I've lost my cooking mojo...

..., but I'm hoping to rediscover it soon. Thanks for being patient!

Unearthed goodies

I was sent some continental deli goodies from Unearthed a couple of weeks ago and am only just getting around to blogging about it. Where does the time go?

The people at Unearthed source quality food from all over Europe and were kind enough to send me some Barrel Aged Greek Feta, some Hot Chili Olives and some Spanish Chorizo to try. What can I say? It was great food, full of flavour and perfect to have with a glass of wine and friends. The olives were really hot, but went perfect with the soft, salty feta and the chorizo tasted just like chorizo should. I'll definitely be looking out for their foods next time I'm in Waitrose.

The pictures I took really don't do the food justice, as I couldn't wait for daylight, but devoured everything on the night it arrived, so I've borrowed a picture from their website.

Sunday Roast

A couple of weeks ago a parcel from the wonderful people at Tiny Farmer arrived on my doorstep. I opened it and found some great hand-reared, welfare friendly beef, a huge rump steak, some shin of beef, some minced beef and a lovely silverside to be precise.

So what was a girl to do? Invite Lucy, Jean-Marc and E for a roast dinner of course!
I think it's safe to say that everyone enjoyed it greatly, even though the roast was a little less pink than I wanted it to be. I forgot to set my timer.

















Roast Beef

olive oil
1 silverside of beef
2 carrots
1 onion, halved
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste

for the gravy (serves 4):
4 cloves of garlic
4 plum tomatoes, halved
1 glass of red wine
600ml beef stock

Preheat your oven to 200C/Gas 6.

Heat the oil a heavy based roasting pan on top of your stove.

Season your beef and brown for about 3-4 minutes on all sides.

When browned briefly remove the roast from the pan and put 2 carrots and the onion halves in the pan and than place the beef on top.

Transfer to the oven and roast for 15 minutes per 450g for rare or 20 minutes per 450g for medium.

When the roast is done, put it on a warmed plate, loosely wrap it in tin foil and set aside to rest while you make the gravy.

Place the roasting pan on the hob. Remove any excess fat and add the garlic and tomatoes. Cook for 4-5 minutes before adding the wine and the beef stock.

Bring to a simmer and bubble for about 10 minutes. The liquid should reduce by about half.

Pass the gravy through a fine sieve. Make sure you really press all the juices out of the vegetables to get all the flavour.

Return the gravy to the pan and bring back to a boil until you reach gravy consistency. If you like you can thicken it with a little cornflour.

Enjoy!

Briouats filled with Goat's Cheese

I went through my photo archive today and came across pictures I had taken of Briouats filled with Goat's Cheese that I made some time last year and for some reason forgot to blog about. Briouats are fried Moroccan pastries and can be either savoury or sweet. They are good, both hot or cold and you could serve them on a bed of mixed salad as a starter or as part of a finger food buffet. So, with a little bit of a delay, here's the photo and the recipe:



Briouats filed with Goat's Cheese (makes about 40)

400g goat's cheese
2tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped
1tsp parika
a pinch of cayenne pepper
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
400g filo pastry sheets
75g melted butter
2 egg yolks, beaten
vegetable oil for frying

In a large bowl mash the goat's cheese with a fork and add the parsley, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper to taste.

Keep the pile of filo pastry sheets covered with a damp tea towel and work with one at a time, making sure the rest stay covered with the towel.

Place one sheet in front of you and cut into 4x10 inch strips.

Brush them with the melted butter using a pastry brush.

Place 1tsp of the goat's cheese mix at one end of each strip, about 2inches in.

Fold over the shorter end of the pastry strip to cover the filling.

Turn in 1/2inch of both long edges and then continue to fold over the short edge until you are left with a square.

Seal the edges with the egg yolk.

Fry in hot oil until golden. Alternatively, do as I did and bake them in the oven at 180C for about 30-40 minutes.

Leek and Potato Soup

Are you bored of soup yet? Well, I'm not and I doubt I ever will be, especially while it is this cold.

I know some people are moaning about the cold and all the snow, but I'm loving it. I really am. This is what winter is supposed to be like in my opinion and I know it's a pain to drive in this weather, but I don't have a car anyways, so that doesn't bother me. I feel a slight pinch of sadness every time I walk past my bicycle that's not been taken out for a ride for over a week now, but I smile every time I pull the laces on my hiking boots tight, put on another layer of crazy knitwear and venture out into the white in the knowledge that there is a pot of soup or at least a cup of cocoa waiting for me on my return.



Leek and Potato Soup (serves 4)

2tbsp butter
1lb leeks, washed, trimmed and finely sliced
1lb potatoes, peeled and chopped into bite sized chunks
1 onion, chopped
1 litre vegetable stock
225ml milk
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
single cream (optional)

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan.

Add the chopped leeks, potatoes and onion and sautee for 10 minutes over low heat, stirring frequently.

Add the stock and the milk and cook for about 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through.

Depending on your preference you can serve the chunky soup as it is, or whiz it with a stick blender until it is smooth.

If you like you can pour a little single cream into each bowl before serving, swirl it around gently with a fork for a pretty pattern.

Enjoy!

Top Five from 2009

Maybe it's a good idea to look back as well as forward at the beginning of a new year. So without much ado, here are my top five recipes from 2009 (in no particular order):


Labneh with Olives and Pistachios




Onion and Goats' Cheese Flan





Spicy Roast Aubergine with Jeweled Couscous





Muttar Paneer





Lemon Cake with Lemon Cream and Berries

Simple Creamy Tomato Soup

Building snow women all afternoon meant that I wanted something warming again for dinner that didn't require loads of time spent in the kitchen. So what better than another bowl of hot soup?

I didn't really want to put my hiking boots, scarf, hat and mittens back on for another trip to the shop either, so it had to be something I could make with what I always have in my cupboards. That decided it for me, Creamy Tomato Soup it was to be.



Creamy Tomato Soup (serves 2-3)

1tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1tbsp, tomato puree (paste)
1 tin (400g) of chopped tomatoes
1tbsp fresh thyme, chopped or a handful of chopped basil
1 1/2tsp vegetable stock powder
a pinch of baking soda
600ml milk (or half milk/half vegetable stock)
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion and garlic for about four minutes until beginning to soften.

Stir in the tomato puree and continue to cook for another couple of minutes whilst stirring.

Add the chopped tomatoes, herbs and vegetable stock powder and simmer for about 15 minutes.

In a small bowl mix the baking soda with about 1tbsp of the milk.

Stir into the tomatoes, it'll froth but don't worry it'll stop.

Add the rest of the milk and simmer for another five minutes.

Serve with your favourite crunchy bread.

Note: You won't taste the baking soda at all, it just stops the milk from curdling or splitting.

Enjoy!

Sloe Gin

I just pulled up my blinds and couldn't believe my eyes. I know it had snowed already last night and was still at it when I went to bed at midnight, but it must have continued for most of the night. I haven't seen snow like this in years. Probably not since I lived in Oslo.

It's a day for building snowmen and making snow angels and as there's no soup left to warm me up when I get back in, I might just have to have a glass of my homemade sloe gin, or two!



Sloe Gin

450gr sloe berries
1 litre gin
225gr light brown sugar

If there's been no frost by the time you pick your slow berries, pop them in the freezer for a week or so before making the gin. They need to have frozen once at least to release some of the sugar in them.

Place the sugar into a large sterilized jar.

Prick each berry with a clean needle and add them to the jar.

Pour in the gin, seal tightly and give everything a really good shake.

Store in a cool dark place and shake every other day for about a week, then once a week for two months.

After that you can pour the gin through a clean sieve into sterilized bottles and start drinking it!

Enjoy!