Category Archives: Non-dairy

Chestnuts

When we were on holiday in Madrid a few years back I remember buying the most amazing roasted chestnuts (pictured right) – freshly roasted in vast cauldrons – from the many street vendors around the city.

They were dished out to us piping hot in small paper bags – often selling for as little as 1 Euro per 100g (a large handful).

Here in the UK, since the chestnut season is so brief (September to December) I think it’s always useful to take advantage whilst we can.

Types / availability

· Whole peeled chestnuts, canned or vacuum-packed, are available from most UK supermarkets. 450g fresh chestnuts (weighed in their shells) are equivalent to 175g dried, reconstituted chestnuts or 350g tinned or vacuum packed nuts.

· Canned chestnut purée, plain or sweetened, available in tins, is a godsend as it saves hours of preparation for use in pudding recipes.

· Chestnut flour (gluten-free and with a slight earthy smokiness) is often available from speciality food stores and delicatessens. This is useful as a substitute for flour in cakes (see below), pancakes or as a thickener for soups and stews.

Cooking with fresh chestnuts

Fresh chestnuts should be cooked and never eaten raw – due to their high acid content. I find the oven to be the most effective way of roasting them.

First, pre-heat the oven to 200 C / 390 F.

If you are using fresh chestnuts which contain the outer shell / husk then one of the most important steps before roasting is to cut an incision in the shell using the end of a sharp knife.

Alternatively you can roll your foot over them until they crack slightly. This prevents sudden explosions of chestnut shrapnel from inside the oven due to a pressure build up in the shell.

Next, place approximately 200g chestnuts on an oven tray and roast for 20-25 minutes.

Once cooked, peel off the tough shell and the papery thin skin underneath. Peel the nuts whilst hot – it’s impossible to peel a cold chestnut – to ensure the complete removal of the inner brown furry skin, called the ‘tan’, which is bitter.

Alternative recipes

A great cake recipe of Italian origin is Montebianco – using chestnuts, chocolate and coffee, with layers of mousse, praline and almond meringue. Who could say no to that?

If you prefer something a bit more homely then I cannot think of anything more inviting than steaming ladlefuls of hot chestnut soup.

First, take 1kg fresh, cooked and peeled chestnuts (or 600g pre-packaged and vacuum-packed), 1 onion, 1 garlic clove (finely chopped), 25g butter, 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 litre stock and 1 tbsp brown sugar.

Next, In a saucepan, heat a the butter with the olive oil over a medium heat, then add the garlic and onions. Cook them for about 5 minutes or until they become soft and begin to brown.

Add the stock, brown sugar and bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and blitz with a hand blender until smooth, then adjust the seasoning to taste.

The soup is naturally creamy so there is no need to add cream.

Serve into soup bowls and enjoy.

Autumn reflections – with a comforting hummus dish

Leave a reply

I think the Autumnal time of year is a great opportunity to cosy up with friends and family and share food which is a little bit more comforting than we might do in Spring or Summer – foods like mackerel, chicken casserole, spinach, kale, beetroot, pumpkin and other root vegetables (oven-roasted).

Don’t get me wrong; I love the Autumn for what it is, especially the vibrant orange colours of the leaves on the trees against the dusk skies – see below – and the briskness, crispness and freshness that we experience most mornings in the UK.

I recently posted a blog on how to make homemade falafel and I posted another blog on making your own dips for entertaining a crowd.

The purpose of this blog is to delve, once more, into Middle Eastern cuisine, with a recipe for creamy hummus – something I’ve always found to be a good accompaniment to vegetable or meat dishes.

Homemade courgette (zucchini) hummus with spices

Grilled courgette (zucchini)

I was fumbling around in the vegetable box receently thinking what might make a decent hummus recipe. Courgette’s (Zucchini) are one of my favourite vegetables and are pretty versatile – so I settled with that.

Grilled, fried or roasted, the courgette is blitzed in a food processor with chickpeas (garbanzo beans), aduki beans, fresh garlic, tahini (sesame paste), lemon juice, herbs, spices and extra-virgin olive oil.

It can be eaten hot or cold.

You can use it as a dip for pitta bread, spread it on a wrap or pair it with roasted vegetables and any meat dish.

Hummus

It’s gluten-free, low-carb and vegan friendly. Nutritionally, it also has a decent amount of protein and fibre.

Ingredients

Chickpeas (garnazo beans), aduki beans and tahini

1 courgette (Zucchini) – grilled, fried or roasted
400g can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
400g can aduki beans, drained
1 clove garlic
1 lemon, juiced
4 tbsp tahini (sesame paste)
½ tsp salt, more to taste
½ tsp cracked pepper
Ingredients for hummus (clockwise from top – chickpeas and aduki beans, courgette, spices, lemon, garlic and coriander leaf)
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 tbsp coriander or more fresh herbs
1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

Cut courgette into ½ inch thick strips, brush with a little olive oil and grill on medium heat until charred and tender.
(Alternately courgette may be roasted in the oven until tender. If you have very large zucchini with thick skin, you can half it lengthwise, roast in the oven and then scoop out the flesh, leaving the skin out, if necessary)
Place the grilled courgette along with the rest of the ingredients (except the oil, coriander herb and 2 tbsp of the chickpeas and aduki beans) in a food processor, and puree until relatively smooth.
Serve it in a bowl, making a little circular “well” using a spoon, and drizzle a little olive oil in the well.
Garnish with the 2 tbsp chickpeas and aduki beans and mix in the coriander herb.
Serve either warm or chilled.

Blitz hummus

Hummus blitzed with coriander

Cauliflower cous cous

Leave a reply

It’s funny how some foods are being repurposed nowadays to appear to be something they’re clearly not. The latest such innovation to catch my eye is this “copycat” cous cous recipe.

Cauliflower cous cous

Pulsed

OK – so it’s not actually cous-cous, which is traditionally made from steamed and dried durum wheat (and it’s not comfort food), but it is very tasty fried with a little butter or olive oil and garlic. It’s also a versatile lunch box option and the texture is almost spot on when comparing it to the real grain.

For me, cauliflower is a mainstay in our household. I love roasting it in oil and salt, which really brings out the flavour, but it’s interesting to try something different; I just never thought it would involve using a cheese grater or food processor (see right).

In the recipe below I’ve paired the cous cous with rice, quinoa and herbs into a sort of pilau.

Nuts, seeds (sesame, pumpkin, linseeds) are entirely optional, as is serving alongside a meat-based main like chicken, lamb or pork.

I hope you enjoy.

Ingredients

Serves 3 – 4

1 head cauliflower, any size
1tbsp olive oil or butter
100g brown basmati rice
100g quinoa
500ml chicken or vegetable stock
75g flat leaf parsley or coriander

Directions

Add the rice, quinoa and stock to a medium pan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a slight simmer and then cover with a lid and cook for 12-15 mins or until both are soft.
Meanwhile, cut the head of the raw cauliflower into quarters, then trim out the inner core from each quarter. Break apart the cauliflower into large florets with your
hands. If the core is tender, you can chip it into pieces and add it with the florets.
Transfer the cauliflower to a food processor and pulse the cauliflower until completely broken down. It’s best to do this in 1-2 second bursts until it appears “grainy” (Alternatively, grate the florets on the large holes of a box grater.)
Transfer the cauliflower couscous to another container and re-process any large pieces.
Cauliflower couscous can be used raw, which retains the texture,or it can be cooked: Cooking makes the cauliflower more tender and rice-like.
Warm a tablespoon of olive oil or butter in a large wide-based pan over medium heat. Stir for around 3 – 4 minutes then combine in a serving dish with the cooked rice and quinoa.

Warm new potato and mackerel salad recipe

1 Reply

I’ve featured mackerel a few times on this blog – only because I love it and because it’s such a nutritious source of food; packed with protein, vitamin D, selenium, niacin (vitamin B3) and vitamin B12.

This recipe provides good all-round combination of energy, texture and flavour. I love the warm and waxy new potatoes, the crunch of the gem lettuce, the slight acidity of the red onions and the saltiness of the smoked mackerel.

Bon Appetite!

Serves 2

Ingredients

200g new potatoes
2 smoked mackerel fillets (about 200g weight; skinned and flaked)
1/2 red onion, sliced
juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
1 baby gem lettuce, chopped
a small handful of dill or chives, chopped

Directions

Cook the potatoes in a large pan of boiling salted water for 15-20 minutes or until tender.
While the potatoes are cooking, mix the red onion with the lemon and add small a pinch of salt. This helps to tenderise the red onion.
Drain the potatoes, halve and set aside to cool down for a few minutes.
Add the smoked mackerel and gem lettuce to a serving bowl and toss gently together. Then add the new potatoes with the olive oil, red onion (including the lemon juice) and dill.
Toss together to mix thoroughly.
Pile on two plates and serve warm.

Summer canapes

Leave a reply

A few months ago I published a blog on “entertaining a crowd” which focused on a variety of dips for canapes / appetisers. I’ve decided to revisit this subject – this time focusing on something a bit different.

What comes to mind when you think of “Canape” ?

For me, it brings to mind large prissy platters at fancy parties that quite simply overdo things – like thinly sliced carpaccio of beef with quail’s eggs or weird shot glasses filled with foam – who has the time for that?

Well, I like to keep things simple.

The Recipes

These recipes are great for appetisers, breakfast, brunch, lunch or just as a snack or appetizer. All you need is any type of crisp bread, flat bread (e.g. pitta), oatcake, sliced baguette, crackers or you could use a pizza base, sliced into bite-sized portions, toasted, fried or grilled until crispy and topped with the ingredients.

Once assembled all that’s required is a quick drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Flaked salmon crisp breads

I’ve used Peter’s Yard rye flour crisp breads for this recipe. Utterly delicious.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

200g hot smoked salmon, flaked
4 – 6 Peter’s Yard crisp breads
1/2 lemon, zest and juice
extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Arrange the crisp breads into “half moon” shapes and top with the salmon.
Drizzle over the lemon juice/zest, olive oil.
Serve on a plate in the sunshine!

“Tricolour crisp breads” of tomato, basil and mozzarella

You can grill these crisp breads for a couple of minutes to warm and soften tomatoes and mozzarella.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved
100g mozzarella cheese, sliced into small chunks
a handful of fresh basil, torn
4 – 6 crisp breads
extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Brush the tops of each crisp bread with olive oil.
In a medium bowl, toss tomatoes, olive oil and mozzarella cheese, salt and pepper together until combined.
Drizzle each crisp bread with a little olive oil. Sprinkle with chopped basil. Serve.

(For grilling)

Heat the grill to a medium-high heat and grill the crisp breads, on a heat-proof tray, for 2-3 minutes . Serve.

Crackers and Camembert

An old classic. Slightly less colourful than the previous recipes but just as appealing.

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 round of Camembert (you can also use Brie), sliced into chunks
6-8 crackers
Butter, for spreading

Directions

Spread each cracker with butter and top with cheese.