Made moussaka for dinner tonight. Skimmed off a huge amount of the fat and then added about a pint of home made lamb stock I had in the freezer. It took a couple of hours to simmer down, but was well worth the wait.
My mousakka research led me to question the rational behind portion sizes, Delia Smith reckons that her mousakka will feed 6, but with only 450 grams of mince I can’t help but think everybody would be a little hungry at the end of that particular meal. The recipe I used was also meant to feed 6, but called for 1kg of mince! In this case I think it would have to be 6 people with enormous appetites, otherwise I think it would be 8 reasonable portions. Arf, Caio and I ate about 1/4 between us, but we had rice on the side.
Gordon Ramsey’s Beef Curry calls for a whopping 2kg of beef to serve 8-10. Perhaps it’s the ex veggie in me, but that strikes me as a slightly excessive amount of meat per person (~250 grams). Especially as you are likely to serve a beef curry with some sides of rice/nan/vegetables/chutney’s. I tend to use 500 grams of beef, but half the rest of the recipe and then throw in a tin of chickpeas just to make the whole thing a bit healthier. That and some rice will feed Caio, Arf and I with a portion or so left over.
Does anybody have any good tips for judging portion sizes in recipes? Baked goods in particular are often a mystery to me. I mean, who wants a stingy sliver of cake? But I also don’t want to be eating the same cake for days on end!!
I’m having a cottage pie for one made from leftover roast beef, some onions, carrots, mushrooms, potatoes and peas that were hanging about, a splash of old wine and Worcester sauce… a perfect use of odds and sods and I’m sure better than the offerings of the mid-market chain restaurant in Windsor Matt will be dining in tonight.
I always thicken my stews/casseroles with flour but am reminded of a tip and trick – Su’s Simon chops up a potato very small to add to his monday night leftover stews – this is his preferred thickening agent.
I have always struggled to stir fry rice noodles effectively. I tend to over cook them – they end up flabby and start to disintegrate. Yuck. I do have much better results when I use them in soups, but I do love the idea of a big bowl of steaming fried rice noodles with pak choi and prawns running through them.
Anyhow, I have come across a new technique that I am trying out this evening. I bought a pack of medium rice noodles in my Chinese supermarket with instructions I haven’t seen before. I am soaking them in very cold water for 10 minutes and then I need to leave them for at least a quarter of an hour before stir frying. I will be serving them dressed in sesame oil, chilli and coriander served with black cod and soy cucumbers. I’ll let you know how it works out.
Is there anything better than a simple picnic to make you feel good?
I’ve always loved a picnic, but recently I have taken joy from pretty meagre offerings. This new found love started in Suffolk. After a walk that built up quite an appetite, K and I stumbled upon a fantastic village shop. We picked up a slab of cheese, an apple and a peach each and a box of crackers. We found a perfect picnic bench looking out over marshland and wolfed down the morsels of deliciousness. The simplicity of the flavour combos worked a treat. So much so, we did the same thing the next day – but were more prepared with a knife and napkin!
I replicated such a picnic today. Not in the wilds unfortunately but in Greenwich Park. A box of Carrs, some blue brie, apples and porchetta was the sum total. And yet what a result! Try it next time you’re feeling a little low. I’m sure it will put a smile on your face.
PS. Jamie O porchetta is on special offer in Sainsbury’s at the moment. Get it while your bank balance will allow – full price it’s ridiculous.
Nigel’s. You need:
Mushrooms – 400g
Veg stock – 325 ml
Baby aubergines – 8 (think I used 2 large ones)
Large tomatoes – 6
Coconut milk
Coriander
Rice to serve
For the paste:
Small red hot chillis – 4
Lemongrass – 2 plump stalks
Ginger – walnut sized lump
small shallots – 2
garlic – 4 cloves
shrimp paste – half a teasppon (guess you could use fish sauce).
Wizz up all the curry paste stuff. Then add shrimp paste and a tablespoon of water.
Fry the paste in groundnut oil, Add the mushrooms, fry, then add stock. Then chuck in the aubergines and tomatoes. Leave to simmmer for 10 mins. Then add coconut milk. Leave for another 10 and then serve with coriander leaves sprinkled on top.
Ru’s. You need:
Aubergine – 1
Tomatoes – 4
Garlic – 4 cloves
Veg stock
Sugar
Parsley
Linguine
Fry off your diced aubergines. Take off the heat. Then fry garlic and tomatoes in lots of good quality olive oil. Add a tablespoon of sugar and splash of veg stock. Return the aubergines. Add the parsley and a splash of olive oil. Serve over buttered pasta.
Now its a bit early to be thinking of this (when your procrastinating however, its never too early!) but I’m thinking of doing a big cook up when I go on maternity leave so that I can stock the freezer full of pre-cooked dinners. Any suggestions? Thus far I had thought of lentil moussaka, curries, possibly a stew or the spanish beans freeze … what else?
Chicken broth is the archetypal malady remedy. With my leftover roast I roughly followed a Nigel Slater recipe (I lost the original but it’s from Real Food). I browned the carcass with a chopped onion and carrot, added a generous splash of rum (it was supposed to be brandy but didn’t have any) and a big glass of red wine, once the alcohol had burned off I covered the bones with water to which I added a bayleaf or two, some whole peppercorns and some sprigs of thyme and let the whole thing very gently simmer for a couple of hours. Today I shall saute some chopped carrots and mushrooms, pour over the drained stock and add a few handfuls of small pasta shapes (rice, noodles or barley also good options). That will be our lunch, only today is looking lovely and sunny and not rainy like yesterday.
Roast chicken, not very exciting I know, but there’s something so incredibly comforting about a roast, perhaps its the cooking smells or all the accompanying carb stodge (roasties and yorkshires a must for every roast). Tonight I’m welcoming home my sleepy geek with a roast chick, flavoured with lemon, sage, garlic and butter and my favourite accompaniment petit pois a la francaise.
Ru’s recent comment that the fish and egg soup was a highlight in her week of woe got me thinking. Firstly poor Ru, secondly, what food cheers the soul when you’re down? To kick us off, Nigella’s Happiness Soup. Nigella quotes Claudia Roden who says that in some Middle Eastern countries it is believed that ‘eating yellow foods will result in laughter and happiness’. This is her yellow soup to banish the blues.
Serves 4-6
- 500g yellow courgettes (2 large)
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 litre chicken stock
- 100g basmati rice
- Maldon salt and pepper
1. Cut the courgettes – wash them by all means if you want, but don’t bother to peel them – into 5mm rings, and then finely dice them.
2. Put them into a pan with the lemon zest and oil, stir to coat, then cook on a gentle heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they’ve slightly softened.
3. Stir in the turmeric and pour in the stock and lemon juice and then drop in the rice. And for the stock here, as usual I make up some bouillon concentrate with water; you could use vegetable stock if you prefer, but I love the mellow goldenness you get from chicken. Cook, uncovered, for 10-20 minutes, or just until the courgettes and rice are tender.
4. Leave to cool slightly before serving so that you eat the soup warm rather than hot.
This soup is a great summer option, but for a more wintery and carnivorous take on yellow soup try her split pea and frankfurter soup.
Baked eggs for tea, recipe from, what rachel ate. Delicious, with crusty bread and sour cream. In fact I got a bit sauce left so might go break another egg!