Spiced Aubergine with Polenta

Spiced Aubergine with Polenta

Although we do not shop very much at Sainsbury's (except for gluten-free bread of course) we somehow acquired a Sainsbury's magazine.  Normally we pick up a free Morrison's magazine which often has some decent recipes or ideas but not sure if I had ever used a Sainsbury's one.  Well this time a recipe did catch my eye and it needed goats cheese which was great as we had a little left following a recent dinner party.

Anyway we thought we would share this one as it is healthy, vegetarian and gluten-free.  It also looks good on a plate.

The recipe said to use quick-cook polenta but we used ready cooked polenta and sliced it up before grilling.  The result is pretty much the same and it saved a bit of time.

What you will need for 2:

Ready made polenta (about 300g) sliced into 3 portions each.
1 aubergine cut into small chunks
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or hot paprika)
1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
300g passata
1 tablespoon olive oil
15g flat-leaf parsley finely chopped
50g goats cheese crumbled

Method:

Brown the aubergine in a heavy based pan with olive oil and season.
Add the garlic and spices and stir till the aubergines are coated.
Add the passata and balsamic vinegar, simmer for 20 minutes.
Grill the polenta on both sides and arrange on a bed of salad leaves such as rocket and watercress or a baby leaf mix.
Stir the parsley into the sauce and pour over the polenta.
Crumble the goats cheese over it all so it just begins to melt.

The flavours in this dish were great.  The cinnamon and cayenne gave the dish a meditareanean/middle eastern feel which was really freshened up with the addition of parsley.  Balsamic vinegar and goats cheese gave it a welcomed tang.

South East Asian Delights

Cambodian Aubergine Curry and Stir Fried Spinach with Nuoc Cham

After last week's Fish Amok success we still had some Kroeung left so it was back to the recipe book for more inspiration. Also, since discovering the price of Aubergines in Lidl, we always seem to have at least one in, so it was with little surprise that the recipe for Cambodian Aubergine Curry leapt off the page.
As with a lot of these recipes the ingredient list was quite substantial, and some items require a flick to the glossary, or to the ingredients or condiments section to see what exactly it is.
We did have most ingredients in for the Aubergine curry, but did have to make a few adjustments (Morrisons doesn't sell Shrimp Paste, and haven't ventured into China town yet to investigate these type of crazy ingredients, and Cambodian Fish Sauce? Sorry, Thai will have to do).
We served it with a side of stir fried spinach with Nuoc Cham, again adapted slightly, as this was normal British spinach and not oriental Water Spinach, and also by accident, the proportions got slightly out.

Ingredients: (Aubergine Curry)

2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 small shallots, sliced
1 dried chilli
1 1/2 tbsp Kroeung
1/2 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tbsp mollases
300ml coconut milk
175 ml chicken stock
1 large aubergine, cut into chunks
3 kaffir lime leaves
fresh basil

First of all, fry the garlic, shallots and whole chilli until things start to colour. Then add the Kroeung, fish sauce and mollases and stir fry until they start to colour.

Then stir in the coconut milk, stock and lime leaves.

Next add the aubergines and stir through.
partially cover the pan and simmer for 25-30 mins until the aubergines have cooked through and the sauce has thickened.






Ingredients: (Spinach)

Groundnut oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 green Thai chillis
500g spinach
3 tbsp Nuoc Cham - 4 garlic cloves, 2 Thai chillis, 1 tbsp sugar, juice of 1 lime, 4tbsp fish sauce
Salt and pepper

The spinach was more complicated, since we had to make the Nuoc Cham from scratch. This involved pounding the garlic, chillis and sugar with a pestle and mortar, then adding the lime juice and the fish sauce (which in the book is called Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese) - to confuse matters (not to be confused with Tuk Trey which is Cambodian.) Confused?)

The garlic and chillis were then fried in a wok with the groundnut oil for about 1 minute, then the spinach was added. As it wilts, the Nuoc Cham is added. All of this went in. The measurements for the Nuoc Cham make more than is needed for the spinach stir fry, but hey ho, it didn't offend and meant there was a bit of liquid left over.

The Cambodian curry was lovely. The flavours of the Kroeung coming through, and not overpowering the aubergine. We'd used light coconut milk, but this didn't have an effect on the creaminess of the dish at all.

The spinach (Vietnamese) was lovely and refreshing with the lime juice of the Nuoc Cham coming through, also with a satisfying kick from those chillis. We do like spicy food, but perhaps these two were not best matched. The heat of the chillis in the spinach seemed to overpower the delicate flavours and fragrances of the curry. We will do both of these again, and again. But probably not together.

Lucia's Beef Rolls and Caponata

Yesterday was a busy Sunday for me.  I was working till half past 2 then I had to go to my parents to pick up the bottle of Camel Valley Bacchus they had kindly bought for us while on holiday in Cornwall.  It got to about half past 5 and all this time I couldn't wait to get back home and try the recipe we had been planning all week.  For our Sunday dinner we only had to look as far as fellow food blogger Lucia and her wonderful Simply Italian Food.



Braciole Napoletane al Sugo (Beef Rolls the Neapolitan Way)


We had decided to try the Beef Rolls (the Neapolitan way).  See the link for Lucia's recipe but I will attempt to talk you through how we did it.

First we laid out the beef.  We bought Steak Sizzlers as they seemed to be about the right shape for rolling (more about that later)

Then we spread all the ingredients as per Lucia's instruction.  This included: garlic, Parmesan, pine nuts and chopped parsley

We then seasoned them, rolled them up and secured the rolls with cocktail sticks
These were then sealed in a hot pan with good olive oil - done in batches as it was less stressful

The rolls were returned to the pan and to it we added tomato puree and passata and left to simmer for an hour







We were very hungry as it was Sunday dinner so we served this with some gluten-free spaghetti and a side portion of warm Caponata.  For the Caponata we went back to the brilliant Jamie's Italy.  We cooked his Caponata as per the recipe except instead of herb vinegar we used red wine vinegar from Kenyon Hall Farm.

For this you will need:

2 Aubergines (large chunks)
1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
Salt and Pepper
1 Small Red Onion
2 Cloves Garlic
Small Bunch Flat Leaf parsley - separated and chopped
2 Tablespoons of drained and rinsed salted capers
Handful Green Olives - stones removed
3 Tablespoons of Herb Vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
5 Large Ripe Tomatoes

This is a very easy stew cooked in stages and simmered for 20 mins - half an hour.  Jamie recommended less oil and less cooking time then we prefer so we kept Olive Oil on hand to keep the dish moist as we went along.  We were trying to get a consistency similar to that which we had in Carluccio's recently which was completely cooked down and shimmering in oil.  We made quite a lot so some is in the fridge to eat as a cold antipasto later in the week.

First, brown the Aubergine all over in a hot pan with a few glugs of Olive Oil and after five minutes or so, add the red onion, garlic and parsley stalks

Then add the capers, olives and vinegar
When the vinegar has evaporated add the chopped tomatoes, season and cook for about half an hour or to the consistency you prefer

Serve it warm with some parsley and some more olive oil drizzled over the top







This was a great meal, rather filling and very satisfying for what should be the best meal of the week in my opinion.  During this time Fran also made another Fritata so it was quite an epic hour or so for the more relaxed cooks among us!! 

Beef Rolls: First of all, thank you to Lucia for providing such a great recipe.  I must admit we were intrigued by the simplicity of the tomato sauce but perhaps the beauty of the dish is that the meat is flavoured rather than the sauce making it an altogether more subtle dish.  There are a couple of things to bear in mind - which we will think about next time we try this dish - and that is to think about the quality of the meat.  In hindsight we wished we had bought better meat from the butcher as the steak we used became a little tough in the cooking process.  Or maybe we should have tenderised it a little with a hammer before cooking.  Lucia - perhaps you can let me know what cut you used?
Also, as Lucia quite rightly pointed out - the Parsley is very important.  We probably didn't put enough in (and we were warned) as were were saving some for the Caponata.  This may have been to the detriment of the flavours and we will learn from our mistakes.  To summarise though: a great recipe with fantastic flavours - just make sure you use a good quality meat and plenty of Parsley (as Lucia suggests)!

The Caponata was great too.  It needed cooking longer than the recipe says in our opinion and make sure the capers are well rinsed as although it was ok on acidity any more vinegar would have taken it a bit too far I felt.

Asian Pork and Aubergine Hotpot

Why is it that whenever we want ideas for a recipe we go straight to google?  We have probably 200 cookbooks at home (in a very small house) and we don't really make use of them.  The good thing about going to google though is that very often the kind of dish you are looking for is on the BBC Good Food website.  A favourite from the website became tea for the last 2 nights running.

Asian Pork and Aubergine Hotpot with Rice

Now there is not much point in me explaining the full details as I changed very little from the original recipe, so think of this more as a recipe review.  The full details can be found here.

The first time we made it Fran felt there was too much Star Anise so this time I just used 3 (but this is personal taste as I quite liked the aniseed kick).  We didn't have Muscavado sugar so used molasses instead.  Also, we chose pork shoulder steaks rather than pork belly which we have found to be too fatty in the past.

Here is how we did it:

Brown the meat in batches and put aside (I used a colander to lose some excess fat -but then used it anyway while cooking the aubergine!)

Brown the aubergine in batches (adding a little of the pork fat as above) and put aside

Heat up the sugar till beginning to caramelise and add the pork and aubergine and coat

Add the chopped ginger, chilli and onion and cook for a few minutes

Then add the star anise and cinnamon stick with a splash of fish sauce and coriander stalks (chopped)

Add water to about a third of the dish, cover and cook undisturbed for 1 hour (200c)



When ready to serve, add lime juice, some more fish sauce, chilli and coriander

mmmm










One of the most important ingredients in this dish I think is the lime juice at the end - the flavours just dance in your mouth.  Also, although it needs about an hour to cook the pork, don't over-do it as the aubergine will become mushy.  The recipe says large chunks of aubergine - so you want to keep the shape if possible. 

Often with a stew it gets better if it is left for a while - we definitely found this as we had it two days in a row.  On the night we made it - it tasted great but had perhaps a little too much water (so be careful).  But left in the Le Creuset over night - the flavours really combined without over-cooking, the sauce thickened a little and then after heating on a medium temperature for 20 minutes was yummy the next day.  Perhaps this dish would work better if cooked in the morning - left to settle then re-heated in the evening (just a thought).

Anyway - we love this recipe - the proportions made 5 good sized helpings and will freeze.  Plus this is Gluten-Free so happy days!

Parmigiana Di Melanzana (almost) was an organic experience

Well August Bank Holiday brought my only day off of the week and we were going to go walking but by the time we got up and finished off the curry we'd had boxed from the night before, it was afternoon!!  Then we got to thinking about what farm shops or markets might be open in the area.  We looked up a few on the Internet but most seemed to be shut on a Monday - all except for Kenyon Hall Farm near Warrington.

Fran informed me that they were in fact an award winning supplier of local/organic food so we thought we must go spend some cash - so that is what we did.

It wasn't particularly local but we managed to avoid the majority of the Bank Holiday traffic and 40 mins later we found the place.  It is a great place where you can pick your own fruit or (like us) just go and buy produce that someone else has harvested.

After a successful little shopping trip and we ended up with this array of delights:

Organic delights

We bought red wine vinegar, cheese, tomatoes, new potatoes, a massive courgette (for 10p), patty pan squashes, a couple of lettuces, a chilli plant and a sweet basil plant (as ours didn't appear to want to provide any more leaves!).  With this we thought we could make a lovely meal. - And we did, although we had to use some things that we already had in so it wasn't a totally organic meal - but tasty none the less.

Parmigiana Di Melanzana (Baked Sliced Aubergines with Tomato, Taleggio and Parmesan Cheese)

Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes was once again the book of choice.  As we had organic tomatoes and tomatoes form a big part of this dish we thought it would be perfect (we also had an aubergine that needed eating!).

The only change we made was the Taleggio Cheese which we couldn't find so we replaced it with some Emmental in the hope it would react in a similar way.  Our recipe (also adjusted for 2 people) was:

1 large aubergine
Extra virgin olive oil
150g Emmental cheese
Large handful of basil leaves (shredded)
300 ml tomato sauce as shown here
Parmesan cheese (grated)
Salt

Method

Slice the aubergine length ways and salt the slices and leave to drain for 30 mins.  Pat the aubergine dry and fry over a medium heat for 2 mins either side and put to one side.  When ready you can begin assembly.

To assemble, lay half the aubergine slices over an oven-proof dish.  Scatter over half the basil and spread half the sauce.

Then add the slices of cheese and sprinkle some Parmesan cheese.

Repeat the layer with the remainder of the ingredients and bake in a pre-heated oven for 25 mins - until bubbling.








To serve, I stir fried some of the Patty Pan Squash with salt, pepper and Greek oregano and finished with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and a just some organic lettuce on the side.

Parmigiana Di Melanzana, Stir-fried Patty Pan Squash and Organic Lettuce

Caribbean Food

Last night, after wondering what to make for tea, and reading various recipe books, we settled on perhaps one of our most adventurous books; Caribbean Food Made Easy with Levi Roots. We'd previous made something from this book, so knew that the recipes were good, and that any crazy ingredients had alternatives, but really we should be able to source anything in Manchester.

We settled on the Caramel-Lime Chicken, which the book puts with the Caribbean Mash and the Caribbean Griddled Aubergine. Even though there wasn't anything too unusual in the ingredients, we did need a separate list to go shopping. We got hold of the Scotch Bonnet no problem, but despite previously having Tamarind Paste in the cupboard, we couldn't find it. With the advice from a very nice Pakistani lady shopping in Morrisons, we bought actual Tamarind along with instructions and reassurances from her that it was very simple to make the paste. And at 30p for the Tamarind, I guess it is so much cheaper than if we were to find it in a bottle. This was a new one to us but we gave it a go.

Tamarind

First of all the Tamarind had to be soaked in warm water for 30 minutes. I guess that natural tamarind might be different, and that this is dried and therefore needs the soaking. It then needs to be pushed through a sieve, and what we get is the paste.

We actually got the right amount (1.5 tbsp) that we needed for the Aubergine dish as we were halving the amounts. We think this is the way forward for Tamarind in future, even though the sieve took some cleaning.

To start the Aubergine dish, soften 1 and a half yellow peppers, about 75g butternut squash (about two slices from the thin end), 1 and a half sticks of celery (now I don't usually like celery, but I was willing to trust Levi on this), with a finely chopped garlic clove.

Meanwhile, griddle slices of one large aubergine.

When that mixture has softened, add one finely chopped scotch bonnet chilli (we couldn't find any gloves to use, and we weren't going to risk the hotness, hence the sandwich bag!), 1.5 tbsp tomato puree, same of demerara sugar and the tamarind paste, plus 3 tbsp of water and let this cook for about 5 mins.

After that has cooked and the aubergine has been griddled, put it all in a heat proof dish (that can be covered) and stick it in the oven at 180C or Gas 4 for 20-25mins.

The chicken recipe has less ingredients, and less crazy ingredients.

To start with we tossed 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs in 1 tbsp of pepper and a pinch of salt. The recipe said 8 thighs for 3-4 people, and Morrisons had them in packs of 6. We kept the same proportions of everything else, as quite frankly, trying to work it all out is too much brain strain.

Put 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan (with lid) with 2 tbsp granulated sugar and heat. Don't stir! I've never worked with sugar, as it scares me. Maybe its because of the temperatures it can reach and basically the chemical reactions that occur at the different temperatures so this was new to me. Levi says that if you stir it, the sugar will clump, and even though this was with oil and not water, which is the common ingredient for syrups etc, I thought it would be best to trust him. It did all melt and come together. The chicken thighs then go in and the pan is covered and it is left to cook for 10 mins.

After the 10 mins, the chicken is turned to reveal a lovely caramel colour and to allow the other side to cook. 50 ml of lime juice is then added to the pan, which Levi says is about 2 limes, but we managed to get it out of  1. It is then covered again and left to cook for another 10 mins.

After that cooking time, the chicken is lifted out, and the sauce is boiled for a bit for it to come together and thicken. We didn't see much thickening in the pan, but nevermind. It did thicken as it cooled down. This sauce was poured over the chicken.

We finished the meal with Caribbean Mash. Or just mashed sweet potato with a pinch of nutmeg as we didn't have any ground allspice in as the recipe said. The aubergines came out of the oven and were garnished with parsley. These were in for the correct amount of time, but we felt that they could have been in for longer, and that any extra time would not ruin the dish.

Caramel-Lime Chicken, Sweet Potato Mash and Caribbean Griddled Aubergines

The meal was lovely, and very different to what we've eaten recently. So many exciting flavours, and lots of happy, sunshine colours (and you couldn't really taste the celery, even though it still gave a crunch - bonus!). We'll definitely be cooking more from Levi's book.