27 January 2012

Smoked Mackeral & Beetroot Salad with Salsa Verde


It's Friday night, it's after ten pm & i'm still writing this bloody blog. It's not all glamorous dinner parties & perfectly risen cakes, it's more sweating in the kitchen, trying to write things that sound vaguely interesting & attempting to take artistic pictures while your food grows cold. Bah. Saying that i still love it, i still think about food all time, i still think about lunch while eating breakfast & i still plan dinner menus while cycling to work. I'm classed as a 'hobby blogger' i believe & i very much doubt i will ever give up the day job & sit gazing out the window while writing a daily blog about how maaaaarvelous everything is while being paid. I may sound a little bitter, but i'm not, even an old gas bag like me would eventually run out of words.

My culinary hit list for twenty twelve seems to be growing rather shrinking & that's annoying. I should be happy that i'm full of cooking inspiration, but instead, i'm getting cranky that i can't keep up with it all. There are fifty two weeks in a year so i should really just shut up & get on with it. Over all not the most positive sounding waffle this week, but even the most cheeriest people are cranky on the odd occasion. 


This is more a collection of ingredients rather than cooking, but again what qualifies as actual cooking? Stop thinking about & just make then eat it. This dish makes me hopeful that January is going to end & the getting up in the dark, leaving work in the dark & general gloom of the first month is going to end. I hate January.

Ingredients:
This serves two people
  • three mackerel fillets
  • three raw beetroots (you can buy them already cooked & in sweeten water if you like)
  • one large avocado
  • one bag of rocket
Salsa Verde
  • one bunch of parsley
  • one clove of garlic - crushed
  • two tbsps of capers - roughly chopped
  • four anchovies fillets
  • one shallot - finely chopped
  • zest & juice of a lemon
  • olive oil
Method:

Take the beetroots, slice the tails off & put them on the boil as you would potatoes, cook until tender - this should take about 30 minutes. Once they are ready, put them into cold water to cool & carefully peel off the skin which will come of easily. While the beetroots are cooking make the Salsa Verde which is ridiculously quick & easy. Either take all the ingredients & pulse in a food processor until roughly chopped then mixed with enough olive oil until you achieve the consistence or chop everything by hand & combine with olive oil. 

Take the beetroots & avocado & quarter then lay round the plate then take the rocket & place in the middle of the plate. Lay the mackerel fillets & top with a dollop of salsa verde.
Enjoy.

19 January 2012

Lemon Curd


It's no surprise that i love cooking shows & luckily the Houseboy is happy to watch them. One of our current favourites is Heston Blumenthal's show which is great despite the fact he's completely bonkers. His wacky enthusiasm does give me inspiring ideas - not quite to his madcap scale but it has given me lots of ideas about pairing flavours & textures, my next book purchase will definitely be The Flavour Thesaurus for this very reason. A Salted Caramel Tart will be one of this first things i bake - i love things which are both salty & sweet. Heston love a gadget but I have to say the most dangerous kitchen item i have lurking around is a blow torch (i never ever tell the Houseboy i'm about to use it otherwise he gets really nervous) I would love to have lots of gadgets & pointless but fun things like a melon baller or a little thingy that makes butter curls but unfortunately our wee kitchen is so over loaded that there is a current ban on buying anything new. That will last approximately until i next walk past a kitchen shop.

With my recent promise to myself to do more creative things in twenty twelve i have written a list of things to do & achieve. Firstly a weekend photography course, secondly to make cushions using the beautiful tweed fabric Mrs Rhodes gave me for Christmas, thirdly - actually do something with all the vintage scarves i have collected & fourthly cook a list of dishes that i have been putting off or ages which includes: Marshmallows, Chocolate Truffles, Eccles Cakes, Border Tart & Cornish Pasties. I'm exceedingly good at starting things & not particularly good at finishing things but i am going to endeavour to change that. Hopeful yet realistic on that one...



After making this Nigel Slater recipe i will never buy Lemon Curd again, it's just too easy to make & so delicious. It's ridiculously good on toast, amazing with Meringues & Cream, great as a Lemon Tart filling & fantastic when you just stick your finger in the jar. You can also substitute the lemons for either oranges or limes.

Ingredients:
Makes two jars.
  • zest & juice of 4 unwaxed lemons
  • 100g butter
  • 200g sugar
  • 3 eggs & 1 extra egg yolk

Method:

Put the lemon zest, lemon juice, the sugar & butter into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water - making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Stir with a whisk from time to time until the butter has melted. 

Mix the eggs & the egg yolk lightly with a fork then stir into the lemon mixture. Let the curd cook stirring regularly for about ten minutes until it's thick & custard-like. It should feel heavy on the whisk. 

Remove from the heat & stir occasionally as it cools. Pour into spotlessly clean jars & seal. This will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge. 






8 January 2012

Onion Marmalade


I'm almost hesitant to say this out loud & it's doubtful that the Houseboy would back me up just yet, but i think, think, that i may have the beginnings of my bread baking mojo back. When i first learnt to bake bread i was (in my opinion) pretty good at it. Then BAM, i suddenly i could only produce heavy, dense, unappealing lumps of unhappiness. But this weekend past i made a Wholemeal Loaf which not only was i able to slice with the bread knife, but it's even edible without toasting! Yip-bloody-yee. I have to say this is mainly down down to the shorter of the two on the Fabulous Bakers Brothers which has recently started on Channel 4. A butcher/chef & a baker brother duo  who are passionate about all things culinary it looks like it's going to be a great series. His biggest piece of advise was to kneed, kneed & then kneed some more, and i think in hindsight that's been my problem. So on Saturday morning i set to it & threw in some serious muscle, the result was heartening and i will be baking bread every Saturday until i get it just perfect.

i didn't make this but i wish i did

I spent Sunday wandering through Brick Lane & Spittlefield markets indulging in my love for vintage scarves with an old school friend Miss Crabbie (a funny hybrid of Scottish & Swedish, i wouldn't be surprised if she deep fries her herring) Admittedly it's it had been months & months since i last headed out East to hang with the cool kids (and they are so cool - embarrassingly so) but i couldn't believe the change it's gone through. It's almost clean & tidy! Gone are the towering piles of food wrappers in dingy corners, no more bizarre people sitting on pavements trying to sell you a teapot with no spout, there are even loos in the Sunday Up Market! The charm of old & broken v new & shiny is all part of he feel & i'm all for improvements but i'ts now hovering on the line of just becoming another bland enterprise. A bit like poor old Camden Market, (which i still like i have to say) once a quirky, strange place were you could buy something that no one in earth would wear (or want to) is now overrun with mass produced nylon dresses & knock off watches. 

 

Not only is this onion marmalade great with cheese & biscuits but it's also a fantastic filing for a Onion Tart. If you suddenly find yourself with people over at feeding time it's a quick & easy starter or main with a hearty salad. Garnish with savings of parmasan cheese and bake in the oven till its melted and the pastry is crisp. You can use either red or white onions, bearing in mind that red onions are sweeter. 

Ingredients:
  • 110g butter
  • 675g onions - either red or white
  • 1 & 1/2 tsp salt
  • good pinch of pepper
  • 155g caster sugar
  • 7 tbsp red wine finger or sherry vineger
  • 255ml red wine

Method:

Start by putting the butter on to gently melt, while it is, slice the onions thinly & add to the pan with the sugar & s&p, cover & cook until soft & caramelised. Add vinegar & wine & cook until it thickens.