Knowledge Hoover

(Crappy picture for now…with potatoes)

CHILLI CHICKEN & VEGETABLE SOUP

Ingredients (makes 4 portions, at least):
- 2 Chicken breasts
- 1 Red pepper
- 2 Tomatoes
- 3 Shallots
- 1- 2 Chicken Stock Cubes (depends how salty they are)
- 2 Cloves of garlic
- Chilli (either 2tsp of the stuff in a jar or just use 2 bird eye chillis)
- Thyme & coriander
- Lemon juice
- Butter & Oil
- Water (approx 1 1/2 pints, but see how it goes)

Here we go!:

1. Stick the chicken in the oven for 25 - 30 mins

2. While the chicken is cooking, put a little butter in a saucepan on a low heat. When it’s melted, add finely chopped shallots, the garlic, chilli and herbs (you can be pretty liberal with the herbs). Chop the red pepper up into little cubes and add this too, and add the chopped tomatoes.

3. Once the things in the saucepan are sizzling away (in a fairly non-violent manner), add some oil & lemon juice. There should be enough to coat everything in there.

4. Boil a kettle full of water. Add this to the saucepan with the stock cube(s) and then STIR STIR STIR. When the stock cube(s) have dissolved, add a few more drops of lemon juice, then put a lid on the saucepan and leave to simmer.

5. When the chicken is done, take out of the oven. Divide the chicken breasts into several pieces, then start tearing the meat into the saucepan. It should be lovely and tender.

6. Leave to simmer for at least another 10 mins and then serve when you’re ready to eat it. Add black pepper to taste.

Variations:
- For a more filling soup add small cubes of potato when you add the water & stock cubes
- Green beans (cut to a shorter length) can be quite nice in this too
- A slightly sweeter winter variation could use chopped carrots & parsnips instead of the red pepper and tomatoes.

The great thing about this soup is it’ll keep well in the fridge for almost a week so lunches are SORTED.

Enjoy!

Recipe: The squidgiest, most amazing brownies you will ever eat. Guaranteed.

As a few people I’ve met up with over the last couple of weeks can attest, I make bloody amazing brownies. As I’m a generous sort (and also don’t have time to bake for you every night!) here’s the recipe (slightly adapted from the original over on Foodbeam)

You will need:

140g unsalted butter
280g caster sugar
80g cocoa powder (Bournville tastes AMAZING in this)
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 large eggs
65g plain flour
1tsp vanilla essence
Some icing sugar for dusting at the end

Also, make sure you have a baking tin (approx 25 x 25 cm), baking paper, and either a heat-proof mixing bowl, or a saucepan that will fit inside another pan.

Ok, let’s bake some stuff!

1. Pre-heat that oven of yours to 160°C, and line that baking tray with baking paper
2. The original recipe says to use a bain-marie here, but no one actually owns one of those (nor knows what one is), so this is what you do:
   Get some water simmering in a saucepan and on top of it you’ll need to put either a heat-proof mixing bowl, or another saucepan. I go with the second saucepan.
   Anyway, in your (make-shift) mixing bowl, put the butter, sugar, cocoa, vanilla essence and salt in. Put the bowl on the simmering water in the other saucepan so it gently heats the mixture as you stir. Keep stirring and at some point it’ll turn into a smooth paste kind of mixture. When it reaches this stage and is hot to touch then take it off the heat (and put burn cream on your finger)
3. When the mixture has cooled a bit add the eggs, one at a time, beating with a fork and stirring for a good minute or so. The mixture should get very smooth and a bit gloopy.
4. Add the flour and stir until it all looks like you could quite happily sit there and eat from the bowl (note: do not do this. Raw egg and all that)
5. Spread the mixture out evenly in your lined baking tin, then stick in the oven for 20 mins.
6. They’ll look a bit un-set when you take them out of the oven, BUT IT’S OK! Try and shift your brownie slab to a cooling rack as soon as it’s at a point when doing this won’t make it fall apart. Dust with icing sugar, allow it to cool properly then slice it up.
7. NOW YOU TOTALLY GET TO EAT THEM. YEEEEEAH! Share, if necessary.

Tonight’s somewhat Mediterranean dinner.

30 mins in oven - chicken mini fillets, green pepper, red pepper, 2 shallots and sort-of new potatoes. Sprinkle with salt, black pepper, basil and thyme and drizzle on some olive oil. Simples!