Unforgettable Meatballs (Polpette al Pomodoro)

Rosemary's esoteric link to memory has been going on for some time (from Hamlet to more recent investigations) scientists are finding that rosemary aroma can aid memory. Whether or not the amount used here is enough to enhance your recall, these polpette aren't easily forgotten. The milk soaked bread is generally accepted as an essential, this keeps the meatballs juicy. Browning them first intensifies the meat taste. Serve with crusty bread or pasta.

What you need? Makes 36 meatballs

Meatballs

500g beef mince 

4 slices of white bread (toasted and crumbled then soaked in milk)

2 handfuls of parsley

4-5 sprigs of chopped rosemary

2 egg yolks

Pomadoro

1 medium white onion (sliced)

3-4 basil stalks (leaves removed and sprinkled in sauce at end)

sprigs of Rosemary (chopped)

1 clove of garlic

6 tomatoes on the vine + 2 tins plum tomatoes

1 tbsp brown sugar

What to do?

Combine all ingredients for meatballs. Roll into balls and place on oiled baking tray. Allow to firm up in fridge for 30mins. Heat oil in pan, add onion. Cook for 5 mins. Add the basil stalks, rosemary, garlic. Cook for 1 min. Add the fresh tomatoes, cook for 5 mins. Add the tinned tomatoes and sugar. Cook for 15mins. Season. Pan dry meatballs in oil. Add browned meatballs to sauce and poach in sauce for 5 mins. 

Avocado & Parma Toast

February has been bright but cold. In keeping, so is this toast. Lime juice keeps it fresh and Ciabatta keeps it's light. Creamy avocado has more potassium than a banana and way less sugar making it a good breakfast shout. It also tastes great with crisped up parma ham.

What you need?

1/2 avocado

2 slices of parma ham (dry fried for 1 minute in hot pan to make crispy)

2 slices of ciabatta

sprinkle of pomegranate seeds (I had some in the fridge!)

sprinkle of fresh coriander

squeeze of lime

season with salt and pepper 

What to do?

Slice ciabbatta. Slice avocado into half moons, squeeze juice of half a lime (also stops the avocado discolouring), season. Roll parma ham and top. Sprinkle with pom seeds and coriander. 

Sweet Parsnip Soup with Pomegranate and Cumin

From Souping (the new juicing) to bright and beautiful spring offerings Nettle soup with flowers. Soups and reasons to soup are all around. Although it's still a little early for nettle and flower soup, parsnips are peaking. The frost helps change some of their starch to sugar, so all that snow made them sweeter. Parsnip soup with cumin to bring out the natural spiciness brightened up with a little pomegranate is just what February is calling out for.

What do you need?

600 Parsnips (I used Heritage baby parsnips - peeled and diced)
1 garlic clove (crushed)
1 large onion
1 lit. chicken stock
175ml Greek yogurt
1-2tblsp cumin seeds (dry fry seeds for 1-2mins; then grind)
handful of pomegranate seeds
squeeze of lemon juice
Homemade croutons (cube bread, fry in oi, add salt & pepper & sumac)

What to do?

In a pan heat 2 tblsp of butter when foaming add the onion, cook for 5'. Add the garlic. Add the cumin. Add the parsnips. Add stock. Salt/Pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes. Blend. Stir in the yogurt and heat again. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, squeeze lemon, season. Top w/ croutons and pom seeds.

Christmas Present #1: Peanut & Almond butter

Homemade christmas presents rock and with 12 days till Christmas this is what I'm making.

#1. Peanut & Almond butter (makes 500ml)

Making nut butters is easier than you think. Nuts + blender. That's pretty much it. Almonds are quite sweet so are nicely balanced by the dryness of the peanut. For any nut butters (cashew, hazelnut etc.) use a mixture of roasted & raw nuts. The raw nuts maintain more oil so good for butteriness. If it's too thick blend some more or add a little peanut oil.

Ingredients

200g raw almonds
200g raw peanuts
200g of flaked almonds

What to do?
Roast the raw almonds for 10 minutes (gas mark 5). Blend all nuts for 15-20minuts until you have the consistency you like. Pour butter into a sterilised jar, seal.

Pack it.
One 500ml kilner jar
Brown string
Gift label

Sticky Carrot and Coconut Babycakes - makes 24

So long previous carrot cake recipes - this ones for keeps.

I love lightness in cakes and I love stickiness - sometimes it's hard to attain these in equal measures - too much flour and your cake is a bit dense - too much sugar/butter and you won't maintain the structure of your cupcake. Pineapple juice is key here, it keeps the cake moist and sticky while maintaining the sugar content so your cakes don't flop. Be sure not to over cook them (5 minutes over and the you lose the essential stickiness that makes these standout).

Ingredients
200ml melted butter
200g Castor sugar
4 eggs
100ml pineapple juice
100g chopped pineapple
2 medium carrots (grated)
100g dissected coconut
300g wholemeal flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tblsp mixed all spice

Butter cream icing
100g dissected coconut
100g icing sugar
100g melted butter
1 tub  full fat cream cheese

Mix sugar, eggs and butter. Add pineapple juice. Add grated carrot to egg mix. Add chopped pineapple and coconut. Separately, mix dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and all spice). Then combine the two (add dry to wet). Pour into cupcake cases - fill 3/4. Bake for 20 - 30 minutes at 180 degrees, check at 20 minutes, you want a skewer inserted to come out clean. Make the butter cream icing - whisk coconut, sugar, butter and cream cheese. When cakes are cooled at the butter cream icing with a piping bag.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork with Chorizo and Red Wine. Hell Yeh.

Take the time. 

(Enough for 4)

I bought some crackin' free range pork from Pheasant Hill Farm off lovely Julia Bailey and then made the best braised meat of my life. That you cook the pork for so long makes it feel like you have this treasure or this night before Christmas feeling knowing something specials on the way - I'm sure the delayed gratification of a 4 1/2 hr wait heightened the delight of eating. The red wine balances out the fattiness of the pork, mixed with chorizo and pimento and you get spanish thoughts of hillside taverns.  The only thing out of the ordinary is the time and the time is the essence of this dish, so take it.

to braise: seared or browned in fat and then simmered in liquid on a low heat (for like ever)

What you need

1 kg Pork shoulder (fat removed and kept)

3 shallots

2 cloves of garlic

3 tblsp of pimento spice

12 cherry tomato's on the vine

1/2 bottle red wine

150 ml stock

1/2 ring of chorizo, chopped

A heavy based dish with a lid you can put in the oven

What to do

Chop shallots and fry in the fat on a medium heat, for 7 mins. Remove fat. Add the chorizo, cook until the oil is released (3-4 mins). Add the garlic, brown the pork shoulder on all sides in the dish. Add the pimento and mix. Add the red wine, let the alcohol cook off for 2 mins. Add the stock. Leave cherry tomato's whole and add to the dish. Put a lid on and put in the oven on low (110 degrees) for about 4 1/2 hours.  Remove pork from dish and allow to rest for 30minutes at least. While resting put the dish on a high heat with lid removed and reduce by 1/3 (keep reducing until the pork is rested). When cooked, the meat should come away from the bone easily, pull the meat apart using 2 forks to get a shredded effect. Return meat to dish and serve with crusty bread and lemon butter beans.

Spicy Parsnip Soup

Totz gonna go drink soup on the beach

This soup has a good kick to get you into springtime and it's thick so fills you up. The cooked sweet parsnips create a deep caramel sweetness that blends so well with the Indian spices. I made some sour dough croutons too which means you get these little hits of salty flavour, hell yeh.

Ingredients (Makes 2 people full)
50 g butter
2 medium onions

2 cloves of garlic

2 fresh red chilli's

1 tbsp madras curry powder (could also use garam masala)

1200ml-1400mls of vegetable stock (use extra water to loosen up after blending if needed)

2 large parsnips (280g)
1 large potato (220g)
2 slices of sour dough bread
salt and pepper

Melt the butter when it starts to foam add the onions and garlic, turn the heat down low. Cook for 10minutes. Chop the chilli's finely (set one aside to top the soup later). Add the chili, curry powder and stock. Cook for 20minutes. Chop the parsnip and potato into cubes, add to the stock and cook for a further 30minutes. Blend. Heat some oil in a pan, cube the sour dough, add to hot oil with lots of salt and pepper. When crisp serve on top the the soup.