Life is Great

Chicken Burger

Generously adapted from Hamburger-Recipes.com's Basic Chicken Burger. Makes 2 very large or 4 normal size patties.

• 1 pound/500 grams chicken thigh meat ground or finely chopped
  
• 1 half onion finely chopped
  
• 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
  
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
  
• 2 teaspoons hot paprika powder
  
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg (I microplaned fresh from the nut)
  
• 2 teaspoons all spice powder
  
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
  
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
  
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped coriander
  
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  
• 1/2 panko bread crumbs (I blitzed half of it and kept the other half course)
  
• 3 large eggs, one of it lightly whisked for the patty
  
• 1/4 cup chicken stock (if not homemade, use 1 quarter chicken stock block dissolved in 1/4 cup water)
  
• 1 1/2 cups button mushrooms
  
• 2 focaccia bread slices, halved horizontally
  
• butter for the bread
  
• some frisée and arugula leaves or any greens or your choice
  
• some cherry tomatoes
  
• 2 tablespoons of plum sauce dressing

Mix all the patty ingredients (including one of the whisked egg and sesame oil) thoroughly, leaving the salt for after the patties are cooked if you prefer. For tastier result, leave the mixture in the fridge for a couple of hours to marinate. Make sure the mixture is very cold. Heat up a grill pan for 5 minutes on high flame. Meanwhile divide the mixture into 4 equal (or 2 large) balls and press into patties.

Turn down the heat to medium and place the patties on the pan. Let it sizzle and after a minute or two cautiously lift the edge of a patty near the center of the pan and take a peek. At this point lower the heat slightly to maintain the same degree of sizzle. If the pan is still too hot and the patties are in danger of burning flip them over and readjust the temperature.

For oversized patties ensure the sides of the patties are browned by pushing them against the sides of the grill pan. Cook until the patties are firm to touch and the juices run clear from its center or the internal temp reaches 175°F.

Remove the patties to rest on a wire rack or plate. Toss the mushrooms in the fat left from cooking the patties, seasoning accordingly. If necessary add a small knob of butter. Saute till brown and set aside.

Cook the eggs sunny side up according to preferred level of runny yolks, season with salt and pepper. I used egg rings here to maintain a good shape for the burger but if you have a smaller egg frying pan skip the rings to make it more rustic. Butter the focaccia slices and place on the grill pan, cut sides down. Rotate halfway for grill marks if preferred.

To assemble the burger, place the greens on the base focaccia slice, add the cherry tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of the plum sauce dressing. Add on the patty. Place the egg and add the sauteed mushrooms. Add on the top bun.

Lime Yogurt Cake with Blueberry Sauce

Recipe from Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen

For the cake:

• 1 cup whole milk plain unsweetened yogurt (I used 2% Greek yogurt)
  
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil (olive oil works as well, for a slightly different flavor profile)
  
• 1 cup sugar
  
• zest of one lime
  
• 1/4 cup lime juice
  
• 2 eggs
  
• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

For the sauce:

• 12 ounces fresh blueberries (frozen should work as well, but you should start with half the water)
  
• 6 ounces fresh raspberries
  
• 1/4 cup water
  
• 3 tablespoons sugar
  
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides of a 9-inch round cake pan or springform pan with oil (I used a butter and flour spray out of habit, which works as well) and line the bottom with parchment paper if the pan is not springform.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the yogurt, oil, sugar, lime zest and juice. Add the eggs one by one, whisking well after each addition. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together, right over your yogurt batter. Stir with a spoon until just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let stand for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the pan to loosen. If you’re using the springform pan, unclasp the sides. Otherwise, flip the cake onto a plate and flip it back on the rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Make the sauce: Combine blueberries, raspberries, water, sugar and lime juice in blender or food processor. Purée until very smooth, then press through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Cover and refrigerate until cold.

Do ahead: I have indeed made this cake and kept it at room temperature covered for three days. Chilling is not required for storage, another plus point!

Simple Steak with Mushroom Sauce
Serves 2

For the steak:

• 2 slices of fresh quality beef cut of choice, roughly 300 grams each, between 1 inch to 1 1/2 inches thick
  
• freshly ground pepper
  
• sea salt to taste
  
• regular olive oil
  
• 1 small knob of butter
  
• 1 clove garlic, halved
  
• 1 stalk fresh rosemary

For the mushroom sauce:

• 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, field button or Swiss brown
  
• 1 1/2 cups chicken/beef stock or water
  
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  
• 1/2 tablespoon oyster sauce
  
• 2 tablespoons fresh cream (I used leftover sour cream, it worked well)
  
• salt and pepper to taste

For the steak: Heat up a griddle pan for up to 5 minutes over medium heat. While heating the pan, season the steak with sea salt, pepper and a little olive oil on both sides and toss well.

Place the steaks on the pan, flip every 1 minute or so until cooked to the doneness preferred (1 1/2 minutes on each side will yield steaks just under medium, as a guide). The second flip can be rotated slightly to create crisscross grill marks. If the side of the steaks are fatty, press the fatty side against the side of the pan to brown it.

About 1 minute before the steaks are done, rub the garlic and butter on the steaks. Pat the stalk of rosemary on the steak a few times. Repeat on the reverse side.

Remove steaks to rest on a plate for at least 5 minutes.

For the mushroom sauce: Meanwhile, toss in the mushrooms in the pan and saute over medium heat. Add a few drips of olive oil if the leftover fat from the steak is insufficient. After the mushrooms have browned slightly, deglaze the pan with stock/water.

Scrape the pan and around the sides well to incorporate all the leftover fond into the sauce. Add the oyster and Worcestershire sauces. At this point some juices may have been released by the resting steaks. Return those into the sauce as well. Mix well and add in cream. Let sauce thicken and season to taste.

Double Chocolate Layer Cake
Cake recipe from Deb's adaptation, mixed berries filling recipe my own since I had some sauce lying around.

The recipe below is for 2 10-inch layers filled and coated in chocolate ganache. My adaptation was to bake three 9" layers which resulted in a tall cake. Unless making the suggested 2 10" layers, make the full recipe of the ganache frosting even if using the berry filling between layers and use accordingly.

For cake layers:

• 3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
• 3 cups sugar


• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda


• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

For ganache frosting and filling:

• 1 pound fine-quality semisweet chocolate (I used Baker's)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup<
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

For mixed berries filling:

• 6 ounces (1 pack) of fresh blueberries
• 12 ounces (2 packs) fresh raspberries
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Special equipment: two 10- by 2-inch round cake pans (I used three 9" springform tins).

Make cake layers: Preheat oven to 300°F and grease pans. Line bottoms with rounds of wax paper and grease paper.

Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well.

Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Cool layers completely in pans on racks. If not using springforms, run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely. Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.

Make frosting: Finely chop chocolate. In a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.

Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable (depending on chocolate used, it may be necessary to chill frosting to spreadable consistency). I found that stirring this over a bowl of ice water did a great job of cooling it off quickly and evenly.

Spread frosting between cake layers and over top and sides. Cake keeps, covered and chilled, 3 days. Bring cake to room temperature before serving.

Make the berries filling: In a saucepan, heat the berries and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves and berries fall apart. Dissolve the cornstarch in a little water. On high heat, stir in the starch solution. The sauce will thicken quickly.

Let sauce cool down to room temperature. Puree the sauce in a blender or food processor. Chill to thicken more before spreading it thinly between cake layers.