Super Fiery Slaw

Coleslaw... mmm... it's either love or hate... I am in love! Over the last few months I have been on a mission to emulate a coleslaw that I ate in a tiny American style eatery... tried a variety of different dressings, some of which worked but none had the wow factor. I was out looking for a new book to read and came across the recipe book for Pitt Cu & Co., the very place whose slaw I was so enthralled by! Happy heart indeed! Took some mental notes and vowed to make it immediately. By the time I got home, much was forgotten in memory and shopping except for a few ingredients, definitely got the gist of it anyhow! This recipe is for a magical, scrumptious, serious coleslaw. I have chosen to use red cabbage only and have used much less mayonnaise than I remember being called for. I don't enjoy anything drowning in the stuff as it can be truly overpowering, but it does help to tone down the chilli. This is a sensational side dish and can be eaten immediately or over a couple of days. It is definitely more Asian than American and seems slightly counter intuitive but the flavours work incredibly together. Makes a great side for a summer bbq, perfect with everything else too.

Recipe (adapted from Pitt Cu & Co.)

1 medium red cabbage

1 tbsp crushed garlic

1 tbsp grated ginger

1 tsp brown sugar

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp soya sauce

1 medium green chilli

zest and juice of one lime

small bunch coriander

Cut the cabbage in half, remove the hard white piece of stem at the bottom and finely slice the cabbage evenly, starting at the top. Place cabbage into a large mixing bowl. Char grill the chilli over an open flame or in a very hot pan. To make the dressing mix together garlic, ginger, sugar, zest and juice of the lime. Add the chilli and blitz it all together, alternatively hand chop the chilli as finely as possible. Add the soya sauce and mayonnaise. You should have a thickish dressing that is really very fiery. Pour over the cabbage and toss together until thoroughly coated. Lastly add in some chopped coriander.

Broad Bean and Lentil Salad

After an awfully long time with no computer courtesy of some ruddy thieves, I am finally managing to publish a post! Thank you all for bearing with me and continuing to read and reference oh so buttery, hope to make up for some seriously lost time! So much to share about travelling and culinary discoveries, I feel I've had a whole lifetime since I last wrote. First, something super easy and delicious...

Summer has finally arrived and London is sweltering, basking in thirty degree heat with no clouds in sight. Almost can't believe it, truly spectacular... picnics at every opportunity!

With this glorious weather comes the most beautiful produce, grown here in abundance. Broad beans are just such a lovely variety of the beans out there. Fat and succulent emerald jewels resting in large puffy pods. They are incredibly versatile, can be added to pastas, salads, made into purees, the list goes on. Here is a salad I make frequently in which any ingredient can be substituted depending on seasonal availability. The basics are always brown lentils, onion of some kind, coriander, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Recently I discovered the joys of adding dried cranberries and radishes. In this version I've used fiery radish sprouts, use regular salad radishes if you can't get your hands on these little babes. Make a large bowl and allow to develop in the fridge for a few hours before eating. It keeps well and gets more delicious over time.

Recipe 

100g brown lentils

60g quinoa, plain or mixed colours

3 spring onions, finely sliced

handful radish sprouts or 6/7 salad radishes quartered

handful dried cranberries or sour cherries or a bit of both

good bunch of coriander, roughly chopped

100g fresh broad beans, podded

juice of 1-2 lemons

lots of olive oil

salt and pepper

small red chilli, finely chopped

Boil lentils and quinoa in plenty of water separately until tender but not mushy, drain and rinse in plenty of cold water. Boil broad beans for about 5 minutes and then plunge into cold water to stop them cooking any further. Remove the skins as these are usually very tough, just tear the skin and pop the bean out. Put all the ingredients into a big bowl and mix together thoroughly, season with salt, pepper and add as much lemon juice and olive oil to suit your taste. The salad should be glossy and have a good balance of flavors. Add more of any ingredient if you feel there isn't enough. 

Hot and Sour Quinoa Soup

Spring should have sprung but the winter weather is just not abating.... it has been truly grim. The shelves are still providing us with various types of cabbage, potatoes and produce flying in from afar. If you are the type of cook who chooses seasonality over variety it has been a very long season indeed! Hot soups and stews are still very much on the menu and I am just longing to eat salads and drink rose in our tiny garden.... alas we must be patient and wait a littler longer.

This soup is a beautiful combination of crunchy vegetables, nutty quinoa and a fragrant hot and sour broth. A version of it was made for me by a friend a few years ago and since then it has featured regularly. I cant actually remember the recipe she used so this recipe is one I have adapted over time. It is so easy to make and is great when the fridge is looking a tad bare and you have the odd carrot and leek lolling about. Quinoa is one of my favourite grains and I cook it far too rarely, this soup brings out its delicious flavour and adds wonderful texture. It is a complete meal in a bowl and lovely with some whole grain bread or crispy crackers. I am ridiculously addicted to Finn Crisp, thin rye crisp breads that I could eat with everything. You can also add a final gilding of yoghurt and coriander when serving. 

Recipe

1 large carrot

1 medium green leek

an inch of fresh ginger

1 red chilli, sliced

half a tsp fennel seeds

1 tin chopped tomatoes

1 Lt vegetable or chicken stock

juice of a lemon

2 cloves garlic, crushed

60g quinoa

olive oil

salt and pepper

Prepare quinoa: two parts water to one part quinoa, bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until tender. In the meantime julienne the carrots and thinly slice the ginger into tiny match sticks. In a heavy saucepan, heat about a tablespoon of olive oil and add the fennel seeds, allow to sizzle. Add chilli, ginger and garlic, fry for a couple of minutes until garlic is just turning golden. Add carrots and warm through. Add tomatoes, stock and lemon juice. Bring to the boil and reduce heat, simmer for 5 minutes. Add finely sliced leeks and quinoa, again bring to the boil and then allow to simmer for a further 10-15 minutes. Keep the cooking time quite short to help the vegetables retain some crunch. Season with salt and pepper and add a teaspoon of sugar if the broth is too tart. There should be a lovely balance between the hotness from the chilli and the sourness of the lemon, adapt to suit your taste.

Bakewell Tart

Living on this grey and green isle has exposed me to the most incredible array of things, not least of which has been to the humble Bakewell tart. It is a traditional English confection which is completely delicious and comes in the form of a rich tart or pudding made from pastry, jam and an eggy almond filling. I love the simplicity of this tart and the satisfaction it delivers is well worth making pastry for. Strawberry jam can be used but this recipe uses raspberry jam for tartness and also calls for lemon zest to lift the richness of the frangipane filling. There are varying recipes, with fillings that are more sponge like and others that are custardy. This once is a luscious affair. It keeps really well for a few days and makes the best tea time treat. It's hard not to smile....

 

Recipe (Olive Magazine)

Pastry

125g plain flour

75g unsalted butter

25g castor sugar

1 egg yolk

2-3 tbsp cold water

Put all the dry ingredients in a food processor and blitz until the mix resembles fine bread crumbs. Add the egg yolk and a tablespoon of water, pulse again and add more water if necessary until the dough just comes together. Don't over process it, as this will result in tough pastry. Knead lightly and press down into a thick disc. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Once chilled, roll out to about 5mm thick and line a 20cm flan tin. Return to the fridge for a further 30 minutes before baking.

Filling

150g butter, softened

150g castor sugar

150g ground almonds

3 eggs and 1 egg yolk, beaten

zest of a lemon

2-3 tbsp raspberry jam

1 tbsp flaked almonds

Preheat oven to 190C. Line the pastry case with baking paper and fill with baking beans or dried beans. Bake blind for 15-20 minutes, remove paper and beans, return to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes until the base is cooked through and golden. Remove from the oven and reduce temperature to 180C. To make the filling: cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, add egg very gradually to avoid mixture splitting, beating well after each addition. Fold in almonds and lemon zest. Spread jam over the base of the pastry case. If you have a piping bag, fill it with the almond frangipane and pipe the mixture evenly over the jam. Smooth top with a knife. If you don't have a piping bag, cover the jam very carefully with the almond frangipane to avoid the jam from moving towards the sides. Bake for 15-20 minutes and then sprinkle with the flaked almonds. Return to the oven and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until golden and set. Allow to cool before serving.

Courgette and Aubergine Lasagne

There is something utterly delicious about lasagnes, meat or vegetable. This is a delicate and light alternative to the usual rich and creamy recipes. It has been inspired by my love of melanzane parmigiana and is refreshingly stress free to make. I have used a fresh tomato and garlic sauce, which lifts it from the heavy depths of traditionally cooked ones, and without the need for bechamel there are no lengthly cooking processes. This skinny gem is just layers of grilled vegetables, fresh sauce, grated mozzarella and lasagne sheets. Use good quality egg lasagne sheets, that are as thin as possible, I don't precook them but rather allow the sauce to do the job. Cool for five to ten minutes before serving and enjoy with a salad. 

Recipe

1-2 large aubergines

2-3 large courgettes

6 medium tomatoes

1 large garlic clove

olive oil

lasagne sheets

mozzarella, grated

sea salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 200C. Slice aubergines and courgettes into about 5mm slices. Place aubergine slices into a colander with some salt and allow to stand for 10-15 minutes. Brush off salt before using. Heat a heavy pan medium to high, grill courgettes and aubergines until golden and slightly charred. There is no need to use any oil, the heat from the pan will help steam the vegetables and after a couple of minutes the slices should come away easily from the surface. Grill in batches and set aside until needed.  In a food processor, blitz together tomatoes and garlic. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, half a cup of water and some salt and pepper. Blitz again.

Drizzle a baking dish with some olive oil and begin to assemble the lasagne. Start with a layer of tomato sauce, layer with a few slices of aubergine and courgette, sprinkle with mozzarella and add another thin layer of tomato sauce. Then layer with lasagne sheets and repeat process another three times. The top layer should have cheese as the final topping, you can add some extra mozzarella and grated parmesan. Finally grind some pepper over the top. Bake for 20-30 minutes until cooked through, golden and puffy.

Spinach Tart

This tart is my childhood in a dish, it is also the ultimate show stopping spinach and cheese pie. My mum used to make this on most special occasions and she is still well known for it. The other day I was reminded of this stunner when speaking to her, so I made it as a tribute to some of my most precious memories. Nestling inside a crisp puff pastry shell, the filling is a pillowy mixture of spinach and three cheeses in a bechamel sauce enriched with eggs. The key is to bake it in a hot oven so the base is well cooked and crisp too. You can adjust the amounts of feta and cheddar if you prefer something richer, but the quantities below produce a pretty perfect pie. It is best served hot and goes beautifully with a selection of salads.

Recipe (adapted from Myrna Rosen) 

500g puff pastry

500g frozen spinach

100g feta cheese, crumbled

250g cottage cheese

100g strong cheddar, grated

250ml double cream

250ml milk

2 eggs, slightly beaten

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

half and onion, grated

salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 225C. Roll out puff pastry to about 5mm thick and use about 300g to line a 25cm deep fluted tin or pie dish. Return to the fridge until needed. Keep the rest of the rolled pastry aside under a damp cloth to stop it from drying out. Defrost spinach by heating it on the stove and cool down rapidly in ice cold water. Remove excess water by squeezing spinach out well and set aside until needed. To make the filling: saute onion in butter until soft in a medium saucepan, add flour and allow to cook until the mixture resembles beach sand. Add milk and cream gradually to make a bechamel sauce, keep whisking to avoid lumps forming. Take off the heat and add eggs very slowly, mixing constantly to avoid scrambling. Return to the heat and allow to thicken. Turn off heat, add all the cheeses and the spinach, mix together well and then season to taste. Check the salt carefully as the cheese will also provide much of the salt. Spoon into the pastry shell and spread evenly. Cut the remaining pastry into strips about an inch wide. Create a lattice over the filling using the pastry strips. Brush with egg yolk. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until golden and puffy. Serve hot. 

Welsh Cakes

A friend of mine once told me that a baker who doesn't do currants makes for quite a contradiction. I have always had a difficult time with these tiny dried up grapes and it has indeed taken me a while to accept them and their fatter cousins into my baking bowl. Currants and raisins have long been picked out of every dish and delight since I can remember but no more! I am finally a fan and love their sweet bursts of chewy flavour. 

Welsh cakes are delicious drop scones cooked on a griddle until blisteringly golden. They are simple, made with cupboard staples and are truly scrummy. I found it very hard not to eat them all just hot off the stove. Traditionally they are made on cast iron griddles but if you don't have one of these, any heavy pan with a flat base will do. Make sure the heat is low to medium so they cook through without burning, they do catch quite easily so keep an eye on them. Serve them warm with lots of butter, honey or jam... they are also fab without adornment. We had them for breakfast and for tea, divine!

Recipe 

225g self raising flour

110g butter

75g castor sugar

75g currants or sultanas

zest of half a lemon

1 medium egg

splash of milk

half a teaspoon mixed spice

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl and rub in butter until crumbly. Add fruit and zest, mix through. Beat the egg and add it to the mixture, bring into a dough and if it seems too dry add a splash of milk. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to about 5mm thick. Cut into rounds with a medium sized cookie cutter or using a glass. Keep re-rolling the excess dough until it has all been used up. Grease the pan with butter and place on a low to medium heat. Cook the cakes in batches for about 3 minutes a side until slightly risen, crisp and golden. If they are browning too quickly turn the heat down.