Guilty Pleasures: Your Favourite Sweet and Savoury Indulgences in 130 Easy Recipes

2014 | Food & Drink

Read Matt's blog for Foyles on what he thinks should be found in the store cupboards of anyone who takes their cooking seriously
We all know that a little bit of what you fancy does you good. In Guilty Pleasures, Matt Tebbutt takes your sneaky treats, like peanut butter, cream cheese, coffee and even booze, and puts them centre stage in 130 fun and delicious recipes. Enjoy great food such as tea-smoked chicken, raspberry cream cheese brownies, peanut butter ice cream, vodka-marinated steak, wide-awake chilli, Marmite potatoes, rum cupcakes with Baileys frosting and so much more. In a world where we have so many serious things to worry about, a bit of mild indulgence shouldn't be one of them. Like all guilty pleasures, a little bit of sin has never really been a bad thing... has it? This is pleasure on a plate!

Sample recipe
Ginger & Prawn Gyozas
Roll out some white bread as thinly as possible and you have a great alternative to shop-bought gyoza wrappers. Once fried, these are particularly light and crisp and, in my opinion, possibly even nicer than the real deal . . . although I'm sure that will outrage some people! This recipe makes quite a bit of filling, but it freezes well if you have too much.

Makes 15-20
150g minced chicken
300g raw prawns, chopped
1 tsp finely chopped fresh root ginger
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp light soy sauce
2 tsp dry sherry
18 slices of white bread, crusts removed
1 egg, beaten
Salt and pepper
Vegetable oil, for frying
Soy sauce, chopped red chilli and fresh coriander, to serve

In a large bowl, mix the chicken, prawns, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce and sherry. Fry a spoonful of the mix in a large frying pan and taste it to check the seasoning, then add salt and pepper accordingly to the uncooked mixture.

Using a rolling pin, roll out the slices of bread until thin. Cut each slice into a circle by cutting off the corners, or using a very large cookie cutter. Spoon a dollop of the mix into the centre of the bread. Dab beaten egg onto the edges of the bread with your fingers, then fold together to make a parcel.

Heat a couple of inches of oil in a sturdy saucepan to around 180°C. Test the heat either with a cooking thermometer or by chucking in a small piece of bread - it should brown quite gently, rather than instantly. Deep-fry the gyozas for about 3 minutes, until golden brown. Drain on kitchen paper, sprinkle with salt and serve with soy sauce mixed with a little chopped red chilli.

Matt Tebbutt (Author)