A Very Thrifty Soup

Last week I had a big dilemma, what do I have for lunch? I looked in the fridge, it was the day before my big shop so my fridge was a little bare to say the least. 

My ingredient list

Chicken thigh meat (cooked)

Sweet potato

Carrots

frozen sweetcorn

Food cupboard

Lentils

garlic

wine 

Stock

herbs and spices

What could I make that would comfort us on a cold rainy day... SOUP! Sooo that is what I did...

Miss Dolly's comfort soup

1. Start by frying off some garlic in a tbsp on olive oil, add around 250ml of white wine and let it boil. Pour in 500ml of chicken stock and top it up with some extra hot water. 

2. Whilst the stock was boiling peel and cut up 1 sweet potato and around 3 carrots. Add them to the stock along with bouquet garni, pepper, thyme and add a little salt if it is needed. Let everything come to the boil. 

3. Once the carrots and sweet potato are cooked, add the sweetcorn and cook until ready. 

4. Drain the veg into a colander over a large bowl to catch the stock and return the saucepan to simmer and add a few handfuls of orange lentils. 

5. Place all the veg into a food processor, add a small amount of chicken and blend until the veg is a smooth puree. 

6. Return to your stock and lentils. Pour in the veg puree and mix until it resembles a soup. Now add the chicken, a little sweetcorn and adjust your seasoning. When your are happy with your soup serve with a nice roll or bread and butter.

Ohw I love comfort food, don't you? 

Miss Dolly Cook Along! Fizzy Duck

I decided to follow up my Rachel Khoo review by making and recording one of her recipes. I chose to cook 'Duck In Fizzy Orange' for my birthday meal. I explain in my video my dislike for fruit with savory food so I decided to face my fear and give it a go. The recipe was extremely easy to follow and I loved it! My boyfriend was extremely happy with the results and we both gobbled it up! I love how Khoo puts her own little twists on French classics, if it wasn't for Rachel I would still be looking at it on a menu with a silly expression on my face. I hope you enjoy my tutorial, I get really silly when I am nervous so please forgive my silly looks and catchphrases.

My Birthday Meal! Duck Fizzy Orange!

Miss Dolly x

My First Vlog! Crumble Mumble...

Pasta Tutorial Coming Soon!

Recipe folders

My boyfriends mum brought me this gorgeous recipe folder for Christmas. I have finally filled my second recipes book! Wow! It's time to add my first recipe to the newbie in my recipe book pile.

Miss Dolly x

A Mini Khoo Review! The Little Paris Kitchen...

I went out on a mission yesterday to buy some groceries, come home and cook up a lovely dinner for my boyfriend's family. Both things were successfully accomplished but with another little hitchhiker in my bag, The Little Paris Kitchen by Rachel Khoo. A welcome addition to my collection of cook books and here's why. Rachel Khoo has burst on to the scene in recent weeks with her new program on BBC2 and I have become hooked! I love her dainty little kitchen which oozes Parisian style, it may be compact but it has bags of character and is extremely functional. I have been picking up tips on how to save space by watching how she stores her food. I guess I could slightly gush over her but I won't for now. The show, however, can be slightly 'twee' but never mind, we all need some twee! The food has left me salivating, sexy chocolate deserts and beefy meaty mains have kept me watching.

The book follows the recipes from the show and has beautiful photographs from around Paris which make me want to jump on a plane and risk bellyache by munching on a baguette. If you have allergies like me, it is hard to find books which give you alternatives to dairy or wheat foods. I have seen a few recipes in the book which offer alternatives such as an alternative to creme fresh in her 'Oeufs en Cocotte' (eggs in pots) which from my point of view is a life saver! I was crushed watching the show thinking that I may never try this recipe. Thank you Rachel!

French food has always slightly scared me as it has strict rules and it is full of ingredients that can't pass my mouth. Rachel has put different spins on each classic recipe which makes it easier to translate into allergy language. I am absolutely sold to her simple approach to french cooking, who needs all those silly rules (forgive me Michel Roux) but its true!

I want to talk about one recipe in particular, not because of the ingredients but how imaginative it is! Coq au Vin on skewers. I was slightly unnerved by the idea of having the individual ingredients on a stick but when I saw them being made I almost fell in love. Summer is almost here and those body warming classics are shelved to make way for salads and grilled meats, but Rachel has provided us with comfort even in the summer months. I am already packing up my disposable BBQ and blanket for the beach to try this tasty looking recipe.

I am going to simply say, buy this book if you love french food but are scared of going near it. It makes those difficult classics easy and you get to live in Paris for a night. Ah that's the life.... *daydreams*

Miss Dolly x

My little kitchen

Let Me Introduce Myself

My name is Miss Dolly and I am a a big food nerd! I love to cook, bake, eat, watch and read about food! My favourite thing to do is curl up on a Saturday morning and watch cooking shows with a pile of jam on toast. Food is not just a big part my life but my boyfriend's life as well. We cook and come up with food ideas together and we have both developed our own specialties. I am a keen baker, a skill I got from my mum who is amazing at making and decorating cakes. I have been lucky enough to learn an awful lot from her and I have dabbled in cake decorating myself.  

My love of food began as a child when my Mum enrolled me in cookery summer school. It was one of my favourite experiences as I got to be creative and eat an awful lot of food. I still use the skills learnt at summer school and I am grateful to my mum for sending me kicking and screaming... I came out singing and dancing! 

I have started this blog to share my culinary experiments, tips and trivia, as well as book and restaurant reviews. I hope you're ready for some yummy treats.. I am!