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Tomatoes for supper

August 28, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Morning’s harvest in my walking hat.

We had these last night for supper on the terrace–late, after the big heat had lifted.

I’d tried out a new courgette/zucchini recipe which was a complete failure! These tomatoes were supposed to be the accompanying vegetable.

In the end we settled for the tomatoes, a piece of toast with olive oil dribbled over it and a glass of red wine.

A light supper–as Nigel Slater puts it in the magazine article I found in an old notebook a couple of days ago.

The combination of olive oil, rosemary, garlic and parmesan is comforting and delicious.

for 2

10 medium ripe tomatoes–cut in half

2 cloves of garlic–peeled

2 stems of rosemary leaves–chopped fine

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper

3 tablespoons grated parmesan or more if needed

heat the oven to 200C/400F

  • Put the garlic and rosemary with a good pinch of salt and a few grindings of the peppermill in a mortar.
  • Pulp the garlic and the rosemary with the pestle.
  • Add the olive oil and stir to make a rough paste.
  • Cover a shallow oven tray with foil and bush it with oil.
  • Place the tomatoes on it cut side up.
  • Using a teaspoon smooth a little of the garlicky paste on each half tomato.

  • Place the tray on the top rack of the oven and cook for about 20-30 minutes–the tomatoes should have softened and collapsed somewhat.

  • Take them out of the oven and place a small pile of parmesan on each tomato half.

  • Put the tray back in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the cheese has browned some on top.
  • Serve with a piece of wholewheat/rye toast dribbled with olive oil.
  • A very light supper–(the best tomato recipe for a while, pronounces Meredith!)–but we probably slept better for it!

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes | 9 Comments »

An Anniversary

August 26, 2012 by Robin Ellis

I do!–I do! Now,

twenty-two years to the day.

We did–we did–JOY!

Married!–with bridesmaid and niece Cait Brady (now a qualified doctor!)

Posted in other sides to this life, Robin Ellis | Tagged , | 67 Comments »

Aubergine/eggplant rounds with cheesy tomato topping

August 22, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Aubergines/eggplants–are piled high on the market stalls at the moment and I’m ever on the lookout for new ways to cook them.

Beautiful shiny black, purple and even white torpedoes, these enigmatic vegetables have always felt a bit daunting to me–where does one start!

Well yesterday I started with Nigel Slater’s heavy tome Tender (weighs in at 4 lbs).

He’s an English cookery writer with an air of the solitary about him and a touch of genius, who wrote  about his childhood in a book called Toast.

Tender is the story of his urban London vegetable garden:

As the church bells chimed New Year’s Eve and fireworks lit up the night sky, I vowed to dig up my lawn and grow at least some of my own vegetables.

So far I’ve not dug deeply into it. Time to look again.

The section on aubergines is extensive–and this simple recipe leapt out at me.

We had these last night as a light supper with green beans (their ubiquity is beginning to cause comment!).

for two

1 large aubergine/eggplant–sliced carefully into rounds about a 1.5 cm/.75″ thick

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves of garlic–thinly sliced

1lb/450gms tomatoes–cut up with their juice

1 dried red chili–chopped roughly

salt and pepper

more olive oil as you need it

4 tablespoons grated parmesan

  • salt the aubergines and leave them to drain for an hour or so.

set the oven at 220C/425F

  • Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and soften the garlic–about 30 seconds.
  • Put in the tomatoes and the chili, season and cook over a medium high heat until you have a sauce–stirring often.
  • Line a shallow oven tray with foil and brush it lightly with oil.
  • Brush the aubergine rounds with olive oil.
  • Arrange them on the tray and bake in the upper part of the oven until soft (undercooked aubs are un-eatable!)–-15-20 minutes–turning them over after 10 minutes.
  • Pile some sauce on each round–be generous–and top with some parmesan.
  • Put the tray back in the oven for 15 minutes.
  • the rounds should come out–as Nigel puts it—sizzling!

This is how much we liked them..!

Posted in Diabetes, Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, Robin Ellis | Tagged , , , , , , | 20 Comments »

Courgette, Tomato and Bean Salad–improvised lunch!

August 21, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Doing our best to avoid the outside world–too hot to shop!

I found a bottle of cannellini beans in the larder and a jar of home-made pesto that was still good in the fridge.

These along with the two and a half courgettes (zucchini) and some must-be-used green and red cherry tomatoes from the garden, put me in mind of a salad we had last summer that hit the spot and had–I couldn’t help noticing–been approved by a higher authority.

The original from The Riverford Farm Cookbook

Lunch, I thought.

The pesto was a happy addition to last year’s version.

Posted in other sides to this life | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments »

Canicule

August 19, 2012 by Robin Ellis

The canicule brings on a state of torpidity.

Two words we don’t use often here.

Heat wave and listlessness–brought on by excessive heat.

I’m writing this at ten to ten in the evening and my arms are perspiring–(more than you need to know I suspect).

We haven’t taken the cats for their stroll tonight.

Beau looks forward to this ritual now and the other night when we were headed to Lautrec for the samba evening he watched us from the cemetery wall with a look of disappointment in his eyes–I swear.

Even Lucien the adopted tigré (tabby) whose arthritis makes him hobble, managed a crooked tail-rise as  he made his way up the hill towards us, remembering past evening perambulations with Butterscotch and Marmalade.

Pippa, the mother of all cats, hung back as usual awaiting our return.

I always suspect she regrets not coming with us–in the end.

Tonight it’s too hot to move anywhere–even with the fans blowing full strength.

La Depeche du Midi–the local daily–was full of gloom this morning, reminding everyone of the 2003 canicule, when upward of 15,000 people died, saying this heatwave will be on that scale.

That mustn’t happen again–so warnings are in order.

Lucien is taking heed–sacked out on the sofa!

Posted in other sides to this life | Tagged , , , | 46 Comments »

Courgette gratin–Italian style

August 19, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Words to yesterday’s pictures!

This is a classic Mediterranean dish and everyone has a way to do it– as is clear from the comments left after yesterday’s Wordless Blog.

(I want to try a courgette parmegiagno this week–where the courgettes/zucchini are griddled as aubergines/eggplants are in the classic dish and then as here mixed with tomato and cheese).

Italian style because it’s inspired by a Marcella Hazan version and is a little different to the Elizabeth David’s French gratin in Delicious Dishes for Diabetics.

  • Prepare 3 good size courgettes/zucchini—top and tail them and slice them thin–a food mixer appliance does this nicely.
  • Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepan and add the sliced courgettes, a chopped garlic clove and half a teaspoon of salt. 

  • Turn everything over several times to coat the vegetables lightly in the oil.
  • Cook on a low heat until the courgettes are wilted.

  • Set the courgettes/zucchini aside.
  • Make a quick tomato sauce with—
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1k/2lbs fresh tomatoes–cored and roughly chopped or 2 large tins of tomatoes–drained of their juice and roughly chopped.
  • 2 garlic cloves–peeled and thinly sliced.
  • Salt and pepper.
  • A few basil leaves–chopped.

  • Heat the oil in a large pan and add the garlic.
  • Soften it briefly–being careful not to let it brown too much or burn.
  • Add the tomatoes and cook over a high heat–stirring often–until the loose liquid has evaporated and little pock marks appear on the surface.
  • If you can part the Red Sea—running a spoon through it–it’s done.
  • Season with salt and pepper and stir in the basil.
  • Grate 3 to 4 tablespoons (about 40gms) parmesan cheese.
  • Heat the oven to 200C/450F.
  • Smear the base of an oven proof baking dish of suitable size with some of the tomato sauce.

  • Then cover this with a layer of courgettes/zucchini.

  • Season lightly with salt and pepper and sprinkle a layer of parmesan.

  • And repeat the layering, starting with a layer of tomatoes.
  • (Not forgetting to season lightly at each layer.)

  • Topping it off with the last of the parmesan.
  • Put the dish high in the oven for about 20 minutes or until it displays an inviting crispy brown top.

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, Robin Ellis | Tagged , , , , , , | 14 Comments »

Wordless blog..!

August 18, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Posted in Food, Robin Ellis | Tagged , , , , | 23 Comments »

Samba

August 17, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Twice in a week!

Monday night we were in Argentina; last night it was Brazil.

At Café Plum in Lautrec a talented trio called Fado do Samba played a spirited samba set to a happy crowd of spectators, a considerable number of whom succumbed to a desire to get up and dance.

It was lovely.

We arrive late as usual.

The walled courtyard–open to the sky–of this recent and welcome addition to Lautrec’s cultural scene is jam-packed with holidaymakers and locals–sitting round the magnificent lime tree (linden) that reaches to the sky from its centre.

This time we bring our own chairs.

We edge in at the back behind the only two people wearing hats.

The woman’s is a jaunty synthetic floppy number and–luckily for me–see-through.

Her husband’s straw-looking trilby–on Meredith’s side–is not.

They dress alike: green tops each, a white dress for her and white trousers for him–to go with the hats.

She is bavardeuse (chatty) and he never says a word–I’m with him!

Stoicly we refuse to allow the slightly obstructed view to spoil our enjoyment of the music.

My feet start tapping involuntarily and Meredith has trouble keeping still while taping the panning shots.

We order a glass of red each and settle back.

Fortunately for us it’s not long before Monsieur and Madame Chapeau find the rhythm irresistible and get up to dance–un-obscuring our view.

Heaven!

We leave just before the encore and head for the car, parked a few metres down the street.

We can still hear the music loud and clear and like Les Chapeaux, find it irresistible.

Two foreigners dance in the empty street under a moonless sky, counting their lucky stars!

Posted in other sides to this life | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments »

Percy’s Red Peppers–the remake…

August 16, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Our friend Charlotte first served us this delicious dish of red peppers. The eponymous Percy is a friend of hers.

They were on the menu together with slow-cooked chicken breasts for Brian and Ren’s last night.

I checked my blog to see if I had already posted this recipe and found no reference.

Hooray, I thought, this will make a good post today as a starter or vegetable.

I googled Percy’s Pickled Pepper–thinking what a good intro the tongue twister would be–and up came my post from a year ago!

Percy Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Percy Piper picked;
If Percy Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Percy Piper picked?

Of course, Peter ‘s picking in the nursery rhyme–but Percy’s just as hard to say….

This year’s version:

for four

4 red peppers— cored, de-seeded and sliced fine lengthwise.

3 or 4 garlic cloves skinned and left whole.

12 anchovy fillets–chopped up

2 tblsps small capers

2 tblsps olive oil–plus extra for dribbling

pepper to taste

  • In a large pan over a low heat gently soften the peppers with the garlic cloves in the olive oil; it’s worth taking the time to do this–undercooked peppers are as unpalatable as undercooked aubergines/eggplants.
  • Take a strip of pepper out of the pan from time to time, to test for doneness.

  • In a small pan melt the anchovies slowly in a little olive oil by stirring and mashing them.

  • Add the capers to the melted anchovies and stir the mix into the peppers.
  • Season with pepper.
  • Turn the mixture into an ovenproof serving dish.

Heat the oven to 180˚ half-an-hour before you’re ready to eat.

  • Pop the peppers in the oven to heat through (about 10 minutes).
  • Serve warm with more olive oil drizzled over.
The less-than-a-peck of peppers I prepared for supper disappeared before you could say Percy Piper!
 

Posted in Food, other sides to this life, Recipes, Robin Ellis | Tagged , , , , , , , | 15 Comments »

Tango

August 15, 2012 by Robin Ellis

Our friend Brian is here and Ren.

He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and their two young boys. Ren lives in West Hollywood, LA.

This petit coin of SW France is a haven for these urbanites and they are a bit wide eyed about it.

Brian is driving a camper van across Europe on their way to a family holiday in Austria.

Ambitious project!

Last night we finished caponata on the terrace and headed off to Castres–a little reluctantly in my case (I like a post meal linger)–where an evening of Argentinian dance was in full swing as we approached the large open-air space.

Part of the summer’s International Dance Festival that happens each year–it’s free and hugely popular.

There is not a seat to be had.

We walk up the side aisle and stand at the side of the stage--in the wings as it were.

The scene on stage is a village wedding–nicely recreated with only a little overacting!

Gradually a celebration dance develops which entrances the audience–who applaud as the bride is carried off stage by the groom.

The dancers leave and the band plays a lilting South American air that at 10 o’clock on a balmy  night if you were sitting comfortably could send you off nicely to dreamland.

We–are still standing and are wide awake when the stage starts to fill with men and women dressed in lounge suits and forties style dresses ready for an afternoon dance.

The band leaves and a recorded orchestra starts to play over the speaker system a languid tango theme.

The ten couples start to tell their stories through the sensuous dance and it is riveting.

Tango as domestic drama is a new one on me.

I once danced a tango in a Spanish film called Three Women of Today (Tres Mujereas De Hoy)-

–not a high point in my career and mercifully not available on DVD, but an enjoyable diversion that helped me buy a flat–with a sculptured Spanish beauty called Norma Duval (top left) and there was nothing domestic about it.

The dancers are engaging us in their lives–it is theatre and not just a simple display of desire.

A second session of tango plays out after the interval with a definite evening setting–black suits for the men and red dresses with provocative side slits for the women.

The same dancers are now dressed to kill.

It is beautifully done but feels more conventional more what you’d expect from a tango display.

I was glad I went.

On the way home Ren says quietly: “Well, I thought that was so much better than the closing ceremony”!

Posted in other sides to this life, Robin Ellis | Tagged , , | 16 Comments »

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