Tag Archives: bbc good food

Fudgy Caramel Brownies

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All I seem to do is post recipes but honestly I’ve been getting my bake on recently. I used to bake alot and fell out of love with it for a while but I’m back to it now. I made … Continue reading →

Lift me up…

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Another recipe for you guys today and it’s an Italian classic that I love. I’ve just put my usual twist on it to make it how I like it.

So I’m making Tiramisu, which in Italian apparently means ‘pick me up’ or ‘lift me up’, so perfect for making if you need a little lift. With this weather I think we could all use it!

I made this one for James’ grandad’s 80th birthday party and it went down a treat. I was really impressed with how it turned out, so here’s the recipe for you guys…

  • 568ml pot double cream
  • 250g tub mascarpone
  • 75ml Disaronno
  • 5 tbsp golden caster sugar
  • 300ml strong coffee, made with 2 tbsp coffee granules and 300ml boiling water. I used my costa coffee and brewed it first in a cafetiere.
  • 175g pack sponge fingers
  • 25g chunk dark chocolate
  • 2 tsp cocoa powder

First I put the cream, mascarpone, sugar and liqueur in a big bowl and give it a whisk until it has the consistency of thick whipped cream-see picture on the left- You want it so you will be able to spread it over the sponge fingers later.

Get your serving dish ready, you don’t have to grease it or anything! Pour your brewed coffee into a shallow dish and dip in a few sponge fingers at a time, turning for a few seconds until they are nicely soaked, but not soggy.  If they’re soggy you will end up with a mush when you try to serve 🙂

Layer these into your dish until you have used half the biscuits, then spread over half of the creamy mixture. Using the coarse side of the grater, grate over most of the chocolate. You can always use more chocolate if you have a real sweet tooth.

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Then repeat the layers (you should use up all the coffee), finishing with the creamy layer.

Cover and chill for a few hrs or overnight. This can now be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days. To serve, dust with cocoa powder and grate over the remainder of the chocolate.

Here’s a few pictures from the bash 😉

I hope you enjoyed this post, if you give this a go, post a picture in the comments or send it to me on Twitter. You can follow me there or on Blog Lovin’ I would love to hear from you…

Libby xo

(the girl who never wears white)

Get me to the Greek…

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Today I wanted to share with you a couple of cheat, Greek recipes that I came across. They went down a treat with my guinea pig (my other half, James) so I hope you like them too.

I have two recipes for you, they are super simple, so give them a try and let me know what you think…

The first is my cheats moussaka. This is by no means a traditional moussaka for all you purists out there. However what it is, is a really good cheat version that I love.

You will need…

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  • 500g pack lean minced beef
  • 1 large aubergine
  • 150g pot 0% Greek yogurt
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3 tbsp parmesan, finely grated
  • 400g can chopped tomatoes
  • 4 tbsp sun-dried tomato purée
  • 400g leftover boiled potatoes (or 350g/12oz uncooked weight boiled)

As you can see from the photo, I’ve added some spices. Just add some cumin, smoked paprika and all spice to your mince when browning. I used a pinch of garam masala, as I was out of all spice. This gives it a really nice aroma and feels more Greek to me 🙂

How to make it, it’s soooo easy…

Heat the grill to high. Brown the beef and your spices in a deep ovenproof frying pan over a high heat for 5 mins. Meanwhile, slice the aubergine and dry fry in a small griddle pan. Mix the yogurt, egg and parmesan together, then add a little seasoning.

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Stir the tomatoes, purée and potatoes in with the beef with some seasoning and heat through. Transfer into a dish (I’m using my mums old shepherds pie dish) layer the cooked aubergine in between your mince mixture and arrange the last of the aubergine on top. Pour the yogurt mixture over the aubergines, smooth out evenly, then grill until the topping has set and turned golden. I grilled for 10 minutes at 200 degrees celcius- but check on it! 🙂

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There you go- my cheat sheet Moussaka, I got this recipe from BBC Good Food and just tweaked it to how I like mine. It’s a must make and it easily feeds four people.

Onto the next part of this feast

Hummus! This recipe is Jamie Oliver’s and all you need is the ingredients and a food processor. That’s it! Again, for you purist cooks, I’m not sure it’s entirely Greek, it’s not I checked lol. Hummus actually originates from the Middle East. Anyways, I loves it with Greek food. It goes so well with moussaka and a bit of bread. I love it with any chargrilled meat too.

What you will need…

(This recipe is just for James and I, as a SUPER generous portion)

  • 1 x 400g cans of chickpeas
  • 2 tsp tahini
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp crushed sea salt
  • 3 or 4 tbsp quality extra virgin olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
  • 3½ tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • Paprika (optional)
  • Coriander or parsley leaves (optional)

I rinsed the chickpeas in cold water, I don’t like the taste of the water they are kept in, for me it’s a little stagnant. Then tip into the food processor.

I give these a little blitz first just to get it going, as its whizzing round I feed in the garlic, salt, lemon juice and tahini paste. Add olive oil as you go, get a good extra virgin olive oil, it’s so worth it- I promise.

If it’s a little gloopy I add a tiny bit of water to thin it out.
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Serve it any way you like, mine is in a simple bowl with hunks of pitta bread. I’m not a fancy pants…

Hey presto, you’re done. How easy was that?

This was a loooonnnggg post but you’ve got two great really, easy and quick recipes there, I hope you enjoyed them. If you do try them out, comment and let me know. Send me pictures, I would love to see some of your takes on them.

Libby xoxo

(the girl who never wears white)

P.S Follow my blog on Blog Lovin’, I’ll be lovin’ you forever 😉