I have had a few weeks recently when I haven't been feeling very inspired as far as cooking is concerned. I have excuses: a cold followed by a chest infection does rather rain on the cookery parade. Next week I hope to be getting my mojo back, but for tonight comfort food was in order.
I made an Ottolenghi recipe which I had bookmarked from his column in The Guardian - Mejadra. Its a Levantine recipe which can be eaten hot or cold. It reminded me a little bit of kedgeree; warmly spiced, and a good combination of soft texture and crunch. Tasty. Also easy. Ideal for a "can't be bothered" evening.
Here's where to find the recipe.
PS I hope to meet Ottolenghi - I'm off to Alex James's Harvest festival in a couple of weeks' time and he will be there on the same day. Could be interesting - I hope to garner some top tips.
Showing posts with label Vegetarian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vegetarian. Show all posts
Friday, August 26, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Omelette
A brief word on eggs. They're brilliant. Any way you cook them.
So here's a recipe for a tortilla-esque omelette. Its a Russian/Eastern European recipe called Drachena. Its dead-easy, quick and healthy. It takes about the same time to make as it takes to boil up some new potatoes. Serve the omelette with the afore-mentioned potatoes, green salad or veg. I fried up some chorizo for Dan and scattered it over the top which he liked.
Drachena (slightly adapted, as ever)
Serves 3-4 as a light meal
2 tspns olive oil
6 spring onions - white parts sliced
1 garlic clove
100g tomatoes - diced
50g rye flour
4 tablespoons water
150g yoghurt
4 eggs
2 teaspoons of pesto
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
10g butter
Fry the spring onions in olive oil over a moderate heat for about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for a further minute. Add the tomatoes and fry for a couple more minutes. Remove from the heat.
Mix the rye flour to a paste with the water. Add the yoghurt and pesto (I used my wild garlic pesto) and mix it thoroughly together. Break the eggs into another bowl, beat them, then add them to the flour and yoghurt mixture. Mix well, season, and add the parsley.
Heat the grill to a medium heat.
Put the tomatoes and spring onions back on a medium heat, add the butter. When the butter has melted add the egg mixture. Leave it on the heat until the bottom starts to set, then place it under the grill until it starts to colour on the top and is set. It should puff up slightly.
Cut into 3 or 4 wedges and serve warm or cold.
NOTE: If you have more time you could put the mixture into a lightly greased oven-proof dish and bake the omelette for about 45 minutes at 180C instead of fryinging and grilling it.
So here's a recipe for a tortilla-esque omelette. Its a Russian/Eastern European recipe called Drachena. Its dead-easy, quick and healthy. It takes about the same time to make as it takes to boil up some new potatoes. Serve the omelette with the afore-mentioned potatoes, green salad or veg. I fried up some chorizo for Dan and scattered it over the top which he liked.
Drachena (slightly adapted, as ever)
Serves 3-4 as a light meal
2 tspns olive oil
6 spring onions - white parts sliced
1 garlic clove
100g tomatoes - diced
50g rye flour
4 tablespoons water
150g yoghurt
4 eggs
2 teaspoons of pesto
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
10g butter
Fry the spring onions in olive oil over a moderate heat for about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for a further minute. Add the tomatoes and fry for a couple more minutes. Remove from the heat.
Mix the rye flour to a paste with the water. Add the yoghurt and pesto (I used my wild garlic pesto) and mix it thoroughly together. Break the eggs into another bowl, beat them, then add them to the flour and yoghurt mixture. Mix well, season, and add the parsley.
Heat the grill to a medium heat.
Put the tomatoes and spring onions back on a medium heat, add the butter. When the butter has melted add the egg mixture. Leave it on the heat until the bottom starts to set, then place it under the grill until it starts to colour on the top and is set. It should puff up slightly.
Cut into 3 or 4 wedges and serve warm or cold.
NOTE: If you have more time you could put the mixture into a lightly greased oven-proof dish and bake the omelette for about 45 minutes at 180C instead of fryinging and grilling it.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
lunch boxes
It felt like high time to expand my lunch options. I've been having the same sort of soups and salads for lunch for weeks, with only minor variations. Time to shake things up a little and make the work day just a little more interesting.
My Seattle-dwelling friend Carisa is a Mexican food fiend, so when she recommended this Mexican soup recipe I figured it must be a good one. Monday was not a good day at work, and it didn't seem like Tuesday was likely to be much better, so a burst of Mexican sunshine in a bowl seemed like the thing to lift my spirits.
I made a few changes to the recipe due to the contents of my cupboards and to adapt it to my taste buds - I didn't have quite enough chickpeas, I used pheasant instead of chicken (we had roast pheasant on sunday and there was just enough left over for this recipe), and added a sprinkle of chilli flakes for heat, and a handful of spinach. Also, we were out of oregano so I used thyme. The measurements in cups instead of grams added a little complication to the process, but I think I got the quantities about right.
I made a rookie-error and under-seasoned the dish, but that was easily rectified at the eating stage. I think if I made this again I'd add a bit more spice - it could do with being a little punchier flavoured for my tastes.
Overall? Sopa Ranchera was tasty, easy to make, with one or two minor adjustments it will make a good spring or autumn lunch.
My second lunchbox experiment was Ottolenghi's Aubergine Cheesecake. I ordered the Ottolenghi cookbook the other day, so while I waited for it to arrive I figured I would browse his recipes from The Guardian newspaper and get some practice in!
I do love it when something looks this colourful and enticing before its even finished:
I adapted the recipe again to suit my fridge contents, using a mild soft goats cheese instead of cream cheese and yoghurt instead of double cream, so my version is probably a bit sharper flavoured than the recipe intended.
It is like a pastry-less quiche. I can completely see why Ottolenghi describes it as a savoury cheesecake as it has a similar texture to it.
It travelled well to work and made a more interesting lunch box than usual, so I'll definitely make this again. Creamy and delicious.
Find the recipe here.
My Seattle-dwelling friend Carisa is a Mexican food fiend, so when she recommended this Mexican soup recipe I figured it must be a good one. Monday was not a good day at work, and it didn't seem like Tuesday was likely to be much better, so a burst of Mexican sunshine in a bowl seemed like the thing to lift my spirits.
I made a few changes to the recipe due to the contents of my cupboards and to adapt it to my taste buds - I didn't have quite enough chickpeas, I used pheasant instead of chicken (we had roast pheasant on sunday and there was just enough left over for this recipe), and added a sprinkle of chilli flakes for heat, and a handful of spinach. Also, we were out of oregano so I used thyme. The measurements in cups instead of grams added a little complication to the process, but I think I got the quantities about right.
I made a rookie-error and under-seasoned the dish, but that was easily rectified at the eating stage. I think if I made this again I'd add a bit more spice - it could do with being a little punchier flavoured for my tastes.
Overall? Sopa Ranchera was tasty, easy to make, with one or two minor adjustments it will make a good spring or autumn lunch.
My second lunchbox experiment was Ottolenghi's Aubergine Cheesecake. I ordered the Ottolenghi cookbook the other day, so while I waited for it to arrive I figured I would browse his recipes from The Guardian newspaper and get some practice in!
I do love it when something looks this colourful and enticing before its even finished:
I adapted the recipe again to suit my fridge contents, using a mild soft goats cheese instead of cream cheese and yoghurt instead of double cream, so my version is probably a bit sharper flavoured than the recipe intended.
It is like a pastry-less quiche. I can completely see why Ottolenghi describes it as a savoury cheesecake as it has a similar texture to it.
It travelled well to work and made a more interesting lunch box than usual, so I'll definitely make this again. Creamy and delicious.
Find the recipe here.
Monday, March 21, 2011
In praise of spontaneity
A couple of weeks ago Dan came back from town bringing treats in brown paper bags: One small blueberry amandine tart, one strawberry tart, and one bakewell tart. They were much appreciated in my cold-filled state. We very democratically divided each into thirds, sharing them out for lunch with our guest.
That blueberry tart really stuck in my mind, so when blueberries were on special offer this week I stocked up and hunted high and low to find a recipe for the Amandine tart. Eventually achieved (it was surprisingly tricky to track one down), I made mini tarts so that the leftovers would be more portable for lunches.
The tart is a wonderful combination of crisp, flakey pastry, filled with sweet, juicy blueberries and a custardy sponge, all topped off with the crunch of flaked almonds. YUM. A new favourite. Keeps well in the fridge too; it may be the perfect pudding.
A different kind of serendipity lead me to the other subject of this post; griddled vegetables and halloumi. I'd never eaten or cooked halloumi before, but the cheese man at the farmer's market had made some Halloumi-esque cheese and so it seemed like the perfect time to try it. I griddled a load of aubergine, courgette and red onion slices, topped it with the griddled cheese, and hey presto, lunch was served. It certainly helped me get over my long hilly run! It will have to become a regular feature, if only so that I get more use out of the griddle pan which is sadly underused.
That blueberry tart really stuck in my mind, so when blueberries were on special offer this week I stocked up and hunted high and low to find a recipe for the Amandine tart. Eventually achieved (it was surprisingly tricky to track one down), I made mini tarts so that the leftovers would be more portable for lunches.
The tart is a wonderful combination of crisp, flakey pastry, filled with sweet, juicy blueberries and a custardy sponge, all topped off with the crunch of flaked almonds. YUM. A new favourite. Keeps well in the fridge too; it may be the perfect pudding.
A different kind of serendipity lead me to the other subject of this post; griddled vegetables and halloumi. I'd never eaten or cooked halloumi before, but the cheese man at the farmer's market had made some Halloumi-esque cheese and so it seemed like the perfect time to try it. I griddled a load of aubergine, courgette and red onion slices, topped it with the griddled cheese, and hey presto, lunch was served. It certainly helped me get over my long hilly run! It will have to become a regular feature, if only so that I get more use out of the griddle pan which is sadly underused.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Ottolenghi on Masterchef
I was rather intrigued by the guest judge on Masterchef this week. They had Yotam Ottolenghi on and he set a challenge involving vegetarian dishes. I think that most of the contestants didn't really get it, which seems wierd to me. I would think that if you have any curiosity about food and cookery then you would be looking to expand your repertoire of dishes all the time, and that would include the odd veggie one. Eating meat all the time is more expensive and worse for the environment too. How strange that the cooks didn't really take to it.
After watching the programme I remembered that Yotam Ottolenhgi writes a column in The Guardian saturday supplement. A browse around online resulted in loads of lovely sounding new recipes to try. I'll have to take a look at his recipe books sometime.
Anyway, back to the cooking; we've had a very Ottolenghi weekend. Starting on friday with fried rice cakes served with creamed (well, yoghurted) leeks and poached eggs, and finishing on sunday with Smokey Cheesey Polenta chips with our roast pork. The flavours of both dishes were great, but I clearly don't have the presentational finesse of Ottolenghi as they both looked a mess!
I had never cooked polenta before (other than using it to dust things before frying), but I will be doing so again as this recipe was very good. The flavour of the rice dish was wonderful too, although I used sumac instead of saffron. Amazingly, Dan didn't complain about having veggie dinners two days in a row, so it must have been good!
So, top tip: check out Ottolenghi's recipes, but just don't expect them to look great the first time!
Both of these recipes can be found on The Guardian website, along with loads of other brilliant ones.
After watching the programme I remembered that Yotam Ottolenhgi writes a column in The Guardian saturday supplement. A browse around online resulted in loads of lovely sounding new recipes to try. I'll have to take a look at his recipe books sometime.
Anyway, back to the cooking; we've had a very Ottolenghi weekend. Starting on friday with fried rice cakes served with creamed (well, yoghurted) leeks and poached eggs, and finishing on sunday with Smokey Cheesey Polenta chips with our roast pork. The flavours of both dishes were great, but I clearly don't have the presentational finesse of Ottolenghi as they both looked a mess!
I had never cooked polenta before (other than using it to dust things before frying), but I will be doing so again as this recipe was very good. The flavour of the rice dish was wonderful too, although I used sumac instead of saffron. Amazingly, Dan didn't complain about having veggie dinners two days in a row, so it must have been good!
So, top tip: check out Ottolenghi's recipes, but just don't expect them to look great the first time!
Both of these recipes can be found on The Guardian website, along with loads of other brilliant ones.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
what to do with Tofu?
When I was little my older sister went through a vegetarian phase. Given that the period of vegetarianism broadly coincided with her worst teenage behaviour I rather suspect that the whole thing was thought up just to be awkward. However, my mum did go to quite a lot of effort to accomodate her, and some tasty discoveries were made.
On the otherhand, there was also tofu.
I don't quite know what made me decide to try cooking with it this week. Perhaps it was that my new cookbook (the Wagamama one) has loads of recipes which use it, but whatever the reason was, I decided it was time to cast aside some old prejudices and give tofu another chance.
I chose a flavoursome-sounding stirfry recipe in the Wagamama book, made an expedition to the chinese supermarket for tofu (a feat in itself given the icy state of the pavements!), and set to work on moyashi soba. And it was easy. Also the tofu was not bad - it took on the flavour of the other ingredients very well, and bumped up the meal so that it was filling. Definitely edible.
The failure in all of this was the fact that I had bought silken tofu rather than the firm tofu I should have used. This did mean that it disintegrated more than would have been ideal for a stirfry. Ah well, I'll do it right next time.
This left me with 200g silken tofu that I now knew would not be much use for stirfrying, but I do hate to throw food away. What to do with it?
A bit of googleing told me that silken tofu is often used in desserts, and is also quite a good egg-substitute, so I decided to make a mousse-ish pudding. My made-up recipe needs a bit of refinement, but we did both enjoy it as it was, so here it is (without final tweaks which may or may not come in time):
Dairy-free Chocolate Mousse with Apricots (for 2)
200g silken tofu
20g icing sugar
35-40g dark chocolate (I used a chocolate with orange and ginger, but any dark chocolate would work)
35g dried, ready-to-eat apricots
Mix the sugar into the tofu.
Melt the dark choclate in a bowl over gently simmering water. Once completely melted pour it into the tofu and mix through.
Divide the apricots between 2 ramekins. Spoon the chocolate-tofu mixture on top of the apricots. Refridgerate overnight. Serve.
NB: I like my choclate quite dark and slightly bitter, but if you prefer yours sweeter then add a little more sugar to the tofu.
PS I also made the smoked salmon salad from the Wagamama book this week. Seriously delicious. I wolfed it all down in about 5 minutes flat. Yum scrum! I would never have thought to put apricots, noodles and smoked salmon together, but it definitley works.
On the otherhand, there was also tofu.
I don't quite know what made me decide to try cooking with it this week. Perhaps it was that my new cookbook (the Wagamama one) has loads of recipes which use it, but whatever the reason was, I decided it was time to cast aside some old prejudices and give tofu another chance.
I chose a flavoursome-sounding stirfry recipe in the Wagamama book, made an expedition to the chinese supermarket for tofu (a feat in itself given the icy state of the pavements!), and set to work on moyashi soba. And it was easy. Also the tofu was not bad - it took on the flavour of the other ingredients very well, and bumped up the meal so that it was filling. Definitely edible.
The failure in all of this was the fact that I had bought silken tofu rather than the firm tofu I should have used. This did mean that it disintegrated more than would have been ideal for a stirfry. Ah well, I'll do it right next time.
This left me with 200g silken tofu that I now knew would not be much use for stirfrying, but I do hate to throw food away. What to do with it?
A bit of googleing told me that silken tofu is often used in desserts, and is also quite a good egg-substitute, so I decided to make a mousse-ish pudding. My made-up recipe needs a bit of refinement, but we did both enjoy it as it was, so here it is (without final tweaks which may or may not come in time):
Dairy-free Chocolate Mousse with Apricots (for 2)
200g silken tofu
20g icing sugar
35-40g dark chocolate (I used a chocolate with orange and ginger, but any dark chocolate would work)
35g dried, ready-to-eat apricots
Mix the sugar into the tofu.
Melt the dark choclate in a bowl over gently simmering water. Once completely melted pour it into the tofu and mix through.
Divide the apricots between 2 ramekins. Spoon the chocolate-tofu mixture on top of the apricots. Refridgerate overnight. Serve.
NB: I like my choclate quite dark and slightly bitter, but if you prefer yours sweeter then add a little more sugar to the tofu.
PS I also made the smoked salmon salad from the Wagamama book this week. Seriously delicious. I wolfed it all down in about 5 minutes flat. Yum scrum! I would never have thought to put apricots, noodles and smoked salmon together, but it definitley works.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
This week's colour is green
Green...It's the new black.
And it was the theme of this week's cooking. First up I made Lamb koftas's with green sauce. This is an indian dish of mildly spiced lamb meatballs in a yoghurty-herby sauce. It was something I found here on the BBC website and I've been meaning to make it for a little while. It makes a good winter night dinner with its comforting blend of warming spices and the creamy yoghurt sauce. You can make most of it ahead of time so it can be made quickly when you're ready to eat. Its definitely a tasty dinner, but not extraordinary in any way in my opinion.
Then at the weekend I made slow-cooked courgettes with lemons and dill to have on toast for lunch. This was from the Riverford Farm cook book, and can also be found here on their website. It was very good. I love the distinctive flavour of dill, so perhaps its unsurprising that I enjoyed the dish so much.
Not green, but a new twist on an old favourite, was a goats cheese souffle topping for fish pie. It worked well. Dan really enjoyed it. Because the souffle only needs a short time in the oven everything else does need to be cooked before you put the topping on - it doesn't spend long enough in the oven to cook the other ingredients.
Hope you enjoyed bonfire night!
And it was the theme of this week's cooking. First up I made Lamb koftas's with green sauce. This is an indian dish of mildly spiced lamb meatballs in a yoghurty-herby sauce. It was something I found here on the BBC website and I've been meaning to make it for a little while. It makes a good winter night dinner with its comforting blend of warming spices and the creamy yoghurt sauce. You can make most of it ahead of time so it can be made quickly when you're ready to eat. Its definitely a tasty dinner, but not extraordinary in any way in my opinion.
Then at the weekend I made slow-cooked courgettes with lemons and dill to have on toast for lunch. This was from the Riverford Farm cook book, and can also be found here on their website. It was very good. I love the distinctive flavour of dill, so perhaps its unsurprising that I enjoyed the dish so much.
Not green, but a new twist on an old favourite, was a goats cheese souffle topping for fish pie. It worked well. Dan really enjoyed it. Because the souffle only needs a short time in the oven everything else does need to be cooked before you put the topping on - it doesn't spend long enough in the oven to cook the other ingredients.
Hope you enjoyed bonfire night!
Monday, August 9, 2010
A little trip to Devon
A couple of days in Devon last week was the perfect antidote to the 9-5 blues.
The scenery was quintissentially English, all summer prettiness and hazy lazy sunshine.
We ate fish and chips and too much icecream.
We walked along the seafront and picked which boat we would have if we were the boating types.
We went to concerts in the impressive Great Hall at Dartington.
I ate my first ever whole crab - cracked the claws myself and everything!
We napped in the afternoon. And had bacon for breakfast.
We discovered that we were only a few miles from the Riverford Farm shop - the recipe for rhubarb and strawberry crumble which I made in May came from their website - so we stopped by and bought some fruit and veg on the way home. Yummy. Their website is here.
Aahhhhh.....if only it had been more than just a couple of days.
My take-home treat? I have aquired a copy of the Riverford Farm cook book, which is chock-full of brilliant ideas for vegetables; something which I think is overlooked in the majority of recipe books. This week I will be putting them (and myself) to the test when I attempt Fried Green Tomatoes. My monster tomato plants are currently covered in not-quite-ripe tomatoes, so this seems the perfect recipe to get a sneak preview of whether they're going to be any good.
The scenery was quintissentially English, all summer prettiness and hazy lazy sunshine.
We ate fish and chips and too much icecream.
We walked along the seafront and picked which boat we would have if we were the boating types.
We went to concerts in the impressive Great Hall at Dartington.
I ate my first ever whole crab - cracked the claws myself and everything!
We napped in the afternoon. And had bacon for breakfast.
We discovered that we were only a few miles from the Riverford Farm shop - the recipe for rhubarb and strawberry crumble which I made in May came from their website - so we stopped by and bought some fruit and veg on the way home. Yummy. Their website is here.
Aahhhhh.....if only it had been more than just a couple of days.
My take-home treat? I have aquired a copy of the Riverford Farm cook book, which is chock-full of brilliant ideas for vegetables; something which I think is overlooked in the majority of recipe books. This week I will be putting them (and myself) to the test when I attempt Fried Green Tomatoes. My monster tomato plants are currently covered in not-quite-ripe tomatoes, so this seems the perfect recipe to get a sneak preview of whether they're going to be any good.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Moroccan Pancakes, completely ignoring the written recipe!
We had a vegetarian dinner tonight and Dan didn't even complain. I'm getting there - I'll win him round eventually!
It was a Moroccan recipe of stuffed pancakes, but given that I amended every constituent of the recipe I'm not sure if I should be counting it. Still, it was rather tasty, and I think the filling could be used for other dinners too, maybe mixed with rice for a pilaf style dish.
The filling was 1/2 onion chopped and fried gently until soft, then I added 150g spinach and let it wilt. I then chopped that all up finely and mixed it with some mashed up chickpeas (a 200g can should do it), a good handful of coriander leaves, 1 grated courgette and 1 beaten egg. Season to taste and add a shake of ground cumin and ground coriander.
I used 4 gallettes (which I have posted about before) and spooned the mixture in, wrapped them up and put them in a baking dish. I spooned 100g sheeps milk yoghurt over the top and baked them for about 15 mins at 180C.
(The original recipe used a bechemal sauce rather than yoghurt, no spices in the mix, and normal pancakes instead of gallettes.)
It was a Moroccan recipe of stuffed pancakes, but given that I amended every constituent of the recipe I'm not sure if I should be counting it. Still, it was rather tasty, and I think the filling could be used for other dinners too, maybe mixed with rice for a pilaf style dish.
The filling was 1/2 onion chopped and fried gently until soft, then I added 150g spinach and let it wilt. I then chopped that all up finely and mixed it with some mashed up chickpeas (a 200g can should do it), a good handful of coriander leaves, 1 grated courgette and 1 beaten egg. Season to taste and add a shake of ground cumin and ground coriander.
I used 4 gallettes (which I have posted about before) and spooned the mixture in, wrapped them up and put them in a baking dish. I spooned 100g sheeps milk yoghurt over the top and baked them for about 15 mins at 180C.
(The original recipe used a bechemal sauce rather than yoghurt, no spices in the mix, and normal pancakes instead of gallettes.)
Monday, July 19, 2010
Eggs eggs eggs
Guess what I've been cooking this week?.....
Yep. Eggs indeed.
Having acheived the roaring success that was Eggs Benedict (with a little help from Mr Oliver) it this week seemed like it was time to go beyond the omelette/fried/scrambled egg options once more.
So after a trawl through the recipe shelf two interesting options presented themselves. Although both billed themselves as breakfast dishes I thought they would do very well for week-night dinners.
And so, we have had Rick Stein's pithily titled Mildly spiced potato curry with cumin, black mustard seeds and coriander, topped with a poached egg, which was what it said really. A pretty good, quick, mild curry. I added a couple of handfuls of spinach (got to get in those 5-a-day somehow!) and I think it would be better with chopped boiled egg rather than poached.
And also Silvana Franco's Saucy Eggs and tomatoes.
Both were pretty good options for Veggie dinners, but I did prefer the Tomato Eggs.
And see - it even looked like the picture in the book!
Here's the method for the tomato eggs (for 1 as a dinner)
Take 1/2 can tomatoes and put in a heavy saucepan or deep frying pan
Add 1 clove of garlic (finely chopped)
Also add about 100ml boiling water, salt and papper, and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Heat through stirring frequently until the tomatoes start to break down a bit.
Then add about 3/4 of a red bell pepper, cut into strips.
Allow to heat through on a gentle heat for about 15 mins, or until the peppers start to soften (the recipe directs you to grill the peppers then peel off the skin - I couldn't be bothered).
Make to hollows in the sauce mixture and break in the eggs. Leave on the medium heat until the eggs are cooked. I had the oven on anyway, so just finished off the eggs for 5 mins at 180C which sped things up a little.
Serve with bread or toast.
Yep. Eggs indeed.
Having acheived the roaring success that was Eggs Benedict (with a little help from Mr Oliver) it this week seemed like it was time to go beyond the omelette/fried/scrambled egg options once more.
So after a trawl through the recipe shelf two interesting options presented themselves. Although both billed themselves as breakfast dishes I thought they would do very well for week-night dinners.
And so, we have had Rick Stein's pithily titled Mildly spiced potato curry with cumin, black mustard seeds and coriander, topped with a poached egg, which was what it said really. A pretty good, quick, mild curry. I added a couple of handfuls of spinach (got to get in those 5-a-day somehow!) and I think it would be better with chopped boiled egg rather than poached.
And also Silvana Franco's Saucy Eggs and tomatoes.
Both were pretty good options for Veggie dinners, but I did prefer the Tomato Eggs.
And see - it even looked like the picture in the book!
Here's the method for the tomato eggs (for 1 as a dinner)
Take 1/2 can tomatoes and put in a heavy saucepan or deep frying pan
Add 1 clove of garlic (finely chopped)
Also add about 100ml boiling water, salt and papper, and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Heat through stirring frequently until the tomatoes start to break down a bit.
Then add about 3/4 of a red bell pepper, cut into strips.
Allow to heat through on a gentle heat for about 15 mins, or until the peppers start to soften (the recipe directs you to grill the peppers then peel off the skin - I couldn't be bothered).
Make to hollows in the sauce mixture and break in the eggs. Leave on the medium heat until the eggs are cooked. I had the oven on anyway, so just finished off the eggs for 5 mins at 180C which sped things up a little.
Serve with bread or toast.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Torta di Spinachi
This was my second Angela Hartnett recipe, and it turned out just as tasty as the first ( Aubergine Parmigiana).
As always, I adapted it slightly to suit the ingredients in the shops and in my fridge - I used half spinach, half asparagus, and changed the parmesan to a creamy goats cheese I bought from Crudge's Cheese at the weekend farmer's market.
The recipe directs you to make the pastry using olive oil instead of butter. I've tried this a couple of times before; once was a disater and once was passable. This version was actually good! The difference was the flour I think - Angela Hartnett's recipe suggests using '0' type flour, which is the same kind you would use for pasta. Its a much finer flour and worked well for the pastry with olive oil.
The torta was easy to make on a busy day - I made the pastry and mixed the filling together in the morning then they just sat in the fridge all day until I was ready to roll out the pastry and put the dish together in the eveing. We had it warm with salad and new potatoes one day, but it was equally lovely cold for lunch the next day.
Here's the recipe I ended up with after my amendments:
Pastry:
200g pasta-type flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of salt
Ice cold water as required
Mix the flour and salt together. Add the olive oil, then gradually add cold water, mixing well between additions until the pastry comes together into a dough. Wrap in cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for at least an hour.
Filling:
250g Spinach (stalks removed & roughly chopped)
200g cooked asparagus, chopped into 1-2cm lengths
60g hard cheese eg parmesan, manchego, or goats cheese - grated or finely chopped
1 egg - beaten
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt & pepper
When you are ready to assemble your torta grease a pie tin with a thin coating of olive oil. Roll out the pastry until its larger than the pie dish and lay it in the dish, allowing it to hang over the edges.
Mix together all the filling ingredients, place them on top of the pastry in the pie dish and spread into an even layer.
Fold the excess pastry over the top of the filling to cover it.
Bake in the oven at 200C for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Serve hot or cold. Its a great picnic dish.
As always, I adapted it slightly to suit the ingredients in the shops and in my fridge - I used half spinach, half asparagus, and changed the parmesan to a creamy goats cheese I bought from Crudge's Cheese at the weekend farmer's market.
The recipe directs you to make the pastry using olive oil instead of butter. I've tried this a couple of times before; once was a disater and once was passable. This version was actually good! The difference was the flour I think - Angela Hartnett's recipe suggests using '0' type flour, which is the same kind you would use for pasta. Its a much finer flour and worked well for the pastry with olive oil.
The torta was easy to make on a busy day - I made the pastry and mixed the filling together in the morning then they just sat in the fridge all day until I was ready to roll out the pastry and put the dish together in the eveing. We had it warm with salad and new potatoes one day, but it was equally lovely cold for lunch the next day.
Here's the recipe I ended up with after my amendments:
Pastry:
200g pasta-type flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of salt
Ice cold water as required
Mix the flour and salt together. Add the olive oil, then gradually add cold water, mixing well between additions until the pastry comes together into a dough. Wrap in cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for at least an hour.
Filling:
250g Spinach (stalks removed & roughly chopped)
200g cooked asparagus, chopped into 1-2cm lengths
60g hard cheese eg parmesan, manchego, or goats cheese - grated or finely chopped
1 egg - beaten
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt & pepper
When you are ready to assemble your torta grease a pie tin with a thin coating of olive oil. Roll out the pastry until its larger than the pie dish and lay it in the dish, allowing it to hang over the edges.
Mix together all the filling ingredients, place them on top of the pastry in the pie dish and spread into an even layer.
Fold the excess pastry over the top of the filling to cover it.
Bake in the oven at 200C for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Serve hot or cold. Its a great picnic dish.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Aubergine Parmigiana
I have noticed that recently this blog has been rather sparse on pictures. I'll be attempting to put that right next week, as this weekend we're heading to Bergen (Norway) for the weekend. I'm planning to gorge myself on fish and seafood and take lots of pictures at the fish market on the harbour.
I'm really looking forward to introducing Dan to the best fish and chips in the world, courtesy of the Bergen fish market, as well as the beautiful Norwegian scenery. I'm really excited to be staying more than a day, which gives us the opportunity to take a bit more time over walks, wanders, lunches, day trips. Always before I've had to hotfoot it back to the cruise ship at the end of the day which curtails how much you can explore.
So, hurrah for mini breaks!
In the mean time, this week's recipe was Aubergine Parmigiana, from Angela Hartnett's recipe book which I borrowed from the library last week. Its quite time consuming to put together, just as any layered dish is, but you can prepare it all a day or so ahead and it can happily sit in the fridge overnight - then all that needs doing in the evening after work is to just bung it in the oven.
We had it with spicey baked pork meatballs and a green salad. It was delicious - A really good balance of tomato, basil, mozzarella, parmesan and aubergine. Not as heart-attack inducing as you might expect either as I cut down the oil and cheese quantities a bit. There was still enough of both to make it a good flavour but not so much that the cheese overwhelmed it or the oil made it horribly greasy.
It can be found in Angela Harnett's Cucina, but I suspect there will be versions in a million-and-one other Italian recipe books too.
I'm really looking forward to introducing Dan to the best fish and chips in the world, courtesy of the Bergen fish market, as well as the beautiful Norwegian scenery. I'm really excited to be staying more than a day, which gives us the opportunity to take a bit more time over walks, wanders, lunches, day trips. Always before I've had to hotfoot it back to the cruise ship at the end of the day which curtails how much you can explore.
So, hurrah for mini breaks!
In the mean time, this week's recipe was Aubergine Parmigiana, from Angela Hartnett's recipe book which I borrowed from the library last week. Its quite time consuming to put together, just as any layered dish is, but you can prepare it all a day or so ahead and it can happily sit in the fridge overnight - then all that needs doing in the evening after work is to just bung it in the oven.
We had it with spicey baked pork meatballs and a green salad. It was delicious - A really good balance of tomato, basil, mozzarella, parmesan and aubergine. Not as heart-attack inducing as you might expect either as I cut down the oil and cheese quantities a bit. There was still enough of both to make it a good flavour but not so much that the cheese overwhelmed it or the oil made it horribly greasy.
It can be found in Angela Harnett's Cucina, but I suspect there will be versions in a million-and-one other Italian recipe books too.
Friday, May 14, 2010
I love.....Risotto
A few weeks ago I made Jamie O's cauliflower risotto (twice in a week).
This week I made Silvana Franco's red onion and cannellini bean risotto. Find the recipe here.
Both were very satisfying dinners.
Creamy, vegetarian (I like to eat vegetarian once a week if I can), flavoursome, filling, and non-fattening. Also, they were both recipes that I didn't have particularly high expectations of but which turned out to be surprisingly lovely.
So now I'm having a love affair with risotto and am on the hunt for more flavour combinations to try.
I know its basically just a vehicle for using up odds and sods in the vegetable drawer and the fridge. But its a wonderful one!
This week I made Silvana Franco's red onion and cannellini bean risotto. Find the recipe here.
Both were very satisfying dinners.
Creamy, vegetarian (I like to eat vegetarian once a week if I can), flavoursome, filling, and non-fattening. Also, they were both recipes that I didn't have particularly high expectations of but which turned out to be surprisingly lovely.
So now I'm having a love affair with risotto and am on the hunt for more flavour combinations to try.
I know its basically just a vehicle for using up odds and sods in the vegetable drawer and the fridge. But its a wonderful one!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Jamie O Italy
My little nephew has a border-line obssessive love of Jamie Oliver. Unusual for an 8 year-old, but there are many worse role-models he could have!
For Christmas I bought him the Jamie Oliver Italy cookbook. I know that the chances are he will only look at the pictures for now, but he'll enjoy doing that, and ocassionally we'll cook something from it together.
Because I am weak where recipe books are concerned, after flicking through it on the train home I decided that I really wanted a copy of my own, so went back to the shops and treated myself.
It is my first (and currently only) Jamie Oliver recipe book.
And since December I have had a guilty conscience about it as it has sat on the side unused.
I decided that THIS was the week to put an end to that. The vegetable box delivered us a cauliflower this week which I wasn't sure what to do with, so when I came across cauliflower risotto I thought it would be worth a go.
Now, I know what you're thinking because I thought it too: cauliflower risotto just doesn't sound very nice. But Jamie Oliver raved about it, so I decided to put my trust in his judgement and give it a try.
This had a secondary risk of being a vegetarian meal, which normally means that I'm onto a loser from the start as far as Dan's concerned.
However, the dinner was a revelation. We both really liked it. It was quick, easy, tasty and filling. Dan's even taken the leftovers for lunch.
Cauliflower risotto; who'd have thought it would be such a yummy dinner?!
For Christmas I bought him the Jamie Oliver Italy cookbook. I know that the chances are he will only look at the pictures for now, but he'll enjoy doing that, and ocassionally we'll cook something from it together.
Because I am weak where recipe books are concerned, after flicking through it on the train home I decided that I really wanted a copy of my own, so went back to the shops and treated myself.
It is my first (and currently only) Jamie Oliver recipe book.
And since December I have had a guilty conscience about it as it has sat on the side unused.
I decided that THIS was the week to put an end to that. The vegetable box delivered us a cauliflower this week which I wasn't sure what to do with, so when I came across cauliflower risotto I thought it would be worth a go.
Now, I know what you're thinking because I thought it too: cauliflower risotto just doesn't sound very nice. But Jamie Oliver raved about it, so I decided to put my trust in his judgement and give it a try.
This had a secondary risk of being a vegetarian meal, which normally means that I'm onto a loser from the start as far as Dan's concerned.
However, the dinner was a revelation. We both really liked it. It was quick, easy, tasty and filling. Dan's even taken the leftovers for lunch.
Cauliflower risotto; who'd have thought it would be such a yummy dinner?!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Torta (sorta!)
I had (whisper it) a vegetarian over for lunch.
Dan doesn't understand the concept of vegetarianism. So I had to try and create a lunch where he wouldn't notice the lack of meat or fish.
He does have a weakness for courgettes, so when I came across a Torta Verde recipe I thought that might do the trick. This Torta Verde recipe was basically a rice, courgette and parsley pie, so I adapted it to make a courgette-y quiche.
Here's my adaption of the recipe:
Anwen's Courgette and Parsley Quiche
100g white flour
100g wholemeal flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
warm water (about 60-80ml)
450g courgettes
2 garlic cloves
1/2 onion
2 eggs
30g gruyere
Large handful of parsley
salt and pepper
Pastry:
Mix the two different kinds of flours together, add a pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre add the olive oil. Stir to mix. Slowly add the warm water, mixing with your hands to make a soft, but not sticky dough.
Wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge to rest for 20 minutes.
Put the oven on to heat to 180C.
Make the filling: Chop up the courgette, garlic, onion. Put everything into a food processor, season, whizz. Add a handful of parsley. Whizz again.
Roll out the pastry , lightly oil quiche dish and line with pastry.
Blind bake for 15 minutes (10 with baking beans and then remove them for another 5 minutes).
Beat two eggs, add to the courgette mixture and mix. Grate the cheese and fold in.
Fill the pastry case with the courgette and egg mixture. Return to the oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until the courgette mixture is slightly puffed and set.
Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Interestingly, last time I made pastry using olive oil instead of butter I didn't think it was a good method, but it went well in this context.
We also had tomato soup, sourdough toast, olives, and a selection of yummy cheeses from the farmers market. Then a good old hearty country walk in the spring sunshine, with a picnic of scones and jam halfway.
What a lovely, chilled out sunday.
Dan didn't moan about the lack of animal protein.
Not once.
Which means that I won this one.
Dan doesn't understand the concept of vegetarianism. So I had to try and create a lunch where he wouldn't notice the lack of meat or fish.
He does have a weakness for courgettes, so when I came across a Torta Verde recipe I thought that might do the trick. This Torta Verde recipe was basically a rice, courgette and parsley pie, so I adapted it to make a courgette-y quiche.
Here's my adaption of the recipe:
Anwen's Courgette and Parsley Quiche
100g white flour
100g wholemeal flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
warm water (about 60-80ml)
450g courgettes
2 garlic cloves
1/2 onion
2 eggs
30g gruyere
Large handful of parsley
salt and pepper
Pastry:
Mix the two different kinds of flours together, add a pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre add the olive oil. Stir to mix. Slowly add the warm water, mixing with your hands to make a soft, but not sticky dough.
Wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge to rest for 20 minutes.
Put the oven on to heat to 180C.
Make the filling: Chop up the courgette, garlic, onion. Put everything into a food processor, season, whizz. Add a handful of parsley. Whizz again.
Roll out the pastry , lightly oil quiche dish and line with pastry.
Blind bake for 15 minutes (10 with baking beans and then remove them for another 5 minutes).
Beat two eggs, add to the courgette mixture and mix. Grate the cheese and fold in.
Fill the pastry case with the courgette and egg mixture. Return to the oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until the courgette mixture is slightly puffed and set.
Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Interestingly, last time I made pastry using olive oil instead of butter I didn't think it was a good method, but it went well in this context.
We also had tomato soup, sourdough toast, olives, and a selection of yummy cheeses from the farmers market. Then a good old hearty country walk in the spring sunshine, with a picnic of scones and jam halfway.
What a lovely, chilled out sunday.
Dan didn't moan about the lack of animal protein.
Not once.
Which means that I won this one.
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