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Archive for March, 2013

Penne with a Slow-Cooked Sausage Sauce

Posted in Food, Italian, Pasta, tagged , , , , , , on 29 March 2013| 1 Comment »

Really rich, this dish packs a punch of flavour so it’s perfect for a small starter.

Penne con Sugo di Salsiccie – serves 6-8 as a starter

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 8 Italian spiced, fresh pork sausages, meat removed from skins and crumbled
  • 2 small red onions, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2 small dried chillies, crumbled (or you could use chilli flakes)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/3 bottle red wine (preferably something Italian, like a Chianti)
  • 2 x 400g tins peeled plum tomatoes, drained
  • ½ nutmeg, freshly grated
  • 120g Parmesan, freshly grated
  • 150ml double cream
  • 250g penne rigate

Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the sausagemeat, stirring and breaking it up, until the juice from the meat has evaporated and the fat has started to run.

Add the onion, garlic, chilli and bay leaves and cook gently for about 30 minutes or until the onions are brown.

Pour in the wine, increase the heat and cook until it has evaporated.

Add the tomatoes, lower the heat, and simmer gently until you have a thick sauce, about 45-60 minutes. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper, then add the Parmesan and cream.

Cook the penne in lots of salted water, drain well, and add to the sauce.

Wine Suggestion: We drank a delightful Langhe Nebbiolo from the Produttori del Barbaresco which went well. We’d suggest finding a red wine with a bit of acidity to cut through the richness, good tannins to counteract the protein richness, and yet not too much weight. Nebbiolo or Sangiovese …

(Original recipe from The River Café Cookbook by Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray, Ebury Press, 1995.)

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Hot Punjabi King Prawn Curry

Posted in Asian, Food, Healthy, Indian, Prawns, Shellfish, tagged , , , , , , on 27 March 2013| 4 Comments »

This is a simple curry but you need to marinate the prawns overnight in the fridge. The flavour builds up as the spices are gradually added and the sauce becomes really tasty. Serve with some plain basmati rice for a healthy dinner.

Hot Punjabi king prawn curry – to serve 4 

FOR THE MARINADE:

  • 600g raw king prawns, peeled and de-veined
  • 6 tbsp full-fat natural yogurt
  • 2 hot green chillies, finely sliced

FOR THE CURRY: 

  • 4 tbsp olive or sunflower oil
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 medium onions, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped or crushed garlic
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 2-3 hot green chillies, finely sliced
  • 2 tsp garam masala
  • 2 medium tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • ½ tsp chilli flakes
  • 4 tsp finely chopped coriander leaves

Rinse and drain the prawns. Pat them dry and put into a ceramic bowl. Add the yogurt, chillies and ½ tsp salt. Mix well, cover and leave overnight in the fridge.

When ready to cook the curry, pour the oil into a wok, and put on a medium heat.

Spoon in the cumin seeds and brown for 10 seconds then add the onions and sauté for about 10 minutes, or until or until brown all over.

Add the garlic, reduce the heat to low, and fry for 2 minutes.

Mix in the turmeric and stir for 1 minute.

Add the green chillies, increase the heat to medium and stir for 1 minute.

Mix in 1½ tsp of the garam masalsa ands stir for 1 minute.

Add ¼ tsp salt, the tomatoes and chilli flakes and cook for 2 minutes.

Add 125ml of boiling water and stir to make a thick sauce. Simmer for 3 minutes, then add ¼ tsp salt.

Stir in the prawns and marinade and cook over a medium heat until just opaque and cooked through.

Sprinkle the rest of the garam masala over the top and stir. Fold in the chopped coriander to serve.

(Original recipe by Madhur Jaffrey in BBC Good Food Magazine, March 2013.)

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Winter Minestrone

Posted in Food, Healthy, Italian, Soup, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 25 March 2013| 1 Comment »

A very filling dish that hits the mark on these icy evenings. Oh spring where are you?

Minestrone Invernale – serves many!

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 carrots, roughly chopped
  • 1-2 red onions, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 head celery, roughly chopped
  • 1 head garlic, cloves peeled
  • 1kg Swiss chard, leaves shredded and stalks roughly chopped
  • 1 handful parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 x 400g tin peeled plum tomatoes, drained of most of their juices, roughly chopped
  • 1 kg cavolo nero, stalks removed, leaves shredded (or use Savoy cabbage)
  • 1 x 400g tin cannellini beans
  • 500ml chicken stock or water
  • a few sprigs of wintery herbs like thyme or sage, chopped
  • Parmesan, for grating over
  • extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Heat the 2 tbsp olive oil in a very big saucepan and slowly fry the carrot, onion and celery until soft and dark. This will take ages. Add the garlic, chard stalks and half the parsley, and keep cooking, stirring so it doesn’t stick. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 10 minutes or until they have reduced.

Add half the Swiss chard leaves and half the cavelo nero, ¾ of the beans, and the boiling chicken stock or water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. You can add a bit more stock if needed but the whole point is that the soup should be really thick.

Add the remaining Swiss chard and cavolo nero and blanch briefly so they are cooked but stay green and crisp. Season with plenty of salt and pepper.

Purée the rest of the cannellini beans coarsely in a blender, with a bit of liquid from the soup. Add to the soup. Stir in the herbs and serve hot with Parmesan and some extra virgin olive oil.

Tastes great re-heated over the next few days.

Wine Suggestion: This is a very rustic, country dish and would suit a similar wine with some earthy character. We suggest a Barbera or something Tuscan.

(Original recipe from The River Café Cookbook by Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray, Ebury Press, 1995.)

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Little Stuffed Eggs

Posted in Food, Italian, tagged , , , , , , , on 23 March 2013| 2 Comments »

These little stuffed quail’s eggs are very cute but also very time consuming. It also helps if you have little fingers!

Uoava di Quaglie Ripiene – to serve 4 as an antipasti

  • 12 quail’s eggs
  • 80g good quality tuna in olive oil, drained and finely chopped (we use Ortiz)
  • 2 tsp salted capers, soaked in water for 10 minutes, drained and finely chopped, plus 24 extra to garnish.
  • 1½ tbsp mayonnaise

Put the eggs in a small pot of water, bring to the boil and cook for 2 minutes. Drain the eggs and put into a bowl of cold water to cool down before peeling. (The eggs are fiddly to peel but it’s a bit easier if you peel them while they are still in the water).

Cut the eggs in half lengthways. Carefully remove the yolks and arrange the egg whites on a serving plate. Put the yolks in a bowl with the tuna, capers and 1 tbsp of mayonnaise then mix together. Season with a little salt and some pepper.

Use your hands to roll the mixture into little balls, about 1tsp at a time. Carefully put the little balls into the cavities of the half eggs.

Spoon a tiny bit of mayonnaise on top of each half egg and garnish with a whole caper.

You could drizzle a bit of olive oil and add a twist of black pepper to finish.

Wine Suggestion: These are the kind of thing you can set out for people to nibble at when they’re having an aperitif. A good DOCG Prosecco would be nice.

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Nigel’s Chocolate & Banana Cake

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 21 March 2013| 2 Comments »

A very easy and delicious cake that’s perfect for using the bananas that have gone black in the fruit bowl. It’s even worth letting them go black for! We made this twice in a week and are tempted to make it again soon.

Chocolate and Banana Cake 

  • 250g plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 125g softened butter
  • 235g muscovado sugar
  • 400g (peeled weight) very ripe bananas
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 100g dark chocolate

You need a non-stick loaf tin approx. 24cm x 12cm x 7cm deep, lined with baking paper.

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/Gas 4.

Sift the flour and baking powder together.

Use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until light, fluffy and pale coffee coloured.

Put the bananas in a bowl and mash with a fork, lumps are ok as you don’t want a purée. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Beat the eggs lightly with a fork then beat them into the butter and sugar mixture. If it threatens to curdle add a spoonful of flour.

Chop the chocolate into small pieces and fold them and the bananas into the butter and sugar mixture. Gently fold in the flour and baking powder.

Scrape the mixture into the baking tin and bake for about 50 minutes. Check that it is cooked by inserting a metal skewer into the centre. If it is moist but clean then the cake is ready. If there is any sign of wet cake mixture on the skewer, return the cake to the oven for a few more minutes. Cover the surface with foil if it starts getting too dark.

Leave the cake to settle in the tin for about 15 minutes, then loosen sides with a palette knife and carefully lift the cake out. Leave to cool for a bit longer before peeling off the paper. Serve cool.

(Original recipe from Nigel Slater’s Kitchen Diaries II, Fourth Estate, 2012.)

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Turnip – the star of the show

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 18 March 2013| 2 Comments »

We love turnips (or swedes as the rest of the world calls them) and think that they deserve a bigger part of the limelight. This puts them centre stage and celebrates their earthiness and sweet character. This recipe comes from Denis Cotter, of Café Paradiso in Cork, and like many of his dishes it is pretty sweet for a savoury dish and has the potential to divide your dinner guests. Our guest is not usually a fan of turnip but she loved this dish.

Swede & Leek Gratin in Maple Cream with Sage & Walnut Crust – serves 4-6

  • 1 large swede
  • 2 leeks, halved lengthways and well washed
  • 30g butter, plus extra for greasing
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 100ml dry white wine
  • 250ml double cream
  • 4 tbsp maple syrup

For the crust: 

  • 8 fresh sage leaves
  • 1 tbsp chopped chives
  • 50g white bread
  • 50g walnuts
  • 30g butter

Preheat the oven to 150ºC/300ºF/gas mark 2.

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Peel and quarter the swede, then chop into slices about 5mm thick. Simmer in the water for 10 minutes, then remove and partly cool them in a bowl of cold water. Drain and set aside.

Chop the leeks into 2cm pieces. Melt the butter in a large pot, over a high heat, add the leeks and garlic and cook, stirring, for 8-10 minutes. Add the thyme and white wine, and boil for 1 minute, then pour in the cream and maple syrup. Bring back to the boil and then take off the heat. Season with salt and pepper.

Grease an oven dish with butter and arrange a layer of swede slices on the bottom. Spoon a third of the leeks on top and cover with another layer of swede. Repeat to get 3 layers of each, finishing with the leeks. Press firmly on the top and put the dish in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes.

To make the crust: put the sage, chives and bread in a food processor and pulse to a fine crumb. Add the walnuts and butter and pulse briefly to chop the walnuts coarsely.

Increase the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas mark 4.

Scatter the sage and walnut topping over the gratin and return to the oven for 5 minutes.

Remove from the oven and leave to rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

Wine Suggestion: You’ll have some wine left in the bottle you used for this dish. A dry chenin would be good as it will carry the earthy and sweet characters of this dish but also has enough acidity and texture to cut through the richness.

(Original recipe form Denis Cotter’s For the Love of Food, Harper Collins, 2011.)

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Slow-roasted Duck Ragú

Posted in Duck, Italian, Pasta, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 16 March 2013| Leave a Comment »

Cooked on an afternoon off and then shared with friends … perfect. This takes some time, particularly as you need to roast the duck first, but it is worth it.

Slow-roasted Duck Ragú – serves 4 to 6

  • 1 Duck, try to get a Gressingham or at least free-range for extra flavour
  • 2 oranges, 1 quartered – the other zested & juiced
  • 6 slices Pancetta, diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 2 carrots, peeled & chopped
  • 2 sticks celery, diced
  • 6 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked and chopped
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
  • 2 x 400g tins plum tomatoes
  • 1/2 bottle fruity red wine, we used a Chianti
  • 500ml Chicken Stock
  • a handful of sultanas
  • a handful of pinenuts
  • 600g Rigatoni, or other large tubular pasta
  • 2 knobs butter
  • large handful Parmesan, grated
  • small bunch parsley, chopped
  • red wine vinegar

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Rub duck all over with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper.

Push the orange quarters inside the cavity and place the duck breast-side down in a roasting tray. Cook for 2 hours, turning it every 30 minutes until the skin goes thin and crispy and the meat is tender and fragrant with the oranges.

Remove the duck from the tray and pour the fat into a jar, making sure you avoid the meat juice the fat is floating upon. This fat can be used to roast potatoes another day.

Leave the duck to cool slightly then pull all the meat from the bones and shred it.

Pour a tablespoon of olive oil into a large pot and fry the pancetta on a medium heat until lightly golden. Add the onion, carrots, celery, rosemary, garlic and cinnamon and fry gently for 10 minutes until soft.

Add the tomatoes and red wine and simmer slowly for 25 minutes.

Add the duck meat and some chicken stock (if the sauce is a little dry) and simmer for another 30 minutes.

Remove the cinnamon stick, taste for seasoning and throw in the sultanas and pinenuts.

Cook the pasta according to instructions. Reserve some cooking water, then drain in colander and add to the sauce.

Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, Parmesan, parsley, orange zest and juice plus a good splash of vinegar.

Check for seasoning again and loosen with the reserved cooking water if necessary. Serve and enjoy!

Wine suggestion: A perfect match for a deep and profound Brunello di Montalcino or your favourite Tuscan red. Alternately look out for a good Bandol or Mourvedre based wine where the earthiness will also compliment the duck and pasta.

(Original recipe from Cook by Jamie Oliver, Penguin Books, 2009.)

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Chicken, Butter Bean and Red Onion Stew

Posted in Chicken, Food, Healthy, Spanish, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 14 March 2013| Leave a Comment »

This is one of our hearty dinners from the 5:2 diet we are on and it was very welcome this evening after getting in from the rain and cold. Full of flavour and filling despite the low calories!

Chicken, Red Onion and Mushroom Stew with Sherry and Butterbeans, serves 4

  • 6 Chicken thighs, skinned and boned then quartered
  • 1 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1 garlic clove, chopped
  • 2 red onions, cut into thick wedges
  • 200g chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced
  • 100ml dry sherry
  • 400ml chicken stock
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 400g tin butterbeans, drained and rinsed
  • small bunch parsley, chopped

Heat a little olive oil to a medium-high heat in a pan and add the chicken, browning until golden on all sides.

Add the paprika, garlic onions and mushrooms and cook until the onions and mushrooms have softened. This should take about 5 minutes.

Add the sherry and scrape the bottom of the pan for a second to deglaze, then add the chicken stock, tomatoes and butterbeans.

Bring to a boil then turn down and simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with the parsley sprinkled over the top and some crusty bread if you like.

Wine suggestion: If you feel like a glass with this we’d suggest trying a red from Navarra, an under-rated region in Spain. The balance of juiciness and structure would work with the simple, smokey and rustic flavours of the dish.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Roast Chicken with Clementines and Arak

Posted in Chicken, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 12 March 2013| Leave a Comment »

This dish has proved so delicious we’ve had it for dinner twice already this week and plan for another night with friends on Friday. Strictly speaking it isn’t as described as we substituted Pernod for Arak which was what we had to hand; you could also use Ouzo if you have some of this instead. The dish is bursting with flavour so some plain rice is all that’s needed on the side. Start ahead of time if you can so the chicken has time to marinate.

Roasted chicken with clementines & arak – to serve 4

  • 100ml Pernod (or arak or ouzo)
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp grainy mustard
  • 3 tbsp light brown sugar
  • 2 medium fennel bulbs
  • 1.3kg chicken thighs (with skin and bone in)
  • 4 clementines, unpeeled, sliced horizontally into ½cm slices
  • 1 tbsp thyme leaves
  • 2½ tsp fennel seeds, slightly crushe
  • salt and black pepper
  • chopped flat parsley, to garnish

Put the first six ingredients in a large bowl and add 2½ tsp of salt and 1½ tsp of black pepper. Whisk well.

Trim the fennel and cut each in half lengthways. Cut each half into 4 wedges. Add the fennel to the liquid, along with the chicken, clementine slices, thyme and fennel seeds. Combine with your hands then leave to marinate in the fridge for a few hours or overnight (or skip this stage if you don’t have the time).

Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C Fan/Gas Mark 7.

Transfer the chicken and marinade to a large oven-proof tray that can hold everything in a single layer; make sure the chicken skin is facing up.

Put the tray in the oven and roast for 35-45 minutes, or until the chicken is well browned and cooked through.

Remove the chicken, fennel and clementines from the tray and arrange on a serving plate; cover and keep warm. Pour the cooking liquids into a small pan, place on a medium-high heat, bring to a boil and simmer until reduced by a third – you should have about 80ml left. Pour the hot sauce over the chicken, garnish with some chopped parsley and serve with plain steamed rice.

Wine Suggestion: There’s lots of flavour going on in this dish so beware of going too neutral with the wine. A richer Vermentino from Sardinia would work well, where they have really mastered this grape.

(Original recipe from Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Ebury Press, 2012.)

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Beef & Guinness Stew

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , on 6 March 2013| 1 Comment »

A simple thing to make, and always well enjoyed. It’s a bit difficult to take nice pictures of brown dishes – we’ll have to work on it. This is an absolute doddle to make and a very appropriate dish for the 17th March!

St Patrick’s Day Beef & Guinness Stew – serves 4-6 

  • 2 sticks of celery
  • 2 medium onions
  • 2 carrots
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 heaped tbsp plain flour
  • 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 500-750g diced stewing beef
  • 500ml Guinness

Preheat the oven to 160ºC Fan/180°C/gas 4.

Roughly chop the celery, onions and carrots.

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole on a medium heat. Add all the vegetables and bay leaves and fry for about 10 minutes.

Add the meat, flour, Guinness and tinned tomatoes. Stir and season well with salt and black pepper. Bring to the boil, put a lid on the casserole and cook in the oven for approximately 3 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender.

Check about half an hour before the end of the cooking time and add a splash of water if it looks a bit dry. Season to taste again before serving with potatoes in the proper Irish fashion.

Wine Suggestion: Something equally hearty, perhaps an Australian Shiraz, or if you’re going really in for the Irish theme you could try a wine called Sásta by Niepoort. This wine, from the Douro in Portugal, sports a great label depicting a drunken Saint Patrick chasing the snakes out of Ireland (available from The Wicklow Wine Company or Mitchell & Son).

(Original recipe from Jamie’s Ministry of Food by Jamie Oliver, Penguin 2008.)

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Easy Goulash

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 4 March 2013| 1 Comment »

A mid-week creation that satisfies on flavour without any excess in calories or expense. Very like the Hungarian style of Goulash – much more soup like than a stew, so use a spoon to eat this!

Easy Goulash – to serve 4

  • 1tbsp vegetable oil 
  • 300g stir-fry strips, or minute steak cut into strips
  • 100g chestnut mushrooms, quartered
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 500g potatoes, peeled and cut into smallish chunks
  • 600ml hot beef stock
  • 500g jar tomato-based cooking sauce
  • handful of parsley, chopped
  • natural yoghurt – to serve

Heat half the oil in a non-stick pan and fry the beef for a couple of minutes. Do this in batches so the beef fries rather than stews. Remove the meat from the pan, add a the rest of the oil and fry the mushrooms for a few minutes or until they start to brown.

Sprinkle the paprika into the pan and fry briefly, then add potatoes, stock and tomato sauce. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the potato chunks are tender. Add the beef back to the pan to warm through. Stir in the parsley and serve with some natural yogurt (if you’re not trying to keep this under 300 calories).

Wine Suggestion: We had a good Rioja Crianza with this and found the juicy fruit and flavours really matched the rich tomatoes and paprika well (well we would have if it hadn’t been a fast day on our diet!)

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

 

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Zesty Whiting with crushed potatoes & peas

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 2 March 2013| Leave a Comment »

The combination of flavours and textures made this a delicious Wednesday night feast. It’s also really healthy and low in calories (305 to be exact, so you can even squeeze it in if you’re on the 5:2 diet). You could use haddock or cod but whiting is much cheaper and tastes just as good.

Zesty Whiting with Crushed Potatoes & Peas – to serve 4

  • 600g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks – we used Nicola which gave an interesting texture but floury mashing ones would be good too
  • 140g frozen peas
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • juice and zest of ½ a lemon
  • 1 tbsp capers
  • 2 tbsp snipped chives
  • 4 fillets of chunky white fish (about 120g each)
  • 2 tbsp flour

Boil the potatoes until tender, adding the peas for the final minute of cooking. Drain and roughly crush together, adding lots of salt and pepper and about a tablespoon of the oil.

To make the dressing mix 1 tbsp of the oil with the lemon juice and zest, the capers, the chives and some seasoning.

Dust the fish in the flour, tapping off any excess, and season. Heat a small splash of oil in non-stick frying pan and fry the fish for a couple of minutes on each side, or until cooked, then add the dressing to the pan to warm through.

Serve with some steamed broccoli if you like.

Wine Suggestion: Picpoul de Pinet from the Languedoc is good value and has a nice, refreshing zesty flavour that is a great match for fish. Despite coming from a warm area, this wine maintains good acidity and minerality and is well worth seeking out.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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