Virsli de Brad, o reteta hunedoreana de carnati afumati, merge fantastic cu aroma dulce a boabelor de mazare, sporita de pulpa de mar adaugata abia la sfarsit.

Un piept de pui taiat fasii se frige in putin de ulei de masline pana devine rumeniu. Cand e gata, adauga palarii si picioruse de ciuperci champignon, rupte in doua sau in patru si un morcov taiat bastonase. Arunca inauntru 4 catei de usturoi maruntiti si partea alba de la o ceapa verde. Ciupercile o sa-si lase zeama lor, dar mai pune jumatate de pahar de apa. Eu am adaugat o mana de ciuperci uscate trambita piticului pe care le-am faramitat deasupra – ele au dat o aroma superba de mancare de padure. Lasa la fiert cam 7 minute pana scade apa, apoi rupe pe deasupra doua maini de noodles instant si cateva linguri de sos de soia. Stinge focul si amesteca, lasand taieteii sa traga restul de zeama. Presara peste frunzele de la ceapa verde taiate rotite mici.

Liverpool Nostalgia. The Tea Gather, a small Chinese restaurant where I used to have lunch with some of my friends from the University… they were serving this drink called Hot Honey Lemon and Ginger. I thought I’d try it.

For 1 glass of this drink I used: the juice from 1 lemon, a bit of grated ginger, 2 or 3 generous spoons of honey. Mix this together and pour hot water.

Done!! Perfect for cold winter nights. Serve it with love!

Amatriciana is a sauce made with tomatoes, pecorino and bacon, usually served with spaghetti or bucatini. It’s an old recipe from Lazio and it became popular in the 19th century when poor emigrants from Italy made it known in the new regions were they established. Here I used linguine instead, a long, flat and narrow pasta (originally from Campania) and the one that Doc prefers. So, because I was in the mood of spoiling her again, I came up with this recipe which I remember well from my living in Italy.

You need to start by slicing the onion and cutting the bacon into narrow pieces. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the bacon on low heat. Once the bacon starts to become slightly crispy on the edges, add the onion. Cook on a low heat until the onions start to caramelise. That should take you around 15 minutes. (Though originally this recipe doesn’t contain mushrooms, here I used three medium-sized champignons, cut in small pieces, which I mixed with the onions and bacon after 10 minutes.)

Add chopped tomatoes or tomatoes sauce and a teaspoon of sugar and leave the sauce to thicken on a low to medium heat for another 15-20 minutes.

When the sauce is ready, what is left for you to do is pur it over pasta, then season it all with freshly grinned black pepper, fresh basil leaves and grated pecorino or parmesan.

You’ll love it.

Mi-a fost o pofta uriasa, desi inainte mancasem deja o galetta cu ciuperci si spanac de la taraba francezului. Acesti award winning sausages din Broadway Market te fac sa-ti lingi degetele. Carnatii englezesti sunt fabulosi. Eu inainte nu pofteam niciodata la asa ceva, pana cand am gustat din specialitatile lor.

Fripti pe plita, sunt pusi fierbinti intr-o chifla moale de graham si serviti intr-un servetel. Eu mi-am adaugat deasupra mustar boabe, reteta antica si chutney cu mere. Maxim!