Really yummy rich chocolate and tangy orange fudge cake

Serves up to 12.....

Preheat oven to fan assisted 160-180c/gas 4

What you need.......
1 pot natural yoghurt...i use a 290gram pot of activia, works well 2 pots of granulated or caster sugar
2 pots of self raising flour
1 pot of coca powder
3/4 pot of sunflower or vegetable oil
a pinch of baking powder
3 large free range eggs
the juice of 1 large orange

The frosting...

300gram of icing sugar
100 gram of cocoa powder
orange juice and the zest of 1 large orange
150 gram of butter, softened

What you do.....

Put the yoghurt into a baking bowl and use the empty pot to measure all the ingredients......
Mix everything together really really well, its best to use an electric whisk unless like me you are trying to banish those bingo wings...use a hand whisk!!
If the mix feels too thick add a little more orange juice until you have a good cake mix consistency....drops off the back off the spoon but not too runny.
Pour into your silicone cake "tin" or a greased and lined springform tin and bake in the centre of the preheated oven for about 40 minutes until the knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake.
Leave to cool in the silicone until just warm before removing and placing onto a wire cooling rack.
To make the icing, put the icing sugar, coca powder, butter and the orange zest into a bowl.
Add orange juice whilst mixing until you get a thick frosting consistency.....a tiny bit at a time!! If you add too much, just add more icing sugar, no worries!
When the cake is totally cool spread the frosting all over the top and decorate with grated orange zest!
Enjoy! Its intense!! xx

super duper salad!

This healthy plate was created because of my insane obsession with beetroot! I just absolutely adore the stuff, raw, pickled( i can easily eat a whole jar in one sitting!), roasted with balsamic and garlic, lush lush lush!! So during a " i need to lose a few pounds" stage this winter,one of many may i add,  i made this...its so yum and fresh and healthy and very filling! Enjoy! :-)


What you need.....Serves 4 as side dishes

1 whole raw beetroot
3 washed unpeeled carrots
1 large Red Delicious apple
handful of walnut halves
handful sultanas

Dijon Honey dressing.....

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
3 teaspoons dijon mustard
2 teaspoons clear honey

To make it look nice....

Peel the skin from a cucumber in long strips, leave to soak in cold water for a little while and they will go nice and curly

How to make it...

In a nice big bowl grate all the vegetables and apple, chuck in the walnuts and sultanas, season and mix well.

In an empty clean jam jar put all the dressing ingredients and with the lid on(!) shake like mad!

Pour as much or as little as you wish over the salad and serve with cucmber shavings piled up high and all fancy....and scoff!

Rainbow bean salad... a combination of beans, coriander, mint and lots of little crunchy bits!

I love beans!!! All kinds, but my favourite are butter beans. Yum yum yum! So here is a recipe i created in the chalet just to liven them up a bit and make them look pretty :-)
Serves 4...as side dishes, 2 as a main course...
What you need...
2 tins of butter beans in water
1 tin of cannelini beans in water
1 tin of chick peas in water
a handful of fresh mint leaves roughly chopped, quite fine
a handful of fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped
a small red onion, finely diced
2 small carrots, washed and grated
1 clove of garlic, crushed
For the dressing....
100ml of olive oil
50 ml of white balsamic vinegar...or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon of dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of runny honey
half a red pepper, diced
1 spring onion, sliced
a few chunks of pineapple, diced
sea salt and black pepper to taste
What you do....
Put the olive oil, vinegar, mustard and honey into a jar, put the lid on and shake like mad!
Drain the beans and put into a bowl, add all teh other ingredients and pour on the dressing.
Mix well, taste it and add salt and pepper....job done! 

Duck legs with homemade 5 spice cooked in red wine and rosemary...

serves 4...... oven 200c/fan 180/gas 6

What you need...
4 duck legs
A bunch of fresh rosemary sprigs
...4 fat cloves of garlic
about 1/2 bottle of red wine
3 tablespoons of blueberry jam(or a similar flavour)
1 teaspoon of 5 spice powder... i make my own....its just 1 tablespoon each of fennel, star anise, black or sezchuan pepper, cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of cloves. grind altogether in a processor...
4 whole star anise to garnish
sea salt

What you do.......
put the rosemary and garlic cloves on the bottom of a roasting tin,
salt the duck legs skin
rub the 5 spice powder all over the legs
place them skin side up on top of the rosemary and garlic
roast in the oven for about an hour until the skin is all crispy and lovely
take out and drain the fat off(save it for roast potatoes, lush!)
pour the red wine into the tin, add the jam...spreading a little over the duck legs and the rest just stir into the wine
put it back in the oven and cook for a further 40 minutes until the sauce has reduced...taste...if its not sweet enough add more jam or a little honey to taste
serve with the sauce poured over the leg and some of the rosemary on top. Garnish with a star anise... lush!

Thai pork with coconut and lime rice

My favourite flavour combination is that of spicy chilli, zesty lime juice, salty fish sauce and the lovely sweet balance of sugar. I adore Thai food!!
Steve and i have been living in Bansko, Bulgaria since December and whilst we have loved every minute of it and really enjoyed the traditional cuisine...we couldnt wait any longer! We had to satisfy our massive Asian food cravings!!
Its almost impossible to get hold of Thai ingredients here but we managed to find some fish sauce in the city of Sofia, (courtesy of a lovely Bulgarian friend Svetlana). The chillis were bought last Sunday from the local market...they were actually pickled in a jar and not too spicy so i used enough of them, seeds too, and managed to get that good old chilli kick i love so much.
Coconut milk isn't available here either so i used dessicated for the rice...it actually worked so well i think i will use this in the future...i loved the texture it gave.The pork available in Bansko is probably the best pork i have ever eaten. It is so fresh and tender and after being left to marinate all day in these wonderful flavours it filled our hungry mouths with juicy yumminess!!

Serves 4....
What you need........
800grams of lean pork(i used pork loin) cut into chunky strips
4 medium sized carrots, peeled and cut into thin batons
a thumb size piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and finely diced
a ladle full of chicken stock
2 tablespoons of plain flour
For the marinade.....
3 garlic cloves crushed
8 tablespoons of fish sauce
5-6 tablespoons of sugar
3 limes, juiced...maybe a little more depending on the size
2 birdseye chillis(this is what i would normally use if they were available)sliced...add the seeds if you want it hotter
a big handful of fresh roughly chopped coriander leaves
For the rice....
300grams of Jasmine rice if available, if not just use good long grain
3 limes juiced
4 tablespoons of dessicated coconut
sea salt

What you do......
mix together all the marinade ingredients and stir like crazy to dissolve the sugar and combine everything.
Taste it!! add more sugar if its too salty, more limes if too sweet etc etc ...its all about personal taste.
Prepare the pork into strips and chop your carrots. Put into an oven proof dish and pour the marinade all over, using you hands mix it altogether making sure all the meat is coated.
Cover with clingfilm and leave it to marinade in the fridge for as long as you can.

When you are ready to eat, take out the pork and leave it at room temperature while you prepare the rice.
Wash the rice in cold water until the water is almost clear then cover the rice with enough water so that when you place your hand on the top the water comes up to your wrist.
Salt the water to taste and put a lid on.
Heat a little oil in a big pot and throw in the pork and carrots, stir around a bit then pour over the marinade.
Cook like this for 5 minutes then add the flour and stir well to coat all the meat.
Pour on the hot stock and mix...adding more if this seems too thick. You don't want a soup consistency, just a slightly saucy dish.
Turn the heat really low, put a lid on and leave to cook until the meat is ready...this wont take long at all.
Meanwhile cook your rice......
Bring it to the boil with the lid on then turn the heat down and simmer, lid off for about 15 minutes until cooked.
When its almost cooked i put the lid back on and turn it down even lower so the rice steams at the end.....
 Squeeze in the lime juice and add the coconut...mix it through but dont stir it too much, you will ruin the rice and make it a stodgy mess! 
The pork should be lovely and tender now, serve on top of the sweet rice and enjoy! mmm mmm

Banana and poppy seed loaf...

This lovely recipe was given to me by my mum, Its absolutely gorgeous and almost feels healthy because of the bananas :-)

Oven 180c/350f/gas 4

Grease and line a 900gram loaf tin

...What you need.....
175 grams of self raising flour
175 grams of soft brown sugar
175 grams of butter, softened
3 eggs, beaten
a teaspoon of baking powder
3 ripe bananas, mashed
2 tablespoons of poppy seeds
For The Topping......
200 grams of low fat cream cheese
2 tablespoons of icing sugar, sieved
grated orange rind and poppy seeds to make it gorgeous

What you do.....
Put all the ingredients(except the ones for the topping!!), into a big bowl.
Use an electric whisk if possible and mix really well.
pour into the prepared loaf tin and bake in the centre of the oven for about an hour...or until firm to touch.
Insert a knife into the centre of the loaf...it should come out clean
leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes then place on top of a wire cooling rack until completely cold

Make the topping....
mix together the cream cheese and the icing sugar
spread on top of the cold loaf and decorate it with orange rind and poppy seeds to make it look fabulous :-)
enjoy this cake with loads and loads of tea!