Drinks #1: 2 Minute Cocoa

Today our kettle broke.

5 minutes ago I came up with this.

Super quick, super unhealthy, super yummy, no toppings needed.

I give you, 2 Minute cocoa!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup of milk (I used skimmed.)
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
• Single cream

Method

1. Pour milk into a microwaveable jug. Microwave for one minute. 
   
2. Add sugar and cocoa powder. Whisk.
   
   
   
   
3. Microwave for 30 seconds.
   
4. Whisk.
   
5. Pour back into cup. 
   
6. Top up with cream.
   
7. Stir.
   
8. Microwave for another 30 seconds.
9. Enjoy!
   

I wouldn't advise making this too often, but as we have no working kettle and I wanted something similar to a hot chocolate, this seemed like the perfect idea!

Abi xx

Student Meals #1: Stuffed Peppers

This is yummy and also cheap! Hence it coming under "Student Meals." And it's healthy!

This recipe is made specifically with vegetarians in mind, but you can adapt it to contain meat if you so wish, though that may take a little longer to cook!

Ingredients:

• 3 Bell Peppers, one of each colour. (You can buy packs of 3 from most supermarkets.)
• Two tablespoons of Olive Oil.
• 1 Onion, diced.
• 3 Eggs, beaten.
• Half a tin of plum tomatoes.
• Mixed herbs. (The nicest flavour comes from the ones containing sage. You can also get these for cheap from most supermarkets.)
• 1 cup grated cheese.
• Half a teaspoon of salt.
• Half a teaspoon of white pepper. (Black pepper works too, I just think white pepper has a better flavour.)

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Half the bell peppers length-ways from top to bottom, removing the membrane, seeds and stem. Rinse under a tap to get rid of any dirt. 
   
3. In a pan over a medium heat, sweat the diced onion with the olive oil until it goes slightly brown. Stir occasionally to avoid burning. Remove from the heat.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Mash the plum tomatoes. (You want the juice for this.)
   
   
   
   
5. Add the tomatoes, onions (and olive oil), salt, pepper and mixed herbs to the beaten egg and whisk until combined. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Lay out the six halves of bell peppers so that the hollow insides are facing upwards on a baking tray greased with olive oil (preferably with raised sides to catch any egg mixture). Pour egg mixture into each half. Don't worry if the mixture spills over, this still cooks well and can be saved!
   
   
   
   
7. Put grated cheese on top of each stuffed pepper so that it covers the mixture completely.
   
8. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
   
   
   
   
9. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. I have them by themselves but they are really nice with rice :) 
   
   
   
   

Let me know if you try this and how they turn out! :)

Abi xx

Believe it or not...

...there are some foods/food products that I absolutely despise.

• Salmon. Regardless of whether it is tinned/fresh/flaked/smoked I have a strong dislike for it. I blame this on a Salmon Pie Ready-Meal (Salmon topped with Mash Potato) that was fed to me as a child. It was disgusting.
• Tomato Ketchup. Yuck. It is the sauce of Satan himself. Why, oh why, would you make a tomato sauce that is clearly full of sugar?! I prefer to make my own, thank you!
• Mayonnaise. Don't ask me why. 
• Mushrooms. I don't know whether it's the texture or the taste but there is something about them that makes me feel nauseous.
• Quiche. Or rather, shop bought Quiches. Homemade ones are bearable but generally I avoid them.
• Pilchards. No. Just no.
• Hot dogs. Long story short, I swallowed a whole one when I was 5 and then threw it back up. I can't even stand the smell of them.
• Bananas. They made my teeth hurt when I was small. Avoid.
• Oranges. Love the flavour, hate the texture. It's like chewing on shredded car tires.
• Cheese and Onion crisps. THEY DO NOT TASTE LIKE CHEESE AND ONION. Lies in a bag.

The above does not mean any of you should dislike them. I don't want to put anyone off either. But I figured that if I'm going to do a food blog properly, I need to be honest from the get go. 

I do not like every food out there.

I love food as a whole, and I can bear mushrooms or mayonnaise when blended into something else, but when it's obviously there I just... blurgh.

Honesty is the best policy, right?

Abi xx

We started from the bottom, now we're here!

I like food.

Actually, I love food. And not just eating it either. I love cooking, and baking and experimenting. There's something oddly fulfilling about completing your first pie, or cake, or any home cooked meal.

My first meal that I ever made by myself without any supervision whatsoever was a Baked ("Jacket") Potato with cheese.

I was 15. The potato still had some black bits in that I had neglected to remove, the skin was tough and the insides weren't completely cooked, but I was proud. I did this, I had no help, I can cook.

Of course it wasn't like I was a Jamie Oliver or a Delia Smith, but hey, I, Abi, had cooked. And I was damn excited about it.

Fast forward 6 years and I am much more skilled. I can cook a variety of different meals from a variety of different cultures, as well as desserts, sauces and even drinks, I can even invent things too. I've covered French, Spanish, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Mexican... you name it, I've done it. For a girl born and raised in West Yorkshire, England, I'd say I haven't done too badly.

The point is, that I have gone from that (to be quite frank) disgusting little potato to being able to make an entire three-course meal. I had to start somewhere.

This blog is going to explore my many successes as well as my many failures in the culinary world, all of which have been accomplished from the comfort of my parents' kitchen. (Although when I am in there it is my kitchen!)

I've gone from being like Mrs Doubtfire burning the sauce and setting 'her' fake breasts on fire to Julia Child. (Ok, maybe not quite that brilliant!)

Speaking of Julia Child, if you have a passion for food and want some inspiration, watch 'Julie and Julia', an inspirational little film of two women learning to cook. (You can read the blog this was based off here.)

I hope you enjoy this blog and the upcoming posts!

Remember not to be a Mrs Doubtfire!

Abi xx