Back to Brighton: Spotlight on Choccywoccydoodah

After having been locked up in my room and at university for about 6 weeks on the trot I decided that I wanted to get away, FAR AWAY, yet not so far away that planning and going on a trip would stress me out even more! So, I settled on taking a short day trip with my sister to one of my favourite places: Brighton. I love Brighton because it is so small that you could probably walk the circumference of it in a day. Also, it seems to be such a hodgepodge of different personalities, ideas and influences. You could walk down a lane full of hipster cafes, thrift stores and tattoo shops and as soon as you turn into another street you could find yourself having something of an Alice in Wonderland rabbit-hole experience when you find yourself surrounded by shops as luxurious and bourgeois as Jo Malone, Shu Uemura et al. In short, Brighton is a perfect contradiction. There is something for everyone, and it never fails to excite and intrigue me.

First stop: Fish and Chips at Bardlsey’s. The cod was OK, but not particularly well seasoned, the chips were EXCELLENT and the meals were great value overall.

Battered sausage and chips, yum!

Second stop: Walking through the Pavilion

On this particular journey we took our time strolling through the streets, running errands etc. We did make a pit stop through ‘The Laines’ when I stumbled across Choccywoccydoodah; a shop which my sister had told me was highly sought after in Brighton for its intricate edible chocolate figurines and models. I had seen the team from the shop in action on their show, which is very much based on another popular baking show ‘Ace of Cakes’. The show follows them around as they make elaborate celebration cakes decorated with intricate chocolate designs. About a year or two ago they opened a shop near Carnaby Street in London which I still haven’t been to, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to finally take a closer look at their work.

The shop was tiny but the interior was well decorated. The walls and corners were overflowing with chocolate shoes, as well as rabbits and eggs in celebration of Easter. I did not feel like buying anything this time around as their chocolate was quite expensive, but I did like that they had a wide selection of chocolate including gluten and dairy-free options.

Headless #sellfie

This time I had a good look up close and personal, but next time I shall save up a bit and sample some of their tasty looking treats.

Until next time Brighton…

Saucy, with a chance of Meatballs.

Meatballs are one of my few (read: many) guilty pleasures. My absolute favourite is the Swedish meatball, a more-ish combination of salty pork and hearty beef with a fragrant mix of herbs and spices. This in itself is divine, but when mixed with traditional Scandinavian accompaniments such as lingon berry sauce or beetroot and apple salad, it becomes even more delicious! Ever since discovering Swedish meatballs, standard beef meatballs no longer seem to amaze me…

In one of my Hello Fresh orders I received a recipe and ingredients to make beef meatballs. But these were not just any meatballs, these were beef meatballs seasoned with herbs and mustard, and which had a core of unctuous melted cheddar cheese. To top it all off, they were smothered in a ragu of carrots, red peppers, chilli, onions, passata and lots more flavoursome ingredients. Oh yes, hold on to your hats – this is another recipe profile, and going to be a good one!

Ingredients: 200g minced beef, 1 medium-sized onion, a handful of grated cheddar, ½ tsp mustard, ½ tsp dried oregano, ½ tsp cumin, 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp balsamic vinegar, 6-8 cherry tomatoes, 2x 350g cartons of passata, ½ tsp dark Muscovador sugar, ½ a yellow pepper, ½ red chilli, ½ tsp paprika, 450g potatoes (I like King Edwards but any fluffy potato which is good for mashing will do!), 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, and 2/3 cup carrots (roughly one medium carrot).

Cooking time: HF recommends about 40 minutes if you have some help preparing the mash whilst you do the meatballs, but on my own this took about 55 minutes (don’t worry it’s a straightforward recipe, I just like to take my time ^_^).

Method: (note I have adjusted the method and re-ordered some steps to reflect the result I achieved, and preferred, when cooking it for a second time, but it is essentially the same as HF’s recipe, I have indicated ingredients I have added myself by boldfacing them):

1). Make the meatballs! Pre-heat the oven to Gas mark 6/ 200c. Slice the onion in half lengthways through the root, then slice it widthways into long, thin, “half-moons”. Dice half a tsp of the sliced onion and put the remaining slices to one side in a bowl. Mix the diced onion with the beef, mustard, oregano, cumin, ½ tsp salt, and 1 tbsp chopped parsley. Form the beef mixture into golf balls. Stick your thumb into the middle of each to make a small indent into which you can put a bit of grated cheddar, and then close up the meatball. Do this with all of the meatballs. Place the meatballs on a baking tray and bake on the top shelf of the oven for 20 minutes making sure to turn them over half way through. They should be nicely browned when you remove them from the oven.

2). Make the mash! Boil a pot of water with ½ tsp salt for the spuds. Peel and chop the potatoes into 3cm squares. Boil them in the water for approx 10 minutes or until you can easily pop a knife through them. Drain and mash with a splash or milk and a bit of butter (margarine works well too), and a pinch of salt to taste. *Top tip: to keep mash warm until the meatballs are done place mash in a Pyrex bowl above a saucepan of simmering water and cover with Clingfilm, the fancy French word for this is a ‘bain-marie’ darrrliing!*

3). Make the ragu! Add the sliced onion to a large non-stick pan with a glug of olive oil and cook on a low heat for 5-10 minutes until soft and slightly golden. Meanwhile, peel and dice the carrots into tiny cubes (1/2 cm-ish). De-seed and finely dice the chilli and dice the garlic. Remove the core from the yellow pepper and finely slice into matchsticks. Take the lid off the onions and add the carrot and pepper. Add the smoked paprika and the chilli. Stir and turn the heat to medium. You can add a bit more oil at this point, another glug should suffice. Cook for about 8 minutes until everything is slightly softer but not raw and not super-soft (a bit of texture in a sauce is quite nice I find!). After all the veg is soft add the garlic, passata, a good pinch of salt and pepper, the cherry tomatoes, Muscovado sugar, and the balsamic vinegar (I added the garlic and balsamic the second time I made this because I felt it gave the sauce a more exciting and full-bodied flavour). Cook for 5 minutes on medium before adding the meatballs. Cook for another 5 minutes to bring all the flavours together and the add 1 tbsp chopped parsley. Serve with your mash and another sprinkle of parsley. Meatballs done!

The finished product

Another angle #noflash #nofilter

These meatballs were simple, flavoursome and juicy.  I’d definitely recommend getting someone to help with the mash if like me you like to take your time when cooking, if anything it will just make the process quicker. A perfect meal for any time of the week, but especially themed weeknights – did anybody say Meatball Monday?

VERDICT: Mamma mia that’s som’a good’a meatballs *Antonio Carluccio accent*