Recipe: Pan fried steak, caramelised onions, garlic spinach and potato wedges

So yesterday was a bit of a celebration for me, after several months of looking I finally secured a new full time job. It's been really great to have this blog to keep me occupied in the gap in between but I'm looking forward to getting back into full time employment as of next Monday. Look out for cool office lunch ideas, quick suppers and slow cooker recipes coming your way soon. I may even become one of those people who shows up to the office with their salad in a Kilner jar, who knows?

Anyway, for now here is my steak with all the trimmings. I don't cook steaks very often as I'm quite fussy about how it's cooked and I like it really tender. There seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there as to how to cook it, some of which I followed and some of which I blatantly disregarded! In all honesty it was perhaps a little too well done in the middle but the dark glossy top of the steak was absolutely perfect!

1 rump steak (I should probably extol the virtues of organic beef from the butcher but I just got it from the supermarket. It was Finest though!)
1 tsp rock salt
1 onion
3 tbsp sugar
50g butter
1 large potato
4 tbsp vegetable oil
3 "bricks" frozen spinach
1 clove garlic

Contrary to most of the meat dishes I cook, the steak is actually the quick thing here. To prepare it, take it out of its packaging and rub half the oil and rock salt into it. It will sit perfectly happily out of the fridge despite the label's dire warning of use immediately. In fact it will be better for it as it will be more tender if not straight out of the cold. But if you get food poisoning I'm taking no responsibility! Preheat the oven to 220C. Slice the potato into wedges and coat with the other half of the oil and half the rock salt. Lay into a roasting tin/baking tray skin sides down (they won't stick as much this way). Set the timer for 25 mins, you want them to be mostly golden brown with some darker crispy bits on the edges.

Once the potatoes are in the oven, thinly slice the onions and melt half the butter in a small saucepan. Add the onions and sugar and stir to coat. Turn the heat down to low and leave with a lid on for the remainder of the potato cooking time. They should soften and go slightly sticky and a golden brown. If they are still too sloppy and pale by the time the wedges are done, you can whack the heat up to high and stir them vigorously,  but beware, the caramel can catch quickly leaving you with a dark brown stained saucepan to soak (and in my case, a disapproving housemate).

Melt the rest of the butter in a small frying pan (this is a big use all the things kinda dinner!) and finely chop or mince the garlic. Fry gently for 3-4 minutes then add the spinach bricks. Leave to defrost and cook through gently, stirring occasionally.

When there's about 15 minutes left on the timer for the wedges, heat the remaining oil in a griddle pan on as high as you can possibly go on your hob. Be prepared to turn your extractor fan on to full, open your windows and use a chopping board to frantically wave away excess heat from your face. Also check for housemate's clean laundry in the next room, they may not appreciate it smelling like a barbecue pit (oops). Once the oil is smoking, add the steak to the pan. It will sizzle, and there will be a big cloud of steam. Some of the oil might spit out at you. Don't be frightened! Set a timer straight away for 1 minute, then once this goes off, flip the steak over (another big steam cloud here, brace yourself!) and time for another minute. This is just giving a crust to the steak, it won't cook the inside. After the second side is charred on the outside, turn the heat down to low. The next bit of timing is up to you. The general guideline seems to be 2 minutes per side for rare, 3 for medium and 4 for well done, but I guess it depends how quickly  your pan cools, how thick your steak is etc. I cooked for 3 minutes per side on mine and to be honest it was a tad overdone for me, but I'll know for next time. Leave the steak to rest for a further 3 minutes in the pan. Whilst you're doing this you can serve everything else on the plate. Add the classy dollop of ketchup (note to self, do this AFTER arty farty kitchen cookery) and you're good to go!

Review: Amarcord

Amarcord London
75 Southampton Row
London WC1B 4ET
0207 636 5250
amarcordlondon.co.uk 

So yesterday was my 28th birthday (why thank you, so very kind, you're right I DON'T look that old!).

Having already had the big party with friends at The Parcel Yard in Kings Cross I just wanted a quiet family Sunday lunch and Amarcord in Bloomsbury provided us with exactly that.

When we got to the restaurant we were the only people there. I don't think they have a big lunch crowd on a Sunday being a little bit out of the way from most of central London's tourist spots. They have another branch round the corner from the British Museum which I think is probably a little busier for lunches. We had a few other people coming in, one booked table, the rest just footfall but throughout our whole time there it was pretty quiet. I can imagine that a full evening service is loud, vibrant and good fun! The staff who looked after us were friendly and professional and made a few jokes (about my advanced AGE, but we won't go into that).

Food is very good. This is not a place that's doing anything particular innovative. These are not flavours and impressions of Italy, artificially modernized and grafted onto a foam or a powder. There is no deconstruction. Everything says what it does on the tin. There's a spaghetti bolognese, a mushroom risotto and a tiramisu. But each one was very well done. Portion size is reasonable as well, you're not frightened off by a pile of spaghetti that's aimed more at a family of four, nor are you left to surreptitiously google the nearest McDonalds for the way home (something I've actually done after a meal once!). My starter was delicious, the salty dry meat of the prosciutto complementing the sweet juicy melon. Other members of our party had seafood which was apparently very fresh and perfectly cooked. Deciding against being adventurous, I went for a lasagne as a main course. The ratio of meat ragu to pasta (which, again, tasted fresh) was exactly right, and went very well with the side of green beans, simply dressed with butter and black pepper. The house special of tiramisu was light and creamy with enough sharp bitter espresso to offset the sweet liqueur.

Overall if you're looking for somewhere warm, friendly and traditional, a proper Italian trattoria in London, this is the ideal venue. Will definitely be returning!

Recipe: Butternut and haricot bean casserole

Reckon it's about time for another recipe on here, and in keeping with my promises earlier this month, it's time for some healthy eating! This was basically a staple dish from my university days, the beans are very cheap (even cheaper if you use dried ones!) and it's perfect for the freezing cold weather we're having in London right now.

Half a medium sized butternut squash

1 large red onion

1 large red pepper

1 large potato

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

2 cloves of garlic

1 tin of haricot beans (works well with cannellini, butter and kidney beans too)

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 stock cube made up with half a pint of water

salt and pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

Chop the squash, potato, onion and pepper into roughly 1cm cubes. We're not going for perfection here, this is a proper rustic dish! Peel and mince the garlic.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or casserole dish. Add the vegetables and garlic until softened slightly. Keep the heat down low so the squash and potato don't stick to the bottom of the pan. Slowly pour in the stock and tomatoes followed by the basil, paprika and seasoning. Drain the beans and pour in, stirring well. Bring the heat up so the casserole is slowly simmering. Put a lid on the pan and leave to cook through for half an hour or until the vegetables have softened.

Here's a tip for thickening without adding flour. Ladle out some of the casserole into a beaker and blend with a hand blender until smooth. Stir this back into the main pot. 

A good way to use up the rest of the butternut squash is to cut into into cubes (making sure to scrape out the seeds and fibrous parts). Drizzle over some olive oil and a little smoked paprika and bake at 220C for about 30 mins. It's great served with sausages and a little homemade slaw of red cabbage, onion, carrot and yogurt. Delicious, colourful and low carb!

Is it a good idea to start a diet in January?

Advice seems to be all over the place for this, so here's a few of my ideas. I'm certainly not a doctor or a nutritionist (would a nutritionist share a recipe for this?!) but these just seem common sense. 

Breakfast on New Year's Day?

It's been suggested that one of the top reasons for a successful diet or any kind of lifestyle change is a support network. January is filled with people getting up early to go to the gym, buying up kale and making their own yogurt. Even if 90% are back to their old habits by Valentine's Day, the fact is in January they're on it, and they're on it hard. Sharing your experiences with friends, family or colleagues can make that goal shape or size seem a little more attainable. Even if people around you have a different approach, this can cause debate and give you a chance to try out different ideas, or conversely make you believe more in what you're doing yourself. On a more shallow note, starting in January gives a good 5-6 months until the prospect of showing skin on the beach, a sensible period of time to lose weight or to tone.

Not exactly ideal for a run!

But fun though it might be to imagine going for a run with a group of friends, or sharing a salad with your colleagues, we have to remember that this is January in the UK, If we're lucky, it's just dark and wet. More likely it's freezing cold and there's a constant threat of snow. This is not an ideal situation if you're trying to eat more healthily, in fact it becomes very easy to crave warming, stodgy foods to stave off the feeling of cold. The short daylight hours also make it harder to fit in that run or that bike ride. 

Before you worry that it's all doom and gloom and we should just keep eating like it's Christmas for the rest of the year in a vague attempt to feel satisfied, it has to be said there's a certain feeling of satisfaction that comes from drawing a line under overindulgence at Christmas and making a new start. For many of us, December is the time of year when we eat and drink more than we usually would. Personally, I've found myself saying to myself at a party "I'll switch back to the mulled wine after this salted caramel eggnog, bit healthier," as though red wine heated with brandy and sugar is a "healthy option"! After behaviour like that it seems natural to want to swing the other way. 

But there's a little problem with having that clean cut between December and January. Unless you're either very greedy or very well organised, you'll probably start January with a few goodies still

Tins of biscuits seem to appear all over the house in January

floating around. A quick rummage has found a full sized panettone (good until the end of the month) and a tin of ginger and chilli biscuits. Perhaps the best way to integrate these into your January diet is to simply have them in moderation, one biscuit instead of half the tin.

When you do finish all your chocolates and cookies and cheese, this is a pretty good time of year to be stocking up on the healthy snacks. Most major supermarkets choose this time to run promotions on nuts, fruit, vegetables and lean meat, making this an economically attractive time to start a diet. This is good news for most of us, for whom January is the long gap between paychecks where we have to keep an eye on the bank balance a bit more than we do normally. Mind you, if financial affairs are concerning you, starting a diet that is radically different to your current lifestyle can be an expensive prospect.

So in summary, be aware that January is seen as a time to diet, and use it to your advantage. Share your experiences with everyone else and use that strength to try and break out of the "January only" healthy lifestyle. If you're worried about money, don't make any changes that are too radical and remember to scrutinise offers in shops, are they really healthy, will you really eat them? Don't worry about having the odd biscuit or chocolate that's leftover from Christmas, just work it into your plan. Remember it's better to slowly ease into a new lifestyle over a period of weeks than to dive into a completely different and unsustainable diet.

I'm hoping to share a few healthier recipes and tips over the next few weeks, but no doubt there will be some cakes and things in for good measure. As they old saying goes, you don't make friends with salad!

3 Restaurants in London to Try in 2015

Bored of the same old restaurants in London? Try these for a change! You'll notice there are no Michelin stars, no dress codes and no extensive wine lists. London has some of the world's best restaurants, with probably one of the most varied food scenes available of any city, and these restaurants below should give you a chance to try some of them.

Hopefully this list will give you some alternatives to the usual suspects of the high street, and a chance to discover some of the capital's hidden gems.

Brasserie Zedel

www.brasseriezedel.com
20 Sherwood Street
London
W1F 7ED
02077344888

If you're looking to impress, this stunning restaurant in a former hotel ballroom adjacent to Piccadilly Circus is sheer perfection. Doesn't look like much from the outside, but once you go through the street cafe and down the stairs you realise what a big deal this place is. A traditional French brasserie with all the trimmings, this is a restaurant that serves grated carrot as a starter and gets away with it. Frankly, there's nothing on the menu that's particularly daring, but then there doesn't have to be. Giving a little bit of Paris in London, this is traditional French food done pretty well for the price. The wine menu is also well put together with the useful option of a carafe for those that won't manage a full bottle.

Mildreds
www.mildreds.co.uk

45 Lexington Street

London

W1F 9AN 

0207 494 1634

One of the great Soho institutions, and one of the top rated vegetarian restaurants in the country. I've taken friends here who will only eat a meal with meat in it and they love this place as well. The menu is from a mixture of different cuisines so this is a good option for a group where no one can narrow the choice down by country or style of cooking. Something to remember, vegetarian cooking has little influence on desserts, the desserts on offer here are quite simply AMAZING. One of my favourite dessert dishes ever was served here, quince and cranberry rum baba with honey ice cream. Simple but delicious, honey ice cream needs to be more of a thing. Only downside to this place is the size. This is a very small restaurant and they don't take bookings, so it will usually mean having to stand at the small bar near the door until you're called forward. On the plus side, the staff here are incredibly organised.

Little Bay Kilburn
www.littlebaykilburn.co.uk

228 Belsize Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 4BT

0207 372 4699

Such a quirky little place. Feels a bit homemade and the menu has a few oddities but this is a good, fun neighbourhood restaurant. It's cosy, warm and slightly romantic with it's little tables and candles in wine bottles. It's also very good value for money, especially before 7pm. To make a bit more space in the small restaurant they have stacked some tables up on top of each other, meaning you get to climb up a little staircase to your table. There's a few of these around London, but this is the one I know best. One of their main courses is chicken stuffed with lamb, strange but good! I've also sat in here for nearly 4 hours on a date once, we were the only ones left and they were quietly clearing up around us but trying not to interrupt.