Chorizo Scotch Eggs

Scotch eggs have always been a bit of an indulgent favourite of mine. I love cracking into the crisp crust and breaking into the oozing egg yolk inside. I had a go at this recipe, some time ago. Now, in my first attempt… the eggs ended up a little too cooked. I didn’t quite master the oozing eggs. But hey, it’s all a learning experience, and they still tasted wonderful. I prefer my scotch eggs with a  thick crust, so feel free to tweak this recipe according to your taste 🙂 Second time around… nailed it! The yolk was deliciously runny and turned out perfect.

The recipe itself is really easy, but the technique can be a little tricky. The key is to 100% master the rolling of the meat around the egg without any cracks. It takes some time to really get a seamless coating, and can be done by using the heat from the palms of your hand and cupping the egg well. Remember, take your time with this. There’s nothing worse than having a cracked.

Here is the recipe!

 

And that’s it! These are super fun to make, and are a really wonderful treat for any celebration. I’ve always thought of scotch eggs as a really yummy winter breakfast in bed sort of thing. Combine the breakfast with a fresh glass of juice or coconut water and there you go 🙂

 

Apple and Date Halwa

Halwa, or Indian pudding (I guess we could call it that) is a seriously delicious dessert with roots in the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East. It is typically served warm, but tastes wonderful cold too. It is truly a favourite in my house, and we make it as a treat for a celebration or festival.

Now, my mother usually makes Halwa using semolina and banana, while back in India I have had it made with carrots and milk solids (mawa or khoya) OR believe it or not… bottle gourd. It’s fairly heavy on the sugar, which is obviously not so great for anyone trying to lose weight, or control their sugar.

This recipe is 100% inspired by the Happy Pear but it is most definitely a superbly different halwa recipe. Why? Because this one is 100% sugar FREE! Yup. That’s right.

Now this halwa does turn out not so sweet, which I personally don’t mind, but as a note I think next time I will definitely add over some agave nectar or some rose syrup. Honey would work too, but really to each their own 🙂

Before starting this recipe, make sure your dates are really well soaked. This is where we get the sweetness in the halwa and it’s essential that these are softened prior to cooking. They should break apart wonderfully once in the pot and caramelize with the rest of the halwa.

Now, I used semolina in my halwa because it is a great standard ingredient. Traditionally, ghee would be used to cook  the halwa and I do recommend using some. My first attempt, I went with all coconut oil and i found that most people didn’t enjoy the coconut undertones to the dessert. It would be better instead to use grapeseed oil as it’s flavour profile isn’t as deep as coconut.

Oh and better yet… Diabetic Daddy Dearest actually ate thirds of this halwa. SCORE!!! The texture turned out really smooth and has a really nice apple flavour with hints of the sweetness from the dates… and that sweetness is like a really subtle and soft caramel 🙂

I would realllly love to hear what you think about this recipe, and I would love you to know what kind of recipes you want to see! 🙂