Tag: vegetables

Categories
Mains Recipes

Roasted Sweet Potato & Red Pepper Soup

Here’s a soup I made this week – a bowl of bright red and orange deliciousness with a mild chilli kick. The sweet potato and red pepper are chunked and roasted until soft, squishy and a little charred at the edges, then blitzed with the other veg to give a rich texture.

Once it’s cooled, keep it in the fridge for a few days. Scoop a few ladlefuls into a bowl and microwave for a quick, tasty and nutritious lunch.

Servings

6 adult portions.

Timings

The soup mix requires soaking overnight, then 30 mins to make.

You Will Need:

  • 100g soup mix
  • cold tap water
  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1 large red pepper
  • oil
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp medium chilli powder
  • 1 onion
  • 2 – 3 carrots
  • 2 – 3 celery sticks
  • 500ml chicken or veg stock
  • about one third of a cabbage. shredded
  • sea salt and black pepper

Method

  1. Cover the soup mix with tap water in a bowl and leave to soak overnight.
  2. Next day, drain the soup mix and cover with fresh water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer for 30 mins.
  3. Turn a fan oven on to 180C. Chop the sweet potato and red pepper into chunks and place in a large roasting dish. Drizzle with oil and put in the oven, once up to temp, for 30 mins.
  4. While the veg is roasting, put a drizzle of oil in a large saucepan and warm on the hob. Crush in the garlic clove, then chuck in the cumin seeds and chilli powder, leaving it all to sizzle for a minute. Then chop the onion, celery and carrot, and add. Stir and leave for a few minutes to soften.
  5. Tip the stock on top of the veg in the saucepan and bring to the boil. Add in the cabbage. Reduce and simmer for 20 mins. Season with a few twists of sea salt and black pepper.
  6. Scrape the roasted sweet potato and red pepper into the soup. Blitz the soup with a handheld blender.
  7. Drain the cooked soup mix and add to the soup.
  8. Serve a few ladlefuls of soup in a bowl.

Customise It!

Keep the sweet potato and red pepper, as this is what gives the soup its foundation of taste and colour. Other than that, you can play around with whatever other veg you have to hand or which is in season. Swap kale or broccoli in for the cabbage, for example. Omit the soup mix if you want less protein. Jack up the chilli powder from medium to hot if you like it that way!

We’re enjoying a period of sunny, warm weather currently, so it’s time to get out in the garden to relax with my head phones, listening to some summertime feelgood music. Like this track, from the Random Access Memories album: Daft Punk with Lose Yourself to Dance.

Categories
Bakes Recipes

Carrot, Orange & Walnut Cake

The humble carrot is cheap and in plentiful supply in our shops at the moment. So, I thought, what better time to bake up a carrot cake?

There are already a whole host of carrot cake recipes out there, so I read through a few before deciding how I would approach mine.

I was looking to make a single tier traybake, incorporating mixed spice, sultanas and walnuts alongside the carrot, topped off by a cream cheese frosting with the tang of orange zest.

I actually found a Mary Berry recipe that was more or less what I had in mind, so was largely influenced by that. Cheers, Mary! My only real deviation was to throw a handful of sultanas into the cake mix, as I really like the added juiciness they bring.

I was pleased with the results – that’s it in my photo at the top of the post – and it has gone down well in the ADK household.

The orange cream cheese frosting is irresistible. I strongly advise dipping your little finger in once it’s made, scooping some up for a preliminary taste test before spreading the rest on the cake. Believe me, you won’t regret it.

Servings

This will give you around 16 slices.

Timings

30 mins to prepare, 40 mins to bake at 160C in a fan oven. Make the frosting while the cake is baking and allow 5 mins more to apply it when the cake has cooled.

You Will Need

For the Cake

  • 225g self-raising flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 150g light brown sugar
  • 50g chopped walnuts
  • 50g sultanas
  • 2 eggs
  • 150 ml vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp milk
  • 200g coarsely grated carrot

For the Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 100g unsalted butter
  • 200g cream cheese
  • 250g icing sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • zest of 1 orange
  • handful of chopped walnuts

Method

  1. Grease and line a traybake tin. The one I used is 22cm square. Switch a fan oven on to 160C.
  2. Sieve the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and mixed spice into a bowl. Sprinkle in the sugar, chopped nuts and sultanas.
  3. Mix the eggs, oil, milk and grated carrot in a separate bowl.
  4. When the oven is up to temp, pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix thoroughly with a spatula until no dry ingredients are showing. Scrape into the traybake tin and level. Put in the oven for 35 – 40 mins.
  5. While the cake is baking, make the orange cream cheese frosting. Place the butter, cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and orange zest in a bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until thick and creamy. Place the bowl in the fridge until required.
  6. Check if the cake is fully baked – the top should be browning and a skewer inserted in the middle come out dry. If it is, take from the oven and set aside to cool in the tin.
  7. Once cool, remove carefully from the tin and spread the orange cream cheese frosting all over. Top with the chopped walnuts.
  8. Cut into slices and serve.

Customise It!

Swap in some chopped toasted pecans for the walnuts if you wish. Frosted toppings like this often look good with a sprinkle of edible blue cornflower petals, if you have them. They are more about visual effect and presentation, though, rather than adding to the taste.

Here’s a song that came on Spotify while this traybake was in the oven. I hadn’t come across it for a while, and remembered how good it was, so here it is: Birmingham post-punk band The Au Pairs with It’s Obvious.

Categories
Recipes Sides

Semmelknödel

‘Tis the season of roast dinner feasts approaching, so why not liven up your dinner plates this winter with some traditional Austrian bread dumplings?

We were treated to a delicious lunch recently, prepared by our good friend Eva, an excellent cook specialising in Austrian cuisine. Home-made dumplings, or Semmelknödel, were served as an accompaniment to a tender roast duck breast, with roast vegetables, braised red cabbage and greens. You can see my filled plate in the main photo at the top of the post.

I especially enjoyed the dumplings – they have a light, succulent consistency with delicate herb flavouring, and absorb the gravy juices from the meat. I’m pleased to say that Eva has agreed to share this old family recipe. Many thanks, Eva and Happy Christmas!

Servings

Makes 18 dumplings.

Timings

15 mins to prepare the mixture, then 1 hour for it to soak. Then about another 30 mins to shape and boil the dumplings.

You Will Need:

  • 500g of dried white bread, which has to be cut into small 1-1.5cm cubes
  • 4 large onions
  • 2 eggs
  • 500-750ml of milk
  • Flour
  • 120-150g of fresh chopped parsley

Method

  1. Put all the bread cube pieces into a very large bowl.
  2. Chop the onions and fry until slightly browned, then add to the bread cubes.
  3. Add the milk, eggs and parsley, mix well together and let it stand for 1 hour so all the milk gets absorbed by the bread. Then cover with self-raising flour (you shouldn’t see any bread through the flour).
  4. Work the flour into the mixture, it should feel firm and not too soggy. You can adjust with either more milk or flour if needed.
  5. Start forming small dumplings (the mixture should make roughly 18 dumplings). Roll each individual one in flour (this will stop them from sticking to your hands or plate) and boil them in salted water, using a large enough pot to give them space for surfacing, after about 20 minutes of boiling.
  6. You can either eat them straight away or freeze the rest (after having been cooked) for another day! They keep very well in the freezer!

Dumplings are served with any type of roast as an alternative to rice or potatoes. They go particularly well with Gulasch.

Eva has chosen the latest track for adding to the ADK playlist, nominating this happy festive song: José Feliciano with Feliz Navidad.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Roasted Winter Veg Curry

For this dish, which is suitable for both vegetarians and vegans, I’ve given a selection of seasonal squash and root veg a long, slow roast in the oven before coating it in a thick curry sauce. The roasting makes the veg soft, sweet and just a little caramelised around the edges.

We’ve just been experiencing our first few snow showers of the winter here, so all that deliciousness and comforting heat has turned out to be very timely!

Servings

4 adult portions.

Timings

1 hr to roast the winter veg, during which time the rest of the dish is prepared.

You Will Need:

  • 1/2 a butternut squash
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes
  • 2 medium parsnips
  • 3 – 4 medium carrots
  • Oil
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 3cm piece of root ginger
  • 1 onion
  • 2 tbsp curry powder
  • 2 celery sticks
  • 1/2 red pepper
  • 1/2 yellow pepper
  • 5 – 6 chestnut mushrooms
  • 1 400ml tin coconut milk
  • 1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 4 – 5 leaves of cavalo nero
  • A handful of unsalted cashew nuts

Method

  1. Switch a fan oven on to 180C.
  2. Peel and roughly chop the squash, sweet potatoes, carrots and parsnips into chunks. Spread them out in a roasting dish and drizzle with oil. Place the dish in the hot oven for about an hour. Check on them every so often just to check they’re not burning, and give them a scatter with a spatula so they get evenly roasted.
  3. Meanwhile, crush the garlic and finely chop the ginger. Put both in a wok with some oil and heat. When the pan is sizzling, add in the onion, celery, mushrooms and peppers, all chopped. Sprinkle over the curry powder and toss with a spatula so all the veg is coated in a mix of the spices and oil.
  4. When the veg has softened, empty in the coconut milk and tomatoes. Give it all a good stir to mix and bring to a bubble, before turning down to a simmer. Let it slowly reduce to make a thick, spicy sauce.
  5. Shred the cavalo nero and wilt in for about 10 mins.
  6. When the tray of veg has finished roasting, take it from the oven and scrape all the lovely contents into the wok. Give it all a stir again, so that the veg chunks get coated in the thick curry sauce.
  7. Chuck in the cashews and mix, a few mins before serving. It should resemble my main photo at the top of the post.
  8. Serve up with rice on the side – see below.

Customise It!

Lots of scope here – substitute other root veg like potatoes or celeriac, or other types of squash, and vary the proportions between them if you wish, as long as you have 1 large roasting pan’s worth of it all.

Use your own favourite spice combo if you wish – I used the ready mixed blend I brought back from the Souq Waqif in Doha, which I really like. Why not chuck in a few nigella seeds? Play around and have fun!

No cavalo nero? Try other greens like spinach or chard.

Time to treat you to my most streamed song of 2024, as confirmed by Spotify Unwrapped, which landed this week. I first came across this indie band while on my travels to Australia earlier this year. They make a terrific sound and, I’m sure you’ll agree, this really is a very good track. Enjoy These New South Whales with Changes.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Summer Greens over Chorizo Hash

It’s the time of year when freshly picked, green summer veg is coming into the ADK Kitchen on a daily basis. French beans, mange tout, cavalo nero, cabbage leaves – they’re all tasty and nutritious, needing just the lightest touch in cooking, usually no more than a few minutes in the steamer basket.

In a continuous challenge to find new, tasty ways to serve up this delightful produce, this dish sees it generously topped over sweet potato and chorizo hash. The spicy, saltiness of the hash complements the natural simplicity of the veg, while the scent, and the bright orange and red underneath that summer garden green, ensures this is a feast for all the senses.

Servings

A main meal for 2.

Timings

20 mins to prepare/cook.

You Will Need

  • 1 medium to large sweet potato
  • around 20 French beans, ends trimmed, and cut into 3cm pieces
  • 4- 5 cabbage leaves, cut into shreds
  • a knob of butter
  • 225g spanish chorizo ring, sliced
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 red pepper, chopped
  • a few splashes of tomato passata

Method

  1. Peel the sweet potato and cut into 1 – 2cm chunks. Place in a saucepan of water and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer.
  2. After 5 mins, place the beans and cabbage in a steamer basket and put it on top of the saucepan. Bring the water back to the boil then reduce to a simmer again. Cover with a lid and leave to simmer for 10 more mins.
  3. Meanwhile, put the chorizo, onion and pepper in a frying pan and stir over a medium heat. There is no need to add oil, garlic or spices as the chorizo already contains everything required!
  4. When the sweet potato has boiled, drain it and mash with the butter. Tip into the frying pan with the passata. Turn up the heat and stir in – you want the liquid to begin to evaporate and get some of the underside pieces crispy and charred.
  5. When cooked to your desired texture, mound the hash up on 2 plates. Take the greens from the steamer and plonk them on top. It should all look as in my photo at the top of the post.

Customise it!

Basically, anything green and seasonal goes here – broad beans, runner beans, garden peas, mange tout, cavalo nero etc will all look and taste great.

Staying on theme for the next track on the ADK Playlist, I did toy momentarily with the New Order track Everything’s Gone Green (it being an apt description of the ADK Kitchen table these past few days). However, I’ve plumped in the end for one of many tracks I love by Scritti Politti (the lead singer being the very talented Green Gartside 🙂 ). Here they are with Boom! There She Was.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Summer Veg with Bacon on Chard

Today’s challenge was to cook up a consignment of summer veg, freshly picked at our local community farm, into a meal for 2. The veg selection included leaves of chard, tomatoes, a courgette, and mange tout. I combined it with a few ADK kitchen stand-bys – chopped mushroom, onion, bacon and crushed garlic into the meal shown above.

Servings

Light lunch for 2.

Timings

15 mins to prepare.

You Will Need

  • 6 leaves of chard
  • 3 slices streaky bacon
  • half an onion
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 2 mushrooms
  • 1 courgette
  • 3 – 4 tomatoes
  • 12 – 15 mange tout

Method

  1. Chop the bacon and fry until crisped. Remove to a plate to stay warm.
  2. Crush the garlic clove and add to the warm frying pan. Chop the mushroom, onion and courgette, then add to the pan. Add in the tomatoes and let them reduce to form a squishy sauce.
  3. Wash the chard and place in a steamer for 5 – 10 minutes. Add the mange tout for the last 3 – 4 minutes.
  4. Remove the chard and mange tout, and pat dry with kitchen roll.
  5. Arrange a bed of chard on each of 2 plates. Top with the tomatoey mix, then place the mange tout and bacon on top. Serve.

Customise It!

You can add or swap in any veg that is seasonal or which you have to hand. Chopped peppers would be fine. I also had green beans to hand so could easily have swapped those for the mange tout. Leave out the bacon and sprinkle with roasted nuts for a vegetarian/vegan option.

Here’s a track I came across recently on my ear buds while out and about in the sunshine. I found myself pacing my walk in time with the beat. Great fun – try it out! This is Overseer with Pump Action.

Categories
Blog Mains

Au Marché

One of the great joys of being a foodie on holiday in France is making a visit to the local market, or ‘marché’. So, while here in the Dordogne Valley, we set out for the local town of Bergerac on market day. Some of the fresh produce we bought inspired our evening meal back at the farmhouse. More of that in a moment.

It was a beautiful warm and sunny morning as we arrived. The market was already well under way, this array of soft fruit was glinting in the sun, and business was brisk.

The market isn’t just about stocking up with provisions for the week, however – there’s a real sense of market day being an opportunity for local people and traders to meet and catch up. In between happily chatting with customers, this chap sold us a bag of his healthy crop of radishes. Simply washed, topped and tailed, they made a light, peppery and crunchy snack alongside cold beers.

A long queue of discerning French shoppers waiting patiently to buy their food is usually a reliable sign of a good market stall. So it was with this charcuterie stand, where beef carpaccio was the ready prepared Plat du Jour. The charcuterie included local merguez sausages, which are long and thin with the texture of chorizo, and which went well later on our barbecue.

All the fruit and veg was seasonal, fresh and presented attractively. The range of tomatoes was something else, and they all looked luscious in the mid-morning sunshine.

Garlic is a staple in French cooking, and I treated myself to one of these wonderful looking purple bulbs to take home. Presentation-wise, I liked the juxtaposition of vivid colours alongside these wedges of butternut squash.

And so to that evening meal. I hadn’t come across white asparagus before, being more used to the green variety we have in the shops in the UK. It is popular in central Europe however, so I decided to try some.

It is essentially the same plant, but is grown underground, which stops it turning green. It has a slightly more intense taste, and requires a little more prep by peeling from the end of the spear tip to the base of the stalk. Like all asparagus, the woody bit at the base needs trimming off also.

I steamed the spears for 20 mins, then wrapped them in local prosciutto, and warmed them on a plate in the oven for 10 mins. They were then served with a knob of melting butter, a squeeze of fresh lemon and a few twists of black pepper.

The dish was enjoyed by our group, with a glass of chilled Bergerac Blanc on our terrace in the evening sun.

Voilà!

Time for some more French-inspired rock. This is The Stranglers with Goodbye Toulouse.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Spanish Chicken

With the start of the November evenings, I’m declaring the opening of slow cooker season in our household.

The electric slow cooker is a fine invention, in my view. It means I can put the family Sunday dinner together in the morning, and let it spend the afternoon and early evening quietly bubbling away in the corner of the ADK Kitchen, with very little more for me to do. An important benefit of this is that I can then spend the lead-up to dinnertime on the sofa with a cold beer, watching the Premier League on Super Sunday, safe in the knowledge that all prep is taken care of. Get in!

First up is this slow cooked dish combining chicken with Spanish onion, red pepper, tomatoes, spicy chorizo, black olives, stock and Spanish white wine. Left to develop for 4-5 hours, all the flavours will gradually meld together and infuse the chicken. Delicioso!

Servings

4 adult servings.

Timings

20 mins to combine, 4-5 hours to slow cook.

You Will Need

  • 3 chicken breasts
  • Oil
  • 1 large Spanish onion
  • 1 red pepper
  • 1 whole chorizo sausage
  • 700ml chicken stock
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 large glass of Spanish white wine
  • 15-20 pitted black olives
  • A handful of frozen peas

Method

  1. Switch on an electric slow cooker at the hot setting.
  2. Cut the chicken breast into chunks, and fry in oil in a pan until lightly browned all over. Transfer to the slow cooker bowl.
  3. Chop the onion and pepper and fry. Slice the chorizo into discs, then cut each disc in half. Add to the onion and pepper, and after 5 mins, transfer to the slow cooker bowl.
  4. Next into the pan, put the chopped tomatoes, stock and wine. Stir till it all begins to bubble, then add to the slow cooker bowl.
  5. Put the olives and peas directly into the slow cooker bowl and give it all a stir. Place the lid on the slow cooker and turn the setting down to medium. Leave for 4-5 hours.
  6. Serve with plain boiled rice.

Customise It!

If you don’t have an electric slow cooker, you can use a casserole dish. Put it in an oven at 180C and transfer in the ingredients from the frying pan as described above. When all have been added, turn the oven down to 160C, and leave for 4-5 hours.

You can add in other veg as you like – carrots and celery will go well. You can include a garlic clove or spices if you want, though I find the chorizo brings all the garlic, flavouring and colour needed.

Chicken thighs or drumsticks will work well in place of the chopped chicken breast, if you don’t mind eating meat off the bone.

The next track for the ADK Playlist has a Spanish feel, naturally. This band is one of the New York punk and new wave generation that grew out of CBGBs in the mid to late 70s: Mink DeVille with Spanish Stroll.

Adios!

Categories
Mains Recipes

Butternut Chilli Soup

This autumn warmer of a soup combines seasonal sweet, silky smooth, roasted butternut squash with fiery red chillis. Energy prices being so high these days, a bowl may also save you some money – it gives all the central heating your body needs!

Servings

3 – 4 bowls.

Timings

40 mins – 10 mins to prepare the butternut, and 30 mins for it to roast. The rest of the soup can be made while the veg is roasting.

You Will Need

  • 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeds and pith removed, and cut into chunks
  • 1 red pepper, cut into 7 – 8 pieces
  • oil
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed
  • 2tsp grund cumin
  • 1 tsp turmeric, fresh or powdered
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 medium red chillis, chopped
  • 2 sticks celery, chopped
  • 3 – 4 potatoes, peeled and chopped
  • 700ml veg or chicken stock
  • salt and pepper

Method

  1. Switch the oven on to 180C. Spread the butternut and red pepper pieces on a roasting tray, and drizzle with oil. Place in the oven when up to temp, and leave for 30 mins.
  2. Pour some more oil into a large saucepan and warm on the hob. When the oil is hot, put in the garlic, cumin, turmeric, chillis and onion. Stir and let it cook for a few mins, before adding the celery and potatoes.
  3. Let it all cook for another few mins – the onion should soften, and the celery/potatoes brown a little at the edges.
  4. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Reduce and simmer until the butternut and pepper have had their full 30 mins in the oven.
  5. Take the butternut and pepper from the oven – it should all have softened and become a little charred at the edges. Scrape it all into the soup and stir.
  6. Finally, grind it all smooth with a hand blender. The soup should take on a creamy consistency, and orange colour, with red specks, as in my photo above.
  7. Ladle into bowls and serve with freshly baked bread.

Customise It!

If you want to increase the creaminess you could add a swirl of single cream when serving.

Adjust the strength of the chillis to your personal taste – I used medium, but you can revert to mild, or fire up to hot!

A bit like changing their intensity from low to high, I suppose – a cue for me to add Ohio’s the Black Keys to the ADK Playlist. Here’s Lo/Hi.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

This week, on a visit to my good friends Kelvin and Eva, I was treated to a bowl of Eva’s delicious, Austrian-inspired pumpkin soup. I am please to say she has agreed to share the recipe in this guest post. Over to Eva. Enjoy!

………………………………………..

Homemade soups are one of my favourite comfort foods for a cold autumn day. As I am a member of a community farm near where I live, it’s that time of year when you get an abundance of different pumpkins and squashes. So here is a recipe that my mum used to make for us, served with a special pumpkin seed oil, that comes all the way from Austria, also referred to as the “black gold of Austria”.

You Will Need

  • 2 -3 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon of paprika
  • 1kg pumpkin or squash (try kabocha), peeled, deseeded and chopped into chunks
  • 1 sweet potato chopped into chunks
  • 150g of lean smoked diced bacon
  • 700ml vegetable stock
  • 150ml double cream or sour cream or crème fraiche
  • * Pumpkin seed oil, optional

Method

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, then gently cook the bacon till crisp. Add the chopped onions and garlic and cook for 5 mins, until soft but not coloured.
  2. Add 1kg pumpkin or squash with the sweet potato chunks to the pan, then carry on cooking for 8-10 mins, stirring occasionally until it starts to soften and turn golden.
  3. Add the paprika, give it a quick stir and immediately pour the vegetable stock into the pan and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 mins until the squash and potato are very soft.
  4. Pour 150ml double cream into the pan, bring back to the boil, then purée with a hand blender.
  5. Reheat the soup if needed, taste for seasoning, then serve scattered with croutons and a drizzle of pumpkin seed oil, if you want. A perfect accompaniment for a more complete meal is a freshly baked baguette!

*Styrian pumpkin seed oil is a geographic protected product by the EU. Nutty and rich, pumpkin seed oil is full of good fatty acids, minerals and vitamins and on top of it all it is cholesterol free. It partners perfectly with green salads, cheese, scrambled egg and pasta dishes. Did you know it takes 2.5-3kgs of pumpkin seeds to press 1 litre of pumpkin seed oil?

As the author of a guest post on A Different Kitchen, I get to choose the next track for Kevin’s ADK Playlist. This track reminds me of childhood dinners around the kitchen table in Austria with my family: Billy Joel with Piano Man.