Homemade Hawaiian Style Beef Burgers

I spent the past two weeks minding my auntie's house while she was away so that meant free reign on the kitchen for me :) I had taken mince out of the freezer one night and didn't fancy the usual spaghetti bolognese or tacos so I decided to make homemade burgers. I'd never made burgers before but I went for it anyway. I cooked the burgers on the George Foreman Grill but they could easily be cooked on a barbecue, pan or under the grill. The burgers were surprisingly easy to make and they tasted deeeeelicious...

Ingredients

500g Minced Beef

Half a Small Onion (finely chopped)

2 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)

2 tsp Cumin

1 tsp Mixed Herbs

1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper

Handful Breadcrumbs

1 egg (beaten)

Salt

Mature Cheddar Cheese

Fresh Pineapple (cut into rings)

Rocket Leaves

Mango Chutney

Sesame Seed Bundies 

Method

1) Mix the mince, finely chopped onion and garlic in a large bowl

2) Add in the pepper, cumin and mixed herb seasonings followed by the breadcrumbs and beaten egg.

3) When combined, empty the bowl onto your worktop and mold the mince into medium sized patties.

4) Refrigerate the burgers for at least 20 mins before cooking.

5) After the 20 mins have passed, sprinkle a small amount of salt on each of the burgers and grill them until the meat is cooked through.

6) Grill the pineapple, toast your burger buns and serve with cheddar cheese, mango chutney and rocket leaves.

Someone liked them anyway :)

Philadelphia Simply Stir Review

A couple of weeks ago I woke up to find a special package from Kraft Foods sitting in my kitchen. They sent me a cooler bag full of samples of their new "Simply Stir" range. They included a recipe for a chicken dish along with some of the other ingredients and kitchen utensils I'd need to make it. I was over the moon and I said I'd definitely give it a go for dinner some evening. It really was a quick and easy dish to make that everyone at home loved. I made both variations; the mushroom and the garlic & herb, and I have to say that the garlic and herb was definitely my fave ...

My cooler bag full of goodies !!!

Prep time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins      
(Super Quick!!!)

YOU WILL NEED...

1 Sachet of Philadelphia Simply Stir Sauce
4 Chicken Fillets
1 Small Head of Broccoli
A few Mushrooms

 

1) Slice the chicken fillets into cubes or strips and brown them in a pan
2) Par boil the broccoli while the chicken is cooking and when the chicken is brown add it to the pan
3) Throw in the mushrooms, followed by the Simply Stir Sauce and stir until it has heated through
4) Philadelphia recommend that you serve the chicken with Basmatti Rice

I definitely recommend these Philadelphia Simply Stir Sauces to anyone who is looking for something quick, easy and healthy to make for dinner

Summer Berry & Almond Muffins

I seem to always stick to a recipe when I find one that I like, but yesterday I decided to switch things up a little and try out a new muffin recipe which I stole from my boyfriends mam Helen (the really good baker). I have to say that I actually preferred this one to my original. This recipe uses Buttermilk rather than the natural yogurt and full fat milk combination which means less work and less ingredients to buy...

INGREDIENTS 

(Makes 12 muffins)

7oz Plain Flour (sieved)

6oz Caster Sugar

1 tsp Baking Powder 

1 tsp Ground Mixed Spice

2oz/ 500g Ground Almonds

4oz Summer Berries (your choice)

2 tbsp Chopped Almonds 

200ml Buttermilk

2 Eggs

50g Butter 

METHOD

1) Preheat the oven to 200C/ 400F/ Gas Mark 6 and line a muffin tray with muffin cases

2) Add all of your dry ingredients to the one bowl and mix

3) In a separate bowl, melt the butter over a pot of simmering water 

4) When melted, add the egg and buttermilk and whisk

5) Pour the wet mixture into the dry and fold until combined 

6) Spoon 1-2 spoonfuls of the mixture into each muffin case and put the tray in the oven for 20 mins

7) Allow the muffins to cool on a wire tray and then dust them with icing sugar  

Lemon & Lime Summer Cupcakes

If you're looking for something Summery and that little bit different to make for a BBQ or garden party, these Lemon & Lime Cupcakes are what you need. They take a little bit longer to make than regular cupcakes because of the lemon & lime drizzle, but they're still a pretty handy dessert :) So here goes....

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE MIXTURE...

225g Caster Sugar

225g Butter/ Margarine (softened)

225g Self Raising Flour (sieved)

4 eggs

Rind of 2 Lemons

Rind of 1 Lime

FOR THE DRIZZLE...

120g Caster Sugar

Juice of 2 Lemons (-2 tsp)

Juice of 1 Lime

FOR THE LEMON BUTTER CREAM....

200g Icing Sugar

100g Butter (softened)

2 tbsp Lemon Juice

Method

1) Preheat your oven to 180C/ 350F/ Gas Mark 4 and line a muffin tray with 12 muffin cases
2) Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl
3) When combined and creamy, add in the eggs, one by one and continue to mix
4) Add in the sieved flour, one spoon at a time, until the mixture is light and fluffy
5) Add in the lemon and lime rind and continue to mix the fluffy mixture
6) Spoon 2-3 spoonfuls of the mixture into each muffin case and bake in the oven for 15-20 mins (you will know they're done when the tops are golden brown)
7) Leave them to cool on a wire rack while you make the drizzle...

8) For the drizzle, put the lemon juice, the lime juice and the sugar in a small pot over a low heat and stir until  combined 

9) When combined , turn off the heat and leave it to sit while you use a sharp knife to poke a cross shape into the top of each muffin

10) Using a spoon, pour the drizzle into the crack on top of each cupcake and watch it soak in ( this can be messy so I usually put the cupcakes on a tray or plate so the drizzle doesn't go everywhere!)

11) Then leave your cupcakes to sit and cool while you make the butter cream...

12) For the Lemon Butter Cream, cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy
13) Add the Lemon Juice and continue to mix
14) Use a piping bag or the back of a spoon to ice each of the cupcakes and use small lemon or lime wedges for decoration

Millionaire's Squares

So last week in work I baked the Toffee Shortbread slices which I absolutely LOVE. But, I was really disappointed when I finished that I didn't get to gobble one up. So when I got home I decided that I had to make something similar. I didn't use the same recipe as they use in work, instead I adapted BBC Good Food's recipe for Millionaire's Shortbread. Here goes...

Ingredients

FOR THE SHORTBREAD...

250g Plain Flour

75g Caster Sugar

175g Butter (softened)

FOR THE CARAMEL...

50g Butter

50g Margarine

100g Brown Sugar

3 tbsp Golden Syrup

2 397g tins of Condensed Milk

FOR THE TOP...

100g Milk Chocolate

100g Dark Chocolate

Method

1) Preheat your oven to 180C/ 350F/ Gas Mark 4 and line an approx. 13 x 9 inch swiss roll tin with grease proof paper

2) For the shortbread, put  the flour, caster sugar and butter in a bowl and mix with your fingers until it looks like breadcrumbs

3) Continue to knead the mixture until it takes on a doughy consistency 

4) Press the shortbread mixture into the baking tin and prick a couple of times with a fork

5) Bake it for 20 mins and when done, leave it to cool in the tin

6) For the caramel, melt the butter and sugar together in a pan

7) When combined, add in the golden syrup and the condensed milk and stir continuously

8) Bring the mixture to the boil and then allow it to simmer for 5 mins until it becomes thicker

9) Pour the caramel over the layer of shortbread and leave it to cool for 5 mins and then refrigerate for 20 mins

10) When the caramel is ready you can begin to melt the milk and dark chocolate together in a bowl over a pot of simmering water

11) When combined, spread the chocolate over the caramel and refrigerate for another 20 mins

* For best results, leave the tray in the fridge over night before slicing *

I didn't leave mine over night and they cracked and crumbled.
They still tasted delicious but they didn't look quite as nice!

Banoffee With a Twist

My brothers started their Leaving Cert exams this week so for a bit of study aid and to say good luck I made them their favourite dessert. My brother Ryan especially had been asking me to make it for a while and I never seemed to get around to it. I always call it banoffee with a twist because traditional banoffee pie either uses Digestive biscuits or shortbread whereas I like to use Bourbon Creams and I add a little Khalua liqour to give it a kick. This dessert's a little time consuming, but believe me, its well worth it :)

Ingredients

FOR THE CRUMBLY BISCUIT BASE...

600g Bourbon Cream Biscuits

60g Butter

2 tbsp Khalua Coffee Liquor

FOR THE STICKY CARAMEL...

3 tbsp Golden Syrup

50g Butter

80g Brown Sugar

FOR THE REST...

2 Ripe Bananas

Whipped Cream (as much as you fancy really)

Flake Bars or Chocolate to grate

Method

FOR THE BISCUIT BASE...

1) Grease an 8 inch round tin with melted butter and line the bottom part with grease-proof paper

2) Melt the butter in a large bowl over a saucepan of simmering water

3) While the butter in melting, crush the bourbon biscuits, leaving a few medium sized chunks

4) When the butter is fully melted, add the Khalua followed by the crushed biscuits and stir well

5) Empty the mixture into the greased tin and flatten with the back of a spoon - make a slight hollow in the middle of the tin

6) Refrigerate the tin while you make the caramel 

FOR THE CARAMEL...

1) Put the butter, and sugar into a pot on high and stir until the butter has melted

2) Add the condensed milk and the golden syrup to the mixture and stir continuously until the mixture starts to bubble 

3) Turn the pot on to simmer and stir every now and again - you will notice the mixture thickening

4) After 4 minutes the mixture should have thickened enough

5) Pour one thin layer of caramel over the biscuit and leave the rest to sit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients

FOR THE REST...

1) Slice the two bananas and spread them over the layer of caramel
2) Pour another layer of caramel over the bananas
3) Leave the banoffee to cool for 20 minutes in the fridge and then spread the whipped cream on top followed by the crushed Flake bars or shredded chocolate - for the best results, refrigerate over night before eating

I always make to to leave a little extra caramel to eat with icecream seens
as you have to wait until the next day to try the Banoffee !!! :)

A Tasty Trip to Torremolinos!!!

WOW, it really has been a while since my last blog post - I'm disgraceful :P I just haven't had a minute over the past few weeks with work, college and a deadly trip abroad. Firstly I had a full week of college assignment due dates too get through, followed by a stressful week of exams, and then I headed off to sunny Spain with my boyfriend to chillax for a week. We had a ball and ate mountains of deeeelicious food which I took plenty of pictures of, despite looking like a bit of a weirdo at the dinner table :P   

BOBBY PERU TEXMEX NACHO MOUNTAIN
nacho chips with melted mozzarella and cheddar, spicy chicken, homemade guacamole and hot hot hott jalapenos

We tried this restaurant on our first night and couldn't resist going back twice more during the week - the food was absolutely delicious, aaaand they definitely made the best Mojitos in Spain :)

GAUCHO'S FILLET STEAK
with creamy garlic butter, fresh salad and chunky chips

We didn't realise we were getting ourselves in for a fine dining experience at Gaucho's Steakhouse when we strolled in from the beach in casual summer clothes - it's a well hidden spot that serves absolutely delicious steak.

GELATERIE ICECREAM

I'm a huge ice-cream fan so I couldn't resist a cone in the sun more than a few times thoughout the week :P My favourite flavours were definitely Ferrero Rocher and Kinder, but the coconut was well up there too :)

PASSOÁ 

Passion fruit liquor mixed with Orange Juice is definitely one of my favourite Summer drinks, followed closely by White wine Spritzers with loads of ice and a lemon wedge - I'm not going to say how many glasses I may have drank during the week :P