Pumpkin & Pear Soup

It's another food post! Well, I hadn't done any for a while, so I suppose I had some catching up to do. Today's recipe is an easy-peasy soup, an adaptation of one my Mum used to make me when I was little. It's basically a hug in a bowl. She used to make it with Pumpkin, but I prefer Butternut Squash - it's easier to carry and cut. This is really good for: dinner parties, hangovers, depression, studying, dieting, and putting on your face and pretending you're an Oompa Loompa. This recipe makes a FUCKLOAD (no specific quantity) of soup, so eat it, give it to friends, or if you have no friends, freeze it. Ok, picture time!


You Will Need:

1 x Butternut Squash (have a competition with yourself and try and pick the biggest one.)

4 x Pears (2 x smooth-skinned, 2 x rough-skinned - I do not know the actual names of the type of pear, I have a life.)

1 x WHITE ONION (not in the photo, hence why I've capitalised it here)

CHICKEN STOCK (also not in the photo...I wasn't very on it)

Single Cream

Sour Cream (Greek Yoghurt if you prefer/are weird)

Ground Nutmeg

Lemon Juice

Butter

[Oil, Salt & Pepper]

What To Do:

1. Peel the Butternut Squash. This can be a long and tedious process, especially if you won the competition and picked a monstrously large one. Put on some Masterchef and get stuck in.

2. Once peeled, dice the Squash into roughly inch-shaped cubes - obviously discarding the seeds, or putting them aside so you can grow your own squashes in your window box.

3. Heat up some oil and butter (salted, obviously) in a large pan. A pan big enough to fit a baby in. (No babies were harmed in the making of this recipe)

4. When the butter's just about melted, chuck in the HUGE PILE of diced Squash, and pop a lid on it. 

5. While it's doing its thing, peel and dice a White Onion. Add to the squash when it's just beginning to soften. Here's some I made earlier...

...colourful!

6. Peel the rough-skinned pear and dice. Ignore mental jokes about 'lovely pear'. You don't have to peel the smooth-skinned pear, just dice that.

7. Add to the pan.

8. Boil a Kettle and add it to a Chicken Stock cube. If you're rich, you can use those Knorr jellies, or perhaps you already make your own - in which case...good for you.

9. Once the stock cube has dissolved/you've finished patting yourself on the back about your homemade stock, add it to the pan. You don't need much, only about an inch and a half. It doesn't need to fully cover the veg. Add a VERY TINY sprinkle of Nutmeg, as well as a good crack of Pepper.

10. Have a cigarette/drink. 

11. Once the Butternut Squash is edible, but not soggy, dust off your blender and turn off the stove. Ladle as much of the veg as you can into the mixer, add a squeeze of lemon juice and a dash of single cream - and BLEND! The soup should be thick and heartwarming.

12. Pour into bowls, top with some sour cream and coriander (optional), and serve with some warm bread rolls with lots of butter...

...delicious.

Love,

Belle x

Beef, Chicken & Haloumi Salad

First off - I have to 'fess up. This recipe is technically the culinary creation of my foodie mastermind friend, James. He invented it to pay me back for me cooking him lunches and dinners during our time together in first year halls, and it's an absolute cracker. I was inspired to put it on the blog because A) it deserves to be shared with and loved by all, and B) it's the perfect dish for this time of year, when you're longing for summer salads, but aren't ready to part with the warmth of a hearty meal just yet. It's also great for those of you gearing up to embark on the yearly bodily overhaul in preparation for bikini season - this dish has no carbs (before Marbs), peeps. So turn up the heating, switch on some trashy telly, and wait out the final chilly weeks of hibernation while tucking into this guilt-free salad. This recipe makes enough 4-6 people, so invite some friends over and make a night of it! 

You will need:

Frying Steaks

Chicken Breasts

Haloumi

2 x Red Bell Peppers

1 Large Red Onion

Iceberg Lettuce

Coriander

Baby Plum Tomatoes (not in the photo, I forgot them...woops)

Chillies are optional

Olive & Sesame Oils

(Salt 'n' Pepper etc - you're not idiots)

What to do:
1. Heat up some olive oil in a large pan, adding some salt and pepper.
2. Slice up the beef and chicken to roughly equal size so they cook at the same time, innit. Add them to the pan when the oil's piping hot. Then rejoice in the sizzle.
3. While the meat is doing its thing, heat up some sesame oil in another pan. Chop up the haloumi into half-inch cubes, and slice a chilli (or two, 'Some Like It Hot' and all that) - add it all to the hot sesame oil. Do not stir.
4. Slice up your red peppers and add them to the meat - it should be nearly cooked through by now.
5. The haloumi will probably be releasing a lot of water - DO NOT PANIC, this is normal. It will suck it all back in - that's when it's alright to stir it to get a golden crust on all sides.

6. Slice up an onion and add it to the meat pan. Ideally, you want the onion with a little bit of crunch still in it.
7. Finally, rip off some coriander and tip in the punnet of baby plum tomatoes. Wait a few minutes until they're warmed through, then take the haloumi of the heat and tip it into the meat pan. Mix it up and turn off the heat.

8. Arrange your lettuce on a plate, and heap on the meat. (That sounds vaguely sexual.)
9. Sprinkle your favourite sprinkle-ments on top - I like walnuts, but pumpkin seeds work just as well, as does some extra coriander.
10. SERVE!

Bon appétit!

Love,
Belle x

Easter Egg-Stravaganza

It's Easter! Which, in my books, equals mountains of guilt-free chocolate eating. Not that I ever feel that guilty for eating chocolate, but still. It also means lots of egg-related puns. So that's egg-sactly what you should egg-spect from this post. Let's not egg-saggerate, but Easter's one of the best times of year. Not only do you get a four day weekend, but it also heralds the end of Lent and the start of Spring (or, it would, if all the daffodils hadn't been killed by the snow last week). This year may indeed be one of the last Easters I spend with my family for a while, as I am planning to escape the cold and snow in egg-schange (are you getting egg-sasperated yet?!) for the balmier climate of Australia. So I thought it only fair to 'Kodak-moment' this occasion - and obviously share it with you guys. So here you are: this is our Easter Egg-Stravaganza (that's it, I promise). 

Easter Lamb Pie

Creme Eggs can suck it.

Malachite Egg: Not For Consumption

Quiche Soufflé

Happy Easter - I hope the Bunny was good to you too!

Love,
Belle x

Sausage & Rosemary Spaghetti

Last week, me and my boyfriend had - as most couples do from time to time - a bit of a domestic. Nothing major, just a bit of a tiff. I'm a girl who can't stay in a negative environment, so I went off to have a few drinks with a girlfriend and clear my head. Unbeknownst to me, my lovely boyfriend had gone out and bought a whole load of ingredients for dinner, and was busy cooking this dish when I walked through the door. Let me just say: this is no ordinary sausage pasta. And this comes from a student who eats a lot of pasta. Not only does it use up whatever you have left in the fridge, it smells incredible and tastes damn good. I was so blown away by this pasta that the disagreement of earlier was totally forgotten about... Forget make-up sex, I give you: Make-up Pasta. Bon appetit!

Serves 2 (or one person who didn't eat lunch...)

You will need:
Sausages (around 6)
1 x Large White Onion
Garlic (to your taste)
2 x Courgettes
Spaghetti (approx. 250g)
Rosemary
Butter
Oil 
Salt & Pepper to taste
Parmesan to sprinkle, if you are that way inclined.

Saucepan
2 Frying pans

What to do:
1. Put on a big pot of salted water to boil.
2. Dice up half an onion, chop up some rosemary, and crush some garlic.
3. Skin the sausages. In other words, make a slit down their casing and take the inside out. (Here's what I made earlier...)

4. Break down the sausage meat so it essentially resembles a pink goo. It will look better later, I promise.
5. Preheat a saucepan with oil, butter, some salt and pepper. When the butter is melted and bubbling, add it all in, stirring it around as you go.
6. Dice up the other half of the onion. You may also crush some more garlic if you wish.
7. Grate your courgette.
8. Heat up the remaining saucepan with oil, butter, salt, pepper, and add in the rest of the ingredients. Don't stir. You want the courgette to be a bit browned. Here's one I made earlier...

9. Your water should be boiled by now, so chuck in your pasta.
10. Keep stirring your sausage meat until it gets a nice golden brown on it. Like this...

11. Once your pasta is cooked, drain and add to the sausage saucepan. Turn the heat down low. Stir.
12. Your courgettes should be cooked by now too, so take them off the heat and chuck them in as well. Stir.
13. You'll end up with something like this...

14. To serve, throw in a couple of rosemary leaves and sprinkle on some parmesan.
15. Eat.

Full Moon, Half Moon, Total Eclipse!

Love,
Belle x

Happy Birthday to Me

Yesterday I turned 22. Birthdays, like Christmas, come but once a year. I like to take advantage of this by stretching out the anniversary of my birth a few days - so celebrations started the night before with a trip to the theatre. I'm lucky to have a boyfriend who actually listens when I talk, so months ago when I mentioned that I'd love to see The Woman in Black (having already seen the film adaptation), he stored it away in his thinking cap for a rainy day. This was the rainy day. Off we went to Covent Garden to the Fortune Theatre to be scared out of our skin for the next two hours. For those who don't know, The Woman in Black has been described as "the most nerve-shredding play in the West End". Simple, uncluttered staging encourage you to utilise your imagination, and in turn, this amplifies your fear considerably. If you haven't seen it, check it out - it's a definite experience!

After a very late-night drinks party, I managed to drag myself out of bed and awake my boyfriend. Desperately in need of food and fresh air, we headed out once again to Covent Garden...

How?!

...to visit my favourite Mexican Restaurant: Wahaca. Dotted around London, the restaurant in Covent Garden is a brightly coloured underground cavern; a hive of activity with amazing smells hitting you left right and centre. Meeting a few friends, we sat down and immediately wanted to order everything on the menu... (unfortunately I was too distracted by my hunger to take my own pictures, but I managed to find some on Wahaca's FB page)

Fennel-Covered Pork Scratchings

Passion Fruit & Hibiscus Cooler

...we started with Fennel-Covered Pork Scratchings, served with Guacamole dip. Sounds weird, but probably the best combination I've tasted in a long while. I sipped on a Passion Fruit & Hibiscus cooler, while the boys drank Mexican Beers. Our appetites still raging, the boys ordered a couple of plates of 'Street Food', while I chowed down on a Pulled-Pork Burrito and an Avocado and Pumpkin Seed Salad...

Pulled Pork Burrito

Avocado & Pumpkin Seed Salad

Our stomachs feeling very content, we wandered back through Covent Garden. Having spent my Summer in France gorging myself on macaroons, I couldn't resist stopping to pick up dessert for dinner at...

Scurrying back to Chelsea, we took a trip down the Kings Road to pick up ingredients for my Birthday Dinner. For starters, I served my friend's Dad's recipe of 'Prawn Pate', followed by a Garlic & Rosemary Stuffed Leg of Lamb for main - with Sautéed Curly Kale, Twice-Cooked New Potatoes & Spring Onions... 

With his permission, I give you:
Jimbo Jones's Perfect Prawn Pâté
(Serves 6-8 (or 4 very hungry human hippos)

You will need: Prawns (preferably soaking in brine)
Pancetta (crisped up under the grill)
1 Full Fat Tub of Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 Packet of Garlic & Herb Boursin
2 Cloves of Garlic (crushed)
Finely Chopped Parsley
Lemon & Pepper to taste (no salt needed)

Simply mix all the ingredients together and serve with toasted baguette. Calorie-laden heaven.

Garlic & Rosemary Stuffed Leg of Lamb

...but a birthday wouldn't be a birthday without presents! When my parents arrived with a GIANT BOX, I knew it was gonna be good. First I unwrapped a very pink, very girly, bottle of birthday champagne...

...before tentatively untying the ribbon on my big white box. Inside this big, white box, was a big, brown bag. Inside this big, brown bag was another box. Inside this box was a large, felt bag. And finally, untying this bag revealed my very own Mulberry Bayswater - wishlisted all those weeks ago! 

Isn't it gorgeous?!

Let's just say this: if Carlsberg did Birthdays, they'd all be like this one. Thanks to all who made my day so special - the year has gotten off to a most magnificent start.

Much love and Happy New Year,
Belle x

Belle's Big Day Out

I love London. I first came as a tourist from Australia when I was 6, then I lived there for reals when I was a teenager, and now, living outside of the capital, I come as a visitor to our fair city. I love the smells, I love the lights, and, most of the time, I love the people. Yesterday I went into town to visit two old friends - one who I've known for 14 years, and one who I've known for 18 - and to try out my brand-spanking new camera. I started off at Liverpool Street, where I met my friend Hen for a spot of market browsing in Spitalfields. I forgot to get my camera out for this one, but this is how it looks...

...unfortunately 'crowd exhaustion' stopped us from spending too much time here, so we swiftly moved on to Duck & Waffle, an amazing restaurant suspended above London on the 40th floor of the Heron Tower on Bishopsgate...

My Bloody (Amazing) Mary

Our precariously-placed table - not one for those with vertigo...

Whilst staring out over London, we munched on a bag of BBQ Crispy Pigs Ears (like Pork Crackling, but 100% better). I had the Duck and Waffle (confit duck leg on a belgian waffle, topped with a fried duck egg and drowned in mustard maple syrup = heaven.), Hen had waffles with cream and berries (d-lish). Here's some food porn...

BBQ Crispy Pigs Ears

Duck & Waffle's Duck and Waffle

Waffle, Cream & Berries

After our waffle-fest, I left poor Hen to go home and finish her ironing and I hopped on the Number 11 bus (the best bus, as all Londoners know). Obviously shotgunning the front seat on the top deck (why would you not), I sat back and watched as St Paul's, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey sailed by me en-route to Chelsea. Whilst I was there, I managed to battle through the hoardes of post-Christmas Sale nutters to pick up a pair of these bad boys to wear tonight...

Office, £45. Get em here.

...before I was off again to Green Park to meet up with my Australian pal Joe, who's over here visiting. We went to Shepherd's Market for a drink before wandering under the bright lights of Carnaby Street over to Soho's Golden Square for a drink in Graphic. After a bottle (or two, it had been a while...) we decided a sensible thing might be to get dinner. So, being practically a London Yoda, I suggested we headed over to my favourite pizzeria in town - Pizza East in Portobello. We sat at the bar, right in front of the chefs and the wood-fired pizza ovens, drooling over everything that came out. We ate garlic bread and drank champagne, before I settled on a Pork Belly pizza, and Joe had one with spicy sausage. 

Garlic Bread (not my photo as I ate it too quickly)

Pork Belly Pizza (aka the Mouth Orgasm) 

Feeling full and maybe a little stumble-y, we walked up Portobello Road back to Notting Hill Gate where we said our goodbyes. Although not for long - we'll be back for Round 2 tonight! I hope you all have an amazing New Year wherever you are - see you in 2013!

Love,
Belle x