Tuna pie

Perfect for birthday parties or any other event where you have guests and you are going to prepare some snacks.

Buying ready-made puff pastry, the only time consuming task is to prepare the ratatouille (and even this, you can buy it canned ready-made).

TUNA PIE

2 sheets of puff pastry

2 boiled eggs

2 small cans of tuna

Beaten egg or milk (to paint the pastry)

And for the ratatouille:

2 onions

3 Italian green peppers

2 cloves of garlic

1 zucchini

4 or 5 ripe tomatoes

Olive oil

Salt

In a pan with some oil sauté the onion, pepper and garlic (everything finely chopped). You can add some salt at this point to help cooking the vegetables. When the onion begins to turn transparent, add the zucchini, cut into small cubes. Continue to sauté, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

Peel and cut the tomatoes and add to the vegetables. Let everything cook until tomatoes turn into sauce. Add more salt if needed. If the result is slightly acidic, you can also add some sugar.

When the tomato mixture has cooled assemble the pie.

Place a sheet of puff pastry on the baking sheet on top of parchment paper. Prick the pastry with a fork over the entire surface to prevent it from rising when you bake it. Distribute the ratatouille on the pastry, leaving a 1 cm margin all around. Add the chopped hard boiled eggs and flaked tuna. Cover with the second sheet of pastry and seal the edges by pressing the pastry with your fingers or a fork. Prick the top pastry with a fork and make two small cuts so that the steam generated inside when baking can escape. Paint with beaten egg or milk and bake at 220 degrees C until the pastry is golden brown.

Squid in sauce

A quick and tasty recipe. I made it the other day just for myself. I didn’t what to cook anything complicated but didn’t want the typical fried egg and chips.

In the freezer, I always have frozen squid that I normally use for paella. This time I gave them a different use.

SQUID IN SAUCE (for 1)

3 small squids

½ onion

1 clove of garlic

1 teaspoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of tomato sauce

Olive oil

White wine

Chopped parsley

Salt

Clean the squid and cut them into rings. In a pot with a splash of oil (I did in the pressure cooker to save time, but can be cooked in any other pot), fry the onion and garlic finely chopped, being careful not to burn them. 


Add the squid and cook for a couple of minutes then add paprika, tomato sauce and a splash of white wine and close the pressure cooker for 5 minutes. If you use a normal pot, add also some water and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the squids are tender. 


Add salt to taste and chopped parsley and serve with white rice.

Cod Fritters

This is a dish that can be served as an appetizer or to complete a meal. It goes very well with molasses.

You can use salted cod (desalting previously for several hours, of course) or frozen, which is slightly salted. Lately, I'm using the frozen option because it is more convenient.

A variation is to replace regular flour and baking powder with tempura flour.
Another variant is to replace the yeast and water with beer.

COD FRITTERS (for 2)

150 g unsalted cod
3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Chopped parsley
Yellow food colouring (or turmeric)
Water
Oil for frying

Flake the cod and carefully remove all bones. Add the flour, baking powder, garlic, parsley and colouring. Stir a bit and add water slowly until you get a pasty consistency.
In a pan put plenty of oil for frying and when it is hot enough put teaspoons of the mixture. Fry until golden brown. They should be crispy on the outside and tender inside.

Pil-pil Prawns

Hello!
Here I am again with a quick recipe that's always a winner. An ideal snack that is prepared in a moment.

PIL-PIL PRAWNS (for 2)

12 peeled shrimp or prawns (and deveined)
2 cloves garlic, minced
Parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon of paprika
Several chillies (depends on how hot you like it)
Pinch of salt
Olive oil

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and cover with olive oil. Cook over medium heat until the prawns change color. Serve warm and accompanied by a lot of bread to dip into the oil!


If you have gas burner, try cooking this in an earthenware casserole, where you can also serve it. I have an induction hob so I do mine in a normal pan.