Birthday week, in a double significant Birthday year.
Today Meredith continues the celebrations with a small lunch for four after her weekly chi-gong class.
She has engaged a caterer, because naturally she can’t be expected to cook and chi-gong in the same morning.
The caterer was asked to prepare an italian torte from a relatively new cookbook provided by Meredith.
She’s confident, she told the caterer, that if they stick to the instructions in the book, all will be well; there’ll be enough for four even after a hungry making chi-gong class and her friends will be delighted by the delicious dish presented to them.
(The caterer, not without a soupçon of pride, would like it to be known that there’s a small hint in the previous sentence as to the identity of said caterer–just in case any reader might consider the book for purchase*.)
Rice and Spinach Torte
Serves 4 as lunch or more as a starter
Based on Marcella Hazan’s version of a classic, this is very useful as there is no pastry.
You can cook the spinach, rice and onions well in advance, the night before even; then it turns into an assembly job and as such is therapeutic!
1 kg/21⁄4 lb spinach – washed carefully
200 g/7 oz basmati long-grain rice
1 medium onion – chopped
25 g/1 oz butter
4 tbsp olive oil
1⁄4 tsp grated nutmeg
50 g/2 oz grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
4 eggs
25 g/1 oz breadcrumbs – rye or 100 per cent wholewheat
Heat the oven at 230°C/450°F/Gas Mark 8.
- Cook the spinach in the water clinging to it after washing, covered, over a gentle heat – until it has wilted completely –about 10 minutes.
- When it’s cool enough, gently squeeze as much water out of it as you can and roughly chop it.
- Cook the rice in a saucepan, in 570 ml/1 pint/21/2 cups ofwater, covered and over a low heat – it will take about 25 minutes.
- Test it for tenderness; drain and leave to cool.
- Cook the onion in the butter and oil in a large sauté pan overa medium heat until it is a lively brown.
- Add the cooled spinach and rice to the onion and cook on low heat for about 4 minutes, turning to mix and coat well with the oil and butter. Leave to cool.
- Add the nutmeg and half the cheese.
- Season this mix carefully with salt and pepper – tasting and turning as you go – the salt should just come through.
- Turn in the eggs singly.
- Butter or oil the torte tin and sprinkle half the breadcrumbs in the base.
- Now turn the mix into it and smooth over the surface.
- Mix the remaining crumbs and cheese and sprinkle them over the surface.
- Dribble olive oil over this.
- Bake in the top of the oven for 15 minutes.
- Serve tepid–with perhaps a green salad.
(*Delicious Dishes for Diabetics–to save possible confusion!)
Sonia & the torte, going, going....
What was left!
together with a restored chi-gong class and a happy caterer!
Robin Ellis 