Monthly Archives: June 2012

Greek Roast Potatoes With Tomatoes

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There’s nothing like a well-cooked roast potato. Cooks and chefs reputations have turned on the quality of their ‘roasties’. There have been more recipes and articles written on how to make the perfect roast potato than any other food. Well, not quite but it does generate a lot of heated discussion. 

Let me now add to the mix a roast potato that is neither soft and floury nor golden and crunchy. In fact, it’s soft and sticky.  But it’s still a roast potato; it’s just a Greek roast potato.

When I lived in Cyprus, I couldn’t get enough of the large waxy potatoes Cyprus is famous for.  They used to arrive in the local greengrocers still covered in the damp red earth in which they were grown – a region in the southeast of the island. As most of them were exported, it was a short season and we had to make the most of them.

One of the best ways of eating them was to cook them in the oven in a mixture of olive oil and water.  That’s right, water. The combination of roasting and steaming made the potatoes soft and because the Cyprus potatoes are of the waxy variety, they still kept their shape.

In Cyprus, they peel the potatoes, cut into quarters then roast them in a moderate oven with olive oil, water, dried oregano and lemon juice.

In Greece, they cook them in the same way, replacing the oregano with tomatoes.

I tried both ways and have ended up combining both methods and I use much less oil. These roast potatoes are soft, aromatic and tangy with lemon and they look stunning as the tomato juice soaks into the potatoes and turns them a vibrant golden colour.  

They are also versatile as they can be a meal in themselves or an accompaniment to a roast, something from the grill or fish.

If you have any left over the next day (doubtful), fry them with an egg cracked into the middle of the pan or with cubes of feta cheese.

Greek Roast Potatoes with Tomatoes (serves 4 as a side dish)

  • 500 gr Cyprus potatoes (if you can’t find Cyprus potatoes, any good waxy potato such as Charlotte, Maris Peer will do). Peel and cut into quarters lengthways.
  • 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
  • 1tsp dried oregano + another ½ tsp
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Sea salt
  • Black pepper
  • ½ -1 cup water
  1. Heat the oven to 180C, 160C fan, 350F, Gas Mark 4
  2. In a large baking tray or casserole, place the potatoes, onions and garlic.
  3. Sprinkle over 1tsp oregano.
  4. Add the chopped tomatoes, olive oil and lemon juice.
  5. Season with sea salt and grind over some black pepper.
  6. Mix everything together then gently pour over half a cup of water.
  7. Place the dish in the oven and cook, uncovered for 40 minutes.
  8. Take the dish out of the oven, baste the potatoes with the liquid and add a little water if it looks too dry.
  9. Replace and cook for a further 20 minutes.
  10. Remove from the oven again and test the potatoes with the point of a knife. They should be soft and golden and have absorbed most of the sauce. If not, return them to the oven for another 10 minutes.
  11. Remove from the oven and serve hot with a little dried oregano sprinkled over them.

If you have another method for ‘roasting’ potatoes, please let me know in the comment box below.

 

 

 

 

 

Orange, Celery and Beetroot Salad with Feta, Olives and Red Onion

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Photograph by Moira BeatonThe sun is shining, for the third day in a row.  You may think I harp on about the weather but in Scotland, the sun shining and the temperature rising above 15C degrees is cause for celebration.

What do we think of when someone mentions salad? When I was growing up ‘salad’ meant soft lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber and perhaps a few slices of ham or cheese. No dressing apart from salt. It was probably healthy but it was tasteless.

 I like salads that are almost meals in themselves. 

This one includes celery. If you don’t like celery, don’t be put off.  Something wonderful happens to it when it is combined with slices of orange. You can’t taste it!

The original (as far as I know) orange and celery salad was a simple affair of small pieces of celery and quarters of orange with a dressing of oil and lemon ‘especially good to accompany a terrine of hare or rabbit’ (Elizabeth David in French Country Cooking). It’s refreshing but after peeling the oranges, removing the white pith, I cut them into small pieces about the same size as the celery slices, instead of quartering them. The I dress the salad with a sprinkling of salt, a drizzle of oil and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall takes this salad one step further and adds smoked mackerel and although I haven’t tried it yet, it’s on my list.  I may also add either slices of red onion or spring onions.

In the Middle East, you can make a refreshing salad with peeled and sliced oranges, black olives and thin slices of red onion (no celery). Dressed with oil and lemon, it’s also quick and easy to make.

But today I needed something more substantial for lunch. So, after rooting around in the fridge to see what I have, here is what I came up with – Orange, Celery and Beetroot Salad with Feta and Black Olives. The combination of the tangy orange with the earthy beetroot and saltiness of the feta and olives works well. The celery adds freshness and crunch. I have tried to give amounts as a guide but you may find, as you go along, that you want to add more or less of one or two of the ingredients.

Orange, Celery and Beetroot Salad with Feta, Olives and Red Onion (serves 2 as an accompaniment)

  • 1 large orange
  • 2-3 sticks of celery
  • ½ red onion
  • 1 small cooked beetroot, preferably roasted but boiled will do just as well
  • 6-8 black olives
  • Cubes of feta
  • Lemon juice
  • Olive oil 
  1. Peel the orange and remove the white pith with a sharp knife. Cut into small pieces.
  2. Slice the celery into lengths of about half an inch.
  3. Peel and thinly slice the red onion.
  4. Cut the beetroot into eighths.

 Assemble the salad just before serving.

  1. Place the pieces of orange in the bottom of a shallow bowl or flat serving dish, then, layer by layer, add the celery the olives, red onion and feta. Don’t mix.
  2. Add the beetroot being careful not to place it near the feta or it will bleed into it.
  3. Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of oil. Because of the saltiness of the feta and the olives, the salad should not need any salt.

 This will serve two as an accompaniment or one for lunch.

 Do you like or loathe celery?

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Food Connects Us

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Someone asked me recently what was one thing I remember about living in the Middle East and Cyprus.

I told him it was food.

Not just the food I ate but the way in which food was used to communicate, to show hospitality; in the way visitors were treated as honoured guests; no-one was ever turned away and no-one was ever too busy to talk because they were having their meal.

Everyone was welcome and in fact, you had to be careful not to arrive near mealtimes as you would then find yourself sitting down with the family to eat whether you liked it or not.

Even going into a shop or visiting someone in their office was an opportunity to stop for coffee and to chat for a while.

Food was never seen as a means to just satisfy the appetite. It was used to communicate, to connect and as Penny De Los Santos, food and travel photographer, explains in the video below, ‘helps us find a common language’ even in the most trying or dangerous times. 

This TEDx video is only about 11 minutes long and she talks about photography as ’capturing human moments’.  She is also a very effective storyteller and she shares several stories in the video.

If you are a photographer, and even if you’re not, make yourself a cup of coffee, sit down and just enjoy this video.  And I’d love to know your thoughts on it in the comments box below.

Penny De Los Santos

Butternut Squash, Coconut and Chilli Soup

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It’s dreich in Edinburgh today. That means it’s grey, drizzly and overcast. When it’s like this, my mood usually matches the weather – not much energy.  But, what do we expect, it’s only June!  Seriously though, in Scotland we are used to constant variations in the weather, sometimes in the same day. We have learned to dress and eat accordingly, often at a moment’s notice.

So no summer salads today. I needed soup. Something quick and tasty with enough of a kick to wake me up. 

I also didn’t want to have to go out in the rain and shop for ingredients. Rummaging in the fridge I found half a butternut squash, several limes that I had bought for a cake but didn’t make, and red chillis, lemongrass and ginger that I bought to make Thai curry paste. With a tin of coconut milk – I’ve learned from experience to always have a tin of coconut milk in the cupboard – I had the ingredients for a spicy soup.  

The preparation took less than 10 minutes and most of that was spent peeling the butternut squash, and the cooking took 20 minutes. All in all the soup took about 30 minutes to make. With this amount you will have 2 large or 3 medium servings. 

And in case you’re not sure how to prepare fresh lemongrass (not everyone does), I have  included, at the bottom of the post, a link to a YouTube video that explains how to do it.

Butternut Squash, Chilli and Coconut Soup (Serves 2-3)

  •  450 grams butternut squash, peeled and cubed
  • 1 tbsp flavourless oil
  • 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
  • 1 cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
  • 1 tsp red Thai curry paste
  • 1 tbsp chopped lemongrass *
  • ½ tin coconut milk
  • 100 ml water
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • Zest of 1 lime and ½ a small red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced, for garnish
  1.  Heat the oil in a large saucepan.
  2. Over a low heat, gently fry the onion, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes .
  3. Add the red Thai curry paste and fry for a further 1 minute, stirring
  4. Add the lemongrass and the butternut squash and fry for 2 minutes, stirring so that nothing sticks.
  5. Add the coconut milk and the water and bring nearly to the boil.
  6. Turn the heat down and simmer gently, covered, for 20 minutes.
  7. Test the butternut squash with the point of a knife. It should be tender.
  8. Cool slightly then liquidise until smooth.
  9. Return the soup to the pan and add the lime juice
  10. Taste for seasoning. I find it does not need any salt or pepper but you can add them if you like
  11. Reheat gently then ladle the soup into heated bowls and garnish with the lime zest and fresh chilli.

 * This short video shows how to prepare lemongrass in 3 different ways depending on whether you are cooking curry, soup or stirfry.  This was new to me. Is it new to you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58rSRxb_BMU

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scones

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This is a short post as I just wanted to give you this recipe for scones. Sunday is a perfect day for relaxing with a pot of tea (loose leaf preferably) and a batch of homemade scones. 

For years, I struggled to make the perfect scone. They were either too flat, too heavy, too moist or too dry.  They never turned out the way I wanted them to. 

Then I decided I needed more focus rather than my usual hit and miss approach. I read books and recipes, watched TV cookery programmes, delved into the science of baking and baked and baked again.

My research paid off and I’m glad to say I have come up with my idea of the perfect scone. It’s light and buttery with a crumbly exterior. The secret? Buttermilk.  There are many recipes for buttermilk scones but it’s to Delia Smith that I owe the idea of also adding an egg. Not strictly necessary, but it gives the scones that extra richness and colour.

Eat them warm with either butter, whipped cream or clotted cream and homemade raspberry jam.  Which comes first? If you live in Cornwall, it’s jam first then cream. But if you live in Devon, it’s cream first then jam. If, like me, you live in Scotland, who cares, just eat them.

Do you have a dish that you have been trying to find the perfect recipe for?

BUTTERMILK SCONES (makes 6)

Heat the oven to 220C, 200C fan, gas mark 7

  • 225gr (8oz) self-raising flour
  • Pinch salt (omit this if using salted butter)
  • 50gr (2oz) cold unsalted butter
  • 25gr (1oz) caster sugar
  • 25gr (1oz) sultanas (optional)
  • 1 medium sized egg
  • 2tbsp buttermilk
  1. Begin by preparing a baking sheet. Non stick is best because you don’t have to grease it.
  2. Sift the flour and salt in a large bowl.
  3. Add the butter and, using your fingertips, rub into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.
  4. Add the sugar and mix in.
  5. Add the sultanas, if using.
  6. Beat the egg and the buttermilk together and, keeping a little amount back, add to the mixture with a fork or a palette knife until it is incorporated.
  7. Now with your hand, quickly mix everything together until you have a soft dough. If there is still some flour left in the bowl, add a little of the reserved buttermilk and egg mixture. Just a touch until all the flour is mixed in.
  8. Place on a lightly floured surface and form into a circle.
  9. Roll out evenly with a rolling pin to an inch thick. This is important as otherwise you will have flat scones. Use a ruler or a measuring tape, if necessary.
  10. Cut out circles with a 5cm scone cutter. Make sure it’s sharp. If not, place the cutter on then dough then use a heavy object such as the jar where you keep your sultanas and press down. If you don’t have a clean cut and the cutter twists you will end up with scones that look like the leaning tower of Pisa.
  11. Cut each scone out and place on the baking sheet.
  12. You should have 6 scones. If you have any dough left over, form into a ball and bake that too.  That’s yours to eat as soon as it comes out of the oven.
  13. Brush the scones with buttermilk or the remains of the egg/buttermilk mixture. Dust with flour.
  1. Place in the oven immediately and bake for 10 minutes.
  2. When they are golden on top, remove from the oven.
  3. Place on a wire rack.

Then eat them!