Summer salad with crispy feta cheese

Summer salad with crispy feta cheese

blog

 

You might wonder why I am posting so many recipes with strawberries……Very simple answer I just love them. The few months during summer when strawberries are dark red, bursting with flavour and spreading a heavenly aroma, I can’t get enough of them! One of my store cupboard ingredients is feta cheese, I always have at least three or five in my fridge. They are very versatile to use, either cold crumbled over salad, baked in the oven with vegetables or made into a dip or dressing. So it was easy to go for crispy feta cheese to accompany my strawberry summer salad.

 

blog

 

Summer salad with crispy feta cheese

1/2 cucumber, diced

1/2 iceberg salad, shredded

1 fennel , thinly sliced (use a mandolin if you have one)

250g strawberries, halved (quartered if big)

for the dressing:

4 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp cider vinegar

1/2 tbsp runny honey

1 tbsp whole grain mustard

salt, pepper

for the crispy feta cheese:

2 feta cheese, cut in half

1-2 eggs, beaten

panko ( Japanese bread crumbs), you can use normal bread crumbs as well

flour

oil for frying

To make the salad, mix all ingredients in a bowl and toss well. Combine all ingredients for the dressing in a bowl or jam jar and mix well. Pour over the salad and mix. Season with salt and pepper.

For the feta cheese, place the eggs, panko and flour on separate deep plates. Toss the feta first in flour, then in the beaten egg and last coat with panko crumbs. You might want to add a second layer of the panko crumbs. Therefore you just toss the cheese in the egg and then in the panko crumbs again. Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the feta cheese from both sides until golden brown. Serve with the summer salad on the side.

blog

 

 

 

 

 

Strawberries with cream and cocoa nibs

 

Strawberries with cream and cocoa nibs

blog

A couple of years ago I created this dessert, because I had bought a big pack of cocoa nibs. You wonder what are cocoa nibs? They are unprocessed cocoa beans which are broken into pieces. The taste of chocolate but with no sugar and they are crunchy. I had posted a photo of the dessert on facebook, but of course hadn’t written down the recipe. A few days ago facebook kindly reminded me that I had posted that photo in 2011. So I decided to recreate it and share it with you. I hope you will love it as much as I do. Best of all, it is quick and easy to make so perfect for a few guests or even feeding a crowd.

DSCF1618

 

blog

Strawberries with cream and coca nibs

5 digestive biscuits, crushed

30g cocoa nibs

5g strawberries freeze dried, crushed

300ml whipping cream (or double cream), whipped

1tbsp caster sugar

300g fresh strawberries, washed, hulled and halved

In a bowl mix the crushed digestives, freeze dried strawberries and cocoa nibs. Set aside. Whip the cream with the caster sugar to soft peaks. To serve, place a good dollop of cream on a plate, arrange the strawberries around and sprinkle with the digestive mix. Put a few tablespoons of the mixture on the side. Enjoy!

 

blog

 

blog

 

Strawberry cheesecake with Advocaat

 

Strawberry cheesecake with Advocaat

Strawberry cheese cake with Advocaat

A few weeks ago when we had our first ‘heat wave’ – yes we English call every temperature above 20 degrees a heat wave – Anne, a good friend of mine, was supposed to meet me for a coffee to catch up. She is someone I can count on when it comes to loving my food, regardless what I’m cooking. So here I was in my kitchen thinking about what I could make which would go well with coffee and be super delicious. Strawberries and cheesecake, yes that sounded good, but a bit boring. Then I remembered the bottle of Advocaat I had recently bought because it reminded me of my childhood. When I was little, adults used to drink a glass of Advocaat after their coffee and cake on Sunday. Children were allowed to ‘clean’ the glasses by licking the leftovers. Can you imagine allowing your child to do such a thing these days? I am sure you would get more than just an odd look from others. Anyway, this Advocaat needed to be added into the recipe. I hope you will enjoy this cake as much as we did. I had two slices!

Just for those who still wonder what Advocaat is, here a little explanation: Advocaat is originally from The Netherlands, it is a beverage made from eggs, sugar and brandy. It is very similar to eggnog.

Strawberry cheese cake with Advocaat

 

Strawberry cheesecake with Advocaat

100g digestive biscuits

50g butter

250g cream cheese, full fat

1tbsp caster sugar

1tsp vanilla powder

200ml double cream, whipped

100ml Advocaat

punnet strawberries

icing sugar

 

For the base crush the digestives, melt the butter and mix together. Line the base of a loose bottom tin (20cm) with the mixture pressing the biscuits with a back of a spoon. Leave to cool. Beat the cream cheese with the sugar and vanilla powder. Mix in the whipped cream and then the Advocaat. Spread the mixture evenly over the biscuit base. Put the the fridge for at least 3 hours. Just before serving wash and hull the strawberries. Cut them in half and arrange on top of the cream leaving no spaces. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve.

Strawberry cheese cake with Advocaat

 

Strawberry cheese cake with Advocaat