Recipes by Caitlin Pigtails

Chicken with Pesto and Mozarella

No claims to originality over this one. I found it one day in the Observer Food Monthly. It was in their quick recipes section, and is the only thing in it that I've wanted to cook and been able to do reasonably well. The quantities are for one person; it can be extended to two easily enough but more would be tricky to cook all at once. I've simplified the original recipe slightly (to compensate for my lack of nifty kitchen skill) and added the salad to go alongside.

Ingrediants:
1 chicken breast fillet, with bones removed
2 tsp pesto
mozarella cheese
1oz butter, preferably unsalted

Salad, for accompaniment:
Mixed salad leaves
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Seasoning

Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat, and preheat the grill at a high heat. Put the chicken breast between two sheets of cling film and bash it gently with a rolling pin, so that it's an even 1cm or so thick throughout.

Fry the chicken in the butter so that it's gently browned on the outside and just cooked in the middle. This should only take a couple of minutes on each side, three at the most. Take it off the heat and spread a teaspoon of pesto over the top. Add a slice of cheese (about 2-3mm thick) and pop it under the hot grill.

Whilst the cheese is melting, add another teaspoon of pesto to the butter and chicken juices, and combine them over a low heat. Don't heat it too much, or you'll end up with a pan full of burnt pine nuts. Toss the salad leaves with the oil, vinegar and seasoning, and arrange nicely on a plate.

When the cheese is melted and browning, take it away from the heat. Plate it, pour over some of the pesto and butter sauce, and serve.

Cocoa Bread

This is great for making chocolatey toast with.

Ingrediants:
1lb strong white flour
2oz cocoa powder
1oz soft dark brown sugar (or muscovado sugar)
1 packet dried yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2pt lukewarm water

Lightly grease a 2lb loaf tin. Sieve the flour and cocoa, and add the other dry ingrediants. Pout in the oil and water, and mix together to make dough.

Knead the dough for five minutes or so, then leave in a warm place to rise until it's doubled in size. This takes about an hour.

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C. Knock back the dough, then make it into a loaf shape and put it in your tin. Leave in in a warm place to prove for another half-hour.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. When it's cooked, it will sound hollow when tapped on the underside. Turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool.

Spanish Omelette, Pigtails Style

This one has been posted on my blog before (albeit with slight differences), but as most of you probably haven't read the archives of my blog you won't have seen it. People have posted omelette recipes to the recipe tree before, too, but I can't really cook much. Serves 2, if you have it with something else.

Ingrediants:
4 large eggs
4 small new potatoes
1/2 onion
1 slice ham (optional)
1 clove garlic (ditto)
1/2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1/2 tsp pesto
Mixed herbs
Cheese (any kind, so long as it's fairly mild and grateable)
Salt and pepper
Oil
Water

Boil the potatoes until they're cooked but not too soft. Chop the onion into whatever size bits you like, and finely chop or crush the garlic. Slice the cooled potatoes int nice chunky slices, about 4mm or so, and chop the hap.

Crack the eggs into a jug and beat them, mixing inthe mustard, pesto, herbs, salt, pepper, and a dash of water.

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Fry the onion and garlic until the onion goes soft and pale. Add the ham and fry a bit more, then add the sliced potatoes. Keep frying until the potato slices are starting to brown and the onion is nicely caramelising.

Take the frying pan off the heat and pour in the egg mixture, stirring a bit to make sure everything is evenly spread out. Sprinkle a wee handful of grated cheese and a pinch of herbs over the top, then cook on a low heat for 20-25 minutes, until all the egg is solid.