Salt and Pepper Tofu

From Cooking with Soy, Yoshiko Takeuchi, New Holland Publishers, 2013.

My partner had made a wonderfully creamy tofu. Some was left and needed to be used up so I decided on salt and pepper tofu.

The tofu was patted dry with a kitchen paper then cut into block shapes. I put a tablespoon of black pepper and a few shakings of white pepper into a mortar with some salt. They were pounded until well crushed. This was mixed with one tablespoon of plain flour and one tablespoon of cornflour. When it was fully combined the tofu blocks were dipped in it to completely cover them. They then went into hot oil to deep fry them until they were golden.

I do like salt and pepper tofu. They are crunchy on the outside and creamy inside and over all is the tang of the salt and the heat of the pepper. A dipping sauce was made of some sweet chilli sauce and lime juice.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Apple Bites

It is amazing how suddenly the refrigerator becomes full of bits and pieces that you thought were important to save and yet get overlooked. Every so often I decide that I’ll only use what’s left there to make a meal. I had some pasta left, some pesto, cooked granny smith apple and some fontina cheese. These were all from an apple ravioli dish. There wasn’t enough left to make a meal but enough to do something.

I rolled out the pasta thinly, cut it into rounds and then pressed them in miniature muffin trays. A small dollop of pesto went at the bottom. The apple went on top of this to about half way up and the fontina cheese went on top.

They went into a 180ºC oven for about 20 minutes when the pasta had crisped up and the fontina was well melted.

While the pasta was not overly crisp as a pastry it worked quite well producing little tangy pop-straight-in-the-mouth tarts.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Apple Ravioli with Fava-Pistachio Pesto

From Pasta Modern, Francine Segan, Stewart Tabori & Chang, 2013.

When the author makes the statement to the effect that if you were to try no other recipe in a particular chapter then this was the one that you should try then obviously this is the one you would make—and I did. The only problem with this is that unless you make all the others in the chapter you have nothing to compare it with. It was good and it was different but now, I guess, I’ll have to try all the others.

I did not follow the recipe for the pasta as I had some left from a previous cooking bout that I had not used up.

The filling for the ravioli was made first. I peeled and chopped 3 granny smith apples and cooked them in a saucepan with some butter and 5 chopped sage leaves. Wben the apple was cooked though had not broken up to a puree I took it off the heat and left it to cool.

I made the pesto. Rather than just a basil pesto this one had a broad bean (fava) base. I cooked a cup of broad beans for a couple of minutes. They were then cooled and the beans popped out of their skins. They went into a blender with 30 basil leaves, a handful of pistachios, a handful of pine nuts and salt and pepper. They were blended until beginning to form a paste, then olive oil was blended in until there was a sauce that I felt comfortable with.

The pasta was rolled out and cut into 10cm rounds. In half of them a tablespoon of the apples was placed in the centre. This was topped with a tablespoon of cubed fontina (the recipe called for taleggio but this was unavailable). A little drizzle of honey topped the mixture. Another round of pasta closed off the ravioli and the edges were sealed with white of an egg.

The ravioli were cooked in boiling salted water until done and then served with the pesto.

This was a most unusual combination of flavours that were a pleasant surprise. The tartness of the apples, overlaid with the touch of sage, went well with the cheese. The pesto was really good. The broad beans gave it that extra difference, a solidness, and it matched the tart apples surprisingly well.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔

‘Mixed Grill’ with Parsley Oil

From Plenty, Yotam Ottolenghi, Ebury Press, 2010.

I was in need of a vegetable accompaniment to go with some potato cakes. I had a potato mixture left over from Potato and Cheddar Tortellini and thought they would readily and easily be turned into cakes by forming the mixture into patties and then dipping them in egg and breadcrumbs and frying them.

Ottolenghi’s mixed grill looked as though it would suit so I set to work to make the parsley oil. I took 25g parsley, leaves and stems, and put them in the blender with a garlic clove, juice of half a lemon, salt and pepper. I gave them a whiz and then added olive oil, sufficient to make a sauce. Another churn in the blender and it was ready.

The vegetables I was using were cut into thin slices: eggplant, kohlrabi and zucchini. They were placed in a bowl and given a dribble of olive oil. They then went onto a hot grill until they were well striped and sufficiently cooked. They went into the oven to be kept warm until all were ready. Once the last vegetable slice was done they went back into their bowl and the parsley oil was poured over them. They were then left to cool.

At serving time some haloumi was sliced and quickly fried until golden on both sides. This was mixed in with the vegetables.

I was pleased with my potato cakes. They were crunchy on the outside and creamy and cheesy on the inside. The vegetables grill went well with them. The parsley oil was tangy and enhanced the vegetables which had the added smokiness from the grill. My eggplant was cooked a little too long and began to disintegrate, though this added to the sauce on the plate.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔

Asparagus Spears with Pecorino Shortbread

From More from the Accidental Vegetarian, Simon Rimmer, Mitchell Beazley, 2012.

Sometimes you have a dish that, though full of flavour and attractive to look at, is awkward to eat. This salad was such a dish.

I began by making the shortbread. Into the blender I placed 175g plain flour, 100g butter cut into cubes, and 65g grated pecorino cheese. I gave them a churn and then added an egg yolk and salt and pepper. Another quick churn and they had formed a dough. This was rolled out and cut into triangular shapes. They were cooked in the oven (180ºC) for about 10 minutes when they had turned golden. They were taken out and let cool.

The asparagus was placed into boiling salted water until cooked and while it was cooking the dressing was made.

Into the blender went an egg yolk, 2 teaspoons caster sugar, a teaspoon Dijon mustard, a tablespoon white wine vinegar and the juice of half a lemon with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. They were given a blitz and then olive oil was added slowly while the blender was going. I added oil until the dressing was a consistency that suited me. I then added some chopped tarragon.

The salad was put together with one piece of shortbread on the plate, then some asparagus spears, a little rocket, dressing dribbled over, then a shortbread to top it all. Some shaved pecorino was dropped over.

I did enjoy this. The flavours worked well together. The dressing was creamy and sharp, the shortbread crunchy and salty, and they went so well with the asparagus. I just found it a little difficult to eat with the shortbread needing to be chased around the plate a little. But it was worth the chase.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔