The Daring Cooks’ February 2012 challenge was hosted by Audax & Lis
and they chose to present Patties for their ease of construction,
ingredients and deliciousness! We were given several recipes, and
learned the different types of binders and cooking methods to produce
our own tasty patties!
I make my own burger patties reasonably often as I like to know what's gone into my burgers. Also, I don't eat beef and it is often a bit tricky to find burgers made from any other meat. I liked the idea of making patties for this month's challenge, but having previously tried out recipes for lamb, pork, chicken and turkey burgers I didn't want to make a meat recipe this time. Instead I chose to make some fishcakes - I figured they were the same shape and cooking method so technically could be counted as a patty!
I decided to use a combination of mashed potato and lightly smoked salmon fillet. To this I added some sweetcorn kernels, finely sliced spring onions, and peas, as well as an egg to bind it all together. I crushed some wholegrain crackers to crumbs and sprinkled these over my patties to make a crunchy crispy outside.
I then grilled these (the challenge was to shallow fry or bake the patties, but I hope I can be forgiven a minor transgression!) and served them with some homemade amai sauce (vinegar, ketchup, tamarind, soy, sugar), new potatoes, and crunchy vegetables. Yummy.
Thank you to the Daring Cooks for getting me to look out a new recipe: I think this one will become a regular feature on my dinner table!
Showing posts with label Fish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fish. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Jamie Oliver Great Britain
This is the time of year when TV executives seem to think we should all watch back-to-back cookery programmes; Professional Master Chef, Jamie's Great Britain, River Cottage Veg have all been on the box recently.
Well, what can I say? After a spring and summer of watching virtually no TV I've been a complete sucker and have been hunkering down every night to watch other people cook. I suppose its hibernation instinct - its December: give me a darkened room and too much food please!
And after all that watching, it seemed only fair to try and cook something from one of the series. I was taken by the idea of potato scones from Jamie Oliver's Great Britain. He made the scones in Scotland and served them with smoked salmon and scrambled eggs as a brunch dish. Dan and I both liked the look of them - they made our mouths water! - so I decided to make them for dinner on thursday night. I served the potato scones with cabbage, a poached egg and a piece of lightly smoked salmon fillet.
This was a very useful recipe. On Thursday nights I meet a friend for a run, so I get home late and hungry. I was able to make the scones the night before so that all that needed doing when I got in was lightly frying them for 10 minutes while the fish and cabbage cooked. Poach an egg, and hey presto! - a quick and tasty dinner with enough stodge to replenish my tired leg muscles. I went a bit wrong somehow as the scones didn't hold together very well, but the flavours were lovely. Definitely a 'do again' recipe.
Sadly, mine didn't look like this, but they give you the right idea!
Find recipes for this as well as ones from the rest of the Jamie O series here.
Well, what can I say? After a spring and summer of watching virtually no TV I've been a complete sucker and have been hunkering down every night to watch other people cook. I suppose its hibernation instinct - its December: give me a darkened room and too much food please!
And after all that watching, it seemed only fair to try and cook something from one of the series. I was taken by the idea of potato scones from Jamie Oliver's Great Britain. He made the scones in Scotland and served them with smoked salmon and scrambled eggs as a brunch dish. Dan and I both liked the look of them - they made our mouths water! - so I decided to make them for dinner on thursday night. I served the potato scones with cabbage, a poached egg and a piece of lightly smoked salmon fillet.
This was a very useful recipe. On Thursday nights I meet a friend for a run, so I get home late and hungry. I was able to make the scones the night before so that all that needed doing when I got in was lightly frying them for 10 minutes while the fish and cabbage cooked. Poach an egg, and hey presto! - a quick and tasty dinner with enough stodge to replenish my tired leg muscles. I went a bit wrong somehow as the scones didn't hold together very well, but the flavours were lovely. Definitely a 'do again' recipe.
Find recipes for this as well as ones from the rest of the Jamie O series here.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Daring Cooks October Challenge
A really yummy one from the Daring Cooks this month: Moo Shu, which is stirfry pork with Hoisin Sauce and Pancakes.
I'd never even heard of Moo Shu before this challenge was set, let alone cooked it, but I do generally love Chinese food so I was definitely up for trying it out. The brilliant thing about this recipe is that almost all of it can be made ahead. I made my hoisin sauce in the morning, chopped my vegetables ahead of time, and even made my pancakes earlier in the day. I knew that we'd be cooking late and in a hurry that night, so being able to have everything ready to go was great.
I made my pancakes several hours early and kept them under a damp cloth, just reheating them in the microwave for a few seconds when we were ready to eat. The pancakes weren't as soft as I would have liked. Maybe this is because I made them ahead, or maybe I rolled them too thin? I'm not sure of the reason, but they tasted good anyway.
For my stirfry I chose a mixture of thin sliced Sweetheart Cabbage, baby corn, mangetout, bamboo shoots and spring onions, with about 200g pork and 2 medium sized eggs for the 2 of us. I added a shake of Chinese 5 Spice powder to the recipe given by Daring Cooks but otherwise didn't meddle with it.
With a couple of spoonfuls of hoisin sauce on top of the stirfry, and everything folded into the slightly sesame flavoured pancakes, the flavours blended beautifully.
This is a very messy dinner to eat - even worse than fajitas - but really tasty. For nights when there isn't time for making pancakes I think the stirfry would go well with rice instead: And with that version you wouldn't end up with hoisin sauce dribbling down your arms!
We were having a very oriental week this week - ealier in the week we'd had spicy cured swordfish with noodle broth from the Wagamama cook book - a recipe which I highly recommend.
So the message of the week? Go forth and explore the Orient!
The October Daring Cooks' Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.
I'd never even heard of Moo Shu before this challenge was set, let alone cooked it, but I do generally love Chinese food so I was definitely up for trying it out. The brilliant thing about this recipe is that almost all of it can be made ahead. I made my hoisin sauce in the morning, chopped my vegetables ahead of time, and even made my pancakes earlier in the day. I knew that we'd be cooking late and in a hurry that night, so being able to have everything ready to go was great.
I made my pancakes several hours early and kept them under a damp cloth, just reheating them in the microwave for a few seconds when we were ready to eat. The pancakes weren't as soft as I would have liked. Maybe this is because I made them ahead, or maybe I rolled them too thin? I'm not sure of the reason, but they tasted good anyway.
For my stirfry I chose a mixture of thin sliced Sweetheart Cabbage, baby corn, mangetout, bamboo shoots and spring onions, with about 200g pork and 2 medium sized eggs for the 2 of us. I added a shake of Chinese 5 Spice powder to the recipe given by Daring Cooks but otherwise didn't meddle with it.
With a couple of spoonfuls of hoisin sauce on top of the stirfry, and everything folded into the slightly sesame flavoured pancakes, the flavours blended beautifully.
This is a very messy dinner to eat - even worse than fajitas - but really tasty. For nights when there isn't time for making pancakes I think the stirfry would go well with rice instead: And with that version you wouldn't end up with hoisin sauce dribbling down your arms!
We were having a very oriental week this week - ealier in the week we'd had spicy cured swordfish with noodle broth from the Wagamama cook book - a recipe which I highly recommend.
So the message of the week? Go forth and explore the Orient!
The October Daring Cooks' Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Two ways with beetroot
Leafing through my Riverford Farm cookbook the other day it struck me that I don't think I've ever eaten a beetroot. The strong smell and psychadelic colour of the pickled variety have always put me off, and I'd never really considered it as a stand-alone vegetable. Still, I'm all for trying to challenge my taste buds these days, so I resolved to cook beetroot next time I found it for sale. Funny how as soon as I decided that, I spotted it in the farmshop.
The recipe I chose was a beetroot gratin, from the Riverford cookbook. I wasn't sure I was ready for cooking the beetroot and eating it whole and unadulterated, so a slight dilution with cream, garlic and summer savoury from the garden seemed a good beginners beetroot choice. I did also cheat a little by using 350g beetroot and 200g potato rather than all beetroot.
I have to say, I was worried. The thought of dinner potentially being disgusting when you are really hungry is not funny. I should have trusted in Riverford though. Afterall, they haven't let me down before.
Despite the dish coming out of the oven looking distinctly alarming:
And staining both the smoked haddock and cabbage which I served with it a vibrant shade of pink:
It was actually a really lovely dish. Subtle flavoured, creamy, and a lighter and less stodgy version of a dauphinoise. If I feel like staining the kitchen and my fingers bright pink again I'll make this for dinner. Very tasty.
As the beetroot was sold by the bunch I was left with a couple of beetroot globes to use up. I keep reading how good beetroot is in cake - like carrots it helps fruit or chocolate cakes stay wonderfully moist. Further on in the Riverford book I discovered a recipe for a carrot/beetroot cake. Dan had requested cake for work as he's leaving for a new job, so I figured I had to live up to my reputation for providing unusual foodstuffs. No standard Victoria sponge for the office then: they were going to get a beetroot and carrot cake. And if they decided it was too wierd to eat then all the more for me!
The batter was a truly alarming bright pink colour, but I'm pleased to say that once it was baked it had only a subtle pink tinge, which was much more appealing!
Apparently some people did turn their noses up at the cake. Wierd how the thought of beetroot in a cake is repulsive to some people, but eating food stuffed full of chemicals is just fine with them! Those that did try the cake did like it, and Dan even had a request for the recipe.
My assessment of the recipe is that it either needs the addition of some spices, like nutmeg or cinnamon, or it needs a cream cheese icing. So, some tweaking required, but a fairly decent cake.
The recipe can be found here.
The recipe I chose was a beetroot gratin, from the Riverford cookbook. I wasn't sure I was ready for cooking the beetroot and eating it whole and unadulterated, so a slight dilution with cream, garlic and summer savoury from the garden seemed a good beginners beetroot choice. I did also cheat a little by using 350g beetroot and 200g potato rather than all beetroot.
I have to say, I was worried. The thought of dinner potentially being disgusting when you are really hungry is not funny. I should have trusted in Riverford though. Afterall, they haven't let me down before.
Despite the dish coming out of the oven looking distinctly alarming:
And staining both the smoked haddock and cabbage which I served with it a vibrant shade of pink:
It was actually a really lovely dish. Subtle flavoured, creamy, and a lighter and less stodgy version of a dauphinoise. If I feel like staining the kitchen and my fingers bright pink again I'll make this for dinner. Very tasty.
As the beetroot was sold by the bunch I was left with a couple of beetroot globes to use up. I keep reading how good beetroot is in cake - like carrots it helps fruit or chocolate cakes stay wonderfully moist. Further on in the Riverford book I discovered a recipe for a carrot/beetroot cake. Dan had requested cake for work as he's leaving for a new job, so I figured I had to live up to my reputation for providing unusual foodstuffs. No standard Victoria sponge for the office then: they were going to get a beetroot and carrot cake. And if they decided it was too wierd to eat then all the more for me!
The batter was a truly alarming bright pink colour, but I'm pleased to say that once it was baked it had only a subtle pink tinge, which was much more appealing!
Apparently some people did turn their noses up at the cake. Wierd how the thought of beetroot in a cake is repulsive to some people, but eating food stuffed full of chemicals is just fine with them! Those that did try the cake did like it, and Dan even had a request for the recipe.
My assessment of the recipe is that it either needs the addition of some spices, like nutmeg or cinnamon, or it needs a cream cheese icing. So, some tweaking required, but a fairly decent cake.
The recipe can be found here.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Getting my 5 a day
Recently I've been feeling like eating super-healthily: Lots of vegetables, salads, vegetarian dishes. This week's new recipes were excellent examples of the kind of food I've been craving.
A Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus soup made a delicious lunch (even though it doesn't look that great!)
It was quite unusual in that it had a beaten egg stirred through to form thin eggy strands. That really enriched the soup and made it taste quite indulgent. The recipe was extremely easy to make. I battled with my 'food miles' conscience since asparagus isn't in season in the UK anymore, but in the end greed won out! Here's the recipe:
Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus soup for 2
1 tin crab (or 120g cooked fresh crab meat)
200g asparagus spears
500g chicken stock
3 shallots (finely sliced)
1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon cornflour
1 egg
salt and pepper
chives
Warm the stock in a saucepan, add the shallots and simmer for a few minutes to soften.
Meanwhile chop the asparagus spears into bite sized pieces and cook in simmering water for 4-5 minutes until tender.
Add the asparagus, crab, fish sauce and seasoning to the stock mixture. Mix the cornflour to a paste with a little water, add it to the soup mixture and stir until the soup thickens a little. Beat the egg lightly, add to the soup and stir briskly to form strands of egg. Sprinkle with some snipped chives and serve.
For dinner the same day I threw together an Ottolenghi salad recipe of broad beans and radishes, which was excellent served with a piece of haddock and pitta breads, with a tahini sauce for dipping.
See: It looks like the book's picture!
I never used to like radishes, but thought it was high time I revisited them to see if I like them now. This combination of salad ingredients was lovely and the radishes gave a great textural contrast with their crunchiness, as well as being a wonderful colour against the grean of the beans. I actually used half and half broad beans and peas as I didn't have enough broad beans for the recipe. That seemed to work just fine.
One revelation is that I don't know why I never thought to pop broadbeans out of their skins before. I have always hated those tough outer skins that they have, but they're very easily peeled off!
Fresh and healthy summery dishes feel exactly right just now.
A Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus soup made a delicious lunch (even though it doesn't look that great!)
It was quite unusual in that it had a beaten egg stirred through to form thin eggy strands. That really enriched the soup and made it taste quite indulgent. The recipe was extremely easy to make. I battled with my 'food miles' conscience since asparagus isn't in season in the UK anymore, but in the end greed won out! Here's the recipe:
Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus soup for 2
1 tin crab (or 120g cooked fresh crab meat)
200g asparagus spears
500g chicken stock
3 shallots (finely sliced)
1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon cornflour
1 egg
salt and pepper
chives
Warm the stock in a saucepan, add the shallots and simmer for a few minutes to soften.
Meanwhile chop the asparagus spears into bite sized pieces and cook in simmering water for 4-5 minutes until tender.
Add the asparagus, crab, fish sauce and seasoning to the stock mixture. Mix the cornflour to a paste with a little water, add it to the soup mixture and stir until the soup thickens a little. Beat the egg lightly, add to the soup and stir briskly to form strands of egg. Sprinkle with some snipped chives and serve.
For dinner the same day I threw together an Ottolenghi salad recipe of broad beans and radishes, which was excellent served with a piece of haddock and pitta breads, with a tahini sauce for dipping.
See: It looks like the book's picture!
I never used to like radishes, but thought it was high time I revisited them to see if I like them now. This combination of salad ingredients was lovely and the radishes gave a great textural contrast with their crunchiness, as well as being a wonderful colour against the grean of the beans. I actually used half and half broad beans and peas as I didn't have enough broad beans for the recipe. That seemed to work just fine.
One revelation is that I don't know why I never thought to pop broadbeans out of their skins before. I have always hated those tough outer skins that they have, but they're very easily peeled off!
Fresh and healthy summery dishes feel exactly right just now.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Gravadlax
There are some recipes that have sat on my 'to do' list since the very beginning of this venture. Gravadlax is one of those. It had never made it to the top of the list, not because it was difficult, but because if you are going to cure fish rather than cook it the fish needs to be super-fresh. There just aren't all that many places where you can guarantee that fact.
Last week I had a trip out west to Cheltenham, so I was able to detour back via a very pretty Cotswold village called Bibury, which just so happens to have a trout farm. I cross-questioned the fishmonger and managed to obtain a trout that had been pulled fresh from the river the same day.
Bibury:
Very pleased with my purchase I meandered back home to fillet and cure my fish.
For my one medium-sized trout (about 400g), I chopped a handful of fresh dill and sprinkled it over the flesh of one fillet. I then mixed together a teaspoon each of coarse salt, caster sugar, and crushed black peppercorns. This was layered on top of the dill:
After that I placed the other fillet flesh-side down onto the salt mixture, so that the two fillets were face to face with the skin at top and bottom. I placed the whole lot in a dish, covered it with foil and weighted it down. I just used another dish with a couple of tins in it as a weight. Its important that the weight is as evenly distributed as possible across the fish.
Everything went into the fridge after that for 48 hours. I turned it every 6 or 12 hours (depending when I was actually in to do it!), basting it with the liquid from the dish when I did so.
In the end my fish was actually left curing for closer to 72 hours than 48, but that seemed fine.
When the time is up, scrape/brush off the salt and dill cure and pat the fish dry.
Slice it as thinly as you can, and serve. We had our Gravadlax with toasted sourdough bread, salad, and a yoghurt, mustard and dill dressing:
It was worth the wait! Buttery, flavourful, and gorgeous. For those of a squeemish disposition, it really doesn't taste raw - its more like the texture of smoked salmon.
If you can ever get your hands on fresh trout I highly recommend giving this a go. Its delicious and pleasingly easy!
Last week I had a trip out west to Cheltenham, so I was able to detour back via a very pretty Cotswold village called Bibury, which just so happens to have a trout farm. I cross-questioned the fishmonger and managed to obtain a trout that had been pulled fresh from the river the same day.
Bibury:
Very pleased with my purchase I meandered back home to fillet and cure my fish.
For my one medium-sized trout (about 400g), I chopped a handful of fresh dill and sprinkled it over the flesh of one fillet. I then mixed together a teaspoon each of coarse salt, caster sugar, and crushed black peppercorns. This was layered on top of the dill:
After that I placed the other fillet flesh-side down onto the salt mixture, so that the two fillets were face to face with the skin at top and bottom. I placed the whole lot in a dish, covered it with foil and weighted it down. I just used another dish with a couple of tins in it as a weight. Its important that the weight is as evenly distributed as possible across the fish.
Everything went into the fridge after that for 48 hours. I turned it every 6 or 12 hours (depending when I was actually in to do it!), basting it with the liquid from the dish when I did so.
In the end my fish was actually left curing for closer to 72 hours than 48, but that seemed fine.
When the time is up, scrape/brush off the salt and dill cure and pat the fish dry.
Slice it as thinly as you can, and serve. We had our Gravadlax with toasted sourdough bread, salad, and a yoghurt, mustard and dill dressing:
It was worth the wait! Buttery, flavourful, and gorgeous. For those of a squeemish disposition, it really doesn't taste raw - its more like the texture of smoked salmon.
If you can ever get your hands on fresh trout I highly recommend giving this a go. Its delicious and pleasingly easy!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Fishy Otti
By chance rather than by design I ended up cooking a lot of fishy meals this week. The star meal of the week was definitely Tuna with a Pistachio Crust and papaya salsa, taken from the Ottolenghi cookbook. I used tuna chunks instead of a loin piece simply because it was cheaper! Instead of coating the piece of tuna with a crust of pistachio and mustard I scattered the crust over the top of the chunks. It seemed to work just fine that way.
The salsa was really very pretty, and tasted just as lovely as it looked.
I served this dish on steamed new potatoes with peashoots. It was a good dinner, but the salsa does take quite a while to prepare because of all the peeling, chopping and mixing. On the otherhand, you could make it a day or two ahead. Next time I may swap the mustard in the crust for wasabi which I have a hunch may work a little better with the salsa.
A close runner up in the week's favourites was fillets of fish served with green tahini sauce and pomegranate seeds. I dished this one up with roasted aubergines and couscous. Another Ottolenghi special. It seems I'm cooking my way through the book! Again I used a cheaper piece of fish than was recommended; haddock worked perfectly OK so who need sea bream?!
Papaya Salsa
1/3 Papaya, diced
1/3 Mango, diced
1/3 cucumber, peeled, deseeded and diced
1/2 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
3g fresh ginger, grated
1/3 red onion, finely chopped
grated zest and juice of 1/2 lime
2 tspn thai fish sauce
2 tspn olive oil
1 tspn caster sugar
Mix everything together, season with salt and pepper, then chill for at least an hour before serving.
Super quick post this week. My sister's getting married on saturday and we're catering it ourselves so there's not a whole lot of time to spare for blogging!
The salsa was really very pretty, and tasted just as lovely as it looked.
I served this dish on steamed new potatoes with peashoots. It was a good dinner, but the salsa does take quite a while to prepare because of all the peeling, chopping and mixing. On the otherhand, you could make it a day or two ahead. Next time I may swap the mustard in the crust for wasabi which I have a hunch may work a little better with the salsa.
A close runner up in the week's favourites was fillets of fish served with green tahini sauce and pomegranate seeds. I dished this one up with roasted aubergines and couscous. Another Ottolenghi special. It seems I'm cooking my way through the book! Again I used a cheaper piece of fish than was recommended; haddock worked perfectly OK so who need sea bream?!
Papaya Salsa
1/3 Papaya, diced
1/3 Mango, diced
1/3 cucumber, peeled, deseeded and diced
1/2 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
3g fresh ginger, grated
1/3 red onion, finely chopped
grated zest and juice of 1/2 lime
2 tspn thai fish sauce
2 tspn olive oil
1 tspn caster sugar
Mix everything together, season with salt and pepper, then chill for at least an hour before serving.
Super quick post this week. My sister's getting married on saturday and we're catering it ourselves so there's not a whole lot of time to spare for blogging!
Saturday, May 14, 2011
California dreaming
A few months back Dan applied for a job in sunny San Francisco. Even though it was a long shot I got a little dreamy about the idea of moving to SF.
Sunshine, sushi and outdoor pursuits all figured in my day dreams. Sadly, the job didn't happen, but in my general musing on the lifestyle possibilities I did come across Fish Tacos; a speciality of Baja in California. A flour tortilla is liberally filled with grilled or fried white fish, guacamole and tomato salsa, and topped with a dollop of sour cream. Friday night called for a light supper, so I made an attempt.
First the tomato salsa: Skin 3 tomatoes, deseed, chop finely, mix with half a tablespoon of white wine vinegar, a finely diced (small) red onion and seasoning. Put to one side for the flavours to mingle.
Make the tortillas (or you could use bought ones, which would be a bit thicker and floppier): Mix 150g flour with a pinch of salt. Add just enough water to bring it together to a soft, but not sticky, dough (probably about 100ml). Kneed for a few minutes until soft, then divide into 4 golf-ball sized portions. Roll each of these into as smooth a ball as you can manage then roll them out to thin circles about the size of a dinner plate. Heat a heavy-based frying pan until hot, but not smoking. Dry fry the tortillas one at a time, for a couple of minutes on each side until bubbled and lightly coloured.
Mine weren't exactly round, but never mind!
Cover the cooked tortillas with foil and keep them warm in a low oven (120C).
Season the fish: Using about 350g white fish, cut it into bite sized chunks. If you plan to fry the fish lightly dust it with well-seasoned flour, then shallow-fry in vegetable oil. If you are grilling the fish just season the fish, but don't use flour.
While the fish cooks make guacamole by mashing an avocado, add lime juice to taste and half a finely chopped green or red chilli.
Place everything on the table, including some sour cream (or thick yoghurt), and help yourselves.
Expect to get your hands mucky!
These quantities were good for 2 people for dinner, or would make a light lunch for 4. We slightly ruined the healthiness of it all by having chocolate icecream for pudding.
Sunshine, sushi and outdoor pursuits all figured in my day dreams. Sadly, the job didn't happen, but in my general musing on the lifestyle possibilities I did come across Fish Tacos; a speciality of Baja in California. A flour tortilla is liberally filled with grilled or fried white fish, guacamole and tomato salsa, and topped with a dollop of sour cream. Friday night called for a light supper, so I made an attempt.
First the tomato salsa: Skin 3 tomatoes, deseed, chop finely, mix with half a tablespoon of white wine vinegar, a finely diced (small) red onion and seasoning. Put to one side for the flavours to mingle.
Make the tortillas (or you could use bought ones, which would be a bit thicker and floppier): Mix 150g flour with a pinch of salt. Add just enough water to bring it together to a soft, but not sticky, dough (probably about 100ml). Kneed for a few minutes until soft, then divide into 4 golf-ball sized portions. Roll each of these into as smooth a ball as you can manage then roll them out to thin circles about the size of a dinner plate. Heat a heavy-based frying pan until hot, but not smoking. Dry fry the tortillas one at a time, for a couple of minutes on each side until bubbled and lightly coloured.
Mine weren't exactly round, but never mind!
Cover the cooked tortillas with foil and keep them warm in a low oven (120C).
Season the fish: Using about 350g white fish, cut it into bite sized chunks. If you plan to fry the fish lightly dust it with well-seasoned flour, then shallow-fry in vegetable oil. If you are grilling the fish just season the fish, but don't use flour.
While the fish cooks make guacamole by mashing an avocado, add lime juice to taste and half a finely chopped green or red chilli.
Place everything on the table, including some sour cream (or thick yoghurt), and help yourselves.
Expect to get your hands mucky!
These quantities were good for 2 people for dinner, or would make a light lunch for 4. We slightly ruined the healthiness of it all by having chocolate icecream for pudding.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Birthday cake
3rd May is Dan's birthday. We decided not to go out this year, but I still wanted to make it special so I gave him the option to choose any dinner he wanted. He chose beef wellington and dauphinoise potatoes - high effort, but his absolute favourite. I made myself a monkfish wellington, which was delicious. (I found the recipe on the BBC website here.)
But a birthday isn't a proper celebration without cake, so I had to make a birthday cake. Dan's not a particular fan of chocolate cakes and sponge cakes, and with just the two of us in our household we wouldn't get through that kind of cake before it went stale anyway. Instead I chose to make an Orange Polenta Cake - the recipe comes from the Ottolenghi cook book. I'm a total amateur with sugar cookery, so I had to make 3 attempts before I managed a proper caramel for the top of the cake, but I got there in the end. The citrusy-fresh orange scent of the cake was AMAZING as it cooked. Here it is straight out of the oven:
(although the colour cast seems a bit odd on this photo.)
And this is it once it had cooled and I'd glazed it with some of my Mum's homemade marmalade:
We had a slice of the cake each on Dan's birthday. Dan had his with a scoop of creme fraiche. The cake had a slightly grittier texture than a normal sponge (possibly because I coudn't find instant polenta). That wasn't unpleasant though - in fact it was rather nice. The cake was moist, slightly bitter on the top, very orangey and utterly gorgeous. I'd buy the recipe book just for this cake!
Traditionally you have to take cakes to work on a birthday, and orange cake didn't seem the most portable variety, so I also made some rasberry cupcakes. (Dan was fitting our new bathroom all weekend, so it seemed only fair that I assume responsibility for work cake snacks for him!) The recipe was from the Primrose Bakery cupcake book - a vanilla sponge swirled with homemade rasberry jam, then filled with a little spot of rasberry jam and iced with vanilla buttercream icing. I decorated them with a little grated white chocolate and silver sugar balls.
I know they look a bit girly and pink and white for a boy's birthday, but if you're going to get your girlfirend to make cakes for your office what do you expect?!
Of course he told everyone he made them himself. Some of them even believed it.
But a birthday isn't a proper celebration without cake, so I had to make a birthday cake. Dan's not a particular fan of chocolate cakes and sponge cakes, and with just the two of us in our household we wouldn't get through that kind of cake before it went stale anyway. Instead I chose to make an Orange Polenta Cake - the recipe comes from the Ottolenghi cook book. I'm a total amateur with sugar cookery, so I had to make 3 attempts before I managed a proper caramel for the top of the cake, but I got there in the end. The citrusy-fresh orange scent of the cake was AMAZING as it cooked. Here it is straight out of the oven:
(although the colour cast seems a bit odd on this photo.)
And this is it once it had cooled and I'd glazed it with some of my Mum's homemade marmalade:
We had a slice of the cake each on Dan's birthday. Dan had his with a scoop of creme fraiche. The cake had a slightly grittier texture than a normal sponge (possibly because I coudn't find instant polenta). That wasn't unpleasant though - in fact it was rather nice. The cake was moist, slightly bitter on the top, very orangey and utterly gorgeous. I'd buy the recipe book just for this cake!
Traditionally you have to take cakes to work on a birthday, and orange cake didn't seem the most portable variety, so I also made some rasberry cupcakes. (Dan was fitting our new bathroom all weekend, so it seemed only fair that I assume responsibility for work cake snacks for him!) The recipe was from the Primrose Bakery cupcake book - a vanilla sponge swirled with homemade rasberry jam, then filled with a little spot of rasberry jam and iced with vanilla buttercream icing. I decorated them with a little grated white chocolate and silver sugar balls.
I know they look a bit girly and pink and white for a boy's birthday, but if you're going to get your girlfirend to make cakes for your office what do you expect?!
Of course he told everyone he made them himself. Some of them even believed it.
Monday, May 2, 2011
A right royal weekend
Whilst I had very little inclination to spend a whole day watching the Royal wedding on TV, I was very grateful to William and Kate for getting married and thereby granting us all another lovely 4 day weekend. I could seriously get used to not working, not least because it gives me plenty of time to try out a few of the more complex recipes from some of my recipe books!
Some of the recipes from the Ottolenghi cook book have been on my list to try out for a while, and I managed two of those dishes over the weekend.
First I tried out the fried Seabass with labneh, pitta and pomegranate.
My budget didn't stretch to seabass this week, so I used coley instead. Its a chunkier fish, but if you can't afford the fancy stuff you just have to put up with that! Here in deepest, darkest Oxfordshire it is not possible to find labneh in the shops, and I hadn't realised ahead of time that I should allow 2 days to make it, so I was forced to improvise for that element. I started off with quite thick sheeps milk yoghurt and drained it through a piece of muslin cloth for an afternoon, and then used that as a spread. It wasn't quite the thickness of cheese, but nearly there, and at least the flavour was right. I spread this on toasted pitta breads, sprinkled a handful of pomegranate seeds over the top, fried the fish, and then topped the whole thing with a spoonful of homemade tomato salsa. I added some steamed spinach and a sprinkle of finely chopped fresh mint to the dish, which weren't in the recipe but were good additions. It was a fragrant and fruity dinner, perfect for a warm evening.
A couple of days later we had the turkey and sweetcorn meatballs with roast pepper sauce.
The sauce came out an amazing colour - almost fluorescent!
I'm a girl who doesn't much care for sweetcorn, but so many people had raved about this recipe all over the internet I felt I should try it out. And they were so right.
My corner of Oxfordshire failed me in sourcing turkey mince, so I used finely chopped chicken instead. Other than that I did this one 'by the book'. The chicken and sweetcorn meatballs are seasoned with a dash of ground cumin and served with a dipping sauce of roast peppers, chilli, and sweet chilli sauce.
I can see why there are so many blog posts out there raving about this recipe. Its easy to make and very yummy indeed. I appreciate that this snap does not make it look that way, so you'll have to trust me!
Its no surprise to me that I have so far loved pretty all the recipes by Ottolenghi which I have tried. What I'm really pleased about is that Dan is also becoming a massive fan. So convenient when our tastebuds agree!
An update 2 June: This week I made the meatballs again, but using turkey this time. Lovely. I served them up with cauliflower and pitta breads for dipping in the sauce. A very good combo.
Some of the recipes from the Ottolenghi cook book have been on my list to try out for a while, and I managed two of those dishes over the weekend.
First I tried out the fried Seabass with labneh, pitta and pomegranate.
My budget didn't stretch to seabass this week, so I used coley instead. Its a chunkier fish, but if you can't afford the fancy stuff you just have to put up with that! Here in deepest, darkest Oxfordshire it is not possible to find labneh in the shops, and I hadn't realised ahead of time that I should allow 2 days to make it, so I was forced to improvise for that element. I started off with quite thick sheeps milk yoghurt and drained it through a piece of muslin cloth for an afternoon, and then used that as a spread. It wasn't quite the thickness of cheese, but nearly there, and at least the flavour was right. I spread this on toasted pitta breads, sprinkled a handful of pomegranate seeds over the top, fried the fish, and then topped the whole thing with a spoonful of homemade tomato salsa. I added some steamed spinach and a sprinkle of finely chopped fresh mint to the dish, which weren't in the recipe but were good additions. It was a fragrant and fruity dinner, perfect for a warm evening.
A couple of days later we had the turkey and sweetcorn meatballs with roast pepper sauce.
The sauce came out an amazing colour - almost fluorescent!
I'm a girl who doesn't much care for sweetcorn, but so many people had raved about this recipe all over the internet I felt I should try it out. And they were so right.
My corner of Oxfordshire failed me in sourcing turkey mince, so I used finely chopped chicken instead. Other than that I did this one 'by the book'. The chicken and sweetcorn meatballs are seasoned with a dash of ground cumin and served with a dipping sauce of roast peppers, chilli, and sweet chilli sauce.
I can see why there are so many blog posts out there raving about this recipe. Its easy to make and very yummy indeed. I appreciate that this snap does not make it look that way, so you'll have to trust me!
Its no surprise to me that I have so far loved pretty all the recipes by Ottolenghi which I have tried. What I'm really pleased about is that Dan is also becoming a massive fan. So convenient when our tastebuds agree!
An update 2 June: This week I made the meatballs again, but using turkey this time. Lovely. I served them up with cauliflower and pitta breads for dipping in the sauce. A very good combo.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
sushi #2
The coming of spring makes me want salads and sushi. Just like everyone else, I get less bothered about having hot meals for dinner as soon as the weather warms up. Maybe all the blossom springing into bloom around home and work brought an association to mind with the Hanami (cherry blossom) festival in Japan, but whatever it was that made me desire sushi, this weekend I was a bit spoilt, and treated myself to sushi two days in a row - one lot bought, and one lot home made.
Now I know that I have blogged sushi making before, but I do so again because I made some different kinds of sushi this time. I'm sure its a good thing to develop the repertoire!
This time I made nori maki again; the normal nori (seaweed) wrapped sushi, filled with smoked salmon, cucumber, spring onion and a little wasabi. This time I marinated the smoked salmon in a mixture of sake, shoyu and water for an hour before I used it.
I also had a try at inside-out sushi rolls. These were easier to form than I'd been expecting, which was a nice surprise. You start off in the same way as for the nori-maki, but cover the nori and rice with cling film once you've spread the rice on the nori, then turn it over onto the rolling mat so that the seaweed is on the top. I filled these ones with a similar filling; waabi, cucumber, smoked salmon, and then rolled the finished sushi rolls in furikake, which is a Japanese seasoning made from black and white sesame seeds, nori (seaweed), and red shiso leaves. It gave the outside of the rolls an appealing crunch.
And finally....drum roll please... I tried something entirely new: Onigri. These are rice balls filled with tasty morsels and wrapped in a strip of nori. I made one for each of us filled with smoked mackerel, and one each filled with a mixture of Omeboshi (Japanese pickled plums), mirin, and sesame seeds. Those plums were SHARP! The only thing I've had before of similar face-scrunching sourness is the lime pickle you get with poppadums in Indian restaurants. Not unpleasant, but I think I'd make smaller portions next time!
Of course, this was all served up with extra wasabi, shoyu, and pickled ginger condiments, and a small salad of cucmber and spring onion.
Yummy sushi - My favourite.
Now I know that I have blogged sushi making before, but I do so again because I made some different kinds of sushi this time. I'm sure its a good thing to develop the repertoire!
This time I made nori maki again; the normal nori (seaweed) wrapped sushi, filled with smoked salmon, cucumber, spring onion and a little wasabi. This time I marinated the smoked salmon in a mixture of sake, shoyu and water for an hour before I used it.
I also had a try at inside-out sushi rolls. These were easier to form than I'd been expecting, which was a nice surprise. You start off in the same way as for the nori-maki, but cover the nori and rice with cling film once you've spread the rice on the nori, then turn it over onto the rolling mat so that the seaweed is on the top. I filled these ones with a similar filling; waabi, cucumber, smoked salmon, and then rolled the finished sushi rolls in furikake, which is a Japanese seasoning made from black and white sesame seeds, nori (seaweed), and red shiso leaves. It gave the outside of the rolls an appealing crunch.
And finally....drum roll please... I tried something entirely new: Onigri. These are rice balls filled with tasty morsels and wrapped in a strip of nori. I made one for each of us filled with smoked mackerel, and one each filled with a mixture of Omeboshi (Japanese pickled plums), mirin, and sesame seeds. Those plums were SHARP! The only thing I've had before of similar face-scrunching sourness is the lime pickle you get with poppadums in Indian restaurants. Not unpleasant, but I think I'd make smaller portions next time!
Of course, this was all served up with extra wasabi, shoyu, and pickled ginger condiments, and a small salad of cucmber and spring onion.
Yummy sushi - My favourite.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Coming over all Cornish
Dartmouth Harbour
Last week we extended our weekend by a couple of days on either side and took a little road trip.
We meandered down through Dorset and Devon to St Ives in Cornwall, then back via the north Devon coast and a flying visit onto Exmoor. It was lovely to have some time to explore our own country, and made us remember that the UK is a lovely place and that its great to spend time just chilling out together.
To get into the spirit of the trip, the recipe I attempted this week was Hugh's curried trout pasty, from the River Cottage Fish Cook book. The pasties would make great picnic food, although they perhaps were not the perfect dinner - I couldn't come up with a very satisfactory accompaniment. Given that Dan sampled a real, home-cooked, Cornish Steak pasty while we were away I was glad to have attempted a lighter interpretation. I think I'd still be living off one of those 3 days later!
St Ives
One or two mini pieces of cookery inspiration from the trip:
Seville Orange Tart - an amazing dessert served up with creme fraiche at Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant in Padstow. A little bit bitter and fresh. We had a really lovely, rather over-indulgent Sunday lunch there - this is Dan with his Lobster and Prawn Tourte, which was delicious too:
Leek and Walnut quiche - a surprisingly brilliant combination.
Also, fantastic cake from a bakery in Dorchester in Dorset - we sampled half a slice each of Rhubarb and Ginger loaf cake and Chocolate, Pear and Almond loaf cake in our beachside picnic that day. Yummy scrummy. Glad I don't live close to that bakery - I'd definitely end up over-eating every day!
Padstow
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Sushi
Using an amalgamation of techniques from my new Fish cookbook by Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and the Japanese cookery book I've had for a while, I finally had a try at making one of my favourite dinners - sushi.
I don't think my efforts matched up to the sushi from my favourite place, Yoshino Sushi on Shaftesbury Avenue in London, but I was still pretty proud of my efforts.
I made california rolls with smoked salmon, spring onion, cucumber and a hint of wasabi, wrapped in nori (seaweed):
Step one, assemble the roll on the sushi mat:
Step two, roll the roll and allow the nori to seal at the edges:
Step three, slice the column into pieces:
Finally, serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger, some wasabi, and a little extra cucumber and spring onion:
I also made nori with a streak of wasabi paste and smoked mackerel on the top, which you can see in the last couple of images. The mackerel could have done with being a little thinner, but it was a great flavour.
We had some chilli marinated seared tuna and jumbo prawns with the sushi. We dipped the prawns in lovely homemade garlicky mayonnaise. Fab dinner - probably our fish quota for the week!
I don't think my efforts matched up to the sushi from my favourite place, Yoshino Sushi on Shaftesbury Avenue in London, but I was still pretty proud of my efforts.
I made california rolls with smoked salmon, spring onion, cucumber and a hint of wasabi, wrapped in nori (seaweed):
Step one, assemble the roll on the sushi mat:
Step two, roll the roll and allow the nori to seal at the edges:
Step three, slice the column into pieces:
Finally, serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger, some wasabi, and a little extra cucumber and spring onion:
I also made nori with a streak of wasabi paste and smoked mackerel on the top, which you can see in the last couple of images. The mackerel could have done with being a little thinner, but it was a great flavour.
We had some chilli marinated seared tuna and jumbo prawns with the sushi. We dipped the prawns in lovely homemade garlicky mayonnaise. Fab dinner - probably our fish quota for the week!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Warmth and spice
A cold snap always makes me want to up my cinnamon consumption considerably, so the combination of our recent cold spell and my horrible virus bug has had me reaching for the spice rack this week.
So, first up on the menu were Jamie Oliver's South American Fishcakes - fennel seeds and chilli from the spice rack. I tweaked the method very slightly by baking the cakes instead of deep-frying (deep-frying seemed a bit too fatty, indulgent and messy for a week-night supper) and by using a combination of plain flour and polenta to coat them. I thought the slight crunch of polenta might be a tasty addition to the mix.
I couldn't imagine what to serve these with, and although the wilted pak choi was good, in future I would make a tomato salsa and more vegetables, but lose the tortilla chips. Perhaps some garlic flatbreads or brazilian cheese breads on the side. The flavours of the fishcakes were good - punchy chilli and fennel seeds made a good combination, but I might try a slightly stronger fish than cod in future or mix in some crab meat. A good start, but this one needs some tinkering!
Then, baked apples stuffed with blackberries and dusted with cinnamon sugar. I've had the blackberries in the freezer since the autumn, but they're now nearly all used up. So sad...we shall be blackberry-less until september. Please don't tell me I can buy them inthe supermarket - the ones on sale are a pale imitation of the real, wild, sharply flavoured variety!
The apples were good - crunchy on the outside from the cinnamon sugar but softly baked and juicy from the blackberries. Very nice.
Sunday? Cinnamon toast for breakfast. Tasty. I was finally feeling better from my cold by then, so the spice overload clearly worked!
So, first up on the menu were Jamie Oliver's South American Fishcakes - fennel seeds and chilli from the spice rack. I tweaked the method very slightly by baking the cakes instead of deep-frying (deep-frying seemed a bit too fatty, indulgent and messy for a week-night supper) and by using a combination of plain flour and polenta to coat them. I thought the slight crunch of polenta might be a tasty addition to the mix.
I couldn't imagine what to serve these with, and although the wilted pak choi was good, in future I would make a tomato salsa and more vegetables, but lose the tortilla chips. Perhaps some garlic flatbreads or brazilian cheese breads on the side. The flavours of the fishcakes were good - punchy chilli and fennel seeds made a good combination, but I might try a slightly stronger fish than cod in future or mix in some crab meat. A good start, but this one needs some tinkering!
Then, baked apples stuffed with blackberries and dusted with cinnamon sugar. I've had the blackberries in the freezer since the autumn, but they're now nearly all used up. So sad...we shall be blackberry-less until september. Please don't tell me I can buy them inthe supermarket - the ones on sale are a pale imitation of the real, wild, sharply flavoured variety!
The apples were good - crunchy on the outside from the cinnamon sugar but softly baked and juicy from the blackberries. Very nice.
Sunday? Cinnamon toast for breakfast. Tasty. I was finally feeling better from my cold by then, so the spice overload clearly worked!
Friday, January 28, 2011
Spiced sake soba
Today I had a day off work, for no reason other than that I felt like chilling out a bit. There was even a glint of sunshine here and there to brighten the day. And just for the hell of it I decided to throw in an extra recipe for this week - I was feeling in the need for something super-nutritious. Wagamama's Spiced Sake Soba seemed the perfect answer.
So what is Spiced sake soba? Well, I'm sorry to tell you that it has no saké in it!
This was it (phone photo!):
It was a stirfry of soba noodles (these are buckwheat noodles - hence the murky brown colour. They're tastier than they look!), mixed vegetables and egg, with a piece of seared wild salmon placed on top. The stirfry vegetables included mushrooms, beansprouts, courgette, peppers, onion, and a little chilli sauce. Garnished with a quarter of lime and a sprinkle of sesame seeds it was a filling, healthy dinner.
I thought it was the kind of meal that I would love but Dan would be less enthused by. How wrong I was - he loved it! A definite thumbs up for this one, with the added advantage that it banished all memories of the tofu stirfry which I served up from this recipe book a month or so ago.
So what is Spiced sake soba? Well, I'm sorry to tell you that it has no saké in it!
This was it (phone photo!):
It was a stirfry of soba noodles (these are buckwheat noodles - hence the murky brown colour. They're tastier than they look!), mixed vegetables and egg, with a piece of seared wild salmon placed on top. The stirfry vegetables included mushrooms, beansprouts, courgette, peppers, onion, and a little chilli sauce. Garnished with a quarter of lime and a sprinkle of sesame seeds it was a filling, healthy dinner.
I thought it was the kind of meal that I would love but Dan would be less enthused by. How wrong I was - he loved it! A definite thumbs up for this one, with the added advantage that it banished all memories of the tofu stirfry which I served up from this recipe book a month or so ago.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Red Gurnard
Last week I watched just a little bit of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's latest campaigning programme, Fish Fight. I do try and make responsible choices of fish, but I guess we all succumb to the odd cod meal.
Well, some of Hugh's message must have sunk in, because when I saw this funny looking species on the fishmonger's stall I bought a couple of them on impulse for our dinner:
What can I say? I was intrigued. Its a Red Gurnard in case you were wondering.
Fortunately the fishmonger kindly de-headed and gutted it for me, which made it seem less alarming.
Neither the internet nor my vast array of recipe books came of with many options on how to cook Gurnard, so I decided to wing it and make something up.
This is what I came up with:
Red Gurnard with a courgette, garlic, and parsley stuffing, on herby potatoes.
Yes, yes, I know it doesn't look pretty. I would definitely be marked down for presentation on Masterchef (where I would serve fishfingers, just for a laugh).
I stuffed the 2 fish with 1/2 a courgette, finely chopped and mixed with 3 crushed garlic cloves, finely chopped parsley, a squeeze of lime and a teaspoon of olive oil.
I peeled amd chopped about 350g potatoes, put them in a pan with 1/2 a red onion (sliced), a few basil leaves, a shake of dried oregano and a chopped carrot. I poured 500ml vegetable stock, a squeeze of lemon, and 50g passata over the potatoes, seasoned it and put it in the oven at 200C for 25 minutes.
After 25 minutes I placed the fish on top of the potatoes and put it back in the oven for another 20 minutes.
Then you're done.
A lot of what I read about the fish said that it needed 'pimping' with herbs and a well-flavoured sauce, but having eaten it I think it would be just fine baked or fried with a little butter and lemon, plus seasoning and parsley. It has a really good, almost meaty, texture. Unusual for a white fish.
Well, some of Hugh's message must have sunk in, because when I saw this funny looking species on the fishmonger's stall I bought a couple of them on impulse for our dinner:
What can I say? I was intrigued. Its a Red Gurnard in case you were wondering.
Fortunately the fishmonger kindly de-headed and gutted it for me, which made it seem less alarming.
Neither the internet nor my vast array of recipe books came of with many options on how to cook Gurnard, so I decided to wing it and make something up.
This is what I came up with:
Red Gurnard with a courgette, garlic, and parsley stuffing, on herby potatoes.
Yes, yes, I know it doesn't look pretty. I would definitely be marked down for presentation on Masterchef (where I would serve fishfingers, just for a laugh).
I stuffed the 2 fish with 1/2 a courgette, finely chopped and mixed with 3 crushed garlic cloves, finely chopped parsley, a squeeze of lime and a teaspoon of olive oil.
I peeled amd chopped about 350g potatoes, put them in a pan with 1/2 a red onion (sliced), a few basil leaves, a shake of dried oregano and a chopped carrot. I poured 500ml vegetable stock, a squeeze of lemon, and 50g passata over the potatoes, seasoned it and put it in the oven at 200C for 25 minutes.
After 25 minutes I placed the fish on top of the potatoes and put it back in the oven for another 20 minutes.
Then you're done.
A lot of what I read about the fish said that it needed 'pimping' with herbs and a well-flavoured sauce, but having eaten it I think it would be just fine baked or fried with a little butter and lemon, plus seasoning and parsley. It has a really good, almost meaty, texture. Unusual for a white fish.
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