Sea Food Pasta

The group found a recipe for a seafood pasta in a tomato sauce in one of our cookbooks. As some of us do not eat seafood that often we decided to give it a go.









First we finely diced garlic and onion.

We then cooked them down in a little olive oil until they had soften.
To this we added paprika, tinned tomatoes, a little chicken stock and seasoning.
We brought this the boil and added the mixed seafood and simmered for 5 minutes.

We added the pasta to the sauce and then served the dish with fresh parsley and a wedge of lemon. The group enjoyed the pasta but also suggested that adding some chili would improve the flavour.
  

Mackerel Fish Cakes

The group found this recipe for mackerel fish cakes. Some of the group had never tried mackerel before so were excited to try something new.

We spoke about the nutritious value of mackerel and found out that it is rich in essential oils, vitamins and minerals. We also found that it is relatively cheap compared to other fish.

To make the fish cakes we used cooked mackerel fillets, cold mash potato, spring onions and horseradish sauce.

First we shredded the mackerel and finely chopped the spring onions.

We then added the cold mash potato and four tbsp's of horseradish and mixed well.

We then made the mixture into fish cakes and dipped them in flour, egg and then bread crumbs to create a crunchy outer layer once cooked.

We baked our fishcakes in the oven for about 35 minutes but for quicker results you can fry them.

Ready to go in the oven.

Whilst the fish cakes were cooking the group prepared a fresh with tomatoes, cucumber, spring onion, coriander, peppers, feta and olives in an olive oil and lemon dressing.

Chopping ingredients for the salad.

The finished salad.

Once the fish cakes were crispy and golden on the outside we served them with the salad.

 Everyone thought the fishcakes were very tasty and a great meal during summer.

BBQ

This week the group wanted to have a BBQ and make the most out of the beautiful weather we have been having.

First we got started on the Burgers we used lean beef mince, grated onion, crushed garlic, salt, pepper and a pinch of cinnamon.

We then mixed all the ingredients together and made them into patties:

We put the burgers in fridge before we cooked them on the BBQ:

Whilst the burgers were cooking we prepared the chicken kebabs.

We sliced chicken breast into equal sized chunks, we chopped onion, peppers and mushroom then began to assemble the kebabs.

We brushed the kebabs with a BBQ sauce to add some flavour and keep the chicken tender whilst cooking.

To accompany the burgers and kebabs we made a potato salad and a coleslaw.

For the Coleslaw we chopped white cabbage and red onion into slices and grated some carrot.

We dressed the coleslaw with a simple vinaigrette to keep the coleslaw as light and fresh as possible.

For the potato salad we boiled some baby potatoes, chopped some spring onions and chives and mixed them all together with a little mayonnaise.

Everyone enjoyed the BBQ and worked really hard to make it a wonderful day.

Salmon with Red Pesto

The group made this lovely summer dish of Salmon with red pesto, green beans and baby potatoes.

First we prepared the salmon fillets by covering them with red pesto and wrapping them in silver foil ready for the oven.

We also prepared the green beans by cutting the ends off and putting them in a saucepan of water, ready to cook later.

We also par boiled some baby potatoes and finished them off in the oven to crisp them up. The salmon was cooked for about 30 mins in the oven and the green beans were cooked for a few minutes in boiling water.

Some people in the group had never tried salmon before but found out that they loved it after trying this meal. It's great to try different foods and flavours and the group love discovering new and exciting things to cook. 

Bruschetta

Bruschetta is a simple and tasty starter using fresh tomatoes, basil and garlic in a simple olive oil and white wine vinegar dressing on top of toasted bread.

Firstly we chopped the fresh tomatoes, basil and garlic and mixed them in a bowl. We added salt, pepper, a glug of olive oil and a sprinkling of white wine vinegar.

We then had to cut the bread into 1cm thick slices, ready to be toasted:

Having some help with the bread.

Then working independently:

We then toasted the bread and topped with the tomato and basil mixture and added a little mozzarella.

A very healthy, fresh starter, perfect for the summer!

Beef Curry

Whilst searching the internet for prospective recipes the group found this recipe for a beef curry on BBC Good Food:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/aromatic_beef_curry_90850

The group realised that we already had a lot of the spices and herbs in our cupboard so decided we should put them to use.

In a big pot we cooked the onions, garlic and beef and added in all the different spices.

We added the tin tomatoes and allowed everything to cook so all the flavours could infuse together.

It was very flavourful and all the spices worked really well with the beef. The whole group thoroughly enjoyed the curry.

Grilled Courgette and green bean salad

The group saw a picture of this salad and really liked the vibrant colours and thought it looked far more excited than a traditional lettuce based salad.

We grilled sliced courgette and green beans and roasted vine tomatoes in the oven.

We also baked the feta cheese in a tin foil parcel with a dash of olive oil and a sprinkle of oregano for about 8-10 minutes. After this we broke it up into small pieces.

For the dressing we used fresh lemon juice and olive oil and topped with toasted and chopped hazelnuts, the crumbled feta and fresh basil.

Everyone enjoyed the salad and some even said it was the best salad they ever had. The flavours were unusual but really tasty. As a group we discussed all the different vitamins in this salad and worked out we were getting 3 out of our '5 a day'- All from one dish!

We talked about replacing the green beans with asparagus, this is something the group would like to try in the upcoming weeks.