Hi gang, here's what's in season during the shortest month:
Fab Feb Fruit & Nuts: Bananas, blood oranges, kiwi fruit, lemon, oranges, passion fruit, pears, pineapple, pomegranate, & walnuts.
And Feb Veg: Beetroot, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celeriac, chicory, Jerusalem artichoke, kale, leek, parsnip, potatoes (maincrop), rhubarb, shallots, & swede.
In fact, there's a great website that tells you what's in season, as well as giving you recipes and info about the vegetables. A bit like this one, but better: Eat The Seasons.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Mushroom & Fennel Soup
Well, so much for my plan to stick to eating seasonal, local food, eh? I've been buying a lot of mushrooms recently, so I thought I'd try this soup out. This is another recipe from Leith's Veg Bible. Fennel's not actually in season until the height of summer, hence they're nearly a quid each in Sainsbury's, and look suitably jet-lagged. Nonetheless, it tastes OK (but I'd still rather have it in a soup than a salad at this time of year). This soup's delicious, quick, & easy.
Ingredients: flat mushrooms (225 g/8 oz), fennel (1 bulb), fennel seeds (1 teaspoon, crushed), butter (55 g/2 0z), garlic (1 clove, crushed) white bread (2 slices), mushroom stock (1 litre), fresh parsley (1 tablespoon, chopped), salt & freshly-ground pepper, creme fraiche (150 ml / 1/4 pint).
I used 2 garlic cloves, substituted veg bouillon stock for the mushroom stock, wholemeal bread for white (yuck!), & used freshly-grated Parmesan instead of parsley. Of course, you can use double cream instead of creme fraiche.
Method: Chop the mushrooms. Remove the outer leaves from the fennel. Trim the fennel root, & chop. Reserve the feathery tops (if you're in the UK and cooking this time of year, they might not even have them!).
Melt the butter. When foaming, add the fennel & fennel seeds. Fry for a few mins, 'til softened.
Add the mushrooms, & fry until soft & mushy.
Add the garlic, & cook for another minute, then add the bread and mix it all around, so the bread's absorbing the mushroom juices.
Pour in the stock, season with salt & pepper, & simmer for 20 mins.
Puree the soup in a blender (or food processor). Health & Safety supervisors, look away now! Because I've broken the interlock on my food processor, I've had to tie the broken bit of the lid to the motor housing with a bit of twine. It's functional, but it ain't pretty. So I used a blender...
Finally, pour the pureed soup back into your rinsed-out pan, add the parsley & creme fraiche, & reheat without boiling. Check seasoning, serve in warm bowls, and sprinkle with the reserved fennel tops.
I half-suspected that this'd be best as a summer soup, but it's suitably hearty for midwinter. I'm off now to finish off the leftovers.
Ingredients: flat mushrooms (225 g/8 oz), fennel (1 bulb), fennel seeds (1 teaspoon, crushed), butter (55 g/2 0z), garlic (1 clove, crushed) white bread (2 slices), mushroom stock (1 litre), fresh parsley (1 tablespoon, chopped), salt & freshly-ground pepper, creme fraiche (150 ml / 1/4 pint).
I used 2 garlic cloves, substituted veg bouillon stock for the mushroom stock, wholemeal bread for white (yuck!), & used freshly-grated Parmesan instead of parsley. Of course, you can use double cream instead of creme fraiche.
Method: Chop the mushrooms. Remove the outer leaves from the fennel. Trim the fennel root, & chop. Reserve the feathery tops (if you're in the UK and cooking this time of year, they might not even have them!).
Melt the butter. When foaming, add the fennel & fennel seeds. Fry for a few mins, 'til softened.
Add the mushrooms, & fry until soft & mushy.
Add the garlic, & cook for another minute, then add the bread and mix it all around, so the bread's absorbing the mushroom juices.
Pour in the stock, season with salt & pepper, & simmer for 20 mins.
Puree the soup in a blender (or food processor). Health & Safety supervisors, look away now! Because I've broken the interlock on my food processor, I've had to tie the broken bit of the lid to the motor housing with a bit of twine. It's functional, but it ain't pretty. So I used a blender...
Finally, pour the pureed soup back into your rinsed-out pan, add the parsley & creme fraiche, & reheat without boiling. Check seasoning, serve in warm bowls, and sprinkle with the reserved fennel tops.
I half-suspected that this'd be best as a summer soup, but it's suitably hearty for midwinter. I'm off now to finish off the leftovers.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Kenwood FP116 Food Processor
Thought now would be a good time to do a kitchen appliance review, as my weekend cookery was disrupted by my new-ish (6 months old) food processor breaking.
Time and again I read articles saying that, although this certainly isn't true with all aspects of consumerism, that you get what you pay for in the kitchen.
And, of course, I resolutely ignored that advice last summer, when I bought a food processor for the first time. As I hadn't owned one before, I was a little suspicious that I wouldn't get good value-for money, and it'd end up with the sandwich-toasters and cafetieres in the back of my pantry. I also expected that it'd be a blooming pain to wash up.
So, I went for something cheap & cheerful, and got the FP116 online for £27. Anyhow, it turns out that it's been incredibly useful.
Size: I love the fact that it's so compact. It's no problem to leave it on display permanently in a tiny kitchen. It's got a capacity of 0.8 litres, which is ideal for me, but wouldn't be any good if you're cooking for more than 3 or 4 people.
Power: There's a 300W motor, with isn't adjustable. Again, that's fine for small amounts of cooking, but I think you'd be struggling if you were cooking on a large scale. It's moderately noisy, but certainly nothing louder than I'd expect.
Performance: Lots of good attachments. There's a chopping blade, slicer, grater, whisk, citrus press, and a canopy to boost the bowl capacity when you're blending (to just over 1 litre). I've already got a blender, so haven't tested that out. The rest work very well, and when you're chopping or slicing, there's actually a lot less wastage than I'd expected.
Overall: In fact, I reckon it was a decent purchase, except for one thing. And it's a big thing. The build quality of the plastic bowl and lid. The bowl is pretty thin (only about 1.5 or 2 mm)- if you dropped it or knocked it on something solid, I think it'd crack very easily. And the lid's even worse, especially the catch that locks it onto the main body of the processor. I'd already cracked it once a few weeks ago, purely when opening/closing the lid, and on Saturday it snapped off into 3 pieces, and I certainly wasn't being heavy-handed with it.
I've been onto Kenwood, and they've given good customer service (ie. a free replacement lid), but I think that was mainly due to being on hold for 30 minutes before I got through. It'll be hugely exciting to see how long the next one lasts. They're charging £9 for a new lid, which at 33% of the cost of the whole thing, is shocking.
If you've got any recommendations for a moderately more expensive replacement processor, please let me know (especially if the bowl and lid are sturdy).
Time and again I read articles saying that, although this certainly isn't true with all aspects of consumerism, that you get what you pay for in the kitchen.
And, of course, I resolutely ignored that advice last summer, when I bought a food processor for the first time. As I hadn't owned one before, I was a little suspicious that I wouldn't get good value-for money, and it'd end up with the sandwich-toasters and cafetieres in the back of my pantry. I also expected that it'd be a blooming pain to wash up.
So, I went for something cheap & cheerful, and got the FP116 online for £27. Anyhow, it turns out that it's been incredibly useful.
Size: I love the fact that it's so compact. It's no problem to leave it on display permanently in a tiny kitchen. It's got a capacity of 0.8 litres, which is ideal for me, but wouldn't be any good if you're cooking for more than 3 or 4 people.
Power: There's a 300W motor, with isn't adjustable. Again, that's fine for small amounts of cooking, but I think you'd be struggling if you were cooking on a large scale. It's moderately noisy, but certainly nothing louder than I'd expect.
Performance: Lots of good attachments. There's a chopping blade, slicer, grater, whisk, citrus press, and a canopy to boost the bowl capacity when you're blending (to just over 1 litre). I've already got a blender, so haven't tested that out. The rest work very well, and when you're chopping or slicing, there's actually a lot less wastage than I'd expected.
Overall: In fact, I reckon it was a decent purchase, except for one thing. And it's a big thing. The build quality of the plastic bowl and lid. The bowl is pretty thin (only about 1.5 or 2 mm)- if you dropped it or knocked it on something solid, I think it'd crack very easily. And the lid's even worse, especially the catch that locks it onto the main body of the processor. I'd already cracked it once a few weeks ago, purely when opening/closing the lid, and on Saturday it snapped off into 3 pieces, and I certainly wasn't being heavy-handed with it.
I've been onto Kenwood, and they've given good customer service (ie. a free replacement lid), but I think that was mainly due to being on hold for 30 minutes before I got through. It'll be hugely exciting to see how long the next one lasts. They're charging £9 for a new lid, which at 33% of the cost of the whole thing, is shocking.
If you've got any recommendations for a moderately more expensive replacement processor, please let me know (especially if the bowl and lid are sturdy).
Friday, January 26, 2007
Le Weekend
Well, I'll be doing some entertaining tonight- another helping of lentil & mushroom bake, and I'll be doing some mushroom & fennel soup tomorrow. I think I'll add some extra garlic, celery & fresh chilli to the bake, not that there was anything lacking in it first-time round. One of my drinking buddies Rob is visiting, and his girlfriend's not too keen on garlic & chilli- more fool her, eh? So, he'll be having some vital ingredients he's normally denied. Everyone's a winner!
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Seasonal Ingredients - January
As it's nearly February, I guess it's time for a list of what I ought to be buying at the moment.
January veg: carrot, turnips, leeks, squashes, cabbages (including the Oriental varieties- pak/bok choy, & choy sum), parsnips, shallots, celery, & celeriac.
And January fruit: pears, & forced rhubarb. If you want some imported fruits, now's the time for citrus fruits.
I was chuffed to see some fresh English purple-sprouting broccoli available yesterday, and I'll be getting some very shortly.
January veg: carrot, turnips, leeks, squashes, cabbages (including the Oriental varieties- pak/bok choy, & choy sum), parsnips, shallots, celery, & celeriac.
And January fruit: pears, & forced rhubarb. If you want some imported fruits, now's the time for citrus fruits.
I was chuffed to see some fresh English purple-sprouting broccoli available yesterday, and I'll be getting some very shortly.
Mushroom Stock
This is the stock I made for the lentil bake (see post below).
Very simple to make, and tastes great.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 onion (sliced), 2 carrots (sliced), 2 leeks (sliced), 1 0z dried mushrooms, 6 0z chestnut or cup mushrooms (roughly chopped), 2 garlic cloves (chopped), handful of fresh parsley, 1 bay leaf, 4 sprigs fresh thyme, 1 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp black peppercorns, 3 1/2 pints water.
Method: Large saucepan- heat the oil, & add the vegetables, garlic & parsley.
Cover, & cook on a low heat for 10 minutes, until the veg are softened.
Add the rest of the ingredients & bring to the boil. Then lower the heat, partially cover, and simmer for 1 hour.
Strain & discard the veg, then return the liquid to the pan, & reduce to the desired strength.
Very simple to make, and tastes great.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 onion (sliced), 2 carrots (sliced), 2 leeks (sliced), 1 0z dried mushrooms, 6 0z chestnut or cup mushrooms (roughly chopped), 2 garlic cloves (chopped), handful of fresh parsley, 1 bay leaf, 4 sprigs fresh thyme, 1 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp black peppercorns, 3 1/2 pints water.
Method: Large saucepan- heat the oil, & add the vegetables, garlic & parsley.
Cover, & cook on a low heat for 10 minutes, until the veg are softened.
Add the rest of the ingredients & bring to the boil. Then lower the heat, partially cover, and simmer for 1 hour.
Strain & discard the veg, then return the liquid to the pan, & reduce to the desired strength.
Lentil & Mushroom Bake With Seed Topping
More brilliance from Leith's Vegetarian Bible. Not more bleedin' lentils, you say! What makes this a standout dish is the topping- there's a fantastic blend of taste & texture there, and it's super-healthy (in an enjoyable way, not, say, like running marathons). In fact, this has suddenly become my favourite lentil dish.
I actually made the stock for this from scratch last night, which was another first. I'll post the details for that later, as veg bouillon stock is fine instead (and quicker!).
Ingredients: 2 tbsps olive oil, 1 large onion (sliced), 1 carrot (chopped), 2 celery sticks (chopped), 8 0z chestnut mushrooms (about a supermarket punnet's worth) (sliced), 5 oz brown lentils, 1/2 pint mushroom stock, 8oz tinned tomatoes (about half a can).
For the topping: 2 oz fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs, 1 oz chopped pinenuts, 1 oz pumpkin seeds, 1 oz melted butter, & 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley.
Method: Large saucepan- heat the oil- add the onion & cook 'til starts to brown.
Add the carrot, celery & mushrooms and gently fry 'til soft.
Stir in the lentils, stock & tomatoes. Season with salt & pepper, cover & simmer for 30 mins, until the lentils are tender, & the liquid has reduced to a syrupy sauce.
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C. Brush an ovenproof dish with oil.
Mix all the topping ingredients & season with salt & pepper.
Spoon the lentil mixture into the dish, and scatter the topping mixture on top.
Bake for 20-30 mins until golden-brown & piping hot.
Serves 6, apparently, but being a greedy sod, I managed it all in 2 sittings.
I actually made the stock for this from scratch last night, which was another first. I'll post the details for that later, as veg bouillon stock is fine instead (and quicker!).
Ingredients: 2 tbsps olive oil, 1 large onion (sliced), 1 carrot (chopped), 2 celery sticks (chopped), 8 0z chestnut mushrooms (about a supermarket punnet's worth) (sliced), 5 oz brown lentils, 1/2 pint mushroom stock, 8oz tinned tomatoes (about half a can).
For the topping: 2 oz fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs, 1 oz chopped pinenuts, 1 oz pumpkin seeds, 1 oz melted butter, & 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley.
Method: Large saucepan- heat the oil- add the onion & cook 'til starts to brown.
Add the carrot, celery & mushrooms and gently fry 'til soft.
Stir in the lentils, stock & tomatoes. Season with salt & pepper, cover & simmer for 30 mins, until the lentils are tender, & the liquid has reduced to a syrupy sauce.
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C. Brush an ovenproof dish with oil.
Mix all the topping ingredients & season with salt & pepper.
Spoon the lentil mixture into the dish, and scatter the topping mixture on top.
Bake for 20-30 mins until golden-brown & piping hot.
Serves 6, apparently, but being a greedy sod, I managed it all in 2 sittings.
New Year, New Broccoli Soup
I was delighted to get Leith's Vegetarian Bible for Christmas.
The first thing I made from it was the first recipe in there, broccoli soup.
I've used a few different recipes for this in the past (Gordon Ramsay and Anthony Worrall-Thompson spring to mind), and they've been disappointing. Thankfully, this one is brilliant, and straightforward.
Ingredients: 1 0z butter, 1 large onion (sliced), 1 lb broccoli, 1 pint veg stock, salt & freshly-ground black pepper, 1/4 pint milk, 1/4 pint single cream, & freshly-grated nutmeg.
Serves 4.
Method: Large saucepan- melt the butter- when foaming, add the onion and fry on a low heat until soft & transparent.
Chop the broccoli florets & stalks, and just discard the very tough bits. Add to the pan (with the stock). Season with salt & pepper, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Puree the soup in a food-processor or blender, & return to the pan. Stir in the milk & cream, and add as much nutmeg as you like- reheat without boiling.
And there you go- the nicest broccoli soup I've ever had, especially with some crumbled Stilton mixed in.
The first thing I made from it was the first recipe in there, broccoli soup.
I've used a few different recipes for this in the past (Gordon Ramsay and Anthony Worrall-Thompson spring to mind), and they've been disappointing. Thankfully, this one is brilliant, and straightforward.
Ingredients: 1 0z butter, 1 large onion (sliced), 1 lb broccoli, 1 pint veg stock, salt & freshly-ground black pepper, 1/4 pint milk, 1/4 pint single cream, & freshly-grated nutmeg.
Serves 4.
Method: Large saucepan- melt the butter- when foaming, add the onion and fry on a low heat until soft & transparent.
Chop the broccoli florets & stalks, and just discard the very tough bits. Add to the pan (with the stock). Season with salt & pepper, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Puree the soup in a food-processor or blender, & return to the pan. Stir in the milk & cream, and add as much nutmeg as you like- reheat without boiling.
And there you go- the nicest broccoli soup I've ever had, especially with some crumbled Stilton mixed in.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Winter Break
Hi all. Sorry for the delay in posting. I've tried out a few recipes recently, and I'll post them up this week.
Just thought I'd let you know that I've been soaking up the rays in Spain for the last week.
Apparently there's been gale force winds here? I never realised that it's so hot in Spain during the winter- I picked up quite a nice tan.
Anyway, I'll give you the lowdown on my Spanish gastronomic adventures (or disasters) in a few days, too.
Just thought I'd let you know that I've been soaking up the rays in Spain for the last week.
Apparently there's been gale force winds here? I never realised that it's so hot in Spain during the winter- I picked up quite a nice tan.
Anyway, I'll give you the lowdown on my Spanish gastronomic adventures (or disasters) in a few days, too.
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