Best-ever Guacamole

16-03-2017 Local Black Bookavocado, easy, guacamole, healthy, party, party food, raw, recipe, vegan, vegetarian4 Comments

When people ask me what my go-to recipe, or death-row dish is, they always assume my answer will be a cake of some description.

But the truth is, if my ultimate brownies recipe comes a close second, with anything salted caramel not far behind, guacamole is what makes it to the very top of my list.

Not just any guacamole though!

Forget the store-bough rubbish, I like mine with none of that additive-preservative-dairy bullshit.

Creamy, fresh, zingy, packed full of gorgeous, healthy ingredients, yet super indulgent, home-made guacamole is a thing of beauty.

Best-ever guacamole (vegan, GF) | Cake + Whisky

Loads of creamy avocado, a sprinkle of chopped tomato and onion, a good squeeze of lime and plenty of fresh herbs… That’s all you need to get smashing, really!

Best-ever guacamole (vegan, GF) | Cake + Whisky

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:6]

Have too many avocados on your hands? Send it my way -or give one of these a go:

Kale & rice salad with avocado & salmon

Vegan broccoli & avocado salad

Tabasco roasted squash & mozzarella salad

Kale & Rice Salad w/ Avocado & Salmon (GF)

09-02-2017 Local Black Bookavocado, easy, gluten-free, healthy, kale, lunch, lunchbox, recipe, rice, rice salad, salad, salmon, smoked salmon1 Comment

No, no, no, don’t be all ‘That tough, leafy green stuff? Kale no’!

This Kale & rice salad may have humble beginnings (being made up of what was left over in the fridge) but it seriously is one of the best things I’ve had for lunch in a long time (possibly ever).

Naturally gluten-free, it’s a marriage of savoury, nutty, crunchy, creamy (…) flavours, all coming together in a symphony of colour.

Fresh, satisfying, incredibly beautiful and unbelievably simple, I promise you’ll be screaming ‘Kale yeah’ after the first bite!

Kale & Rice Salad w/ Avocado & Salmon (serves 2, GF)

Ingredients:

a big handful basmati or wild rice
2 big handfuls of raw kale, stalks removed, well washed and pat dried
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1 avocado
2 big slices smoked salmon
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp sesame oil
a few dashes Tabasco
black sesame seeds and sliced spring onion to garnish
salt flakes, black pepper

Method:

1. Cook the rice according to packaging, then drain well and set aside to cool.

2. Place the kale, 1/2 tbsp of sesame oil and a good pinch of salt into a big bowl and massage for a few minutes. Add in the cooled rice and mix well, then share between two bowls or plates.

3. Make the dressing: In a small, clean jar, pour the lemon juice, Tabasco and remaining sesame oil. Put the lid on and shake vigorously until well combined. Taste-test and season accordingly with salt and pepper.

4. Peel, half, pit and slice the avocado. Use kitchen scissors to cut the smoked salmon into bite-sized pieces. Place both the avocado and salmon on top of the kale & rice salad.

5. Top with the dressing and garnish with black sesame seeds and sliced spring onion right before serving.

Superfood salad

18-01-2017 Local Black Bookavocado, bacon, healthy, lunch, nuts, recipe, salad, seeds, watercressLeave a comment

I’m not usually one for food fads. I like my ice cream with cream in, my cakes with butter and sugar and I’ll only consider using cricket flour when all cereals will have disappear from the surface of the Earth.

But in spite of everything, it looks like I’m currently tumbling down a superfood-shaped rabbithole.

I blame my on-going cupboard clearing phase, that made me realise that I must be a member of the squirrel family (the kind that socks on nuts and then forgets about it).

The consequences of this discovery being that I made a superfood salad to use up part of my stocks and pretty much anything else I had in the fridge: watercress, red cabbage, radishes, avocado, ALL THE NUTS/SEEDS…

A pretty healthy lot, since most of them are actually superfood and therefore pack a punch of health benefits.

Add some lovely walnut French dressing and juuuuuust a tiny bit of crunchy BACON, and what was bound to happen, happened.

I became addicted to said superfood salad.

So much so in fact that despite the weather doing its best to make me see sense and come back to more wintery food, I’ve had it for lunch for 3 days in a row. And I’m strongly considering making it 4.

Cold air? Don’t care! All I want is this (super-easy to make) colourful superfood salad!

Superfood? Supergood!

Watercress & seeds superfood salad (serves 2)

Ingredients:

1 bag (100g) watercress, rinced and pat-dried
1 big handful thinly sliced red cabbage
8 red radishes, thinly sliced
1 avocado, stone removed, diced or sliced
4 rashers streaky bacon (for a vegetarian version, replace with 1 poached egg per person)
1 tsp each black sesame seeds and pine nuts
2 tsp pumpkin seeds
1 tsp Dijon mustard (I love the sweetness of this honey lil’ number)
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
4 tbsp walnut oil
salt flakes, cracked black pepper (use smoked pepper if you have some!)

1. Make the dressing: In a small jar, place the mustard and vinegar and mix until well combined. Pour the oil in, pop the lid on, then shake until well incorporated. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

2. Cook the bacon in a hot pan until it’s all nice and crispy. Remove all residual fat from the pan and let the bacon cool a bit, then use kitchen scissors to chop it into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

3. On a serving plate of dish, arrange the watercress, red cabbage, avocado and sliced radishes. Sprinkle with the seeds and top with the crispy bacon bits.

4. Pour the dressing on top and serve immediately.

Broccoli & Avocado Salad

04-01-2017 Local Black Bookavocado, broccoli, recipe, salad, tahini, vegan, vegetarian3 Comments

When it comes to packing your own lunch, raise your hand if you always start the year full of grand plans and good intentions, only to give up a few days later because GOSH WHY DOES IT TAKE SO MUCH TIME AND EFFORT? and f*ck it, I might as well just go to Pret and get the same old sandwich everyday because I’d rather from boredom than exhaustion?

Yeah? Me too.

But the truth is, it doesn’t have to be that hard.

Exhibit n°1 with this Broccoli & Avocado Salad.

This is healthy eating at its best. Simple, cheap as chips ingredients thrown just a few minutes to create something super healthy and, most importantly, absolutely delicious.

The beauty of this salad lies in its perfect simplicity and its amazing contrast of texture.

Creamy avocado, crunchy broccoli, with a bit of added zing from the tahini-lemon dressing, it makes for a super satisfying vegan lunch.

Broccoli & Avocado Salad (vegan, serves 1 as a main course or 2 as a side)

Ingredients:

1 small broccoli head (washed, pat dried and chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/2 avocado (pitted, peeled and chopped into small cubes)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp good quality tahini (this is my favourite)
juice from 1/2 lemon
small pinch chilli flakes
1 clove garlic (peeled and finely chopped)
big pinch za’atar
chives (finely chopped)
salt, pepper

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180°C (gas mark 6).

2. In a bowl, mix the broccoli pieces with the olive oil, chilli flakes, garlic and a small pinch of salt. Transfer to an oven tray and roast until slightly brown and tender (about 30 min).

3. In a small bowl or glass, combine the tahini and lemon juice and mix until well combine (add a bit of water if necessary). Season with salt and pepper.

4. In a serving bowl, combine the roasted broccoli and cubed avocado. Top with the tahini dressing, sprinkle with za’atar and chives and serve immediately.

Salmon + Lentil Salad

05-10-2016 Local Black Bookavocado, cabbage, cranberry, healthy, healthy eating, lentils, lunch, power bowl, recipe, salad, salmonLeave a comment

I got into the habit of packing my own lunch when I was at university.

Before that, I was lucky enough to attend schools which had decent-to-really-good lunch schemes (as most French schools do).

And then, all of a sudden, it was all tasteless pizza and pasta and salad bars that had seen better days and were quite frankly to expensive for what it was.

So I bought myself a few Lock Lock boxes and so my love for homemade salad lunches begun.

Most of my creations over the years have been guided by the seasons and whatever I find in my fridge.

There has been classic combinations and some more… creative ones and some have definitely been more successful than others.

This salmon and lentil salad definitely features amongst the former.

Hearty yet healthy, packed full of good fats and vitamins, it’s a super pretty and colourful packed lunch that’ll keep you full till dinner time.

So good you won’t want to share it with salmon else (so make sure you multiply the below quantities if needed!)

Salmon + Lentil Salad (serves one)

Ingredients:

60g uncooked Puy lentils
1/2 small white onion, peeled and finely diced
1 salmon fillet
1/2 avocado, diced
Small handful shredded cabbage
1 spring onion, finely sliced
1/4 lime
1 tbsp dried cranberries
Pinch of dried oregano
Pinch of chilli flakes (I used Aleppo pepper)
Salt, pepper, olive oil

1. Prepare the lentils: Place the lentils into a small sieve and rinse under running cold water. Heat up a little bit of oil in a saucepan, then did the diced onion and cook until golden. Add the rinsed lentils into the saucepan. Add 300ml water and a little pinch of salt, then bring to the boil. Simmer for about 25 min, stirring regularly until the lentils are tender. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

2. Cook the salmon: Prehwat the oven to 180 C. Place the salmon fillet in the centre of a cooking foil square. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, chilli flakes and oregano, then close the foil up to form a parcel. Place onto a baking tray and bake for 20-25 min. Allow to cool slightly, then open up the foil parcel & flame up the fish.

3. Combine the cooked lentils, flaked salmon, diced avocado and shredded cabbage onto a plate.

4. Season with lime juice and olive oil as well as salt and pepper. Top with the dried cranberries and sliced spring onion and serve immediately or pack into a lunchbox and look forward to a healthy, colourful lunch!

PIN FOR LATER:

Taco feast at Taqueria

14-03-2016 Local Black Bookavocado, guacamole, Mexican, notting hill, recommendation, Restaurant, review, taco, tacos, Taqueria, Westbourne Grove4 Comments

I have a serious case of wanderlusting. At the moment, the idea of a beach holiday in a warm, sunny place (with a side of cocktails, guacamole and naps under the palm trees) sounds like the absolute dream.

But since this is London and I won’t have a holiday for quite some time still, I settled for the next best thing: a taco feast at Taqueria.

Serving up London’s best Mexican food, the place is packed every evening.

But on a rather late lunch date, it was much more of an intimate affair.

Filled with light, repurposed wooden chairs and a very well-stocked bar, the restaurant itself is an absolute gem.

Taco feast at Taqueria, Notting Hill | Cake + Whisky

Faced with an impressive number dishes to choose from, we decided to go for a bit of everything and share, tapas style.

We tucked in hungrily!

Starting (as all good stories do) with guacamole.

Creamy, zingy and served with super crunchy totopos, it’s the sort of guac’ that’d fix even the strongest of wanderlust cases.

Roadside chicken tacos (charcoal grilled chicken, scotch bonnet mayonnaise, lettuce, árbol tomatillo salsa).

Delightfully spicy and well worth a little close-up!

As soon as we’d finish a plate, a new one would miraculously appear in its place. Pretty much like eating at Hogwarts, just a little spicier!

Carnitas tacos (slow cooked pork, salsa verde, pickled jalapeño, onion, coriander).

And the best of all, fish tacos (cod deep fried in cider batter, chipotle mayonnaise, avocado cream, cabbage).

We washed it all down with various tequila cocktails.

My favourite being the Paloma.

A mix of tequila and ting grapefruit soda with a salt rim.

We were almost too stuffed for pudding, but just about managed to squeeze in some ice cream.

To be fair, the Super Duper Scooper (vanilla ice cream covered in cajeta (Mexico’s answer to salted caramel…) and chocolate sauce) would have been difficult to resist, and I’m rather gald we didn’t even try!

Punchy flavours in every dish, great cocktails, fun & buzzy atmosphere in the evening, and a quieter, almost romantic vibe at lunchtime. You really can’t go wrong at Taqueria.

A little holiday at home.

Booking info and menus for you to pick & mex(ico) from on the website.

Taqueria, 141-145 Westbourne Grove, London W11 2RS

Cake and Whisky

Life in London and other almost-grown-up tales

Menu

avocado

Best-ever Guacamole

Have too many avocados on your hands? Send it my way -or give one of these a go:

Kale & Rice Salad w/ Avocado & Salmon (GF)

Kale & Rice Salad w/ Avocado & Salmon (serves 2, GF)

Ingredients:

Method:

Superfood salad

Watercress & seeds superfood salad (serves 2)

Broccoli & Avocado Salad

Broccoli & Avocado Salad (vegan, serves 1 as a main course or 2 as a side)

Salmon + Lentil Salad

Taco feast at Taqueria