Mince Nacho Fajitas

Insta: @daintycook

Tortilla wraps filled with mild cheddar, smokey mince meat, mature cheddar, salad, mayonnaise, Doritoes (nachos) salsa and red chillies. It's a food party in your mouth.

The best kind of nachos is the one with mince meat and lots of cheese as a delicious snack to share. But do you know what's even better? All of it, in a wrap, for lunch or dinner. Now why hadn't I thought of this before?!

And when I did, it was a mighty fine dinner. No need to have an excuse of calling the friends down and watching a movie. This can be eaten whenever your stomach is hungry. 

Ingredients:

Mince meat for 4 people

3 tsps paprika

1tsp onion powder

2tsps cumin powder

2 tsps garlic paste

2 tsps chilli powder

A big pinch of salt and pepper

2 tbsps pasta/lasagne sauce (tomato)

Tortilla wraps (large)

2 cheeses

Salad leaves

Mayonnaise

Salsa

Red chillies 

Plain nachos or original Doritoes

Gherkins

To serve:

Sour cream 

Avocado

Lemon

Method:

This is Super easy, all you do is fill with whatever you like!

First, add all the spices to the meat and leave for 20 mins. Then fry in little oil in a pan until brown. Add more paprika and seasoning here if you like.

Fill your wraps! Cheese first, then mince, then cheese, then salad and Mayo (mixed together), salsa, red chillies, gherkins and then the Doritoes (gets less soggy if they're put last). 

Fold the whole thing together. First in half then the bottom - working clockwise. To help seal it in place I used toothpicks.

Then place fold side down, on a hot pan and toast. Turn the other side and toast lightly. 

Top with more cheese and place pan containing fajitas, under a hot grill for a minute or two until the cheese begins to melt.

Cut in half and serve with sour cream, guacamole (blend the avocado until slightly chunky with some lemon juice) and extra nachos.

Enjoy!

Make sure to tag: @daintycook if you've tried this out.

It's so, soo good on an empty stomach. 

Satisfyingly delicious!

Dainty Cook xox

Homemade Mr Whippy Ice cream

Insta: @daintycook

Soft white creamy frozen goodness. Not as hard as ice cream, but like frozen whipped cream. For once, I don't quite know how to describe it's goodness. We all know how a good Whippy tastes.

So it's the month of fasting, which means from sunrise up until sunset I can't eat. This also means I can't enjoy a Mr Whippy Ice cream when I really want.

Is it just me or are there an abundance of these vans going around this month? I mean when's it's not ramadan I hardly find them! 

I don't usually crave food that I see while fasting, but ice cream is one of my weaknesses.

Anyway, so I began to think, as 'Mr Tony' had stopped off right in front of my dads work place, while I was assisting him that day: a) how bad I want one right now and b) how can I enjoy one at home?! The answer came forthwith. I could try make it, of course.

And that's exactly what I did.

Ingredients:

500ml double cream

250ml whole milk 

120g caster sugar

1tsp vanilla extract 

2 tsps milk powder (optional)

20g gelatine powder/2 sheets gelatin/pectin

Ice cream wafer cones

Flake and Lindt Choc (toppings)

Method: 

Heat the milk, cream and vanilla on a saucepan over low heat.

In the mean time soak the Gelatin leaves until soft in cold water.

Once the cream mixture has reached simmering point add the sugar and milk powder and stir until thick and sort of coats the back of the spoon.

Leave to cool and place in the fridge for an hour.

Whisk the cold mixture for 5 mins with an electric whisk.

Next, fill ice cube trays or anything with small sections and freeze for another hour or two.

Once frozen, blend away until it's a frozen thick paste and place the paste into a piping bag with a star nozzle.

Get your cone (and I added a Lindt chocolate ball inside mmmm) and then pipe away really quickly! 

Add toppings such as flake and raspberry sauce and enjoy.

I think this has gotta be something I'm quite impressed with. I'm not quite sure whether the shape will stay stiff for long due to the nature of Whippy ice cream - homemade means we can't keep it cool all the way. However I used less Gelatin than stated in this recipe, so yours may turn out better!

Ate it way too fast there haha!

Anyway it tastes exactly the same, is the right texture and it's all homemade, what more could one want?! 

Let me know how you all get on. 

Dainty Cook xox

Churros and Chocolate

Delicious fried choux pastry, slightly crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, dipped in chocolate sauce and cinnamon sugar. 

That is all.

I was itching for something sweet, comforting and not too complicated. And I stumbled across this Spanish goodness. So good and it's great to share with the whole family. Just put on your favourite DVD, huddle on your sofa with friends and family, with enough churros to go around and you're good to go!

You can dip them in whatever you like, I used chocolate sauce and had some separate cinnamon sugar. You can also use caramel sauce, dulce de leche, cream, whatever your heart fancies.

Ingredients:

Churros

250ml water

100g butter

250g plain flour

3 eggs

2 tbsps sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate sauce:

100g chocolate

A bit of oil to make it runny.

Cinnamon sugar:

4 tbsps caster sugar

1tsp cinnamon

Caramel sauce:

Check out my sexy salted caramel sauce recipe!

Method:

• Place the water in a saucepan over the heat and add the butter until it's all melted.

• Add the flour and make sure to stir thoroughly until it all combines and turns a bit like a smooth doughball, we don't want any lumps!

• Take the saucepan off the heat and one by one add the eggs. Then add the sugar and  vanilla and mix.

• Get a piping bag ready (or you can use a sandwich bag and cut a hole on one side) and fit a large star shaped nozzle, or a round one if you don't have a star. 

• Heat the oil, it should be about 180 degrees celcius. To check if the oil is hot enough, put in a small ball of dough in the oil, if it rises and bubbles straight away, it should be ready to use!

• Pipe long strips into the oil in a wok (they will curl up and theyre supposed to). Once piped let go and snip of the remaining batter with a knife or a pair of scissors. Fry until golden brown!

Make sure you serve these warm.

Chocolate sauce:

• Melt the chocolate either carefully in the micowave or in a water bath (in a glass bowl, placed in a saucepan of simmering water over heat). Pour into a bowl, add the oil and stir.

Cinnamon sugar:

• Combine the two together and mix well.

This makes quite a bit, great for all those greedy stomachs. Mmm.

Dainty Cook xox

The Donut Burger

Insta: @daintycook

A homemade spiced lamb burger topped with cheeses, gherkins, lettuce and tomato in a fresh, homemade ring-donut bun. Need I say more?

Its been a while again folks, but I promise to be posting often soon!

So, many a time had I seen this burger circulating on the Internet and I could only have dreamt to go to the BB Kitchen in Cardiff to eat it. And then a local diner opens and promises a donut burger too. My cravings for this had gone cray. And when I crave, boy do I crave! 

With it being the month of fasting, I had a bit of extra time on my hands so I thought I'd make this bad boy myself.

The Burger 

Ingredients:
Lamb mince (for four greedy people)

2 and a half tsps coriander powder

2 and a half tsps cumin powder

1 tsp paprika

2 tsps garlic paste

1/2 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp chilli powder (and grinded chilles for extra heat)

1/2 tsp garam masala
2 tbsps breadcrumbs

Salt and pepper

(Feel free to add more or less depending on your taste buds, You don't want the spices too overpowering though.)

Method:

• Mix all together and leave for 30 mins. Shape the burgers quite fat (I used a home burger press) and fry in oil on a griddle pan until slightly charred.

Donuts

Ingredients:

250g strong white flour

7g yeast

75ml warm milk

30g caster sugar

30g butter

1 egg

Pinch of salt

Glaze

150g icing sugar

3-4 tbsps milk or water
Vanilla extract (optional)

Method:

• For the donuts, combine all ingredients together stirring with your hands. Then knead for 10 mins until you get a dough like consistency. Add a bit more flour if kneaded (hehe, like my pun there! Okay sorry I'll stop).

• Shape into a big ball and place in a bowl covered with cling film. Leave it in a warm place for an hour to let it rise or double in volume.

• Once risen, shape into circles and cut a hole out in the middle. Widen the holes so they don't close.

• Let the dough prove and rise again for about another hour.

• Now they're ready to fry! Make sure the oil is hot (but not too hot so they don't burn) and fry on each side for about a minute or two.

• Once fried, combine the icing sugar and milk and mix to form a glaze. Dip the top half of the donuts and let them set!

• To assemble the burger, cut the donuts in half and add whatever fillings you like! I topped it with cheddar, added the burger which was coated with Red Leicester just before I finished frying them. Then lettuce, a slice of beef tomato, sliced gherkins, onions and the glazed donut half. I also squeezed some lemon on top of the meat.

This was served with fat chips, onion rings and Mayo and ketchup, obvs! Think I'd add jalapeños next time too.

Best. Burger. Ever. 

Seriously, my stomach would gladly be in a committed relationship to it.

I wanted to take some good shots of this on my camera, but sorry guys, my stomach couldn't wait! 

Fat and juicy with some incredible toppings AND a donut bun. What more could you want in life?!

Insta: @daintycook - get following!

Dainty Cook xox

Halloween Inspired: Ghostly île Flottantes

A floating poached egg white amongst a pond of creamy vanilla crème anglaise, topped with a crunchy caramel shard - decorated as a ghost of course.

This truly is a fancy dessert and really quite simple to make, with a pinch of patience. So why don't you try this out and stun your Halloween party guests with this ghostly version? It's cute, it's tasty and definitely fits in with a scary theme.

île flottante has been one of those desserts I've been wanting to make for a long while but just hadn't got round to it. Whilst wondering what I could make for halloween without using the usual ingredients, such as pumpkin, the thought of making spooky floating islands literally just popped into my head.

But what are île flottantes I hear you ask! Well, french for floating islands (I didn't just randomly mention islands earlier for no reason incase any of you were confused) is a very well composed dessert should I say. It's usually made up of three components, each of which emit complimentary textures with every mouthful you have. It's absolutely brilliant. You get the smooth cold creaminess from the crème anglaise and then this light, almost melting, meringuey, moussey, marshmallowy even, taste along with a satisfying crunchy caramel topping that I believe is vital to finish the dish off with. 

So you think you want to have a go? Let me tell you how it was made then!

Ingredients:
Crème Anglaise:
300ml milk
80ml double cream
3 drops of vanilla bean paste/1 tsp good quality vanilla extract
70g caster sugar
4 large egg yolks

For the meringue:
4 large egg whites
100g caster sugar
4 drops lemon juice

Caramel topping:
80g caster sugar

Poaching liquid:
500ml milk
500ml water
2 tablespoons sugar

Decoration:
Googley eyes/marshamallow
Black food colouring paste

Method:

• For the crème anglaise, add the milk, cream and vanilla paste in a saucepan and let it simmer on medium heat for 3-4 minutes, do not let it boil.
• Meanwhile in a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until it turns pale in colour.
• Slowly pour in about two tablespoons of the hot milk mixture and whisk away. Keep adding the milk slowly while whisking away to incorporate the eggs and to avoid it turning into a scrambled omelette!
• Put this back on the heat and stir continuously until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of the spoon. Do not leave the saucepan or the creme anglaise will split if not stirred and over heated!
• Strain the mixture into a bowl using a sieve and leave to cool, then refrigerate. 

Poaching liquid:

• Combine the milk and water in a large pan and add the sugar until it dissolves. Make sure the liquid doesn't boil as it will ruin the outcome of the meringues.

Meringues:

• Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl and add 3 drops of lemon juice.
• Gradually add the sugar a tablespoon at a time and whisk until its thick and glossy and stiff peaks form.
• Using 2 large serving spoons, shape the egg whites in an oval shape. To add heigh and make them as 'ghosts' use a serving spoon and a spatula (or butter knife) and keep adding egg white at the top of the oval and smoothen it out with the spatula. I made mine quite big and were harder to poach because of the shape, but you can make your smaller.
• Poach the whites for around 4-5 minutes until stiff and cooked and then turn them over for the same time. Any longer and they tend to collapse!
• Remove them from the pan and place on some baking paper or a wire rack to drain them off.

Caramel:

• Put the sugar in a saucepan and heat until melted and golden brown in colour. Be sure to keep an eye out so it doesn't burn.
• Drizzle over a piece of baking paper and leave to set. 

To assemble:

• Pour some creme anglaise into a bowl (i used spoon rests just to achieve a different look) and place the smaller flat side of the poached egg white on top. Add the googley eyes at the top - if you don't have these don't worry. Cut out two small circles from marshmallows and paint with black food colouring paste and leave to dry. Make sure they're dry or they will run onto your meringue! 
• For the mouthes i used black food colouring paste and lighlt dabbed them onto the back of a palette knife and made a roundish mouth shape.
• Peel off the caramel shards and add on top.

Your ghostly île flottantes are ready to be eaten now!

Any issues, feel free to drop me an email. Happy Halloween everyone :) 

Dainty Cook x