November - a month in my kitchen.

Despite cooking at home pretty much every night without fail, regular readers of my blog may wonder if that aspect of my life has withered and died....looking back over the last month or so, it's all been restaurant reviews and eating out... not a mention of what I've been dishing up in the kitchen.
So, to correct this oversight - here's a roundup....

At the beginning of the month I received the new Gordon Ramsay book 'World Kitchen' to review, and frankly despite the recipes being competent, I found the book wholly un-inspiring... This no doubt has a lot to do with the whole Ramsay empire being so pervasive nowadays, it's impossible to get away from it. But, unlike his earlier books where you really got a feel for his cooking, the perfection in the kitchen and the passion about the ingredients... this just feels like a case of...

"Your contracted to churn out three books a year....we were thinking 'world food' - you haven't done that yet, knock us a quick book out"

In fact I believe his recently ex-right hand man Mark Sargeant does the real work on the books nowadays, and Gordo just rubberstamps the finished product.
There's just no spark, no passion.

But this is the thing, all of the recipes are good. Great in fact, and the results were fairly impressive. In actual fact, it's a handy book to own. But it'll never be a favourite.
Obviously, in order to test the book out fully, I had to cook a few things from it....

First up from the Italian section of the book, we have 'Grilled Mushrooms on griddled polenta with pecorino'

I made this for a Saturday lunch, mainly because I had an open leftover bag of Polenta I wanted to use up. The Mushrooms are Chanterelles. Straightforward, fairly quick, as easy as it gets and even if I do say so myself - it looks pretty good on a plate.

The next thing I cooked, from the Spanish section....Meatballs in Tomato Sauce. (or Albondigas). Tapas style.
Now this recipe was a complete winner. I loved it, the manchego in the mix, gave it a nice subtle piquancy and the simple tomato sauce they were cooked in was lovely. I served these up with some rice. I'll be making these again....
Here's the recipe, so you can judge for yourself:-

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce.
Serves 4-5

You'll Need:-

For the meatballs:-
500g good quality minced beef
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped
50g White Breadcrumbs
25g Manchego (or Cheddar), grated
2 TBS chopped flat leaf parsley, plus extra to garnish.
Sea Salt and Black Pepper
1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
2 TBS Olive Oil

For the Tomato Sauce:-
2 TBS Olive Oil
1 Onion peeled and finely chopped
1 Garlic Clove, peeled and finely chopped
120ML dry white wine
2x400g tins chopped tomatoes
100ML water
1-2 TSP Caster Sugar

To make the meatballs , mix the minced beef, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, cheese and chopped parsley together in a large bowl until evenly combined. Season well with salt and pepper and add the beaten egg to bind, mixing with your hands. Break off a small piece of the mixture, shape into a ball and fry in an oiled pan until cooked, then taste for seasoning. Adjust the seasoning of the uncooked mixture as necessary.

With damp hands, shape the mixture into about 16 meatballs, trying not to press them too tightly. Place on a large plate, cover with clingfilm and chill for at least 30 mins to allow them to firm up. Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the onion and garlic and fry gently until lightly golden.

Increase the heat slightly and pour in the wine. Let bubble until reduced by half, then stir in the chopped tomatoes, water and sugar. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 10-15 mins until the tomatoes are soft, then remove the pan from the heat.

To cook the meatballs. heat the olive oil in a large, wide pan. Add the chilled meatballs and fry for 5 minutes, turning frequently, until browned all over. Pour the tomato sauce over them and simmer for a further 10-15 mins until the meatballs are cooked through. Divide the meatballs and tomato sauce between warm bowls and sprinkle with chopped parsley to serve.


The next thing to get a road test, also from the Spanish section was Paella with Chicken and Chorizo. No hint of seafood in this one, so not what most people would think of as a paella I guess - but then the blurb mentions that there are in fact hundreds of different paella recipes throughout Spain (hey, educational).

I was glad to see the recipe suggested boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of the more commonly suggested breast. Thighs are miles cheaper than breast, and taste so much better. The Paella was OK....It was very filling, but a little bland perhaps...I don't think I'd cook it again.

The final dish I cooked in November from 'World Kitchen' was from the Greek section 'White bean and vegetable soup' or Fasoulada as it's more commonly known in Greece.
I loved this - cheap, simple....quick (apart from soaking the haricot beans overnight). But this was thick and tasty, real winter fare....and with some feta crumbled over the top. Wow.
This is something else I'll be making again for sure. Loved it.

Mid November saw me hosting two dinner parties on consecutive weekends. Small one for the GF's parents, and another the following week for some friends.

For the GF's parents, I went a bit Ottolenghi.... one of the main reasons for this was I had a big piece of Turkey in the freezer waiting to be used up, and I'd previously made the 'marinated turkey breast with cumin, coriander and white wine'....this would be the main, and I paired it with 'crushed new potatoes with horseradish and sorrel'. (To be honest, with hindsight - all looks a bit 'dry'....there was a sauce made from the marinade, but still).

The starter was Puy Lentils with sour cherries, bacon and Gorgonzola...this being another dish I'd cooked previously and really liked.

For dessert I made my legendary chocolate fondants - topped with shop bought clotted cream ice-cream.....just to ensure there wasn't an intact tooth left in the house.

It all went well, cooking for four is straightforward and fairly easy work. Everyone seemed to like what I'd cooked....the chocolate fondants went down particularly well, but then they always do. Not sure about the presentation on these... but by then I was very....very...drunk.
All in all, not bad.

Dinner party two saw me cooking for six. Slightly more challenging, and I wanted to enjoy it rather than be stuck out in the kitchen all night as sometimes happens....
For some reason (probably drunkenly), I'd said I would cook Thai Green Curry.... perfect for an informal dinner party. For the life of me, I couldn't think what to serve as a starter with this... in the end, I jumped continents and decided to crack open the Ottolenghi book once again and cook 'turkey and sweetcorn meatballs with roasted pepper sauce'. The reasoning behind this being I wanted sharing platters where everyone could just dig in....and my addled brain was struggling to come up with a better suggestion.

Just to really mix things up, I also made a Satay dip to go with the meatballs (The dip recipe being pinched from 'World Kitchen' and being surprisingly involved (Hello shelling monkey nuts to get 100g of unsalted peanuts...took bloody ages).

For the dessert I fatefully decided to crack open Ramsay's 'A Chef for all seasons' and cook the Orange and Lemon tart recipe....I was thinking, nice...light citrusy to finish off the meal. So far so good. But, it was an untested recipe for me.....and this was to later prove decisive.

The turkey meatball starter I made just before they arrived, pre-made the two dips....all good. The Thai Green Curry recipe is Nigel Slater's from 'Real Food' I've made it umpteen times before and it always turns out well. I'd made the green curry paste during the day and would start cooking the actual curry just before the guests arrived. I was going to serve this with some lime leaf rice.

But the orange and lemon tart....I knew it was going to be trouble, the pastry case I made was a thing of beauty.....so thin and perfect, the best I've knocked out ever. But the low cooking temperature and the mention of 'just lightly set' in the recipe was setting off alarm bells in my head. But too late now, I ploughed on....

At this point I decided to have a drink....I hadn't eaten all day, and after just two beers (2!!) I was steaming....my guests hadn't arrived and I had loads to do. Throwing caution to the wind with an ill judged 'what doesn't kill me, makes me stronger' attitude, I carried on drinking.

The turkey meatball and dips starter went down well, and was eaten in no time.
I stagger out to the kitchen to check on the status of the supposedly setting tart. It's liquid.

I cook the green curry and rice, and stagger back in....utterly munted now. Everyone helps themselves, they're making appreciative noises.....the whole lot gets eaten in what seems like minutes- every last scrap, even all of the rice. In the back of my mind I'm thinking about the tart.

I go outside to check....it's still a pond.
Balls.

I return to the dining room to inform my guests 'I may be some time' and then proceed outside into the chill November air to hopefully freeze to death, a suitable penance I feel for the impending doom that is my dessert.
That would have been the noble thing to do, but what I actually say, no doubt in a rather slurred fashion "the tart may be some time....hasn't quite set" (Nervous laugh).
A barrage of drunken encouragement of 'I'm sure it's OK'.... 'Serve it anyway'.... I look away worried.

We decide to play some spectacularly stupid board game whilst we wait.
An hour later - I'm very drunk. The tart still hasn't set. I seethe and curse both the tart and Gordon Ramsay rather vocally...
I can't wait any longer, and egged on by my friends decide to serve it anyway....the GF is looking very drunk and everyone is so pissed I don't think they care anymore.
I caramelise the top with a blowtorch (almost drunkenly burning my eyebrows off in the process) I hope this crisp layer might offer some structural stability, It looks fantastic, but there's an ominous wobble there.

Taking the plunge, I cut into it......it's going to be ok.....no....no it's not.....
The banks have burst....."bring me some sandbags and a stirrup pump for crissake!!!"....
A flood of orange and lemon filling rolls across my worktop like a citrus Tsunami. It's unstoppable and goes everywhere.
I am utterly appalled.... so much work. It's a complete mess. I think I spy an upturned boat and an uprooted palm tree near the knife block.

Cursing liberally, but making the best of a bad job, I ladle my tart onto plates and proceed to serve it anyway.
My guests....well, they make all the right noises....it tastes fantastic, don't worry, it's lovely.
I sit at the other end of the table shell shocked and traumatised... I've seen too much and am now old beyond my years.
At this point, the dinner party breaks up completely as my GF...indulging perhaps a little too much in the free flowing booze disappears suddenly to be violently sick. My guests, sensing perhaps this would be a good time to scarper make their excuses and leave.
A perfect end to a perfect night.

The morning after see's me nursing a hangover that's so gigantic, It should be christened in the same manner Hurricanes are named.... Hangover Dave perhaps.
I'm looking at the remains of my tart and take solace from the fact that the crust is so thin and perfect. I have a little taste. And It's gorgeous.
Shit.
Not wanting to end this post on abject failure, I'll mention something that did go right this month. Gypsy Eggs or Huevos a la Flamenca. This recipe features in both The Eagle cookbook and Gastropub classics by Trish Hilferty, and it's cracking.

Basically fried chorizo and Serrano ham, removed from pan - then chopped onion, garlic and paprika cooked in the fat. Add a tin of tomatoes, frozen peas, chopped potatoes (I added some frozen sweetcorn as well) and 100ml of water and cook covered for 10-15mins.
Add the ham and chorizo back, crack a couple of eggs in and bake in a 200C oven for 5 mins or so until the eggs are just set.
The great thing is, the quantities don't really matter - you can chop and change this recipe however you like just throw in whatever you think goes best, which is always the mark of a great recipe - perfect for using up leftovers.

Many thanks to Quadrille for my review copy of Gordon Ramsay's World Kitchen.

What I've been cooking - August.

Time for a monthly round up of the more interesting stuff I've cooked in the last few weeks.

This month, I've been cooking a lot from the Ottolenghi recipe book. Almost exclusively in fact! and once again I urge you to buy it if you don't own it already. It's full of excellent and unusual recipes with taste combinations that just have to be tried. It's destined to be a classic - so pick it up.

Now, strangely enough, despite this stellar recommendation, the least successful recipe of this bunch is from the Ottolenghi book - and despite this dubious tag, it was still bloody nice, so I think that says something about the quality of the recipes (or possibly my incapability of following them!)...anyway in the photo above we have Chickpeas and spinach with honeyed sweet potato. Not a lot to say about this dish really, it was nice and filling, but cooking it I got a bit hot and flustered, almost burnt the shallots and then almost burnt the sweet potato - perhaps this coloured my view of the recipe. I just didn't enjoy cooking it?

Next we have a cracking Ottolenghi dish,...two dishes in fact - Marinated Romano Peppers with Buffalo Mozzarella combined with Crushed New Potatoes with horseradish and Sorrel.
This is a record breaker, awarded a massive 9.5 out of 10 by the Girlfriend using our....ahem.... highly scientific scoring system.
This is the highest score anything I've cooked has ever received. *Wild Applause*
Strangely enough, it's also one of the simplest things I've cooked. Romano Peppers are baked for 12-15 minutes in the oven, and then marinated in chopped coriander, parsley, garlic, cider vinegar and olive oil for two hours. This is then served with the ripped up Mozzarella. I added some toasted ciabatta and the Crushed New Potato dish (Which incidentally is also great), to bulk it out. (I'm a growing boy) Very nice indeed, light, fresh and very tasty. I'll be cooking this again.

The final dish from the Ottolenghi recipe book I cooked this month was Roasted Butternut Squash with Burnt Aubergine and Pomegranate Molasses. This dish was recommended to me by Helen at FoodStories. (Thanks!) The star of this dish is the burnt aubergine and molasses sauce. An Incredible, smoky tasting sweet and sour sauce that goes perfectly with the roasted Squash. The preparation of the aubergine is quite a lot of fun as well, bringing out the inner pyromaniac in everyone. You basically burn the aubergine on the hob for about 15 mins, before finally scooping out the insides to make the sauce. Great stuff.

Now for a couple of dishes I've cooked in August that believe it or not aren't from the Ottolenghi cookbook!

We have Beef Rendang, an authentic Malaysian recipe given to my by Liz at Gastronomy Domine. (Who I might add, subsequently, spent quite a lot of her no doubt valuable time answering my dumb questions on the ingredients. Thanks again Liz!). This was gorgeous and meaty, having a strong coconut flavour.

But, the mission I had getting the ingredients!

I think I've been in every Asian grocery and wholesaler in Essex AND Brighton. Could I find the required Malaysian Chillis? No!! In the end I used red chillis and some roasted red peppers to add a touch of sweetness (I couldn't lay my hands on dried red peppers either). This recipe is also notable for being the first time I've ever prepared a real coconut - which I might add has damaged my chopping board. Was it worth it? Yes.
Very nice indeed.

Finally we have a very simple soup, it's a recipe from the first Jamie Oliver book 'The Naked Chef' (which strangely I only recently purchased - having owned his subsequent recipe books for years) It's Chickpea and Leek soup and, it's nice, cheap and quick to make (almost knocking Chilli and rice off the top of my credit crunch budget dishes).

I made this using homemade Chicken Stock.....I also used two tins of ready cooked chickpeas for speed (rather than soaking the chickpeas overnight, as specified in the recipe). warm these up in a saucepan for 5 Mins or so and drain. At the same time, peel and slice a medium potato, boil in salted water for around 12 Mins. Chop 5 Leeks and slice 2 cloves of Garlic and sweat in Large saucepan with butter and olive oil and a pinch of salt until tender.

Add the drained chickpeas and potato to the leeks, cook for 1 minute. Add 850ml of Chicken or Vegetable stock, and simmer for 15 Mins. (I also added a Parmesan Rind for added flavour - I save them in the freezer. Fish it out, and bin it at the end of cooking - Thanks to fellow blogger Graphic Foodie for that great tip).

Ladle half of the soup into a blender and puree it, returning to the pan with the chunky half. Taste and season well, serve with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Lovely and simple, with some crusty bread this recipe makes enough for two dinners for two people.

Eating from Ottolenghi - The Cookbook.

A few months back, fellow blogger Gourmet Chick heaped much praise on the Ottolenghi cookbook, going so far as to make the claim it was the best recipe book she'd bought all year. To my shame, I'd never heard of Ottolenghi and never visited any of the four London Ottolenghi Deli/Restaurants. But, based on this recommendation, I bought the book, and what an excellent decision that was. Thanks Gourmet Chick!

A little bit of information about the author, London based Yotam Ottolenghi working in partnership with fellow Chef Sami Tamimi creates food inspired by their native West and East Jerusalem upbringings, but with wide ranging influences from Persian to Californian....to sum it all up in a nutshell it's Middle Eastern with a contemporary twist.

Last week, as it's (allegedly) Summer, and remembering that the book was stuffed with unusual salad type recipes, I got the book off the shelf for another look. Found a likely looking recipe, cooked it - fantastic stuff, gaining an almost unprecedented 9/10 from the Girlfriend on the patented scoring chart. Heartened by this success, later in the week, I cooked something else - also fantastic, also scoring 9/10 from the GF. Now in an almost frenzied, ecstatic, state of delirium at this unheard of success I cooked something else.....the crowd fell silent in expectation.....it was good...the crowd erupted, 9/10 - this is incredible! much back slapping and cheesy grins all round.
That's right - three winners in a row. Believe me, with the GF's discerning tastes, I'd have better odds of winning the lottery.



So, what did I cook to produce all this glory?
First up, we have 'Fennel and Feta with Pomegranate Seeds and Sumac'.

This is basically a salad of very thinly sliced Fennel, mixed with olive oil, sumac, lemon juice, tarragon and parsley layered with Feta Cheese and sprinkled with Pomegranate seeds. Amazing stuff. The Fennel, Lemon Juice and Sumac are obviously sour, the Feta Salty, the Pomegranate seeds cut through it all with a sweetness...very sophisticated indeed. Loved it - and it looks amazing if I do say so myself.
Next we have 'Puy Lentils with Sour Cherries, Bacon and Gorgonzola'.

This dish contains another elegant pairing of unusual flavours and taste combinations, consisting of earthy Puy Lentils, sweet fried shallots, Sour Cherries, Salty crumbled Bacon, Creamy Gorgonzola cheese and the freshness of Baby Spinach. Unbelievably good.

Finally we have 'Turkey and Sweetcorn Meatballs with Roasted Pepper Sauce'.

This was very easy to make, and once again tasted incredible...the roasted pepper sauce was smoky and piquant being spiked with both Chilli and Sweet Chilli sauce, a perfect partner for the meatballs consisting of Turkey Mince, Sweetcorn and Spring onions. The other plus about this dish was - it's cheap! Turkey mince is incredibly inexpensive - I added some rice as well to bulk it out a bit and to mop up the sauce, and we ate this for two nights. Bargain.

As I mentioned earlier, the flavour combinations are intelligent, subtle and unusual. After trying the food you honestly come away with the firm impression that Ottolenghi is a genius. Three 9/10 scores in a row from the GF prove it!

In summary - if you don't already own the Ottolenghi recipe book, beg steal or borrow it!

Ottolenghi

http://www.ottolenghi.co.uk/

What I've been cooking, and eating.

I thought I'd write something about the food I've been cooking at home this past week. One's an old favourite, the rest are all new recipes I've tried for the first time. Looking at the photos, I just realised there's Definitely a real Middle Eastern vibe going on in my choice of recipes right now.


The photo above is two recipes from Nigel Slater's 'Real Food' (if you don't own it - buy it! some cracking recipes in there). We have 'Classic French Potato Salad' combined with 'Grilled Chicken with Chili. Lemon and Mint. Really impressed with these, especially the potato dish. So simple but so gorgeous. What's interesting is that the dressing (2 chopped shallots, 3 Tbs Tarragon Vinegar, 125ml Olive oil and chopped flat leaf parsley). Is poured over the hot peeled potatoes and then left for 30 Min's to soak in. And it did! completely soaked up, tasted gorgeous.
The Chicken dish was good too - very clean and fresh tasting, but the potato recipe was the clear winner here.

An old Favourite this, from Nigella Lawsons 'Forever Summer' cookbook, 'Lamb patties with Hummus and Pitta'. Another really fresh tasting plate of food. Rather than buy hummus I made my own - it's really easy, miles cheaper and tastes much better.

Another recipe from Nigella's 'Forever Summer' - 'Bulgar Wheat Salad with Pink-Seared Lamb'. First time I've made this, and very nice it was too - the Lamb Loins needed a bit more 'searing' I'd say, but still they weren't bad, the accompanying Bulgar Wheat Salad was lovely.

Finally we have 'Kosheri' from the newest recipe book on my shelf, 'Ottolenghi - The Cookbook'. This is apparently Egyptian street food, and is similar to kedgeree (without the fish). It consists of green lentils, basmati rice, vermicelli noodles (had real trouble getting these - it's no different to spaghetti really). This is flavoured with Nutmeg, Cinnamon and caramelised white onions. Then served with a spicy, chili spiked tomato sauce on the side. This recipe tasted truly fantastic. Only downside was, for mid-week cooking, it took quite a while to cook and generated a sink full of washing up.

So, that's what I've been cooking this week....

In other foodie related news, I ate the best Falafel I've ever tasted from a stall in Whitecross Street Market, EC1, It was wrapped in a flatbread with chopped tomato, pickled beetroot(?) pickled chilli's, a dash of Chili Sauce and finally Tahini sauce and all for £4-50. Which, was for a large one. (A size, which I've learnt is only for the truly famished! I just about finished it.) There was a queue down the road, so the stall is obviously very popular. (Follow the crowds!)
http://www.hoxtonbeach.com/index.php

And in some late breaking news - I ordered some new recipe books from Amazon....

'Big Flavours and Rough Edges'- Recipes from 'The Eagle'

One of my favourite Gastro Pubs, this book is out of print and priced at over £100 in some places, but I grabbed a second hand copy for £10!

Gordon Ramsay's 'Cooking for Friends'

I recently read about a recipe for Cardamom and Lime Mousse in another blog, and I had to get the recipe.

Last but not least,
Anthony Bourdain's "Les Halles" Cookbook: Classic Bistro Cooking

After reading 'Kitchen Confidential', I've had my eye on this for a while - and I love French Bistro food.

I'll let you know how I get on with these when they arrive.