Stay At Home Recipes

Top 5 Recipes for a stay at home Valentine's Day

We may not be able to go to our favourite pizza place or romantic restaurant for Valentine's this year. But that doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate! 2021 is definitely the year for love, appreciation and good recipes.

You may be currently living with your partner, housemates, friends or family through lockdown. Why not get your apron out and show them how much you care on the day of love, with a slap-up meal. We have gathered our favourite recipes from our favourite cookbooks to get the inspiration flowing.

1. French Toast with Caramelized Bananas

Serves 2

What you'll need for these recipes...

3 large free-range eggs
6tbsp caster sugar
125ml double cream
125ml cup full-fat milk
2tsp good quality vanilla extract
60ml good quality crème fraîche
2 bananas (not too big), peeled and halved lengthways
4 thick slices good-quality brioche (you'll find this in most artisan bakeries)
30ml rapeseed oil
25g unsalted butter
(1 recipe quantity) Salted Caramel
(1 recipe quantity) Berry compote
Icing sugar, for dusting

The Method

Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and whisk briefly. Add 2 tablespoons of the sugar, the double cream, the milk and the vanilla and whisk again for 2-3 minutes until all the ingredients are completely incorporated.

In a bowl, gently fold the remaining 1 tsp vanilla extract with the crème fraîche - don't over mix as you want the crème fraîche to be nice and thick. Keep in the fridge until needed.

Put the egg mixture in a deep, flat dish (a baking dish will work) that will fit two slices of the brioche in side by side.

Place the bananas, cut side up, on a baking tray. Cover each half of the banana with 1tsp of the remaining sugar. Caramelise the sugar on the bananas with a blow torch, if you have one, otherwise place under a grill, until golden brown. Take care not to hold the blow torch too close to the bananas, or they will burn.

Preheat the oven to 12°C / gas 1 and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

Soak 2 slices of brioche at a time into the batter, making sure the slices are completely soaked by the batter.

Heat two large heavy-based non-stick frying pans on a medium heat and add 2 tbsp oil. Remove the soaked brioche slices from the egg mix and carefully shake off excess batter, being careful not to break the brioche. Place the slices in the frying pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, until the undersides of the slices are golden in colour and the toast is firm to the touch. Place the slices on the prepared baking tray and keep warm in the preheated oven. Wipe out the pan with kitchen roll, so that you have a clean pan, then repeat the process to soak and cook the two remaining slices. Meanwhile, in a saucepan set over a low heat, gently warm the salted caramel.

To Serve

To assemble, cut two of the brioche slices cut in half at an angle, then transfer them to two serving plates, putting two triangles of toast onto each one. Spoon 1 generous teaspoon of vanilla crème fraîche on top of each triangle of French toast then top with 1 teaspoon of the berry compote. gently lay half a caramelised banana on top of the berry compote, then drizzle with the salted caramel. Cut the remaining two brioche slices diagonally in half, and place then on top of the banana to make a sandwich on each plate. Dust the toast with icing sugar and serve.

The extract is taken from Brunch The Sunday Way - £14.99

2. No-meat Balls with Marinara Sauce

Serves 4

Serve with egg-free spaghetti (100 g/3½oz per person) cooked until al dente, or loaded into sub rolls for the ultimate hot sandwich.

What you'll need for these recipes...

For the no-meal balls

3 tbsp sunflower oil
1 medium (about 300g/10oz) aubergine (eggplant), evenly diced
1 tsp dried oregano
4 slices of thick white bread
1 red onion, roughly chopped
generous pinch of sea salt and back pepper handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

For the marinara sauce

1 tbsp sunflower oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
400g (14oz) canned chopped tomatoes
1 tsp sugar
handful of flat-leaf parsely, finely chopped

The Method

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan (skillet) and add the aubergine, onion and oregano. Cook over medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally until gently browned. Blitz the bread in a food processor to fine breadcrumbs. Spoon the breadcrumbs into a bowl and set aside.

Blitz the cooked aubergine and onion in a food processor until semi-smooth. Add the breadcrumbs in three stages, blitzing after each addition, to form a firm mixture. Stir in the flat-leaf parsley and season well. Allow to cool for a few minutes.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the frying pan over a medium-high heat. Roll the mixture into walnut-sized balls and carefully place into the oil. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, until golden at the top and bottom. Remove from the pan, drain on kitchen paper and keep warm.

To make the marinara sauce, heat the oil and garlic in a pan over a medium heat for 2 minutes. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and sugar then simmer for 8-10 minutes, stiring often. Remove from the heat, stir through the parsley, then season to taste.

Serve the no-meat balls over the hot marinara sauce, with spaghetti or loaded into bread subs.

The extract is taken from Vegan Fakeaway - £15.00

For more inspiring veggie recipes checkout our Veggie Recipes for Autumn Blog.

3. House Black Daal

Serves 8-10

What you'll need for these recipes...

300g whole (black) urad daal
12g garlic paste
10g ginger paste
70g tomato purée
8g fine sea salt
⅔ tsp deggi mirch chilli powder
⅓ tsp garam masala
90g unsalted butter
90ml double cream
Chapatis to serve

The Method

Put the daal into a large bowl, cover with water and whisk for 10 seconds. Let the daal settle, then pour out the water. Repeat 3 or 4 times, until the water is clear.

Tip the daal into a large saucepan and pour in at least 4 litres cold water. Bring to the boil and cook steadily for 2-3 hours. Skim off any impurities that rise to the surface, and add more boiling water as required to keep the grains well covered. The daal grains need to become completely soft, with the skins coming away from the white grain. When pressed, the white part should be creamy, rather than crumbly. When cooked, turn off the heat and allow the pan to sit for 15 minutes.

In a bowl, mix the garlic and ginger pastes, tomato purée, salt, chilli powder and garam masala to a paste.

Carefully pour off the daal cooking water then pour on enough freshly boiled water to cover the daal by 3-4cm. Bring to the boil over a medium-high heat and add the aromatic paste and butter. Cook rapidly for 30 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent the mixture from sticking.

Lower the heat and simmer for 1-1½ hours, stirring very regularly to prevent it from sticking and adding a little boiling water if the liquid level gets near the level of the grains. Eventually, it will become thick and creamy. The creaminess must come from the grains disintegrating into the liquid and enriching it, not from the water being allowed to evaporate leaving only grains behind.

Add the cream and cook for a further 15 minutes, Serve with chapatis or other Indian breads.

The extract is taken from Dishoom Cookbook - £26.00

4. Gunpowder Chicken

Serves 4

What you'll need for these recipes...

2 large chicken breasts chopped into 2cm/¾ inch pieces
2tsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
juice of ½ lemon
1 egg, beaten
380g/13½/ generous 3 cups gram/ chickpea flour
vegetable oil, for deep frying
1 large red chili, finely sliced
½ red onion, finely sliced
1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander/cilantro
2tbsp Tamarind Chutney
2 tbsp Green Chili Pickle
¼ tsp salt

The Method

In a mixing bowl, toss the chicken pieces with the garlic, cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon, salt and lemon juice.

Add the beaten egg to the chicken and mix well. Take the chicken and toss in the gram flour, ensuring it is fully coated and knocking off the excess.

Heat a deep-fat fryer to 180°C/350°F or set a saucepan over a medium-high heat with about 4cm/1½ inches of oil. You know the oil is hot enough when you drop a small amount of batter into it and it floats to the surface. Fry the chicken in small batches for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Carefully remove the chicken using a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Once all the chicken has been fried, put in a large mixing bowl and toss with the red chili, red onion, fresh coriander, tamarind chutney, green chili pickle, and salt. Serve immediately.

The extract is taken from Mowgli Street Food - £25.00

5. Fregola With Mussels

Serves 4-6

What you'll need for these recipes...

200g (7oz/1 cup) dried fregola
80ml (2½ fl oz/⅓ cup) olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 baby fennel, diced, frond reserved
½ teaspoon dried chili flakes, crushed
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
500g (1 lb 2 oz) ripe cherry tomatoes
good pinch of saffron
sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
250 ml (8½ fl oz/1 cup) white wine
250 ml (8½ fl oz/1 cup) fish stock
1 kg (2 lb 3oz) mussels, cleaned and debeared
small handful of parsley leaves, chopped
sliced long red chili, to serve
extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
lemon wedges, to serve

The Method

To begin with cook the fregola in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion, fennel and chili flakes and sauté for 5-6 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then add the cherry tomatoes and sauté for a further 6-7 minutes, until they begin to soften. Stir through the saffron and season with just a pinch of salt and lots of pepper.

Add the wine, stock and mussels to the pan, increase the heat to high and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Cook whilst occasionally shaking the pan, for 6-8 minutes, until the mussels have opened. Discard any mussels that do not open. Add the fregola and stir through the parsley.

Divide the mussels and fregola among warm pasta bowls and spoon over the sauce. Top with the reserved fennel fronds, a few slices of chili and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with lemon wedges on the side for squeezing over.

The extract is taken from Pasta-topia - £14.99

For more inspiration, for a lockdown date night we have The Date Night In: 120 Recipes To Nourish Your Relationship. Invites you to make date night an integral part of your week and shows you how to woo your partner all over again with food, drink, and conversation.

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