Category Archives: Lunch

Portobello Mushrooms with Chipotle Mash, Fried Leeks and Bacon

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Deciding what to make for dinner last night, I hit upon a recipe I’ve made a few times before, but this time I added turkey bacon to it. Adding bacon to pretty much anything is usually a good idea. And bacon, leek and potato go so well together. I baked the mushrooms in the oven but you could also grill them if you like.

Serves 4

4 large portobello mushrooms, stems removed

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

salt and pepper

1 dried chipotle chile, soaked in very hot water for 30 mins

2 pounds (900g) Yukon Gold or russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1/3 (80ml) cup milk or soy milk

2 leeks, trimmed, sliced and washed well

5-7 rashers turkey bacon, chopped.  

Puree the chipotle chile in a food processor until smooth. Boil the potatoes in water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and mash with the chile, milk and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet, add the mushrooms cut side up and sear until browned, about 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce, turn over and cook for about 30 seconds more.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spoon a quantity of mashed potato into each mushroom cap, drizzle with olive oil and place in a lightly oiled baking dish. Bake until hot, about 10 minutes.

While the mushrooms are baking, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet. Add the leeks and bacon and cook until crisp. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

To serve, place the mushrooms on a plate and top with the fried leek/bacon mixture.

 

Coronation Chicken to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

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June 2, 2012 marks the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, who will have been on the British throne for sixty years and shows no sign of stopping anytime soon. To mark the event, and also the London Olympics, I’ll be posting a few traditional British recipes over the summer. This is going to be a big, big year for us!

I’m feeling a little sad since I will not be at home for the Jubilee and will miss out on the cakes, trifles, sandwiches, sausage rolls, street parties, village fetes, bunting, flag waving, nostalgia and copious wine drinking that will no doubt be going on. 

In reality, we Brits are nowhere near as outwardly patriotic as Americans. Most of us don’t know all the words to the national anthem and you’d be hard put to find a Union Jack flying on a building or house outside of London. That’s just the way we are. We love our country as much as you do, but we just don’t feel the need to show it very often! Come the Olympics or a rugby international we’re up there with the best of them, but day to day, things like that don’t really matter very much. I am still surprised when I go to events like the circus or a minor league baseball game here and the anthem is played and everyone puts their hand to their chest and sings. Nothing wrong with that obviously, in fact I like it, but it’s just not us.

That said, if anything will bring out our dormant national pride, it’s an event like this. The Royal Wedding did the trick last year. Even lukewarm royalists were caught shedding a tear or sneaking a smile at the sight of Will and Kate emerging from Westminster Abbey.

So it will be this year.  The Queen, now well into her eighties and still working as hard as ever, is a hugely popular figure and the country will come together to celebrate, eat and drink in her honor in huge numbers. Given the depressing economic climate, the feel-good factor will be very welcome. My mom’s local village is hosting three days of festivities including a village fete complete with cake stall and plant stall, children’s sports day and garden competition with my mom as one of the judges (theme of course red, white and blue).

The recipe for coronation chicken was created in 1952 to mark the Queen’s Coronation. The ingredients probably seem very ordinary today, but back in the early 1950′s when Britain was still under the shadow of wartime rationing, which continued for several years after the war had ended, many everyday items were hard to obtain or in short supply. Ingredients like chili peppers, mango and curry powder must have seemed wildly exotic to people at the time.

Over the intervening years coronation chicken has often been regarded as a bit of a joke. Most commonly found as a lurid yellow sandwich filling full of gloopy mayonnaise and flavored with nothing but curry, it can be awful. Here, however, it is restored to its former glory and worthy of royal attention.

Serves 4

3 large chicken breasts

2 tbsp olive oil

1 lemon, juice and zest

salt and pepper

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 red chile (chilli), deseeded and finely chopped

2 tsp madras curry powder *

2 tbsp tomato puree  

100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) dry white wine

100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) chicken stock

 1 tbsp apricot jam

150ml (5 fl oz) fat free Greek yogurt or reduced fat creme fraiche

75ml (3 fl oz) olive oil mayonnaise

1 large mango, peeled and diced

3 scallions (spring onions), finely chopped

small handful chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)

dash Tabasco sauce

small handful of flaked almonds for garnish

green salad leaves to serve.

* Madras curry powder is hotter than regular curry powder, but this works well too if you can’t find the Madras version. The dish will just be less spicy, or add a little more Tabasco!

Rub the chicken with 1 tblsp of olive oil, scatter over the lemon zest and season with salt and pepper. The recipe I used suggested steaming the chicken for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through. I chose to bake mine in the oven and covered them with foil to prevent them drying out. Either way works fine.

Place the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil in a pan and the onion and chile and cook for five minutes until soft. Stir in the curry powder and cook for a further 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree and the wine. Cook until the volume of liquid reduces by half.

Stir in the jam and the stock and simmer until reduced by half again. Leave to cool.

In a separate bowl mix together the mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, then add the cooled curry mixture. Fold in the mango, spring onions, lemon juice and cilantro.

When the chicken is cooked, cut into bite-size pieces and add to the mixture. Season with salt and pepper and a dash of Tabasco. Serve on a bed of salad leaves and garnish with the sliced almonds.

Taken from the BBC TV Show Hairy Bikers.

Beet, Jicama, Avocado and Orange Salad

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One of the things I like best about writing this blog is that it gives me an added incentive to explore new ideas and discover foods I haven’t tried before.

Jicama (pr. hicama), the Mexican root vegetable, is one of those. I discovered jicama last year when I tried it in an Asian slaw in place of daikon radish which I couldn’t find locally (and still haven’t, to be honest). Since then I’ve used it often in slaw-type salads. And here it is again. I got this fantastic salad recipe from Vegetarian Times. It is simple to make with just the right mix of flavors, colors and textures. And it’s super nutritious too!

The dressing is unusal but very good. I wouldn’t have thought of using frozen concentrated orange juice in salad dressing but it works really well. It’s citrusy and slightly spicy and would be great with a leafy green salad too. And you can pop open the carton of frozen juice and just spoon out as much as you need for the recipe then freeze the rest.

2 cups grated raw beets (6 oz, 170g, 2 medium sized beets), which we call beetroot, peeled and grated 

2 cups (6 oz, 170g) grated jicama, peeled and grated

2 navel orange, peeled, cut into segments pith removed

1 medium ripe avocado, peeled pitted and sliced

1/2 cup (small handful) chopped cilantro (coriander)

3 tablespoons thawed orange juice concentrate

1 tablespoon lime juice

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup (small handful) toasted pumpkin seeds (optional).

 Assemble all of the vegetables and fruit in a suitable bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the orange juice, lime juice, cumin, coriander and olive oil. Whisk until combine. Pour over the salad and garnish with the cilantro (coriander) and pumpkins seeds if using.

 

Scottish Oatcakes

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Before moving to the States, I lived in Scotland for ten years. It is an amazing country full of magnificent misty mountains (which I used to love to climb), forests, castles, rugged coastlines and some of the friendliest, funniest people on the planet.

It also happens to boast some incredible food, including world-famous seafood and salmon, beef, strawberries, raspberries and oats. The local produce is reflected in traditional Scottish recipes such as these easy, quick, delicious and very nutritious oatcakes. Walnuts and oats are exceptionally heart-healthy, being among the best foods for lowering bad cholesterol.

Although these are called oatcakes, they should really be very thin just like crackers. They are great topped with a smoked fish pate, cheese, hummus, mushroom pate or peanut butter.

I once invited some American friends to dinner and decided I’d try to introduce them to some dishes from home, so I made an appetizer of smoked salmon pate with oatcakes, using store-bought ones. Thinking they’d probably never heard of them before, I was a bit deflated when one of my guests announced that she had family in Nova Scotia, descended from Scots, who had given her an old family oatcake recipe which she had spent years trying to perfect. Rather than introduing her to something new, she could have taught me a lot about making my own!!

Makes around a dozen three inch round oatcakes.

1 3/4 cups (5 1/2 oz, 156g) rolled oats (not quick cook)

2/3 cup (3oz, 85g) chopped walnuts

1/4 (1oz, 28g) cup all-purpose (plain) flour

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

pinch freshly ground pepper

pinch sugar

1/4 cup (1 1/2 oz, 42g) margarine/spread or butter

1/4 cup (60ml) milk or plain soy milk.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, 190 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment (greaseproof paper).

Place the oats and walnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and sugar. Pluse to combine. Add the margarine and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs, then with the motor running, add the milk/soy milk until a dough forms.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to 1/8 inch thick.

Using a cookie cutter or pastry wheel cut into rounds or rectangles. Arrange the cakes on the baking sheet and bake until lightly browned on the bottom, around 12 to 15 minutes.

When done, allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container. Keeps for 3-4 days.

Adapted from 1,000 Vegan Recipes, Robin Robertson.

Thai Red Lentil Soup

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On Saturday I watched my daughter play soccer and then accompanied her on a girl scout trip to the Environmental Center at Birmingham Southern College – a recycling museum and eco-friendly garden full of sculptures made from recycled materials, a tree house and native plants. The trip was fascinating and my daughter and the rest of the girls loved it. Sadly, I had a really heavy cold and was really flagging by the time we got home. I just wish I had had a bowl of this waiting for me as it would have been a perfect pick-me-up.

Instead I went out shopping for these ingredients Sunday morning, feeling a little better, and made it for lunch. It’s a wonderful warming soup full of Thai flavors – lemongrass, lime, coconut milk and Thai curry paste and really hits the spot. Unlike a lot of lentil soups this one is pureed, so it has a smooth consistency.

The recipe comes from Yotam Ottolenghi, chef/patron of Ottolenghi in London.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon red Thai curry paste

2 lemongrass stalks, bashed and bruised with a rolling pin

4 kaffir lime leaves

1 1/2 cups (9oz, 250g) red lentils

4 cups or 1 quart (950 ml) water

1 cup (250ml) light coconut milk

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 small handful coriander, chopped (optional)

pinch of salt.

In a large pan, saute the onion in the oil until transparent. Add the Thai curry paste, lime leaves and lemongrass and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the lentils and water and simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils are soft. Remove from the heat, take out the lime leaves and lemongrass and allow to cool slightly before pureeing in a blender until smooth. Return to the pan and add the coconut milk, lime juice and soy sauce. Simmer for a further 5-10 minutes. Serve in bowls and garnish with coriander if using.

 

Fruity Red Cabbage Slaw with Mandarins and Dates

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I’m trying hard to include as many fruit and vegetables as possible into our diet after all the Christmas indulgence. This colorful, crunchy and sweet salad is one of those ‘couldn’t be easier’ recipes, especially if you have a food processor to shred the cabbages. It takes literally five minutes to make and as well as being easy, is very economical. I also find myself reaching for this if I have some in the fridge, instead of craving a less healthy option.

You can serve this salad with almost anything. We like it with pizza, grilled chicken or burgers. If you prefer onion in your coleslaw you could add some minced scallions. I don’t, so leave them out! You also don’t need to use a thick mayonnaise for coleslaw. A lighter yogurt-style dressing is also good.

Serves 4 – these quantities are very approximate.

1/4 red cabbage, shredded

1/4 white cabbage, shredded

2 carrots, grated

1 tin mandarin oranges, drained

Large handful chopped dates (or raisins if you prefer)

Low fat yogurt or ranch dressing, olive oil mayonnaise or vegennaise. I used Marie’s Yogurt Dressing - Ranch.

Simply mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl and spoon over whichever dressing you are going to use. Keeps for a day or two in the fridge.

Spinach and Zucchini Soup

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This good-looking soup is wholesome, tasty and perfect for winter. You can swirl it with cream, milk or a little pesto if you wish, or add croutons or a dollop of low-fat creme fraiche or Greek yogurt. It freezes very well so I usually make a big batch and freeze half. ‘Superfood’ spinach is loaded with iron and other vitamins and minerals.

Serves 4 – 6

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large zucchini (courgette), chopped

1 medium sized potato, peeled and chopped

4oz, 100g fresh spinach, washed thoroughly

A few sprigs of parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons canola or other neutral flavored oil

4 3/4 cups (1.2 litres, 2 pints) vegetable stock

Salt and pepper.

Cream, milk or pesto for ‘swirling’.

Heat the oil and saute the onion, garlic, potato and zucchini (courgette) for a few minutes until the onion is transparent. Add the spinach, parsley and stock. Bring to the boil, reduced the heat and simmer for around 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender.

Allow to cool before blending in batches until smooth. Return to the pan to reheat and serve or freeze. Garnish with herbs, croutons and ‘swirling’ items as above!!

 

Roasted Vegetable Gratin

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Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a fun-filled festive season. I spent two great weeks in England and Ireland catching up with family and friends. After all the partying and letting my hair down a little, my thoughts are turning back to the good stuff. Here’s a simple vegetable dish that works as a main course in its own right or can be served with roast chicken if you feel the need for some meat. 

To make it a vegan dish, use vegan cream cheese with the vegetable filling and vegan cheddar in the crumb topping.

You can also use other root vegetables instead of the ones I’ve used, e.g. potatoes or celeriac or rutabaga (turnip).

Serves 4 – 6

For the filling

1 1/2 cups (7oz, 200g) sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks

1 1/2 cups (7oz, 200g) golden or red beets (beetroot), peeled and cut into bite-size chunks

1 1/2 cups (7oz, 200g) carrots, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks

1 1/2 cups (7oz, 200g) parnips, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks

2 medium onions, sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons sunflower or canola oil

2 tablespoons wholegrain mustard

3 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped

salt and pepper

3-4 tablespoons reduced-fat cream cheese or vegan cream cheese

For the topping

3 cups (4oz, 120g) fresh breadcrumbs

1/2 cup (2 1/2oz, 70g) hazelnuts, toasted and chopped or chopped walnuts

1/4 cup (2oz, 60g) low-cholesterol spread, melted

4 tablespoons grated Gruyere or other Swiss cheese or vegan cheddar cheese

salt and pepper.

 In a bowl mix the honey, mustard, salt and pepper, herbs, oil and garlic. Pour over the chopped vegetables and mix to coat them well. Spread the mixture onto a baking sheet or roasting dish and bake for 45-50 mins at 250 degrees F (180 degrees C) until the vegetables are soft and starting to brown. Stir in the cream cheese and set aside.

Mix the topping ingredients together in a separate bowl. Place the roasted vegetables into a suitable oven-proof casserole dish, sprinkle over the topping mix and bake in the same temperature oven for a further 20 minutes until the topping is golden and crisp.

 

Lentil and Black Eye Pea Soup

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Healthy Comfort Food

Soups are perfect comfort food for the cooler weather – generally low in calories, full of vegetables and often, like this one, full of lean protein too. Soups with heartier ingredients like beans, peas and pasta are really a complete healthy meal in a bowl as well as being very low-cost. It’s definately worth making the effort to make your own soup as home-made ones taste so much better than any canned or ready-made varieties.

They are also a good way to get children to eat more healthily as veggies can be disguised in pureed soups or you can dress them up with fun-shaped croutons or toast for dipping.

I plan on including plenty more soup recipes here over the autumn and winter months. This one is a variation on an Italian recipe from Birmingham, Alabama chef Frank Stitt who started a culinary revolution in Birmingham a few years back and now runs some of our top restaurants. I have used black eye peas instead of chick peas, but the recipe would work with either.

Serves 8 – 10

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 red onion, finely chopped

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

1 tablespoon ground coriander

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch (1 cm) dice

1 celery stalk, cut into 1/2 inch (1 cm) dice

1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch (1 cm) squares

1 cup (6oz, 170g) de Puy or brown lentils, rinsed and picked over (the kind that don’t require soaking)

1 cup (6ox, 170g) canned black eye peas, drained and rinsed * 

2 14oz (396g) cans diced tomatoes

3 cups (750ml) chicken stock

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Chopped parsley and olive oil to garnish.

* The easiest way to use black eye peas is to buy canned ones or, if you can get them, quick-cook black eye peas which are boiled for 10 minutes. You can use dried ones but they need to be soaked overnight and then boiled for around an hour before using.

Put the lentils in a saucepan and cover with water by 2 inches. Bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pot and add the garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Add the onion and saute until transparent. Add the parsley and coriander, celery, bell pepper and carrots. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 4-5 minutes.

Add the lentils, black eye peas, tomatoes, stock and tomato paste to the vegetables. Simmer over a low heat for an hour to an hour and a half until the vegetables are tender. You may need to add water to the pot during this cooking time. I added around 2 cups (500ml).

To serve, pour into bowls, garnish with fresh flat leaf parsley and drizzle with olive oil and serve with crusty bread. This soup freezes well.

 Adapted from: Frank Stitt’s Bottega Favorita, Artisan, New York 2009

Really Good Veggie Burgers

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I have tried a lot of veggie burger recipes and some have been disappointing – dry, crumbly and sometimes tasteless.

These are the best I have ever made. Full of flavor, they keep their shape during cooking and are packed full of protein. If your grilling days are over for the year, they can be cooked in a skillet on the stovetop or under a broiler (oven grill) instead.

Makes 6 burgers

2 14oz (396g) cans black beans, drained

2 cups (8oz,226g) grated zucchini/courgette – this is roughly one large zucchini

2 teaspoons dried mixed herbs

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 freshly ground pepper

1 cup (4oz,113g) wholewheat bread crumbs

1 tablespoon wholewheat flour

1/4 cup (3oz, 85g) chopped walnuts

1 egg or 1/4 cup Eggbeaters

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Oil for frying if not using the grill.

If using an outdoor grill, preheat to a medium heat.

Place the beans in a large mixing bowl and mash with a fork or masher. Add all the other ingredients except the olive oil and lemon juice. Form into six burgers and arrange them on a plate.

Mix the olive oil and lemon juice and brush over the burgers.

Grill or fry until golden brown on each side, approx 5-6 minutes. Turn over and repeat on the other side.

Serve in a wholewheat bun with all your favorite accompaniments – lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup etc.

Per burger: Calories 357, Total fat 17g, Saturated fat 2g (this is if using an egg, less if using Eggbeaters), Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 35 mg (none if using Eggbeaters), Sodium 147 mg, Total Carbohydrates 38g, Fiber 13g, Protein 17g, Iron 3 mg.

Adapted from: Oxygen magazine Quick and Easy Summer Meals.