Thai Vegetable Soup with Coriander Pesto.

The First of September announces spring in the Southern Hemisphere, but here in Cape Town, despite the tantalising appearances of sunny days, the wind still has a chill about it as it ushers in cold-fronts which deliver rain well into October.

And on those rainy days, as on cold ones, there are few things more comforting in winter than a warm soup, and at that one that has a little heat. Soups are also perfect for winter because they are packed with vitamins that ward off colds. I love soup, from the simple to the thick vegi-packed variety. But this soup has a delicate aroma which sets it apart and hints at the balmy warmth of those places which are famous for their spicy foods in the same way that spring hints at the heat of the summer that is to come. I really think that this soup is something of a treat in terms of flavour which comes from the sesame, flax and sunflower seeds which you heat up with coriander seeds before adding the vegetables. Garlic is fantastic in all seasons not only because of its flavour, but also because it has mild anti-septic and decongestant properties that help guard against colds and flu.

The coriander pesto is an addition which makes this a soup that can be served at a dinner party and will impress. The chili in this pesto adds punch to the soup.
Add a few prawns (two or three per person) to add body and serve as a main.


Ingredients:

Soup
15ml sesame seed oil
1 tblsp sesame seeds
1 tblsp sunflower seeds
1 tblsp flaxseeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds

1 small cinnamon stick

small clove of garlic

2 leeks

4 spring onions

a small bunch of coriander

2 medium sweet potatoes

1 small butternut

3 large carrots

1 litre chicken stock

Coriander pesto

a large bunch of coriander

1/2 cup of lemon juice

1/4 cup olive oil

30ml flaxseed oil

1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1 chili

1 large clove of garlic.

Cut up the spring onions and leeks into rounds and toss together with the shredded coriander. Crush the garlic. Cut the carrots julienne. Cut the sweet potato and butternut into small cubes. (This part requires a little effort and can also be done in advance and frozen and taken out when needed) Alternatively, just get it ready cut from the shops! No need to slave away when the convenience is there for the taking (off the shelf)

On a heavy-based pot, throw in the seeds and allow them to slowly toast. Be careful not to let them burn and you should see oil from the sesame, sunflower and flax seeds. Add the cinnamon stick. The cumin seeds may pop, so just be careful and when the seeds are toasted, remove from the heat. Add a little more sesame seed oil, if you need to, and then throw in the leeks, spring onions and garlic. Allow this to become translucent. Add the rest of the vegetables and stir while they fry briefly. Add the chicken stock and bring to the boil, topping with water as required until the vegetables are tender.

The coriander pesto is easiest to make with a hand held blender but can be made in an ordinary blender if you stir the mixture around the blades. Needless to say- BE VERY CAREFUL when you do this and make sure that the blender is off: I switch it off at the plug each time, just out of caution. You can also shake the blender when the power is on, but be careful again, not to overheat the motor. If you are using a hand held blender simply pop all the dry ingredients and lemon juice into a bowl. Drizzle in the oil and blend until smooth. Otherwise place the same ingredients into the blender blend as best you can as you drizzle in the oils. It may not turn out super-smooth but the texture that you do get is interesting and, I think, adds to the flavour. Pop into an airtight, sanatised jar to keep in the fridge or spoon a tablespoon immediately on each serving of soup . Stir in the pesto before eating and serve with crispy chiabatta rounds drizzled with flaxseed oil.

You can make the pesto a day before and the flavours will intensify. The pesto will keep for a week in the fridge and can be tossed into warm couscous and served as a side dish or add a tomato and onion salsa and crumble a hard-boiled egg (one per person) on the top and grind some fresh salt and pepper and serve as a light meal. Otherwise this makes a great base on crackers topped with a dollop of Crème Fraîche, lemon zest and a smoked mussel.

Bon Apetite!

Vegaterian Dinner Party Part 1 What is a dinner party?

For the first time last week I threw a vegetarian dinner party. I must say that I love a dinner party and it is something that people seem to do very little in Cape Town, perhaps because doing it properly is something of a logistical challenge. I read a lot about dinner parties in the UK Gaurdian; the English seem to be obsessed about their possible demise in society, what constitutes one and whether the said gathering, that constituted both guests and dinner was, in fact, a dinner party. Just the other day I read how week Jay Rayner of the Gaurdian was moved enraged by Alan de Botton's comments in The Times on dinner parties.

Well, I had to concur with Jay, that a dinner party is more than just serving out microwave dinners and asking intimate questions. The dinner is an intimate affair, yes, but the resulting conversation is only intimate if it is unforced and usually the feeling is enhanced by wine, selected especially to compliment the meal.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2010/may/28/alain-de-botton-dinner-party
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/real_food/article7137210.ece

But a dinner party doesn’t have to be excessively formal because the cook has gone to the trouble of exciting their guests’ tastebuds with delicious and thoughtfully prepared food that has been paired with wine. Ok, wine pairing is not always strictly necessary since I usually ask my guests to bring some to supplement what I have got, but I do feel that there should be a moment in each of my guest’s evening when, as they are eating and drinking in a wash of entertaining chatter, that they stop to think, hmm, this tastes delicious, and thus that they are really enjoying themselves. Putting the right people together is also essential, but on the off chance that as the host, you’ve misjudged your guests, then they should at least be happy that they came for the food and wine!

The Awe of Aubergine : Aubergine Rolls

Aubergine, also known as eggplant and perhaps more commonly known as the Brinjal or melongene, is a wonderful vegetable, I must admit to the fact that the deep purple colour of the skin never fails to elicit a sense of mystery and luxury about the fruit. One cannot help but feel that there is something magical about the fruit or, and indeed it was believed that because of the skin’s deep and ethereal colour, that the fruit was poisonous – but rest assured, it is not!
Aubergines actually come in a range of colours and are closely related to the tomato. Well no wonder- tomatoes must be one of God’s best gifts to the world and its relation; the aubergine does not fall short of the family accolades. Aubergine can be substantial without being heavy and it is unsurprising that tomato and Aubergine marry wonderfully together in a dish.
Aubergine appears in a range of countries' dishes, from the  Middle East, Thailand and China, North Africa, Turkey, Greece and Spain.  
Whenever I make aubergine, I always wash it, cut it and then cover the cut pieces with quite a layer of refined or coarse salt. I then leave this for anything from ten minutes to an hour. This known as "degorging". Many people say that you don’t have to do this, especially since the flavour of aubergine changes when it is cooked. But for me this does more than just remove any bitterness from the fruit (caused by the nicotinoid alkaloids in the plant which you can see in the brown watery runoff) as well as the fact that it helps to reduce the instance of oil absorption which happens because the fruit is rather spongy– which is not cool if you are using an expensive olive oil or if you are watching your weight! I also know some people who seem react badly and get terrible headaches from the nicotinoid alkaloids even after the fruit has been thoroughly cooked. Here I think that degorging helps and, though I am no scientist, I suspect that cooking aubergine with tomato also counteracts their affect.
But enough of that, let’s get back to the deliciousness of what can be made with the aubergine! Because the fruit is quite a rich, this also makes a substantial vegetarian dish if you leave out the chicken.
Ingredients
2 large aubergines, sliced into rounds to a medium thickness ( +/- 1cm)
4 chicken breasts, cut into thin slices (one for each slice of aubergine)
Sundried tomatoes, washed and left to soak in crushed garlic, 3 generous tblsps olive oil and a healthy dose of Oregano.
Calamata olives (depipped and finely chopped)
100g Mozzarella or ricotta cheese, depending on your preference
Two cans of whole peeled tomatoes
Salt and fresh black pepper
Toothpicks
small bunch flat-leaf parsley roughly chopped.
To make
Degorge the aubergine slices as described above. You will find that this also makes the slices more pliable and easier to roll.
If you are using ricotta cheese, you can add the chopped olives, a good pinch of salt and crack of black pepper and mix it up.
Rinse the aubergine slices well.
Season the chicken slices with the salt and pepper.
The rest is fairly easy:
Take a slice of aubergine. Place a slice of chicken on top of that. Then add a bit of the olives (if they are not in the ricotta cheese), one or two sundried tomatoes, a slice of mozzarella or spread a teaspoon of the ricotta mixture and roll up the slice and secure with a toothpick. Place in an ovenproof dish that has been lightly greased with olive oil. Drizzle the remaining oil and herbs from the sundried tomatoes over the top (pop in any sundried tomatoes that you may have left over too. Save about half for the top. Squash over two cans of whole peeled tomatoes with all the juice. Drizzle over remaining flavoured oil and a bit of crumbled ricotta.

Pop in a hot oven (220 degrees Celsius) and allow to cook for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 150 degrees Celsius and cook for a further 20 minutes.
Serve on top of cous cous that has a little bit of nutmeg sprinkled into it and then top with the tomato sauce that has formed as part of the dish with a generous pinch of freshly cut flat-leaf parsley.

Enjoy!

Quick and Easy... but is it food?

Sometimes time is just short, dear readers. And it is in times like these, when we turn to… convenience meals. And what is more convenient than a packet of  Knorr Fresh Ideas that comes free with your latest fashion magazine? Well it was convenient enough for me, a very much an I-look-down-my-nose-at-convenience-food kind of person.

But like I said, sometimes time is short, and you / your family are hungry. So as I opened the packet and followed the instructions, I started to wonder what the dinner would taste like. Would it be good? I didn’t know. But what I did want to know was this: Was there a good prepared / convenience dinner out there?

So this column, I thought, could become a regular as I take on the task of testing and searching for good convenience dinners. I’ll take into account the time that it takes to make the meal, the clarity of the instructions and the ease with which they can be followed and the meal made. I’ll also put up the price and the number of calories that it consists of. And, naturally, assess how it tastes.


So the Knorr Fresh Ideas, Bacon Carbonara flavoured Pasta and Sauce is described as “Tagliatelle pasta in a creamy cheese and bacon flavour sauce”. The green packet gives the impression that it is really healthy, but the blurred pictures of tomatoes, parsley and garlic on the back of the foil cover is about as close to any real vegetables as you will get in the dish. That said, when the dish was done, a small fresh salad was a really good accompaniment.

I liked the way that there was a tab on the front of the packet that told you exactly what you needed: 125 ml cold milk;
             375 ml hot water
             30ml / 2 tbs margarine.

The tab at the back of the packet states that they have taken out the (does that mean all the?) artificial colourants. Well, maybe it doesn’t because no sooner had my eyes wondered to the ingredients’ section and I spotted an E-number. Plus, I had to wonder how the strong smell, reminiscent of bacon that wafted off the top of the powder that escaped, as I cut open the packet, could really be “natural”.     

Well as I pondered the issue of to what degree chemical composition was classified as “natural”, I threw the water and milk into a pot. I was about to throw in the second of the two tablespoons of marg, when I judged against it, my rational being that anything with such a strong smell in its raw state could not possibly need this for flavour. 

“Bring to the boil,” the instructions said.

So far so good. All I had to do was switch on the stove. But then, dear readers, I made the ultimate convenience food mistake. I walked away while I waited for the ingredients to come to the boil. Somewhere in my mind, as I turned on the TV, I had convinced myself that this convenience food thing was so easy that it could practically cook itself.

Not so, and the promised 10-12 minutes cooking time slowly increased as I found myself scrubbing boiled-over milk and marg. off the stovetop.

But there was still hope. I topped up the milk and water, perhaps rather recklessly, but with well-educated guesswork and brought, under my watchful eye, the liquids to the boil.

From there it’s a simple matter of tipping in the contents of the divided sachet, divided, the product says on the outside so that the closed package will last for longer. I thought, rather cynically, that this powdered concoction would outlast me if it were never opened, it was so deconstructed from any original organic form.

None the less, I stirred, not at regular intervals but constantly – I had learnt my lesson, and just as well because for the next four minutes the mixture thickened alarmingly quickly and would have burnt at the bottom of the pan if I had not. But that the dish cooked quicker than anticipated (by 2 minutes, excluding the post-bring-to-the-boil disaster) certainly impressed me. If, however, you cook convenience meals because you believe you can’t cook and follow instructions to a T, then you may have ended up with considerably mushy pasta!

Overall, the final dish looked a little on the pale side, but tried bravely to add some colour in the form of dehydrated chives. Here, I added a basil leaf for presentation purposes. This, unfortunately was the entire contents of the sachet which says it serves two. At 1890 kJ or 450 odd kcals, eating the whole dish one’s self is really not so indulgent. I did get full about three-quarters of the way through, though this was maybe because it had gotten cold and a little stiff… and monotonous.

The sauce was really nice and creamy and the bacon flavour, while not very natural, was tolerable, especially when accompanied by a side-salad. Also, I cut up a bit of spring onion and stirred it in and this also lent a bit of a fresh taste and crunchiness to the texture.

I probably wouldn’t make this again unless I was camping and I had to carry all the cooking utensils and ingredients myself. (I’m pretty convinced that it would taste just the same if you substituted the milk with extra water). 
It costs R15.95 at Pick and Pay

Easter Pavlova

Easter came as a wonderful time for culinary indulgences. After mass, we started off the morning with a traditional Dutch dish called an uitsmuiter. This is basically an egg on top of a good piece of ham, like gypsy ham on top of a white roll. On the side you have cut up tomato and pickles like picked gherkins, piccalilli, and pickled onions all with a good seasoning of salt and white pepper.

Then I had lunch with friends, which was a delightful spread of greens, a roast chicken and a roast lamb!

But dessert was my department and I made sure not to disappoint. I made, most appropriately because of all the eggs it uses, I thought, a Pavlova. I’d never been very good with meringues, but, as it turns out, the trick is to let them dry out in the oven. Getting the ratio of sugar to egg-whites is also pretty important. Too much sugar and you’re sure to end up with a chewy mess! Baking is always a little more of a science than cooking. Sure you can do it to feel, but then you’d better make sure that you feel more towards accurate measurements rather than not!

Lastly, it also helps to have a clean stainless steel bowl since this will make sure that the egg-whites stiffen.

Anyway, the recipe that I used was great and I’ll repeat it here now. Be warned though, this takes time. Four hours all together!



What you need is:
8 egg-whites
440 g of caster sugar
2 cups whipping cream
Fruit of your choice. Berries work well or any other combination of tropical fruit, I used mango, litchis, banana and granadilla pulp. I wouldn’t have minded a bit of papaya in there too! Cut these up into fruit-salad sized pieces and I let them wallow in 3 tablespoons of white dessert wine.

Heat the oven to 140 degrees Celsius. Make sure that the rack is in the middle of the oven.

With your egg-whites in the stainless steel bowl, froth the eggs with the hand-beater on low. Once the whites are frothy, put the mixer on high speed and beat until the egg-whites form stiff peaks.

Now start adding the sugar, a little at a time, all the while beating the egg-whites with the beater on a high speed, making sure that the sugar dissolves each time. Eventually the mixture will get very stiff.

On a baking tray that is covered with wax wrap (the non-stick side up) and bake for 1 hour. Then turn the oven off and leave the meringue in the oven for another 3 hours to dry out.

Whip up the cream and spread over the top of the meringue just before you’re about to serve. Top with the fruit or fruit salad and then with the granadilla pulp.





 I served mine with a Môreson Brut sparkling wine. The dry taste complimented the granadilla and tropical fruits and balanced off the sweetness of the meringue beautifully. And well, the bubbles just complimented the lashings of cream and the general fun sense of extravagance and indulgence that eating such a decadent dessert brings!

Tomato Risotto - Finally, The Recipe

After much raving about the tomato risotto, and many promises about bringing you the recipe soon, here it is.

30 g butter
1 small onion, finely sliced
1 large garlic clove
Salt
Black pepper
1 ½ cups of Arborio rice
¾ cup white wine
+/- 750 ml home-made chicken stock.
250 g baby tomatoes
A drizzle of olive oil
A can of chopped plum tomatoes
½ cup cream
Medium bunch of basil leaves

Cut up the baby tomatoes into quarters and liberally season with salt and black pepper. Drizzle over the olive oil and roast under the grill till the tomatoes are caramelised and a little charred on the edges.

Melt the butter in a heavy –based pan. On a medium heat,  add the onion, salt  and pepper and the garlic. Gently sauté, allowing the garlic to flavour the oil and the onion to turn sweet and translucent.  Add the rice and stir, allowing it to be covered with the butter. I like to turn up the heat a bit here and then throw the wine over. Stir until it evapourates.
A soup ladle or two at a time, add the stock. (I will save my rantings about the taste-value that comes from making stock yourself rather than using the cubes diluted in water- I’ll do a post on how to make chicken or vegetable stock)
Stir until each addition of stock has been absorbed.  Repeat until the rice is al dente.  Allow the moisture to evapourate a little and then add the can of chopped tomatoes.  Then toss through the baby tomatoes.
Stir through the cream and then tear the up the bunch of basil leaves and stir them through too.

Serve with a green side salad with a light vinaigrette.  Also lovely with some pancetta or black forest ham on the side.  Otherwise it makes a lovely vegetarian meal.
I had mine with the Lourensford Shiraz rosé which complimented the tomato flavours very well.

Tomato Risotto - The food that should be reserved for lovers!

This weekend saw me making one of my favourite Italian dishes, the Risotto. Hmm, how do I describe the risotto? It is one of those dishes that when you taste it, it is heaven in your mouth and so completely satisfying and infused with such delectable flavour that it makes you immediately well disposed to all those around you. It is a moment to savour, it is a moment you could fall in love! No wonder the Italians are such a passionate people!

Being  at my happiest when I’m cooking for others  I have often wanted to implement a tactical turn to my dinner parties. That is that each person that I invite must also invite someone that I don’t know. Preferably with the view of meeting ‘the one’.  Yes, I could be cooking and sharing with someone I don’t turn out to like, but on the other hand I could be cooking for someone I do, and what’s more, I’d be in my element as the gracious host and elegant chef. Ok, sometimes I’m not gracious nor elegant (throwing out, along with a teeny tiny temper tantrum, lumpy cheese sauce for a fondu, because it wasn’t perfect, springs to mind. A friend insisted on saving the sauce and it actually wasn’t all that bad in the end! ) Either way it guarantees an evening of entertainment!

 One of my regular flavours is a mushroom risotto. I’d heard horror stories about risotto, hours of stirring and well nothing but a(nother) lumpy mass resulting. But this is a dish which, luckily I have perfected and therefore like to indulge my guests, and...well none of them have been gracious enough to bring a nice looking man, as yet unknown to me, to dinner.

But back to the mushroom risotto- a delicious dish that is diffused with delicate morels.  But if you are pedantic about having the diverse woody and nutty tastes that various mushroom types can bring to the dish, then being out-of-pocket is not one of the times that you can make this dish in its entirety. Also, I like to use a fairly good oak barrel –rested chardonnay. While it need not be a wildly expensive one, which would just be sacrilege to throw into the pot, rather than enjoy direct from the glass, a goodish one is still important since the flavours of the wine ultimately add to the flavour of the dish.

It was Saturday evening and not having had anything particular planned, but longing for a bit of company, I decided to invite some friends around for dinner.  But what to make?

It being Autumn, that awkward, but also very exciting time of year when the days are hot, but the evenings cool, I decided on something for dinner that would pay homage to the two seasons that it lies between and settled on a tomato risotto. This Risotto I also make with a less heavy wine, one that has a little more zest to it and is a little more refreshing with a slight summer sweetness (tropical fruit) to it. This along with the tomato and a light side salad of a variety of lettuce greens, tossed lightly in raspberry vinegar and olive oil (don’t forget a pinch of salt and black pepper), is testament to the summer. The cream, which I’m sure the Italians would feel is a culinary profanity in the summer, and also because a risotto has a naturally creamy texture, is a taste and preparation of the winter to come.  You can also serve this with a few slices of prosciutto (or black forest ham) on the side to complete the dish.