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Archive for the ‘Vegetarian’ Category

Beluga Lentil, Butternut and Feta salad

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 7 December 2011| Leave a Comment »

Simple to make which makes it a perfect dish after a long day at work, plus it is packed full of flavour and deliciousness. We used Beluga lentils, which are really just a variation on Puy lentils, that hold a lovely black colour, glisten well when served and retain a good firmness when cooked; ordinary Puy lentils will work just as well.

Lentils with squash and feta – to serve 2

  • 100g Beluga lentils
  • 400ml vegetable stock
  • olive oil
  • 200g butternut squash, diced
  • 1/2 red onion, finely sliced
  • a pinch of chilli flakes
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 50g feta, crumbled
  • 1/2 small bunch parsley, chopped

Cook the lentils in the stock for 15-20 minutes or until tender, then drain. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. Add the squash and some seasoning then cook for about 5 minutes. Add the onions and chilli and cook for another 5 minutes or so or until the squash is golden and tender. Add the cumin and stir through. Add the lentils and stir to combine. Stir in the parsley then divide between two plates and scatter with the crumbled feta.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

Wine suggestion: the earthiness of the ingredients pair well with medium bodied, earthy wines – a classic match would be a pinot noir for a red, or a sylvaner in a white.

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Irish Champ

Posted in Food, Irish Food, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 26 November 2011| 7 Comments »

We love  champ, and this recipe adds an extra layer of deliciousness. This idea is from Jamie’s latest book and we especially liked the addition of yellow celery leaves at the end.

King of mash: Irish champ

  • 1kg potatoes
  • 2 scallions
  • 1 leek
  • 150ml milk
  • 1 fresh bay leaf
  • 50g butter
  • a small handful of watercress (we omitted this as there was none in the shop)
  • a small bunch of flat-leaf parsley
  • a small handful of yellow celery leaves

Peel the potatoes and bring a large pan of  salted water to the boil. Cut the potatoes into 2.5cm chunks then add to the pan and boil fast for 12-15 minutes, or until completely tender.

Meanwhile, slice the scallions and leeks as finely as you can. Put them in a saucepan with the milk, bay leaf, butter and plenty of seasoning. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently for about 7-8 minutes.

Drain the potatoes and let them steam dry for a few minutes in the hot pot. Mash the potatoes, adding spoonfuls of the milk as you go. Taste and season. Roughly chop the watercress (if using) and stir through the mash (discard any thick stalks).

Just before serving reheat the mash with a lid on over a gentle heat. Stir in the parsley and celery leaves and serve with more butter if you like.

(Original recipe from Jamie’s Great Britain by Jamie Oliver, Penguin, 2011.)

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Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce

Posted in Food, Party Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 24 November 2011| Leave a Comment »

Happy Thanksgiving to all our American friends! This is our contribution to the Thanksgiving Dinner we’re going to tonight – we hope it’s better than the ‘traditional’ tinned stuff we’ve heard about! It keeps well for a week which is useful when preparing for big feasts and a little bit of chilli does wonders for the taste.

Chilli Cranberry Sauce

Gently heat 100g golden caster sugar and 175ml white wine in a saucepan. Wait until the sugar has dissolved and then bring to the boil.

Add 1/2 a mild red chilli (chopped and with seeds left in) and 300g of fresh or frozen cranberries (ours came from Wisconsin), bring back to the boil and then simmer for about 10 minutes. You want the berries to burst but not collapse completely. Take the sauce off the heat. As it cools it will continue to cook and thicken.

 (Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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A Light Saffron & Tomato Risotto

Posted in Food, Healthy, Italian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 23 November 2011| Leave a Comment »

Mixing fresh tomatoes into a risotto is a revelation and adds a layer of freshness that is enhanced by the crushed fennel – yum! This is a lighter risotto with much less butter and cheese than we would normally add! Still there is loads of flavour and this is perfect for a weeknight (we try and save the butter and cheese for the weekend).

Saffron & tomato risotto – to serve 2

  • 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
  • 2 tomatoes, chopped
  • a large pinch of saffron threads, crushed
  • olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 1.5 litres vegetable stock
  • 275g arborio rice
  • 125ml white wine
  • 3 tbsp parmesan, grated

Mix the fennel seeds with the chopped tomatoes. Pour 1 tbsp of boiling water over the saffron to soak. Heat the oil in a wide, shallow pan and add the onion with some seasoning. Cook for a few minutes or until softened. Heat the stock in a separate pan until simmering.

Add the rice to the onion and cook for a few minutes or until the grains are glistening. Pour in the saffron and stir for a minute before adding the wine. Keep stirring until the wine is absorbed.

Add a ladleful of stock and stir again until absorbed. Keep doing this until the rice is cooked but still has a bite. Add the tomatoes and fennel seeds and cook for a minute. Serve with the Parmesan.

Wine Suggestion: Try a medium-bodied and well-rounded white from Italy, like a Fiano or Falanghina. Or you could push the boat out with a top quality Greco di Tufo, full of minerality but still with the freshness needed for this dish – we had none of these unfortunately 😦

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Post Op Mac n Cheese

Posted in Cheese, Food, Pasta, Vegetarian, tagged , , , on 20 November 2011| Leave a Comment »

Poor Jono had to go into hospital to have his hand reset after breaking it on Monday and after a general anesthetic some comfort food was required!  This recipe has bags of flavour as well as the comfort factor required.

Macaroni cheese – to serve 6

  • 75g butter
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 75g plain flour
  • 900ml boiling milk
  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 225g cheese (we used a mixture of Gruyère and double Gloucester or you can just use Cheddar)
  • 300g macaroni pasta

Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the onion and cook gently until soft. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute, then gradually add the milk, keep stirring all the time, and the mustard. Stir in 3/4s of the cheese and let it melt, then season.

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water with a tsp of salt, until just soft (a minute or two less than it says on the pack). Drain, then mix into the cheese sauce and transfer to a ovenproof dish. Scatter the rest of the cheese over the top and put under a hot grill until brown on top.

(Original recipe from Rachel’s Favourite Food at Home by Rachel Allen, Collins, 2006.)

Wine Suggestion: This would be great with a full-bodied, structured white. Structure usually comes from oak – a Pouilly-Fuisse would be fantastic!

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Cheat’s Funghi Trifolati

Posted in Food, Italian, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 9 November 2011| 2 Comments »

Because we’re not blessed by abundant fresh Porcini like the Italians we need to be a little inventive to capture the flavours and effect of a genuinely Italian recipe; this one delivers the goods in spades. If you find some fresh porcini grab them with both hands but otherwise try this mixture of wild mushrooms and a handful of dried porcini to boost the flavour.

Funghi Trifolati (Sautéed Mushrooms with Parsley & Garlic) – to serve 4 as a side dish

  • 25g dried porcini
  • 500g fresh mushrooms, use a mixture of wild and cultivated
  • 2 shallots
  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 15g unsalted butter
  • 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 4 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
Put the dried porcini in a bowl, cover with hot water and leave for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, clean the fresh mushrooms – wiping them with kitchen paper should be sufficient rather than washing them. Cut them into thick slices.

Lift the porcini out of the water and cut into small pieces.

Finely chop the shallots, put them in a large sauté pan and sauté with the olive oil and butter until soft. Add the garlic, half the parsley, a little salt and lots of pepper. Cook, stirring, for a minute and then add the porcini. Cook for 5 minutes or so and then throw in the fresh mushrooms and some parsley. Cook over a fairly high heat for about 10 minutes, making sure mushrooms don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. There should be very little liquid left by the end of the cooking.

Sprinkle with the last bit of parsley before serving.

(Original recipe by Anna Del Conte, Gastronomy of Italy, Pavilion Books, 2001.)

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A Blackberry and Apple Sauce for Pork or Duck

Posted in Food, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 8 November 2011| 2 Comments »

We made this sauce as an incidental side to some duck legs and the side trumped the main … so much so that the legs will not be reviewed but this sauce definitely will! The revelation for us is the baking of the apples whole which seems to add something special.

Apple and blackberry sauce – to serve 4 (or more) on the side

  • 4 large Bramley apples
  • 150g blackberries
  • a little icing sugar
Score the skin of the apples round the middle to prevent explosions and put them in a baking dish. Bake at 180ºC/Gas 4 or thereabouts for about 40 minutes or until they have puffed up and the apple is soft and frothy.

Put the blackberries into a small pan with a tbsp of water and bring to the boil. Crush lightly with a fork.

Scrape the apple flesh off the skins into a bowl. Beat the sugar in with a fork and stir in the crushed blackberries.

(Original recipe by Nigel Slater, Tender: Volume II, Fourth Estate, 2010).

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Spiced haloumi on a warm Beluga lentil, spinach & caramelised beetroot salad

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on 7 November 2011| Leave a Comment »

We’ve admired Denis Cotter from afar and when we got his new cookbook devoured it as usual. What we found was that each recipe had loads of component which built up a brilliant spectrum of flavours, and yet appeared so complex that unless you have time and patience (and sometimes the ingredients too) you’d rarely make the dishes. This one is an exception as it really comes together quite easily and the flavours are superb. We are definitely encouraged and will try more!

Spiced haloumi on a warm Puy lentil, spinach & beetroot salad – to serve 4

  • 2 medium beetroot, washed, cooked and peeled (we boiled ours for about 25 minutes)
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • olive oil
  • 200ml vegetable stock
  • 100ml red wine
  • 100g Puy  lentils (we used Beluga)
  • 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 4 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced
  • 2 dried bird’s eye chillies, ground (or less if you prefer)
  • 2 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, ground
  • finely grated zest of 1 lime and juice of 2
  • 200g haloumi cheese, cut into 8 slices
  • 100g baby spinach leaves

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

Slice the beetroot into thin wedges, toss with the balsamic vinegar and a little olive oil and roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes, until starting to caramelise.

Meanwhile, bring the vegetable stock and red wine to the boil in a large pan. Add the lentils, thyme and garlic, and simmer for 15-20 minutes, uncovered, until the lentils are just tender but still firm. If there is any liquid left, turn the heat up and boil until it is almost gone. Stir in the roast beetroot and scallions, and remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix the chillies, cumin and lime zest together. Halve the haloumi slices diagonally.

Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the haloumi until browned on both sides. Sprinkle the spice mix and juice of 1 of the limes over the cheese and toss to coat.

Place some spinach on each plate and scatter some of the lentil mix over. Arrange the haloumi slices on top and finish with the remaining lime juice.

(Original recipe from Denis Cotter’s For the love of Food, Collins, 2011.)

Wine Suggestion: You need something that’s earthy for the beetroot and lentils but also fruity and juicy to balance the heat of the spices. Try a Chilean red made from the Carmenere grape which is an emerging match for spicy food (including Indian curry!).

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Low-fat Curry for Autumn

Posted in Asian, Food, Healthy, Indian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 1 November 2011| Leave a Comment »

This is a handy mid-week curry with nothing like the calorie and fat content of an Indian take-away!

Indian butternut squash curry – to serve 4

  • 200g brown basmati rice
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 butternut squash, diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp curry paste (we used Patak’s Madras paste but you can go for a milder paste if you prefer)
  • 300ml vegetable stock
  • 4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 3 tbsp fat-free Greek yogurt
  • small handful coriander, chopped

Cook the rice in boiling salted water according to the instructions on the pack. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the squash for a few minutes until lightly browned. Add the onion and the curry paste and fry for another 3 or 4 minutes.

Pour over the stock, then cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the squash is tender. Add the tomatoes and chickpeas, then gently cook for a few minutes, until the tomatoes slightly soften.

Take off the heat and stir through the yogurt and coriander. Serve with the rice.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Easy Friday Night Pasta

Posted in Food, Italian, Pasta, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 31 October 2011| 3 Comments »

We’ve picked up a habit of paying for pasta dishes in Italian restaurants in town. There’s nothing wrong with the pasta dishes but there’s something wrong with paying €10 (or more!) for something you can make a vat of for far less than that. So we’ve resolved to cook our own pasta dishes from now on – starting with this Penne Arrabbiata from Silver Spoon Pasta. You will probably have most if not all the ingredients already which makes this practically free!

Penne Arrabbiata – to serve 4

  • 6 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1/2 a fresh chilli, seeded and chopped
  • 500g tinned chopped tomatoes, drained (we used a 400g tin but might use 2 x 400g tins next time)
  • 350g penne lisce (the smooth sort)
  • 1 tbsp flat-leaf parsley
Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the garlic and chilli and cook until the garlic turns brown. Remove the garlic cloves at this stage and throw them away.

Add the tomatoes to the pan, season with salt and cook for about 15 minutes.

Cook the penne in a large pan of salted boiling water until al dente, then drain and tip into the frying pan.

Toss over a high heat for a few minutes, then transfer to a warm serving dish. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

(Original recipe from The Silver Spoon Pasta, Phaidon, 2009).

Wine Suggestion: Italian wines tend to go with Italian foods as they are naturally high in acidity which makes them a perfect complement to tomato-based sauces. You don’t need to splash out for this dish. We had our favourite every-day wine Il Casolare, an IGT from Marche, which combines Sangiovese and Montepulciano. Interesting and food friendly but smooth and easy at the same time. On offer now in Mitchell & Son for €9.50 – bargain!

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Ottolenghi Roasted Beetroot salad

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 25 October 2011| 5 Comments »

This is a masterful demonstration of how to balance sweet, nutty, peppery and sharp flavours and the soft, creamy, crunchy and slippery textures. If you want to really show off you can use a mixture of golden and red beetroot, but this dish is just as nice using the regular red beetroot. We wish we could claim it as our own but it’s another gem from Yotam Ottolenghi.

Roasted beetroot – to serve 4

  • 500g golden beetroot
  • 500g red beetroot
  • 80g sunflower seeds
  • 90ml maple syrup
  • 4 tbsp sherry vinegar
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 20g chervil leaves
  • 60g baby chard, baby spinach or rocket
  • coarse sea salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/Gas Mark 6. Wash the beetroot and wrap them individually in foil. Bake for anything between 40 and 90 minute. Ours came in a bag of all different sizes so we gradually took them out of the oven as they felt tender when pierced with a sharp knife.

Spread the sunflower seeds out on in an ovenproof dish and toast along with the beetroot for 8 minutes or until lightly coloured.

Let the beetroot cool a little before peeling with a sharp knife (gloves are highly recommended!). Cut them into halves, quarters or dice. Mix with the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Toss well and then taste: Yotam advises that you should get a clear sweetness balanced by enough salt. Adjust the seasoning as required and serve.

(Original recipe from Ottolenghi: the cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Ebury Press, 2008.)

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Roasted Mushroom Risotto

Posted in Food, Italian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on 23 October 2011| 1 Comment »

Another cracker from Jamie Oliver. We have posted other risottos on this blog but none quite compare to this one – no doubt due to the copious quantities of butter and Parmesan. This is definitely a weekend dish! It is supposed to serve 6 but we served it as a starter for 8. Delicious!

Risotto ai funghi e prezzemolo (Roasted mushroom risotto with parsley)

  • 1.1 litres vegetable stock
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • a knob of butter
  • 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 bulb of garlic, cloves peeled and halved
  • 1/2 a head of celery, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 400g risotto rice
  • 2 wineglasses of dry white vermouth or dry white wine
  • 200g wild mushrooms, wiped clean and torn
  • a small bunch of thyme, leaves picked
  • a small bunch of flat-leaf parsley, very finely chopped
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 70g butter
  • 115g freshly grated Parmesan plus a bit extra for grating over
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6.

Heat the stock. Put the olive oil and knob of butter into a separate pan, add the onion and finely chopped garlic and celery, and cook slowly for about 15 minutes without letting it colour. When the vegetables have softened, add the rice and turn up the heat.

Keep stirring the rice as it lightly fries. When is starts to look slightly translucent and glossy add the vermouth and keep stirring.

Once the vermouth has cooked into the rice, add a ladle of hot stock and a good pinch of salt. Turn the heat down to a simmer and keep adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring and massaging, allowing each ladle to be absorbed before you add another. This will take about 15 minutes but you do need to taste the rice and check if it’s cooked. If not, keep going with the stock until the rice is soft but still has a little bite. If you run out of stock just use some boiling water.

Meanwhile, heat a heavy ovenproof frying pan or tray until medium hot and add a splash of olive oil. Fry the mushrooms for a minute or more until they start to colour, and season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic, thyme and the tbsp of butter and mix together. Put the pan in the oven and roast the mushrooms for about 6 minutes or until cooked through. We discard the garlic at this stage.

When your rice is cooked take it off the heat and add the 70g of butter , the chopped parsley and the Parmesan. Stir well. Put a lid on the pot and allow it to sit for a couple of minutes.

Roughly chop chop half the mushrooms and stir into the risotto, adding a good squeeze of lemon juice too. Divide between plates and sprinkle over the remaining mushrooms and a bit of freshly grated Parmesan.

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Anna Del Conte’s Pasticcio di Penne con Formaggi e Funghi

Posted in Food, Italian, Pasta, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 17 October 2011| 1 Comment »

We’ve been looking out for Anna Del Conte’s Gastronomy of Italy for some time now. This is a book in serious need of reprinting – a true Italian bible. The recipe’s are straightforward and authentic and there is an excellent section on the regions of Italy. We snapped this up when at last a second-hand copy became available on Amazon and suggest you do the same if you get the chance.

This is a really nice dish for autumm – a bit like macaroni cheese but with mushrooms. There is no place for calorie counting here!

Baked Penne with Cheese and Mushrooms – to serve 4

  • 20g dried porcini, soaked, drained and chopped
  • 500g fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 50g unsalted butter
  • 300g penne
  • butter for the dish
  • 150g Bel Paese cheese, thinly sliced (we couldn’t find Bel Paese so substituted Taleggio)
  • 150g fontina cheese, thinly sliced
  • 75g freshly grated Parmesan
  • 200ml double cream

Heat the oven to 200ºC/400°F/Gas Mark 6. Sauté the porcini and fresh mushrooms with the whole garlic clove in 25g of the butter over a high heat. Add salt and pepper, lower the heat and cook for 3 minutes. Throw away the garlic.

Cook the pasta according to the pack. Drain and dress with the remaining butter.

Butter an ovenproof dish and cover the bottom with layer of pasta. Spread about a quarter of the mushrooms and sliced cheese over the pasta and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Add another layer of pasta and cover with mushrooms and cheese. Repeat this until all the ingredients are used, finishing with a cheese layer. Pour over the cream and season with salt and pepper.

Cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes, or until a light crust has formed on the top. Settle for 5 minutes before serving with a green salad.

Wine Suggestion: We drank a Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley  in California that our friend Jen kindly brought back from her holidays. There are some great wines being made here that we rarely see outside the US so it was a treat and a really good match for the dish. If you haven’t been travelling we’d suggest finding a pinot noir with juicy, ripe fruit balanced by a lightness of touch – avoid anything too alcoholic or jammy which will overwhelm the food. If you find a nice “earthy” pinot from Hawkes Bay in New Zealand or Burgundy then you’re on the right track.

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Hot Buttered Beetroot

Posted in Food, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 7 October 2011| 2 Comments »

Here’s a really lovely side dish. Good with roasts or grilled meat.

Hot buttered beetroot – to serve 6

  • 3 medium beetroot, trimmed but not peeled
  • 25g butter
  • 1 tbsp chopped thyme leaves.
Cook the beetroot in a large pan of boiling salted water for 20-25 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool slightly, then peel off the skins – gloves are advisable! Chop the beetroot.

Melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the thyme and cook for a minute before adding the beetroot and tossing to coat in the butter.

(Original recipe by Tom Kerridge in BBC Good Food Magazine, October 2011)

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Woohoo it’s sunny! An Irish/Italian Salad

Posted in Food, Italian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 10 September 2011| 1 Comment »

Irish SaladThis caprese salad is made from all Irish ingredients – even the mozzarella (fellow Dubliners can pick some up in Fallon & Byrne). Perfect for what will probably be one of our last sunny lunches for this year.

Caprese di Mozzarella – serves 2

  • mozzarella cheese
  • 2-3 tomatoes, sliced
  • basil leaves
  • olive oil
  • salt
Drain the cheese and cut into thin slices. Arrange the tomato and mozzarella slices in concentric rings on a nice plate. Sprinkle with basil leaves, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt (salt is a necessity here!).

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Hey Pesto!

Posted in Food, Italian, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 3 September 2011| Leave a Comment »

Our kitchen window was bursting with basil plants and sort of like “the Day of the Triffids” as they were out of control and growing like mad despite the neglect after being away for a week. So if like us you have some basil on your windowsill then make pesto – those leaves aren’t going to last forever! This makes about 250ml and will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks. You can expect some pesto recipes from us to follow.

Pesto – about 250ml

  • 50g pine nuts
  • large bunch basil
  • 50g parmesan
  • 150ml olive oil, plus a bit extra for storing
  • 2 garlic cloves
Heat a small frying pan over a low heat. Cook the pine nuts until golden, shaking the pan. Keep an eye on them as they burn easily and very quickly.Put the toasted pine nuts into a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients and process until smooth, then taste and season.

Pour into a jar and cover with a little bit of extra oil and store in the fridge. Keeps for around 2 weeks – ready for instant dinners like the one below.

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Chargrilled Cauliflower salad

Posted in Food, Side dish, Uncategorized, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 30 August 2011| 4 Comments »

This salad from ‘Ottolenghi: the cookbook’ has just a few fresh ingredients and tastes fantastic! Really good with some grilled meat off the barbecue.

Chargrilled cauliflower with tomatoes, dill and capers – to serve 2-4

  • 2 tbsp capers, drained and roughly chopped
  • 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 tbsp cider vinegar
  • 120ml olive oil
  • 1 small cauliflower, divided into florets
  • 1 tbsp chopped dill
  • 50g baby spinach leaves
  • 20 cherry tomatoes, halved

You can make the dressing in a food processor or by hand (we used the processor). Mix together the capers, mustard, garlic, vinegar and some salt and pepper. Whisk vigorously or run the machine while adding half the oil in a slow trickle. You should get a thick, creamy dressing. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Add the cauliflower to a large pan of boiling salted water and simmer for just 3 minutes. Drain and run under a cold tap to stop it cooking further. Leave in the colander to dry well, then put it in a mixing bowl with the rest of the olive oil and some seasoning. Toss well.

Heat a ridged griddle pan over the highest possible heat and leave it for 5 minutes or until it is really hot. Grill the cauliflower in batches – don’t over-crowd the pan. Keep turning until they are nicely charred all over and transfer to a bowl. While the cauliflower is still hot, add the dressing, dill, spinach and tomatoes. Stir together, taste and adjust seasoning again.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

(Original recipe from Ottolenghi The Cookbook published by The Random House Group).

 

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Pasta al forno con pomodori e mozzarella

Posted in Food, Italian, Italy, Pasta, Vegetarian, Wine, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 29 August 2011| 2 Comments »

Otherwise known as “Jamie’s Pasta Bake”; a simple, tasty dish that can be easily doubled for parties. Delicious hot for dinner with some garlic toasts and also cold the next day for lunch.

The recipe suggests using orecchiette but any pasta shapes will do so it’s a great way to use up all the packets lying around the cupboard.

Baked pasta with tomatoes and mozzarella (serves 4 generously)

  • 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped (white onions are suggested but any other onion lying to hand will do)
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
  • 1 to 2 dried chillies, crumbled
  • 3 x 400g tins of good quality plum tomatoes
  • large handful of basil, torn
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 400g short, any shaped dried pasta, preferably orecchiette
  • 4 very big handfuls of freshly grated parmesan
  • 3 x 150g balls of mozzarella, sliced
Preheat oven to 200C / 400F / Gas 6.

Heat a saucepan on Medium-low heat and a couple of glugs of olive oil, onion, garlic and chill. Slowly fry for 10 minutes until softened but not coloured.

Add tinned tomatoes and a small glass of water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Wizz sauce until smooth add basil leaves, red wine vinegar and season.

Boil a large pot of salted water and cook the pasta shapes according to packet instructions. Drain and then toss with half the tomato sauce and a handful of parmesan.

Rub a little olive oil in a baking tray and layer a third of the pasta in the bottom. Follow by a layer of tomato sauce a handful of parmesan and 1 mozzarella ball. Repeat two more times and until ingredients are used up. Make sure that there is a good layer of cheese on the top.

Cook in oven for 15 minutes or until golden and bubbling.

Original recipe: Jamie’s Italy

Wine suggestions: This will work equally well with a nutty, dry white like a Verdicchio or Greco di Tufo or  a mid-weight red like Barbera, Montepulciano d’Abbruzzo or a fruity Chianti. You don’t need to get too complex as this is a very social dish so it suits a social and easy style of wine.

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Roasted Garlic Toasts

Posted in Brunch, Food, Italian, Side dish, Uncategorized, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 28 August 2011| 4 Comments »

We love garlic bread but often the garlic is too raw and over-powering and it doesn’t love us back. For these toasts we roasted the garlic first before making the butter which gives a more subtle flavour.

You can make the garlic butter in advance.

Garlic Toasts (serves 4, easily multiplied for larger quantities)

  • 3 fat Garlic Cloves, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 tablespoon Flat-leaf Parsley, chopped
  • 4 slices of Crostini, or a demi-baguette, sliced diagonally
Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
Put garlic and olive oil in a small roasting tin and season with salt and ground black pepper. Cover with foil and roast for 20 minutes.
When cooked and golden, remove from oven, cool slightly and then mash the garlic cloves in a small bowl with a fork. Add the butter and parsley and mix thoroughly.
Put bread on baking tray, spread with the garlic butter and bake until crisp (roughly 5-10 minutes).
We served this with Jamie Oliver’s Pasta Bake to great effect.
Original recipe: Bill Granger’s “Every Day”, Murdoch Books

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Melanzane alla Parmigiana (Aubergine Parmigiana)

Posted in Barbecue, Food, Italian, Side dish, Uncategorized, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 22 August 2011| 6 Comments »

I think Jamie’s Italy might be our favourite Jamie book – it’s without a doubt the one we’ve cooked the most out of. This is a super way to use up aubergines which are bang in season at the moment. Jamie says this is a side dish but we served it as a main with some garlic bread and next time we’ll serve a green salad too. The revelation for us was to barbecue (or grill) the aubergines to avoid the oiliness you so often get with this dish.

Jamie’s Aubergine Parmigiana – to serve 6 as a side dish or 4 as a main

  • 3 large firm aubergines
  • olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely sliced
  • 1 heaped tsp dried oregano
  • 2 x 400g tins of good-quality plum tomatoes
  • a little wine vinegar
  • a large handful of basil
  • 4 large handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan
  • 2 handfuls of dried breadcrumbs (we used Panko)
  • a little fresh oregano, leaves chopped
  • 1 x 150g ball of buffalo mozzarella
Slice the aubergine into 1cm thick slices and set aside. Get the barbecue (or griddle pan) really hot. Meanwhile put some olive oil into a large pan and put onto a medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and dried oregano and cook for 10 minutes, until the onion is soft and the garlic has started to colour. Break up the tomatoes and add to the onion, garlic and oregano. Give it all a stir and cover and simmer slowly for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, barbecue the aubergines until lightly charred, in batches. When the tomato sauce is reduced, season it carefully with salt, pepper and a tiny bit of wine vinegar, and add the basil.

Put a small layer of tomato sauce is an earthenware dish, then a thin scattering of Parmesan, followed by a single layer of aubergines. Repeat until the ingredients are used, finishing with a little sauce and a good sprinkle of Parmesan. Tear the mozzarella over the top and scatter over the breadcrumbs. Bake the dish at 190°C/375°F/gas 5 for half an hour until golden and bubbling.

Nice!

(Original recipe from Jamie’s Italy published by Penguin Group, 2005)

Wine suggestion: a great way to match food and wine is to look at where the food comes from … in this case Northern Italy so a nice Barbera d’Asti would work a treat.

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