Spicy Cornbread for Chilly Snow Days

The "Big Freeze" is upon us in England right now.  We've had about a foot of snow and I love it!  My good friend Stuart from Australia is here visiting now, and before he arrived I thought I needed to make a little something to take the edge off the cold for him and his warm weather acclimated Aussie self.

Enter Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread muffins.  I was SO excited to find cornmeal in the grocery store last week - you hardly ever see it around here.  And thanks to those kind people at Total, I used their delicious Greek Yogurt in this recipe and it turned out perfectly.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 450 ml or 1 3/4 cup Total Greek Yogurt
• 50g melted butter*
• 65g plain flour
• 1tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp salt1 
• tbsp brown sugar
• 275g fine cornmeal
• 1 jar (about 100 grams) Old El Paso jalapeños - drained and chopped.
• 100 grams sharp cheddar, diced

Preheat oven to 200 C (300 F) In a large bowl, whisk 2 eggs, 450 ml Total Greek yogurt, and 50g melted butter.  In another bowl, sift dry ingredients together - 65g plain flour, 1tsp baking soda, 2 tsp salt, 275g cornmeal, and 1 tbsp brown sugar.  Fold in the jalapeños and cheddar.  Bake for about 15 minutes.

They are so delicious warm and perfect for a quick snack after a day of making snow angels and frolicking in the winter wonderland  They're the perfect comfort food and the cheddar/jalepeno combination is always one of my favorites.  Total Greek Yogurt kept the texture perfectly moist as well.  I would HIGHLY recommend you makes these... ummm right now!!  

The only thing I would do differently next time is to cook these in a small greased baking tin instead of in muffin cases.  They seemed to stick to the sides of the cases a little more than I would've liked.  

*I used salted butter accidentally and therefore added a tbsp of brown sugar to cut the saltiness, but I'm not sure this would be necessary if you used unsalted butter.  

Chocolate Tasting Evening at Cocoa

Since moving to England I have become addicted to tea.

When in Rome, eh?

I must admit it took me awhile to "get" what the British obsession with tea is all about.

But last night we went to Cocoa, 

a tea and chocolate shop with our new cougar club for a chocolate tasting evening.  

If only someone would've taken me to this place when I first arrived...

I would've jumped on the tea bandwagon much much sooner.

Isn't it the cutest?  

The adorable shop owner took us on a tasting journey 

from 100% dark chocolate all the way up to white chocolate.

I thought I hated white chocolate, 

but I realized I just have never been given the good stuff.

We also got a doggy bag of truffles.  

I am the annoying person who always eats half of each one....

In the front of the shop there were rows of candy and and tons of chocolate.  

My favorite was dark chocolate flavored with chili and lime... 

I never knew what my life was missing until I tasted that.

Delicious!

I have a feeling I will be taking American visitors here and helping them to get on the tea train.

Is it cheating if chocolate is involved?

Cool As a Cucumber

Spring has finally sprung here in England, and along with the house, I think my body can use a little spring cleaning too.  All of winters stodgy meals have taken it's toll on me, so for now, I'm trying to go back to the basics, (and back to my thighs NOT touching) by eating mostly fruit and veggie based dishes.  I will admit that the sugar in this recipe probably isn't the best for my spring cleaning regime, but give me a break will ya?

Ingredients

• 1 cucumber, sliced as thinly as possible
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 4 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp red chili flakes
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Mix salt, vinegar, sugar, chili flakes, and sesame seeds in a small bowl to make a dressing.  Pour over cucumber.  

Bingo, bango, bongo - DONE!

This cucumber salad hit all the right notes.  It's an excellent combination of sweet, sour, and spicy - though it was pretty fiery so you may want to use less chili flakes to tone it down a bit if you're not a real spice lover.  

Make Your Own Hummus

Most people I know love hummus.  In fact, it was even featured on Stuff White People Like, because apparently all white people like hummus.  I, for one, am a white person who loves hummus. Go figure.  I also know that most people do not make their own hummus, they buy it already made in the grocery store.  I seriously don't know why everyone does this because making your own hummus is so easy and a lot more economical.  I make hummus all the time and I haven't posted it before because hummus recipes are a dime a dozen and mine isn't original at all.  But I thought maybe people who are out there wasting their hard earned money on hummus never thought to look up the recipe for it so maybe by posting this I will inspire them to go ahead and make it themselves.  So here is my hummus recipe for all you hummus lovers out there.

Ingredients

• Juice of 1 lemon (I like it really lemony, but you may want to use a bit less if your not such a citrus fan)
• 1 can of chick peas aka garbanzo beans
• 1 1/2 tbsp tahini
• 2 cloves garlic (pressed)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil (plus extra for garnish if you're so inclined)
• A pinch of paprika (optional)
• 3 tbsp water 

All you have to do is throw everything into a food processor and hit the go button until its the right consistency.  I'd say that looks about right.  If you like it thicker, add less water.  If its too thick, add more water.  Simple.

Scoop it out and put it in a bowl.  Sprinkle with extra paprika and a bit of olive oil, for presentation of course!

Wasn't that easy?  Serve it with some warm pita bread, or if you're feeling super healthy opt for carrots.  Delicious!