An Ode to mushrooms

How beautiful they are!

How tasty and delicious,

How great baked with cheese,

And garlic, chilli, herbs and spices too,

How wonderful the glorious fungi is,

Autumn's fruit du jour!

 

 

Picture:  Baked mushrooms with olive butter and feta.

 

 

Mushroom Stroganoff

Autumn creeps up on us and one of the best all time recipes for this particular time of year is mushroom stroganoff.  I love the silky texture of this dish especially when served with plain brown rice or a savoury rice dish.  Adding cumin to this relatively simple dish, adds another layer of flavour which enhances the earthy notes and goes well with the tarragon.

• 25 grams of butter
• 25 mls of olive oil
• 600 grams of large mixed mushrooms (in this case 250 grams of large closed cup, which have been halved and 350 grams of large Portobello/cut into large segments)
• two cloves of smoked garlic/crushed and chopped finely
• three medium echelon shallots/regular onions, chopped finely
• one teaspoon of paprika (smoked if the garlic is not)
• one teaspoon of dried tarragon
• one pinch (about half a teaspoon) of ground cumin
• one heaped tablespoon of plain flour
• one small glass of dry sherry (100 mls)
• one small glass of cold water (100 mls)
• three teaspoons of capers (in vinegar) chopped finely
• 150 mls of soured cream
• 25 grams of chives, chopped

Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil and a little of the butter in a deep oven proof dish and seal the mushrooms in batches (listening to the ghostly voice of Julia Child in my ear "do not crowd the pan) until browned. 

The mushrooms will absorb some of the oil so you will need to refresh this for each batch.  At the end, you should have a little of both the oil and butter left, just enough to cook the onions and garlic (remembering to turn down the heat before placing these in the pan, otherwise the garlic will burn and turn bitter).  Once these have softened slightly, add the paprika, tarragon and cumin and stir thoroughly. 

Add the flour and keep stirring.  The mixture will turn "claggy" and dry, and it is at this point you add the sherry, gradually, until a thick paste is formed.  Then add an equal quantity of water, again gradually, until it is the consistency of thick cream.  Add the capers and simmer the sauce for a few more minutes and then add the mushrooms.  Cover and turn the heat down to low, checking and stirring intermittently for the next 40 minutes.

About 10 minutes before the end, add the soured cream and chives.

Finally, serve with savoury rice.

Savoury Rice

This is such a good accompaniment to so many casserole type dishes.   Leftovers are also very good mixed with egg for a real carb hit on a Sunday morning - try making this as a thin omelet (with three or four dessert spoons of the mixture to two eggs) and whilst still warm, sprinkling grated cheddar cheese and rolling it up like a wrap.   

 

Garnish:

• 250 gram of small/baby potatoes, halved
• 10 mils of olive oil
• A pinch of salt
• A pinch of ground black pepper
• Half a teaspoon of dried thyme
• Half a teaspoon of dried parsley

In a medium bowl mix all the ingredients together and lay on a baking tray.  Place in a hot oven (200c) and roast for 30 minutes, turning them half way through the cooking time. 

Separately:

• 5 mls of olive oil
• One medium onion - finely chopped
• A pinch of salt
• A pinch of ground black pepper
• A teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 150 grams of brown rice
• 150 grams of puy lentils
• Cold water.

In a large frying pan or shallow saucepan, fry the onion in the oil on a medium heat until soft.  Add the salt, pepper and cumin and the brown rice.  Stir until the rice starts to change colour, add the lentils and again, stir until the well coated with the oil.    Add enough cold water to cover by a cm over the top of the mixture.  Bring to a gentle boil and then reduce heat to simmer for approximately 20 minutes, or until the mixture is cooked.  You may need to add additional water during this time, but all should have been boiled away.  If some is still remaining, drain before adding half the roasted potato.  Stir these into the mixture.  On serving, add the remaining potatoes on top.

Spiced chickpea puree

A great reserve for those of you with a taste for chilli hot dips, it's a wonder what you can do with two chillies, a can of chickpeas and some sundried tomatoes (or your own pre-baked ones).

This is simply a really good standby, not just as a dip but also as a filling or "jam" for rolled aubergines or, better still, as a base for a spicier version of the goats cheese and baked tomato pastries.  Great as alternative to the flavoured butter for the pastry twists.

• Take 100 grams of sundried tomatoes or slow baked tomatoes
• Two chillies (de-seed if you don't want a fiery spread - otherwise, depending upon the chilli, you may not be able to use it!)
• One can of chickpeas (drained)
• 20 grams of parsley, roughly chopped
• One large garlic clove, roughly chopped
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Blitz all the above together, minus the salt and pepper, adding a little olive to lubricate the mixture if required.  Taste at the end and then season.

Use in so many ways.

Autumn Potato "Curry"

My store cupboard has the normal (I think anyway) range of pulses, seeds and spices, but when a friend commented that she didn't have a clue what to use caraway or fennel seeds for, I was a little taken aback.   My original way of using either of these fine seeds was to roast new potatoes in olive oil and sprinkle a generous amount of either, along with a couple of pinches of salt and serving with the roast bird (of most sorts except for duck or goose) of choice.

One of the habits I got into with these particular kinds of roast potatoes, was to actually cook twice as many as I needed for the meal at hand, as not only did the cold sliced flavoursome packages make a tasty addition to an omelet the following morning but it also made a great base for a simple, yet satisfying vegetable curry/spiced dish - the depth of flavour of which is one of headiest around.

• 400 grams of cold caraway or fennel roasted potatoes - halved
• Two large gloves of garlic
• One large onion - halved and then thinly sliced
• One small aubergine - top/tailed, quartered and sliced
• A handful of okra (about six or seven should be sufficient) topped and sliced on the diagonal
• 15 grams of coriander - chopped
• One or two chillies (according to taste) - deseeded and cut into fine strips
• One stick of ginger (about 1 1/2 cms in diameter and 4 cms long) grated
• One teaspoon of coriander seeds
• Half a teaspoon of turmeric
• One dessert spoon of tomato paste
• Three generous dessert spoons of Greek yogurt
• 200 mls of hot water

In a dry deep frying pan or shallow (5 cm) wide pan which comes with a lid, dry roast the coriander seeds until they just start turning colour and add, along with the turmeric into a spice grinder or a pestle and mortar - once ground up add the garlic, ginger, chilli and a little oil to make a thick paste.  Put back into the frying pan (which has been turned down on to a medium heat and add the onions and okra.  Cook until slightly softened and then add the aubergines along with a little hot water and tomato paste and cover and bring to a simmer and then turn the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes.  Add the potatoes and half the coriander, and cook for a further 20 to 30 minutes.

Separately, add the remainder of the coriander to the yogurt and serve as a side with the potatoes.

Like the freshly roasted potatoes, this is a great dish to have with almost any roasted or grilled bird, but equally good served with crusty bread on a windy Autumn day.

Between the potatoes and the okra, this dish seems to thicken itself, but you have the urge, just a little plain flour mixed into softened butter and added in final 20 minutes of cooking works really well.

Leeks braised in a garlic butter sauce

Last night's supper included this braised leek dish that Julia Child would have been proud of.

Using a simple French method for a butter sauce I used some more of the smoked garlic from our visit to the Isle of Wight last month.   The quantities are approximate so I would use what you have to hand.  I've just used leeks this time around, but have also made this dish with quartered, medium sized onions and courgette battens, which also work wonderfully.

For the leeks I like to use quite thin, long ones as I try to get three 10 cm lengths out of each one.  If they are too thick you tend to get too much waste as the outer layers tend to be tough, so thinner ones seem to be more economical.

For a generous accompaniment or starter for two:

Six leeks, prepared as described above.

40 grams of salted butter - 20 grams plain, 20 grams of smoked garlic
3 heaped teaspoons of plain flour
100 mls of good white wine, a Sauvignon Blanc or Chablis would be ideal
Salt and white ground pepper.

Blanche the leeks in boiling, salted water for five minutes.  Set aside and retain 200 mls of cooking liquid

Pre-heat your oven to 190c.

To make your butter sauce, melt your butter over a medium heat and, just before it melts completely, add the flour and whisk vigorously  Once the flour has been amalgamated, add the wine and continue to whisk, turning the heat down slightly.  Add the leek cooking liquid slowly and continue with your implement - the sauce will be very cream consistency.  Check for seasoning, it may require a little salt, depending upon on the salt levels of the butter used. At this stage add a couple of pinches of white ground pepper.

With medium deep oven proof dish (about 4 cms) or deep oven tray, pour half the sauce on its bottom and lay the drained leeks on top.  Add the remaining sauce on top and cover with foil. 

Place in the oven for 15 minutes and then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes.  The sauce should not be turning and should remain a bright green colour.  The parsley in the garlic butter will assist within the slightly freckled look to the sauce.

Cavolo Nero with smoked garlic butter

Cavolo Nero (Tuscan Kale) is such a strong, gutsy vegetable.  A great alternative to carbs in its own way as it is so filling. 

As many of you know Cavolo Nero is one of the traditional accompaniments to pasta, especially penne or tagliatelle, but on its own is just as good.

I cook it here with a little salted water and use a dessert spoon of smoked garlic butter to sauté a medium leek and a little unsmoked bacon to mix in with this luscious greenery.

Take 500 grams of these gorgeous leaves, de-spined and cut lengthways into strips (depending on how large your leaves are of course) and place in a deep pan with 250 mls of boiling water and a little olive oil and salt to taste.   Cover the pan over a medium heat and cook for 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop 100 grams of unsmoked bacon and a medium leek and sauté in a generous dessert spoon of smoked garlic butter until just turning brown.  Drain your greens and mix together.  Serve on its own or with mash potatoes or the pasta of your choice.

Simple Olive and Garlic pastry twists

These are so simple and quick and are so good with a G&T or martini any day!

Using both Olive and Smoked Garlic butters, this is a sure fire way of starting a get together at home to a great start.

Using pre-made puff pastry, simply roll to a half centimetre thickness, cut in half, spread some olive butter on one piece, cut into one centimetre strips and twist them a couple of times.  Lay on an oven tray with grease proof paper.

Do the same with smoked garlic butter and then place in a pre-heated oven at 190c for about 10-15 minutes, keep checking them in case they burn due to the high butter content of both the spread and the pastry.

Roasted baby vegetables with olive butter and feta

Roasting baby vegetables has never been so tasty, a great side dish as well as a main or starter, this can be used in so many ways.

Using olive butter in particular (as well as many other forms of homemade favoured spreads) to enhance the sweetness of vegetables is an old culinary trick.  But this works particularly well in this recipe as this also provides a further use for roasted tomatoes - also naturally sweet when roasted.

 

·         Take 150 grams each of baby leeks, carrots and fennel.   Top, tail (if necessary) and cut lengthways
·         100 grams of roasted tomatoes
·         Three good dessert spoons of olive butter
·         75 grams of feta, crumbled

Pre-heat your oven to 200c.

Place your baby vegetables on an oiled oven tray and place in the oven for about 10 minutes.  Then take this out and add your olive butter, tossing the vegetables before returning them to the oven, reducing the heat slightly to 190c, for a further 15-20 minutes.

Toss the vegetables again and then add the tomatoes and feta evenly over the top and bake for a further 5 minutes or so (remember the tomatoes only need to heat through).

The result is a rather sexy, savoury/sweet experience, which is really good served as a starter with toast, served with penne or lentils or with grilled fish or meat.

Olive butter

This olive butter is very good and always a good savoury standby for breakfast toast if you are so inclined.

The addition of the extra virgin oil in this recipe gives, like the smoked garlic butter, a good soft consistency even when stored in the fridge.  Very useful if you are adding either, with some plain flour, to thicken a sauce or soup.

This is also a good butter to add an undertone of slight bitterness (depending, obviously, on the olives that used) to roasted vegetables which can be sweet, and this in itself, provides balance.

• 100 grams of green and black olives
• 50 grams of chopped flat leaf parsley
• 25 mls of good extra virgin olive oil
• 100 grams of softened salted butter

Whizz these through in a food processor and this will store quite nicely for a couple of weeks at the top of your fridge. 

Adding vinegar, anchovy and/or capers to this recipe will technically make it a form of tapenard.  Tapenard is also good to cook with, especially as a roasting base for asparagus and French beans, try it spread on toast too as with this olive butter.

Goats' cheese and baked tomato pastries

One of a number of fresh and very quick supper ideas which will always hold my heart.  As a tart this makes a very attractive starter or main course.

Using either shop bought or freshly made (I always go for the former) puff (or short crust) pastry, this is a quick savoury tart which is goes well on its own or with a fresh green salad or a few mini roast potatoes on the side.

• 250 grams of puff pastry - rolled out to cover a medium greased and floured baking tray (30/20 cm)
• 250 grams of baked tomatoes
• 150 grams of goats' cheese - crumbled
• 100 mls of passata
• three or four sprigs of fresh thyme
• milk, for brushing

Pre-heat your oven to 190c.

Draw a border around the edge of the pastry about two cms wide and brush the outer rim with a little milk.

Thinly spread the passata in the middle of the pastry, within the limits of the border.

Add your baked tomatoes on top of this along with the goats cheese. 

Take the leaves of the fresh thyme and sprinkle evenly.

Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes

Making individual ones of these are also good as well as a "pasty" version. 

For a pasty version (best made with short crust), use a round dessert bowl for a template.  Draw a border as before.  In the middle, spread a little passata and on only half of the round, add your baked tomatoes, cheese and thyme.  Then fold and crimp the edges and placed on a baking tray as before.  Brush with milk.

Bake for little longer or until golden brown.

Roast Tomatoes

This is a base "recipe" in the broadest terms.  As with many vegetables and fruits, slow roasting tomatoes is a great way to intensify flavours.  Great when mixed with olives or served on toast with grilled goats cheese or as additions to soups and stews, this is an economical flavour enhancer.

Using end of season tomatoes or those not stored in a cold place are the fruits of choice here.  As all they need is to be spread on a baking tray (already halved or quartered) and sprinkled with dry thyme.

If you are using out of season tomatoes which have come from a cold counter or which are hard when examined, allow them to stand, covered, overnight (or for a few hours) and then proceed as above.  These may also need a slight sprinkling of sugar or salt to taste, but I normally leave this out as if they are not used immediately, they can be kept in a sterilised jars, covered in olive oil, for about a month.  If doing this, I normally add a sprig of rosemary or a couple of bay leaves.

My normal preparation method is a set out above, with the addition of a little olive oil and I bake these slowly for three hours in a low oven (80-100c).  One of my neighbours used to heat the oven to 150c bake initially for 30 minutes and then switch the oven off over night.  The result is not so much as "sun dried" texture but more of a grilled tomato effect. 

Cooks note:  If you are using this same method for whole peppers, remember to check on them even if the heat used is low, they may still burn.  The best way is to halve lengthwise as with tomatoes.  This a very good method for roasting chillies and this is especially so if want to control the heat of the chillies - halve these and remove the seeds - if a milder version is needed.