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Category Archives: Recipes

Filippo Berio’s New Fennel and Garlic Crostini’s with Mackerel Pâté

28 Thursday Dec 2017

Posted by Fiona in events, Food, Recipes

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Christmas appetisers, easy to make Pâté, fennel and garlic crostini, Filippo Berio, Filippo Berio crostini's, filippo berio olive oil, mackerel Pâté recipe, olive oil, Pâté recipe, The food sauce

A crostini is that perfect snack for when your friends come round, have at parties, or even just pack a few in a lunch box to snack on at work. They are made from freshly baked bread, sprinkled with sea salt and drizzled with olive oil. Fillipo Berio, known for his famous olive oil has launched a new range of crostini’s using his signature oil and combining it with some fantastic flavours consisting of fennel and garlic, sun dried tomato, rosemary and sea salt as well as formaggio. I was fortunate to discover them at The Food Sauce Christmas Party a few weeks ago and have been snacking on them since!

For Christmas dinner we always have a starter, main and far too many desserts and this year were going to make our usual of prawn cocktail and stuffed mushrooms however I thought I’d try something a little different using the crostini’s and making a dip to go with them.

My mum makes an amazing mackerel pâté and I thought that would be a perfect accompaniment for the fennel and garlic crostini’s and so gave it a go. Both the pate and crostini are very flavoursome however, they do not overpower the other. Rather the freshness and smoothness of the pâté is delicious with the garlic and the crunch texture of the crostini. Give it a go and let me know what you think!


This recipe needs to be made the day before serving to give the pâté time to set. You will also need a blender.

Ingredients (To fill 6 little pots)

4 mackerel fillets

250g soft cream cheese

Juice of 1 lemon

Sprinkle of pepper

Method

  1. Peel the skin off the mackerel fillets and break the hard bit of skin at the bottom of the fish off and throw away. Break the mackerel fillets into small pieces and put into the blender.
  2. Empty the contents of the cream cheese into the blender with the mackerel. Squeeze the lemon juice over and sprinkle with a pinch of pepper.
  3. Blend all the ingredients up together for a few minutes ensuring there are no big bits of mackerel but rather it forms a smooth consistency. Use a spoon to mix the paste around to let you see if it is completely smooth.
  4. Spoon your pâté mixture into the 6 little serving pots and leave in the fridge overnight to set.
  5. Serve with your crostini’s for a delicious appetiser!

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The No bake, Oh wait I baked it Pumpkin Pie

24 Tuesday Oct 2017

Posted by Fiona in events, Food, Free From, Recipes

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50 shades of autumn, Autumn, cake club, cakes gone wrong, camden, clandestine cake club, coconut cream, dairy free, gluten free pumpkin pie, look bad taste good, pumpkin puree, raw banofee pie, raw cakes, themed cakes

The nights are getting darker, the clocks are going back next week, it’s safe to say it’s officially autumn and with that it seemed pretty fitting to have 50 shades of autumn as the theme for Cake Club this month.

When I first found this out, I thought right I’m going to make something ambitious this time, some sort of pie or cake perhaps, different shades in colour with leaves made out of rolled icing which I would paint gold. That doesn’t sound too amazing but for the past few months with cake club I’ve always found that I’ve either forgotten the date and it’s got to the day before and I’m like crap what can I make so have whipped up something simple or have just picked quite safe options.

So, I thought about what I would make and then, a week before as I was looking into pumpkin pie recipes I thought, as Amanda who comes to cake club is dairy free, I would make a cake so that she could have another option to eat, rather than just her own. I have made raw cakes and some gluten and dairy free cakes in the past which actually turned out quite nice (you can read about my adventure with the banoffe raw cake I made at Easter!) so I thought I’ll find a dairy free pumpkin recipe to make and I can still decorate it and make it look fab!

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BBC Good Food Show 2016

16 Wednesday Nov 2016

Posted by Fiona in events, Food, Recipes

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aldi, BBC good food show, bbc good food show 2016, brown pecan butter ice cream, chai latte, chai milk, coconut oil, coconut water, creme brulee brownies. Jim jams, duke of delhi, elderflower cider, gin and tonic ice cream, heck, Ishara organic, jbe imports, Judes, kisag trio peelers, matcha latte, Miso Tasty, Narna's cakes, nitrogen ice cream, nutella and peanut butter brownie, olympia, peanuit butter ice cream, peanut butter bomb, perkier, prosecco, reduced fat chocolate spread, rum and chilli ginger beer, spiraliser, teaforia, The Brownie Bar, The food sauce, The original pizza company, Thistly cross cider, Tom Kerridge, Tomahawk Maple Whisky, truffle nuts, wagyu beef

img_3796img_3805perkier_No autumn is complete without the BBC Good Food Show. It’s one of those annual events you look forward to months before it even happens. When I was on the train on my way to the show there were so many mums with their daughters, families together, happy and excited on their way to the event.

Held at London Olympia, this was my third time at the BBC Good Food show and I loved it just as much as the first time going. I remember thinking right we’ll just go for two hours and that will be plenty. Five hours later we were still there! Olympia is huge and with over a hundred stands you can’t just whizz around it, well you can but then find you want to whizz around it five more times.

img_3790

tom-kerridge

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I went with my friend Sarah who has never been before and had no idea what to expect and she absolutely loved it. Continue reading →

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Treat yourself with this Raw Snickers Cake

08 Tuesday Nov 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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cake club, camden bars, camden lockside, clandestine cake club, favourite chocolate bar recipes, ferrero rocher cake, gianduia cake, gluten free, goodfoodgoddess, halloween, healthy snickers cake, kit kat cake, lockside, peanut butter cake, raw cake, raw recipes, Raw Snickers Cake, Snickers cake, whittakers coconut slab

snickers-raw-cake_ raw-cake-snickers raw-snickers_cakeOur Clandestine Cake club fell on Halloween for the month of October however we decided to go against tradition of making Halloween/scary/pumpkin cakes and the theme instead was favourite chocolate bars.

As a terribly indecisive person, usually when I learn of the theme for cake club I spend a good bit of time deciding on what to make (there can always be so many options) and then end up changing my mind last minute.  However, this month as soon as I learnt what the theme was I chose my chocolate bar straight away which meant I just needed to find/think up a recipe for it.

For me I am a huge chocolate lover and have many favourite chocolate bars, turnock caramel bar (yes please) whittakers coconut slab & that new dairy milk bar with white, dark and milk chocolate (yum!),  however one bar which I love in both its bar form and as an ice cream is snickers. Continue reading →

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Halloween just wouldn’t be the same without some Pumpkin Pie

28 Friday Oct 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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bobbing apples, Candyman, halloween, halloween abroad, hocus pocus, pies, practical magic, pumpkin pie recipe, spice cake, sweet shortcrust pastry, trick or treat, Vancouver

pie_pumpkinpumpkin-pieHalloween is one of my favourite seasons. I have so many fun memories of it from childhood starting with playing bobbing apples and having a nose filled with water, to having friends over to watch horror films as well as the yearly tradition of watching Hocus Pocus or Practical Magic!

I used to love trick or treating and continued going until I was far too old! One year, my siblings and I went knocking on our neighbours doors and one person asked for a trick instead of a treat and we had nothing for them so the following year we filled a plastic bag with rotten eggs and ketchup and made them put their hand inside. Wild I know.

One of my favourite memories was watching the film Candyman with my friend Christopher when we were about 13 years old and we were sitting in a room where there was a mirror directly to Christopher’s left. In the scene where Candyman comes out from the mirror I remember screaming so much and then laughing hysterically after at how scared we both were.

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It’s tea, not potpourri – Tearoute Launches in London

12 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by Fiona in events, Food, Recipes

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albion, autumn sonata, black fragrant garden, farringdon, it's tea not potpourri, mastiha chai, Milena Bottero, potluck tea, press launch, red square tea, relax tea, tea, tea cocktail, Tearoute, vanilla tea, whole leaf teas

tearoute

tea_tearoutecakes_tearoute
As a huge fan of tea I was pretty excited to be invited to the press night of tearoute last Tuesday night which took place at the Albion in Farringdon. Tearoute is an online tea shop offering a Greek twist on teas with a choice of over 80, and home delivery now available across the UK and Europe. Set up by Milena Bottero, entrepreneur and tea enthusiast, tearoute introduces a beautifully aromatic selection of whole leaf teas inspired by the Mediterranean and top quality single origin teas from Asia. When choosing the tea of your choice not only does tearoute provide you with a beautiful image of the tea but you are informed about where the tea is from, how it makes you feel, what its scent is and what food pairing it can go with. Continue reading →

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Spiced Salmon and Mango Cous Cous

16 Tuesday Aug 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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easy to make recipe, fish salad, fruit salads, healthy recipes, salad, spiced salmon, Spiced salmon and mango cous cous, summer recipes

salmon & mango cous cous salmon & mango vegetable cous cous

Summer has finally arrived, meaning soups are out the window and summer salads are in. When the weather’s sunny I always find I want to make something quick and easy in the kitchen so I can spend more time outside enjoying it.

This delicious salmon dish is light, easy to make and perfect for summer. I recently made it with my friend Maz after a lovely day of sunny hiking (where we both realised we need to get fitter!) and rather than coming home and indulging in sugary food and a stodgy dinner we vowed to make something healthy.

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Peanut Butter Energy Balls

20 Wednesday Jul 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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50k walk, charity, combat loneliness, easy energy balls, energy balls, fundraising, healthy snacks, london to cambridge, north london cares, peanut butter energy balls, volunteering

energy ball energy ballsenergy ball recipe

A couple of weeks ago I took part in a wonderful challenge with the charity North London Cares. They are a charity that aim to tackle isolation and loneliness in over 65’s who live in Camden and Islington. I joined North London Cares as a volunteer in December 2015 and it is has been such a great experience. They run a wide variety of projects from film clubs to cooking classes, yoga and socials offer engaging and wonderful moments to talk to someone you wouldn’t always get the chance to, build new friendships and combat loneliness. I love going along to the film nights on Tuesdays and the radio podcasts on Saturdays and just listening to other people’s stories.

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No Bake Chocolate Avocado Torte – January ‘Set me free’ Cake Club

31 Sunday Jan 2016

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

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2 for 1 cocktails, ba5 55, cake club, camden, chocolate and avocado in cake, chocolate and avocado mousse cake, chocolate and avocado torte, free from cakes, healthy cakes, mascapone cream, new year's resolution, nutri bullet, raw brownies, raw cakes, raw food, savoury cakes, Sugar Free, vegan cakes

No Bake Chocolate Torte Chocolate & Avocado Cake

Monday night was our first cake club for 2016 and to kick start the year keeping in tune with New Year’s Resolutions the theme was ‘free from’ meaning ideally the cakes would be slightly more healthy than usual!

Bar 55 in Camden was the chosen venue for Monday’s cake club. With its huge choice of cocktails and Mondays two for 1 offer all night, it was the perfect place for nine of us to meet up. Ye that’s right, we had nine people and therefore loads of cake!

Any thoughts about being somewhat healthy went right out the window when I realised there would be ten cakes to try. With a mix of savoury and sweet cakes there was a great selection consisting of: Lynn’s savoury aztec bundt cake, Jelena’s savoury upside down cake, Fiona’s flour free raspberry and almond cake, Sandra’s flour less chocolate cake, Amy’s orange and chocolate cake, Orls’a lemon drizzle, Cat’s white chocolate japanese rose infused cheesecake and Joela’s lemon cake.

I opted for a Vegan Chocolate Avocado Torte which my friend Sareta had sent me a link to. As I had a busy Sunday I wanted something quick and easy I could make on the Saturday that would still stay fresh. The first raw chocolate cake I made was from the Rooted Nutrition class I attended in Vancouver which was delicious and I did want to make this one again but couldn’t find the recipe. Therefore chocolate and avocado it was!

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Zucchini noodles with chicken, avocado and mushrooms

23 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by Fiona in Food, Recipes

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avocado, chicken and zucchini, cook in less than 30 minutes, easy to make recipes, healthy chicken recipes, healthy dishes, light recipes, spiralizer, vegetables, zucchini, zucchini noodles, zucchini recipe

Chicken and ZucchiniChicken & Zucchini recipeI’m not quite sure what it is about seeing vegetables in a spiral shape but somehow it makes them tastier. It’s taken me a while to purchase a spiralizer as I wasn’t convinced I’d use it enough but now that I’ve tried it there’s no going back.

It’s a fantastic tool for finding ways to get more vegetables in your diet and you can try all sorts of variations. I think it motivates you to be healthier too, well it has in my case. After recently getting back from a 10 day trip around the states I’m looking to get back to eating a bit lighter and healthier.

This simple chicken, zucchini and mushroom dish for two takes only 30 minutes to make and is refreshing, delicious and light.

To make it all you need is:

2 zucchinis

1 avocado

50g mushrooms

3 chicken breasts

½ chicken stock

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Method

Line a baking tin with some foil, add a little olive oil and place the three pieces of chicken on top. Rub half a chicken stock cube along the chicken breasts and season with salt and pepper. Chop up the mushrooms and add in with the chicken. Wrap the chicken and mushrooms up in the foil and bake in the oven on 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile start preparing the zucchinis. Using the spiralizer, spiral up the two zucchinis and cook in a large frying pan with a little olive oil for 7 minutes. Whilst this is cooking cut up the avocado and add it to your serving dish.

Remove the zucchinis from the pan and add to it also. Finally when the chicken is cooked fully remove the chicken and mushrooms from the oven and add to the dish. Chicken, mushroom & zucchini

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About Me

Hi I’m Fiona, a twenty something foodie living in London who loves nothing more than cooking, eating, listening to stories and exploring. I created Tea and Takes as a way of bringing my two loves together: food and film.
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