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Posts Tagged ‘Summer’

Warm Tomato, Mustard & Gruyère Tart

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 26 August 2018| Leave a Comment »

Tomato, onion & pepper tart

This tart is bursting with summer flavours and the pastry is fabulously light and crisp. Delicious for lunch with a green salad.

Wine Suggestion: We drank the Rocca delle Macie Chianti Vernaiolo with this; unoaked, fresh and vibrant, especially as we’d put it in the fridge for 20 minutes. While not weighty or serious it does have loads of depth and length… perfect for this dish.

Warm tomato, mustard & gruyère tart – serves 4

  • 1 red pepper, sliced
  • 1 onion, peeled, halved & sliced
  • 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 100g gruyère cheese, grated
  • 4-5 vine tomatoes, thinly sliced
  • a handful of black olives, pitted and halved
  • a small handful of basil leaves

PASTRY:

  • 200g plain flour
  • 100g cold butter
  • 50g Grana Padano or Parmesan, finely grated
  • 1 egg

First make the pastry by whizzing the flour and butter in a food processor until it looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the cheese, then the egg and bring together to make a dough. Wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

To make the filling, cook the pepper and onion in a tbsp of olive oil for about 15 minutes or until very soft, then season.

Heat the oven to 190C/Fan 170C/Gas 5.

Roll out the pastry to the thickness of a euro. Line a shallow tart tin (about 23cm) with the pastry, fill with baking parchment and beans, and blind bake for 10 minutes. Take out the paper and beans and bake for another 5 minutes.

Allow the pastry case to cool a little, then spread the base with the Dijon and sprinkle over the Gruyère. Top with the pepper mixture, then a layer of tomato slices and the olives. Season really well and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until the tomatoes are tender and the pastry crisp. Scatter the basil over before serving.

(Original recipe from BBC Olive Magazine, September 2009.)

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Summer Soupe au Pistou

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Soup, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 15 August 2018| 1 Comment »

Summer Soupe au Pistou

A lovely fresh-tasting soup full of veg and basil – smells just like summer.

Summer soupe au pistou – serves 4 to 6

  • 1 leek, chopped
  • 1 large potato, peeled and chopped
  • 1 celery stick, chopped
  • 1.7 litres of chicken stock (or vegetable stock if you prefer)
  • 2 courgettes, chopped
  • 225g green beans, chopped into short lengths
  • 225g drained tinned haricot beans (or use another white bean)
  • 12 cherry tomatoes, quartered
  • 2 tbsp chopped parsley
  • 2 bunches of basil
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 125ml extra virgin olive oil
  • grated Parmesan, to serve

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pot and gently cook the leek, potato and celery for 5 minutes.

Add the chicken stock, season well and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the courgettes, green beans, haricot beans and cherry tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender, then add the parsley.

To make the pistou: whizz the basil and garlic with some seasoning in a blender then gradually add the olive oil.

Top the soup with the pistou and Parmesan.

(Original recipe from Food from Plenty by Diana Henry, Mitchell Beazley, 2010.)

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Three Hour Shoulder of Lamb

Posted in Food, Gluten-free, Lamb, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 1 September 2017| 3 Comments »

Three hour shoulder of lamb

A delicious summer roast with meltingly tender lamb and so simple to prepare. Serve with a fresh mint sauce and some steamed new potatoes.

Wine Suggestion: We tried two wines with great success: the Rustenberg Chardonnay from South Africa, and the Chateau du Hureau “Fevettes” Saumur-Champigny. Both had the needed structure, or bones, to stand up to the rich lamb, but also played a delightful fresh mid-weight tune with the summer veg.

Three hour shoulder of lamb – serves 4

  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp oregano, roughly chopped
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 shoulder of lamb, boned and tied, approx 1½ kg
  • 400g pearl onions or shallots
  • 250ml lamb stock
  • 100g fresh/frozen peas
  • 100g fresh/frozen broad beans
  • 2 Little Gem lettuces, cut into quarters
  • juice 1 lemon
  • small handful mint or coriander, roughly chopped

Preheat your oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 1.

Mix the garlic, oregano and olive oil with some salt and pepper. Make cuts all over the the lamb with a sharp knife and rub the mixture into the meat. Put into a deep casserole dish with the onions and pour over the stock, cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook 3 hrs.

Remove the lamb from the pot and stir through the peas and broad beans. Sit the lamb back on top of the vegetables and return to the oven. Increase temperature to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and roast, uncovered, for another 20-30 mins until the lamb is browned, adding the lettuce for the final 5 mins. Allow to rest for 20 mins, then add the lemon juice and mint to the cooking juices. Carve into thick slices and lay them back on top of the veg to serve.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

 

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Summer Risotto

Posted in Food, Italian, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 14 September 2016| 2 Comments »

Summer risotto

On a balmy summer evening we podded local broad beans and picked some french beans from the vines in our back yard. We used a stock made from a previously roasted chicken which was subsequently used to poach chicken fillets for a Coronation Chicken. The only thing out of place were the frozen peas, but we think unless you pick the pods fresh and eat them almost immediately, frozen is often best. This is based on a risotto primavera or Spring risotto which usually contains asparagus.

Wine Suggestion: a fresh, summery Godello caught our eye. The La Sonrisa de Tares from Bierzo had enough weight to balance the starchy creaminess and depth of the Parmesan while a lovely textural freshness and summery zing made the beans and peas sing with all their fresh flavours.

Summer Risotto – serves 4

  • 200g shelled broad beans (you will need about 800g of broad beans in their pods to get this quantity or you can use frozen broad beans, defrosted)
  • 2 large shallots, finely chopped
  • 4 scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 250g green beans, trimmed and cut into short lengths
  • 1.5 litres home-made chicken stock (you might not need it all)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 80g butter
  • 350g Carnaroli or other risotto rice
  • 100ml dry white wine
  • 140g frozen peas
  • 100g Parmesan, finely grated

Start by double podding the broad beans so you are left with bright green beans. To do this just blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes, then drain and squeeze to remove the papery skin. If you’re using frozen beans you might be able to remove the skins when defrosted without having to blanch first.

Put the stock into a large pot and bring to a simmer.

Heat the oil and 40g butter in a wide heavy pan with a lid. Cook the shallot, scallions & garlic for a few minutes until soft and transparent but don’t let them brown. Add the rice and keep stirring for a few minutes until the rice is hot and starting to sizzle, then pour in the wine. Continue to stir until the wine has evaporated.

Now start gradually adding the stock, a ladleful at a time. Only add another ladleful when the previous one has been absorbed by the rice. Continue stirring and adding the stock for 14 minutes, then add the broad beans and peas with some salt and black pepper. Meanwhile, cook the green beans in the simmering stock for 6 minutes or until soft, then add these to the rice too. Continue stirring and adding stock until the risotto has a creamy texture and the rice is soft but retains a little bite.

Remove the pan from the heat and add half the parmesan, the rest of the butter and one last splash of stock to retain the moisture. Put the lid on the pan and leave to rest for a few minutes off the heat. Serve with the rest of the Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

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Summer Chickpea & Tomato Salad

Posted in Food, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 29 July 2013| 2 Comments »

We’ve eaten this as a side salad, and on it’s own with crusty bread –  a summery meal in its own right! As always the quality of the tomatoes will really make this dish sing.

You should assemble most of this dish a bit in advance to allow the flavours to develop, then add the herbs and feta cheese just before serving.

Wine Suggestion: Try to find a youthful Italian red that echo’s the sunshine of this dish. We drank a Dolcetto d’Alba from Pira Luigi that had a joy and vitality, but reds from the Marche, Abruzzo and other central Italian regions should be a delight too. If you’re pushing the boat out go for a Rosso di Montalcino.

Summer Chickpea Salad – to serve 4

  • 1 small red onion, finely sliced
  • 1-2 small red chillies, deseeded and finely sliced
  • 2 handfuls of ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 2 lemons
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 x 410g tin of chickpeas, drained
  • a handful of fresh mint, chopped
  • a handful of  basil, finely torn
  • 200g feta cheese

Mix the tomatoes (including any juice) with the onion and chillies in a large bowl. Dress with the juice of 1½ lemons and lots of good olive oil. Season to taste.

Heat the chickpeas in a pan, then add almost all of them to the bowl. Mush up the remaining chickpeas before adding them as well. Allow to marinate for a while at room temperature.

Add the herbs and check the seasoning just before serving – you can add a bit more lemon juice if necessary. Put the salad in a serving dish and crumble the feta cheese over the top.

(Original recipe from Jamie’s Dinners by Jamie Oliver, Penguin Books, 2004.)

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Italian Summer Avocado and Prawn Salad

Posted in Food, Healthy, Shellfish, tagged , , , , , , , on 6 June 2011| 2 Comments »

It’s avocado season and we have a big bag of prawns in the freezer. This is one of two prawn and avocado salads we’ve tried in the last few days. The seasoned pistachios make this one a bit special. We loved it.

Avocado and prawn salad (Insalata di avocado e gamberetti)

  • 50g pistachio nuts, shelled and chopped
  • 2 avocados
  • juice of a lemon
  • 200g cooked peeled prawns
  • olive oil
  • salt and white pepper
Mix the pistachios with a pinch of pepper in a bowl.
Peel, half and stone the avocados. Slice them thinly and drizzle with the lemon juice.
Put the avocado in a salad bowl, add the prawns and stir gently.
Sprinkle the pistachios over, season lightly with salt, drizzle with oil and serve.
Wine Suggestion: Try a dry Gasgogny rose (ours was Domaine de Pellehaut from Mitchell & Son on offer for €7.95. Bargain!)
(Original recipe from ‘Recipes from an Italian Summer’ published by Phaidon)

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