Lemon drizzle cupcakes

Everyone who likes a bit of tangy sweetness will love these!

They are the perfect, Spring cupcake, particularly if you use cute cupcake cases (mine are from poundland)

 They will stay moist for a good few days as well, just in case you don't eat them all at once...

I whipped them up for Mother's Day and my mum ate 3 in one go - just to prove how delicious they are.

Makes 10-12 cupcakes
- 125g butter
- 125g caster sugar
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 125g self raising flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- dash of milk
- dash of vanilla essence
- finely grated zest of 1 lemon

For the lemon drizzle icing
- 200g icing sugar
- juice of 2 lemons
- finely grated zest of 1 lemon, for decoration

1. Line a cupcake tray with cases and pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth, beat in the eggs then fold in the flour and baking powder. Mix until smooth with a dash of milk, vanilla essence and lemon zest.
3. Spoon into cupcakes cases then bake in the oven for around 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool.

4. To make the lemon drizzle icing, simply mix together the icing sugar and lemon juice and stir until smooth and fairly runny. Spoon/drizzle on top of the cupcakes - as much as you prefer, then finish with some lemon zest!

Enjoy :)

Chicken tabbouleh

A light, summery bulgur wheat dish

Perfect for a healthy lunch (can prepare the night before and eat cold the next day) or for a light dinner.

My version is not spicy as I am not a big fan of spicy food but feel free to cook the chicken with spices. Since the onion is raw, prepare for strong flavours but they work so well together and this dish tastes deliciously fresh and nutritious!

This will be perfect at barbecues or picnics in the summer time but it's okay to start a little early!

Serves 2

- 2 chicken breasts, chopped
- olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- paprika
- 1 red onion, finely chopped
- 2 large tomatoes, chopped
- 1/2 cucumber, chopped
- 100g bulgar wheat
- lemon juice
- fresh mint, torn (I didn't have any but I would recommend)
- fresh parsley, chopped

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees, then in a small roasting tin, brush the chicken with olive oil, and coat in the garlic and as much paprika as you would like, as season. Cover with foil and cook in the oven for about 20 minutes.

2. Place the chopped onion, tomatoes and cucumber into a large bowl and set aside.
3. Prepare the bulgar wheat according to packet instructions (Cook in a pan of boiling water - enough to be fully absorbed - keep adding more until soft to bite).
4. Mix the cooked bulgar wheat into the large bowl with the other ingredients and stir until combined.
5. When the chicken is cooked, stir into the bulgar wheat mixture than squeeze fresh lemon juice on top and mix in the parsley and mint, leaving some to garnish.
6. Either eat straight away as a warm dish or leave to cool for later or the next day!

Enjoy :)

Moroccan chicken

This is a dish my dad used to make years ago - I only just remembered it and how delicious it was so  had to get the recipe from him straight away. I'm not a fan of spicy food or coriander therefore most Indian or Moroccan recipes I have to adapt or I just tend not to try them which is a shame. The reason I love this one so much is because it isn't spicy at all but still has incredible flavour from the chicken thighs, cinnamon and sweet apricots. The sweet with savoury in this dish works perfectly together and the light, fluffy cous cous is perfect with the sauce. As I've sad before, I love cooking with chicken thighs because they're so moist and tender. The other good thing about this recipe is that it's really quick to make but it still tastes like a special meal that someone's slaved over for hours...

Serves 2
- 4 boneless and skinless chicken thighs, cut in half
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 1 onion, chopped
- 75g dried apricots, quartered
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 300ml chicken stock
- 1 tsp turmeric
- lemon juice
- cous cous, to serve

1. Fry the chicken thighs in olive oil for 5-10 minutes, or until browned on both sides.
2. Add the garlic and onion and cook for a further 5 minutes.
3. Add in the apricots and cinnamon and stir.
4. Mix the turmeric into the prepared chicken stock and pour into the pan.
5. Bring to the boil, then cook for about 10-15 minutes.
6. Remove the chicken thighs and set aside, keeping hot.
7. Raise the heat and reduce the sauce until it is fairly thick and syrupy.
8. Meanwhile, cook the cous cous according to packet instructions.
9. Add the lemon juice to the sauce, then serve up the cous cous, with the chicken thighs placed on top, and pour over the sauce. Serve immediately.

Enjoy :)

Lemon and parsley trout

There is really no attractive way to present cooked parsley... but don't let the picture put you off. I've posted this simple fish marinade before but with salmon, but I have recently discovered that I much prefer trout. It seems a lot more moist and I just generally prefer the flavour - it was also a bonus that the pack of two fillets was half price! This delicious, tangy marinade is great with fish so give it a try with three simple ingredients. Perfect served with vegetables and new potatoes, rice or even pasta.

Serves 2
- Two trout fillets
- knob of butter (about 25g)
- 1 lemon
- fresh parsley, chopped

1. Melt the butter in a dish, squeeze in as much of the lemon as you wish and stir in the parsley.
2. Rub the trout fillets in the marinade and leave in the fridge for 10-20 minutes.

3. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees and wrap the trout fillets in foil and place on a baking tray.
4. Bake in the oven for around 20 minutes, or until tender and flaky.

Enjoy :)

Honey and lemon glazed chicken

I found this recipe in my friends cookbook (Good food 101 cheap eats) which was perfect since I'd just bought 4 chicken drumsticks in Sainsbury's (for only £1!) I don't like citrus but I love lemon in sauces and this makes a perfect sticky glaze over the chicken and potato wedges. It has amazing flavour - you can taste the lemon, the honey and the garlic all at the same time. It's so quick and easy to do, you just make the sauce and bung it all in the oven for 45 minutes. The sauce makes the chicken so moist and the wedges soft - I transferred the wedges to a clean baking tray 15 minutes before the end of the cooking time to crisp up. This is a really good student meal if you want something a bit more special and tasty, yet chicken and potato are still cheap to buy in the supermarket. The original recipe used fresh rosemary, but I didn't want to buy a whole bunch so just used dried mixed herbs instead.

Serves 1

- 2 chicken drumsticks
- 1 large baking potato, cut into wedge shapes
- 25g salted butter
- 2 tbsp runny honey
- 1/2 large lemon
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
- sprinkling of dried mixed herbs
- fresh spinach leaves, to serve

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees / gas mark 6
2. Place the chicken drumsticks and wedges in a deep baking tray
3. For the sauce, melt the butter in a pan and add the honey. Squeeze the juice of the lemon and add along with 3/4 of the crushed garlic clove (you can use the whole clove but it will be quite strong). Add some dried mixed herbs and stir together.
4. Drizzle the sauce all over the chicken and potato, turning everything until coated. Sprinkle with some more herbs then bake in the oven for around 30 minutes. Turn the chicken drumsticks and remove the wedges from the pan onto a clean baking tray so they can crisp up. Cook for a further 15 minutes or until the wedges are soft.
5. Serve with fresh spinach leaves or vegetables of your choice

Enjoy :)

Lemon and parsley salmon

(Completely forgot to take a picture once cooked!)

This is a simple dressing/marinade for salmon that is guaranteed to produce wonderful flavours and moist fish. It's buttery and it's tangy mm mm. Perfect served with new potatoes also tossed in a buttery, lemon and parsley sauce.

- salmon fillet

- few knobs of butter

- handful of fresh parsley, chopped

- fresh lemon

1. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4 / 180 degrees.

2. Simply place the salmon on foil, dot with the butter, sprinkle on the parsley, and squeeze over the lemon.

3. Wrap in the foil, place on a tray, and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes.

Enjoy :)