I'll just say it straight off, last night was lovely. There was nothing special, no going out, no seeing other people, in fact there was nothing to do but make some dinner, drink a reviving G&T (or two), and make up for the fact that our TV is still in Edinburgh by watching episodes of 'A Taste of my Life' on the internet (thank you BBC i-player). Have you seen this? Nigel Slater chats with people about their lives and their food memories. Last night we watched the episodes with Nigella and Sophie Dahl. The Nigella episode made me wish I was sitting eating with them and gave me a must try recipe of poached chicken with vegetables, rice, and saffron. The Sophie Dahl episode didn't make me as hungry but did make me a little jealous, not only is she incredibly beautiful but she is the granddaughter of the magical Roald Dahl who I credit with hooking me on reading from a very young age.
Prior to enjoying a spot of laptop watching we had a delicious and simple dinner. After not spending any time blog reading for a really long time I started catching up yesterday and in the process stumbled upon this recipe for sweet potatoes with a spicy olive and feta salad on 'Traveler's Lunchbox'. It seemed like exactly the sort of meal I wanted to make so off I went to the little Tesco near work to buy the ingredients but the only one they had was feta, not even a red onion to be found. So on the tube and over to Sainsbury's for a slightly more successful shopping trip but also some of the longest post-work supermarket queues I have ever seen. Anyway, shopping done and a bus journey home and I was ready to get started. I popped the potatoes in to bake, mixed together the salad ingredients, took a seat, waited for the potatoes to cook, split them, piled on the salad, and that was that. Easy and delicious and definitely one to be repeated in one guise or another. I'll just direct you to Melissa's page again for the recipe and for her photo as my attempt was pathetic and I was too hungry to persevere.
Thursday, 29 May 2008
Wednesday, 28 May 2008
SANTORINI
Last Thursday we came back to Earth with a bump after spending a week in one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Since then we have had people to stay so spent the, rather wet, weekend out and about before eventually realising that in almost two weeks we hadn't eaten a home cooked meal. I intend to start rectifying that very soon and have started to make amends with a few tasty but simple options that are not really worth writing about but were welcome just for the simple pleasure of eating food that wasn't chosen from a menu.
So, back to Santorini (I wish). After a week or so of beautiful weather in London we left a cold and rainy Gatwick (after a 4 hour delay) to arrive in sunshine. A, slightly too fast and slightly too scary, taxi to the hotel was made worthwhile by the first glimpse of the famous Caldera where we would be staying. An introduction to the cave house that would be ours for the week, and a change into summer clothes (oh joy), and we were ready to do absolutely nothing but look at the view, eat, and drink local wine. Santorini is the postcard view of Greece and I mean that quite literally, all those white walls, blue domes, and cats lolling about on roofs that overlook the sparkling blue of the Adriatic, it's all Oia, the small town we stayed in at the tip of the island. I recommend it to you all and leave you with some photos while I go and eat dinner, but more on that later (if it's good).
So, back to Santorini (I wish). After a week or so of beautiful weather in London we left a cold and rainy Gatwick (after a 4 hour delay) to arrive in sunshine. A, slightly too fast and slightly too scary, taxi to the hotel was made worthwhile by the first glimpse of the famous Caldera where we would be staying. An introduction to the cave house that would be ours for the week, and a change into summer clothes (oh joy), and we were ready to do absolutely nothing but look at the view, eat, and drink local wine. Santorini is the postcard view of Greece and I mean that quite literally, all those white walls, blue domes, and cats lolling about on roofs that overlook the sparkling blue of the Adriatic, it's all Oia, the small town we stayed in at the tip of the island. I recommend it to you all and leave you with some photos while I go and eat dinner, but more on that later (if it's good).
Sunday, 11 May 2008
AND BREATHE...
Well, I didn't intend to disappear for so long but since January life has been turned upside down and this feels like the first chance I have had to breathe and just be in almost four months.
For quite a long time we had been contemplating a move and after going backwards and forwards for an equally long time we both started to job hunt in London. So, shortly after my last post I had a few interviews and by the middle of February I had a job and then all of a sudden Chris did too. We spent a month packing boxes of kitchen paraphernalia, and any (large) number of books and records and headed south. From there on we had to contend with the flat rental nightmare of central London so stayed with our very patient friends (thank you all) and spent our free time eating in restaurants out of necessity, which gets very tiresome very quickly, and looking at flats. Just in case you're unsure moving 500 miles, starting new jobs and having nowhere to live really isn't that much fun and to top it all of it seemed to be the coldest April ever. Then, finally, the sun came out, we settled on the area we definitely wanted to live in (the decision helped along by an abundance of bakeries, small food shops, and Turkish restaurants), we found a flat, and as of last Tuesday we are in. Okay, so we haven't completely unpacked yet and all those boxes of books and records still need to be moved from Edinburgh but we can settle, briefly.
Last night we celebrated by taking ourselves off to Ottolenghi for plates of crisp salads, lemon sole, and king prawns. I would tell you what we ate in more detail but to be honest all I can remember apart from the taste is the bare bones of the ingredients and that wouldn't be doing it justice. It was delicious and relaxed and I would go again in a heartbeat although maybe for their renowned brunch next time if we can get through the door and only if you can have pudding after brunch because I don't think I would ever be able to ignore the counter overflowing with tarts, cakes, and meringues.
We are off on holiday to Santorini on Thursday but in the meantime I will be breaking out the pots and pans, opening up the few cookbooks that have been moved so far, and cooking.
For quite a long time we had been contemplating a move and after going backwards and forwards for an equally long time we both started to job hunt in London. So, shortly after my last post I had a few interviews and by the middle of February I had a job and then all of a sudden Chris did too. We spent a month packing boxes of kitchen paraphernalia, and any (large) number of books and records and headed south. From there on we had to contend with the flat rental nightmare of central London so stayed with our very patient friends (thank you all) and spent our free time eating in restaurants out of necessity, which gets very tiresome very quickly, and looking at flats. Just in case you're unsure moving 500 miles, starting new jobs and having nowhere to live really isn't that much fun and to top it all of it seemed to be the coldest April ever. Then, finally, the sun came out, we settled on the area we definitely wanted to live in (the decision helped along by an abundance of bakeries, small food shops, and Turkish restaurants), we found a flat, and as of last Tuesday we are in. Okay, so we haven't completely unpacked yet and all those boxes of books and records still need to be moved from Edinburgh but we can settle, briefly.
Last night we celebrated by taking ourselves off to Ottolenghi for plates of crisp salads, lemon sole, and king prawns. I would tell you what we ate in more detail but to be honest all I can remember apart from the taste is the bare bones of the ingredients and that wouldn't be doing it justice. It was delicious and relaxed and I would go again in a heartbeat although maybe for their renowned brunch next time if we can get through the door and only if you can have pudding after brunch because I don't think I would ever be able to ignore the counter overflowing with tarts, cakes, and meringues.
We are off on holiday to Santorini on Thursday but in the meantime I will be breaking out the pots and pans, opening up the few cookbooks that have been moved so far, and cooking.
Tuesday, 15 January 2008
ONE YEAR OLD
On Sunday this blog turned one and, if I'm honest, I didn't start it with much thought of what it would be like to write a blog, or to have people read it, but it's been fun so far and I've encountered some lovely people out there in food blog land so thanks to you all. This monumental (well, to me) day coincided nicely with a meal I had been planning where pudding, or more precisely a galette des roix, was to be the star of the show. I know this is a dish to celebrate epiphany and 13th January is not exactly epiphany but then I am not exactly religious so no need to get hung up on dates.
With a pudding planned involving a huge quantity of eggs, butter, sugar, and puff pastry I decided that light(ish) savoury courses were necessary so Nigella's pea and roast garlic soup with a dollop of creme fraiche to start.
PEA AND ROAST GARLIC SOUP
from 'Real Food' by Nigel Slater
serves 2 (I doubled it for 4)
a head of garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
200g frozen peas
25g butter
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
200ml vegetable or chicken stock, heated
150ml double cream, or to taste (I never use the cream but this time I added a dollop of creme fraiche to each bowl)
Lop the top off the head of garlic; you want to see the tops of the cloves just revealed in cross section. Cut out a square of foil, large enough to make a baggy parcel around the garlic. Sit the garlic in the middle of it and drizzle with the olive oil. Make a loose parcel around the garlic, sealing the edges of the foil. Put in an oven preheated to 200°C/Gas 6 for about an hour, until soft.
Cook the peas in boiling salted water as usual. Drain and tip into a food processor, squeeze in the soft cooked cloves of garlic, add the butter and Parmesan and half of the stock. Process to a creamy puree. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and add the remaining stock. Check the flavour and add cream to taste. Heat gently, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Pleasantly warmed through by the soup I followed this with fondue filled butternut squash served with green salad. On a Saturday afternoon bookshop browse I picked up Annie Bell's 'In My Kitchen' and was immediately drawn to this squash recipe and so, obviously, had to buy the book. I tend to fall back on favourites when I am feeding vegetarians so any appealing new recipe is great. This is delicious, easy, and can be prepared in advance. I'm a big fan of not having much left to do when people arrive so this ticks all my boxes.
Then the main event. This came courtesy of the very well connected Dorie Greenspan. I had a much easier looking Nigella recipe in 'Feast' but decided that if I was making a galette des rois I might as well make it properly so I made the almond cream, worked my non-existent arm muscles making the pastry cream, rolled out the pastry and filled it with the mix, constructed the galette, scored a pattern on the top, cut out a steam hole, and then I realised that I had completely forgotten to insert the feve so it had to be delicately pushed through the steam hole, not ideal.
I was nervous about making this. I am used to baking but this felt like more than a small step towards patisserie, very scary, but Dorie's recipe was simple to follow and has given me a boost of confidence to try some of the more complicated looking recipes from her lovely books. The galette was well risen, buttery and the inside delicious. Four of us polished it off with no difficulty and I was crowned Queen.
With a pudding planned involving a huge quantity of eggs, butter, sugar, and puff pastry I decided that light(ish) savoury courses were necessary so Nigella's pea and roast garlic soup with a dollop of creme fraiche to start.
PEA AND ROAST GARLIC SOUP
from 'Real Food' by Nigel Slater
serves 2 (I doubled it for 4)
a head of garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
200g frozen peas
25g butter
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
200ml vegetable or chicken stock, heated
150ml double cream, or to taste (I never use the cream but this time I added a dollop of creme fraiche to each bowl)
Lop the top off the head of garlic; you want to see the tops of the cloves just revealed in cross section. Cut out a square of foil, large enough to make a baggy parcel around the garlic. Sit the garlic in the middle of it and drizzle with the olive oil. Make a loose parcel around the garlic, sealing the edges of the foil. Put in an oven preheated to 200°C/Gas 6 for about an hour, until soft.
Cook the peas in boiling salted water as usual. Drain and tip into a food processor, squeeze in the soft cooked cloves of garlic, add the butter and Parmesan and half of the stock. Process to a creamy puree. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and add the remaining stock. Check the flavour and add cream to taste. Heat gently, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Pleasantly warmed through by the soup I followed this with fondue filled butternut squash served with green salad. On a Saturday afternoon bookshop browse I picked up Annie Bell's 'In My Kitchen' and was immediately drawn to this squash recipe and so, obviously, had to buy the book. I tend to fall back on favourites when I am feeding vegetarians so any appealing new recipe is great. This is delicious, easy, and can be prepared in advance. I'm a big fan of not having much left to do when people arrive so this ticks all my boxes.
Then the main event. This came courtesy of the very well connected Dorie Greenspan. I had a much easier looking Nigella recipe in 'Feast' but decided that if I was making a galette des rois I might as well make it properly so I made the almond cream, worked my non-existent arm muscles making the pastry cream, rolled out the pastry and filled it with the mix, constructed the galette, scored a pattern on the top, cut out a steam hole, and then I realised that I had completely forgotten to insert the feve so it had to be delicately pushed through the steam hole, not ideal.
I was nervous about making this. I am used to baking but this felt like more than a small step towards patisserie, very scary, but Dorie's recipe was simple to follow and has given me a boost of confidence to try some of the more complicated looking recipes from her lovely books. The galette was well risen, buttery and the inside delicious. Four of us polished it off with no difficulty and I was crowned Queen.
Wednesday, 9 January 2008
SHEPHERD'S PIE
One of my baby step resolutions is to stop remembering really simple recipes to try and then promptly putting them to the back of my mind. Believe it or not this is my first shepherd's pie. They were a staple of my Mum's cooking and my heart would sink whenever one appeared on the table. Don't ask me why but I had an irrational hatred of all food involving mince. Anyway, time passes and I grew up and came to realise that mince is actually a good thing and I made bolognese, and lasagna, and I said yum but somehow shepherd's pie and cottage pie stayed on my mental to do list
So, the weekend came and flicking through Tamasin's Kitchen Bible I found the shepherd's pie recipe and decided to finally make the leap. I reduced quantites of the mince to 500g but left everything else the same which resulted in slightly too much liquid in the pie and a volcanic eruption as it bubbled up around the edges of the potato but aside from that, and the equally volcanic temperature when we first took a bite, it was delicious and, sorry Mum, way better than the shepherd's pies I remember (although that is probably just my inner fussy child speaking).
So, the weekend came and flicking through Tamasin's Kitchen Bible I found the shepherd's pie recipe and decided to finally make the leap. I reduced quantites of the mince to 500g but left everything else the same which resulted in slightly too much liquid in the pie and a volcanic eruption as it bubbled up around the edges of the potato but aside from that, and the equally volcanic temperature when we first took a bite, it was delicious and, sorry Mum, way better than the shepherd's pies I remember (although that is probably just my inner fussy child speaking).
Thursday, 3 January 2008
HAPPY NEW YEAR
I know I am a little late with my New Year greeting but the first was not pretty. It took all my befuddled energy to make a bacon roll and then I curled up in a ball until finally plucking up the courage to order some Chinese food. Yesterday, also a public holiday in Scotland, was better. It was a cold and grey day but we still managed a long walk. So, here I am, on the third, settling back into normality and the only thing distracting me is the occasional snow shower which I wish would carry on just a bit longer and settle so that I can feel the crunch of snow under my feet.
Back to 2008 and as we all know, try as we might to avoid them, somehow those pesky ideas for resolutions still creep into your head and sow seeds of possible changes for the year ahead. I am going with baby step resolutions this year, eating more varied breakfasts (less reliance on cereal/muesli with skimmed milk) being one example, but I'll keep these to myself just now and I'll let you know when I cross any food related goals off my list.
I hope you all have a very happy and healthy 2008 x
Back to 2008 and as we all know, try as we might to avoid them, somehow those pesky ideas for resolutions still creep into your head and sow seeds of possible changes for the year ahead. I am going with baby step resolutions this year, eating more varied breakfasts (less reliance on cereal/muesli with skimmed milk) being one example, but I'll keep these to myself just now and I'll let you know when I cross any food related goals off my list.
I hope you all have a very happy and healthy 2008 x
Friday, 28 December 2007
CHRISTMAS BUBBLE AND SQUEAK
This year, for the first time, there were just two of us for Christmas. We had a luxuriously lazy brunch of smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, and bucks fizz. We went for a walk in the enjoyable calm of Christmas Day at a time when everyone else must have been sitting down to lunch and then we went home and cooked. I had planned to cook enough to guarantee leftovers and succeeded admirably in this aim (maybe a little too admirably but cold Christmas food is never bad). My main motivation in cooking enough veg to feed a small army, or at the very least a large family, was to make the Christmas bubble and squeak from 'Feast' which I had made and adored last year.
Nigella gives a recipe of sorts but you really just need to bung all of your leftover vegetables (I used roast potatoes, roast parsnips, carrots, and brussels sprouts) into a food processor with a spring onion or two for freshness, whizz it all up, and then add enough beaten egg to just bind the mixture; it should still be fairly solid so start with one egg and add another if this isn't enough. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and then add the mixture, cook slowly on the hob then finish the top under a medium grill. Mine took about 10 minutes on the hob and another 5 under the grill but obviously this depends on the relative size of your bubble and squeak. When it's cooked, slide the bubble and squeak out onto a plate and slice. Eat it with your cold roast meat or just on its own with a sprinkling of sea salt and some mayonnaise or chilli sauce for dipping.
Nigella gives a recipe of sorts but you really just need to bung all of your leftover vegetables (I used roast potatoes, roast parsnips, carrots, and brussels sprouts) into a food processor with a spring onion or two for freshness, whizz it all up, and then add enough beaten egg to just bind the mixture; it should still be fairly solid so start with one egg and add another if this isn't enough. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and then add the mixture, cook slowly on the hob then finish the top under a medium grill. Mine took about 10 minutes on the hob and another 5 under the grill but obviously this depends on the relative size of your bubble and squeak. When it's cooked, slide the bubble and squeak out onto a plate and slice. Eat it with your cold roast meat or just on its own with a sprinkling of sea salt and some mayonnaise or chilli sauce for dipping.
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