Forever Nigella: Sea Fish and Eat It

 

For some reason, though I’ve been to the U.K. a few times, I had never been served Kedgeree.  For shame!  That had to remedied, and with this month’s Forever Nigella theme being seafood, it was the perfect time to try it out. 

Nigella gives traditional Kedgeree an Asian twist in this recipe.  I didn’t have lime leaves for poaching the fish, so I used a little lime zest instead.  The fragrance of the onions and spices is really lovely.  Then you add the rice and it turns a glorious yellow from the turmeric.  The eggs may seem like an odd addition to this dish, but it gives a surprising balance that I don’t think can be left out.  I didn’t have Nam Pla, but using any fish sauce should be sufficient until you can find the stuff.  I would like to hunt it down though.  We felt the dish was missing a little something that may be remedied by using the right sauce.  A little salt and pepper did just the trick for us this time.  And finishing it off, there’s just something about cilantro.  It brings an incredible flavor to the table, I love it!

Click here for Nigella’s recipe for
Asian Spiced Kedgeree.

This month’s Forever Nigella is hosted by Housewife Confidential.

Here are the rules:

Forever Nigella #6 “Sea Fish and Eat It”

Challenge: To prepare and blog any Nigella recipe using seafood or freshwater fish.

Deadline: Sunday, June 26 2011 at midnight wherever you are.

Round up: By the next weekend.

There are:

No rules about how often you must take part

No rules about stuff being secret until certain dates

No rules that everyone cook exactly the same thing

No rules about not being able to submit to any other blog events – just check it doesn’t contravene the other guys’ rules

But there are 3 rules:

1. Blog your entry by the deadline including:

a) the current Forever Nigella badge

b) a link to the Forever Nigella #6 Launch Post: http://housewifeconfidential.co.uk/2011/05/forever-nigella-6-sea-food-and-eat-it/

c) a link to the official Forever Nigella page at Maison Cupcake: http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/forever-nigella

2. So not to breach Nigella’s copyright you must NOT reproduce recipes verbatim as shown in her books. If using an original Nigella recipe, tell us which book it is from and/or where we find it online (see most likely sites below).  If you’ve adapted the recipe in some way i.e. changed at least two ingredients or amended the method then it’s ok to publish the a recipe in your post but you MUST write the directions in your own words.

3. Tell us about your post by emailing me: katAThousewifeconfidentialDOTcoDOTuk  and please c.c. sarahATmaisoncupcakeDOTcom with:

a) your name

b) URL of your post

c) a photo no more than 400 pixels wide.

Remember to tweet your post with the hashtag #forevernigella – Sarah at Maison Cupcake will retweet all those she sees!

N.B. Your entry must have been published since the announcement post. You may only submit something from your archives if you republish it as a new post.

If you don’t have any Nigella books check out these resources online:

Nigella’s official site: http://www.nigella.com/

BBC Food: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/chefs/nigella_lawson

Channel 4 Food: http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/popular-chefs/nigella-lawson-recipes

UKTV Good Food Channel: http://uktv.co.uk/food/chef/aid/530864/

Food Network: http://www.foodnetwork.com/nigella-lawson/index.html

Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=Nigella+Lawson

Sea Fish and Eat It Round-Up

Ice Cream Cupcake Contest 2011

 

Coffee.  It fuels the world.  There are so many ways to enjoy it.  Most people I know put creamer and sugar in it.  Some like it with absolutely nothing in it, (I don’t know how they do it.  Gag!)  I myself cannot imagine drinking coffee without sugar and loads of milk.  My favorite coffee drink is the Double Shot from Starbucks, (I’m desperate to copycat that recipe), but cappuccinos and lattes are my alternate choices.   Lately, I’ve discovered that coffee ice cream has replaced chocolate as my go to frozen treat.  So when I decided to participate in the Ice Cream Cupcake Contest this year, I knew what I had to do.

My dream Ice Cream Cupcake is a combination of chocolate cake and cappuccino ice cream.  Throw in some chocolate chips and it’s a dream come true!  When I started thinking about the perfect Cappuccino Ice Cream Cupcake, here is what I envisioned:

A Chocolate Cupcake, Topped with Cappuccino Chocolate Chip Ice Cream.  Crowned with a Dollop of Whipped Cream and Chocolate Covered Coffee Bean.

 

That’s cute and all, but I felt that if I was going with the coffee theme, it needed to be a true cupcake and be either baked or served in a coffee mug.

That’s better!  To make your own, bake your favorite chocolate cupcakes, adding a teaspoon or so of instant coffee granules to the batter.  May I suggest these cupcakes?  If you’re baking in a mug, you’ll probably have to add extra batter and baking time to the recipe. I used about 4 cupcakes worth of batter here.

Another option would be to bake the cupcakes in silicone baking cups then unwrap them and place inside your favorite mug.

I’ve topped mine with whipped cream and a chocolate coffee bean, but dusting with cinnamon or cocoa powder would also bring the café experience to these cupcakes.

Cappuccino Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Click here for the Printable Recipe at Tasty Kitchen.

Makes 1.5 Quarts

1 cup milk

1/4 cup ground coffee

1 cup sugar

3 eggs, beaten

1/8 tsp. salt

2-3 tsp. vanilla extract, depending on strength

3 cups half and half

1-4.25 oz. dark chocolate bar

In a saucepan, heat milk on medium-high heat until you see the first signs of bubbles, then remove from heat.  Stir in coffee and allow to steep for 3-4 minutes.  Strain the coffee grounds out of the milk using a fine sieve.  Slowly add the milk into the eggs, whisking constantly.  Return the mixture to the saucepan and add the sugar and salt.  Stir for 3-4 minutes over medium-high heat until the mixture thickens.  Add vanilla and 1 cup of the half and half.  Move the mixture to the refrigerator until chilled.  Meanwhile, chop the chocolate bar into small chunks and/or shards and set aside.  Once the mixture is chilled, add it, the chocolate, and the rest of the half and half to your ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.

The Contest:

The Ice Cream Cupcake Contest is host by Cupcake Project and Scoopalicious.  Judging with them are Nicole Weston from Baking Bites, Jessie Oleson from CakeSpy, and Naomi Robinson from Bakers Royale.  These three bloggers will also showcase their favorites on their own blogs

Prizes
The winner will be announced by July 1 and will receive an amazing collection of dessert cookbooks from some of our favorite authors!
From author Krystina Castella:

From authors Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough:

From Nicole Weston, author and contest judge:

From Jessie Oleson, author and contest judge (to be delivered upon book release):

From Bakerella:

From Emma Hand, creator of Snap Stories and designer of our amazing new Ice Cream Cupcake Contest logo:

Wow! I’d love to win all of those, but even if I don’t, I’ve still got my ice cream in the freezer!

Linked to Made It On Monday.

Check out this at Brewed Daily.

And here is the link to all the entries.

Big Fat Cookie

What could be better than a chocolate chip cookie?  How about a chocolate chip cookie so big you have to bake it in a skillet? 

When I saw this recipe on Tasty Kitchen, I knew I had to make it.  I just had to wait for the right opportunity where there would be plenty of people for sharing.  That’s just too many calories for one person.  So I made it for a family reunion, and there was barely a sliver left when it was done.

      

Serve this warm and gooey with some ice cream, and you’ll make lots of friends!

Note: On Tasty Kitchen, you can change the serving size and the ingredient quantities will adjust automatically.  If you want a large cookie, change the serving size to 6 and use two eggs and bake in a 10 or 12 inch skillet.  I plan to try this as a 2 serving cookie and bake in a small skillet.  There is also a link to the blog post where this cookie was originally made.