Paella

You'll need: 
100 gr squid
200 gr mussels
200 gr different fish
3 pieces raw chicken
5 slices chorizo sausage
1 ltr stock
100 ml white wine
pinch of saffron / turmeric
50 gr onion
1 garlic clove
50 gr diced red peppers
50 gr green pepper- diced
60 ml olive oil
200 gr short grain rice
thyme and bayleaf
150 gr tomatoes or tomato concasse
Garnish: lemon wedges and chopped parsley

Method: First pin bone the fish and cut in the even sizes. Then cut the squid rings, clean mussels and clean prawns.
Sweat the chopped onion, peppers and garlic. Seal off the chicken on a same pan and add with chorizo. Cook until chicken is cooked. About 10 minutes. Add the rice and stock ( mix stock + saffron/turmeric). Then add everything else, except the squid. When rice and fish is cooked, add the squid. Cook another 5 minutes.
When you add squid too early it will become rubbery. When paella is cooked add the tomatoes and garnish with lemon wedges and chopped parsley.
Enjoy :)

Cazpacho soup

Nice cold soup that will cool you down on a hot day. Popular in Spain

You'll need: 
2 garlic cloves
100 gr bread-torn
100 ml olive oil
250 gr tomatoes-chopped
125 gr cucumber-chopped
100 gr green pepper-chopped
50 ml vinegar
1 tsp cumin seeds
ice
Garnish:
crutons- optional
50 gr diced onion
50 gr diced cucumber
50 gr diced green pepper
50 gr tomato concasse*
Method: Soak the torn bread with garlic, olive oil and tomatoes. Add the cucumber, green pepper, vinegar, cumin seeds and ice. Place in a food processor and liquidise until smooth.
Garnish with crutons, onion,tomatoes,cucumber and green pepper.

* tomato concasse is peeled,de-seeded and chopped tomato. Easiest way to peel tomato is to put them in the boiling water for 10-15 seconds and then cool them down in ice water. Before you put the tomatoes in the boiling water, make an X on top of the tomato and also remove the stem spot.

Soup is more flavoursome if you leave it soak over night and blitz it next day.

Enjoy :)

Chocolate truffles ( about 16 pcs).

You'll need : 250 gr dark chocolate

180 ml whipping cream

2 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tbsp brandy/rum( i used rum essence)

Different coatings . i used hundreds and thousands.

Method: Chop the chocolate and place in a stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat and bring to boil. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth, then add the rum or essence. Cover and place in a fridge until mixture is firm. I let it stand in the fridge over night.

Place your coatings for a truffles on a plate. Take out the mixture. With your hands shape the chocolate into round shaped balls and cover with coating. Put on a baking paper. When all the balls are made, put them in a fridge until firm.

Enjoy :)

Crunchy chocolate mousse

Easiest dessert ever :)

You'll need: 200 g milk chocolate

70 gr crunchy chocolate (´i used KitKat)

284 ml double cream

250 ml mascarpone

Method: Place 150 gr of the milk chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water until melted. Remove from the heat.

Stir in the crunchy chocolate pieces.

Gently mix the cream and mascarpone. Stir the chocolate mix into the cream and mascarpone until just marbled.

Spoon into small glasses /cups and top with the rest of the chocolate , grated/shaved.

Enjoy :)

Custard fruit tarts.

Pastry : 450 gr butter

900 gr plain flour

handful of sugar

3 eggs

about 100 ml of milk

For the custard: 3 egg yolks

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

1 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla essence

Topping: fruits / berries

Method: start with the pastry. In a big bowl mix flour, butter and sugar, until mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Best way to do it is by hands. In another bowl beat the eggs and add 1/3 of it to the pastry mix and also add some of the milk. Mix everything together, add rest of the eggs and some more milk. You may not need all of the milk at all, just use as much milk you need to bring the pastry together.Wrap pastry in cling film and place in a fridge for 30 minutes. Pastry needs time to rest so that it wouldn't crumble.

Meanwhile do the custard: Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and flour until mixture is thick and pale.

In a small saucepan heat up the milk to almost boiling point. Slowly add milk to egg mixture, add vanilla essence and return it to the saucepan. Cook over low heat 'til custard coats the back of the spoon.

Transfer custard into a bowl, cover with cling film and put in the fridge 'til needed.

Now back to pastry: roll it out on floured surface. Lightly brush pastry cases with melted butter and sprinkle some flour over the cases. Fold the rolled out thin pastry in the pastry case. brick the base with fork and cover with baking paper and baking beans.

Bake at 170 C for about 7 minutes, then remove the baking beans and bake further 10 minutes.

Let the pastry cool down.

Then just spoon/ pipe custard in the cases, arrange fruits and sprinkle with icing sugar .

Enjoy :)