Prawn soup

I love to make this hearty soup using the leftover heads and skins of prawns.
If you do not want to add the cream, use coconut cream instead.

Ingredients for 6-8 people:

• 50 g butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, halved
• 1 handful of chopped Parsley 
• 1sprig of thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 125 ml brandy or dry vermouth
• 1 kg cooked langoustines, in their shells
• 1.5 litres fish stock. You can also use chicken stock for a milder flavor.
• 200 ml double cream or coconut cream
• 1-2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 pinch smoked paprika or chilli powder
• 1 lemon, juice only

Method
1. Heat the butter in a heavy-based pan over a medium-high heat until foaming and gently fry the onion, garlic, two sprigs of thyme, parsley and bay leaves for 2-3 minutes, or until the onions have softened.

2. Pour in the dry vermouth and cook until the volume of the liquid has reduced by half.

3. Meanwhile peel the langoustines, reserving all the shells and heads. Add these to the pan, crushing the shells and heads with the back of a wooden spoon to extract as much flavour as possible.

4. Cover with the fish stock and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 40 minutes, then strain the stock through a colander, crushing the shells with a rolling pin. Strain the stock again through a fine sieve into a clean pan.

5. Add the cream and lemon juice to the strained stock and warm through gently. Add the langoustine meat, then season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

6. To serve, ladle the bisque into bowls. Roughly chop the remaining parsley and use to garnish the bisque.

Majorcan roast pork 'Porcella'

The famous 'Porcella' is traditionally made in a wood oven, slowly roasting a whole pig for 4-5 hours.
A very good home alternative is to use a pork shoulder or a large piece of pork belly,

Ingredients:

• 1 pork joint, with the skin on
• Salt, pepper, 
• 3 bay leaves,
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 lemon
• 1 glass of sherry or white wine

Method:
Heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Pat the skin dry with a kitchen towel. The skin must be very dry to make a crackling.
Score the skin with a sharp knife, to make strips of crackling.

Rub some salt and pepper on the skin, and season the meat with more salt, pepper.
Sit the joint in a roasting tin, over the bay leaves, garlic, lemon juice and sherry, being careful not to make the skin wet.

Place the joint in the oven and cook for 50 minutes per kilo.
At the end of the cooking time, bring the oven temperature up to 200 degrees and cook for a further 20-30 minutes, to produce the crackling.

To serve:
Roast potatoes, String beans and Green Salad.

SpanishTortilla

Known in Mallorca as 'Truita de Patata'
When it is made properly it should be juicy and succulent, equally good cold or warm, and it cannot be made in a hurry.
Here is the true Spanish tortilla, where you only need eggs, onion, potatoes and salt.

Ingredients:

• 5 large potatoes with white, waxy flesh
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 6 eggs
• salt, pepper
• oregano (optional)
• olive oil

Preparation:

1. Start by stir frying the onion in 2 tbs of olive oil.
2. Peel and dice the potatoes finely. Add them to the onion and fry gently over a low heat and covered with a lid. Stir from time to time, cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes or until well cooked, they must not turn brown. Season them well.
3. Alternatively, place the potatoes and oil in a bowl, cover with cling film. Punch a few holes and microwave for 4 minutes at the highest power. Let them rest for a minute, stir them and cook again for 2 minutes. Check that they are fully cooked.
4. Meanwhile crack the eggs into a large bowl, stir them with a fork and season with salt and pepper. Add a little marjoram or thyme if you wish to give an extra flavor.
5. When the potatoes are cooked, lift them out of the oil with a slotted spoon and put them in the egg while they are still hot. This is important to the dish as the potatoes will start to cook the egg and will absorb the flavor. Leave the potatoes to stand in the egg for a few minutes or until they cool slightly.
6. Heat 2 tbs olive oil in a 20cm non-stick pan, pour the potato and egg mix. Stir with a fork for a minute or so, then turn the heat down, cover with a lid and let the tortilla cook for 6-10 minutes.
7. Now it is time to turn the tortilla over with the help of a plate. Cook the tortilla for 5 more minutes on the other side. Turn the heat off and let it stand for a few minutes before turning onto a plate.
8. If you don't dare turn the tortilla, grill the top in the oven for 5-6 minutes.

Serve the Tortilla warm or cold with green salad. Great for picnics and parties.

Tuna Tartar

Ingredients for a Starter for 2
This dish is quite indulgent as it uses fresh red tuna from the market. However, it is worth it!. It is very easy to make and the result is impressive.

• 1 fresh red tuna steak, about 250gr
• chopped coriander leaves about 1tbs
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• lemon juice, to taste
• 1/2 clove of garlic, minced to a pulp
• salt
• pepper
• 1 tsp wasabi, optional
• soy sauce, to taste

Chop the tuna into small bits. Do this with a heavy chopping knife, until it resembles mince meat.

With a metal spoon, carefully mix in 1 dessertspoon lemon juice, a good pinch of salt, the chopped coriander,  grated ginger garlic,  soy sauce and pepper to taste. Stir 1 tbs of good olive oil into the tuna. Try a little and correct the seasoning to taste.
Stir a little wasabi sauce if you like it.
Serve with Melba toast, as a starter.

Note. If you don't have coriander use the same amount of chopped parsley instead.

Caramelized Onion Dip

This is a Standard dip recipe which as many variations, 

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, chopped (see variations)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 100 gr cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream, greek yoghurt or mayonnaise
• 100 gr grated cheddar or any other hard cheese

Turn oven to 180 degrees celsius.

Cut the onions in half, and chop them finely.

Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan on medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt and pepper and saute for 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes, until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.
Place the cream cheese and sour cream in a bowl and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well.

Bake for 30 minutes. serve warm or cold with crackers


Variations:
Make your own dip changing the caramelized onion for salmon, chopped artichokes and garlic, bacon and onion.... cooked aubergine and garlic.

Pizza

I like to make my own bread dough for pizza, it is ready in 30 minutes. It is a bit messy to make, but otherwise very easy. For best results, make the dough a few hours ahead and refrigerate until needed.

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp of active yeast granules
• 2 cups water
• 1 tbsp oil
• 250 gm strong bread flour, type 00 if you can find it.
• pinch of salt

Method:
Place the yeast, oil and water in a bowl, whisk a little to dissolve the granules, and leave to stand for a while, at least 30 minutes. Sift the flour with the salt into the yeast mixture, a little at a time, and knead. A wet dough makes best results.
Knead with floury hands until you get a consistent dough that doesn't stick. Stand it in the bowl for 30 minutes. It is now ready to use. However, if you leave this in the refrigerator for 12-24h you will get a better fermentation and flavor in the pizza crust.

Roll out and place on a pizza pan or baking tray, cover with your favourite pizza topping and bake at 250°C for 10-12 minutes, until the edge leaves the sides of the tray. Serve hot with salad.

Any left over dough can be kept in the refrigerator for a day or so, or even frozen for later use.

To make a pizza:
Turn on the oven to its higher setting.
Roll out the dough onto a baking sheet. Cover with your selected toppings, bake for 10 minutes until browned and bubbling.

Pizza toppings
Classic Margarita pizza: Tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, oregano,
Options: ham, chorizo, goat cheese, blue cheese, bacon, anchovies, black olives….

Peruvian Prawn Soup (Chupe)

This soup comes from Peru, and it is one of my favorites. The recipe was given to me by my mother in law who lived in Peru for some years. It is hot, spicy, creamy, and has prawns in it. Perfection.
It is very easy to make. It takes about 45 minutes of preparation once you have all the ingredients. It is perfect to serve at dinner parties because you can make it in the morning and then keep it in a cool place until required. If there is any left after the meal, it even tastes better the next day.
I always prepare more than what I think is sufficient, because guests will ask for second and even third servings.

For best results, make a good stock using the leftover heads and shells of grilled or barbecued prawns.

Serves 6

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 stick celery, chopped
• 1 small potato, peeled and cut into small dice
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 3 tbsp tomato concentrate
• 1 tsp chili flakes, or sweet paprika
• pinch of Saffron
• 1.5 Lt chicken of fish stock
• 600 grams of cooked prawns
• 300 ml coconut cream or evaporated milk
• 300 gr cooked corn
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 100 gr frozen peas
• 150 gm rice

Heat 3 tbsp oil in a large pan and gently caramelize the onion and celery for 10 minutes. Add the potato dice, Saffron, garlic, chili and tomato concentrate; cook for 2 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes. Add the condensed milk, corn, and rice; and cook for 20 minutes until the rice is cooked through.
Check the seasoning and add more salt, pepper or chili if necessary
Add the prawns, peas and the beaten eggs, stir the soup until the egg curdles and is starting to boil again.
Serve hot as a main course, with crusty bread and a fruity white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc.