From May 25th to May 31st, it is National BBQ Week here in Britain, so we’re hoping these barbecued chicken kebabs will encourage you to invite your family and friends round for a barbecue this bank holiday weekend.

If you are looking to capitalise on the fantastic weather we have been forecast for this bank holiday and the following week, then you should celebrate National BBQ Week by firing up the BBQ and making some of these marinated chicken kebabs. The recipe is one of Jamie Oliver’s own and it is a beauty! It is the perfect recipe to get the kids involved in, we guarantee they will enjoy arranging the skewers ready for cooking!

 

Ingredients:

For the Chicken Kebabs

  • 500g of boneless chicken breasts
  • 4 courgettes, sliced thinly lengthways
  • 6 to 8 skewers

For the Marinade

  • 1 handful of fresh coriander
  • 1 handful of fresh mint
  • 6 spring onions
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 red chilli
  • The juice and zest of 1 lemon
  • Sea salt
  • Black pepper
  • Olive oil

Instructions:

Step 1-Start by cutting the chicken breasts in to 2.5cm chunks and place in a bowl. Add the sliced courgette to boiling water and cook for no more than 30 seconds before removing, draining and allowing it to cool.

Step 2-Add all of the marinade ingredients apart from the olive oil to a food processor and mix. You are looking for the marinade ingredients to reach a paste consistency, so once you have blended them, add a bit of the olive oil to help bind together.

Step 3- Once you are happy with the paste, add it to the chicken chunks and allow the meat to soak up the marinade for at least an hour.

Step 4-Now you can start to prepare the skewers. Between each piece of chicken, add a piece of the courgette to the skewer and continue until each skewer is nearly full, be careful not to overfill the skewers!

Step 5- Fire up your barbecue and grill these delicious marinated chicken kebabs for about 5 minutes. It is important that you regularly turn each skewer while they are cooking to ensure an even cooking process.

Step 6- Once you are happy that these barbecued chicken kebabs are cooked, they are ready to serve alongside all the other delicious barbecue food you have prepared!

Source: Jamie Oliver 

It’s British Tomato Week and at this time of year there aren’t many better tastes than our own British grown tomatoes! This simple tomato filo tart recipe is bursting with flavour and perfect to make as an accompanying dish for a main meal!

From May 19th to May 25th, it is British tomato week and these delicious little vegetables are something we should be proud of here in Britain. This recipe for a tomato filo tart is extremely simple to make, and is the perfect alternative to serving garlic bread with your main meal. All you need to make this recipe is filo pastry sheets, plum tomatoes, feta cheese, fresh thyme and rosemary, olive oil and kosher salt. The whole process from preparation to serving takes about 40 minutes, and a majority of that is cooking time. So why not enjoy tomato week at home by giving this tomato filo tart a go!

 

Ingredients:

  • 7 sheets of filo pastry
  • 8 plum tomatoes
  • 1/4 of a cup of crumbled feta
  • 1 tsp of chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 tsp of chopped fresh rosemary
  • 5 tbsp of Olive Oil
  • 1/4 tsp of kosher salt

Instructions:

Step 1- We think this recipe is the perfect way to celebrate British tomato week! Start by preheating your oven to 190 degrees Celsius/375 degrees Fahrenheit. Unroll the filo pastry sheets and cover with kitchen towel. Take a baking sheet and brush with olive oil and place a sheet of the filo pastry on the baking sheet before brushing with more olive oil. Top with another sheet of filo pastry and again brush with olive oil. Repeat this process until all the filo pastry has been used.

Step 2-Take the slices of plum tomato and arrange on top of the filo pastry in a single layer. Ensure that you leave about ¼ of an inch gap around the edge of the pastry.

Step 3- Add the feta cheese over the top, along with the chopped thyme and rosemary. Season with salt and pepper to taste and drizzle any olive oil that is left over the top.

Step 4-Place in the oven and bake for around 30 minutes. You will know when the tart is done as the pastry will turn a delicious golden brown colour and the edges will start to crisp. Allow the Tomato Filo Tart to cool for 5 minutes before cutting in to a dozen pieces or so to serve. Now all there is left to do is enjoy a piece of this fantastic Tomato Filo Tart!

Source: Health.com 

Products You May Find Helpful

Baking Sheet
£5.96 inc V.A.T.
Square Baking Sheet
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This week is otherwise known as British Sandwich Week 2015, and what better way to celebrate than making yourself a delicious Steak sandwich as a treat for lunch!

Sandwiches are a popular choice for lunch in Britain, so when it is British Sandwich week, you have to make yourself some extra special sandwiches to get through the day! This steak and onion sandwich recipe from BBC Good Food is very simple to make, all you need is the bread, the steak, caramelised onion and watercress to make yourself the perfect sandwich. The combination of the tender steak, sweet onions and crispy bread is fantastic, so why not try this at home yourself!

 

Ingredients:

For the Steak and Onion Sandwich

  • 4 minute steaks or 2 thick sirloin steaks
  • 1 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 small loaf of ciabatta
  • 4 tbsp of caramelised onions
  • Half a bag of watercress

Instructions:

Step 1- Turn on your grill to give it chance to heat up. Heat some olive oil in a griddle pan.

Step 2- Season both sides of your steak to your personal taste with salt and pepper. Fry the steak on each side for no more than 2 minutes.

Step 3- Slice the ciabatta half lengthways and grill the bread on the cut sides until it is a delicious golden brown colour..

Step 4- Take the ciabatta off the grill and drizzle the bottom part of the bread with olive oil. Place half of the caramelised onions on the bread, then the steak on top. Place watercress on top before finishing this steak sandwich by placing the other piece of bread on top.

Step 5- Cut in to four separate sandwiches which should be perfect for two people. That’s it, this simple yet delicious steak and onion sandwich is ready to enjoy as part of British sandwich week 2015!

Source: BBC Good Food 

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As we are a Cardiff based company, we like to follow any local events that may be happening, especially ones that involve food! The great Roath bake off returns to Cardiff tomorrow and it is sure to be as great as the previous five years it has been hosted here in our capital city!

There are 6 categories in total to enter including best cake, best decorated cake, best professional cake, best bake bread or pie, the great Roath junior best cake under 16’s and the CPS homes special award for outstanding cake. So as you can see, there is something for everyone to have a go at and plenty of fun to have as you go along. Last years winner, Gareth Davies, will also be demonstrating his fantastic cake decorating to the eager audience of Roath!

With a host of entertainment, delicious cakes, brilliant guest judges including Amanda Henderson from BBC 1's Casualty and the brilliant Nathan Wyburn from Britains Got Talent, this year’s great Roath bake off is sure to be one of the best yet, let’s hope the sun is shining over Cardiff tomorrow! It costs just £3.50 to enter a cake with all proceeds going to a great cause, the acute stroke unit UHW and the Welsh spinal centre UHW.

 

If you would like to find out more information about the bake off, simply visit their page here as it is going to be one of the events in Cardiff that you must be at this year!

Coffee Cake

Today is the start of UK Coffee Week and what better way to mark the start of this brilliant week than baking this delicious gluten free coffee cake with dark chocolate.

Gluten Free cakes are now becoming more popular as people start to realise how fantastic the gluten free alternatives are, and this gluten free coffee cake is no different. This cake is very easy to bake and requires just 6 ingredients. The tastes of the espresso and dark chocolate complement each other perfectly, and the almonds add a nice crunch to it. So why not celebrate UK Coffee Week 2015 by making this delicious gluten free coffee cake with dark chocolate!

Photo by Apostoloff (view original here)

 

Ingredients:

For the Cake

  • 20ml of espresso
  • 70g of caster sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 175g of unsalted butter
  • 200g of dark chocolate
  • 200g of almonds

Instructions:

Step 1-Preheat your oven to 170 degrees and grease/line a 20cm loose base cake tin with baking paper.

Step 2-Add the 200g of almonds to a food processor and blend until they are finely ground. Be sure not to overdo them as they will become sticky.

Step 3-Add the 200g of dark chocolate and 175g of unsalted butter to a bowl and melt over a pan of hot water. Ensure the bowl doesn’t come in to contact with the water.

Step 4-Separate the eggs and whisk the 4 egg yolks and 70g of caster sugar until it forms a thick paste, this should take no more than 5 minutes with an electric whisk.

Step 5-Fold the chocolate mixture along with the ground almonds in to the sugar and egg mixture.

Step 6-In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until they are stiff and add these to the cake mixture as well.

Step 7-Pour the mixture in to your 20cm loose base cake tin and bake for 25 to 30 minutes to cook well. You can adjust this depending how well you like your cake cooked. Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the tin.

Step 8-All there is left to do is enjoy a slice of this Gluten Free Coffee Cake with Dark Chocolate to celebrate UK Coffee Week!

Source: Jamie Oliver 

Products You May Find Helpful

Loose Base Cake Tin
£8.64 inc V.A.T.
Non-Stick Cake Tin
£10.28 inc V.A.T.