Author Archive for Lucina

Page 21 of 23

Smoked salmon and broccoli quiche

Published by Lucina, on 2 luglio 2011 in English Recipes and Torte salate, pizze. 8 Comments

smoked salmon and broccoli quiche

Well……apparently I’m not talking to the wall. My friend Carmelita religiously follows what I’m posting  and I’ve had recent confirmation that a lovely ex student of mine (Jane) also frequently checks the blog to see what  I’m eating. She has recently tried my raspberry muffins recipe and posted it on her FB page. Bless!!!  So here I go again. The show must go on!  I had a group of friends over for a buffet lunch yesterday. Everyone had to bring something so I decided to bake a quiche. Hadn’t made one for AGES! Don’t quite know why as I really like quiches….Actually, I do know why. They are a bit faffy to make. HOWEVER they are lovely to eat with a nice salad so I decided to have a go. I “cheated” by buying ready made shortcrust pastry (sorry!!!). The idea for this quiche came when I saw it in a baker’s shop in Belgium. I’ve tried to recreate it, with pleasing results. Everybody enjoyed it at any rate, including myself! Continue reading ‘Smoked salmon and broccoli quiche’

Kedgeree

Published by Lucina, on 26 giugno 2011 in English Recipes. 2 Comments

Kedgeree

Well….I must confess I miss Candi. This blog is beginning to feel as if I’m talking to myself….. I need my recipe swapping companion back from Ecuador with her interesting comments!!!!  The blog is not the same without her….. Still, I must hold the fort until her return so let’s talk about  the recipe I have chosen for the day. What a strange name,eh? I bet not many Italians living in the UK will have heard of this dish, whose main ingredients are rice, smoked haddock, boiled eggs, peas and Indian spices. The origins of it are hazy. Some people say it’s a Scottish dish, others say it originates from India and was adapted by the Scottish troops stationed in India (who then brought it back to the UK). Whatever its origins it is a really nice dish which, if I’m not mistaken, is often served at breakfast time in Scotland. Well, being Italian I would decline it before ten o’clock in the morning (give me some civilized cereals, toast and jam, please) but I’d be more than happy to have it as a light lunch/dinner.  There are many recipes for this dish out there. I’ve tried a few but my favourite so far is by Sophie Griegson. Once again it is really easy to make but it’s very tasty. Rossella, you must try it on your rice day! he he Continue reading ‘Kedgeree’

Raspberry muffins

Published by Lucina, on 18 giugno 2011 in Dolci and English Recipes. 2 Comments Tags: , .

raspberry muffins

I like a good muffin with my coffee, especially the berries variety: blueberries or raspberries in particular  (in season at the moment). I find the bought ones far too sweet plus God knows how  many preservatives/colourings etc. they contain. In actual fact they are really easy to do. I have tried several other recipes using sunflower oil, margarine or sour cream but I always go back to this one which uses good, old butter. Sadly you can’t beat its taste in all things cakey (surprise surprise!). Well…… a bit of butter now and again is not going to harm you, is it ?, and this recipe doesn’t use much. So… long live butter! This recipe comes from a muffins book by Susan Reimer. You can use frozen berries, if you wish but clearly the fresh ones are better. Damn be the diet and let’s get baking then….. Continue reading ‘Raspberry muffins’

Thai green chicken curry

Published by Lucina, on 14 giugno 2011 in chicken and English Recipes. 2 Comments

Thai green chicken curry

Well, as we have gone East with my last recipe why not stay there awhile?? I must confess that Thai is my favourite of all the oriental cuisines. I much prefer it to Chinese or Indian, for example.  I find it fresher on the palate and generally more delicately flavoured. I LOVE the taste of coconut milk and I am shocked to hear that my friend Carmelita  ( reading her comment to the previous recipe)  has never bought it, never mind cooked with it. ARGH!  This will not do, my dear. I must blog another quick and easy recipe using the very same ingredient, then. :-)  We have to broaden these culinary horizons, right? RIGHT!  This green curry recipe is particularly quick and easy to make. I downloaded it from the Weight Watchers website (yes! Somebody is trying to lose a few pounds, I do confess) and I have already cooked it a few times (with a couple of variations) with very good results. Even Rossella has tried it on one of her chicken days and her whole family gave it the thumbs up. So what are we waiting for? Let’s get cooking! Continue reading ‘Thai green chicken curry’

Fish chowder with Asian flavours

Published by Lucina, on 9 giugno 2011 in English Recipes and fish. 1 Comment Tags: .

fish chowder with Asian flavours

Hello hello hello! And sorry for not publishing for a little while. The reason was very simple: partly I have eaten out a lot (hence ZERO cooking) and partly I have been bogged down with marking (this is the exam season and I’m a teacher…) which meant I have had very little time to experiment in the kitchen or to assemble anything more complicated than scrambled eggs or salads. I don’t think you would have been impressed if I had blogged what I have been eating for the past ten days. Trust me.  But I’ve finished marking now soooooooo………. back to cooking! And quick! I am getting fed up with opening my fridge and grabbing the first thing I can lay my hands on. Plus Candi is in Ecuador at the moment leaving me in charge! I can’t let her down… :-) Enough rambling on…..The recipe I’m blogging tonight comes from Nigella Lawson. I have made it several times. It’s ever so quick but really tasty. PLUS it is healthy too. After the latest calories ridden recipes I thought that we had to atone.

Continue reading ‘Fish chowder with Asian flavours’

Lemon and poppyseed cake

Published by Lucina, on 24 maggio 2011 in cakes and English Recipes. 3 Comments Tags: , .

lemon and poppyseed cake

The idea to make this particular cake came while I was in Scotland just after Easter. We rented a remote cottage for a week in the middle of nowhere and had a fabulous time walking, thanks to the glorious weather (yes, occasionally the sun shines here too!). To replenish the lost calories every day, after each walk, we treated ourselves to a slice of cake in some lovely tea room or other in the area. One of the cakes I had while I was there was one made with lemon and poppyseeds. I had never had one before but it was absolutely gorgeous.  What I particularly liked about it was the tanginess of the lemon combined with the interesting, crunchy texture from the poppy seeds. When I came back I went hunting for a recipe to try and found one by Jill Dupleix which sounded good. My guinea pigs were the bunch of Italian ladies who have the misfortune (or is it a fortune? The jury is still out on that one) to live here in the UK in my same area. I invited them for lunch and presented them with this cake explaining I needed to try it out before it went on the blog  (between you and me I think they are getting sick of me and my blog! :-)). Well….they loved it , and so did my husband who had what was left, so here it is. It is lovely and moist inside but it  has a delicious crunchy lemon and sugar topping . Mind you: be careful to check your teeth in the mirror for any errand seeds after you have eaten it  or  they might think you are in need of dental treatment! Continue reading ‘Lemon and poppyseed cake’

Roast chicken legs with potatoes and lemon

Published by Lucina, on 18 maggio 2011 in chicken, English Recipes and Meat. 12 Comments Tags: , , .
chicken legs with potatoes and lemon

chicken legs with potatoes and lemon

I have noticed we have blogged quite a few pasta/rice dishes lately but not many meat ones. Ok, I confess I am not a great meat eater. I could easily be vegetarian and in fact most of the time I cook with vegetables, pulses,eggs or cheese not meat. Still it’s nice to eat it, now and again, particularly if you treat yourself to some good quality, organic one. For this recipe I used chicken legs. They tend to be much cheaper than breasts and they are nicer to roast. I downloaded this dish from the Italian Cookery magazine Candi blogged (G2Kitchen). The one with those incredible pictures that puts ours to shame (I still haven’t recovered….he he). On their website they encourage people to try their recipes so I did. What I like about it is that it is dead quick and simple to make, yet it  is really tasty. Definitely something I shall be cooking again. As I was unashamedly bragging about it  my friend Rossella asked me to blog it so that she can have a go at making it on her “chicken day” (don’t ask) so here goes….

Continue reading ‘Roast chicken legs with potatoes and lemon’

Penne with asparagus and ricotta

Published by Lucina, on 12 maggio 2011 in English Recipes and pasta. 2 Comments Tags: , .

penne with asparagus and ricotta

You asked for a recipe with asparagus and here’s another one straight after your lovely lasagne, dear Candi. After all they are in season so we must strike the iron while it’s hot, so to speak. By the way, apologies for the very amateurish photos.  They remind me of those terrible pics you see outside Greek tavernas to entice customers to go in. They achieve the EXACT result, in fact. :-( Still, I don’t possess any professional photographic equipment, only my mobile phone, I am afraid. So you are stuck with these unprofessional pictures. I put them to give you a rough idea of what the dishes look like (much better in reality. Trust me) and to prove I’ve actually made the stuff. The pasta dish I cooked last night is straight out of the Riverford recipe leaflet I get every week with my veggies. (Brilliant outfit! Great service! I advise you to check out the recipe section on their website. There are some really interesting vegetable dishes.) I thought it was very nice (and straightforward) so I decided to share it with you (slightly amended). Continue reading ‘Penne with asparagus and ricotta’

Orecchiette with broccoli, anchovies and cherry tomatoes

Published by Lucina, on 4 maggio 2011 in English Recipes, pasta and sauces. 4 Comments
orecchiette with broccoli

Yeah, yeah. Two recipes in a row containing cherry tomatoes…Where’s my imagination? Well…first of all I really like them. Secondly, I was simply finishing off the other half of the punnet used in the cod recipe…Foxy lady or what? This is an extremely quick pasta recipe, which is also very wholesome. You can make the sauce while the pasta (orecchiette in this case) is cooking. I had a bit of a panic attack when Sainsbury (my local supermarket) stopped stocking the orecchiette, which go particularly well with this sauce. They used to sell the fresh variety too (together with trofie) but then, much to my chagrin, POOF! they vanished. I suspect not enough people in the neighbourhood were buying them…Oh well! Luckily some of my “informers” (read: other Italian people living in the UK) told me that another chain of supermarkets (Tesco) sold them. Guess who cleared their shelves? Enough rambling and let’s get cooking! Continue reading ‘Orecchiette with broccoli, anchovies and cherry tomatoes’

Baked cod with pesto, baby spinach and cherry tomatoes

Published by Lucina, on 27 aprile 2011 in English Recipes and fish. 10 Comments

baked cod with pesto, spinach and tomatoes

As promised here’s a quick and healthy recipe using  one of our “local” fish, namely cod. (Sorry Candi, I was getting fed up with reading your lovely recipes knowing I couldn’t get hold of the  fish you used). I made it tonight in next to no time at all and it turned out very tasty indeed. I had some home made  pesto left over from a few days ago so I decided to use it in a  context other than pasta. By the way I NEVER buy pesto in a jar. I don’t like the taste. Plus it’s so easy to make that there is really no need to resort to the ready made one.  I will add the pesto recipe at the bottom of the recipe for those English friends who have never tried it but would like (and should…he he) have a go. Continue reading ‘Baked cod with pesto, baby spinach and cherry tomatoes’