Sephardic Supper - Ottoman Style Braised Meat with Cannellini Beans

 

 

This recipe is from the most beautiful cookery book I possess - and cookery books are often a work of art these days anyway really, but this one really is beautiful. It's that beautiful that I don't want it splattered with ANYTHING. If you saw the state of some of my 'go to' cookery books, with little notes and the evidence of messy cooking, well, in one way it's quite reassuring of a wonderful collection of recipes, but when I cook anything from this book, it's positioned at the other end of the room from the cooker, for fear that it being any nearer will result in it being in line of a random splatter or mucky fingerprint.

 

 

 

So, I maybe should tell you the name of this cookery book seeing as I have bigged it up in such a way. It's called 'Stella's Sephardic Table' and I spotted it in a book shop a few years ago just before Christmas. It was a revelation - not only was my ego interested as the cover bore my name, but its gold lettering and its origins on the Greek island of Rhodes, coupled with visions of antique maps, and elaborate scroll like writing had me hooked. I wanted it from Christmas, but it was too late to do much about it, so I asked for it for my birthday instead and lo and behold, I was very, very fortunate. (Thank you Phill! xx) 

I should probably also say that this is the biggest cookbook I have ever owned. Big and beautiful.

Anyway, I shall cut to the chase. Seeing as the days are getting colder and I am a big fan of a one pot wonder, I was really tempted by this wonderful recipe which hints at warm, exotic origins and can blip away doing its thing whilst I am doing my thing. I sometimes think I should rename this blog 'One Pot Wonder' because there are so many of them on this blog, but I would find it hard to find anything more satisfying to sit down to after a cold day outside.

 

Ottoman Style Braised Meat with Cannellini Beans, adapted from 'Stella's Sephardic Table' by Stella Cohen

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad and three others

 

Ingredients:

 

2 tbsp. olive oil

1kg of braising steak cubed or other stewing cut, cubed or cut into bitesize pieces

1 marrow bone (probably optional, available from butchers, Waitrose or Ocado, which is where I got mine)

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 leek, washed, white part only, sliced

1 celery stalk (and leafy top, if you like) sliced finely

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs of parsley

500ml chicken stock

Two tins of cannellini beans

1/2 tin chopped tomatoes

1/4 tsp sugar

1 sprig fresh thyme

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

 

Method:

 

 

 

Heat the oil in a large, heavy based pan over a medium high heat. Add the beef and cook in batches. I put the marrow bone in to and kept it in the pan to leech its wonderful bone marrow into the pan as the beef browned. When the beef is browned, remove to a plate.

 

 

 

 Now add the onion, the leek, the celery, bay leaf and parsley sprigs to the pan. Cook until everything is softened and picking up the beef residue from the pan. Return the browned beef to the pan. Add half the stock and bring to the boil. Cover the pan, reduce the heat and allow to simmer gently for an hour or so, or until the meat is tender. Keep checking and add hot water if necessary.

 

Stir in the beans, the tomatoes, sugar, thyme sprigs, red pepper flakes and pepper. Pour in the remaining stock and bring to the boil once again, cover and reduce the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes, but keep checking.

 

Ten minutes before the end of the cooking time, add the salt and lemon juice and discard the herbs. It might be that you want to thicken the sauce and if that is so, remove the lid and increase the heat so that the sauce reduces. When it is at the consistency, taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

 

 

 

Serve in huge bowls!

 

 

 

 

A meal in quick time without horse meat! Quick Chicken Casserole

 

 

No horse meat here. Whilst horse meat is perfectly edible it might be nice if you had a choice as to whether you want to eat it or not. However, I can't say I am surprised that ready meals aren't all what they seem. Last time where I was in the position where I had to have one, it tasted cack. Frankly. I'd rather have a sandwich.

 

But it's quick isn't it? Five minutes (if that) and ding, dinner's ready. Now, I know this doesn't taste five minutes - more like thirty - but once everything is in the pot you can spend a little time doing other stuff - kid stuff if you're me - and then, dinner's ready. And you know what's in it, because you cooked it. Who knew?

 

Also, I am not sure that ready meals are really that cheap. I've seen people paying a significant amount to buy enough of them to feed a family. Now, I haven't done the maths but I reckon if I did, then this would probably come in for less than what you would pay for something that requires you to pierce the film lid. Richer in pocket, richer in diet. Brilliant.

 

This is a BBC GoodFood recipe, slightly tweaked. The result was a meal that was satisfying and creamy and the addition of some crusty bread to mop up the creamy chickeny tarragony juices was a pretty great idea. If you are not in touch with your inner Francophile, or else your kids think it tastes weird and aniseedy, leave it out and check for seasoning.

 

Quick Chicken Casserole, adapted from BBC GoodFood

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad, generously

 

My adaptions in red

 

Ingredients:

 

4 large or 6 small skinless chicken thigh fillets (I bought chicken thighs and spent about five minutes skinning and de-boning them)

3 shallots, quartered (I used a large onion)

1 carrot, sliced

8 new potatoes or salad potatoes, skin left on and halved or quartered if large

500ml chicken stock , fresh, cube or concentrate

1 cupful peas

1 tin of cannellini beans, drained

a small bunch of tarragon, chopped (Shoot me down - I used Barts' chopped tarragon which is jarred in olive oil which was being sold off for 42p in the supermarket)

1 tbsp half-fat crème fraîche (optional) (I used a tbsp of cream)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

Method:

 

 

 

Put the chicken thighs, shallots, carrot, potatoes, some seasoning and the stock in a wide casserole and bring to a simmer. (Actually, I browned the chicken in a little olive oil before I added the rest of the ingredients. I am not keen on anaemic looking meat).

 

 

 

Cover and cook for 15 minutes, then add the peas, cannellini beans and tarragon and cook for a further 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

 

Stir in the cream if you like and taste or seasoning.

 

 

 

Serve in massive bowls with some crusty bread.

 

Like baked beans, only better! Simmered beans with sausage and tomato

 

 

Well, maybe. Baked beans are pretty damn amazing. Maybe I should have said 'different'.

Last week we had Summer again, several days of fabulous temperatures, coinciding with Lola's return to school (and, indeed, my return) which is irritating but not wholly unexpected as these things seem to happen when it comes to 'Britain' and 'weather'. Now we're back to something more Autumnal and I don't know whether it's just contrast but it's a bit chilly! So something a little more hearty was in order, and this Italian style dish was very satisfying as well as registering very low on the 'faff' scale, which is very important on weeknights where frankly, in this house, it is total chaos. In fact it's a wonder we get fed at all.

Sausages. I do love them. For this to be authentically Italian, (well as authentically Italian as it can be in a little kitchen somewhere near Liverpool) you should be using Italian type sausages, or at least the meaty type. Mine were bought at Sainsburys and they were quite fennel-ly. I think that the sausages you need to buy have to be the tasty robust type and not the cheaper sort.

Lola and Finn like sausages and beans. Not surprisingly, they liked this. Fantastico!

Simmered White Beans with Sausage and Tomato, taken from 'Italian Comfort Food' by Julia Della Croce.

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves

1lb 'meaty' (Italian) sausages

1 tbsp tomato puree

1/2 tsp dried sage

125ml meat stock (I used beef)

1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

1 tin of cannellini beans, drained

1 tbsp flat leaf parsley

Method:

 

 

 

In a frying pan over a medium low heat, warm the olive oil. add the onion and garlic and saute gently until totally softened but not browned.

Remove the onions and garlic from the pan and transfer to a bowl, in preparation for adding later.

 

 

 

Add the sausages to the pan (I cut mine up; the original recipe suggested removing the skins and allowing the sausage meat to break down into chunks, but I like texture and I wanted the kids to see that it was actually sausages) and brown a little.

 

 

 

Return the onion and garlic to the pan and add the tomato puree, sage and stock and some seasoning to taste. Bring to the boil.

 

 

 

Add the cannellini beans and bring to the boil again then reduce to a simmer. Partially cover and cook gently for about 10 to 15 minutes.

 

 

 

Sprinkle with parsley and serve with crusty bread.