This week’s recipe combines leeks with tomato-y rice to make a lovely salad.
Leeks à la Grecque
Serves 4 as a starter or part of a mezze.
3-4 leeks
300ml water
150l olive oil
1 heaped tablespoon tomato purée
1 heaped teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper (to taste)
60g white rice
1 lemon
12 black olives
parsley, chopped
Cut the ends off the leeks and slice them into 4cm lengths. Wash them well.
Put the leeks, water, olive oil, tomato purée, sugar, and salt and pepper into a medium-sized pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the rice to the pan and turn the heat down a little so it’s not boiling too furiously. Cover the pan again and cook for 8 minutes more. The rice should have absorbed most of the liquid.
Turn off the heat but leave the pan on the stove, covered, for another 10 to 15 minutes. After this time the rice should be cooked but firm.
While the rice is resting cut the lemon in half. Juice one half and slice the other half into thin slices.
Season the rice-leek mixture with the lemon juice and check whether it needs more salt or pepper. Once you’re happy with it put it into a nice dish and chill. When you’re read to serve it, garnish it with the lemon slices, olives and chopped parsley.
(Adapted from Jane Grigson, Good Things)
This recipe can be made with either cauliflower or sprouting broccoli. Do you have any coriander left over from last week? Use it here!
Frying tofu transforms it from soft (and bland) to crispy and very, very tasty. ‘Keep your hands off that tofu!’ I had to tell my sons whenever I made this, or else there wouldn’t be any left to add to the finished dish.
Coriander Noodle Bowl
Serves 4.
one Canalside cauliflower or 120g sprouting broccoli
1 bunch of fresh coriander
zest of one lemon
juice of half a lemon
2 large cloves of garlic
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon salt
150ml olive oil (for the dressing)
250g soba noodles
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil (for frying the tofu)
280g firm tofu (this is the weight of a standard packet of tofu, but you don’t need to be precise about getting exactly this amount)
Cut the cauliflower into nice, bite-sized florets. If you’re using sprouting broccoli split any very thick pieces into thinner sprigs.
Bring a big pot of salted water to the boil.
Meanwhile, make a dressing: blend the coriander, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, cayenne, salt and olive oil together using a food processor or hand blender, or, if you’re so inclined, you can chop them together by hand. Taste it to see if it needs any more salt, or perhaps some more lemon juice. If it’s too thick you can add more olive oil. Once you’re happy with the taste set it aside while you cook the noodles and vegetables.
Cook the soba noodles in the boiling water. They should take about six-eight minutes to cook but check the packet.
WHEN THEY ARE NEARLY TENDER (about a minute or so before they are done) ADD THE CAULIFLOWER OR BROCCOLI and cook for the noodles and vegetables together for a final minute or so. You don’t want to really cook the vegetables much. (Unless you hate very al-dente vegetables—in that case add them sooner and cook them longer.)
Drain the noodles and vegetables and toss with the dressing. Set aside while you prepare the tofu.
Slice up the tofu as if you were making chips. You can make thin or thick sticks, as you prefer.
Heat the 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat until it’s hot, and fry the tofu, a little at a time. Turn it carefully so that all sizes get nicely crispy and golden. Remove the crispy bits as they cook and add them to your noodle mixture.
When all the tofu has been fried toss everything together and serve.
(adapted from 101 Cookbooks.)
This week’s recipe is a delicious roasted veg with Eastern flavours. You can buy fresh curry and Kaffir lime leaves at the Oriental Supermarket on the High Street, Leamington.
Roasted Root Vegetables with Curry Leaves and Lime
serves 4
400g carrots
400g parsnips
400g swede
60 ml olive oil
3 tablespoons lime juice (about 2 limes)
2 teaspoons curry powder
6 Kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded
2 stems of curry leaves
4 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
freshly-ground black pepper (to taste)
Preheat the oven to 240C.
Peel the carrots and cut them into batons. 6cm x 2 cm is a good size but it doesn’t matter that much; smaller batons will cook more quickly.
Peel the parsnips and cut into similar-sized batons. Ditto the swedes.
Place the vegetables in a roasting tray
Mix the olive oil, 1.5 tablespoons of lime juice, curry powder, salt and pepper and pour over the vegetables. Toss them together to coat.
Roast for 30 minutes, turning occasionally.
Add the lime and curry leaves and roast for a further 10 minutes or so. It’s done when the vegetables are tender and attractively browned.
Remove from the oven, pour over the remaining 1.5 tablespoons of lime juice and serve, garnished with fresh coriander. Yotam recommends accompanying it with some rice.
(Adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi, Plenty More.)
Take a Kilo of Onions . . . .
This week’s recipes are based on onions and anchovies. If you’ve accumulated a collection of Canalside onions over the last months, here is a fine use for them.
Onions Two Ways
1 kg onions
1/4 cup olive oil
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
Peel the onions and cut them into thin slices. Heat the olive oil in a large pan. Once it is warm, add the onions, the bay leaf and the sprigs of thyme.
Cook over very low heat for about one hour and twenty minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep an eye on it so that it doesn’t catch at the bottom of the pan, but it doesn’t need a lot of attention. It is ready when the sliced onions have been transformed into a soft, tender, oniony mass. Remove and discard the bay leaf and the sprigs of thyme.
Now you have a choice: would you like to make a FRENCH ONION TART or an VENETIAN PASTA SAUCE?
French Onion Tart (Pissaladière)
your cooked onions
1 pinch powdered cloves
salt and pepper (to taste)
1 21-cm partially-baked pastry case (home-made or bought)
16 black olives
8 anchovy fillets (you can omit these if you prefer; in that case use more olives)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Preheat the oven to 200C.
Mix the cloves, salt and pepper into your cooked onions. Spread them into the pastry case and arrange the olives and anchovies (if you’re using them) over the top in a nice pattern. Drizzle with the olive oil.
Bake for 15 minutes, or until it’s bubbling hot. Take it out of the oven, let it cool a little, and eat. It’s good cold too.
(Recipe adapted from Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.)
Pasta with Onions and Anchovies (Bigoli in Salsa)
your cooked onions
1-2 tins of anchovies (to taste)
1 packet of pasta of the spaghetti-type (spaghetti, bucatini or, ideally bigoli)
freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Drain the anchovies and rinse them to remove any excess salt. Chop the anchovies into small pieces and mix them into the hot, cooked onions. Give the whole thing a good mash to ensure that the anchovies are thoroughly incorporated into the onion sauce.
Cook the pasta to your taste and drain, MAKING SURE TO SAVE A CUP OF THE COOKING WATER.
Mix the cooked pasta with the hot onion-anchovy sauce and add some of the saved cooking water to give the dish the consistency you like. You will probably not need to use all the water. Season with freshly-ground black pepper.
Garnish with the fresh parsley and serve.
(Recipe courtesy of Chiara Croff.)
Hurrah for La Jimena!
This week’s recipes celebrate the arrival of the delivery of citrus fruits, olives, olive oil and almonds from La Jimena farm in Spain! The recipes combine some of the Canalside winter staples (potatoes and onions) with lemons, oranges and olives, to bring a bit of Spanish sunshine to the Midlands. If you’ve received a box from La Jimena, this is a nice way to use some of its contents. If not, the shops are full of excellent citrus fruits, which are currently at their peak.
These recipes are adapted from Claudia Roden’s wonderful 2009 Arabeque: A Tate of Morocco, Turkey, & Lebanon.
You’ll notice that the dressings for these two salads are virtually identical, yet the results are strikingly different.
Potato and Olive Salad
serves 3-4
500g of Canalside white potatoes
5 tablespoons olive oil
juice of one lemon
1/2 teaspoon paprika or to taste
1 teaspoon ground cumin*
salt to taste
1 small red or white onion, finely chopped
12 olives
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Cover the potatoes with cold water and bring them to a gentle boil. (Claudia Roden suggests peeling them first so that they absorb more of the dressing.)
While the potatoes are cooking mix the olive oil, lemon juice, paprika, cumin and salt in a serving bowl. Add the onions and olives and set aside until the potatoes are cooked.
When the potatoes are tender drain them and cut into chunks as soon as they are cool enough to handle.
Mix the still-warm potatoes with the ingredients in the bowl. Leave them to absorb the flavours of the dressing if you have time—but it will be tasty to eat right away.
When you’re ready to eat it mix in the parsley.
Orange, Olive and Onion Salad
serves 6
4 oranges
1 large red onion, finely chopped
16 olives
1 lemon
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin*
1/2 teaspoon paprika or to taste
salt to taste
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Peel the oranges and cut off as much of the white pith as possible. Cut them into thick slices, and then cut the slices into quarters.
Toss them with the onion and olives and arrange the mixture on a serving plate.
Prepare the lemon in the same fashion as the oranges, but cut it into tiny pieces (i.e. peel it, cut off the white pith, slice it into thin slices, and then chop the slices into small pieces).
Mix the lemon and any juice with the olive oil, cumin, paprika, salt and parsley. Toss this dressing on the salad and serve.
* For the best flavour toast about 2 teaspoons of whole cumin seeds in a dry frying pan (don’t add any oil) until they smell fragrant. Leave them to cool and then grind them in a mortar and pestle.
This is a new regular feature in the weekly members’ update, suggested by member, Rebecca Earle, and using something from next week’s share list. Thanks for this Rebecca, and I look forward to future, tasty, culinary inspiration from you! :o)
It’s modified from Smitten Kitchen: https://smittenkitchen.com/2010/05/carrot-salad-with-harissa-feta-and-mint/
Carrot Salad with Cumin, Feta and Mint
serves 2-4
400g carrots
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 crushed clove of garlic
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon harissa (optional)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
100g feta, crumbled or chopped into bits
Peel the carrots and grate them into a serving bowl.
Heat the oil in a small pan. Once it is hot sauté the garlic, caraway, cumin, paprika, harissa and sugar in the oil until fragrant, about one to two minutes. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and a pinch of salt.
Pour the mixture over the carrots and mix. Mix in the herbs and the feta. Very yummy.
This week’s share contained generous quantities of lettuce and peas again and if you can bear to use the delicious peas in a cooked dish (I never can) you might like to try this recipe for pea and lettuce soup – ideal for anyone who struggles to get through lots of lettuce! I’ve forgotten where this came from, so I can’t credit it to anyone, but there are loads of similar recipes online if you wanted a different variation.
Lettuce, pea and mint soup:
300g green lettuce, shredded
1 medium onion, finely sliced (at this time of year I’d use spring onions instead!)
300g peas
50g butter
750ml hot veg stock
small handful fresh mint
50ml single cream – some recipes suggest using creme fraiche instead, added as a dollop on top to serve
Fry the onion until soft.
Add the peas and stock. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the lettuce and mint. Cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the cream. Blend until smooth.
Season well with salt and pepper.
Below, please find:
Perfect Creamy Cauliflower Soup
Cauliflower & Pea Cream Soup
Toasted sandwich filling
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From Jo Wheeler, here are a couple of soup recipes using cauliflower, both taken from ‘Fit For Life’ by Harvey & Marilyn Diamond. She says they’re both really nice, and she adds, “Sorry if the recipes look quite lengthy – it’s mostly herbs & stuff, so don’t be too daunted!”
Perfect Creamy Cauliflower Soup
2 Tbspns butter
1 Tbspn olive oil
1 med onion – chopped
6-8 spring onions – chopped
1 clove garlic – chopped
2 stalks celery – chopped
2 med cauliflower (hooray!) – cored & coarsely chopped
1/2 tspn sea salt
1/2 tspn curry powder (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tspn dried thyme
1 tspn dried basil
1 tspn dried marjoram or savoury
6 cups water (though I find I often need to add more later on)
2 Tbspns light miso or 2 tspns veg bouillon
Freshly grated nutmeg to taste (optional)
In large pan, melt butter & add oil. Add onion, spring onions, garlic, celery & cauliflower. Then add seasonings, mix well & cook uncovered over med heat for seversal mins – stir frequently.
Add water & miso (or bouillon), bring to boil & simmer, covered, over med heat for 15 mins or until cauli is tender.
Puree until smooth, adding nutmeg if desired.
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Cauliflower & Pea Cream Soup.
5 cups water
1 med onion – chopped
1 stalk celery – chopped
2 spring onions – chopped
1 med cauliflower – cored & chopped into 1″ florets
1 teaspn sea salt (optional)
1 Tbspn white miso or 1 teaspn veg bouillon
2 cups fresh or frozen peas
1 teaspn dried dill (or 2 Tbspns fresh)
1 Tbspn fresh parsley -chopped
1 teaspn dried basil
1/4 teaspn dried sage
1/4 cup fresh coriander
2 teaspns butter
In large pan, bring water to boil. Add onion, celery, spring onions, califlower, salt & miso/bouillon. Return to boil & simmer, covered, for 10 mins. Add peas & herbs, return to boil & simmer for further 10 mins. Puree until smooth & add butter when reheating. Adjust seasonings.
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Jo says, “Mashed cauliflower also makes a surprisingly delicious toasted sandwich filling (honestly!!) but it doesn’t use very much of it at a time. Just steam some, then mash it with some mayo, dijon mustard, finely chopped celery & season to taste. Top with alfalfa, grated carrot, shredded lettuce etc & toast the whole sandwich in a sandwich toaster (buttered side out!) Yum!! (My kids LOVE these)
You could also just stuff in a regular sandwich, wrap, or pita & omit the toasting bit.”
Below, please find:
Cauliflower and mustard seed
Cauliflower and potato
Roasted cauliflower
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From Judy Steele come two curry style recipes. She says, “the first one has been a favourite in our house for at least 30 years. The one below is more substantial and a bit more fiddly but very good”
Cauliflower with mustard seeds
One cauliflower, divided into florets
1 dessertspoon yellow or brown mustard seeds
vegetable oil and butter for frying
2.5cm piece root ginger grated
1 tsp turmeric
3 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika
Salt and pepper
Heat oil and butter, and when very hot add mustard seeds. They will soon start to pop out of the pan. Add ginger and turmeric and stir, then add cauliflower and stir to coat all the pieces. Sprinkle the rest of the spices on top, and stir and fry again. Add two or three tablespoons of water, cover tightly with a lid, and allow to cook gently until just tender and water has evaporated.
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Cauliflower and potato
The recipe suggests deep frying the potato and cauliflower first, but I don’t think it’s necessary, and it’s healthier not to. See what you think.
1lb potatoes
1 cauliflower
sunflower oil
1tsp cumin seed
2 bay leaves
pinch asafoetida (optional)
1tsp sugar
1tsp turmeric
salt to taste
1 ½ tablespoons grated ginger
2 tbsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander
2 ripe tomatoes or canned tomatoes
4 tbsp yogurt
1tsp chilli (or one chopped chilli) (optional)
Peel or scrub potatoes, divide cauliflower into florets. Heat a small amount of oil and add cumin seed, bay leaves and asafoetida. When seeds pop, add everything except yogurt, potato and cauliflower. Add yogurt a spoonful at a time, stirring well between spoonfuls till it is mixed in. Stir and fry the mixture until you see oil coming to the surface. Then add water to come about half way up the vegetables. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender. You can bubble down the sauce if it’s too thin at the end, or add water to thin it down if you think it’s too thick.
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Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s roasted cauliflower
You can also do this on the barbecue, but leave the florets a bit bigger
than if you were going to roast them in the oven. He says have them as a
nibble with drinks.
1 cauliflower
2 lemons
Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Cut the cauliflower into medium-sized
florets, rinse and let some of the water remain clinging to the florets. Put
them in a bowl, squeeze over the juice from one of the lemons, and season
well.
Put the florets on a baking sheet and toss them with olive oil and more salt
and pepper. Dust on the paprika, cut the remaining lemon into six segments
and scatter these in the tin. Bake for 25-30 minutes, turning once, until
slightly caramelised at the edges. Squeeze over the juice from the roasted
lemon segments and serve at once, scattered with a little flaky sea salt.