A cultural exchange

The weekend following the family meals we had another kind of sharing meal.  This time a sharing of recipes and ingredients.  We have visited the home of Georgian friends and we are always served  this amazing Georgian bread called khachapuri.  I wanted to try this at home so our friend came over to teach me and in return I gave her my sourdough culture and the instructions to make bread.  I have had this culture now for four years and I have nurtured it through extended holidays.  It provides me with one or two loaves of delicious bread every week.  I have shared this culture with some of you and it has not ended well   Hands up who still has the culture.  No, I thought as much.
I digress. Khachapuri.  This is a delicious Georgian cheese bread which will be served at any Georgian festive table.  It is not a precise recipe so if you want to try it let me know and I can talk you through what I know.  Essentially make a dough with yoghurt, eggs, a pinch of soda, a little oil and as much flour as you need to make a soft elastic dough. Once you have such a dough you could refrigerate for an hour or so and prepare the filling.  In Georgia they usually use a Georgian cheese called suluguni.  We used 50/50 mozzarella and cottage cheese and a beaten egg.
Take a fist sized chunk of dough and roll on a floured surface into a round that will fit in a 30cm non stick frying pan.  Put the cheese in the centre and bring the edges to the centre in a magical way that you need to see. Fry on both sides until it is done. 
We had another couple for dinner as well and for aperitif I made a delicious smoked fish pate served with thinly sliced grilled sourdough. We did the lamb leg again but this time in the kettle barbeque which was wonderful.  Sear directly over the charcoal on both sides for 5 minutes then cook indirectly for up to an hour or till done to your liking.  I then realised that our other guests were Greek and I did not want to present Greek style food that wasn't really.  I didn't bother with the tzatziki and served the quinoa salad instead of the Greek salad but I thought the skordalia went so well with the lamb that we did that and were not going to mention the word.  The guests did however recognise it as skordalia so I think we got that one right.  I'm afraid we had the granita again too.  When you find a meal which is perfect for the season just keep eating it.
As a result of this evening I am now the owner of The Georgian Feast and am planning my own Georgian themed meal.  As part of this cultural exchange I also have a container of kefir grains.  I had heard of this but wasn't sure what it was.  I am still unsure but it is very good.  Similar to yoghurt but not.  Delicious - kind of sharp and sour but refreshing.  You just add milk to the grains and leave on the bench until it thickens then strain off the yoghurt-like substance to eat, rinse the grains and start again.  No heating milk to a precise temperature, no leaving in a hot water cupboard until set.  Apparently the grains multiply so I will have some to pass on shortly if you think you can keep them alive.
You need to strain off the whey and I used this to make another recipe I encountered recently.  Carrots cooked in whey. I didn't make the whole recipe, just the carrots, which I served with rump steak and other vegetables from the garden. I may try the entire recipe some time.

Ottolenghi inspirations

I am a huge fan of Yotam Ottolenghi.  Twice recently I have watched him on the television and been inspired to rush off and make one of his dishes.  The first was a traditional Cretan dish which I served for Harriet's birthday.  It doesn't sound so exciting on paper but it was inspirational to watch and sensational to eat. 
This recipe uses a traditional Cretan dried bread, dakos, which I couldn't find.  Yotam suggest substituting Swedish krisprolls or Italian friselle.  I broke 400g of staleish sourdough into chunks and baked on a tray at 100 until they were dried out completely but not coloured. About 20 minutes.
To serve 6-8, grate half a kilo of ripe tomatoes into a bowl.  This sounds tricky but basically grate on a box grate until you are left with a piece of skin in your hand.  It is a bit messy.  Chop another kilo of tomatoes into 1 cm dice.  Mix with 1 diced red onion, 4 cloves crushed garlic, 3 tbsp olive oil, salt & pepper.  In another bowl mix together 200ml olive oil, 100ml red wine vinegar, salt & pepper.  This may seem like a lot of oil but you will want this much.  In a pan lightly saute 2 cans of chickpeas with a little olive oil, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp sweet paprika, 2 tsp ground cumin & a little salt.  Spread your dried bread in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold them snugly in a single layer.  Pour over the oil and vinegar mix, then spoon over the tomato mix. Next cover with the chickpeas.  Dot with chunks of feta (300g).  Scatter over basil & drizzle with a little olive oil.  Bake at 200 for 25 minutes until the feta starts to colour. Delicious!
The second was inspired by a meal made in Jerusalem on a Plate - split wheat and chard with pomegranate molasses.  I am not sure what exactly split wheat is but I have some freekeh in the cupboard and this was good or you could even use pearl barley but cook it longer.  For four, start by softening 2 thinly sliced leeks in olive oil.  Add the finely chopped stalks from about 600g chard.  After a couple of minutes add the sliced chard leaves.  Cook for a couple of minutes then add 2 tbsp light brown sugar, 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses, 200g of whatever wheat or grain you are using, 500g chicken stock and season.  Bring to a simmer, cover & cook about an hour. At the end of cooking remove the lid and cook down until all the liquid has evaporated and the molasses & sugar are beginning to caramelise.  You could add more molasses at the end.
You could have this as a light meal on it own but it was delicious with pork and courgette patties.  The recipe was for turkey but we had pork mince in the freezer.  I reaslised aftrewards it may not have been quite the thing because this was either a Jewish or Palestinian muslim dish.  Neither of those cultures eat pork but we do and it worked very well.  Use whatever mince you like.  First make a sour cream sauce by mixing 100g sour cream, 150g thick greek yoghurt, 1tsp lemoin juice, 1 crushed garlic clove, 1 tbsp olive oiul, 1tsp sumac, salt & pepper.  Set aside.
For the patties, in a large bowl mix 500g turkey, chicken or pork mince, 1 coarsely grated courgette, 3 finely sliced spring onions, 1 egg, 2 tbsp each chopped mint and parsley, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp cayenne, salt & pepper. Shape into patties and rest.  If the mix is too wet, add some breadcrumbs or  something to help it hold together.  I used bulgar wheat, but you need to soak it in cold water for 10 minutes first, then drain and squeeze out excess moisture.  To cook the patties sear on both sides in a frying pan then finish in a hot oven (220) for 6-8 minutes.  Serve with the wheat and yoghurt sauce.  This is a meal you will want to make again. 

A bit of this & a bit of that

I have discovered another Asian dish, this time with chicken. For four, pound 5 cloves garlic, 2 tsp black peppercorns, 2 tbsp coriander root & 1/2 tsp sea salt in a pestle & mortar. You want a thick paste. Using 2-3 large chicken breasts, depending on size, into bite size pieces. Fry the paste in a little vegetable oil until fragrant then add the chicken pieces and stir until coloured. Add 2 tsp brown sugar, 2 tsp fish sauce & 1/2 cup chicken stock. Simmer until cooked. Meanwhile prepare the greens. I used choy sum but try gai larn when in season. Pull the greens into individual stems & blanch 1 minutes, refresh in ice cold water & drain. Dry thoroughly. In a tbsp peanut oil, fry 2 tbsp grated ginger & 2 cloves garlic crushed. Add the greens & toss until hot. Stir a little chicken stock with 2 tsp cornflour top make a paste then combine with 3 tbsp oyster sauce & 1/4 cup chicken stock. Add to the pan and stir until thickened. Serve the chicken & greens with brown jasmine rice.
The sourdough starter is going well. I have shared & the recipient is having great success. I bought a new breadpan to bake it in - a Romertopf Pane. It is working well. It gives a good shaped loaf.
A couple of weekends ago we picked the last olives from the trees of a colleague & we are in the process of brining them. Should be ready in 6-8 weeks.
As a welcome dinner for the new arrival from Melbourne I made a vegetable tagine. It was something I could transport easily and we could eat on our knees with minimum utensils. A few years ago I was given a lovely book of tagine recipes & I just kept making the same one. The carrot and chickpea tagine so inspired me that I have now instigated tagine Saturday until we have worked our way through the entire book. In a tagine or heavy casserole saute 1 finely chopped onion & 3-4 finely chopped garlic cloves, until soft. Add 2 tsp turmeric, 1-2 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp cayenne & 1/2 tsp ground black pepper. Stir through onions then add 1 tbsp dark liquid honey & 3-4 medium carrots sliced on the diagonal. Pour in enough water to cover the base of the dish & bring to the boil. Simmer on the stovetop or put in the oven at 180 for 15 minutes until the carrots are softened. Add 1-2 tins drained chickpeas & cook covered a further 15 mins until carrots are cooked. Sprinkle with a little rosewater & chopped parsley & serve with lemon wedges.
You may know I am not a tamarillo fan but they seemed the right thing to take a NZer returning home in winter. Baked with honey & red wine they did have more appeal. Use 1-2 tamarillos per person and try a mix of colours. To skin the tamarillos, make a small cross in the pointed end, place in a bowl & cover with boiling water. Stand for 2-3 minutes & refresh in cold water. Heat the oven to 160. Cut the tamarillos in quarters & roll back the skin from the point to the stem. Lay them in a baking dish. Wear an apron & take care not to splash.
For 4-6 people, combine 1 cup red wine with 2 tsp dark liquid honey & 2 star anise. Simmer until the honey is disolved in the wine. Pour over the tamarillos & cover loosely cover. Bake about 15 mins then baste & continue cooking another 10 mins. Serve with cream or ice cream.
While we've had Phoebe back in Wellington, for the few evenings we've had her home we've been delivering her favourite meals. Onion soup, pork chops in mustardy cider, home made hamburgers, tex mex, meatballs and one of her all time favourites - toad in the hole.
Make a Yorkshire pudding style batter. Break 2 eggs into a bowl & season. Whisk lightly & add 1/2 cup milk. Whisk again & add 125g flour. Whisk to form a thick batter & whisk in another 1/2 cup milk. Add chopped thyme or sage & set aside. You can rest for several hours in the fridge. I use sage for pork & thyme for beef sausages.
Preheat the oven to 210. In an oven proof pan, fry 1 sausage per person in a little olive oil until lightly browned on 2 sides. Add 1 sliced onion and 1 capsicum cut into thick slices. Fry lightly. Push the sausage and vegetable towards the centre of the pan & with the pan still on the heat pour the batter around the edge. Put the pan straight into the top third of the hot oven & bake about 20 minutes. Serve with sauce & follow with a crisp salad. This is real comfort food - not for everyday but it will warm your heart on a cold winter's evening.

Moorish

I was given Greg Malouf's book Moorish for Christmas and was inspired to a week of Middle Eastern delights in the kitchen. First we had lamb steaks with a lentil risotto. He seems to use risotto as a side dish quite a bit. This was a basic risotto - just onion, rice, stock & Parmesan. The lentils were just boiled with a finely chopped onion & a bayleaf then added to the rice near the end before the Parmesan was added. Top with caramelised red onions and serve with a carrot salad.

Shred a carrot or 2 and serve with a dressing comprising:

1 clove garlic crushed

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp chilli powder

juice of lge lemon

drizzle of honey

2 tbsp olive oil

splash of orange blossom water

The real find was labne. Wrap about 500g yoghurt in a piece of muslin. Suspend over a deep vessel, supported by a wooden spoon. If your dish is too shallow the yoghurt will rest in the dripping whey. Leave in the fridge overnight. I only had about 6 hours but it worked satisfactorily. You will end up with a thick curd. Blend about 100g of ordinary youghut with a handful each of fresh mint & flat leaf parsley leaves until you have a pale green paste. Season the curd ball with a tsp dried mint & a little salt. Swirl through the green paste so that there are streaks of green - not mixed right through. This is so delicious you will be looking for reasons to eat it.
The next night Phoebe was out and this is always an excuse to have shellfish. We made a mussel soup with a preserved lemon risotto. Saute onion, garlic & leek until soft then add the cleaned mussels & 1/3 cup white wine, turn up the heat & steam until they have all opened. About 3-4 minutes. Remove the mussels from their shells & add the meat back to the pan. Add a teaspoon each of turmeric, chilli, coriander, cumin, ginger and a good bunch of chopped parsley with 2/3 cup of cream. Bring to the boil & mix well.

Meanwhile prepare a basic risotto (you'll only want a small quantity) adding a preserved lemon (peel only) thinly sliced half way through. Put a spoonful of risotto in a soup bowl & pour over the mussel soup.

I served this with a sort of vegetable fattoush. Tomatoes, Lebanese cucumbers. spring onion, yellow capsicum, baby fennel, black olives and croutons of Turkish bread, tossed with a vinaigrette of oil, lemon & garlic, then sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.
I had most of a loaf of Turkish bread left over so the next night we had Turkish burgers. I made mini lamb rissoles - 500g lamb mince, 50g soaked bulgar wheat, 4 tsp each dried mint & oregano, 1 clove of crushed garlic & lemon zest. We toasted the Turkish bread on the grill & served with labne, hummus, and other accompaniments I found in the fridge. We each made our own version.

The next night I made a Spanish omlette with left over potato, chorizo & prawns. Saute the filling items, then remove & wash out the pan. Lightly whisk the eggs with saffron & season. Mix with the potato mixture & pour back into the pan. Cook on a high heat for a few minutes until the egg has started to set then add some crumbled feta and either turn down & cover until cooked or finish under the grill. You want this to be quite thick & sliceable so don't use too wide a pan. Finish with a sprinkling of parsley.

Then I got a fancy for lamb with pomegranate. When we don't get our lamb from our butcher - Bill at Gipps St Butchery, we buy Wai-ora lamb at the market. You can order ahead & pick up on the day. It is beautiful. We substituted turkey stock for the pomegranate juice and used Pukara Estate Pomegranate balsamic vinegar which we bought at the Food Show. We sprinkled pomegranate seeds over the cooked, sliced lamb and served the pan juices as gravy. We served with roasted potatoes from the garden & baby kumara. And the first crop of peas with baby carrots. Washed down with a glass of rose. The perfect end to the holidays. Back to work tomorrow.

Phoebe filled tartlet cases with the last of the caramel & some chocalate icing. These are known as Chocolate Caramel Delights.

Scroll Up

Phoebe used to like cheesymite scrolls for school lunches but I decided that it was too much of a pain to buy them every week, not to mention costly, so I developed our own version. She is now the most popular girl in school - at least at lunchtime. And I also have some cachet with year 12 - my scrolls have been requested at Charities Committee meetings. This is a true story.

In a bowl mix:

500g white bread flour

1 sachet instant yeast

1 tbsp salt (use less to taste)

Add 5 tbsp olive oil to 300-400 ml warm water and mix with dry ingredients to make a soft but firm dough. Knead in your usual way until you have a smooth elastic ball then leave to rise in a lightly oiled bowl covered with clingfilm for about an hour.

When done split the dough in half.

Roll out one half to a rectangle roughly 30 cm by 10 cm. Might be longer - it should be quite thin. Spread the rectangle with tomato paste. Sprinkle on grated cheese - I use cheddar & Parmesan. Actually pile on the cheese - these are very cheesy scrolls. Then sprinkle with dried oregano - I tried chopping fresh but my customer prefers dried. Carefully roll up lengthways & slice into 3cm scrolls. I get 15 or so scrolls. Don't make them too big - they can always take 2.

Put on a baking tray covered with a tea towel for 1/2 hour or so to rise again. Bake at 200 15-20 mins.

While the scrolls are rising cut the top off a garlic bulb, drizzle with olive oil & loosely wrap in tin foil. Put in the oven with the scrolls & leave in another 20 minutes after you've taken them out.

Take your 2nd ball of dough and roll into another rectangle, this time more bulky - more 20cm by 15cm. Sorry didn't measure. Leave on a baking tray, covered with a tea towel to rise. Meantime whizz a handful of parsley in your food processor with the garlic you have just squeezed out of the roasted bulbs. Add some olive oil to make an emulsion - a thick pouring consistency. Make some dimples on the loaf - I use my knuckles. Then pour over the emulsion and bake at 190 for 20 minutes or so. Sprinkle with Maldon salt while still warm and drizzle on some more oi if you are going to eat straight away. I often freeze & drizzle the oil when I am warming up.

Some things to consider when making bread. Look for recipes that resemble the bread you like. This is a flat bread recipe but when I was looking for scrolls this looked the best & it worked. When I wanted to make fruit bread I added spices & fruit to a recipe for rye bread - that worked. The Mountain bread (2 August) replaced our weekly Vogel's loaf. So now I make the breads we used to buy. I use instant yeast. It's just easier. I knead my bread with the dough hook on my mixer. All this makes breadmaking simple - just part of our regular kitchen activities.

Eggs & bread

Eggs & bread. What more do you need (maybe potatoes -see potato bread below)? I can eat eggs on toast for breakfast lunch & dinner. First you need a good grainy toast. I make this bread for all our toast needs. It started life as a Nigella recipe called Norwegian Mountain bread and with a few tweaks turned out like this.

250ml light blue milk
250ml water
350g wholemeal bread flour
50g rye flour
7g (1 sachet) easy-blend yeast
50g rolled oats (not instant)
25g kibbled wheat (I sometimes swap the quantities of oats & kibble)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
3 tbsp linseeds
1 tbsp salt

some turns of the black pepper grinder (occasional variation)

Mix the milk & water together in a measuring jug. Combine everything else in a large bowl. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients & stir until you have a sticky porridge like mixture.
Put into a very well greased loaf tin and put into a cold oven. Turn the oven to 110 C and after 30 minutes turn it up to 180 C for about an hour. Take it out of the tin and test with a skewer. If not done pop back in the oven without the tin until the skewer comes out clean.

Experiment with the grains & seeds you like and note that you want 500g of dry ingredients so mix quantities to get the flavour you want.
We make this bread every week or twice a week if need be. If a certain 80 yr uncle comes to visit you may need to bake a fresh loaf daily for the duration of his visit!

Slices of this bread toasted are all you need beneath home made jams & jellies or a variety of eggs - soft boiled, carefully peeled, then squashed with a fork so that the yolk runs across the toast; poached; scrambled with herbs from the garden.

If you are looking for something a bit more substantial with your eggs on toast introduce them to lentils. I usually use French Puy lentils but you can use brown lentils or beluga. I just love the colour & texture & taste of Puy lentils and they make delicious sprouts. Anyway simmer your washed lentils (about 1/2 cup per person) about 20 minutes until just tender. Tip lentils into a warm bowl & stir through your best olive oil & your favourite goat's cheese with a handful of finely chopped parsley. Season & divide evenly onto warmed plates, top with slices of prosciutto and a poached egg.

Or cook thickly sliced brown button mushrooms over a high heat about 10 minutes, then add thinly sliced onion, finely chopped garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, cinnamon, a tin of crushed tomatoes, just enough water to keep moist, and simmer 5 minutes or so. Add the lentils & chopped parsley. Divide between slices of toast & top with a poached egg. This is also nice on sourbread toast, or Pandoro Italian bread. Or homemade potato bread. If using white bread we toast it on the cast iron griddle.

For potato bread:

300g cold or warm boiled potatoes (I use Agria and don’t forget to save the water)
700-800g strong white flour
1 tbsp salt
7g (I sachet) easy blend yeast
1 tbsp good Greek yoghurt
300ml tepid potato water

Press the potatoes through a ricer into a large bowl or mash really well. Add 600g of the flour with salt & yeast. Mix together adding the yoghurt & potato water slowly. Mix to a dough & knead well adding flour as needed. You will probably add up to another 200g. It won’t be as neat as regular dough but when you have a heavy ball put it in a clean greased bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to rise for an hour or so.
When it’s doubled in size punch down, knead for a minute or so & form into a loaf. Preheat the oven to 220˚C & leave the loaf on the baking tray covered loosely with a tea towel for about 30 mins. When it’s doubled again put it in the hot oven for 20 mins then turn down to 190˚C for another 10 minutes to finish off. You know it’s done if it sounds hollow when you tap the bottom.

Potato bread is legendary in our house - we always had it for Saturday lunch with cold meats, salad & chutneys when the children were little.

If you're a fan of the omelette check out Julia Child's method. This is the only way to make omelettes. Do try it. And while we're with Julia Child check out the chicken sisters.

The Med in Winter

Roast chicken on Sunday? We started the week with risotto to use up the leftover chicken. On Tuesday we did a delicious mushroom and tomato pasta. We added the rest of the left over chicken. That worked well. A colleague at work rears little piggies in the Wairarapa and I got 3 of her free range loin chops. We pan fried them and made a sauce with cider, wholegrain mustard & a little cream. We served them with potato & celeriac mash, flavoured with a hint of horseradish & steamed Brussels sprouts. That is a problem with all these one-pot meals. They are not really conducive to Brussels sprouts. And Brussels sprouts are one of my best winter friends. I just like them steamed and then dressed with a little olive oil and a grinding of black pepper and a grating of nutmeg.

I have still been thinking spicy after last week's middle eastern focus and on Thursday we went back to an old favourite, Harira. This is a middle eastern lamb & chickpea soup. There are many versions so experiment until you find something you like. I start with the usual suspects, onion, celery, garlic, carrot, softened with 1/2 tsp each of ground cumin, ground coriander, allspice & chilli flakes. Take out the sofrito and brown about 500g diced lamb. When done, squeeze on a generous splodge of tomato paste and return the sofrito to the pan. Add 2 cups beef stock and 2-3 cups water. Bring to the boil, reduce heat & simmer v gently for about an hour. You just need the lamb to be very tender. Add 1/2 cup couscous and a tin of chickpeas, cover simmer a further 5 mins, then turn off the heat & leave to sit for 10 mins for the couscous to finish. Stir in some flatleaf parsley & serve with homemade Turkish bread topped with nigella seeds. You will return to this again & again.

I bought a Gourmet Traveller Magazine (Best of Italy edition) and was inspired by the "Battle of the Bol" article to try to perfect the classic Italian ragu. My pasta mentor is Giuliano Hazan, son of the renowned Marcella. I learned from Giuliano about adding milk or cream and using a ribbon pasta such as pappardelle instead of the more familiar spaghetti. I followed Emma Knowles' recipe, substituting beef for veal. I asked our butcher to mince the beef coarsely & he put it through the mincer only once. I finely chopped the pork myself with the pancetta. I used white wine instead of red because I had a bottle open, and I used a bit less cream but otherwise this turns out to be the ultimate pasta Bolognese. I recommend using pappardelle which is much easier for people with braces to eat and altogether nicer. Make sure you buy good dried egg pasta, not "fresh", unless you've made it yourself.

Sunday we were back in the Middle East with home made Merguez sausages. I made the sausages with the harissa sauce & aromatic pumpkin along with steamed spinach & broad beans dressed with olive oil & feta cheese.

To prepare no-fail spinach, wash & dry thoroughly - I use the salad spinner. Add the spinach in handfuls to the pan, pushing to the back as it begins to wilt. When it is all wilted, add a knob of butter and grate on some nutmeg with a grind of pepper. Even Phoebe likes this.

The sausages were such a success and delicious the next day on toasted leftover Turkish bread with the harissa and some green tomato chutney. I thought that you could experiment with other spice and herb mixes, such as Italian. I thought these might be good for people with heart conditions as they used lean mince. I thought they might disintegrate without skins but they held their shape beautifully and didn't even stick to the pan.

Tonight's dinner was my signature fish stew. Again make this how you like it. Experimenting has got me to this place. Make the usual sofrito. I usually add onion, garlic, carrot, celery, capsicum, fennel if I have some (or a sprinkling of fennel seeds), chilli flakes and a few saffron strands. When softened add 1 or 2 finely chopped Agria potatoes -cook for a minutes or 2. Then add a tin of tomatoes & 2 cups fish or chicken stock. Bring to the boil & simmer until vegetables are cooked. Add a selection of frozen sweetcorn, frozen of fresh prawns and scallops, and about 100g white fish per person. I sometimes include steamed mussels, clams or pipis at the end. This is about whatever you have in the cupboard or happen to fancy on the day. This is best quite soupy and eaten with a soup spoon, mopping up the liquid with some home made ciabatta. (or buy some if you are busy). As usual sprinkle some parsley on at the end.

This afternoon I made a fruit loaf for those fruit toast emergencies and a Madeira cake for school lunches.

Risotto

Now that you have all that stock in the freezer you're ready to tackle risotto or any other one pot rice dish. Most cultures that eat rice seem to have one. Think pilau or pilaf (India, Middle East, Africa), paella (Spain), nasi goreng (Indonesia), and risotto from Italy.

This is a classic Sicilian risotto that gives you a good feel for how it works. Be brave about quantities of oil and wine. You'll get a really creamy risotto. You must use a good risotto rice - Arborio, Vialone Nano, or Carnaroli. Do NOT wash the rice and heat your stock first.

Start by softening your vegetable from the allium family - I usually use a leek but really whatever you have in the cupboard is good - onion, shallots.

If you are making a risotto with fish consider including half a finely chopped fennel bulb at this stage. stick of celery finely chopped adds good flavour. Once the onions are softened add the rice and cook for a minute or so to coat with the oil. Then add the wine (or if you are making risotto with fish then you could use Pernod).

Cook down the wine until evaporated and then start adding your hot stock, a ladle at a time. You want the liquid to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful. The point of the stirring is to release the starch which is what makes the risotto creamy so make sure you keep stirring. Use about 2 1/2 times liquid to rice. The trick is to add it slowly and stir to incorporate. Think of it as therapeutic. Draw up a stool to the stove. Ladle and stir, don't let anyone distract you. It will take about 18 minutes. Listen to your favourite music and pour yourself a glass of wine - you already have a bottle open.
If the meat or veg you are adding needs cooking, add it with the rice, if it is already coooked or just needs very light cooking, add it at the end. Once you feel your risotto is cooked, cover and let stand 2-3 minutes. Then stir through parmesan and a knob of butter. I sometimes like to add parsley because I like the colour. Let the diners add additional parmesan at the table to taste.

Start with something really simple like adding chopped ham & frozen peas. Or shredded chicken and mushrooms (you've just roasted a chicken to make the stock). Follow the basic rules then get the feel of how you like your risotto and then it will become your ultimate comfort food. This is home food not fancy restaurant fare.

As an aside this week made spelt rolls from Hugh's River Cottage autumn programme. I halved the flour & water and used 1 instant yeast sachet making eight rolls. These rolls smelled so good I was standing dribbling by the oven and the minute they came out I ripped into them risking blistered fingers. You need to discover them for yourself. I will be experimenting with this flour over the next few weeks.