bit of tang is good)

Seasonal fruit and honey to serve

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Pimp My Porridge

Monday, December 14th, 2009

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We all know that porridge is healthy, but as is often the case with healthy stuff, it can get a bit boring. Luckily porridge is also a good base for other flavours, so try out this slightly tropicaaaaal version. I’ve used ‘mugs’ as a measurement as I can’t really be bothered to be precise in the morning. And use coconut chips as opposed to dessicated if you can. This quantity will serve 2.

Ingredients

1 mug of jumbo organic oats

1 mug of semi skimmed milk

3/4 mug water

Handful of coconut chips

Small handful of dried cranberries

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Breakfast Pizza

Sunday, November 8th, 2009

During the Summer holidays of my second year at university I went backpacking with my mate Ed around Egypt, Jordan and Israel. One of the most vivid memories I have from that trip was when we were staying in Islamic Jerusalem. We were sleeping on the roof of a pretty grotty hostel, but every morning we’d look forward to going to this local bakery for breakfast. This place wasn’t a cafe, but a proper working bakery. As well as supplying bread to local restaurants and shops, they guy who owned it was also kind of famous for his ‘breakfast pizzas’.

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They were made on dough base that was smeared with tomato puree, then topped with a triangle of Dairylea style processed cheese, and an egg. They were then baked in a bread oven until the egg was cooked all the way through. Like the hostel, the pizzas were pretty basic, but I remember them being very tasty, and after we’d been there a couple of times, the guy let us make our own and put them in the oven.

This breakfast pizza is a more sophisticated version of the above, and uses some of the same basic ingredients as the pizza recipe featured in this earlier post.

Ingredients (per pizza)

Around 200g pizza dough

Tomato sauce

2 cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced

Teleggio cheese

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Something Different For Breakfast

Sunday, October 25th, 2009

I sometimes get a bit bored with breakfast. Cerial during the week and a fry-up at the weekend, or whatever’s in the fridge and is easy to make and quick to eat. It seems like a bit of a shame seeing as it’s ‘the most important meal of the day’.

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If you fancy something different try this avocado on toast. My missus introduced me to it, and now I love it too. No rocket science. It’s really quick and easy, and is also pretty healthy.

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