Indian theme

When there are only two of you it can be tricky to manage leftovers.  Freezing is useful but not everything freezes.  Often you want to make up a meal of leftovers later in the week but the meals you have eaten earlier in the week don't go well together.  I had the idea of cooking to a theme so that we bought less and used everything.  Basing the week on Indian flavours we started with meatballs and paneer. I didn't use all the paneer in the first meal and not all the meatballs were eaten but they were able to be incorporated later.
Sticking with the Indian theme I turned to Jack Santa Maria who as usual provided the answer.  A very simple soup comprising primarily lentils and stock.  For two, saute a finely sliced onion, crushed garlic and a bay leaf in ghee.  Add 1/2 cup red lentils with 2 tbsp rice and 2 1/2 cups vegetable stock.  Bring to the boil.  Simmer until the lentils are cooked.  Add 1 tsp garam masala and season with salt and pepper.  To serve squeeze in some lemon juice and swirl though a handful of shredded spinach to wilt.  Jack didn't suggest this but I had some spinach which needed to be used.  Although this sounds way too simple it was just perfect.   In fact I was so inspired by this soup that I looked to see if Jack had written any more books and I found two - Traditional Indian Cookery and Indian Meat & Fish Cookery.  I ordered both of them and they are now waiting at Max's flat in London for us to collect when we visit in June.  Look out for more Indian cooking in July.
I then made a very simple aubergine curry by roasting a halved aubergine smeared with curry paste in the oven for 20 minutes at 200.  If you score the aubergine halves into cubes without cutting the skin it will cut up easily later.  When the aubergine is cooked cut it up and return to the pan with 1/2 cup vegetable stock and 200g yoghurt.  Stir to mix through and cook in the oven about 10 minutes until the sauce is heated through and thickened a little. 
The next day heat up the left over aubergine with the left over meatballs & tomato sauce and the unused paneer.  It is a completely different meal but it all goes together.
And when you are eating an Indian meal don't forget shrikand, the wonderful sweet spiced yoghurt.  The perfect conclusion to any Indian themed meal.

I See Red

You really can eat beetroot every day.  Beetroot burgers will please both omnivores and herbivores.  Saute 1 finely chopped onion for about 5 mins until soft then add 1 peeled coarsely grated beetroot, 2 cloves crushed garlic, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp zahtar with a pinch of salt & cook 5 mins.  Stir frequently to prevent the mix catching.  Put the cooked mix into a food processor with 2 tins drained chickpeas, 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, zest of a lemon, 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs.  Season and pulse until  well combined but not completely smooth.  Divide into patties of a size you want and chill for 30 minutes.  Cook the patties in oil 3 mins each side.  You can serve them on buns but if you think the addition of two hefty pieces of bread is too much, do as we did and just serve with the toppings.  Consider lettuce, avocado, grated carrot or beetroot, sprouts, tomato, feta or even a fried egg.
Beetroot risotto is a favourite of mine.  In one pan slowly steam a finely grated beetroot and in the other make a risotto base.  The beetroot will take 40 mins or so to soften so start it first.  This is the same principle as the beetroot relish I developed a while ago and you could add onions but you will also have shallots or leeks in your risotto base.  When both components are ready combine in the risotto pan and add juice and zest of a lemon with a knob of butter.  Cover & rest 5 minutes.  Season and serve dotted with ricotta or feta.  I had some unused ricotta in the fridge and that worked wonderfully.  I think it is better than Parmesan with the beetroot.  Make risotto cakes with the leftovers & serve with a poached egg.
As an aside, I used the rest of the ricotta in beefburgers which was a Nigel Slater idea and made wonderful moist burgers.  We had bought the ricotta to stuff courgette flowers and not done it.  Really I think that it is a fiddly job and I'd rather let a cafe do the work.  Floriditas do them beautifully.  We served the burgers with our now flourishing courgettes and the last of  the cranberry sauce.  Nigel suggests a tomato relish but I think that almost any relish you have in the fridge will do.
You will really impress with this colourful beetroot salad.  In a large bowl mix 3 peeled grated carrots, 2-3 radishes mandolined (you could substitute 1/2 celeriac), 2-3 beetroot peeled and grated (use 2 colours of you have them), 1 grated apple spritzed with lemon juice to prevent discolouration.  Make a dressing with 1 tbsp horseradish sauce, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice, 1 tsp English mustard, 1 clove crushed garlic, salt & pepper.  Combine with salad and garnish with cumin & pumpkin seeds and parsley. We had it on it's own but it would go well with any lean meat or fish or just a side of roasted potatoes.
Lastly a beetroot soup.  Put a largish beetroot in a baking tray with 1 cm water and bake at 200 for about an hour.  Cool (under cold water is fine) and peel.  In a pan soften 2 finely chopped onions then add 2 apples quartered (with a squeeze of lemon)  and the beetroot roughly chopped.  Pour on 1 1/2 litres chicken or vegetable stock, add 2 star anise & simmer 15 mins.  remove the star anise and blend with a hand blender until smooth.  Serve with snipped chives and a dollop of yoghurt mixed with horseradish.

The $21 challenge

We took the $21 challenge and actually spent $14.60 for the week.   We bought mushrooms, oranges, mandarins, beetroot, lettuce and a capsicum at the market and later in the week we bought milk.  For the rest, we used what we had at hand in the freezer, the pantry and the garden and we ate a lot better than you might expect. 
If you are going to try this - and you should - start with a meal plan and focus on using the things you've had tucked away for a while and haven't got around to using.  You might find some interesting things!  For Sunday lunch we ate some corn muffins from the freezer while for dinner we had mushrooms and chard with pearl barley.  This was another great find from the New York Times in the 'recipes for health' section, so it has to be good.  We bought the mushrooms from our allowance and everything else we had in the cupboard or garden.     
We certainly had most things on hand for lunches, including a lamb backstrap in the freezer. We have some lamb's lettuce in the garden & a few remnants of rocket plus sorrel & herbs so we were able to rustle up a salad every day.  When the lamb ran out we had falafels from the freezer. 
Day two was the last of the pea & ham soup from the freezer.  This was the soup we made with the end of the Christmas ham. Accompanied of course, by a slice of trusty sourdough, lightly toasted. Mmmm.
Day three was spicy bean stew from the freezer.  We had planned to make this fresh because it mostly uses beans & vegetables we already had in the fridge or pantry, but then I discovered we had some in the freezer from a previous week so used that instead.  This is a meal that always has left overs when we we make it for two and it freezes well.  This used to be a family standby and it's quick to make, so I often did it when we had to go to an event at school in the evening.  Phoebe said that this was the meal we always had when she was going to perform in a musical recital and so she associated it with butterflies in her stomach.  I hope she likes it better now.  You can make it go further by adding a chopped chorizo.  We always keep some in the freezer. The stew calls for a dollop of pesto  but we didn't have any so I used some zhoug left over from another meal at the weekend.  Note I make my zhoug from parsley because of that coriander thing. 
Day four we used one of the pumpkins from my autumn display and made a pumpkin risotto.  I roasted the  peeled, diced pumpkin at 180 for 1/2 an hour.  Just toss it in a little olive oil, salt & pepper & grate on some nutmeg.  I made a basic risotto using a leek from the garden.  At the end I folded through the roasted pumpkin, some Serrano ham (that I had bought for another meal the week before and not used) & some Parmesan.  There were a few roasted almond slivers in a small container so I sprinkled them on top.
Day five, we had a khoresht from the freezer.  I added some frozen peas and served on rice.  There was a small container of chopped pistachios & rose petals in the pantry so I sprinkled them on the top.
On Friday we usually have an omelette and we had saved the eggs left from the previous week for this.  We were really low on cheese but had just enough for the omelette & used up the last of the Serrano ham.  We also still had enough fresh veg and some buche zickli (that was for the same meal as the ham...) for a salad.
Saturday lunch we had some toast with the last few slices of cheese - sliced very thinly, and some lemon chutney. 
But I felt day seven's dinner was the master stroke.  We had had a shoulder of lamb earlier in the year when we had guests & the left overs weren't going to get used at the time, so I just shredded the meat & froze it.  Perfect for a delicious pie, perhaps?  I sauteed a leek & carrot from the garden with half an onion from the fridge & some garlic.  I added some rosemary & bay leaves & the last of the lentils I'd cooked for the lunches.  There was a jar of artichoke hearts in the pantry (naturally) so I added a couple of those, a dash of quince splash, some grated lemon rind & juice, the end of a bottle of white wine from the fridge & the lamb.  I put the mix into individual ramekins and covered with the last lonely sheet of puff pastry languishing in the freezer & brushed with milk.  I would normally have used an egg but that seemed like an extravagance.  I baked the pies at 180 for 1/2 an hour and they were truly delicious.
A friend had given is some windfall Granny Smith's for juicing and we used a couple of those to make an apple crumble which we served with the last of the feijoa ice cream from the freezer.
So, we ate really well on our budget and even had $6 left at the end of the week.  I definitely plan to do this again - possibly once a month.  It was a great idea to get things used up and we did have to think a bit more carefully about what we were eating - no coffees at work, except what's provided, for example.  The toughest thing was fruit.  Peter went without bananas because they are expensive and we didn't buy feijoas & passionfruit.  Using up freezer stock was great.  We just used what had been there the longest.  The other thing I will do next time is look more carefully in the pantry and use the things that I don't usually think of. Harriet did well too and like us found it easier than she expected.  Next time I am hoping more people will join us.

Fish suppers

We've been having a fishy time recently.  Wonderful fish at the market and scallops & whitebait on the menu.  I thought I would share some of our favourites.  If you are not a partaker of fruits de la mer turn away now.
I love a creamy risotto with a simple fillet of pan fried fish.  We have had rainbow chard in the garden this winter.  I thought it would die back but it has not.  We just have to keep eating it.  Fortunately I came upon a recipe from Floriditas for rainbow chard risotto.  You could make this with any greens I think including beetroot tops and this is the perfect accompaniment to a pan fried fillet of terakihi or gurnard.
I also like to do an oven based vegetable dish with a piece of fish cooked on top at the end.  Try these braised potatoes with leeks and thyme, topped with a firm fillet of white fish.
For four, lightly boil 600g waxy potatoes and slice to about 1/2 cm thickness.  Halve 3 leeks lengthwise and slice about 1cm thick.  Mix the potatoes & leeks with a little olive oil, thyme and 2 cloves crushed garlic then tip into a wide shallow ovenproof pan (or cazuela) & place over a medium heat.  Pour over 1/2 cup white wine & a cup chicken stock & bring to the boil.  Cover with a lid or foil and transfer to the oven.  Cook at 180 for about 45 mins until the vegetables are tender.
Put the fillets on top of the vegetables pour over 1/3 cup cream then grate over Parmesan.  Cook uncovered about 15 minutes until the fish is just cooked & the vegetables are just coloured.  If it is still quite liquidy remove the fish & set aside to keep warm then reduce the liquid down on the stove top.  Serve with lemon wedges and a green salad if you fancy.
For a quick scallop treat try gingery scallops with spinach.  We often have this for Saturday lunch  or it could be a birthday starter if your birthday falls in the scallop season. Warm 2 tsp grated ginger, 1 clove crushed garlic, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp v finely chopped red capsicum in a little olive oil.  Heat a pan to very hot & cook the scallops in batches (6-10 per person depending on hunger/greed), 30 seconds each side.  Remove from the pan & rest in the marinade.  Add a bunch of chopped spinach to the pan with a little lemon juice & wilt down.  Place the spinach onto warm plates, top with scallops & drizzle over the marinade & pan juices.
For a very seasonal and rather luxurious soup night, what about pea & parsley soup topped with scallops & fried tarragon?  Soften a finely sliced onion and 2 stalks finely chopped celery in a little butter, with a bay leaf. Add 3 cups chicken stock & bring to boil then add 1 kg freshly picked or frozen peas & boil 3 mins.  remove from the heat & stir through 1 cup chopped parsley & 3/4 cup cream with a little ground white pepper to taste.  Blend until smooth.  Add 2 tsp red wine vinegar & salt to taste.  Keep warm while you pan fry 3 scallops per diner.  Cook them in a little butter with a little salt & some tarragon leaves.  Pour the soup into serving bowls and top each bowl with scallops and tarragon leaves.

Catching Up

It's been a while.  We've not been going hungry.  We have been eating delicious dinners everyday and baking bread every week.  I have had other things going on and I haven't made the time to sit down and record them.  The photos however have been taken and I thought I would take this opportunity to update you on how we have been eating over winter. 
I've just picked three highlights.  I'd never made Coronation Chicken before.  Have you?  I thought I would have a go this Queen's birthday with all the Jubilee events going on and I was very pleasantly surprised.  It wasn't even that complicated.  I used Rosemary Hume's original recipe and I pretty much stuck to the recipe even when it sounded a bit odd e.g. apricot jam & mayonnaise.  I did just poach chicken breasts rather than a whole bird because it was only for three.  The rice salad with peas was delicious.  Try it in the summer or at the next Jubilee.
On the retro theme I also recently made a prawn cocktail with a classic Rose Marie sauce and Steak Dianne.  It's worth revisiting those old favourites - they were popular for a reason.  Perhaps I'll have a dinner party with a retro theme.
Phoebe gave Peter a very exciting pizza cutter for his birthday and, yes, I know that was a while ago, however pizzas have now been eaten & sliced & I can report that it is very effective.  I should have some of the other gadgets in the series.  The pizzas were also good.  I made one classic margherita & looked to Hugh for inspiration.  I always use Hugh's magic bread dough for pizza these days. Any dough left over shape into a loaf, make a couple of cuts in the top and pop in the oven at 250 for about half an hour or till it sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.  I have made the beetroot pizza and recommend it along with the kale and onion, however on this occasion I did potato, rosemary & blue cheese.  The classic margherita & this one are the two pizza greats.   They also do a fabulous version of this at Scopa in Wellington - it's the Rosa Maria.  While I'm on the topic of the Bresolin brothers, we had the Wellington on a Plate menu last week at Duke Carvell's between movies and it was a stunner.  And tomorrow is the Moore Wilson Food Heroes which is one of the highlights of my culinary year. 
My house guests gave me Ottolenghi's Plenty and I made Chickpea, tomato & bread soup.  Make this soup.  Ottolenghi describes this as a warming & filling meal in a bowl after which you need nothing but a "little pillow to rest your head on".  It's true.  Try it.
And there are many more gems to be found in the book.  It has become one of my "go to" books when I have a vegetable & need an idea.
And I have to tell you about the dinner I have just eaten.  Peter made us braised fish with leeks, thyme and potatoes. 
For two, cook a couple of waxy potatoes, sliced 1/2 cm thick, for about 4 minutes & set aside to cool a little.  Halve a leek & slice about 1cm thick. Mix the cooked potatoes & leeks with 2 tbsp melted butter, some thyme leaves & a clove of crushed garlic.  Tip into a wide saute pan - Peter used the cazuela - pour over 1/4 cup white wine & 1/2 cup chicken stock & bring to the boil.  Cover with baking paper, seal with foil or a tight fitting lid & put the dish in the oven at 180 for about 45 mins.  Cut about 350 g white fish into large pieces & place on top of the veg.  Pour over a little cream, season & scatter with grated Parmesan.  Cook uncovered until the fish is cooked - about 15 mins.  Serve with lemon wedges.

Lamb with quince

Quinces are here.  They have some very good friends but their window of togetherness is short.  I spied quinces & figs  - enter baked tagine of lamb with quinces, figs & honey.  This was more suited to a crowd but I didn't want to launch it on unsuspecting guests if it wasn't up to the job.  So Peter & I had to eat it all ourselves.  As you know I am a dab hand with leftovers.  There is no waste at our house so I had a plan.  First the tagine.  Start a couple of days ahead. I ordered a boned shoulder of lamb because I didn't think it would fit in the tagine with the bone in.  I might try it in a large cast iron casserole next time.Then make the chermoula.  Pound 4 cloves chopped garlic, a knob fresh ginger, 1 chopped red chilli, 1 tsp sea salt to form a coarse paste.  Pound a small bunch each coriander & parsley into the paste.  Beat in 3 tsp each ground  cumin & coriander.  Bind with 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp honey & the juice of a lemon.  Cut small incisions in the lamb & rub the paste all over the meat.  Cover & refrigerate overnight or at least 6 hours.
Next day heat oil & butter in a tagine, add the lamb & brown all over.  Transfer to a plate.  Into the tagine, stir 2 red onions cut in wedges, & any left over chermoula.  Add 225g stoned prunes and if you can't get fresh figs 225g dried.  If you have fresh leave them until later.  Pour in 300 ml hot water & return the lamb to the tagine.   Cover & put in the oven for two hours.
Near the end of the cooking time peel, core & quarter 2 quinces.  Melt a little butter in a pan & toss the quinces until golden.  Remove the tagine form the oven & place the quinces around the lamb.  Splash over a couple of tablespoons orange flower water & drizzle a similar quantity honey.  Return to the oven a further 30 mins until the lamb is very tender.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley & serve with plain couscous & soft leafy greens.  This is truly the queen of tagines.  Save the leftover lamb, fruit, & liquid for another day.
Sunday we got some fish from the market again & I did our old standby saute potatoes & the last of the courgettes from the garden.  Probably not the last, but the last ones that were there on Sunday.
 We had a soup planned for Monday but one of you brought me some freshly caught snapper and we had to eat it immediately.  Thank you.  For a change we crumbed them & served with crushed potatoes & an egg mayonnaise.  For 250g snapper combine 5 pitted finely chopped green olives, zest of a lemon, 1 tbsp chopped parsley, 1/4 cup panko crumbs.  Cut the fish into 5 cm pieces.  Dip in lightly beaten eggs then the crumb mix.  Press the crumbs on to help them stick.  Combine chopped egg & mayonnaise with lemon juice.  Cook the fillets in a little olive oil 2-3 minutes each side.
Tuesday was left overs - Moroccan shepherd's pie.  Firstly saute a finely chopped onion, celery, carrot, garlic in a little olive oil until really soft.  Add  the roughly shredded/chopped lamb & heat through.  Pour over the reserved tagine cooking liquid & add the chopped fruit.  Throw in a splodge of Lowry Peaks Quince Splash.   Simmer a few minutes.  If it is too dry add some liquid.  Stock or water is fine.  I had a small bowl of spicy lentil stew left so I just added enough lamb mix to make a meal for 2.  I topped with me left over pumpkin & parsnip mash mixed with some mashed potato from an earlier occasion which I had thawed.  Always freeze left over mash.  It will come in handy for a mash topped pie. If the tagine was the queen this was certainly the princess of shepherd's pies.  And I have a container of the lamb mix in the freezer for one or two more pies.
We had Monday's planned soup on Wednesday.  For 4 soften 1 thinly sliced onion, diced carrot & potato, 2 cloves crushed garlic with 1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary.  Add a splash of water if the potatoes look like catching.  Add 1/2 tsp each turmeric & smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cinnamon & 2 drained tins chickpeas.  Set a cup or less aside for garnish.  Add 5 cups stock & simmer 10 minutes.  Blend in a food processor & bring back to heat.  Heat some olive oil in a pan & saute a diced chorizo with 1/2 tsp smoked paprika & the reserved chickpeas.  Stir 1 tbsp lemon juice into the soup & ladle into bowls then top with the chorizo & chickea mix & drizzle with a little of the oil from the pan.
Now we are looking forward to the Easter cooking.  The crabapple trees actually produced fruit this year although not enough to make jelly.  I am looking for something to do with them as an accompaniment for the Easter lamb. 

Goodbye summer, hello autumn

Only a couple more tagines to go.  This week it was butter beans with cherry tomatoes & olives.  I use the jars of Spanish butter beans.  Heat some olive oil and butter in a tagine.  Stir in 4 cloves of crushed garlic, 2 sliced red onions, 1 sliced green chilli.  Add 2 tsp crushed coriander seeds, a knob of grated ginger & a pinch of saffron.  Cover & cook 5 mins.  Add 20 or so cherry tomatoes with 2 tsp each sugar & dried thyme.  Cover & cook until the tomato skins begin to wrinkle, not long.  Toss in the drained butter beans & a handful of black olives.  Squeeze on some lemon juice, cover & cook until the beans & olives are heated through. Sprinkle with parsley & serve with some crusty sourdough & a dollop of thick yoghurt.
Sunday night was a lovely piece of gurnard & an unexpected treat from the market - samphire. Luckily the fishmonger was able to tell us how to cook it.  I cooked the fish with the potatoes a la Hugh.  First roast the potatoes in a roasting dish big enough to hold the fish & when they're nearly done add the fish.  I often do this & serve with a garlicky minty pea puree.  The samphire is easy.  You do need to pick through & remove the woody bits.  The bottoms are quite twiggy & not nice to eat.  Think asparagus of the sea & you will get the idea.  You just boil for 3-4 minutes & toss in butter with black pepper & lemon juice.  Think seafood+lemon.  Don't salt without tasting.  It grows in the salt water.  Keep an eye out for it next year - this was the end of the season.  I think this lot came from the Hawkes Bay somewhere. 
Try this soup with the last of the courgettes & corn.  Heat some olive oil with a knob of butter in a large saucepan & add 2 thinly sliced onions & 400g floury potatoes peeled & diced.  Cover & steam for 10 minutes or so.  Keep an eye on them to ensure the potatoes don't catch.  Add 500g roughly chopped courgettes & the kernels off 2 sweet corn cobs with 2 tsp ground cumin, 2 cloves crushed garlic & cook for a couple of minutes.  Add 5 cups chicken stock, season & bring to the boil.  Simmer 10 minutes ensuring the potatoes & corn are cooked.    Transfer 1/3 of the soup & 1/2 cup basil to a food processor & blend until smooth.  Tip the puree back in the pan & reheat if necessary.  To serve top with a dollop of yoghurt, some extra basil & a drizzle of olive oil.  This is delicious reheated for lunch on a day you happen to be working from home.
It's the new leek season so we had spaghetti with leeks & bacon with chilli crumbs.  Remove the crusts from 3-4 slices of sourdough bread & tear into large crumbs.  Lay on a baking tray & spray lightly with olive oil.  Add 1/2 tsp chilli flakes & 1/2 tsp sea salt.  Mix them well & bake at 180 10-15 minutes.  Keep a close eye & toss occasionally.
Meanwhile heat some olive oil in a pan & add finely sliced onion & leek with a tbsp finely chopped rosemary.  Cook slowly until the alliums are soft.  Stir in 200g crumbly goat's cheese.  Grill a couple of rashers of bacon & chop into the onion mix.  Cook the spaghetti  and put everything together with some grated Parmesan.  Hold back  a few of the crumbs & sprinkle on the top.
As you know, I am very fond of lentils & I got the idea of making a spicy lentil stew from Nigel Slater.  I thought that this would be nice with mashed potatoes, then I found a parsnip in the fridge & thought parsnip & potato mash but that seemed a little insipid & carrot seemed like a colourful addition.  The trick is to cook the potato separately.  So cook the potato in one pot & the parsnips & carrots in another then puree them with a little butter in the food processor & mash the potato with a little warm milk.   Whip them together with a fork, season & add a little grated nutmeg.  There was some spinach in the fridge with the parsnip but not quite enough for two so I added the beetroot leaves.  Remember to always use your beetroot leaves.  I just like them in salad but I now know that they are also good cooked.  Just roughly chop the spinach & beet leaves & put in a dry pan.  The water left from washing the leaves is sufficient.  Cook them down, season - nutmeg is also good here - & stir through a little olive oil or cream if you find some in the fridge.  This meal was my favourite of the week although I did use every pot and pan in the house.  One for the lentils & another for the caramelised onion topping, two for the mash & another for the greens.  I did struggle to fit everything on the hob.  Phoebe would have had something to say about this.  There was more than enough but my plan is to add the left over lentils to the intended left over lamb & quince tagine for a Moroccan shepherd's pie.  The sweet orange mash should be perfect & I think I have some frozen mashed potato to add to it.  Return next week for the thrilling conclusion.

Rollover meals

I am now flipping through the tagine book picking up the ones I missed, mainly because they were unseasonal when I did the first round.  This week we had a creamy shellfish tagine with prawns & mussels.  For 2 steam a dozen mussels in your usual way.  We use a little wine. Reserve the liquor for later.  Shell the mussels & chop them up a little if you like, but leave a few on the half shell to be decorative.
Heat some olive oil in a pan or tagine. Stir in 3 finely chopped shallots & 1/2 a fennel bulb.  Stir in 1 tsp harissa paste - we were lucky enough to be given a jar of homemade harissa at Christmas & this is just the right warmth.  Pour in 150 mls of the reserved liquor & bring to the boil.  Stir in 75 mls cream, the juice of 1/2 a lemon & a dozen prawns.  Simmer gently until the prawns are cooked.  Season with salt & lost of black pepper & return the mussels to the pan to warm through.  Sprinkle with parsley to serve.
As so often happens one small thought leads to an entire meal.  The thought was  - I need to use up those little gem lettuces before they go to seed.  What about peas & lettuce - otherwise known as petit pois a la Francaise?  That goes nicely with roast chicken.  And we do have some carrots that are ready to pick.  Enter baked chicken with lemon, potato & green olives served with petit pois & steamed baby carrots.
I didn't want to roast a whole chicken so we did Maryland pieces.  Cut some roasting potatoes into smallish chunks & lay in the roasting dish.  Scatter over quartered red onion, a handful of green olives, some slices of lemon, a few chunks of pancetta & a couple of bay leaves.  Stir 1 tbsp each tomato paste & balsamic vinegar into 75 mls chicken stock & pour over potatoes.  Lay the chicken pieces on top, skin up & drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt & pepper.  Roast for 50 minutes then test the chicken to ensure the juices run clear.  Transfer the chicken to a plate to keep warm & whack the oven up to 220.  Return the veg to the oven until the potatoes are cooked through & beginning to colour. 
And you'll see we make good use of leftovers.  The potatoes go in the weekday salads & the peas & carrots are reserved for Monday's soup.
Chop the fennel left over from Saturday, a stick of celery, 2 spring onions, & a couple of courgettes into small dice.  Heat a pan & add a little olive oil &  knob of butter.  Add the veg except for the courgettes & cook 10 minutes or so until soft.  Add 500g vegetable or chicken stock & when it has come to the boil add the courgettes.  Cook for a minute & add 100g peas & broad beans - I would use fresh in spring but frozen is good.  Cook for another couple of minutes & add Sunday's leftover peas & lettuce plus the chopped carrots. Add a little more shredded lettuce if you like.  Simmer another minute, add chopped herbs then season.  Serve with grilled sourdough.
We planted a few buttercrunch lettuces & one of them grew into the biggest lettuce I have ever seen.  We have been having it for lunches.
The winter veg have arrived and it is hard to know which to choose.  Put together about 400g of vegetables - shallots, carrots, parsnip, pumpkin, beetroot, potato.  Chop them into chunks or thick slices with the slower cooking items in smaller pieces.  Put them into an ovenproof dish.  Add 1 finely chopped clove of garlic, olive oil, salt & papper.  Roast the veg at 190 until all are cooked through & beginning to caramelise. 
Beat 6 eggs with chopped herbs & season.  Pour over the vegetables & scatter over grated cheese.  Return to the oven for 10-15 minutes until the egg is set & the cheese is golden. Serve with a salad to try & get through some of the giant lettuce & use the leftovers in lunch salads.  It slices nicely & is good warm or cold.
Thursday we had that pinto chilli.  There was part of the tin of pintos and part of the tin of tomatoes left over so I heated those through with the left over lunch lentils & a splash of balsamic then served on sourdough toast topped with a poached egg for Saturday brunch.
During the week I had such a treat.  One of you kind readers, having read last week's entry, turned up on my doorstep with 2 kilos of green tomatoes.  I have made the chutney and will be delivering some to the tomato donor in the morning.  Phoebe will also be delighted because a jar or 2 will be wending its way to her this week.

At home

For Harriet's birthday I did the usual vegan Mediterranean style medley.  This year I added Patatas Bravas to the menu.  This is a classic Spanish tapa that I had had at a Spanish restaurant in Auckland & have been keen to try.  First make the sauce.  Sweat a finely chopped onion in a little olive oil with some finely chopped thyme, until the onion is very soft & translucent.  Add 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic & a finely chopped, fairly hot red chilli.  Cook a minute or 2.  Add a tin of chopped tomatoes, 2 tsp smoked paprika, a pinch of sugar, salt & pepper.  Simmer about 10 minutes & keep warm. 
Cook a pan of waxy potatoes cut into 3cm cubes, 10-12 minutes (make lots because these will be popular).  Drain & dry then saute in olive oil 10-15 minutes until they are crisp & golden.  Drain & tip into a dish then pour over the warmed sauce.  Scatter with parsley & watch these disappear from the table. Especially if they are served in this new casserole purchased at Alan Rhodes pottery in Whenuakite, Coromandel.
We had friends over & I wanted to spend the evening talking not cooking.  This pork dish was the answer.  For 4, take 600g pork fillets & tie with kitchen string, tying the thin end under for even cooking.  Combine 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves of crushed garlic, finely chopped rosemary, zest of a lemon in a bowl & season, then rub over the pork & set aside.
In a roasting dish combine 4 parsnips, peeled & sliced on the diagonal, 2 red onions, quartered, 3 carrots peeled & cut on the diagonal, 8 wholes cloves of garlic, skin on.  Toss with a little olive oil & roast 40 minutes intil tender.  Turn occasionally to ensure even cooking.  Make a dressing of 2 tbsp lemon juice, 1/4 cup good olive oil, 1 clove crushed garlic, 1 tsp grainy mustard, 2 tbsp chopped chives, salt & pepper.  Add a couple of handfuls baby spinach to the veg then toss through the dressing.  Brown the pork on all sides in a pan then roast in a hot oven 12 minutes.  Rest 10 minutes.  Toss through the vegetables. I made the mistake of sharing the recipe, so my friends know I hadn't gone to any trouble.
On Monday - yes it's soup Monday time - we had roasted pumpkin with chorizo.  Dice enough pumpkin for 2 & combine with a little olive oil & butter,  1/2 tsp each ground ginger & allspice, 1/4 tsp chilli flakes, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, in a roasting dish.  Roast at 180 until tender & a little caramelised - about 30 mins.  Meanwhile heat a little olive oil in a soup pan & fry 1 dried  sliced chorizo, 1/2 sliced onion, 1/2 diced carrot, 1 stalk sliced celery, 1 clove crushed garlic, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, until onion is soft.  Stir in 1 tbsp tomato paste, 3 cups beef or chicken stock, the roasted pumpkin & 1/2 tin kidney beans.  Simmer 30 minutes.  Puree a small quantity of the soup so you have a mix of pureed & chunky.  Serve with a dollop of sour cream & a sprinkle of smoked paprika.
We found a great recipe for a smoked mackerel salad that made a very simple work day meal.  Finely slice 1/2 an onion & soak in water or white wine vinegar to soften.  Boil a handful of waxy potatoes until tender & set aside.  Grill a couple of rashers of streaky bacon.  Make a vinaigrette with olive oil, white wine vinegar, dijon mustard, capers & a sprig of dill. Add the onions to the dressing & toss with the halved potatoes while they are still warm.  Mix through a fillet of smoked flaked mackerel & crumble the bacon over the top.  You could consider adding a hard-boiled egg.  I didn't this time but might next.
We had a frightful storm last Saturday & we did an emergency dash in pjs to rescue some roses that I feared would be battered.  They looked so wonderful in a vase that I thought I would share with you.  This is the 2nd flowering and these little babies seem to flourish more each year.  I'm pleased to report that there are still plently of blooms left on the bushes.

Winding Down

Happy New Year!  December was a busy month and there was quite a bit of eating out so I decided to take a break & return refreshed in the New Year.
During December when we did eat at home we were eating mostly vegetables, from the garden as much as possible.  I did do a summer lamb tagine I had been saving up.  Do try this, especially as the courgettes are plentiful right now.  For four, heat olive oil in the tagine & stir in 1 roughly chopped onion, 4 roughly chopped cloves of garlic, 1 tsp each cumin & coriander seeds, 1 tsp dried mint & a knob of grated ginger.  Do use dried mint here.  This gives an intense minty depth & you can add fresh at the end of cooking.  Once the onions have softened toss in 750g lean diced lamb & enough water to just cover.  Cook in the oven at 180 for about 1 1/2 hours.
Add a selection of summer vegetables.  The recipe suggests 2 small courgettes, sliced thickly on the diagonal, 1 red or green pepper, cut into thick strips, 4 tomatoes cut into chunks.  I added fresh peas & broadbeans because they were there.  I blanched the broadbeans & took off their outer jackets before adding.  Tuck them all around the meat & add a little more boiling water if necessary.  I never find it so.  Cover & cook another 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender.  Serve with lemon wedges & a soft leafy green salad.
I saw this amazing tamarind chicken recipe on the television & was compelled to try it. Do get some palm sugar if you can as I think it makes a difference.  I have been using tamarind concentrate in a jar, rather than a block, which eliminates the need for fiddly soaking.  It keeps & you will find plenty of uses for it.  If you don't have tamarind you can substitute lime juice or, at a pinch, lemon.  The tamarind is the sour component of the meal.  I had the leftovers in a lunch salad.
I sometimes pick up recipes from Le Marche Francais at the market & I was tempted by Oeufs Cocotte a Cabecous.  Cabecous is a small round soft goat's cheese.  For 2, butter 2 ramekins.  Crack an egg into each ramekin.  Add half the cabecous to each with 2 tsp cream & some chopped chives.  Season & put the ramekins into a bain marie and bake in the oven at 180 for no more than 10 minutes.  Serve with french bread.  Try dipping asparagus spears into the soft eggy cheese.
Hugh F-W has a delicious Summer Vegetable Soup which is wonderful to showcase the pickings from your spring garden.  Just use what you have to hand but whatever you do do not omit the lettuces.  If you can't buy a Little Gem  - I grow them from seedlings - you could try a baby Cos.  The lettuce gives the soup depth.  We need to rediscover braised lettuce.  It is delicious.
There is such a lot to be done with those early vegetables of summer.  You can add a selection of blanched vegetables to a risotto or try a Pasta Primavera.  Saute a selection of diced vegetables in butter or olive oil.  Start with onion & saute to a rich golden colour, then add celery & carrot & cook 5 minutes.  Add courgette & red capsicum & cook a further 20 minutes.  Add 1 cm asparagus lengths which you have already blanched.  Once all the vegetables are tender, add 200ml cream & cook until the cream has reduced by half.  While the cream is reducing cook some ribbon pasta.  Toss the pasta with the sauce & sprinkle over grated Parmesan & parsley.
During the week leading up to the festivities we treated ourselves to Hugh's Tahini Dressed Courgette Salad.  We made the semi-dried tomatoes, just cooking the tomatoes for 4-5 hours.  You need to treat theses as fresh & use within a week but you will find endless uses for them, for example tucking them in a delicious home-made hamburger.  I am sure you could also find endless uses for the tahini dressing.
Stay tuned & I'll fill you in on the festive dining in the next few days.