Spicy Roast Aubergine with Chickpea Stew and Jeweled Couscous

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This has to be one of the best new recipes I have tried in quite a while.

My friends Lucy and H came round for a relaxed, girls only, midweek dinner last night. I started looking for things to cook the day before, as I wanted to use the opportunity and try out something new. I know that can be slightly risky business when you have guests, but I knew the girls would be forgiving and anyways when I saw the recipe on the Vegetarian Society Website, I was pretty sure that it was going to be good.



Well, good it was. I think I even heard the words 'better than sex' uttered by somebody. I made the chickpea stew the night before, so I just had to marinate and roast the aubergine and quickly make the couscous. The list of ingredients and the instructions look long but it all came together simply enough and the dish has loads of different flavours that work together really well. Every mouthful adds a new level.

I nearly slipped up, I forgot to add the toasted almonds. After we had finished our first serving I realised and quickly added them. They took the dish to a whole different level again, so make sure you don't forget them!

We rounded off the meal with fresh raspberries that Lucy had brought and Easy Peasy All in One Lemon Drizzle Cake. I made the cake using some home made Lemon Curd that Lucy had given to me last week. Delicious!



As with most recipes, I adjusted it ever so slightly and here's my version:

Spicy Roast Aubergines with Chickpea Stew and Jeweled Couscous (serves 4)

For the aubergines:
2 aubergines cut into bite sized cubes
1 bunch fresh mint, finely chopped
2 lemons, juice of
4 cloves garlic, minced
2tsp ground coriander
2tsp paprika
2tsp ground cumin
2tsp ground black pepper
1tsp cayenne pepper
1tsp harissa paste
1/2-1 tsp salt
4tbsp olive oil

For the chickpea stew:
2 onions, sliced
2tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1tsp paprika
pinch cayenne
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
150ml vegetable stock
1tbsp caster sugar
3tbsp tomato puree
1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained
1 bay leaf
salt, to taste
2tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped

For the couscous:
700ml vegetable stock
350g couscous
1 lemon, grated rind only
4tbsp olive oil
50g flaked almonds, lightly toasted
75g dried apricots, chopped
3tbsp golden raisins
3tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper


To make the roast aubergines, place the chopped aubergines in one layer in an oven proof dish.

In a seperate bowl mix all the other ingredients together to make a marinade.

Pour over the aubergines and toss well until they are evenly coated.

Cover and allow to marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 190C/Gas 5.

Place the aubergines into the hot oven, uncovered and roast them for 30 minutes or until soft.

While they are cooking you can make the chickpea stew, heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat and fry the onions until soft and beginning to slightly brown. (Or like me you can make this the previous night.)

Add the minced garlic and the spices and continue to cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add the vegetable stock, chopped tomatoes and sugar and simmer gently until it has reduced a bit and starts to thicken.

Add the tomato puree, drained chickpeas and the bay leaf.

Bring back to a simmer and cook for five more minutes.

Season to taste and stir in the chopped coriander, remove the bay leaf.

To make the couscous, put the couscous in a pan and pour the hot vegetable stock over.

Bring to a boil, cover and remove from the heat.

Allow to stand for five minutes before fluffing it up with a fork.

Add the apricots, golden raisins, toasted almond slivers and chopped coriander and fold them in.

Layer all three components in a large serving bowl, starting with the couscous, followed by the chickpea stew and finally topping it with the roast aubergines.

Easter Nests

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My visitors are still in bed, so I thought I'd quickly share one of the treats we made on Saturday, before I start getting the requested full English Breakfast on the go. I know N likes a full English, but I'm not to sure how it'll go down with L. We'll see, if everything fails L will have to just have fried egg on toast with baked beans.

Okay, back to the Easter treats. The girls made them on Saturday together with my friend's daughter V. Easter Nests are really easy to make and I'm sure most people have had them before or at least seen them around. They are very similar to rice crispie treats, the only difference being that they use cornflakes instead of the crispies and that they get topped with chocolate eggs for Easter.



Easter Nests (makes 16)

125gr milk chocolate
100gr dark chocolate
50gr butter
2 tbsp golden syrup (or corn syrup)
100gr cornflakes
16 paper muffin cases

Melt the chocolate and butter in a large pan over medium heat.

When it has melted, stir in the golden syrup and mix well.

Add the cornflakes and carefully stir them in. Make sure they get coated evenly with the chocolate mix and try not to crush them.

Place the paper liners in a muffin tin and divide the cornflake mixture between them.

Using the back of a teaspoon, shape them into a nest by making a little dent in the middle of each of them.

Place into the fridge for 30 minutes to chill and set.

When set and cool, place coloured chocolate eggs into each nest to finish.

Baba Ghanoush (Roasted Aubergine Dip)

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Not one of the prettiest dips you'll ever see, but certainly one of the best, or at least that's what I think.

I'm not in much of a mood to write loads today. I was looking forward to get back into it, but I've spend all day speaking to the police and insurance companies, as my bike has been stolen again. I only just replaced the one that was stolen in November and now it's gone again. Swines.

Oh well, as I said it's kind of put a bit of a damper on my mood and I can't think of anything witty or interesting to write. Therefore I'll just leave you with this great recipe for one of my favourite dips, perfect with warm pita.


Baba Ghanoush

3 medium aubergines (eggplants)
2 tbsp tahini
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp salt

Preheat your oven to 210C/425F/Gas 7.

Place the aubergines in the oven and roast for 45-60 minutes. The skin should be brown and they should be soft to the touch.

When done, cut them in half and scoop the flesh into a sieve. Squeeze out any of the excess moisture.

Place everything into a blender and puree until smooth.

Taste and add more lemon juice if needed.

If you want an extra creamy dip stir in about 1/3 cup of yoghurt.

Potato and Bean Enchilada

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Some people are of the (misguided) opinion that potatoes are boring, but they are so not. I love them, they are filling and versatile and go with with just about anything.

Since moving into a flat on my own last summer I have found that I eat less and less meat. I guess there are two reasons for that. Firstly, good meat is expensive and I refuse to buy cheap reconstituted, saline injected or poorly-treated-whilst-alive meat and secondly a lot of my favourite meat dishes, such as roasts, stews, and pies are obviously not really that single friendly, especially since I only have a minute freezer.

So, that's were this recipe comes in. I love Mexican/Tex-Mex food, but of course many of the popular dishes contain, beef, minced beef or chicken, which I don't always have around. Kidney beans, potatoes, onions, passata, fresh coriander and flour tortillas however are usually to be found somewhere in my store cupboards and they make this great dish. I promise that even the biggest carnivore won't really miss the meat in this one. I scale the recipe down of course, but I have posted the original, which serves four people.



Potato and Bean Enchilada (serves 4)

1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 red cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 cup vegetable stock
2 cups passata
2 teaspoons cornflour
1 large tomato, cubed
1 (14 ounce) can red beans, drained
4 large potatoes, boiled, skin on, cubed
2 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped
1 cup grated cheese
8-12 flour tortillas

In a saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat and fry the onion, until beginning to soften.

Add the garlic, cayenne pepper and cumin and fry for a further two minutes.

Add the vegetable stock and passata,and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Mix the cornflour with a bit of cold water and add to the sauce while stirring. Continue to simmer for a minute or so and allow to thicken. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a bowl, mix the tomato, beans, potatoes, coriander and cheese.

Divide this mixture between the tortillas, cover with a large tablespoon of the sauce and roll up.

Place the enchiladas, seam side down in a lightly oiled large square oven dish.

Pour the rest of the sauce over the top of the enchiladas (if you want you can add a little more cheese too) and cook in the oven at 180C/Gas 4 for 20 minutes.

Orzotto con Zucca (Pumkin and Barley Risotto)

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The cold weather continues, so does the need for comfort (food).



Orzotto is a risotto made with barley instead of rice, it is also a lot easier as there is no need for constant watching, stirring and adding stock. It all just goes in at once and then cooks until done, with only the occassional peek and stir. Zucca is Italian for pumpkin, but I usually use butternut squash at it is more widely available. You don't even need to peel it, just clean it and remove the seeds cook it and eat it, skin and all. If you need meat with your meal to be fully satisfied, just add some shreeded chicken or beef at the end. It's also good with added mushrooms.

My friend J. made a similar and delicious recipe from the Nigella Christmas Cookbook when she invited me round a few weeks ago. Nigellas version is very rich, due to having loads of mascarpone cheese added. This one is far more low-fat, with only some parmesan stirred in at the end. One thing I really did like about Nigella's recipe though (don't get me wrong it was all good, but just a little too rich for everyday use), is that she keeps some of the butternut squash in chunks, rather than pureeing all of it. So, that's what I did this time round, I just kept some of the roasted butternut squash aside, and pureed the rest. However, below you find the original recipe by Matthew Fort, as I found it Guardian Weekend magazine quite a few years ago, without the chunks.



I just realised, whilst uploading the pictures, that I have been eating a lot of orange food lately. I better go and make something a little more colourful next.


Orzotto con Zucca (serves 2-3 as a main or 4 as a side)

140 g barley
2 liters vegetable stock or chicken stock or game stock
600 g pumpkin or butternut squash, cut into chunks
30 g butter
30 g grated parmesan cheese
salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste

In a large pan bring the stock to a boil, add the barley and simmer until done. It should take about 40 minutes. Drain.

If you want you can add some chopped mushrooms to this for the last 5-10 minutes.

Microwave, boil or roast the pumpkin until soft. (Roasting is my favourite method.)

Put the cooked pumpkin and the butter into a blender and puree.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the puree to the barley and season again with salt and pepper.

Just before serving mix the parmesan into the 'risotto'.

Serve hot with fresh crusty bread.

Turkish Red Lentil Soup

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As some of you who read this blog regularly will know, I really do like soup and I also really like potatoes. Therefor a soup that is made with potatoes just has to be good in my opinion and when I saw that this month's No Croutons Required challenge is to post about a soup or salad containing potatoes I knew I'd be up for it. Thanks Holler from Tinned Tomatoes for choosing such a great ingredient.

This Turkish Red Lentil Soup is one of the easiest soups I know, with very few and simple store cupboard ingredients, but the end results is so full of flavour that it's hard to believe that there is nothing else in it. (Lucy, if you're reading, this is one to make at your hermitage.)



Turkish Red Lentil Soup (serves 4)

1 cup red lentils, washed and cleaned
4 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup onions, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup white potato, peeled and diced
2 tsp paprika
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)

Place the washed and cleaned lentils into a soup pot together with with the stock, potatoes, onions, garlic and paprika.

Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Loosely place a lid on the pan. Cook for 40-40 minutes until the lentils are tender.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Place all but 1 cup of the soup into a blender or food processor and blend briefly. Return blended soup to the pan with the un-blended soup and briefly heat through again before serving.

Simple Carrot and Coriander Soup - Eating with the Season

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I thought I was gonna miss the January deadline of the Eating with the Season blogging event over at Maninas: food matters, but as it has been extended until 21st January, I get to take part after all.

I had a couple of rather past-their-prime carrots in my vegetable draw. They were left over from last week's carrot cake, which for some reason I never took a picture of, so no blogging about the cake for now (I'll make it again though). So, when I was making a tentative meal plan before going food shopping yesterday, I thought of making some Carrot & Coriander Soup.

Not only would I be using up what I still had, rather than wasting it, but if you read this blog regularly you will know that I love soup. Of course I wouldn't get far with my two sad looking exemplars, so I picked up some more super fresh carrots from the Unicorn co-operative grocery and today I was ready to make soup.



Carrots are one of my favourite root vegetables. They are in season from pretty much April through to June, so most of the year and of course they are also good for you because of their high content of pro-vitamin A, as well as containing vitamins C, D, E, K, B1 and B6.

Simple Carrot & Coriander Soup (serves 4)

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, sliced
1lb carrots, sliced
1 tsp ground coriander
2 pints vegetable stock
large bunch fresh coriander (cilantro), roughly chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the sliced onions and the carrots. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until they begin to soften.

Stir in the ground coriander and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, continue to cook for another minute.

Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender.

Puree with a hand blender or in a blender until smooth.

Return to the pan, reheat briefly, stir in the fresh chopped coriander and serve with some fresh, crusty bread.

Enjoy!

Roast Vegetable Pasta Sauce with friends

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I didn't mean to not post for as long as I have, but things have been a bit manic. I've been quite busy at work, spending evenings preparing lectures and getting some work ready for the Manchester Artist Book Fair on Saturday. (If you're in Manchester at the weekend, come along it's a great event and full of lovely handmade books and cards etc. which will make great Christmas pressies.) So there hasn't been much in the way of exciting cooking happening at my house.

The only exception was on Sunday night when my friends L. and H. came round for dinner, before we all headed out into town for some swing music and as we had hoped dancing. It turned out the club was too small and too busy for much swing dancing to be happening, but we had a lovely time nevertheless. Well, I say exception, the meal I made is not high dining or exceptionally beautiful, if that is what you're thinking now, but it is great in flavour, packed with vegetables and herbs and simple to make and that's what excites me every time I make this Roast Vegetable Pasta Sauce. Both L. and H. also seemed to enjoy it as well and we all had seconds.



However, before I share the recipe with you I have to say a big THANK YOU to Fiona over at The Cottage Smallholder, for passing the Kreativ Blogger Award on to me. Fiona, I'm thrilled and very excited to receive this from you. It is now my pleasure to pass this on to six other bloggers and also as part of the award I am meant to share six things that I like.



So, firstly here are the six blogs I would like to pass this award on to (as always in no particular order):

Cherrapeno, because I love the wonderful recipes and brilliant photographs and also because Nic has helped me out with some great hints about blogging.
Maninas: Food Matters, for hosting the Eating with Season's event every month, one of my favourite blog events out there.
Little Foodies, because I love the creative ways that Amanda makes her kids love food.
Domestic Goddess in Training, because Jules shares my love for seasonal produce and trying out new things.
Tinned Tomatoes, because Holler gets me really excited about vegetarian recipes as I'm cutting more and more meat out of my diet.
Operation Night Brace, because I know I would have given up by now, but Amy and Gareth are still going and make me laugh at a regular basis.

Now to the six things that I like:

The smell of freshly baked bread.
Sunflowers and all their yellow happiness.
Writing with a fountain pen.
My bicycle.
Sitting on the sofa with a good book and a pot of tea.
Finding some money in a coat or trouser pocket that I had forgotten about.

And finally, here is the recipe:

Roast Vegetable Pasta Sauce (serves 4)

1 large aubergine, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium courgettes, trimmed and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can chopped tomatoes
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1/2 cup vegetable stock

Preheat oven to 200C/Gas 7/400F.

Place the aubergine and onion into a large baking tray and drizzle with oil Season with salt and pepper

Roast for about 25 minutes, until they start to brown. Stir once or twice during that time.

Add the courgette and return to the oven for another 20 minutes or so.

Stir in the chopped tomatoes, garlic, rosemary and thyme and put back into the oven for another 15 minutes.

Pour in the vegetable stock.

Add your cooked pasta and the basil to the tray and stir until the pasta is coated with the sauce.

Serve with freshly grated parmesan and a glass of your favourite wine.

Roast Garlic and a Belated Anniversary

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I just realised that yesterday was A Pot of Tea and a Biscuit's first anniversary. I can't believe it (not that I missed it, because I'm quite good at missing things), but the fact that it has been a year since I wrote my first post. I don't think I thought back then that I'd really get into this whole blogging thing myself, and I certainly didn't think that there would be over 13,000 visits to my blog and nearly 60 people reading my ramblings in their Google Reader on a regular basis. So, thank you, each and everyone of you, whether you are just lurking or whether you leave comments, without all of you it'd only be half the fun!

Onto the food now though....

I love roasted garlic. It's great for using in all sorts of dishes. However, I like it best just as it is, squeezed straight onto some fresh crusty bread. Heavenly. Some of you might think that it must be awfully strong, but believe me when I say that roasting it makes it wonderfully mellow and brings out a lovely sweetness, just like slow cooking onions does.

Most recipes I know call for a huge amount of olive oil to roast the garlic in, which makes it somewhat 'unhealthy' (I know, I know, some olive oil in your diet is actually really good for you). So, this recipe replaces most of the oil with vegetable stock and in my opinion the garlic tastes just as great and it is the recipe I always use these days. You can roast as many bulbs as you like at once, the large elephant garlic bulbs work great, but standard bulbs work just as well.



Roast Garlic

2-3 bulbs of garlic
vegetable stock
olive oil
6 sprigs of thyme

Cut the tops off the garlic bulbs, just enough that the tops of the individual cloves are taken off. (You can keep the cut-offs and use them minced in another dish.)

Place the bulbs in a small oven proof dish, top each one with a couple of sprigs of thyme and drizzle with a little olive oil.

Pour enough stock into the dish to come up to about 1/3 of the bulbs.

Cover with some tin foil and bake in a pre-heated oven at about 160C/325F/Gas 3, for about an hour.

Butternut Squash and Roasted Red Pepper Soup

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Since last night the summer soup break is officially over. I love soup and it is getting to that time of year where the evenings are getting cold and dark enough to have loads of it. Don't get me wrong I'll occassionaly eat soup during the summer, but only when I eat out.

The last couple of days, since getting back from Germany it has been pretty miserable outside, so the weather combined with my cold made me crave a bowl of hot, steaming soup. While I was at my mum and dad's house, one of the local farm shops had a pumpkin and potato fete, which really got me into thinking about autumn and all it's glory, the lovely colours, the frosty and misty mornings, the still sunny days and of course all the autumn vegetables that are already or will soon be available everywhere.

Inspired by all the glorious varieties at the farm shop fete, I quickly decided that pumpkin soup would be the first soup I would make. When I went to my local shop here though all I could get my hands on was a butternut squash, so that's what I used, but if you have of a beautiful pumpkin why not use that instead. I also cheated and used roast pepper from a jar, as it needed using up, but you could easily roast your own at the same time as the squash or pumpkin.



As butternut squash is in season here in the UK in September, I'll enter this into Maninas: Food Matters' Eating with Seasons: September blog event. Go check it out, there are still a couple of days left to enter!

Butternut Squash and Roasted Red Pepper Soup
(serves 3-4)

1 butternut squash
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1 rosted red pepper, chopped
1 inch of fresh ginger, grated
1 red chili, desseded and chopped finely
1- 1 1/4 litre vegetable stock
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Cut your butternut squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds with a spoon.

Drizzle with a little olive oil and place in a baking tray in an oven at 200C/Gas 5 for about 45 minutes to an hour, until the flesh is soft.

In the meantime heat a little oil in a large, heavy-based pan and sweat the onions until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two. Add the pepper, ginger, chili and half of the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Once the butternut squash or pumpkin is done, scoop out all the soft flesh and add to the pan. Puree, using a stick blender until smooth and add the rest of the stock until you get your desired thickness.

Season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Cook for a further 5-10 minutes.

Serve with some fresh, crusty bread.

Sweetcorn Fritters

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The other day I bought some cobs of corn and they'd been lying around in my fridge waiting for me to eat them. Usually, I would just grill the corn as it is and have it with a herb butter or just simply with some butter and salt and pepper, but I didn't really have anything to serve alongside and didn't want to go out spending more money on groceries this week either. Plus, tomorrow I have to draw the contents of my fridge for an artist book project I'm involved in, so I don't want to fill it up with more stuff (Be honest, is there ever a time when you go to the grocery shop and only pick up the thing you actually went in for?!), instead I wanted to empty it out a bit to make my job easier.

I've been meaning to try and make some sweetcorn fritters in ages, so I went searching the net and combined a number of different recipes to come up with this one. I had them with a simple tomato, cucumber and pepper side salad and some sweet chili dipping sauce. You can easily double the recipe and I'm sure frozen corn would work just as well instead of the fresh.



Fresh Sweetcorn Fritters (serves 2)

60gr plain flour
1tsp baking powder
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
1 pinch of salt
2tbsp milk
1 egg, beaten
1 cobs of corn, cooked and cooled
1/4 red pepper, chopped finely

Sift together the flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper and salt.

Add the milk and the egg and whisk until you get a smooth, thick batter.

Slice the corn kernels of the cobs and add them to the batter together with the red pepper, mix in well.

Heat some oil in a frying pan and place one heaped tablespoon in the pan for each fritter, pressing it down to spread the batter out a bit so it can cook evenly.

Fry until golden brown on both sides, place on some kitchen towel to soak up any extra oil when done and serve with your favourite dip.

Krautsalat or German Coleslaw

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Things have finally settled down a bit at work, so I'm back in the kitchen rather than living on take aways and sandwiches. Thanks to all of you for bearing with me and all the well wishes.

Krautsalat has always been one of my favourites and I really can't give you a good enough reason why I have never tried to make my own before, especially as it's not available to buy here in the UK. It is so simple and really satisfied my cravings!

The difference between the German coleslaw and the one you usually get in the UK and the US is that instead of a mayonnaise based dressing, it is made with oil and vinegar and it doesn't have any carrots in it either. There are loads of slight variations, but here's the recipe I used, it can easily be doubled or trebled to feed a crowd.



Krautsalat

1/2 head white cabbage, shredded
1/2 green pepper, shredded
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin seeds (optional)
black pepper, to taste

Place the cabbage and pepper in a decent sized bowl.

In a pan, bring the oil, vinegar, sugar, salt and cumin to a boil and stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Pour the hot liquid over the cabbage and stir well.

Cover and refrigerate for at least twelve hours.

Corn on the Cob with Herby Butter

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I think the best corn on the cob is done on the BBQ. Tonight was just not the night to wait for coals to heat though. There just wasn't enough time, as D. goes to a guitar class on Monday nights. So I tried a Paul Rankin recipe, that I found on the BBC food website. The corn is done on the stove top instead of the BBQ and both D. and I really liked it.

The lemon adds a nice zing and finishing the corn of in a griddle pan still gives you the lovely charcoaled bits on the outside. I used lemon thyme as I had no fresh chives. I think I might try adding some garlic next time for even more flavour or maybe even some chili flakes. The possibilities seem to be endless, but the recipe is really good as it is....



Corn on the Cob with Herby Butter

2 corn on the cob, husks and skins removed
2tbsp butter
1/2 lemon, juice off
2tsp chopped chives
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Cook your corn on the cob in salted water for about 5 minutes. Drain.

Heat a griddle pan to a medium heat and add the corn. Griddle for another 7-10 minutes, turning regularly.

While the corn is in the griddle pan, heat the butter, lemon juice and chives in a pan until the butter has melted.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

When the corn is done, remove to a plate and drizzle with the herb butter.

Tofu Fajitas

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I'm trying to cut down the amount of meat we eat, not just because the price of good quality meat is getting very high, but I guess it's gotta have some health benefits, too.

Tofu is something I am still getting into. I've tried different ways of preparing it, different brands and flavours and I have not always liked the outcome. One way I do like having it is in Tofu Fajitas. I use my Fajita Seasoning Mix and make the fajitas as I would normally do, just replacing the chicken with Beech Smoked Tofu. Quick, healthy and satisfying.

Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil - A Taste of Summer

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There are a few things that really taste of summer to me and fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil salad is one of those. Usually I just tear up a large ball of fresh mozzarella, slice vine ripened tomatoes and arrange it all on a plate, topped with the basil.

Last night though, we had some friends round for a BBQ at ours and I was looking for something quick to make and that people could easily start nibbling on while waiting for their stuff off the grill (it had to be quick as it was a rather spontaneous decision to have a BBQ, as I only made up my mind to have one at five in the afternoon).

So I decided to make 'mini salad portions on a stick' that were easily made, even easier to eat and tasted just as much of summer. They are great for bringing to parties, I promise they'll disappear quickly.



Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil Appertisers

mini Mozzarella balls
vine ripened cherry tomatoes
fresh basil leaves
freshly ground black pepper
balsamic vinegar syrup
extra virgin olive oil (optional)

Thread one mini Mozzarella ball, one basil leaf and one cherry tomato (cut them in half if they're on the big side) onto a cocktail stick.

Repeat until you have used all of them up.

Arrange on a plate and grind some black pepper over the lot.

Drizzle with balsamic vinegar syrup and extra virgin olive oil (most of the time I don't use any oil).

Enjoy!

Roast Vegetable and Gruyere Quiche

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When reading through Tinned Tomatoes by Holler this afternoon, she had posted an entry for the Vegetarian Feast blog event, hosted by Judith at Shortcut to Mushrooms. The event was just about perfect for me, as this time the challenge is to make a vegetarian quiche, tart, flan or savoury pastry (basically anything as long as it is vegetarian, flat and has a crust) and I had just come back from the kitchen where I had put my vegetables in the oven to roast for my quiche.

If I remember this right the recipe for this quiche came from a supermarket magazine and even though roasting the vegetables first means a little more effort and time, it is well worth it as they become wonderfully sweet and full of flavour. It also makes it the perfect recipe for using up left-over roast veg if you have any. The gruyere means it's nice and cheesy and not too eggy.

I love it when it's warm as a light meal with a side salad and even better it's great cold too, so ideal for picnics and lunch boxes. Of course you can make your own pastry, but if you don't have that much time or don't like making pastry the store bought stuff works just fine.



Roast Veg and Gruyere Quiche

350gr frozen shortcrust pastry, thawed
1 red onion, quatered
1 red pepper, de-seeded and chopped
1 yellow pepper, de-seeded and chopped
1 courgette, sliced thickly
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large egg
125ml cream
120gr gruyere or mature cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat oven 200C/Gas6.

Roll out your pastry dough and line a deep 10 inch/25 cm flan dish.

Line with baking paper and baking beans and blind bake for 10 minutes.

Remove paper and beans and return to the oven to bake for another 5 minutes.

Place all the vegetables on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil.

Place in the oven and roast for about 25-30 minutes until slightly charred.

Set aside and cool slightly, seperate the onion into separate layers.

Turn down the temperature of your oven to 180C/Gas4.

Whisk the eggs with the milk, stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste (you can also mix in a few of your favourite herbs).

Spread the vegetables over the bottom of the pastry case and pour the egg mixture over

Bake for approx 30-35 minutes.

Enjoy hot or cold.

I'm back

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I got back from Germany early on Monday morning and have just about recovered from far too little sleep over the past week or so.

The earlier trip to Glasgow was lovely, but apart from discovering that Mother's Pride Pan Bread is great for toasting and being bought a thistle shaped wooden porridge spurtle, I don't really have any foodie things to share.

The trip home to Germany was a bit more relevant when it comes to food blogging, I guess. I came back with two great cake recipes, that I'll share over the next couple of weeks or so and I bought some nice goodies, such as Strawberry vinegar (which is supposed to be great mixed with Cava) and a lovely Potatas Bravas dip mix from new delicatessen shop in my hometown. I would have probably bought loads more stuff, but I had only taken my small weekend trolley instead of the usual suitcase.

My sister is coming over in the car in a couple of months though, so I have already started to to write a list of things for her to bring over. I also had the first BBQ of the season at my friends house, to which I brought an old favourite of mine, Colourful Orzo Salad.



I got this recipe from the web originally, but have changed some of the ingredients and added things to my liking. The original called for parsley instead of fresh coriander for example, but I don't really like it all that much. I also started adding feta cheese after the first few times of making it and now never make it without. The salad looks pretty and there usually isn't any left.

Colourful Orzo Salad (serves 4-6)

1 1/2 cups orzo pasta
4 tbsp olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 carrot, diced finely
1 1/2 cups bell pepper (red, green and yellow)
1 small red onion, diced
1/4 cup fresh coriander, finely chopped
1 small block of feta cheese, cubed

Cook the orzo according to the instructions on the packet in plenty of salt water.

In a large bowl whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper and garlic.

Add the carrot, peppers, onion and cooked orzo (there is no need to cool it first, and if you like you can serve the salad warm).

Stir well, making sure everything gets coated with the oil/lemon mix.

Add the fresh coriander and feta cheese and carefully mix into the salad, so that the feta doesn't break up too much.

Houmous or Hummus or .....

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...even humous, hommos, hommus, hummos, hummous or humus.

Well, who knows? I'm sure some of you do, but I usually go with one of the two at the top.

I'd never heard of it until about six years ago (is it really that long ago since I was a postgrad student) it seemed to become really popular all of a sudden and appeared just about on every menu and on the shelves of all the shops. Or, did I just not notice it before?

I have to admit though that the first time I tried it I didn't like it at all, which seemed to become a problem as the stuff was everywhere and everyone was eating it, so it was constantly offered to me. My Eureka moment came when my friend brought a huge bowl full of the stuff to a BBQ at my house. I gave it another chance and have never looked back.

Of course my friend didn't have a recipe though, like with so many good things that you make a lot all she could say was add a little of this and add a little of that. Not very helpful at all. That's when my quest for a great Houmous recipe started. I've tried many different ones over the years and this is the one that I have settled with (for now...I'm open to temptation) because it's pretty close to perfection in my opinion. Plus, a huge bonus in my eyes is, that it uses no olive oil (I can hear some of you cry out in despair: How can it be Houmous if there is no olive oil in it?! Trust me, if only this once!), so it must have less calories and be even better for you. Right? Well, I don't care really, I just eat it!



The Best Houmous or Hummus or.....

1 can chickpeas
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp tahini
1 tsp cumin

Drain the chickpeas, but save the liquid.

Add chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, and tahini to the food processor or place them in a large bowl if you're using a stick blender.

Blend until you have a coarse but even consistency. You might need to srcape the sides down.

Add some of the reserved chickpea liquid until you get your preferred consistency. I'd start off with 3 tablespoons and add more if you like.

Quick as a Rocket Pasta

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See what I've done there?! My excuse for this bad pun is, that today was my first day back at work after being off for two weeks. Therefore my brain is a little frazzled. Also, the plan was to go for a run tonight, but instead I'm on the sofa wanting tea and biscuits. There is just no way I'm gonna get my trainers and not-so-sexy lycra stuff out and face the hills. I just want to be lazy now and needed immediate comfort when I got in, so I cooked some pasta.



This is one of those dishes that's ideal for a weeknight, when you get in from work and just don't want to spend more then twenty minutes in the kitchen but still want a tasty homemade meal. Given the amount of garlic at least it's ideal if you don't have an important business meeting the next day. The dish is quite open for experimentation, for example try adding king prawns or use plenty of chopped basil instead of the rocket (arugula).




Pasta with Garlic, Tomatoes and Rocket (serves 2)

The amounts aren't exact, it doesn't matter if you use a little more or less of something.

olive oil
2 fat cloves of garlic, crushed
2-3 vine ripened tomatoes, chopped roughly
3 tbsp freshly grated parmesan
a large handful of rocket (arugula)
8 mini balls of buffalo mozzarella (optional)
salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 packet of fresh pasta (enough for two), cooked and drained

In a heavy based pan heat a generous amount of olive oil (about 3 tbsp).

Add the garlic and sautee over a very low heat for about 3-5 minutes, you don't want it to brown, just soften. Stir regularly.

Add the tomatoes and continue to cook for another five minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the cooked pasta, parmesan and rocket and stir until all the pasta is coated and the rocket is starting to wilt. If you are using the mozzarella add it now as well.

Serve straight away, ideally with a large glass of red wine!

A day spent pottering

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Tomorrow my big sister is coming to stay for a week. She, like the rest of my family, lives in Germany, so I'm always really happy when I get to spend some time with any of them, as it only happens a couple of times a year.

I spent most of today just pottering around the house, tidying things away, doing laundry and getting the spare bedroom sorted out. Thankfully, she won't be checking in corners and under beds, so I don't have to do a major spring clean. It'd be a different story if my mother came to visit. Even though my mum obviously doesn't check under beds either (or at least I think she doesn't), I always start a major cleaning operation when she comes, as her house always seems to be spotless and I get conscious of things I usually don't even notice.

My sister doesn't really cook much, so she always says she looks forward to coming here and being cooked for, which means I'll probably do quite a bit of it over the next week, but I don't know how much time I'll have to write about it. So there might be a backlog of stuff to post by the time the week is over, but I'll make sure I make a note and take a pic of everything to share later.

For now I'll leave you with my version of Ratatouille. Full of vegetables and wonderful flavours, I like it with pasta, as a filling for a baked potato or even as a kind of sauce/side with pork, fish or chicken. It can be eaten hot or cold. You can also change the quantities of vegetables and use more of one and less of the other, or try adding mushrooms for example. It adapts well to whatever is in your fridge.



Ratatouille

2 cans plum tomatoes
2 onions, sliced thinly
2 red peppers, cut into chunks
1 yellow pepper, cut into chunks
1 aubergine, cut into chunks
2 small zucchini, cut into thick slices
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 tablespoon sugar o
live oil

Heat a little oil in a large, heavy based pan.

Add the onions and fry for 5 minutes. Now add the peppers and fry for 2 more minutes.
Remove from the pan.

Add a little new oil to the pan and fry the aubergines for 5 minutes, then add the zucchini and fry for 3 minutes.

Remove from pan.

Add the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, sugar and tomatoes to the empty pan and simmer until the tomatoes start breaking down.

Return all the vegetables to the pan and simmer on low for about 15 minutes.

Stir regularly and season with salt and pepper.

The vegetables should be very soft but at the same time still have some of their texture.

Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

Serve immidiately or allow to cool down and serve it cold.