A Sunny Sunday Morning in Stockbridge Edinburgh.

Something weird was in the sky this morning... The sun! And the weirder thing is that it wasn't raining sideways... It wasn't raining at all! So with a free morning Tom and I took a stroll to Stockbridge market to buy some store cupboard luxuries and take a gander a the picturesque village scenery and stare at properties we could only dream to afford! 

Stockbridge market is a favourite with foodies in Edinburgh. It's compact and bursting with bakers, meat suppliers, artisan teas, Japanese street food, an abundance of chutneys and so much more! We made a few purchases down there but honestly I was fighting with myself to not buy an item from every stall...

A busy and sunny Stockbridge market.

Ma Robert's Authentic East African Sauces.

Ma Robert's Fruity Sauce.


Ma Robert's produces three sauces that are perfect for pasta, marinades and cheeses.

Umami, authentic, fresh, homemade curry kits.

Bright curry pastes!

My Curry Kit! :)

I bought a Cambodian curry kit- Cari K'hom. The paste contains, ginger, coriander, garlic, turmeric, green chilli, nutmeg, star anise, shallots and some other yummy spices. The kit includes a green chilli, kaffir lime leaves and dry spice mix. It can be made with a mixture of vegetables and meat. The lady on the stall told me chicken or lamb would be the most tasty meat to use but then I can add any veg I'd like. I need to buy a can of coconut milk but you could buy the kit with this in. Watch this space for a completed curry soon!

Syruplicious!

We bought a balsamic vinegar and honey syrup as we love crusty bread, meats, cheeses and a balsamic dip. The guy on the stall said this sweet and tangy syrup would match drizzled over strawberries. It's really moreish and we'll be having it anti-pasti style.


Stockbridge market is really cute and has such a wide range of stalls. I highly recommend a visit even if you're just going to try some freebies and soak up the village atmosphere. 

Visit Stockbridge Market.

Breakfast in bed

Bacon. Eggs. What's not to love. Add a cuppa and you'll win the heart of someone special or you'll treat yourself like a Queen (or a King).

Ingredients:

8 rashers of streaky bacon (smoked or unsmoked)
4 medium free range eggs
2 English muffins or 4 slices of bread
Butter

(Serves 2)

Method:

1. Pre heat oven to 180'. Take 4 silicone muffin cases and  create a basket inside using the bacon leaving a little well to crack an egg into. 

2. Repeat lining the muffin cases until you have the desired amount. Place in the oven for 20 mins.

3. Toast your muffin or bread and spread with butter.

4. Remove your bacon and egg baskets from the oven, leave to cool a little and remove from the silicone cases. (If you dont have silicone cases get a yourkshire pudding tin and rub a little oil around the wells and use this to create your baskets.)

5. Serve in bed with a toasted muffins and a cup of tea. Perfect! :)

Eggy bacony baskets of heaven.

OMG Chocolate Brownies!

Soft. Gooey. Chewy. Rich. Sticky. Ooooft. 

I had quite a stressful time recently so I raided my baking cupboard (well it's more of a big shelf) and clapped my tiny hands when I realised I had ingredients to make 

CHOCOLATE BROWNIES! 

*I AM SHOUTING*

Ingredients:

185g butter

85g plain flour

185g dark chocolate

40g cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate)

100g white chocolate

4 medium free range eggs

200g caster sugar

75g dark brown sugar

Method:

1. Chop the butter into small cubes add to a glass bowl. Finely chop the dark chocolate and add to the same bowl. Melt the butter and the chocolate over a pan of water. I've provided a link to BBC Food website if you're a little unsure. Set aside the mixture once it's melted. Get a smallish tin and line with grease proof paper. (Top tip: cut the paper and scrunch into a ball to make it easier to work with then you won't need to add butter to the tin to make it stick.)

Melted chocolate and butter.

2. Break the 4 eggs into a large glass or metal bowl add both types of sugar. (I like to use a mixture of both caster sugar and dark brown sugar to give a more fudgy taste and texture.) Take an electric whisk and whisk the eggs and sugar until the mixture become thick and fluffy and light in colour. 

Eggy Sugar.

3. Now carefully add the melted chocolate and butter into the egg and sugar mixture. Gently fold in the chocolate. You need to make sure you don't beat out all the air you've just put into the eggs. Stop folding the mixture as soon as there's no marbling.

Chocolatey Mixture.

4. Sift in the flour and cocoa powder and add in chopped white chocolate (keeping them quite chunky). Now fold the flour, cocoa and white chocolate chunk. Work quite quickly and as soon as the mixture has come together STOP. 

Flour and White Chocolate bits.

5. Pour the mixture into the tin and spread to all the corners. Place into the preheated oven for 30 mins. The top of the brownie should crack and go paper-like. There should be a slight gooey wobbliness in the middle. 

6. Now I'm really sorry but you have to leave it in the tin for 1 whole torturous hour! Soz! Once it's cooled, take it out of the tin and ideally cut it into small bite-size pieces or just hack into it with a fork and some vanilla ice cream. BOOM.

A brownie the size of a breeze block! :D

More sensible-sized squares. 

Pork with a prune sauce

This is a recipe I made when I had "nothing in to eat". You soon learn that once you have two things that you like and that you think go together then you'll soon have a meal. So prunes and pork isn't that unconventional but this recipe is something I've never made before but it really worked.

Ingredients:

2 pork loin chops
5-6 pitted prunes
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp roast garlic balsamic vinegar
1 tsp chicken stock powder
300ml water
black pepper
Handful salad potatoes
2-3 carrotts

Method:

1. Pre heat your oven to 190c. Peel the carrots, chop off the tops and the bottoms and cut into 2cm (ish) discs. Chop the salad potatoes in half or quarters depending on how big they are. Put the chopped veg into a roasting tin, drizzle over olive oil and give a good sprinkle of black pepper and salt. Put in the oven for 30 mins.

2. Now the veg is done you can prepare the sauce. Get your prunes and roughly chop. Get a good quality sauce pan. Preferably a non-stick one. Add the chopped prunes, 300ml boiling water, 1tbsp brown sugar, 1tsp chicken stock powder and 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. (I used roasted balsamic vinegar that I got from Grassmarket farmers market in Edinburgh). Bring to the boil for 5 mins then turn down to a simmer for 20 mins.

3. Take a frying pan or griddle pan and put on a high heat. Take the pork chops and drizzle with oil. Add the chop to the pan but lay away from you as the pan will be super hot. 3 mins on each side will be plenty. 

4. The sauce should be lovely and sticky and have a salty/sweet taste. Plate up your roasted roots and your chop and pour the sauce over the pork.

Porky Pruniness.

Mushroom and feta baked peppers.

A healthy meat-free dinner that can be prepped in advance. They can be eaten hot with salad and rice or sweet potato or eaten cold for lunch at work.

Ingredients - serves 2

2 small red or yellow peppers

4 sundried tomatoes

175g chestnut mushrooms

20g hazelnuts

1 clove of garlic

50g breadcrumbs

1tsp chilli flakes

100g feta

1. Gently fry in a little oil the diced mushrooms, sundried tomatoes, garlic and chilli flakes. Chop the nuts and add to the pan until a little toasted. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Take the mixture off the heat and add the breadcrumbs and crumble in the feta and stir until combined.

3. Cut the peppers in half length ways, scooping out all the seeds. Add the mixture to the hollow peppers and stuff until full and compact.

4. Place peppers in a roasting tin stuffing side up. Bake at 200c for 30 mins covered in foil- remove the foil for the last 5 minutes to brown the mushroom mixture. Eat hot or cold with a desired side dish.

Mushroom and feta stuffed peppers with brown rice, chopped lettuce with a balsamic dressing.

The Kitchin.

For my 22nd birthday my boyfriend Tom took me to the Michelin Starred restaurant The Kitchin in Edinburgh, Scotland. You may recognise the chef Tom Kitchin from your tellyboxes where he's quite a regular on the BBC's Saturday Kitchen. The philosophy of the eaterie is to eat the seasons, from nature to plate. If you follow Tom on twitter you'll see his tweets of hand picked mushrooms, the pheasant or scallops that have come in that morning. 

The atmospheres was very relaxed and the staff were more than happy to answer questions about the menu and give excellent advice on wine lists and food parings.

Warm sourdough with smoked butter.

Amuse Bouche. Game jelly, crispy pork, apple slices, quails egg and micro herbs. 

My Starter. Boned and rolled pig’s head, served with roasted tail of langoustine from Tobermory and a crispy ear salad.

Tom's Starter. Basil ravioli pasta, garlic snails, braised onion and a rich sauce. 

My main course of sweet roasted beetroot, orange, fennel and rare venison.

Tom's main of pheasant, butternut squash, wild mushroom and heritage potato crisps.

Strawberry and pistachio mille-feuille.

Dark chocolate and blackberry torte.

Nut fudge, beetroot fudge, peanut brittle and blackcurrent macarons.

http://thekitchin.com/

Sweet & Spicy Pork with Vegetable Rice

There's quite a lot of chopping for this one but it can all be done in advance, even boiling the rice so all that needs to be done is stir frying the rice and oven baking the pork. A nice Saturday night meal, cheaper than a takeaway or an easy week night meal.

Ingredients

For the Rice:
1 Onion
2 Carrots
1 Small Green Pepper
1 Small Red Pepper
10 Chestnut Mushrooms
2 Eggs
100g Rice

For the Pork:
2 Pork Loin Chops
4 Tbsp Roast Garlic Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1 Tsp Chinese 5 Spice
1 Tsp Chilli Powder

1. Chop all the Veg into small pieces and boil the rice. Slice the pork into quarters, place in an oven proof dish and add all the ingredients for the pork. Mix until it's all combined. Put in a pre heated oven at 190' for 40 mins.  The cooked rice, chopped veg and pork marinade can both be done in advance and put in the fridge.

2. Heat a small amount of oil in a frying pan and add the veg. At this point you can add garlic if you want a whiffy kick. Fry on a medium heat for 8-10 mins so all the veg is soft. Add the cooked rice and stir continuously. Crack 2 eggs in a cup and beat then add these to the rice pan and continue to stir until all the egg is cooked.

A boyfriend-sized portion!

This will serve two greedy people! You can add any veg you like to the rice; peas, sweetcorn or courgette.