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Penne arrabiata

Posted in Diabetes, Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged , , on March 6, 2013| 18 Comments »

Farmhouse cupboard fare: Olive oil, garlic, tomatoes, chilis, pasta and parmesan–that simple!

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A classic example of the Mediterranean way of eating, which is in the news–again!.

It has barely been out of the news–stories of people living to very advanced ages on Greek islands crop up with annoying regularity on the health pages; annoying in the sense that you immediately want to go there and get a slice of the action–and can’t!

You could though get a copy of food writer Nancy Harmon Jenkins’ wonderful book–The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook–20th anniversary of its publication coming up next year.

She has been trumpeting the “Med” way of eating for years.

This was Sunday night supper chez nous–inspired by the recipe in her book.

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for 4

1 large tin [can] 800g of tomatoes–chopped with its liquid

3 large garlic cloves–pulped in a mortar or press

4 tbls olive oil

4 small dried red chili–chopped with their seeds–(less or more depending on your tolerance and taste, but this is called “angry” [arrabiata] penne!)

25 gms/12oz penne rigate–the ridged kind (it picks up the sauce better)–ideally whole wheat/integral–which is increasingly available

salt and pepper

  • Gently heat the oil in a pan large enough to take the pasta too.
  • Slip in the pulped garlic and let it colour lightly.

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  • Add the chili and the chopped-up tomatoes.

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  • Cook until the sauce thickens–about 30 minutes–stirring regularly.
  • It should be an unctuous pool of red glory.

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  • Taste for heat/spiciness—add more if you like.
  • Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add a teaspoon of salt.
  • Add the penne, stir to stop the pasta sticking to the base of the pan and bring back to the boil.
  • Cook until it is just tender.
  • Drain well and add the penne to the sauce and turn it to coat the pasta thoroughly.

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  • Serve with grated parmesan if that suits–and a glass of red wine?

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When is a diet not a diet? When it becomes…

Posted in Diabetes, Food, other sides to this life, tagged , , on March 4, 2013| 21 Comments »

… a way of life!

The very word DIET is open to interpretation.

A Latin meaning has it as daily food allowance; in classical Greek diaita means way of living!

Last week in its Health section, The New York Times reported on a remarkable new study of the Mediterranean Diet conducted in Spain and published in the highly respected New England Journal of Medicine:

About 30 percent of heart attacks, strokes and deaths from heart disease can be prevented in people at high risk if they switch to a Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil, nuts, beans, fish, fruits and vegetables, and even drink wine with meals, a large and rigorous new study has found.

Nice to hear about the virtues of red wine! Also dark chocolate gets a nod!

(A square of 90% cacao chocolate and a dried fig make a nice finish to lunch and dinner!)

In the UK, my cookbook is subtitled, Delicious Dishes for Diabetics–a Mediterranean Way of Eating. (The American publisher changed the subtitle!)

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Person showing interest in the Mediterranean way of eating!

The benefits of a diet based on olive oil, garlic and tomatoes have been debated–and some American heart specialists insist the vegan diet is superior–no animal products whatsoever. But not everyone wants to follow that way of eating.

Our friend John in Washington D.C. who builds dry stone walls and massive earth dikes and stoneworks is relishing the Paleo diet which involves eating large helpings of red meat–even at breakfast!

Each to his own.

I suspect most people, at some point in their lives, willingly go on a diet–-to lose weight, for medical reasons or for a general clean out–to feel better.

In the early eighties, I remember astonishing my dinner hostess in London by bringing my own dinner with me–a three pound bag of raw onions–which I proceeded to cook and eat at the table while all the other guests sensibly and politely ate her lovingly prepared meal.

It amazes now me that I could have been so obsessed that I lost all sense of manners!

I can’t remember how long I stuck with the onion diet; I hope I gave it up the following morning, from shame!

The faddishness of diets is well known.

There are always many to choose from and they are usually embarked on with gusto–missionary zeal even—which has a tendency to fade….The Mediterranean Diet certainly has staying power!

http://www.nytimes.com/video/2013/02/25/health/100000002085482/the-benefits-of-olive-oil.html

Mark Bitman of The New York Times says of the Mediterranean Diet:

This is real food, delicious food, mostly easy-to-make food. You can eat this way without guilt and be happy and healthy.

The study is receiving–by and large–a good reaction:

“Really impressive,” said Rachel Johnson, a professor of nutrition at the University of Vermont and a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association.

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Mediterranean BLUE–shameless promotion of a Mediterranean Way of Living! 

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EXPLANATION of the Food Pyramid

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Whole fish in “Crazy” water.

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged on March 2, 2013| 8 Comments »

Crazy title–simple and delicious recipe.

Just fresh fish–whole (preferably) or in fillet form–poached briefly in water flavoured with sweet cherry tomatoes, garlic, chili and parsley.

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Fishermen on the Amalfi coast in Italy cook the non-saleable fish with these simple ingredients–usually to hand.

Why “crazy” though?

for 2

a whole sea bream/dorade or sea bass weighing about a 1lb/450gms–gutted and scaled

8oz/250gms cherry tomatoes–gashed to release their flesh but kept whole. I found some cherry tomatoes on the vine at the market this morning which were surprisingly sweet for the time of the year. Later in the year any ripe tomato would do, though the cherry variety look pretty.

4 tblsps olive oil

3 garlic cloves–chopped

1 tblsp parsley–chopped

2/3 small dried red chilis–sliced roughly

16fl oz boiling water

  • Wash the fish, pat dry and season.
  • Heat the oil in a pan large enough to hold the fish lying flat.
  • Sauté the garlic and chili for a couple of minutes.
  • Add the fish and sauté for half a minute each side,
  • Add the hot water, the tomatoes and parsley.
  • Squeeze the tomatoes against the sides of the pan to release some of their sweetness.
  • Spoon some of the liquid over the fish, cover and cook on a low heat for about ten minutes–depending on the size of the fish.

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  • Carefully lift the fish out of the pan to a warm plate and separate the fillets–if it’s a whole fish.
  • Serve with two or three spoonfuls of the tomatoey sauce.
  • Meredith would have liked some basmati brown rice but the cupboard was bare!
  • A green salad was a good stand-in.

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From an empty head to fennel au gratin!

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged on February 28, 2013| 30 Comments »

One of those mornings.

Dead mouse in my shoe, a present from Ben–the kitten.

Spotted it just in time–no squelch or scream!

Thanks Ben!

Blue sky, bright sunshine–finches feasting on the bird table and window ledges, laden with the sunflower seeds I bought yesterday.

A walk before breakfast–feeling virtuous. Catching up on stuff on the computer–checking out the progress of yesterday’s news, e-mail, blog.

Finish breakfast–tick-tock, tick-tock…BLOCK!

Well, that’s it then–day done!

No! no!

What’s for lunch?–for instance. Omelette again?–(always the fall back)–really?

Sit staring–no idea–no ideas! Not feeling much like doing anything.

Lie down for a minute or two–yes, yes.

Nice, nice–aaah…

Movement–tick-tock, tick-tock, thoughts unblock….

There are those three large fennel bulbs I bought in the market yesterday–just before the sunflower seeds.

Fennel salad? with parmesan shavings–could be.

Could try that anchovy dressing we had yesterday on the escarole lettuce–delicious.

Anchovy and fennel?–umm…not sure.

Check out recipes.

Fennel and orange salad–could do with the peeled oranges in the fridge…

Fennel  gratin?–YES! Lovely!

ACTION STATIONS! Wheels turning–relief.

Get going.

3 large fennel bulbs–outer leaves removed and sliced vertically, then slices halved

2oz/50gms smoked or unsmoked bacon–diced small

2oz/50gms parmesan cheese–grated

3 tbls wholewheat breadcrumbs

salt and pepper

olive oil

set oven to 220C/450F

Steam the fennel slices until they are tender.

Gently sauté the bacon bits until they color a little.

Oil the base of a thick gratin dish–I use a medium La Creuset.

Cover with a layer of fennel.

Sprinkle with some of the bacon and parmesan and season lightly.

Repeat the process until you have used all the fennel.

Mix together the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs (grate more parmesan if needed).

Cover the top of the gratin with this mixture.

Trickle some olive oil round the edge of the dish and back and forth–criss-crossing the top.

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Put the dish on the top shelf of the oven for twenty minutes–you could check it after fifteen.

Take it out of the oven and let it settle for ten minutes.

LUNCH!

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Now what?!

The moral of the tale: don’t panic!

(I notice–after lunch–that I posted a version of Fennel au gratin 3 months ago–but this one is different–with bacon added).

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Hazelnut pasta

Posted in Food, Recipes, tagged on February 27, 2013| 4 Comments »

This is a lot like a pesto pasta.

You can prepare the nut mix beforehand and reheat it very gently when you come to cook the pasta–stress-free cooking–(in principle!).

Hazelnuts roasted are particularly more-ish. Mixed with olive oil, chili and garlic and served, as here, with nutty wholewheat pasta, they are irresistible!

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The first time we had this for lunch the more-ishness grew on us with each mouthful!

for 2

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7oz wholewheat penne

3 tblsps olive oil

1 tsp hazelnut oil–if available

2 garlic cloves--pulped

2 small dry chilis–chopped

75gms roasted hazelnuts*–chopped  (I use the small container in a food mixer and pulse the nuts to control the finished size–crunchy little bits–not powder)

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2/3 tblsps parsley–chopped

2 tblsps saved pasta water (i.e. the water that the pasta was cooked in!)

50gms parmesan cheese–grated

pecorino cheese–if available, a couple of tablespoons–bearing in mind its saltiness.

salt

  • Heat the oils in a pan and add the garlic.
  • Colour it gently, taking care not to burn it.

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  • Turn off the heat and remove the garlic from the pan to prevent it cooking longer and let it cool.
  • Add the chili to the warm oil in the pan.
  • Gently reheat the oil and chili in the pan.
  • Add the hazelnuts and the parsley to the pan and cook briefly–about three minutes.

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  • Turn off the heat and mix in the sautéed garlic.
  • Bring a large pan of water to the boil with a dash of salt.
  • Add the pasta and cook it to taste.
  • When the pasta is done as you like it–drain, remembering to save 3 or 4 tablespoons of the water.
  • Return the pasta to the warm pan you cooked it in and add the nuts, parsley, garlic and cheese(s) and mix thoroughly.
  • Add a couple of tablespoons of the warm pasta water to loosen the sauce a little.

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  • Add salt to taste.
  • Serve immediately (it cools down quickly)–with extra cheese and a swirl of olive oil, if you like.
  • And before you could say Jack Robinson..!

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* to roast the hazelnuts:

Heat the oven to 180C.

spread the hazelnuts over a shallow oven tray and put it in the oven.

Check them after 5 minutes–it depends on their size how long they take.

Taste one to check for crunchy doneness–roast them a little longer if you feel they need it.

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Lemony lentils–an Indian dal

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged , , , on February 25, 2013| 18 Comments »

Meredith tells me the first time she became aware of lentils, was at the age of 35! They had not been part of her experience growing up in suburban Chicago in the fifties.

One of the first things I cooked for her was a dish I call “comfort lentils” (it’s in my cookbook Delicious Dishes for Diabetics).

Much has changed–Indian restaurants are common place now in the US.

Indian and Chinese restaurants and “take-aways” (my equivalent of MacDonalds–first outlet opened in the UK in 1974!) featured regularly in my life at college and in provincial theatre.

Affordable and open late–just the ticket!

This recipe is hands on for the first half hour or so, as it builds in the taste.

Then it chugs along on a low heat for fifty minutes as the lentils dissolve and the dal forms.

The finish involves sautéing a small amount of onion, garlic and dried red pepper to stir into the mix to lift it.

It’s adapted from a recipe in Ismail Merchant’s excellent and quirky cookbook Indian Cuisine.

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8oz red lentils–rinsed until the water runs clear

1 small onion–chopped

2 tblsps olive oil

a short stick of cinnamon

1 tsp fresh ginger–grated

250ml/1/2 pint stock–I use organic vegetable stock cubes

250ml/1/2 pint hot water

1 tsp cayenne pepper

juice and the shells of a lemon

to finish:

2 tblsps olive oil

1/2 small onion–sliced

1 garlic clove–chopped

1 tsp salt

1 small dried red chili–chopped

Cook the onion over a low heat in the oil until it is opaque–about five minutes.

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Add the lentils, cinnamon and the ginger and mix in.

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Cook these  together gently for about ten minutes, keeping the heat low and stirring from time to time to avoid them sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning.

A nutty aroma starts to rise from the darkening lentils, as they cook.

Add the stock and hot water, cayenne and salt.

Bring to the simmer.

Cook on gently for a further ten minutes, then add the lemon juice and the empty lemon halves and stir it all together.

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Cover the pan and continue cooking on a very low heat–use a heat diffuser if necessary–for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid sticking.

In a small frying pan heat the tablespoon of olive oil and add the sliced onion.

Let this color for five minutes over a medium heat.

Add the chili and the sliced garlic and continue cooking until the garlic begins to brown.

Add this to the lentils and mix it in.

We ate it yesterday as an accompaniment to spicy marinaded chicken breasts–(recipe soon).

It’ll taste even better today!

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Fast-track fish fillet

Posted in Food, Recipes, tagged , on February 23, 2013| 18 Comments »

This fabulously fuss-free fish fillet recipe I found in Leon’s (Restaurant in London) cookbook.

The fillet is cooked fast at the highest temperature the oven can reach.

How can this work without the fillet shriveling to a cinder?

The answer’s a lemon!

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It takes ten minutes and the result is a delicious, succulent piece of fish with a modest “built-in” sauce.

Served on a bed of spinach, swiss chard or a simple side salad of rocket, this is a useful company dish.

for 4

4 thick fish fillets–sustainable fish for preference* (see below)–try ling, hake, pollack or coley

2 tblsps olive oil

A handful of parsley–chopped

1 or two lemons–sliced thick  (you need two/three slices per fillet–how many depends on the size of the lemons.)

salt and pepper

Place an empty oven tray large enough for the number of fillets  you are cooking on the top shelf.

Heat the oven to the  hottest temperature–yes, you’re heating the empty tray!

Meanwhile wash and dry the fillets.

Mix the oil and parsley together and turn the fillets in this mixture.

Season them well.

Gingerly–as it’ll be very hot–take the tray out of the oven and place the fillets on it.

Place the lemon slices on top of the fillets as in the photos.

Put the tray back on top shelf of the oven for ten minutes–less if the fillets are relatively thin.

When they are ready, serve them–suggesting diners press gently down on the hot lemon pieces.

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*Line caught fish–a handy explanation from Greenpeace

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Sweet potato, fennel and smokey bacon “in a pot”

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged , , , , on February 20, 2013| 6 Comments »

I’m keen to try simple meal-in-a-pot recipes that can be prepared in advance.

This is one inspired by a Nigel Slater recipe from an old newspaper clipping.

We found it hard not to finish it off last night–impossible in fact!

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“Well it’s just one medium sweet potato, a single fennel bulb and some chickpeas.”

(I added smoked paprika and halved the amount of smoked bacon in the original.)

“Oh–go on then!”

So much for moderation.

For 2/3

1 onion–chopped

2 sticks of celery–chopped

2 tblsps olive oil

3 garlic cloves–pulped with a teaspoon of salt

1 tsp rosemary spears–chopped fine

2oz/50gms smoked bacon–cubed

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 medium sweet potato–peeled, sliced into thick rounds and these halved

1 fennel bulb–outer leaves removed and sliced thick on the vertical

1/2 pint stock–I use organic vegetable stock cubes

250gms cooked chickpeas

200ml coconut cream*

2 tblsps breadcrumbs

2 tblsps parmesan cheese–grated

  • set the oven to 190C/360F
  • Heat the oil in a medium size, shallow sauté pan.
  • Fry the onion and the celery for a couple of minutes over a medium heat–

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  • then add the garlic, rosemary and bacon and paprika.

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  • Stir these together and continue cooking and stirring as the vegetables begin to soften and the bacon colours–about ten minutes.
  • Turn the chickpeas into the pan and mix them in.

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  • Add the sweet potato half-rounds and the fennel slices and mix them in.

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  • Ease in the stock and the coconut cream.
  • Season with salt and pepper.
  • Bring it to the boil and sprinkle over the parmesan and breadcrumb mixture.

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  • Place in the middle of the oven for about thirty minutes.
  • From oven to plate and tuck in!

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*The difference between coconut milk/cream and cream of coconut is fully explained here: 

http://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-coconut-m-75446/

It looks like milk, it is NOT sweetened and it does NOT taste of coconut!

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“Nominee”–celery au gratin

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged on February 18, 2013| 15 Comments »

It’s Oscar time of the year, so categories are on my mind.

Celery often features chez nous; sometimes in bit parts–literally–as one element of a soffrito or in a supporting role as a dipping stick for sauces like anchoiade, hummus or guacamole.

Here, it comes out of the shadows and into the spotlight to take the lead, the eponymous role even–with a strong supporting cast.
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750 gms/1 1/2 lbs celery, (weight after separating the sticks and disgarding the damaged outer ones)–cut into short pieces

1 tblsp olive oil

1 onion–chopped

2 cloves garlic–chopped

3 large tinned tomatoes–chopped

1 level tsp cayenne pepper

1 oz smoked bacon–as much fat as possible removed and chopped small

sprigs of thyme and a couple of bay leaves

2 tblsps dry white wine

salt

12 juicy black olives–stoned and halved

  • Steam the celery until it’s tender and set aside.
  • Sauté the bacon, onion and garlic in the oil until they start to color.

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  • Add the chopped tomatoes with the spices, herbs and a pinch of salt.
  • Cook these gently for five minutes.

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  • Add the wine and cook another couple of minutes to let the wine evaporate.
  • Add the olives and cook on for a couple of minutes.
  • Turn off the heat and add the celery,  turning it over thoroughly in the sauce.

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  • Heat the oven to 220C./425F
  • Spread a layer of the celery mix over the base of an oven proof gratin dish.
  • Season and sprinkle over some parmesan.
  • Repeat the process–seasoning and sprinkling cheese over each layer.
  • Finish with a layer of parmesan
  • Place the dish on the highest shelf–checking after 20 minutes.
  • The gratin should come out sizzling with a pleasingly charred look.
  • Let it rest for 15 minutes.

And the winner is…

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There is more to chili than “meats” the eye! (Meredith’s bon mot)!

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, tagged , , , , on February 16, 2013| 13 Comments »

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Veggie chili.

Our friend Norma, who lives with husband Bill in McClean, Virginia close to Washington DC, has given me permission to reproduce her wonderfully detailed survey of chili traditions.

Tempting one day to cruise the Chili Trail!

Do you know that “Chili” was strictly a “Gringo” invention?  The only chili the Mexicans know is the sauce.  It was the ranchers and cowboys who first started putting together the recipe, mostly to cover up stale meat while out on the trail drive.  They also needed the extra protein while on the long cattle drives north to St. Louis, Kansan City and then Chicago.  People in the southwest don’t add beans to their chili.  That is a Midwest way to do it.  Cincinnati cilli has a dash of cinnamon.
Bar-B-Q:  Texas Bar-B-Q is always dry.  They rub seasonings and spices on the raw meat, put it on a grill and smoke it slowly until it is done.
Memphis and Kansas City Bar-B-Q is “wet” cooked in a sauce until it falls of the bone.  Most of them start with a tomato base sauce.  Also includes vinegar, molasses & paprika.
St. Louis has mustard and brown sugar.
Thanks, Norma!
Anyone care to add other chili wisdom?

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