Fresh Garden Soup

From River Cottage Veg Everyday!, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Bloomsbury, 2011.

I read the River Cottage Summer Garden Soup recipe and, even though it was winter, I seemed to have most of the ingredients readily available so decided that it was worth giving it a try; I just couldn’t use its proper name.

There was a lot of chopping and preparing of the vegetables before beginning. Fennel, spring onions and celery were cut into small cubes and placed in large saucepan with olive oil and butter and sautéed for a few minutes.

While these were sautéing the other vegetables were prepared. Two zucchini were chopped into cubes. Broad beans were given a quick blanch to that the hard skins could be removed. Frozen peas were taken from the refrigerator. Some beetroot leaves were shredded finely, as also were some cos lettuce leaves. Some herbs were chopped finely: basil, parsley, chervil and the fine leaves from the fennel.

Once the vegetables were sautéed for about 10 minutes a litre of stock was added to the pot and it was brought to the boil. It boiled for about one minute and the zucchini, broad beans and green peas were added to cook for about 3 minutes. Now the lettuce and beetroot leaves were added and cooked for another minute. The chopped herbs went in next. It was ready.

The soup looked inviting on the plates with the variety of greens sitting in the broth. This was a delicately flavoured soup with the vegetables having a slight crunch to them. It felt that you were eating down health and enjoying it totally.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Stracci with Spicy Aubergines, Tomatoes, Basil and Parmesan

From The Return of the Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2000.

Stracci apparently is pasta that has been ‘scratched’ or cut into pieces any way you like. Not being in the mood to make my own pasta I purchased some fresh lasagne sheets and ‘scratched’ them.

The sauce was a simple one. An eggplant (aubergine) was cut into dice and fried in olive oil with some coriander seeds and some broken up dried red chillies. As the eggplant browned a can of tomatoes was added. A few minutes later some Kalamata olives went in and the cooking continued. When the mixture had thickened to a sauce-like consistency it was seasoned and some red wine vinegar added to taste.

While the sauce continued to cook down, a pot of hot salted water was put on and brought to the boil. The pasta went in and when it was cooked it was added to the sauce. A few basil leaves were added and when served it was topped with some Parmesan cheese.

This simple-to-make Mediterranean-type sauce was one that I must remember for it gives a meal in a few minutes that is really tasty and totally satisfying.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Chickpea, Goat’s Cheese and Zucchini Fritters

From Hungry: Food from my heart, Guy Mirabella, Plum, 2011.

This was a mix-it-all-together-and-then-cook-it type of recipe. The ingredients all sounded as though they would make a tasty fritter: chickpeas, grated zucchini, feta (I used goat’s cheese because I had run out of feta), herbs (parsley, coriander, mint, oregano), garlic, eggs, flour (I was concerned that there was too much flour but followed the instructions), red chilli and seasonings. Once mixed, the ingredients were dropped into the frying pan, a spoonful at a time and fried.

A dip was made of yoghurt, chopped capers, chopped garlic, chopped green chilli and chopped parsley. The recipe called for dill but I had none so substituted with parsley and a little dried dill.

The fritters cooked well and went down equally well though I felt that my concern over the amount of flour was justified because the flour had given them a slightly heavy texture and the taste of the uncooked flour did come through somewhat. Nevertheless this was a quick and tasty light meal.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Potato and Jerusalem Artichoke Soup with Thyme, Mascarpone and Hazelnuts

From The Return of the Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2000.

While the predominant ingredient in this recipe was the Jerusalem artichokes I went very warily with the use of it. It has a tendency to reward one with much wind. So for this I changed the balance to more potatoes and less artichokes. What I ended up using was two medium potatoes (about 500 g) and two artichokes (about 125 g).

An onion, 2 garlic cloves, the potatoes, artichokes and a few fresh thyme leaves were sautéed in a pan with butter. When the onion had softened the stock was added, about a litre. It was actually water and stock cubes. This was brought to the boil and simmered until the vegetables were tender. A stick blender was used to liquidise the soup.

At serving time the soup was reheated and a couple of tablespoons of mascarpone added. It was checked for seasoning and then ladled into plates. Some chopped hazelnuts were sprinkled on the top.

I do like the taste of Jerusalem artichokes and even with the change in quantities the flavour came through quite strongly. The hazelnuts went well with the artichokes and gave a little bit of crunch to the smooth soup.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Frittata di Patate (Potato Frittata)

From My Italian Heart: Recipes from an Italian kitchen, Guy Grossi, Lantern, 2005.

For this frittata there were a couple of tasks to be done before the main cooking.

Firstly, a couple of potatoes were peeled and cut into dice. These were put into an oven tray, sprinkled with olive oil and seasonings then baked until cooked. They had to be stirred around a bit before it was complete. The tray was removed from the oven and left to cool.

Secondly, an onion and a garlic clove were chopped and fried until softened. These were then left to cool.

Now the main cooking could go ahead. Four eggs were beaten with a little cream. An amount of grated Parmesan cheese was added together with a pinch of salt and a little black pepper. The onion mix was now included and the potatoes as well as some chopped herbs. The mixture was now placed in a frying pan and cooked just until the base was firmed and then the whole pan was placed under a grill until the top was cooked.

I always enjoy a good frittata and this was a really good one. Roasted potatoes, eggs and Parmesan cheese—a wonderful combination and, once the preliminaries were done, very easy to cook.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Brussels Sprout Leaf, Watercress and Celery Salad with Roquefort Dressing

From Salades, Damien Pignolet, Lantern, 2010.

The dressing for this salad was made by mixing some Roquefort with crème fraîche and lemon juice and whisking them until the dressing had achieved a balance that tasted right. Salt and pepper were added, again to taste. This dressing was very creamy.

For the salad I separated Brussels sprout leaves and gave them a quick blanch, though the recipe did not call for this. Some inner celery stalks were cut into thin strips and added together with some of the leaves. An apple was sliced thinly and given a quick toss in some lemon juice to prevent it colouring. Watercress leaves were added to the mix as well as a few other salad leaves though these were not called for.

The salad was then tossed with the creamy dressing and chopped roasted walnuts sprinkled over the surface.

Perhaps my dressing was a little too thick and should have been thinned with more lemon juice because the salad looked a bit on the white side. This did not, however, detract from its flavour because it went down well. The Roquefort was an especially good companion for the Brussels sprouts.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

French Apple-Pear Salad

From New Vegetarian, Robin Asbell, Chronicle Books, 2009.

To begin I made the dressing. In the juice of half a lemon I put a touch of vanilla paste and a pinch of salt. I beat these until all were combined then added walnut oil and beat again.

I cut up two pears and one apple. Each was cut into quarters and the cores removed. They were then sliced and placed in a bowl with the dressing to ensure that they did not colour.

A stick of celery was chopped finely and added to the fruit. A good handful of walnuts was chopped and also added. Fresh tarragon was difficult to obtain so I added a sprinkling of dried tarragon and stirred it in.

The salad was served with Brie.

This was a crunchy salad, sweet and with a touch or sour. The hint of vanilla, which I had doubted when I added it, worked well with the fruit. Brie, naturally, went well with the salad.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔