S has rediscovered udon noodles in a big way - currently, they are (almost, besides gorgonzola pasta) his favourite thing. Times have changed from when he bought a packet and they lay unused for almost a year... Last night I was heading home before him and asked for dinner suggestions. He said udon (naturally), and followed up with coconut (inspired, I think, by a soup we had at the Thai place at the end of our road the other night). I started thinking about all the lovely aromatics we had squirreled in the freezer (lemongrass, galangal, ginger...) and the tin of coconut milk I had left over from my abandoned kefir experiments, and realised it was a brilliant idea!
1 star anise
~2 tbsp chopped lemongrass
2 inch piece galangal, peeled and sliced
2 inch piece ginger, peeled and chopped into matchsticks
2 dried red chillies
1-2 lime leaves (optional)
good handful of fresh coriander, chopped (stalky parts and leafy parts separated)
1 tin coconut milk
~1-2 tbsp light soy sauce
juice of 1 lime
water
hot chilli sauce
2 (single serving) packets of udon
1 small onion, peeled and sliced lengthways into bitesize pieces
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into coins
1/2 a pack of extra firm tofu, drained and chopped into ~2 x 2 x 1 cm chunks
3 large-ish button mushrooms, trimmed and chopped into sixths lengthwise
3 smallish tomatoes, cut into sixths (or use cherry tomatoes)
Put the star anise, lemongrass, galangal, ginger, dried chillies, lime leaves (if using) and the stalky bits of coriander into a saucepan and add the coconut milk, soy sauce, and lime juice. Add ~1-2 cups of water and bring gently to a simmer. Taste for saltiness, acid, thickness/intensity of coconut milk, and add more soy sauce, lime juice or boiling water accordingly. Put in the udon, onion, carrots and tofu and bring back up to a simmer. Turn off and let sit for 10 minutes or so before checking the flavour balance again. Adjust as before, also add a few drops of hot sauce if you think it needs to be spicier. A few minutes before serving, add the mushrooms, tomatoes, and the leafy parts of the coriander. Bring back up to simmering point, check all the vegetables and the udon are cooked, turn off the heat and serve the soup. Avoid eating the star anise, the big pieces of galangal, and the dried chillies.
Really good. Quick (veg preparation the most time consuming step), and super easy / minimal washing up - just one board, one knife and one big pan (besides bowls and spoon+forks). Most of the stuff is either always in the storecupboard or basic veg and herbs. Veg could be varied (brassicas nice); as could noodles / it could be served with rice on the side instead. Lovely, warming, filling, aromatic and comforting for a cold, cold, end-of-year day.
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Japanese chestnut rice (kurigohan)
We had one bag of chestnuts already. I cut crosses in them and roasted them. They were good, but also injurious. Bravely / foolishly S bought a second bag of chestnuts, and I prepared them.
I was at D+K's place right before prepping the first bag, and they also had some chestnuts. K was soaking them, which I'd never seen before. She's Japanese, so I wondered if it might have to do with some Japanese preparation... I stumbled across Kurigohan (Japanese chestnut rice) - basically just Japanese rice cooked with chestnuts - and figured since it was so simple it had to be amazing. Also, the soaking might help alleviate injury risk since the shells would be softened and perhaps easier to cut into? I used this recipe.
~20 medium chestnuts*
2 1/4 cups sushi rice
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sake (a gift from KC after my aerial performance - s+i drank the rest and it was truly delicious)
1 tsp salt
1 piece konbu (used half a sheet of sushi seaweed as that's what we had)
2 2/3 cups water
black sesame seeds
chopped spring onion greens
Soak the whole chestnuts in boiling water for about 30 min.
Meanwhile, rinse the rice and then soak it (separately) in cold water for 30 min.
When the chestnuts have soaked, remove them from the hot water one by one, score the shells and remove them. Take care to remove the whole of the inner shell layer even though it is tricky - it is bitter. If it doesn't come off easily put the chestnut (minus outer shell) back in the hot water for a few more minutes. When they are peeled put back in the hot water for a few minutes. Don't expect to complete this step quickly - it is slow and fiddly.
When the chestnuts are all peeled, rinse them and rinse the soaked rice and put the rice in a large saucepan. Add the water, soy sauce, mirin, sake and salt and mix. Put the chestnuts on top, then lay the seaweed on top of them, cover and simmer gently for 20-30 min, until the liquid is all absorbed and the rice is tender. Turn off the heat and leave, covered, to steam for ~10 min. To serve, sprinkle individual servings with black sesame seeds and chopped spring onion greens (if you want).
Note: We have figured out a more weeknight-ready version. For this, roast the chestnuts whenever you have the oven on, peel and keep in the fridge til you want to make the rice. Dispense with all the soaking. When ready to make, put rice, soy, mirin, sake (or more mirin), salt and water in a pan and mix; crumble chestnuts on top and lay seaweed on top of that. Cook as above (perhaps a little longer).
This is amazing. The rice acts as a vehicle to extend the wonderful sweet/nutty chestnut flavour, and the textures of the two together are really comforting and more-ish. The recipe made quite a lot but S loved it so that is not a problem... Note, the chestnuts tended to break up when I mixed it all together in the end, which I think is good as means better distribution of chestnut pieces - so it really doesn't matter if they break when peeling.
*I suspect the original uses Asian chestnuts, due to its origin... Apparently there are Asian, European and American chestnut varieties, and although all quite similar they are different. And the American chestnut is almost extinct due to a disease it caught from the Asian one (in Brookline?!). So these were probably 0European, possibly Asian. I need to corroborate all of this!
I was at D+K's place right before prepping the first bag, and they also had some chestnuts. K was soaking them, which I'd never seen before. She's Japanese, so I wondered if it might have to do with some Japanese preparation... I stumbled across Kurigohan (Japanese chestnut rice) - basically just Japanese rice cooked with chestnuts - and figured since it was so simple it had to be amazing. Also, the soaking might help alleviate injury risk since the shells would be softened and perhaps easier to cut into? I used this recipe.
~20 medium chestnuts*
2 1/4 cups sushi rice
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sake (a gift from KC after my aerial performance - s+i drank the rest and it was truly delicious)
1 tsp salt
1 piece konbu (used half a sheet of sushi seaweed as that's what we had)
2 2/3 cups water
black sesame seeds
chopped spring onion greens
Soak the whole chestnuts in boiling water for about 30 min.
Meanwhile, rinse the rice and then soak it (separately) in cold water for 30 min.
When the chestnuts have soaked, remove them from the hot water one by one, score the shells and remove them. Take care to remove the whole of the inner shell layer even though it is tricky - it is bitter. If it doesn't come off easily put the chestnut (minus outer shell) back in the hot water for a few more minutes. When they are peeled put back in the hot water for a few minutes. Don't expect to complete this step quickly - it is slow and fiddly.
When the chestnuts are all peeled, rinse them and rinse the soaked rice and put the rice in a large saucepan. Add the water, soy sauce, mirin, sake and salt and mix. Put the chestnuts on top, then lay the seaweed on top of them, cover and simmer gently for 20-30 min, until the liquid is all absorbed and the rice is tender. Turn off the heat and leave, covered, to steam for ~10 min. To serve, sprinkle individual servings with black sesame seeds and chopped spring onion greens (if you want).
Note: We have figured out a more weeknight-ready version. For this, roast the chestnuts whenever you have the oven on, peel and keep in the fridge til you want to make the rice. Dispense with all the soaking. When ready to make, put rice, soy, mirin, sake (or more mirin), salt and water in a pan and mix; crumble chestnuts on top and lay seaweed on top of that. Cook as above (perhaps a little longer).
This is amazing. The rice acts as a vehicle to extend the wonderful sweet/nutty chestnut flavour, and the textures of the two together are really comforting and more-ish. The recipe made quite a lot but S loved it so that is not a problem... Note, the chestnuts tended to break up when I mixed it all together in the end, which I think is good as means better distribution of chestnut pieces - so it really doesn't matter if they break when peeling.
*I suspect the original uses Asian chestnuts, due to its origin... Apparently there are Asian, European and American chestnut varieties, and although all quite similar they are different. And the American chestnut is almost extinct due to a disease it caught from the Asian one (in Brookline?!). So these were probably 0European, possibly Asian. I need to corroborate all of this!
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Christmas: Nut loaf
Turns out S had never eaten a nut roast. So, almost as a joke, I made one for our Christmas lunch. I liked the idea of incorporating parsnips (double the Christmassiness) and when I came across this recipe I decided it was the one. I interpreted the ingredient list pretty loosely, using up various nuts etc we had lying around.
300g parsnips, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
100g walnuts
90g unsalted cashews (used mixture of cashews and almonds)
200g breadcrumbs
100g pine nuts (used mixture of slivered almonds and sunflower seeds)
~2 tsp crumbled dried rosemary
~2 tsp crumbled dried sage
~ 1/2 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper
50g cranberries (used ~2 tbsp dried sour cherries, rehydrated by soaking in ~ 2 tbsp boiling water)
1 egg (or 1 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 2.5 tbsp boiling water)
another ~1 tbsp olive oil
cranberry chutney or sauce (and a few sprigs of fresh rosemary or parsley) to serve
Heat the oven to 180C / 356F. Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the parsnips until tender. In a frying pan heat 1 tbsp olive oil, add the onion and garlic and cook until softened.
Meanwhile, pulse the walnuts and cashews in a blender until roughly chopped and then mix with the breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Add the onions, garlic, pine nuts, rosemary, sage, nutmeg, sour cherries or cranberries and seasoning to the mix. Then beat in the egg.
When the parsnips are tender, drain and mash roughly with ~1 tbsp olive oil. Add the parsnip mash to the rest of the mixture. Grease a large loaf tin (and maybe line the base*), then press the mixture into it. Bake for 50-55 min, until set. Let cool for ten min, then turn out.
To serve, warm up some cranberry sauce with some added fresh cranberries (or use cranberry chutney), spoon it over the top of the nut roast, and decorate with cranberries and fresh herbs (I used two cranberries and a piece of parsley to make some kitschy-looking pretend holly.
This was really surprisingly good - deliciously crunchy around the edges but tender in the middle. Quite nutty and appetising, although the parsnips got a bit lost - another time I might mash them less or not at all. Definitely needed some sauce - luckily I had some cranberry chutney squirreled away, which was perfect (suddenly I see the point of all that preserving through Summer and Autumn - instant food in Winter!).
*I didn't grease or anything at all and it stuck to the base a little bit - not horrendously but a bit (I suspected it might, but thought I'd try the minimal effort route first). To avoid this, I'd definitely try greasing; potentially also lining the base.
Christmas: Lion's Mane 'crab' cakes
A gave me a bag full of Lion's Mane for my birthday. A very thoughtful (and tasty) present. I managed to take it home with me from the party (after rescuing from a drunken food-marauder), and then decided it was appropriately fancy to become part of our Christmas meal.
When I cooked it previously I wasn't too enamoured of the texture of it just sauteed. Also, this bagful was quite wet. So roasting seemed to be a smart place to start. Then I remembered seeing that Mycoterra Farm (who grew them) often use them to make 'crab' cakes. So I looked up a recipe and thought this one (and this one) sounded like exactly the right kind of thing.
(makes six little cakes)
To roast:
200-400g (approx 1/2 lb) Lion's Mane
~2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
salt+pepper
Rest of the cake ingredients:
2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise (used vegan cream cheese as we had some leftover from the birthday cake S made me)
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 egg*
~ 1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp paprika
~ 2 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
coconut oil for frying
For the sauce:
3 tbsp vegan cream cheese (or vegan mayonnaise - reduce the lemon juice a bit if using)
1 tsp olive oil
1-2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp white pepper
~1 tbsp cider vinegar
pea-sized blob of wasabi
few drops hot sauce
~1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
Heat the oven to 350F. Tear the Lion's Mane into little pieces and put in a roasting dish. Add the whole garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper and roast for 30-40 min, until the garlic is cooked, much of the liquid has evaporated, and the mushroom is brown. Remove from the oven.
While the mushroom is in the oven you can make the sauce - mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl with a fork. Taste for salt, pepper and acid and check consistency.
Mix the Lion's Mane (and roasted garlic - be sure to chop and/or mash up so it can spread through the mixture) together with the remaining cake ingredients in a mixing bowl. Shape into little round burger shapes. Heat coconut oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the cakes until browned on both sides. Eat while hot.
These were quite successful. S really liked them (especially the sauce), and while the total prep might be a bit much for an average day, the roasting method seemed to be a good way of cooking the Lion's Mane - better than sauteeing.
*think linseed-water mixture would be a fine vegan substitute
When I cooked it previously I wasn't too enamoured of the texture of it just sauteed. Also, this bagful was quite wet. So roasting seemed to be a smart place to start. Then I remembered seeing that Mycoterra Farm (who grew them) often use them to make 'crab' cakes. So I looked up a recipe and thought this one (and this one) sounded like exactly the right kind of thing.
(makes six little cakes)
To roast:
200-400g (approx 1/2 lb) Lion's Mane
~2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
salt+pepper
Rest of the cake ingredients:
2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise (used vegan cream cheese as we had some leftover from the birthday cake S made me)
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 egg*
~ 1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp paprika
~ 2 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
coconut oil for frying
For the sauce:
3 tbsp vegan cream cheese (or vegan mayonnaise - reduce the lemon juice a bit if using)
1 tsp olive oil
1-2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp white pepper
~1 tbsp cider vinegar
pea-sized blob of wasabi
few drops hot sauce
~1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
Heat the oven to 350F. Tear the Lion's Mane into little pieces and put in a roasting dish. Add the whole garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper and roast for 30-40 min, until the garlic is cooked, much of the liquid has evaporated, and the mushroom is brown. Remove from the oven.
While the mushroom is in the oven you can make the sauce - mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl with a fork. Taste for salt, pepper and acid and check consistency.
Mix the Lion's Mane (and roasted garlic - be sure to chop and/or mash up so it can spread through the mixture) together with the remaining cake ingredients in a mixing bowl. Shape into little round burger shapes. Heat coconut oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the cakes until browned on both sides. Eat while hot.
These were quite successful. S really liked them (especially the sauce), and while the total prep might be a bit much for an average day, the roasting method seemed to be a good way of cooking the Lion's Mane - better than sauteeing.
*think linseed-water mixture would be a fine vegan substitute
The rest of the filo: sweet potato, chickpea, kale and almond filo parcel
It can be a little challenging thinking of something that feels fancy and festive enough for Christmas, still a little traditional, but vegetarian and appetising to us. I was considering making something with filo pastry (we had some in the freezer), but then realised I had way too many things I wanted to make, and actually, since I had the filo defrosted for making mince pies, it made more sense to make this on Christmas Eve. So I did. It started with sweet potato, kale and almonds, then I added a bunch of stuff and spices and ended up with something kind of Middle Eastern in flavour.
(makes 2 medium parcels)
(move the filo from freezer to fridge to defrost 3-24 hours in advance)
4 sweet potatoes
1 cup chickpeas, defrosted
~4 medium kale leaves
3 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
~2 tbsp slivered almonds
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tsp cumin seed
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp sumac
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1-2 tbsp golden raisins
1-2 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and pepper
olive oil
half a package of thickish filo (#7 - #10) = ~10-12 sheets (used rest of package for mince pies)
Heat the oven to 375F. Put the sweet potatoes on a lightly greased baking sheet and put in the oven for ~30 min, until tender. When ready, remove, let cool until you can handle them and then peel.
Meanwhile, defrost the chickpeas and mash them roughly with a fork. Wash and chop the kale and steam it until just tender, along with the spring onions. Toast the almonds, tip into a bowl, then toast the coriander and cumin seeds. Let cool a little, then tip into a grinder and grind to powder.
Put the peeled sweet potatoes in a bowl and mash lightly with a fork. Add the mashed chickpeas, steamed kale and spring onions, almonds, all the spices, raisins and parsley. Mix, taste and season with salt and pepper.
Take the first sheet of filo and lay it on a baking tray. Grease lightly with olive oil, then put the next sheet on top. Keep going until you have laid out six sheets (or half the total number you have, some number between four and six). Squish half the filling mix into a fat sausage shape along one of the short sides of the filo pile, then roll up around it, tucking in the short ends as you go. Repeat with the other six sheets of filo. Brush the tops with more olive oil, cut slashes on top, then bake for 30-40 min, until hot and golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool a little before eating.
(makes 2 medium parcels)
(move the filo from freezer to fridge to defrost 3-24 hours in advance)
4 sweet potatoes
1 cup chickpeas, defrosted
~4 medium kale leaves
3 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
~2 tbsp slivered almonds
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tsp cumin seed
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp sumac
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1-2 tbsp golden raisins
1-2 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and pepper
olive oil
half a package of thickish filo (#7 - #10) = ~10-12 sheets (used rest of package for mince pies)
Heat the oven to 375F. Put the sweet potatoes on a lightly greased baking sheet and put in the oven for ~30 min, until tender. When ready, remove, let cool until you can handle them and then peel.
Meanwhile, defrost the chickpeas and mash them roughly with a fork. Wash and chop the kale and steam it until just tender, along with the spring onions. Toast the almonds, tip into a bowl, then toast the coriander and cumin seeds. Let cool a little, then tip into a grinder and grind to powder.
Put the peeled sweet potatoes in a bowl and mash lightly with a fork. Add the mashed chickpeas, steamed kale and spring onions, almonds, all the spices, raisins and parsley. Mix, taste and season with salt and pepper.
Take the first sheet of filo and lay it on a baking tray. Grease lightly with olive oil, then put the next sheet on top. Keep going until you have laid out six sheets (or half the total number you have, some number between four and six). Squish half the filling mix into a fat sausage shape along one of the short sides of the filo pile, then roll up around it, tucking in the short ends as you go. Repeat with the other six sheets of filo. Brush the tops with more olive oil, cut slashes on top, then bake for 30-40 min, until hot and golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool a little before eating.
Christmas: Filo mince pies with marzipan
I haven't been making anything much new in the last couple of weeks. I cut my finger pretty bad preparing chestnuts (which were delicious but perhaps not worth it?), so chopping etc was a bit of a pain for a while, and I was feeling a bit silly and not very inspired. Since I got back in the kitchen I seem to have been sticking to comforting old favourites (some several times / variations) - tapioca 'cheese' rolls, carrot and mung bean salad, lentil and onion salad, ful medammes, freekeh, chickpea curry...
But tomorrow is Christmas Day, so I have stirred myself and am just about feeling ready to cook new things again. I feel much better for it - I've realised cooking comprises much of my relaxation, creative stimulation and fun these days - without it I feel a bit flat.
It doesn't feel like Christmas until I eat my first mince pie, but mince pies don't seem to have made the transition across the ocean. So the only way I get to eat them is by making them myself. Luckily I had some mincemeat left that I made earlier. I was thinking of making my favourite mince pie pastry, but then I realised I also had filo on my mental list of things I wanted to make / to use up / that could be fancy for Christmas. So I used filo as the pastry (added bonus of keeping it simple by not needing to make pastry). Similarly, I had a huge hunk of marzipan* that we'd bought from Polcari's in Little Italy with Christmas in mind. I guess I was thinking of Christmas cake but it seemed daft to make more cake with so much birthday cake still hanging around; and Christmas cake AND mince pies seemed like overkill besides. So I thought I'd combine the two and put some marzipan inside the mince pies.
(makes 12 mince pies)
(move the filo from freezer to fridge to defrost 3-24 hours in advance)
half a large package of thickish (#7 - #10) filo pastry (you need 48 ~4 in squares) (used the rest of the filo for this)
1 400g jar of mincemeat
~100g marzipan*, approx 2 mm dice
Heat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 12 cup muffin tin. Taking one square at a time, line each muffin cup with three squares of filo (you should wind up with 12 squares left; be careful not to let them dry out - keep under a clean, damp cloth). Add in the mincemeat (~2 tbsp per cup), and sprinkle some diced marzipan over the top of the mincemeat. Scrunch one of the remaining filo sheets and place on top of the mincemeat in each cup. Brush with a little almond milk if you like. Bake for approx 10 min, until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and lift out of the cups to cool on a baking rack.
Once I'd done the maths of how many pieces of filo I needed, how big, how much mincemeat, etc, these were incredibly simple (thanks to having pre-made the mincemeat). Seriously, a three ingredient recipe - you can't get much easier than that. The crispy filo is very different from the usual crumbly shortcrust but I actually really like it: it looks really pretty and fancy, and crucially is not sweet - I think it's really important to have savoury pastry in mince pies as a counterpoint to the crazy intense sweet-spiciness of the mincemeat.
*actually, it is labelled almond paste and I think marzipan and almond paste might technically be slightly different things. If they are I prefer almond paste for most things - think it is less sweet and has a more pronounced almond flavour. Found full truth here.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Quick fried tofu with spring onions and sesame
This is like a speeded-up version of this delicious beast. Taking advantage of TJ's super firm tofu (no need to drain, doesn't fall apart easily so can be stir fried), simplifying and using a bit less heat.
2 tbsp veg oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 pack super firm tofu (shrink wrapped), chopped into large chunks
~5 spring onions, chopped
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
generous grinding of black pepper and salt
Heat oils and then add the tofu. Stir fry, tossing regularly, for a few minutes, then add spring onions. Stir fry a little longer then add sesame seeds, chilli, pepper and salt. Keep frying until the tofu is lightly browned and the spring onions are wilted and crispy in places. We ate this with soba noodles and a quick peanut-tamarind sauce (peanut butter, tamarind paste, lime juice, soy sauce, mirin).
2 tbsp veg oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 pack super firm tofu (shrink wrapped), chopped into large chunks
~5 spring onions, chopped
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
generous grinding of black pepper and salt
Heat oils and then add the tofu. Stir fry, tossing regularly, for a few minutes, then add spring onions. Stir fry a little longer then add sesame seeds, chilli, pepper and salt. Keep frying until the tofu is lightly browned and the spring onions are wilted and crispy in places. We ate this with soba noodles and a quick peanut-tamarind sauce (peanut butter, tamarind paste, lime juice, soy sauce, mirin).
Monday, December 9, 2013
Egg yolk ravioli (and oriecchette)
I spent much of the weekend getting in the mood for Christmas: I cooked brussels sprouts, we bought a tiny tree, I caught up with family and their Christmas plans, I made zimtsterne, put up Christmas decorations, we bought and initiated an advent calendar, stayed in playing games and eating Lebkuchen... And overnight last night it snowed and capped off my indoor decorations with a beautiful (if rapidly melting) outdoor sprinkling of white. I do feel a bit more festive now.
With the three egg yolks remaining after making zimtsterne (I decided Christmas / zimtsterne was enough of a special occasion to warrant buying eggs... fancy, multicoloured ones) I decided to try out making egg yolk ravioli. We'd seen an egg yolk raviolo on Professional Masterchef a few years ago and it looked awesome (think we are usually inordinately excited whenever they make something vegetarian, but in this case it seemed justified). I used the eggless pasta dough recipe I have used before, and decided to try turnip as an additional filling (the traditional version seems to involve ricotta; I was intrigued by the idea of turnip though and had some in the fridge).
For the pasta dough:
(note: this makes way too much for 3 ravioli, hence the oriecchette - estimate enough for ~15 ravioli)
1/2 cup pasta flour
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 tbsp gram flour
1/2 tsp salt
water
For the filling:
(note: the mashed turnip is probably enough for about 10-12 ravioli, depending on size of turnip)
1 large turnip (the white kind)
salt
~ 1/2 tbsp thyme leaves
1 tbsp soy yoghurt (or fake milk, or nothing)
1/2 tbsp olive oil
pepper
3 egg yolks, carefully separated from the whites so as not to break the membrane
a little bit more egg for closing
First prepare the pasta dough: mix the flours and salt in a pile on a clean worktop, then made a pit in the middle and add the water a little at a time, mixing with your fingers (while being careful not to break the ramparts), until it comes together into a kneadable dough. Knead for a few minutes then wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least 30 min / up to a few days.
While the dough is chilling, peel the turnip, chop into large chunks and then put into a pan of salted water to boil. Boil for ~10-15 min, until tender, then drain thoroughly and transfer back to the pan. Add the thyme, yoghurt (if using), olive oil and some salt and pepper and mash with a fork until fairly smooth. If it seems liquidy at all heat a little while to evaporate off the extra liquid. Set aside and let cool until handlable.
Take out the dough and make six small balls (each about the size of a large marble). Flour a clean worktop and rolling pin, then roll out each ball until it is super thin and you can see through it (try and keep the shape roughly circular). Choose three base pieces and space them out flat on a board. In the centre of each make a little nest of ~ 1 1/2 tbsp turnip mash, with a dent in the middle for the egg to go in. Wet your hands (and anything else you plan to touch the egg yolks with), and carefully transfer one egg yolk into each nest. Gently place the top pieces of rolled-out pasta dough over the egg yolks and press into place carefully, trying to exclude large air bubbles from getting in with the filling. Make a ring around the filling using any remaining egg yolk and/or white and press down firmly all around the circle to close the ravioli. Use the back of a fork to press some more if you want to be really sure of a firm closure. Trim the edges to remove excess pasta (keep the offcuts - you can cook them as random pasta shapes).
Bring a large pan of slightly salted water to the boil. Add the ravioli. Boil for ~3-4 minutes. Remove carefully with a slotted spoon, drain, transfer to plates and eat.
I cooked the offcuts as irregular fettucine. I also made oriecchette (wanted to try making a shape that didn't involve rolling!) with some of the remaining dough to make this into more of a meal: pinch of pieces about the size of a small marble and flatten into discs about 7 mm thick. Put on a clean surface, then roll your thumb across the disc, pressing firmly all the way across. It should roll up into an oriecchette (little ear) shape. These will take a little longer to cook than the ravioli as the pasta is quite thick - perhaps 5-6 min. They can be dried and stored if desired.
The egg yolk ravioli were amazing. The turnip and thyme went beautifully, and I felt like it was nice / important to have something extra to complement the egg yolk taste and also for structure when building the ravioli. Really fun to cut into the ravioli and have the orange yolk gush out. S was excited, and that was my main aim, so I'd call this a success. The mashed turnip was also pretty tasty on its own, and what's more reminded me of S's favourite celeriac pasta sauce, so I mushed it in with the oriecchette and that worked quite well too.
With the three egg yolks remaining after making zimtsterne (I decided Christmas / zimtsterne was enough of a special occasion to warrant buying eggs... fancy, multicoloured ones) I decided to try out making egg yolk ravioli. We'd seen an egg yolk raviolo on Professional Masterchef a few years ago and it looked awesome (think we are usually inordinately excited whenever they make something vegetarian, but in this case it seemed justified). I used the eggless pasta dough recipe I have used before, and decided to try turnip as an additional filling (the traditional version seems to involve ricotta; I was intrigued by the idea of turnip though and had some in the fridge).
For the pasta dough:
(note: this makes way too much for 3 ravioli, hence the oriecchette - estimate enough for ~15 ravioli)
1/2 cup pasta flour
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 tbsp gram flour
1/2 tsp salt
water
For the filling:
(note: the mashed turnip is probably enough for about 10-12 ravioli, depending on size of turnip)
1 large turnip (the white kind)
salt
~ 1/2 tbsp thyme leaves
1 tbsp soy yoghurt (or fake milk, or nothing)
1/2 tbsp olive oil
pepper
3 egg yolks, carefully separated from the whites so as not to break the membrane
a little bit more egg for closing
First prepare the pasta dough: mix the flours and salt in a pile on a clean worktop, then made a pit in the middle and add the water a little at a time, mixing with your fingers (while being careful not to break the ramparts), until it comes together into a kneadable dough. Knead for a few minutes then wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least 30 min / up to a few days.
While the dough is chilling, peel the turnip, chop into large chunks and then put into a pan of salted water to boil. Boil for ~10-15 min, until tender, then drain thoroughly and transfer back to the pan. Add the thyme, yoghurt (if using), olive oil and some salt and pepper and mash with a fork until fairly smooth. If it seems liquidy at all heat a little while to evaporate off the extra liquid. Set aside and let cool until handlable.
Take out the dough and make six small balls (each about the size of a large marble). Flour a clean worktop and rolling pin, then roll out each ball until it is super thin and you can see through it (try and keep the shape roughly circular). Choose three base pieces and space them out flat on a board. In the centre of each make a little nest of ~ 1 1/2 tbsp turnip mash, with a dent in the middle for the egg to go in. Wet your hands (and anything else you plan to touch the egg yolks with), and carefully transfer one egg yolk into each nest. Gently place the top pieces of rolled-out pasta dough over the egg yolks and press into place carefully, trying to exclude large air bubbles from getting in with the filling. Make a ring around the filling using any remaining egg yolk and/or white and press down firmly all around the circle to close the ravioli. Use the back of a fork to press some more if you want to be really sure of a firm closure. Trim the edges to remove excess pasta (keep the offcuts - you can cook them as random pasta shapes).
Bring a large pan of slightly salted water to the boil. Add the ravioli. Boil for ~3-4 minutes. Remove carefully with a slotted spoon, drain, transfer to plates and eat.
I cooked the offcuts as irregular fettucine. I also made oriecchette (wanted to try making a shape that didn't involve rolling!) with some of the remaining dough to make this into more of a meal: pinch of pieces about the size of a small marble and flatten into discs about 7 mm thick. Put on a clean surface, then roll your thumb across the disc, pressing firmly all the way across. It should roll up into an oriecchette (little ear) shape. These will take a little longer to cook than the ravioli as the pasta is quite thick - perhaps 5-6 min. They can be dried and stored if desired.
The egg yolk ravioli were amazing. The turnip and thyme went beautifully, and I felt like it was nice / important to have something extra to complement the egg yolk taste and also for structure when building the ravioli. Really fun to cut into the ravioli and have the orange yolk gush out. S was excited, and that was my main aim, so I'd call this a success. The mashed turnip was also pretty tasty on its own, and what's more reminded me of S's favourite celeriac pasta sauce, so I mushed it in with the oriecchette and that worked quite well too.
Monday, December 2, 2013
Apple and fresh cranberry chutney
I remembered fresh cranberries are in season, bought a bag, and commenced experiments. Raw they are very sharp - they need some kind of sweetness or dilution. I baked: cranberry and apple crumble, cranberry and pumpkin muffins. Wanted to go somewhere savoury with the rest of the bag. Considered some ideas from the Cranberry Slam at Egleston Farmers' Market. The most interesting was somewhat complicated, with several steps including fermentation. I decided to borrow some of the flavours but just make a chutney - that way my savoury cranberry stuff would keep for a while, into times when fresh cranberries are nowhere to be found. I based it on this recipe, tweaking the spices and flavour additions.
(made 2 small jars - sensible to scale up if you have a full bag of cranberries!)
450 g apples (~ 2 large ones), peeled and chopped into chunks
135 g onions (~2 small ones), peeled and chopped or sliced
1 small clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
~2 cm piece root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
zest of 1 little orange
1/4 tsp caraway seed
1/4 tsp cumin seed
1/4 tsp coriander seed
1/4 tsp mustard seed
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
75 ml cider vinegar
150 g sugar
150 g fresh cranberries
Put all ingredients except the cranberries in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for ~50 min, until everything is reduced, thickened and broken down. Add the cranberries and cook for ~10 min more - try not to let them all burst. Spoon into sterilised jars, seal while hot and then let cool before labelling. Tastes best if allowed to mature for ~1 month before opening.
This looks very pretty and festive, with seeds, strands of orange zest and ruby cranberries pressed up against the glass. Haven't tasted the mature version yet but am hoping it is not too sweet.
Edit: well, it is a bit sweet (although very pink-red and pretty). The explosions of whole cranberries are really delicious, same with the spice seeds, but the background is mainly like applesauce and just a bit too sweet. Cooking apples instead of eating apples would probably be a good idea, if possible. But anyway, this did go very well with nut loaf for Christmas.
(made 2 small jars - sensible to scale up if you have a full bag of cranberries!)
450 g apples (~ 2 large ones), peeled and chopped into chunks
135 g onions (~2 small ones), peeled and chopped or sliced
1 small clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
~2 cm piece root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
zest of 1 little orange
1/4 tsp caraway seed
1/4 tsp cumin seed
1/4 tsp coriander seed
1/4 tsp mustard seed
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
75 ml cider vinegar
150 g sugar
150 g fresh cranberries
Put all ingredients except the cranberries in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for ~50 min, until everything is reduced, thickened and broken down. Add the cranberries and cook for ~10 min more - try not to let them all burst. Spoon into sterilised jars, seal while hot and then let cool before labelling. Tastes best if allowed to mature for ~1 month before opening.
This looks very pretty and festive, with seeds, strands of orange zest and ruby cranberries pressed up against the glass. Haven't tasted the mature version yet but am hoping it is not too sweet.
Edit: well, it is a bit sweet (although very pink-red and pretty). The explosions of whole cranberries are really delicious, same with the spice seeds, but the background is mainly like applesauce and just a bit too sweet. Cooking apples instead of eating apples would probably be a good idea, if possible. But anyway, this did go very well with nut loaf for Christmas.
Chickpea bread
I made this beetroot soup the other day and it was just as good as I remembered. Although I used candystriped beetroot because that's what I had and the colour was way off - very drab compared with real beetroot - I prefer the beetroot-coloured kind for almost everything. Anyway, the soup went beautifully with this bread - an interesting loaf with chickpea flour in it I'd bookmarked a while ago and finally got round to making.
50g unsalted butter (used ~35g olive oil)
500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for shaping
175g chickpea flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp fast-action yeast
300ml warm water
In a large mixing bowl, rub the butter or oil into the flours and salt, then add the yeast and water (I needed to add a couple of tbsp more water). Mix to a smooth dough, and leave for an hour without kneading. Now lightly knead the dough for 10 seconds only, then leave for another 30 minutes. Tip the dough on to a floured worktop and pull the edges into the centre six or seven times, to make a giant Kaiser roll shape. Flour the bowl, then place the dough seam side up in it. Leave to rise for an hour, then heat the oven to 220C/200C fan-assisted/425F/gas mark 7. Transfer the dough onto a floured baking tray(still seam side up). Bake for 20 min, then reduce the heat to 200C/180C fan-assisted/390F/gas mark 6 and bake for 25 minutes more. Move to a cooling rack to cool completely before cutting.
This is fairly dense and has a distinct chickpea flavour. In a good way, though. Really excellent with something wet like the soup for dunking it in.
50g unsalted butter (used ~35g olive oil)
500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for shaping
175g chickpea flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp fast-action yeast
300ml warm water
In a large mixing bowl, rub the butter or oil into the flours and salt, then add the yeast and water (I needed to add a couple of tbsp more water). Mix to a smooth dough, and leave for an hour without kneading. Now lightly knead the dough for 10 seconds only, then leave for another 30 minutes. Tip the dough on to a floured worktop and pull the edges into the centre six or seven times, to make a giant Kaiser roll shape. Flour the bowl, then place the dough seam side up in it. Leave to rise for an hour, then heat the oven to 220C/200C fan-assisted/425F/gas mark 7. Transfer the dough onto a floured baking tray(still seam side up). Bake for 20 min, then reduce the heat to 200C/180C fan-assisted/390F/gas mark 6 and bake for 25 minutes more. Move to a cooling rack to cool completely before cutting.
This is fairly dense and has a distinct chickpea flavour. In a good way, though. Really excellent with something wet like the soup for dunking it in.
Pumpkin, cranberry, chocolate and orange muffins
I had experiments with a bag of fresh cranberries in mind - first crumble (with apples I scrumped with M the other day), then these. I based them on a pumpkin muffin recipe I'd used before, but tweaked the flavours to incorporate the chocolate, ginger and orange I wanted to be in there. It's kind of a second iteration of these ones.
(Makes 12)
1 3/4 cups plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup demerera sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
Pinch of salt
Zest of two little oranges
1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup fake milk
1/2 cup veg oil
1 cup fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
Heat oven to 400F. Prepare a muffin tin. Mix flour, baking powder, sugars, ginger and salt in a bowl with a fork. Add orange zest and chopped chocolate and mix again. In a separate bowl beat together pumpkin puree, fake milk and oil. Add wet to dry and mix til just combined, adding the chopped cranberries in the last few strokes. Scoop the mixture into muffin cups. Bake for ~25 min, until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the tin before transferring to a cooling rack.
These are great. I overcooked them slightly but the pumpkin makes them wonderfully orange in colour, the orange and ginger taste exciting, and the cranberries and chocolate are beautiful to see and insert little jewels of intensity... Yum.
(Makes 12)
1 3/4 cups plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup demerera sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
Pinch of salt
Zest of two little oranges
1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup fake milk
1/2 cup veg oil
1 cup fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
Heat oven to 400F. Prepare a muffin tin. Mix flour, baking powder, sugars, ginger and salt in a bowl with a fork. Add orange zest and chopped chocolate and mix again. In a separate bowl beat together pumpkin puree, fake milk and oil. Add wet to dry and mix til just combined, adding the chopped cranberries in the last few strokes. Scoop the mixture into muffin cups. Bake for ~25 min, until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the tin before transferring to a cooling rack.
These are great. I overcooked them slightly but the pumpkin makes them wonderfully orange in colour, the orange and ginger taste exciting, and the cranberries and chocolate are beautiful to see and insert little jewels of intensity... Yum.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Sticky crabapple jelly
These were very tiny, somewhat unusual crabapples (I'm pretty sure they
were crabapples) that I collected with M from outside BU.
1 large yoghurt pot full of tiny red crabapples, washed and stalks removed
water
sugar (175g)
Wash the crabapples, put in a pan and cover with water. Simmer for ~30 min, until they are softened and collapsing. Put into a jelly bag, string up and let drip into a clean pan overnight. If you want it to be clear you should not squeeze the bag. When ready, measure the juice (I had 250ml) and add seven parts sugar for ten parts juice (ie approx 175 ml or 175g). Bring to the boil and simmer until setting point is reached, then transfer to sterilised jar(s) and allow to cool before labelling.
I wasn't paying enough attention and accidentally went beyond setting point, tried to rescue it by adding boiling water, think it is OK but very dark in colour and rather sticky! Better not to work with such small quantities really I guess. The stuff has a very sharp, interesting sweet-sourness to it.
Edit: M stopped by with more apples yesterday and we opened the jar to try it. He was loving it and I have to agree it's quite good. Reminiscent of pomegranate molasses, he said, I think it's true.
1 large yoghurt pot full of tiny red crabapples, washed and stalks removed
water
sugar (175g)
Wash the crabapples, put in a pan and cover with water. Simmer for ~30 min, until they are softened and collapsing. Put into a jelly bag, string up and let drip into a clean pan overnight. If you want it to be clear you should not squeeze the bag. When ready, measure the juice (I had 250ml) and add seven parts sugar for ten parts juice (ie approx 175 ml or 175g). Bring to the boil and simmer until setting point is reached, then transfer to sterilised jar(s) and allow to cool before labelling.
I wasn't paying enough attention and accidentally went beyond setting point, tried to rescue it by adding boiling water, think it is OK but very dark in colour and rather sticky! Better not to work with such small quantities really I guess. The stuff has a very sharp, interesting sweet-sourness to it.
Edit: M stopped by with more apples yesterday and we opened the jar to try it. He was loving it and I have to agree it's quite good. Reminiscent of pomegranate molasses, he said, I think it's true.
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Apple, kohlrabi, beetroot, leaves and seeds
A daydream of a salad: we had lots of salad greens, but the apple, beetroot and anise were begging to play together. Kohlrabi, onion, poppy and pumpkin seeds jumped into the mix...
2 small apples, peeled and cored
1/4 of a giant kohlrabi, peeled
1 small beetroot (I used candy striped but any would be fine), peeled
juice of 1/2 lemon
~3 handfuls of salad leaves (any)
~1 tbsp poppy seeds
~2 tsp anise seeds
1-2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
~1/2 tbsp finely chopped white onion
2 tsp white miso
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1-2 tbsp olive oil
black pepper
Cut the apple, kohlrabi and beetroot into matchsticks. Squeeze a bit of lemon juice over the apple to stop it going brown. Wash the salad leaves and put them in a serving bowl. Add the apple, kohlrabi, beetroot and seeds. In a separate, small bowl, mix the chopped onion with the rest of the lemon juice, miso, honey, vinegar and olive oil, beat together and taste for seasoning. When ready to eat, pour the dressing over the assembled salad and mix well.
And this turned out delicious. Really pretty: colourful beetroot, shards of apple and kohlrabi, speckles of seeds. Just enough sweetness, loads of textures and crunch. The anise, apple, beet and greens go great together, with the pumpkin and poppy seeds providing an earthiness to counteract the sweet. Love how exciting salads can be, whatever the weather (yesterday super windy and below zero).
2 small apples, peeled and cored
1/4 of a giant kohlrabi, peeled
1 small beetroot (I used candy striped but any would be fine), peeled
juice of 1/2 lemon
~3 handfuls of salad leaves (any)
~1 tbsp poppy seeds
~2 tsp anise seeds
1-2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
~1/2 tbsp finely chopped white onion
2 tsp white miso
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1-2 tbsp olive oil
black pepper
Cut the apple, kohlrabi and beetroot into matchsticks. Squeeze a bit of lemon juice over the apple to stop it going brown. Wash the salad leaves and put them in a serving bowl. Add the apple, kohlrabi, beetroot and seeds. In a separate, small bowl, mix the chopped onion with the rest of the lemon juice, miso, honey, vinegar and olive oil, beat together and taste for seasoning. When ready to eat, pour the dressing over the assembled salad and mix well.
And this turned out delicious. Really pretty: colourful beetroot, shards of apple and kohlrabi, speckles of seeds. Just enough sweetness, loads of textures and crunch. The anise, apple, beet and greens go great together, with the pumpkin and poppy seeds providing an earthiness to counteract the sweet. Love how exciting salads can be, whatever the weather (yesterday super windy and below zero).
Moghrabieh with turmeric, cumin and mustard oil
A quick starch to go with the lion's mane turned out good:
1 cup moghrabieh (massive lebanese couscous)
2 cups water
~2 tsp veg bouillon powder
1-2 tsp cumin seeds
~2 tsp mustard oil
1-2 tsp turmeric
1 bay leaf
Put all the ingredients in a pan together, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer until the moghrabieh is tender and all the liquid is absorbed.
The first time I cooked moghrabieh I wasn't sure about the texture / if I had cooked it right. Now I am into it - it is wonderfully stodgy, almost a little bit chewy - perfect filling warmth for cold days, especially when hotted up with cumin, turmeric and mustard oil.
1 cup moghrabieh (massive lebanese couscous)
2 cups water
~2 tsp veg bouillon powder
1-2 tsp cumin seeds
~2 tsp mustard oil
1-2 tsp turmeric
1 bay leaf
Put all the ingredients in a pan together, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer until the moghrabieh is tender and all the liquid is absorbed.
The first time I cooked moghrabieh I wasn't sure about the texture / if I had cooked it right. Now I am into it - it is wonderfully stodgy, almost a little bit chewy - perfect filling warmth for cold days, especially when hotted up with cumin, turmeric and mustard oil.
Lion's mane mushroom
I went over to Egleston Square Farmer's Market at the weekend - I hadn't been there since the Winter version started again, they were having a cranberry slam, and I was curious about the mushroom farm our friends A+B were sharing a stall with (travelling in from Western Mass). A+B were not there this time, but mushrooms were. I bought some Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus) - a mushroom I had neither seen nor eaten before. It looks a bit like a hedgehog mushroom, with really long, shaggy teeth and no discernable cap. Off-white. Looks fancy!
I sliced the Lion's Mane and fried it in olive oil, with finely sliced onion, chopped garlic and thyme leaves, finished with a little white wine and seasoning. It had a slightly chewy texture and mild taste. It was fine, but not going on my top mushrooms list. I wonder if wild mushrooms automatically taste more interesting than cultivated?
I sliced the Lion's Mane and fried it in olive oil, with finely sliced onion, chopped garlic and thyme leaves, finished with a little white wine and seasoning. It had a slightly chewy texture and mild taste. It was fine, but not going on my top mushrooms list. I wonder if wild mushrooms automatically taste more interesting than cultivated?
Monday, November 25, 2013
National Trust Biscuits
My Mum used to make these - they were a regular request from my sisters and me - we loved them. I guess she got the recipe from the National Trust somehow or other: they were always National Trust biscuits, never any other or more descriptive name. I started making them myself as a teenager - they were easy enough for me to manage with limited skills, and always went down well... Despite my not knowing what a 'cup' measure was - I'd just pick a cup or mug from the cupboard and use that, so every time I made them they were different, depending on the cup I'd chosen. I still need to figure out my favourite interpretation of the 'cup' volume - sometimes they were slightly bendy and chewy when cooled; sometimes they'd spread out massively and all run into one another. The version I made yesterday (because I felt like it, because I wanted biscuits for journal club, because they seemed seasonal with all that warming ginger and treacle) came out fairly crispy and didn't spread that much - perhaps not my favourite - this recipe may be updated...
Mix in a bowl:
1 cup SR flour (1 cup plain flour plus 2 tsp baking powder)
1 cup sugar
1 cup oats
1 tsp ground ginger
Heat in a pan:
4 oz margarine (or coconut oil)*
1/2 tbsp black treacle (or molasses)
Mix in a mug:
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tbsp boiling water.
Heat oven to 300F / 150C. Grease a couple of baking sheets. Add the contents of the pan and the mug together to the bowl and mix until combined into a dough. Roll into balls, flatten slightly and space out on the baking sheets. Bake for 10-15 min, until golden brown and slightly spread. Let cool for 10 min or so on the baking sheet before transferring to a rack to finish cooling (they will be floppy when you first take them out; you want to transfer them at the sweet spot when they are slightly bendy and not completely hardened and crisp yet).
*tried using 3 oz sunflower oil, felt like would need a bit more?
Mix in a bowl:
1 cup SR flour (1 cup plain flour plus 2 tsp baking powder)
1 cup sugar
1 cup oats
1 tsp ground ginger
Heat in a pan:
4 oz margarine (or coconut oil)*
1/2 tbsp black treacle (or molasses)
Mix in a mug:
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tbsp boiling water.
Heat oven to 300F / 150C. Grease a couple of baking sheets. Add the contents of the pan and the mug together to the bowl and mix until combined into a dough. Roll into balls, flatten slightly and space out on the baking sheets. Bake for 10-15 min, until golden brown and slightly spread. Let cool for 10 min or so on the baking sheet before transferring to a rack to finish cooling (they will be floppy when you first take them out; you want to transfer them at the sweet spot when they are slightly bendy and not completely hardened and crisp yet).
*tried using 3 oz sunflower oil, felt like would need a bit more?
Midwestern collard greens
I'd never felt much love for collards. Compared with most of their Brassica relatives, they just seemed way less exciting in every way. Some came in the CSA last week. I remembered G saying that N made excellent collard greens, so when I saw him at Happy Hour on Friday I asked about them. He divulged his secret recipe: boil them for seven minutes then saute with garlic (he then segwayed into the best things about Michigan (where he comes from)). Makes sense - collards are tougher than your average green. So S+I thought we'd give them another chance. Turns out it's true: N does make excellent collard greens - the seven minutes' boiling was enough to make then incredibly tender without making them taste or look overcooked. We ate them all.
Unsweetened apple butter
I came across this method at some point, and it got me thinking about trying to make jam or spread without adding sugar: just using the sugar already present in the fruit. I went up a tree with M on Saturday and picked more apples. Small, yellowish-green ones with a pinkish blush on some; M described them as having a rosewater / lychee flavour and I had to agree when I tasted them. So then I had fruit to experiment with. I peeled and cored the apples and cut them into chunks, then blended them til smooth (adding a splash of pineapple juice to get the blender started)*. Then I transferred the whole lot into a saucepan and simmered, uncovered, for 6-7 hours. I occasionally added a splash more pineapple juice if I thought it looked like it was sticking. Probably added about 200 ml pineapple juice all told. It reduced massively (~ 2 full blenders of apple chunks became ~400 ml of thick apple stuff); took on a brownish colour and a slightly caramelised taste. I turned it off when it was really thick and starting to stick a lot. I decided to call it apple butter - it seemed more like apple butter than anything else. It's quite sweet - you're definitely not wondering where the sugar is.
My original thought had been just to extract the juice and reduce that, with the aim of making something more like a fruit molasses - I love all the fruit molasses I've tried (date, pomegranate, mulberry, carob, grape...). But I couldn't bring myself to chuck out so much of the apples so decided to liquidise and then reduce all the flesh and see what happened. I wonder if doing this with grapes or plums or similar would give something stickier and more like a molasses - apples contain a lot of fibre.
But still, this apple-y experiment is pretty tasty.
*Note: I think I might have got smoother results if I'd liquidised after cooking the apples to soften them instead of doing it before cooking.
My original thought had been just to extract the juice and reduce that, with the aim of making something more like a fruit molasses - I love all the fruit molasses I've tried (date, pomegranate, mulberry, carob, grape...). But I couldn't bring myself to chuck out so much of the apples so decided to liquidise and then reduce all the flesh and see what happened. I wonder if doing this with grapes or plums or similar would give something stickier and more like a molasses - apples contain a lot of fibre.
But still, this apple-y experiment is pretty tasty.
*Note: I think I might have got smoother results if I'd liquidised after cooking the apples to soften them instead of doing it before cooking.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Brown rice with sweet potato, spinach and miso-tahini sauce
This is yet another variation on something I make really often - some grain, some steamed veg (most often something green (e.g. broccoli, spinach, leeks, edamame) and something orange (e.g. carrots)), some tofu, some sauce, some herb and some seeds. It really hits the spot; I especially crave it after an aerial evening; it's quick, super simple, flexible and good.
I have discovered ornamental sweet potatoes (thanks to M from LUrC). They were planted all around where I work and now the frost has killed the plants and they have been removed, but some tubers are still there (+some are crazy spiral shapes). I tried a few and they are tender and sweet. But I am not sure whether I should eat more - perhaps they use bad pesticides on them. Anyway, interesting - I'd never noticed them before but they are everywhere.
1 cup brown rice (used TJs brown rice, black barley and radish seed mix)
2 medium sweet potatoes, trimmed and chopped into chunks
1/8 of a large kabocha squash, chopped into chunks
generous handful of spinach, washed and torn into pieces if leaves are large
2 tbsp white miso
1 tbsp tahini
1/2 clove garlic, crushed to paste
2 in piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1-2 tbsp mirin
1-2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/3 block firm tofu, diced fairly small
fresh coriander, chopped
sesame seeds (black or white)
Put the rice on to cook with 2 cups of water - should take 20-30 min. Meanwhile, prep the sweet potatoes and squash and put on to steam - should take 10-15 min. When the squash is done take it out of the steamer and put the spinach in - will steam in 2-3 min - take out and refresh in cold water to stop cooking before squeezing all liquid out. While you're waiting for stuff to cook you can make the sauce: mix miso, tahini, garlic, ginger, mirin and vinegar in a small bowl, taste for balance. Also prep the tofu and coriander and toast the seeds (if you like). To eat, dump your chosen proportions of everything in a bowl, mix and enjoy.
Everything I love at the moment seems to involve some combination of miso, sesame and ginger. This is no exception.
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| Lindsey's photo |
1 cup brown rice (used TJs brown rice, black barley and radish seed mix)
2 medium sweet potatoes, trimmed and chopped into chunks
1/8 of a large kabocha squash, chopped into chunks
generous handful of spinach, washed and torn into pieces if leaves are large
2 tbsp white miso
1 tbsp tahini
1/2 clove garlic, crushed to paste
2 in piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1-2 tbsp mirin
1-2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/3 block firm tofu, diced fairly small
fresh coriander, chopped
sesame seeds (black or white)
Put the rice on to cook with 2 cups of water - should take 20-30 min. Meanwhile, prep the sweet potatoes and squash and put on to steam - should take 10-15 min. When the squash is done take it out of the steamer and put the spinach in - will steam in 2-3 min - take out and refresh in cold water to stop cooking before squeezing all liquid out. While you're waiting for stuff to cook you can make the sauce: mix miso, tahini, garlic, ginger, mirin and vinegar in a small bowl, taste for balance. Also prep the tofu and coriander and toast the seeds (if you like). To eat, dump your chosen proportions of everything in a bowl, mix and enjoy.
Everything I love at the moment seems to involve some combination of miso, sesame and ginger. This is no exception.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Pumpkin soda bread
This is an adaptation of classic Delia. I first made the original a long time ago, in an effort to use up a whole pumpkin lantern - after souping most of it, why not make some quick and easy bread to go with the soup? That recipe contained cheese and eggs; this is an up-to-date, animal-free version.
8 oz plain flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 oz raw pumpkin or squash (peeled weight), grated
~2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
~3 tbsp white miso paste, broken up into small (~1/2 tsp) pieces
1 oz pumpkin seeds (and some extra for the top)
1/2 oz sesame seeds
2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 6 tbsp boiling water
1 tbsp fake milk (plus a little more, if needed)
Heat oven to 375F. Grease a baking sheet fairly liberally with olive oil. Put flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix with a fork. Add grated pumpkin, thyme leaves and miso (in small pieces) and toss together, then mix in the pumpkin and sesame seeds. Beat the milk into the linseed mixture, then add this to the pumpkin-flour mixture. Mix until it comes together into a sticky dough, using your hands towards the end (add a little more milk if needed).
Transfer the dough to the greased baking sheet and press into a 6 inch, flattened round. Make a cross on top using a blunt knife, then sprinkle with flour and pumpkin seeds. Put in the oven and bake for 45-50 min, until it is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the oven and let cool for ~ 30 min. Best eaten warm, although perfectly fine at room temperature or toasted.
8 oz plain flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 oz raw pumpkin or squash (peeled weight), grated
~2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
~3 tbsp white miso paste, broken up into small (~1/2 tsp) pieces
1 oz pumpkin seeds (and some extra for the top)
1/2 oz sesame seeds
2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 6 tbsp boiling water
1 tbsp fake milk (plus a little more, if needed)
Heat oven to 375F. Grease a baking sheet fairly liberally with olive oil. Put flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix with a fork. Add grated pumpkin, thyme leaves and miso (in small pieces) and toss together, then mix in the pumpkin and sesame seeds. Beat the milk into the linseed mixture, then add this to the pumpkin-flour mixture. Mix until it comes together into a sticky dough, using your hands towards the end (add a little more milk if needed).
Transfer the dough to the greased baking sheet and press into a 6 inch, flattened round. Make a cross on top using a blunt knife, then sprinkle with flour and pumpkin seeds. Put in the oven and bake for 45-50 min, until it is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the oven and let cool for ~ 30 min. Best eaten warm, although perfectly fine at room temperature or toasted.
Pumpkin and tofu roasted with miso and thyme
At last I decided to butcher the squash (I think it was a red kabocha) I got from Drumlin the day I volunteered there way back in September. It was one of the first ones they harvested, and I was excited to eat it, but of course squashes keep well, so it had been sitting patiently in the pantry ever since. It was still in great condition when I finally got to it over the weekend. Some of it became soda bread - I had an old Delia recipe on my mind I wanted to veganise. Some I roasted with miso, tofu and thyme like this. I toasted the seeds with spices, and they came to L's birthday party with me and one of two soda bread rounds. And I still have half the squash left in the fridge!
1/4 of a large kabocha squash (about 9 oz, prepared weight)
2/3 of a pack of firm tofu, drained
2 tbsp white miso
~2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tbsp mirin
1-2 tsp sesame oil
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp maple syrup
black pepper
Heat the oven to 400F. Wash and deseed the squash or pumpkin and cut into large chunks (don't bother peeling). Cut the drained tofu into similar sized chunks. Put both into a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients to make a smooth, viscous liquid. Pour the liquid over the chunks and mix well to coat all the chunks, with your hands or a big spoon. Transfer the mixture to a roasting tin (in a single layer), put in the oven and roast for ~45 min, until the squash is tender and all is nicely browned.
This was really delicious - the squash is tender, deep red, and very sweet and flavourful; I am really into baked / grilled tofu with sauces right now (had some good stuff at the LUrC potluck last night too).
1/4 of a large kabocha squash (about 9 oz, prepared weight)
2/3 of a pack of firm tofu, drained
2 tbsp white miso
~2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tbsp mirin
1-2 tsp sesame oil
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp maple syrup
black pepper
Heat the oven to 400F. Wash and deseed the squash or pumpkin and cut into large chunks (don't bother peeling). Cut the drained tofu into similar sized chunks. Put both into a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients to make a smooth, viscous liquid. Pour the liquid over the chunks and mix well to coat all the chunks, with your hands or a big spoon. Transfer the mixture to a roasting tin (in a single layer), put in the oven and roast for ~45 min, until the squash is tender and all is nicely browned.
This was really delicious - the squash is tender, deep red, and very sweet and flavourful; I am really into baked / grilled tofu with sauces right now (had some good stuff at the LUrC potluck last night too).
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Apple and cinnamon fruit leather / dried apples
A couple more preserving experiments with my haul of somewhat bruised, needing-to-be-eaten apples, to add to the apple chutney, apple jam, and apple, treacle and caraway muffins I already made with them...
I dried some in the conventional manner (in my dehydrator), and tried some just as they were (peeled, cored and sliced ~20 mm thick), and some where I dipped them in ascorbic acid solution aka pineapple juice before drying (both times dried ~140F for ~6 hours). I didn't expect to find a difference, and it is not huge, but I think I do like the juice-dipped ones best.
I also tried out making fruit leather. I filled a pan with chunks of peeled, cored apples (and the juice of half a lemon), covered and simmered, stirring occasionally, until they were soft. Then liquidised using a wand blender. I took the plastic sheets that came with the dehydrator (without holes), and greased them lightly with oil. Then spread the apple puree out across the sheets, to a thickness of about 1/4 inch / 1/2 cm. I did some just as it was, and the rest I mixed in cinnamon before spreading it out. It dried in approx 6 hours @ 140F. It is just like leather, texturally, and tastes quite intense and appley. I think I like the cinnamon one best - adds another flavour dimension, and some sweetness.
Big thumbs up from S - he discovered these a week later on a self-described snack quest when I was out, and made sure to tell me how much he liked them later.
I also tried liquidising raw apples and then drying those. These worked reasonably well, but the texture of the cooked apple version was better - think because the puree was itself smoother and thicker before drying it could be spread out thicker and dried more evenly. Taste-wise both are good. But we did a blind taste test of the two versions and found the uncooked version to have a better, more intense taste. So, need to figure out a way of intensifying the thickness (adding a second layer of apple puree after a hour or two of drying?), but otherwise go with uncooked.
I dried some in the conventional manner (in my dehydrator), and tried some just as they were (peeled, cored and sliced ~20 mm thick), and some where I dipped them in ascorbic acid solution aka pineapple juice before drying (both times dried ~140F for ~6 hours). I didn't expect to find a difference, and it is not huge, but I think I do like the juice-dipped ones best.
I also tried out making fruit leather. I filled a pan with chunks of peeled, cored apples (and the juice of half a lemon), covered and simmered, stirring occasionally, until they were soft. Then liquidised using a wand blender. I took the plastic sheets that came with the dehydrator (without holes), and greased them lightly with oil. Then spread the apple puree out across the sheets, to a thickness of about 1/4 inch / 1/2 cm. I did some just as it was, and the rest I mixed in cinnamon before spreading it out. It dried in approx 6 hours @ 140F. It is just like leather, texturally, and tastes quite intense and appley. I think I like the cinnamon one best - adds another flavour dimension, and some sweetness.
Big thumbs up from S - he discovered these a week later on a self-described snack quest when I was out, and made sure to tell me how much he liked them later.
I also tried liquidising raw apples and then drying those. These worked reasonably well, but the texture of the cooked apple version was better - think because the puree was itself smoother and thicker before drying it could be spread out thicker and dried more evenly. Taste-wise both are good. But we did a blind taste test of the two versions and found the uncooked version to have a better, more intense taste. So, need to figure out a way of intensifying the thickness (adding a second layer of apple puree after a hour or two of drying?), but otherwise go with uncooked.
Sweetcorn, tempeh, parsley and paprika
As I rode home last night I was thinking about how evocative food is for me - how both cooking and eating can make me feel connected to people, places, or times in the past. Then, as I parked my bike, I thought about my favourite childhood dinner - sweetcorn and cottage cheese pie with paprika and chives - and wondered why I'd never tried to make it. I couldn't really be assed with pie crust last night, and I don't really eat cottage cheese any more. But decided to substitute tempeh and see how it went.
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 pack soy tempeh
1 1/2 cups frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
~1 tbsp chopped parsley
~1 tbsp chopped chives
~2 tsp paprika
salt+pepper
juice of 1/2 a lime (optional)
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Crumble in the tempeh and stir and fry for a few minutes to heat and brown. Add the sweetcorn, herbs and paprika and fry for a bit longer, until everything is combined and hot. Season to taste, and add lime juice if using.
I liked this. Not sure how accurate it was, but perhaps a little evocative. I didn't add lime juice, but did wonder if it could have used a little acidity. We ate it with cooked tomatilloes, so in this case lime wasn't needed but otherwise might have been nice? S pointed out it is quite similar to my favourite chicken of the woods preparation, which is totally true. It's also true that the tempeh is fairly similar in appearance and especially texture to chicken of the woods, although different in taste - also hadn't occurred to me til he pointed it out.
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 pack soy tempeh
1 1/2 cups frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
~1 tbsp chopped parsley
~1 tbsp chopped chives
~2 tsp paprika
salt+pepper
juice of 1/2 a lime (optional)
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Crumble in the tempeh and stir and fry for a few minutes to heat and brown. Add the sweetcorn, herbs and paprika and fry for a bit longer, until everything is combined and hot. Season to taste, and add lime juice if using.
I liked this. Not sure how accurate it was, but perhaps a little evocative. I didn't add lime juice, but did wonder if it could have used a little acidity. We ate it with cooked tomatilloes, so in this case lime wasn't needed but otherwise might have been nice? S pointed out it is quite similar to my favourite chicken of the woods preparation, which is totally true. It's also true that the tempeh is fairly similar in appearance and especially texture to chicken of the woods, although different in taste - also hadn't occurred to me til he pointed it out.
Quick quinoa salad
I felt like eating quinoa. While it was cooking, I thought I may as well mix it up with some stuff to make it more interesting. This was very quick and easy - herbs from the balcony (how much longer will they last as it gets colder?), and a few other things from the pantry / fridge / freezer, all requiring minimal prep. We both really liked it - not bad for an afterthought.
1 cup quinoa, cooked in 2 cups of water
1/2 cup frozen shelled edamame, defrosted
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1-2 tbsp chopped chives
2 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1-2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp honey
salt+pepper
1/4 cup dried sour cherries (or cranberries)
Put the quinoa in a small pan with the water, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer over a low heat til the quinoa is tender and the water all absorbed or evaporated (~10 min). Meanwhile, defrost the edamame (pour boiling water over), toast the pumpkin seeds and chop the herbs. Mix the dressing in a small bowl: beat together olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar, mustard, honey and seasoning. When ready, transfer the cooked quinoa to a serving bowl and add the dressing. Mix thoroughly. Add the edamame, pumpkin seeds, sour cherries and herbs, mix and serve.
I liked this so much I made a second round to take to the LUrC potluck last night - I thought it would be cool to make something savoury that featured some of the LUrC fruit (sour cherries). I forgot about edamame actually, so this version was just herbs, pumpkin seeds, sour cherries and dressing - I only remembered just now so obviously didn't miss the beans too much! Was psyched that my parsley was still alive on the balcony despite a few -3 or -4C nights. And the chives! So, although the quinoa and other ingredients are from distant lands; the sour cherries were from Cambridge, the herbs right outside my kitchen, and the honey from a friend of S's in Brookline.
1 cup quinoa, cooked in 2 cups of water
1/2 cup frozen shelled edamame, defrosted
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1-2 tbsp chopped chives
2 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1-2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp honey
salt+pepper
1/4 cup dried sour cherries (or cranberries)
Put the quinoa in a small pan with the water, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer over a low heat til the quinoa is tender and the water all absorbed or evaporated (~10 min). Meanwhile, defrost the edamame (pour boiling water over), toast the pumpkin seeds and chop the herbs. Mix the dressing in a small bowl: beat together olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar, mustard, honey and seasoning. When ready, transfer the cooked quinoa to a serving bowl and add the dressing. Mix thoroughly. Add the edamame, pumpkin seeds, sour cherries and herbs, mix and serve.
I liked this so much I made a second round to take to the LUrC potluck last night - I thought it would be cool to make something savoury that featured some of the LUrC fruit (sour cherries). I forgot about edamame actually, so this version was just herbs, pumpkin seeds, sour cherries and dressing - I only remembered just now so obviously didn't miss the beans too much! Was psyched that my parsley was still alive on the balcony despite a few -3 or -4C nights. And the chives! So, although the quinoa and other ingredients are from distant lands; the sour cherries were from Cambridge, the herbs right outside my kitchen, and the honey from a friend of S's in Brookline.
Tomatilloes and thyme
A brought me the last tomatilloes from his allotment. He'd gathered them after the frost - perhaps these really are the final harvest? So some had squishy patches, but in general they were fine. I put them together with a couple I had from ECO, and wondered what to make. I have previously just used tomatilloes raw, in sauces. This time, a chilly evening, I felt like cooking them. Simply. So I did this.
8-10 medium sized tomatilloes
1-2 tbsp thyme leaves
olive oil
salt and pepper
Remove and discard the husks from the tomatilloes and give them a good wash to get rid of their stickiness. Chop into ~ 1 cm dice. Prepare the thyme leaves (wash and remove any twiggy bits). Heat 1-2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and then add the tomatilloes. Fry for a minute or so then add the thyme. Continue cooking until they have released their juice and then it has reduced back down - about ten minutes. Season to taste.
This was great - I'd forgotten how sweet tomatilloes are, while still being tangy and savoury - halfway between green tomatoes and physalis, perhaps. The tomatilloes and thyme became kind of a sauce for this, and went very well.
8-10 medium sized tomatilloes
1-2 tbsp thyme leaves
olive oil
salt and pepper
Remove and discard the husks from the tomatilloes and give them a good wash to get rid of their stickiness. Chop into ~ 1 cm dice. Prepare the thyme leaves (wash and remove any twiggy bits). Heat 1-2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and then add the tomatilloes. Fry for a minute or so then add the thyme. Continue cooking until they have released their juice and then it has reduced back down - about ten minutes. Season to taste.
This was great - I'd forgotten how sweet tomatilloes are, while still being tangy and savoury - halfway between green tomatoes and physalis, perhaps. The tomatilloes and thyme became kind of a sauce for this, and went very well.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Green tomato cake (+gluten-free option)
I had just about dealt with all the green tomatoes from my roof when I was gifted a pile more from ECO (thanks to D, K and A!). I actually still had lots of unrealised green tomato ideas, and ended up going with green tomato cake for these toms - a new one in my repertoire of weirdo vegetable cakes...
4 cups chopped green tomatoes (chop fairly fine)
1 tbsp salt
1/3 cup veg oil
1 1/3 cups sugar (used mixture of white and brown)
2 eggs (or 2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 tbsp boiling water)
2 cups plain flour (or 2 cups TJ's GF flour mix plus 1/4 tsp xanthan gum)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins
Put the green tomatoes in a bowl with ~1 tbsp salt. Mix and let sit for ~ 10 min, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients and start on the cake. Heat the oven to 350F. Beat the vegetable oil and sugar together in a bowl with a fork. Add the eggs (or linseed mixture) and beat until reasonably well combined and aerated. Mix the flour, xanthan gum if using, 1/4 tsp salt, spices and bicarb in a separate bowl with a fork. Add the raisins and walnuts to the dry stuff and mix. Add the wet to dry and mix until just combined. Rinse and drain (try to get most of the liquid out) the green tomatoes and then fold into the cake mixture. Grease a loaf tin and line the base. Dollop the cake mixture into the tin. Bake for 45-60 min until a skewer comes out clean (exact cooking time will depend on shape of tin used). Let cool in the tin for at least half an hour before lifting out.
This was really, surprisingly good. The green toms are hardly noticeable - visually only if you look for them, and taste-wise hardly at all. So it is basically a moist, spiced cake rich with walnuts and raisins. The GF version was a little bit crumbly when sliced but really just a little bit - quite acceptable in this type of cake (made with eggs; rose beautifully). We took it for D's birthday party, and it went down well (especially with A).
4 cups chopped green tomatoes (chop fairly fine)
1 tbsp salt
1/3 cup veg oil
1 1/3 cups sugar (used mixture of white and brown)
2 eggs (or 2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 tbsp boiling water)
2 cups plain flour (or 2 cups TJ's GF flour mix plus 1/4 tsp xanthan gum)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins
Put the green tomatoes in a bowl with ~1 tbsp salt. Mix and let sit for ~ 10 min, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients and start on the cake. Heat the oven to 350F. Beat the vegetable oil and sugar together in a bowl with a fork. Add the eggs (or linseed mixture) and beat until reasonably well combined and aerated. Mix the flour, xanthan gum if using, 1/4 tsp salt, spices and bicarb in a separate bowl with a fork. Add the raisins and walnuts to the dry stuff and mix. Add the wet to dry and mix until just combined. Rinse and drain (try to get most of the liquid out) the green tomatoes and then fold into the cake mixture. Grease a loaf tin and line the base. Dollop the cake mixture into the tin. Bake for 45-60 min until a skewer comes out clean (exact cooking time will depend on shape of tin used). Let cool in the tin for at least half an hour before lifting out.
This was really, surprisingly good. The green toms are hardly noticeable - visually only if you look for them, and taste-wise hardly at all. So it is basically a moist, spiced cake rich with walnuts and raisins. The GF version was a little bit crumbly when sliced but really just a little bit - quite acceptable in this type of cake (made with eggs; rose beautifully). We took it for D's birthday party, and it went down well (especially with A).
Roasted apple and fennel seed chutney
I keep thinking this year's harvest is over - I thought the quinces would be the last thing for sure. But then something else crops up. This time it's apples - a LUrC tree five minutes from my house! How could I resist? I spent a fun few hours with M on a busy street corner - our strategy was for one person to try and knock apples out of the tree with a pole while the other (usually M - he is good at catching, I am decidedly not) tried to catch them, all the while trying to avoid hitting people, bashing parked cars, or sending apples to become untimely apple-roadkill-sauce under passing wheels. We grabbed a surprising amount before I had to leave and it was getting dark; at which point M was still up the tree in gathering gloom, unable to resist reaching for the final few.
The other reason I was happy about that harvest was that I'd joined a skillshare group wherein some people wanted me to show them how to make jam. It was starting to seem like it wasn't going to happen, but this last-of-the-season bonus made it possible. So, on Sunday, three ladies came over and I took them through my jam making process using this recipe.
I wasn't really meaning to make any more preserves. But then started constructing an apple and fennel seed chutney in my mind. And, while thinking of it, came across this recipe, which featured an interesting new chutney-making technique (roasting in the oven rather than simmering on the hob - also here), and sounded exactly like what I wanted (and completely delicious).
(made 4 small jars)
90g dried sour cherries, soaked overnight in apple juice (used white grape juice, soaked ~3 hours)
1 kg Cox's apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped (used Packard's Corner apples)
2 fennel bulbs, finely sliced across (a mandoline is very good for this) (used green tomatoes instead)
1 red onion, cut in half and sliced lengthways, from the root end to the top (used white onion as had no red)
100g fresh ginger, finely grated
1 red chilli, finely sliced into rings (used dried)
2 tsp fennel seeds (used 2 1/2 tsp)
2 tsp coriander seeds
3 star anise (used 2 1/2 tsp anise seeds instead as liked the taste more than star anise in this context)
250 g demerara sugar
400 ml cider vinegar
Put everything in a roasting dish, cover with foil and place in an oven preheated to 160C/320F. Cook for an hour and a half, stirring once or twice, then remove the foil and continue to cook for about an hour, until thick and browned and a good chutney consistency (cook for longer if necessary). Remove from the oven and spoon into sterilised jars while still hot. Seal immediately.
The roasting worked well although not sure if it is any different or better than doing it on the hob, and does make sterilising the jars a bit more faffy since the oven is occupied. It's a delicious chutney. The ginger is pretty strong, the fennel / anise is present, but the sour cherries are perhaps a little lost. Will taste again when it is mature - for now I am definitely happy with it. Would probably be even better with fennel - just used green toms as that's what I had, but they don't really add anything to the taste.
The other reason I was happy about that harvest was that I'd joined a skillshare group wherein some people wanted me to show them how to make jam. It was starting to seem like it wasn't going to happen, but this last-of-the-season bonus made it possible. So, on Sunday, three ladies came over and I took them through my jam making process using this recipe.
I wasn't really meaning to make any more preserves. But then started constructing an apple and fennel seed chutney in my mind. And, while thinking of it, came across this recipe, which featured an interesting new chutney-making technique (roasting in the oven rather than simmering on the hob - also here), and sounded exactly like what I wanted (and completely delicious).
(made 4 small jars)
90g dried sour cherries, soaked overnight in apple juice (used white grape juice, soaked ~3 hours)
1 kg Cox's apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped (used Packard's Corner apples)
2 fennel bulbs, finely sliced across (a mandoline is very good for this) (used green tomatoes instead)
1 red onion, cut in half and sliced lengthways, from the root end to the top (used white onion as had no red)
100g fresh ginger, finely grated
1 red chilli, finely sliced into rings (used dried)
2 tsp fennel seeds (used 2 1/2 tsp)
2 tsp coriander seeds
3 star anise (used 2 1/2 tsp anise seeds instead as liked the taste more than star anise in this context)
250 g demerara sugar
400 ml cider vinegar
Put everything in a roasting dish, cover with foil and place in an oven preheated to 160C/320F. Cook for an hour and a half, stirring once or twice, then remove the foil and continue to cook for about an hour, until thick and browned and a good chutney consistency (cook for longer if necessary). Remove from the oven and spoon into sterilised jars while still hot. Seal immediately.
The roasting worked well although not sure if it is any different or better than doing it on the hob, and does make sterilising the jars a bit more faffy since the oven is occupied. It's a delicious chutney. The ginger is pretty strong, the fennel / anise is present, but the sour cherries are perhaps a little lost. Will taste again when it is mature - for now I am definitely happy with it. Would probably be even better with fennel - just used green toms as that's what I had, but they don't really add anything to the taste.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Green leaves and beans, pomegranate molasses, sesame
half a bag of salad leaves (mostly baby kale and spinach)
~1 cup green beans, topped and tailed and chopped into pieces
1-2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
2 tsp white miso
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp olive oil
water
Boil the green beans for ~4-6 min, until just tender. Refresh under cold water and then drain. Put leaves and beans in a salad bowl. Add the toasted sesame seeds. In a small bowl beat the tahini, pomegranate molasses, miso, mirin and olive oil together with a fork, then beat in water until it is thinned to a good dressing consistency. When ready to serve, pour the dressing over the greens and mix well together.
~1 cup green beans, topped and tailed and chopped into pieces
1-2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
2 tsp white miso
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp olive oil
water
Boil the green beans for ~4-6 min, until just tender. Refresh under cold water and then drain. Put leaves and beans in a salad bowl. Add the toasted sesame seeds. In a small bowl beat the tahini, pomegranate molasses, miso, mirin and olive oil together with a fork, then beat in water until it is thinned to a good dressing consistency. When ready to serve, pour the dressing over the greens and mix well together.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Ginger-sesame-miso soup
We ate at Life Alive after sauna and it hit the spot - I had something ('The Fool') rich with mushrooms, kale, sesame, ginger and sprouted legumes (and udon); S had a similar beast but with miso broth. Yesterday we had planned a big dinner (East by Northeast), so I wanted something light but filling for lunch. As I biked back from aerials it was chilly but brightening, and miso soup shaped into my answer as I rode. I've made miso soup before and it's so simple it hardly warrants a recipe. But anyway, for this one I merged S's miso with my sesame-ginger and it was really fresh and delicious while still warm enough for a chilly Autumn day.
(makes enough for one person, for lunch)
3 small carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
3 inch piece of daikon radish, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cups boiling water
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2-3 savoy cabbage (or other cabbage, or kale) leaves, shredded
2 inch cube of firm tofu, chopped into ~1 cm dice
1/2 tsp sesame oil
2-3 tbsp good-quality white miso
~1 tbsp shredded fresh mint (or coriander)
Put the carrots and daikon in a small pan with the water and the ginger. Bring to the boil. Boil for a few minutes, until the carrots are just starting to get tender. Add the cabbage and tofu and bring back to the boil. Turn off the heat and mix in the sesame oil and miso. Pour or dollop into a bowl, top with the mint, and eat (add more water, more miso or more sesame oil to taste).
This is amazing - a week later it's still all I want to eat. I've got S into it too, and we have made various versions, all successful - one with shredded kale, sliced turnip, sweetcorn, peas and edamame; another with noodles as well to make it even more beefy. Yum. Only thing that didn't really work was eating some cold without broth - thought it'd just be like steamed veg with some miso flavour; it turned out to be a bit peely-wally.
(makes enough for one person, for lunch)
3 small carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
3 inch piece of daikon radish, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cups boiling water
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2-3 savoy cabbage (or other cabbage, or kale) leaves, shredded
2 inch cube of firm tofu, chopped into ~1 cm dice
1/2 tsp sesame oil
2-3 tbsp good-quality white miso
~1 tbsp shredded fresh mint (or coriander)
Put the carrots and daikon in a small pan with the water and the ginger. Bring to the boil. Boil for a few minutes, until the carrots are just starting to get tender. Add the cabbage and tofu and bring back to the boil. Turn off the heat and mix in the sesame oil and miso. Pour or dollop into a bowl, top with the mint, and eat (add more water, more miso or more sesame oil to taste).
This is amazing - a week later it's still all I want to eat. I've got S into it too, and we have made various versions, all successful - one with shredded kale, sliced turnip, sweetcorn, peas and edamame; another with noodles as well to make it even more beefy. Yum. Only thing that didn't really work was eating some cold without broth - thought it'd just be like steamed veg with some miso flavour; it turned out to be a bit peely-wally.
Vanilla essence
A while ago, inspired by this and a rapidly hardening vanilla bean in my cupboard, I decided to try making vanilla essence. It hardly needs a recipe, but here it is.
rum
vanilla bean(s)
For one vanilla bean, I used 1/3 cup of rum. Put the rum into a small glass jar with a screw cap. Split the vanilla bean(s) lengthwise and then cut crosswise until you can submerge them completely in the rum. Close the jar tightly and store in a dark cupboard for two months, shaking occasionally and keeping an eye on it.
I'm not sure if this is as vanilla-y as store-bought. Also I usually buy the non-alcoholic version, which I think is better, especially for non-baked items. But this stuff is nice too, especially if you want to insert a little rum flavour along with your vanilla. It keeps well - has been in the cupboard for at least a year and is fine.
rum
vanilla bean(s)
For one vanilla bean, I used 1/3 cup of rum. Put the rum into a small glass jar with a screw cap. Split the vanilla bean(s) lengthwise and then cut crosswise until you can submerge them completely in the rum. Close the jar tightly and store in a dark cupboard for two months, shaking occasionally and keeping an eye on it.
I'm not sure if this is as vanilla-y as store-bought. Also I usually buy the non-alcoholic version, which I think is better, especially for non-baked items. But this stuff is nice too, especially if you want to insert a little rum flavour along with your vanilla. It keeps well - has been in the cupboard for at least a year and is fine.
Sweet-pickled carrot and radish
We had a daikon in the CSA, and mounting carrots. I was interested in sweet-pickled slices - I looked at a few recipes and settled on something like this.
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup demerara sugar
1 tbsp fine desert salt
150 ml coconut vinegar
150 ml cider vinegar
600 ml water
3-4 medium carrots
1 small-medium daikon radish
1 green chilli, thinly sliced crossways
Put the sugars, vinegars, water and salt in a pan and bring almost to a simmer. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then turn off the heat and let cool.
Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables. Peel the carrots and daikon and then slice into matchsticks. Put in a bowl with the chilli.
When the vinegar mixture has cooled, pour it over the vegetables. Transfer to sterilised jars and store in the fridge (will be fine for several weeks).
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup demerara sugar
1 tbsp fine desert salt
150 ml coconut vinegar
150 ml cider vinegar
600 ml water
3-4 medium carrots
1 small-medium daikon radish
1 green chilli, thinly sliced crossways
Put the sugars, vinegars, water and salt in a pan and bring almost to a simmer. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then turn off the heat and let cool.
Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables. Peel the carrots and daikon and then slice into matchsticks. Put in a bowl with the chilli.
When the vinegar mixture has cooled, pour it over the vegetables. Transfer to sterilised jars and store in the fridge (will be fine for several weeks).
Chocolate rosemary biscuits
We went to the Pembroke sauna for the first time in ages. I wanted to take something in case we needed a post-sauna snack. Biscuits seemed like a sensible, easily portable, easily eatable, quick to make option. I didn't have much time before we had to go, so I had a quick look at ppk and immediately settled upon these. I didn't have fresh rosemary so I used dried.
(makes ~15)
1/2 cup refined coconut oil, solid state (room temperature - not cold)
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (used 3/4 tbsp crumbled dried rosemary leaves)
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup fake milk
1 tbsp ground linseed
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/3 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup roughly chopped dark chocolate (or chips)
Heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease two large baking trays. In a large bowl, beat the coconut oil and rosemary with a fork until fairly smooth. Add the sugar, and beat a bit more. Add the milk and linseed and beat. Mix in the vanilla. Add about half the flour, as well as the salt and bicarb, and mix with a spoon. Add the rest of the flour, along with the chocolate, and mix to combine. Take out walnut sized pieces of dough, round them up, flatten and place on the baking trays (they will spread a little). Bake for 10-15 min, until bottoms are golden brown. Take out and let cool for 3 minutes or so, then transfer to cooling racks to finish cooling.
These were good - decent texture and taste. I find refined coconut oil a little dull (thus it needed using up!), might prefer these with real coconutty coconut oil. I'd also like to try these with olive oil - could imagine chocolate, rosemary and olive oil being beautiful together. Difficult to get the balance of rosemary and chocolate quite right - some bites I couldn't find the rosemary, others missed chocolate, others it was bang on. Quite salty - could reduce the salt. Nice and quick and easy though, and a pretty good post-sauna snack.
(makes ~15)
1/2 cup refined coconut oil, solid state (room temperature - not cold)
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (used 3/4 tbsp crumbled dried rosemary leaves)
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup fake milk
1 tbsp ground linseed
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/3 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup roughly chopped dark chocolate (or chips)
Heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease two large baking trays. In a large bowl, beat the coconut oil and rosemary with a fork until fairly smooth. Add the sugar, and beat a bit more. Add the milk and linseed and beat. Mix in the vanilla. Add about half the flour, as well as the salt and bicarb, and mix with a spoon. Add the rest of the flour, along with the chocolate, and mix to combine. Take out walnut sized pieces of dough, round them up, flatten and place on the baking trays (they will spread a little). Bake for 10-15 min, until bottoms are golden brown. Take out and let cool for 3 minutes or so, then transfer to cooling racks to finish cooling.
These were good - decent texture and taste. I find refined coconut oil a little dull (thus it needed using up!), might prefer these with real coconutty coconut oil. I'd also like to try these with olive oil - could imagine chocolate, rosemary and olive oil being beautiful together. Difficult to get the balance of rosemary and chocolate quite right - some bites I couldn't find the rosemary, others missed chocolate, others it was bang on. Quite salty - could reduce the salt. Nice and quick and easy though, and a pretty good post-sauna snack.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Miso, membrillo and toasted sesame seeds
I cut the membrillo into pieces last night - half for me, half for L; a bit extra for her to give back to M... Then half of our bit into pieces to store in the freezer for future use and the other half to eat right away / to keep in the fridge. I think it should keep quite a long time in the fridge, but just in case that doesn't work out the frozen stuff is back-up. We managed to make quite a big dent in it last night alone - S is a big fan. He was eating it on lightly toasted bread slices with manchego. I decided that the membrillo was amazing on the aforementioned toasted bread, over a smear of white miso and below a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds - sweetness, tang, crunch, saltiness and toastiness.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Membrillo
After I made quinces in syrup a few weeks ago I had membrillo on my mind - was curious to see how it worked, but with only a couple of quinces that day it didn't seem like the best idea. Then, what luck - M and L furnished me with masses of beautiful, locally harvested quince! L and I made pickled quinces, quinces in syrup and a huge, beautiful, bendy brick of fragrant, pinkish-amber jelly-paste... membrillo!
We referred to this recipe (on the same site as the quinces in syrup one), but the basic recipe seems to be the same everywhere, and pretty straightforward (although somewhat time consuming).
quinces - any quantity, at least 6 to make it worth it though I'd say; we ended up with 4 lb 7 oz after prepping and initial boiling / draining
sugar - same weight as the boiled+drained quinces
lemon juice - I added the juice of one lemon to the 4 lb 7 oz of quince
Peel and core the quinces, cut out any bad bits and chop the good stuff into chunks. Put in a big pan, cover with water and boil for about 30 min, until the quinces are very soft. Drain away all the excess water, then weigh the quinces (at this point we had 4 lb 7 oz).
Use a wand blender to liquidise the quince pieces - try and make it as smooth as you can.
Put the pan back on the heat, add the sugar (same weight as the boiled+drained quinces) and lemon juice, bring to the boil and simmer until is has become a pinkish-amber colour and thickened.
Heat the oven to a low temperature - ~120F / 50C. Line a roasting tin or other rectangular, oven-proof, high-sided container with baking paper, lightly greasing the inside of the paper so the quince paste won't stick. Transfer the reduced quince paste to the greased, lined tin and put in the oven for ~60 min to dry out.
Remove from the oven and let cool. It will firm up as it cools, and then you should be able to lift it out of the tin by grabbing the paper at the edges, and it should come easily away from the paper and have a jellyish, sliceable consistency.
We referred to this recipe (on the same site as the quinces in syrup one), but the basic recipe seems to be the same everywhere, and pretty straightforward (although somewhat time consuming).
quinces - any quantity, at least 6 to make it worth it though I'd say; we ended up with 4 lb 7 oz after prepping and initial boiling / draining
sugar - same weight as the boiled+drained quinces
lemon juice - I added the juice of one lemon to the 4 lb 7 oz of quince
Peel and core the quinces, cut out any bad bits and chop the good stuff into chunks. Put in a big pan, cover with water and boil for about 30 min, until the quinces are very soft. Drain away all the excess water, then weigh the quinces (at this point we had 4 lb 7 oz).
Use a wand blender to liquidise the quince pieces - try and make it as smooth as you can.
Put the pan back on the heat, add the sugar (same weight as the boiled+drained quinces) and lemon juice, bring to the boil and simmer until is has become a pinkish-amber colour and thickened.
Heat the oven to a low temperature - ~120F / 50C. Line a roasting tin or other rectangular, oven-proof, high-sided container with baking paper, lightly greasing the inside of the paper so the quince paste won't stick. Transfer the reduced quince paste to the greased, lined tin and put in the oven for ~60 min to dry out.
Remove from the oven and let cool. It will firm up as it cools, and then you should be able to lift it out of the tin by grabbing the paper at the edges, and it should come easily away from the paper and have a jellyish, sliceable consistency.
Pickled quinces
The last blast of the harvesting season came via M from LUrC. L was kind enough to collect ~15 lb of quinces for her and me to share. She arrived at my place last night with a backpack rammed with quinces. As soon as she walked past me into the apartment I got a waft of their wonderful smell. We spent the evening chopping, chatting, listening to the radio, eating yellow potatoes and pickled green tomatoes, and making beautiful quince preserves. We made half of them into membrillo, and sliced half of what was left thinly to make quinces in syrup and the rest in chunks to make these pickled quinces. The pickled quince recipe we used is here - L looked it up and said she didn't find anything on American sites (perhaps quinces are not common / not commonly used here?), and she consequently got a bit confused about metric measurements...
(we doubled the recipe below to get four large jars)
250 ml cider vinegar
750 ml water
200 g sugar
4 strips lemon zest
6 cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 cinnamon stick
3 bay leaves
1 star anise
2 (or 350g) quince, peeled, cut into eighths
Put all the ingredients except the quince into a large saucepan, bring to a simmer, then add the peeled, cored, halved and eighthed quinces, then turn down to a gentle heat and leave to cook for 20-25 minutes until tender.
Gently lift the quince pieces out of the liquid with a slotted spoon and put them into sterilised jars. Pour over the liquor, seal and cool. They will keep for a few weeks.
(we doubled the recipe below to get four large jars)
250 ml cider vinegar
750 ml water
200 g sugar
4 strips lemon zest
6 cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 cinnamon stick
3 bay leaves
1 star anise
2 (or 350g) quince, peeled, cut into eighths
Put all the ingredients except the quince into a large saucepan, bring to a simmer, then add the peeled, cored, halved and eighthed quinces, then turn down to a gentle heat and leave to cook for 20-25 minutes until tender.
Gently lift the quince pieces out of the liquid with a slotted spoon and put them into sterilised jars. Pour over the liquor, seal and cool. They will keep for a few weeks.
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Pickled green tomatoes (and grapes)
With my harvest of green tomatoes, I decided to pickle some (using my trusty faux-Grillo brine) as well as making jam. In fact, I still have some left even after all this - perhaps frying is also on the cards, or exciting sauce, or who knows what else? The grapes were left over from my last bunch of Concord grapes of the season - I hung onto the unripe ones to try pickling them.
~1 lb of green tomatoes
~10 unripe Concord grapes
~20 mint leaves
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/4 tsp red chilli flakes
3/8 cup cider vinegar
3/8 cup white vinegar
1 1/4 cups water
3/4 tbsp salt
Slice the green tomatoes thickly and pack into two (~400g size) jars. Add the Concord grapes and mint leaves to one / the fennel seeds, celery seeds and chilli flakes to the other. Put the vinegars, water and salt into a small saucepan and bring just to the boil. Pour over the jar contents, making sure to fill right up to ~1 cm from the brim, jiggling the contents to minimize air bubbles. Put lids on while the contents are still hot, then let cool before storing in the fridge.
~1 lb of green tomatoes
~10 unripe Concord grapes
~20 mint leaves
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/4 tsp red chilli flakes
3/8 cup cider vinegar
3/8 cup white vinegar
1 1/4 cups water
3/4 tbsp salt
Slice the green tomatoes thickly and pack into two (~400g size) jars. Add the Concord grapes and mint leaves to one / the fennel seeds, celery seeds and chilli flakes to the other. Put the vinegars, water and salt into a small saucepan and bring just to the boil. Pour over the jar contents, making sure to fill right up to ~1 cm from the brim, jiggling the contents to minimize air bubbles. Put lids on while the contents are still hot, then let cool before storing in the fridge.
Green tomato, pepper and chilli jam
I took in all the green tomatoes from my roof after seeing a forecast of -1C for Friday. I had quite a lot - they had come back in September but not many of that second round had ripened much. I also had a lot of green peppers (from D) and some green chillies, so I decided to make another version of this, but with everything green - also reminiscent of this, but somehow more savoury due to the garlic, ginger, chillies, peppers.
(makes ~5 smallish jars)
800 g green tomatoes
18 green peppers
18 green chillies
12 garlic cloves
two thumb sized ginger chunks
1.4 kg sugar
400ml cider vinegar
Finely chop the green tomatoes, peppers, chillies (wearing lab gloves), garlic and ginger.
Put sugar and vinegar in a pan and stir til sugar dissolved. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer til reduced / thick and sticky (~60 min). When reduced, cook on high until setting point is reached. Let cool for 10 min before putting into sterile jars.
This tastes great - similar to sweet chilli sauce. And is resoundingly, pleasingly, emerald. It's a soft set, but I think that's OK. Perhaps some lemon juice would help with the set?
In a wonderful postscript, S took some of this for his friend / colleague W, who is a legend and who had been chatting with S about taking in his green tomatoes while I was taking in mine - it seemed a nice thought and it's fun to share successful preserve experiments. I thought nothing more of it, but a couple of days later W gave S a wee jar of liquid gold from his Brookline bees - so excited and thankful! It's gorgeous honey - very pale and delicate - quite different from A's JP honey despite both coming from city bees - perhaps the time of year, perhaps the flowers in the different hoods? I love them just the same.
(makes ~5 smallish jars)
800 g green tomatoes
18 green peppers
18 green chillies
12 garlic cloves
two thumb sized ginger chunks
1.4 kg sugar
400ml cider vinegar
Finely chop the green tomatoes, peppers, chillies (wearing lab gloves), garlic and ginger.
Put sugar and vinegar in a pan and stir til sugar dissolved. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer til reduced / thick and sticky (~60 min). When reduced, cook on high until setting point is reached. Let cool for 10 min before putting into sterile jars.
This tastes great - similar to sweet chilli sauce. And is resoundingly, pleasingly, emerald. It's a soft set, but I think that's OK. Perhaps some lemon juice would help with the set?
In a wonderful postscript, S took some of this for his friend / colleague W, who is a legend and who had been chatting with S about taking in his green tomatoes while I was taking in mine - it seemed a nice thought and it's fun to share successful preserve experiments. I thought nothing more of it, but a couple of days later W gave S a wee jar of liquid gold from his Brookline bees - so excited and thankful! It's gorgeous honey - very pale and delicate - quite different from A's JP honey despite both coming from city bees - perhaps the time of year, perhaps the flowers in the different hoods? I love them just the same.
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Beetroot and pistachio dip
This morning I was putting my box of dried fruit and nuts back on a high shelf and somehow managed to bust open a full bag of pistachios over my head. Pistachio rain for breakfast.
The plus side is that those plummeting pistachios combined with seeing this and eating some tasty pink stuff (made by D+K) during our woods picnic the other day inspired me to make a beetroot dip. Beetroot gets on well with most nuts, but I've never really explored its affinity with pistachios - those colours and textures have got to be amazing together, though, right?
1 large beetroot
2 small cloves garlic, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
2/3 packet (~250 g) shelf-stable silken tofu
1-2 tsp lime (or lemon) juice
salt and pepper
~3 tbsp pistachios
Heat the oven to 350F. Wrap the beetroot in foil. Put (on a baking tray) in the oven for ~45 min, until just tender. Remove and let cool. Do this step in advance if you can.
Peel the beetroot and chop roughly. Put into blender with garlic, olive oil, tofu, lime juice, salt and pepper. Blend until fairly smooth and well combined. Tip out of blender into serving plate or tub.
Crush the pistachios using pestle and mortar (or roughly chop). Sprinkle over the beetroot mixture just before serving.
This is nice - colours and textures beautiful as predicted, and I like how using relatively few ingredients means you can taste each one clearly: sharp garlic, pungent olive oil, sweet beetroot, creaminess from the tofu and the crunch and richness of the pistachios are all detectable individually as well as working beautifully together.
The plus side is that those plummeting pistachios combined with seeing this and eating some tasty pink stuff (made by D+K) during our woods picnic the other day inspired me to make a beetroot dip. Beetroot gets on well with most nuts, but I've never really explored its affinity with pistachios - those colours and textures have got to be amazing together, though, right?
1 large beetroot
2 small cloves garlic, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
2/3 packet (~250 g) shelf-stable silken tofu
1-2 tsp lime (or lemon) juice
salt and pepper
~3 tbsp pistachios
Heat the oven to 350F. Wrap the beetroot in foil. Put (on a baking tray) in the oven for ~45 min, until just tender. Remove and let cool. Do this step in advance if you can.
Peel the beetroot and chop roughly. Put into blender with garlic, olive oil, tofu, lime juice, salt and pepper. Blend until fairly smooth and well combined. Tip out of blender into serving plate or tub.
Crush the pistachios using pestle and mortar (or roughly chop). Sprinkle over the beetroot mixture just before serving.
This is nice - colours and textures beautiful as predicted, and I like how using relatively few ingredients means you can taste each one clearly: sharp garlic, pungent olive oil, sweet beetroot, creaminess from the tofu and the crunch and richness of the pistachios are all detectable individually as well as working beautifully together.
Friday, October 18, 2013
Wild mushroom and lettuce 'risotto'
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
~1/2 cup chopped chicken of the woods
~1/2 cup chopped maitake
1 cup rice mix (brown rice, black barley, daikon seeds - TJs)
2 cups hot veg stock
2 tbsp barley+chickpea aged miso
3/4 cup frozen sweetcorn
1 small lettuce, chopped
2-3 tbsp chopped parsley
soy sauce
salt+pepper
toasted sunflower seeds
Heat the oil in a medium, lidded saucepan. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or so til starting to soften. Add the chicken of the woods and maitake and cook for a few more minutes, cover and cook some more until lightly browned. If it started to dry out add a little of the stock. Add the rice mix and stir until the brown rice looks transparent. Add the stock, cover and cook for ~20 min, until all the liquid is absorbed. Add the miso halfway through and mix it through the liquid. Finally, add in the lettuce, parsley and sweetcorn and mix until the lettuce is wilted. Taste for seasoning and add black pepper and salt (and/or soy sauce) if needed. Sprinkle with toasted sunflower seeds to serve.
This is good. I like it.
Monday, October 14, 2013
Muesli muffins
I have had to come in to work before 6 am a few times lately. It doesn't make sense to eat my usual muesli breakfast in the wee, dark hours somehow. I just had a brainwave though: what if I transform the muesli into easily-portable muffin form?! It would make a great, practical breakfast for those days and for any other days when I have to have breakfast (or a snack) on the go. My basic muesli bowl contains oats, linseeds, sunflower seeds, flaked almonds, raisins, almond milk, blueberries, banana, a little cinnamon and a splash of maple syrup - I would hardly have to add anything (perhaps some raising agent; perhaps some oil but sunflower oil would effectively be covered already)...
(makes 10)
1 cup oat flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar*
1/4 cup flaked almonds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup raisins
2 tbsp toasted linseeds
1 banana, mashed roughly with a fork
2 1/2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 tbsp boiling water
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 cup almond milk
1/4 cup sunflower oil
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
Heat oven to 380F and prepare a muffin tin. Mix oat flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, flaked almonds, sunflower seeds, raisins and toasted linseeds in a medium mixing bowl with a fork. In a separate bowl, mash the banana, then add linseed-water mixture, maple syrup, almond milk, brown sugar and oil and beat together with a fork. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix until just combined, adding the blueberries in the final strokes. Dollop into prepared muffin cups and bake for ~25 min.
*consider leaving out brown sugar and increasing maple syrup
I made these exactly as above and they were dreamy. Exactly as I wanted. Seriously - perhaps one of the best recipes I have ever made up. They held together and rose excellently and were packed with deliciousness. I took them to the woods with D, K and A and we tested them, and they were good. Might reduce the sunflower seeds to 1/8 cup but apart from that wouldn't change a thing.
Edit: Also, I ate one before aerials one night and it gave me loads of energy. I think it was the muffin anyway, it might just have been adrenaline or who knows what. Will repeat the experiment.
(makes 10)
1 cup oat flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar*
1/4 cup flaked almonds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup raisins
2 tbsp toasted linseeds
1 banana, mashed roughly with a fork
2 1/2 tbsp ground linseed mixed with 5 tbsp boiling water
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 cup almond milk
1/4 cup sunflower oil
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
Heat oven to 380F and prepare a muffin tin. Mix oat flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, flaked almonds, sunflower seeds, raisins and toasted linseeds in a medium mixing bowl with a fork. In a separate bowl, mash the banana, then add linseed-water mixture, maple syrup, almond milk, brown sugar and oil and beat together with a fork. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix until just combined, adding the blueberries in the final strokes. Dollop into prepared muffin cups and bake for ~25 min.
*consider leaving out brown sugar and increasing maple syrup
I made these exactly as above and they were dreamy. Exactly as I wanted. Seriously - perhaps one of the best recipes I have ever made up. They held together and rose excellently and were packed with deliciousness. I took them to the woods with D, K and A and we tested them, and they were good. Might reduce the sunflower seeds to 1/8 cup but apart from that wouldn't change a thing.
Edit: Also, I ate one before aerials one night and it gave me loads of energy. I think it was the muffin anyway, it might just have been adrenaline or who knows what. Will repeat the experiment.
Gluten-free bread
(makes one loaf in large loaf tin)
2 tsp dried yeast
pinch of raw sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) fake milk
3/4 cup (185ml) water
2/3 cup (115g) brown rice flour (subbed TJ's GF flour mix for brown rice flour and potato starch)
1/2 cup (85g) potato starch (subbed TJ's GF flour mix for brown rice flour and potato starch)
1/3 cup (60g) cornmeal
1/2 cup (62g) millet flour (ground millet seeds in spice grinder)
1/2 cup (56g) ground almonds
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp fine desert salt
2 eggs, beaten lightly
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp cider vinegar
sesame seeds to sprinkle on top
In a small bowl combine yeast and sugar. Add warm water to the fake milk so that it reaches body temperature. Pour the milk mixture over the yeast/sugar and mix to combine. Set aside for 5 minutes to ferment.
Place all the dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well with a fork. When the yeast starts to bubble, add it to the dry ingredients along with the remaining ingredients and mix to form a smooth batter. It will not become kneadable (more like cornbread batter), but will thicken slightly after you have mixed it for a few minutes. Pour into a greased loaf tin with a lined base, scatter the top with sesame seeds and set aside to prove.
Once the dough has nearly risen to the top of the pan (around an hour) turn your oven to 220C/425F. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown, then turn the oven down to 180C/350F and cook for a further 20-25 minutes or until done (should sound hollow when turned out and tapped). Cool on a wire rack. Slice when cold and store in the fridge.
I had trouble turning it out of the pan - would recommend lining the base. It bakes up well, with a nice crust. Slightly sweet - I might leave out or reduce the honey as the cornmeal is sweet on its own. Quite moist - perhaps it was slightly under (could also explain difficulty turning it out?). Pretty satisfactory though, and I always enjoy mucking around with different flours. I sliced it and took it to the woods along with some lentil dip and muesli muffins. Also ate some with this amazing Speculoos-cocoa vegan (but not GF) spread I found on a foray to TJs - too pretty to eat for about 5 sec (above), then too good to leave alone.
Piccalilli
The version in my preserving book looked OK, but this Jamie Oliver version really grabbed my attention - the ingredient list sounded intriguing and delicious - mango, broccoli and apple as well as the cauliflower. So I followed it (more or less) - gave me the chance to preserve some Somerville-harvested apples I had hanging around the kitchen as well as broccoli, chillies and carrots from the CSA and green tomatoes and green beans from my roof garden. Surprisingly, mango is something I often have in store, owing to my frozen mango habit.
(made 3 large jars and 2 medium ones)
½ large cauliflower, cut into small florets
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets
2 bulbs fennel, cut into small chunks (subbed ~4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into small (~1cm dice), and some chopped green tomato)
4 red chillies, seeds still in, finely sliced (subbed dried)
2 green chillies, seeds still in, finely sliced
200 g fine green beans, chopped into short lengths (used roof beans - Kentucky Wonder and French Filet of varying ages - for these plus runners)
150 g runner beans, cut into short lengths (see above)
300 g shallots, cut into eighths (subbed 1 large and 2 small white onions for this and the red onion)
1 red onion, roughly chopped (see above)
2 handfuls fine sea salt
2 tbsp mustard oil (subbed canola oil)
2 heaped tbsp mustard seeds (used 1 tbsp yellow mustard seed and 1 tbsp brown mustard seed)
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp fennel seed, ground (I added this to make up for the absence of fennel)
2 tbsp turmeric
1 nutmeg, grated
2 tbsp English mustard powder (subbed ground yellow mustard seeds)
4 tbsp flour
500 ml white wine vinegar (subbed cider vinegar)
100 ml water
2 apples, grated
2 mangoes, peeled, stoned and roughly chopped (used equivalent quantity chopped frozen mango)
6 tbsp sugar
3 cloves garlic, crushed (/finely chopped)
2 tbsp dried oregano
4 bay leaves
Put all the vegetables in a bowl, add the salt and enough water to cover. Leave in a cool place for about 1 hour. Meanwhile, prep the remaining ingredients and start cooking them.
Heat a saucepan big enough to hold all the vegetables. Add the mustard oil to the pan, then fry the mustard seeds, cumin, turmeric and nutmeg for a moment. Lower the heat, add the mustard powder, flour and a splash of vinegar. Stir well to make a thick paste. Gradually add the remaining vinegar and the water, stirring all the time to make a smooth paste. Add the apples, mangoes, sugar, garlic, oregano and bay leaves. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Drain the salted vegetables and add them to the pan, stirring well to coat with the spicy paste. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables have just softened and started to release some juice. Spoon into sterilised jars and close the lids tightly. Give it at least a month to mature in a cool dark cupboard before eating.
Ha, I took a photo because having that hour of soaking veg in brine meant I was probably the most organised I've ever been before I started cooking... I haven't tried the piccalilli yet (got to wait a month!) but it looks suitably, violently yellow - I especially enjoy how yellow the cauliflower becomes...
Spiced quince in syrup
Another thing I'd had hanging around in the fridge for too long was a couple of quinces. I love quinces, but it always takes a bit of activation energy to get through the prep: those cores are HARD. Worth it though. I noticed this recipe and it was simple enough to spur me to put those quinces into syrup (I accidentally made it even simpler, to no ill effect).
2 quinces
300 ml water
125 g brown sugar (or white)
5 green cardamom pods
1 clove
small piece of star anise (1/6 of a star)
1 cinnamon stick
2-3 strips of lemon rind
2 tbsp honey
Peel and core the quinces, and slice thinly. I had ~250 g quince when prepped. Put the quince slices in a pan with all the other ingredients, bring to the boil and simmer for ~20 min, until the quinces are softened but not falling apart. Remove spices if you like (if not then be careful not to crunch them by accident when eating the quince), transfer quince slices and liquid into a sterile, wide-mouthed jar, cover and let cool. Keep in the fridge (unless you feel like water bath processing them) for 2-3 weeks at least (if they last that long).
These are really delicious - the quince taste, spices and brown sugar balance out really beautifully to make a very fragrant, lovely snack... yup, I have been snacking these straight out of the jar with a teaspoon.
2 quinces
300 ml water
125 g brown sugar (or white)
5 green cardamom pods
1 clove
small piece of star anise (1/6 of a star)
1 cinnamon stick
2-3 strips of lemon rind
2 tbsp honey
Peel and core the quinces, and slice thinly. I had ~250 g quince when prepped. Put the quince slices in a pan with all the other ingredients, bring to the boil and simmer for ~20 min, until the quinces are softened but not falling apart. Remove spices if you like (if not then be careful not to crunch them by accident when eating the quince), transfer quince slices and liquid into a sterile, wide-mouthed jar, cover and let cool. Keep in the fridge (unless you feel like water bath processing them) for 2-3 weeks at least (if they last that long).
These are really delicious - the quince taste, spices and brown sugar balance out really beautifully to make a very fragrant, lovely snack... yup, I have been snacking these straight out of the jar with a teaspoon.
Carrots, red lentils and big couscous
While S is away I've ended up spending a fair bit of time in the kitchen, trying to work my way through a backlog of vegetables. Having got more carrots in the CSA this week, I made an effort to get through all the titchy / odd-shaped ones still hanging around in the fridge from previous weeks - in this and piccalilli.
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
1 in piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
1 green chilli, seeds removed, chilli chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander seed
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp cinnamon
~6 medium carrots, peeled and diced fairly fine (~1cm)
3/4 cup red lentils
1/2 cup big couscous
1 1/2 cups veg stock
2 tsp honey
2 tsp lime juice
1 tsp soy sauce
salt+pepper
2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli, cover and cook for a couple of minutes until starting to soften. Add the onion and cook for a few more minutes. Add the ground spices and cook, uncovered, for 30-60 sec, until fragrant. Add the carrots and mix / cook for a minute, then add the lentils and couscous and mix well. Add the stock, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the lentils, carrots and couscous are all cooked. Add the honey, lime juice, soy sauce and taste for seasoning. Mix in the fresh herbs. Eat warm.
I was aiming for something between a soup, a stew and a pilaf, which is what I ended up with: a warming, one-pot, Autumn dinner. Processing all those weirdo carrots took awhile but it was kind of nice to be cosy in the kitchen and feel useful.
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
1 in piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
1 green chilli, seeds removed, chilli chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander seed
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp cinnamon
~6 medium carrots, peeled and diced fairly fine (~1cm)
3/4 cup red lentils
1/2 cup big couscous
1 1/2 cups veg stock
2 tsp honey
2 tsp lime juice
1 tsp soy sauce
salt+pepper
2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli, cover and cook for a couple of minutes until starting to soften. Add the onion and cook for a few more minutes. Add the ground spices and cook, uncovered, for 30-60 sec, until fragrant. Add the carrots and mix / cook for a minute, then add the lentils and couscous and mix well. Add the stock, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the lentils, carrots and couscous are all cooked. Add the honey, lime juice, soy sauce and taste for seasoning. Mix in the fresh herbs. Eat warm.
I was aiming for something between a soup, a stew and a pilaf, which is what I ended up with: a warming, one-pot, Autumn dinner. Processing all those weirdo carrots took awhile but it was kind of nice to be cosy in the kitchen and feel useful.
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