Ok, healthy eating starts here. Teriyaki Turkey meatballs

 

 

There have been many false dawns and this might be another. What I should probably say is that this is the start of my filling the fridge full of fresher, healthier stuff as I whittle my way through the gallon of cream and dozens of eggs and so on that was in the fridge post the Christmas binge. I had this idea that I would be making some nice desserts etc. to go with the meat laden feasts of Christmas time, but the fact is, I couldn't see past the cheese board (I can never see past the cheese board. I put this down to my mum eating a pound of cheese A DAY when she was carrying me. I am, in fact, made of cheese. I am a slave to Stilton, corrupted by Camembert, distracted by...

er... Dairylea...)

 

So, anyway, before I got waylaid by my love of cheese, I was talking about trying to be more healthy and wholesome after the Christmas splurge and this recipe is a nice place to start. I know it says turkey but don't let that put you off. Enough time has passed since you used up the last of that leftover turkey and this tastes soooo good! The original recipe (which is from BBC GoodFood magazine - a rich vein of inspiration at the moment) calls for the blitzing of chicken breast but I had turkey mince in the freezer, in my mind a far superior (and cheaper) alternative.

 

And here's a thing. The recipe recommends you serve these delicious meatballs on a bed of spring greens and basmati rice. And I did, despite the very likely Lola and Finn revolt over the inclusion of green stuff. Anyway, after discovering that spring greens and rice on the same fork actually taste quite nice, I encouraged Lola and Finn to try it this way. They did, and they agreed. See, I knew it was possible!

 

Teriyaki Turkey Meatballs, adapted from Teriyaki Chicken Meatballs in BBC GoodFood magazine, January 2013 edition

 

My adaptations in red

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad

 

Ingredients:

 

2 shallots

1 carrot, cut into chunks (I used two)

handful of coriander

500g boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into chunks (I used 500g turkey mince)

zest and juice 1 lemon

a little oil

200g basmati rice

200g spring greens, chopped

100ml mirin

3 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp caster sugar

 

Method:

 

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

 

 

 

Pulse the shallots, coriander and carrot in a food processor until finely chopped. Add the turkey, lemon zest and some seasoning, and pulse again until mixed.

 

 

 

Using oiled hands, shape into small meatballs. Put on a baking tray lined with baking parchment (I just oiled mine!) and bake for 10 mins until browned and cooked through.

 

Meanwhile, boil the rice following pack instructions, adding the spring greens for the final 4 mins. Drain well.

 

 

 

Add the mirin, soy, lemon juice and sugar to a saucepan. Bring to the boil, then simmer until saucy.

 

 

 

Remove from the heat, add the meatballs to the pan and roll them around in the sauce.

 

Slightly blurred - getting used to a new camera!

 

 

Divide the rice and greens between plates or bowls and spoon the meatballs over.

It might be winter, but this reminds me of the sunshine! Fusilli con la Zucca, or Pumpkin (Squash) Pasta

 

 

I did have a plan that I would be less spontaneous when it came to shopping for food and that once I had got in the staples that I need in the weekly shop, then I would consult a cookery book, pick a recipe I would like to try, get the ingredients, and then create the dish, yadda, yadda, yadda, and then I realised whilst it might be financially savvy and reduces waste (two good things) it was also bringing out a side in me that was rather predictable and staid (very bad).

 

So, acknowledging that a little spontaneity is a good thing and that it is okay to veer 'off the list' occasionally, I spied 69p squashes at the greengrocers in Crosby village that I was not going to pass up. I never buy squash these days, since I realised that my Lola and Finn hate roasted vegetables and they are not too fond of squash soup. What I was going to do with them, I wasn't sure, but at 69p, I was buying them. They would be the staple for something. And frankly, what a good spot it was, because I would never have cooked this gorgeous dish if I hadn't have bought them.

 

So, after dumping the squash in the fridge for a couple of days and forgetting about it, I unearthed it once more looking for something else. Off to cookbook corner (more like a whole wall these days) to consult better chefs than I. After a rummage, I surfaced with 'Twelve' by Tessa Kiros (a glorious tome of Tuscan recipes) and a recipe for penne with pumpkin. I had all the ingredients, save for the pumpkin and the penne, but you know, a squash is near enough, I figured and as for the penne, well, we're fusilli people here. It was all going to be fine.

 

I did adapt a few little things here and there from the recipe. In particular, I cut my squash into quite small dice mostly, with a few slightly larger ones. Whilst I would like to say this was intentional, it was merely due to the fact that my knife skills are cack. What it did result in however was some of the smaller dice disintegrating pleasingly into the tomatoey sauce and the bigger dice retaining their shape and therefore giving texture. I also only put a cup of water in rather than the three recommended because I knew the cooking time for the squash would be less and I hoped that the sauce would reduce into something reasonably intense. Which it did.

 

So, why am I banging on about sunshine in the title of my blog post? Well, it struck me whilst chopping up squash how beautifully vibrant a squash is. In a season which is more likely to be associated with the more insipid, lifeless colours as nature almost lies dormant, the squash just glows and resonates warmth. Though a winter vegetable, its sunny colour makes me think of those golden days of summer. Why didn't my ancestors stay in the Med? I was made to be where the sun shines!!

 

Lola liked this. Finn, well, ate some. He is a very tough customer but don't let his lukewarm reaction put you off. Please make this. It's pretty economical, light but substantial (if that is possible) and tastes really wonderful. And, I still have half a squash left...

 

Fusilli con la Zucca, or Pumpkin spiral pasta, adapted from Penne con la Zucca, from 'Twelve' by Tessa Kiros.

 

My adaptations in red.

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad plus 2.

 

Ingredients:

 

3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped finely (actually, I used some shallots, about 4)

1 Italian sausage, about 80 g (3 oz), skin removed and crumbled or 80 g (3 oz) of unsmoked pancetta, chopped finely.(I used ready diced unsmoked pancetta and a couple of bits of streaky bacon cut up with kitchen scissors to make up the shortfall)

300 g (10.5 oz) skinned, cleaned pumpkin, peeled and sliced finely (as already mentioned several times I used a butternut squash)

400 g (14 oz) tin  tomatoes with juice
1/2 small dried red chilli (I used half a deseeded red chilli which gave a latent 'nudge')500 g (1 lb 2 oz) penne or other short pasta (Fusilli!)about 120 g (1 1/4 cups) grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

A little parsley, for sprinkling and garnish

 

Method:

 

 

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion until it has softened. add the sausage or pancetta and sauté until it has browned lightly.

 

Cut the pumpkin slices into small pieces of about 2 cm (3/4 in) (I cut mine half the size of this, see preamble above) and add them to the pan.

 

 

Add the tomato and chilli, and season with salt and pepper.

 

Add about 750 ml (3 cups) (I used one cup of water) and simmer for 30-40 minutes. (I simmered for about 20 minutes before inserting the tip of a knife into the bigger dice) The pumpkin should melt into the sauce a little and there should be enough liquid to coast the pasta. Add a little more water, if necessary, to prevent the sauce from sticking.

 

 

When the sauce is of a desired consistency and the squash has cooked through. Check again for seasoning.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Cook the penne according to the packet instructions. Drain and mix into the sauce, tossing quickly to coat evenly, and serve. Or, serve the pasta with the sauce on top with some Parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of parsley.

 

A meal designed for the depths of Winter - Braised Chicken with Onion and Bacon

 

 

Much as I like to try all kinds of different recipes and experience foods of different cultures, there is something soothing about the familiar and seeing as it is so cold outside just now, the idea of unpretentious, comforting food really appeals. You know the stuff I mean, simple ingredients, cooked with a bit of care and (if you're me) accompanied by mashed potato. I had this recipe in mind for a while, it having first caught my attention when the weather was rather warmer and it just wasn't the right time. The time is most definitely now.

 

I remember watching 'Great British Menu', the first series, heavily pregnant with Lola (though this isn't a crucial detail as it happens, unless she just made me more hungry than usual) and I remember this chef competing to cook for the Queen. The name? Bryn Williams. He associated himself with a place I know extremely well and am very fond of (North Wales) and because of that connection he stuck in my mind. It was therefore inevitable (and my being a bit of a cookbook magpie) that as soon as he released a cookbook that I would just have to buy it. I had no other option. And, so I did. And what a good move it was, because it contains the recipes I love - honest, simple, mouthwatering, and like touchstones linking you back to the food of your childhood, or your home. It resonated with me.

 

I have cooked several recipes from this book with success, and this is the latest. I wanted to take familiar ingredients (and at that, ingredients which weren't too pricey) and create something to warm your bones, and the recipe for braised chicken with bacon and onion fitted the bill.

 

Organic or free range chicken is pricey; it's true. That is why when we have chicken I usually buy thighs which allow me to buy good quality chicken (that tastes of chicken) at a price that I can afford. Unfortunately, some of us here are not keen on bones and at least with the braising of this recipe it is easy enough to take the meat from the bones if you want to. It doesn't look as pretty, but there you go.

 

This is a recipe for legs, so plenty of wonderful tasting meat for a reasonable cost. Then there is the red wine, but, you know, you put in what you need and you slosh some into a glass. Cook's perks, if you ask me.

 

So, if you're cold, and want something to warm you up a little, here is one recipe you could try:

 

Braised Chicken Legs with Bacon and Onion, taken from 'Bryn's Kitchen' by Bryn Williams.

 

My adaptions in red

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad plus one other

 

Ingredients

 

4 large chicken leg portions, cut in half with the thigh and drumstick separate

A pinch of  salt and pepper

3 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for seasoning

16 Baby onions, peeled ( I didn't have any so used shallots)

50 g  smoked bacon,cubed, or lardons

100 g small button mushrooms (I used chestnut mushrooms, quartered)

2 sprigs of thyme

250 ml red wine

750 ml chicken Stock

 

Preheat the oven to 160ºC/325ºF/gas mark 3.

 

Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper.

 

 

 

 Heat a heavy flameproof casserole over a medium heat. Pour in the vegetable oil and, once it is hot, seal the chicken pieces by turning them over once or twice in the casserole, until golden brown all over. Remove from the casserole and set aside.

 

 

 

Reduce the heat, add the baby onions and cook, stirring gently, for 4–6 minutes, until they start to colour.

 

 

 

Add the bacon, mushrooms and thyme, and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the red wine, allow it to bubble, and reduce the liquid by half.

 

 

 

Reintroduce the chicken to the dish and pour over some of the chicken stock to cover three-quarters of the way up – some of the skin should stay clear of the liquid to brown.

 

Place in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Test the pieces with a skewer – the juices will run clear when the chicken is cooked.

 

 

 

If the sauce seems a little thin, remove the chicken and set it aside. Bring the sauce to the boil and let it reduce until it has a thicker consistency. (I did need to do this - I reduced it for about 10 minutes) Check for seasoning. Then pop the chicken back in the sauce to keep warm.

 

 

 

To serve, place each drumstick and thigh piece on a plate and surround with the sauce. And, if you're me, a mountain of mashed potato! Then dig in!

Oh. My. Word. I love you more than I did yesterday - Chorizo and Chickpea Stew

 

 

Don't you love those dishes that taste even better the day after you made them? I do, not least because they lend themselves to stress free cooking if you have people coming round and also they encourage you make a vat of the stuff, knowing that you have the day or the day after's meal totally sorted without so much as a second thought.

Which brings me to this gorgeous stew, discovered initially in Joanna Weinberg's 'How to feed your friends with relish', a cookbook with lots more, not just delicious recipes but tips on entertaining, suggested menus and so on. Weinberg name checks the origins of this stew are the Brindisa store/cafe in London, the importer of all things Spanish and wonderful so its provenance is to be raved about.

The original recipe within the cookbook feeds 25 - that's more leftovers than I can deal with - so the ingredients below have been scaled down to feed 4/6 as a main meal, or more if it’s part of a tapas menu. How wonderful would that be? Tapas! The scaling down from the original recipe therefore are approximate with an eye on the things that we like to eat so, a little more chorizo and garlic, as we can't really get enough of either of them.

Lola and Finn quite like this. It looks a spicy dish but it's not really - it's pleasantly warming and is more about depth of flavour than a flash of spicy heat. The fact that it disguises chickpeas into something palatable as far as Lola and Finn are concerned (not me; I love chickpeas) is an added bonus.

I juzzed this up from a simple weeknight meal by adding some sourdough bread for dunking purposes and I opened a bottle of rioja. It's always the right time for rioja.

 

Rioja – My favourite, favourite rioja. All is well with the world when I slosh some of this into a huge goblet…

As they say in Spain, and this house when I'm on my second glass of rioja, olé!

Chorizo and Chickpea Stew, scaled down and adapted from the original in Joanna Weinberg's 'How To Feed Your Friends With Relish.

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum, Dad and 2 others as a main meal.

Ingredients:

250g cooking pancetta, chunkily sliced (I have used a chorizo ring in the past if you can't find cooking chorizo)

150g diced pancetta
4 shallots, chopped (original recipe is red onion - I'm not crazy about it cooked) 1 red pepper - deseeded and chopped
olive oil
3 garlic cloves - chopped
2 tsp dried oregano
300g passata
2 x 400g cans chickpeas, drained 
100ml white wine

200ml Chicken Stock or water.
A handful of flat leaf parsley chopped (I actually chopped the stalks finely and threw them into the stew when I put the stock in - I hate wasting them!) Salt and black pepper, to taste

Method

 

 

Fry the chorizo and pancetta in a large saucepan over a fairly high heat until it begins to colour and releases oil. Remove with a slotted spoon.

 

 Fry the shallots and pepper in the residual oil left from frying the meat. There should be enough to turn everything a gorgeous reddish hue, but add extra olive oil if you need to.

Return the meat to the pan, turn the heat down, and add the garlic and oregano and fry for a few more minutes.

Add the passata, chickpeas, wine, stock, parsley stalks, a little salt and some pepper.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes or so, though I left it longer as I like quite a ‘thick’ stew. Taste for seasoning.

 

Add the roughly chopped parsley to serve. Or leave it for a day and eat it then. You will love it!

 

Half term and I am pretending I am in Mallorca - Tumbet

 

 

... I am imagining that in Mallorca it is shimmering hot with a periwinkle blue sky and a breeze that merely breathes through the branches of the soon to be abundant fruit trees whilst I sit on the veranda of an old Mallorcan house, sipping Palo and reading a good book, watching Lola and Finn splash about in the pool and Phill visibly begin to unwind and build up some laughter lines. I think it's safe to say that he needs this imaginary holiday more than me. Anyway, in my mind I am feeling pretty damn content after eating the joyously wonderful Tumbet in such imaginary surroundings - it is better than the harsh realism of being sat here in my conservatory staring out westwards watching the cloud...and the rain...and wondering if my washing will ever dry. 

 

I love these kind of dishes in which the whole is better than the sum of its parts. I mean, I do like all these things separately I suppose but there is something that happens, let's call it 'alchemy' for I like the word, that takes place when these ingredients come together. I don't know whether this particular alchemy will confer some kind of everlasting life and youth but what I do know is that it tastes wonderfully garlicky and glorious. And if you're of a mind to, dipping a bit of good bread into the flavourful olive oil once the Tumbet is no more is a total and utter must.

 

Once again, as I am attempting to escape to somewhere further south with this recipe so it seems apt that this recipe is from Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes, a book that has seen plenty of action in my kitchen, as its battered cover and corners will testify.  Stein makes reference to Sam and Eddie hart's Modern Spanish Cooking, which I also have, and my reason for mentioning it is not to give you some sort of glimpse into my cookbook addition, it's more to emphasise the extraordinarily good provenance of this dish.

 

It is a little bit of a faffy recipe with a few stages involving frying the various vegetables off, but don't let that put you off because it is worth it. Not unsurprisingly, Lola and Finn were not necessarily taken with aubergines. That's okay. Phill recommends this dish highly, and so do I, 'cos we loved all of it.

 

Tumbet: Oven Baked Potatoes, Peppers, Tomatoes and Onions, adapted from Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad twice as a side dish

 

My adaptions are in red

 

Ingredients:

 

For the tumbet:

 

Two large aubergines, stalk ends removed

1 kg floury potatoes (I used Vivaldi, that I get from Sainsbury's)

About 10 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Two large red peppers (Though I confess to using one red and one yellow - I fancied colour)

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

 

For the tomato sauce:

 

14 plum tomatoes (Ever tried getting decent tomatoes around here? Impossible. So, I subbed two tins of plum tomatoes instead)

1 - 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 onion chopped (I used a full onion because it wasn't so big)

1 banana shallot or 3 ordinary shallots (I used ordinary)

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 large thyme sprig (I subbed 1/2 tsp dried thyme)

1 oregano sprig (I subbed 1/2 tsp dried oregano)

2 bay leaves

salt and pepper to taste

 

Method:

 

 

 

To make the tumbet - slice the aubergines into 1.5cm thick rounds ans lay them out on kitchen paper or a clean tea towel. Sprinkle with salt and allow the aubergine slices to degorge for about 20 minutes.

 

 

 

Peel the potatoes and slice into 5mm thick rounds. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and fry the potato slices until they are golden and tender. You will have to do this in batches. Season.

 

 

 

Halve and core the peppers, then slice length ways into 1 cm strips. Heat some more oil in the frying pan and fry the peppers over a medium heat for about 20 - 25 minutes stirring occasionally. (I cooked mine for about 15 minutes and they were fine). Remove, season lightly and set aside.

 

On their way to golden!!!!

 

Meanwhile, pat the aubergines dry to remove the salt and juices. Place the slices in a frying pan with some more of the olive oil and fry until the slices are golden brown. You'll need to do this in batches and you will probably need to add more oil. Set aside.

 

For the tomato sauce. If you are using tomatoes you'll need to skin them, quarter them and remove the seeds. If you're using tinned, maybe pour yourself a glass of wine at this point.

 

Bit chunky - we like it this way. You might like to cut them smaller...)

 

Sweat the onion and shallot in the olive oil in a pan over a medium heat for about 10 minutes or so then add the garlic and bay leaves and cook for another five minutes approximately.

 

 

 

Add the tomatoes and thyme and oregano and some salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer and reduce slowly for 25 - 30 minutes until you have a thickish sauce. Remove any herbs you can (I'm thinking bay leaves if you used dried herbs like me) and then taste and season again if necessary to taste. You do need a sauce with flavour because it is going to 'season' the vegetables too.

 

Preheat the oven to 190c/Gas 5 and oil the base of an ovenproof dish.

 

 

Lay potato slices over the bottom and then cover with pepper strips, then aubergines (though for reasons I still don't understand I did aubergines first, then peppers). I had potato slices over so I topped the peppers with them.

 

 

 

Pour the tomato sauce over the top and bake for 25 - 30 minutes.

 

 

 

Serve with chicken or fish maybe. I had Merguez sausages and some sourdough bread and we ate like a king, a queen, a princess and a prince.