Vegetarian Paté x 3

I had lunch with Karen yesterday and we had paté for lunch which she made. They were all very nice ('though I must admit, I liked the white bean paté the best; tasted a bit like hummous). I thought you might like to try them for yourselves. 

Black Olive Paté [Tapenade?]

1 tin (350gr) pitted black olives, drained,

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp mixed herbs

freshly ground black pepper

Method

Whizz everything in a food processor until it looks like caviar. Pile into a small bowl and serve. That's it!

Mushroom & Tarragon Pâté

2 shallots/spring onions, finely chopped

1 leek, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

100 gr chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped

100 gr shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped

2 tsp wholegrain mushrooms [or less, taste first!]

2 tbsp crème fraîche

3 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon [or less of dried]

Method

Fry shallots [onions], leek and garlic until softened.

Add mushrooms, cooking for 10 mins until juices have evaporated and mushrooms are tenderm

Stir in mustard and crème fraîche and season well.

Cook 2 mins and stir in chopped taragon.

White Bean Paté

1 Tbsp oil

1 sm garlic clove [or more!]

pinch cayenne

2 cups cooked white beans

1 tsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp sherry

1 Tbsp melted butter

Parsley or paprika

Method

Heat oil and sauté garlic. Add cayenne and cook for 30 seconds. Add beans and mash with fork to puree.  

Stir in soy sauce and sherry.

Cook for 2 mins until dry.

Pack into crock and pour over melted butter.

Poke holes with a toothpick to allow butter to run inside.

Cover and chill.

Turn out of crock and decorate with parsley.

Serve all of the above with toasted pitta bread.

It's quite lekker!

Bengali Butternut squash with chickpeas

Saw this on tv and decided to try it and I even had all the ingredients in the house - isn't that amazing?! Easy to make, once you've got all the ingredients together.

Ingredients:

3 ysp veg oil; large (? - be careful!)  pinch ground asafoetida; 1 bay leaf; 

1/2 tsp panch phoran = Bengali five spice (or just equal amounts of fenugreek, nigella seeds, fennel seeds, cumin, mustard seeds ); 

1-2 mild dried chilies (or dried chili flakes, which is what I use); 

1 small onion, chopped; 

1/2 tsp turmeric (kunjit); 

2 level (oh, really?) tsp ground cumin (sorry, I only use the seeds these days);

1 heaped tsp ground coriander; 

2 tsp ginger paste; 

500 gr butternut squash (I found a small one which cost 50p and it was perfect - so easy to peel and very few seeds, relatively), cut into 4 cm cubes;

200 ml boiling water (oh, didn't look at this, just put in what was needed!);

200 gr canned drained chickpeas ( I used dried ones and soaked and cooked them); 

1 tsp garam masala;

1 tsp ground (or not!) fennel seeds

salt and sugar to taste.

So, having got all that lot together, the rest is easy:

1. Fry asafoetida, bay leaf, panch phoran and chilies in oil for 1-2 mins
   
2. add chopped onions and coat with spices until softened and golden brown
3. add turmeric, cumin and coriander, salt, sugar and ginger - stir well. Add a splash of boiling water and cook a further minuter or two; 
4. Add butternut squash and more boiling water; bring to boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until squash is tender (approx. 10-15 min)
5. Add chickpeas, garam masala, fennel seeds and water (if necessary)
6. Sir well and cook for a further 1-2 mins to warm through. 
7. Serve immediately, e.g with rice.

Bon appétit!

Moroccan style fruit Couscous

I took this recipe off the label of an M&S salad because it was so yummy. Didn't have all the ingredients so substituted my own...

Cooked turmeric couscous

Chickpeas (obviously), oranges, red onions, raisins, apricots (or dates), sugar, cranberries (craisins), coriander (probably preferably fresh, I used ground), Sunflower, water and Rapeseed oil (olive oil is just fine! - not sure the latter is necessary - depends on your salad dressing.)

Make Honey & Orange dressing:

Lemon juice, soft brown sugar, Wildflower (!) honey (or whatever kind you have), orange juice (or a drop of orange essence), salt, sunflower oil (olive), cinnamon, garlic puree, black pepper, cumin, ginger puree, ground coriander, smoked paprika (a pinch: it's very dominant!), cayenne, turmeric.

Add couscous (I used bulgar wheat, not sure what the difference is) to salad dressing, then the other bits and pieces. Obviously, the quantities are relative: most named first in the list, then the rest. 

This is gorgeous. Bon appétit!

Really Good Brussels Sprouts - 2 ways

Here are two ways of making Brussels sprouts. They are not anything like those overcooked stinky balls of mini-cabbages you're used to seeing!  They are also called "Brussels Sprouts for People Who Hate Brussels Sprouts"! Even Ella likes them.

1. Trim the ends off fresh Brussels sprouts and peel off any leaves that don't look nice. Blanch for a few minutes in boiling water, or cook in the microwave for 2-3 minutes until just tender but still firm (at TJ's, they come in a microwave bag, you just slit it open and cook). You don't want them mushy! When they are cool,  slice them in half lengthwise. If you're feeling lazy or pressed for time, just put them in a ziplock bag with bottled Italian dressing, but the fancier version is olive oil, minced garlic, minced onion, honey, Parmesan cheese, white balsamic vinegar (lemon juice works too), basil, oregano, thyme (or herbes de provence if you prefer). Warm up the honey just a bit so it mixes in with the other ingredients and pour into a ziplock bag with the sprouts. Let marinate overnight. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 475 F and put sprouts on a roasting pan or cookie sheet with just a little of the marinating liquid, otherwise they just sort of poach. Roast for about 20 minutes or until the sprouts caramelize.  

2. Here's a quicker way, less fancy but also delicious. Prepare sprouts as above (trim then blanch or microwave, halve). Make your favorite vinaigrette (mine is minced garlic, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, pinch of salt, pinch of sugar, dried or fresh parsley & basil, little bit of mustard). Toss sprouts in this vinaigrette while they are still warm, cover and let sit for an hour or 2 or however long you have; the longer, the more time there is for the vinaigrette to get into the sprouts. Serve at room temp.

Epaule d'Agneau Frottée au Romarin, Anchois et Zeste de Citron

This recipe is for me: I want to be able to access it when I'm in the States at Christmas... it's probably not on either of your diets.

Spread 2.2 kg/5 lbs lamb with paste of: 1 sprig fresh rosemary; zest of 1 organic lemon, 10 filets of anchovies, 3 cloves garlic, 2 tsp whole mustard seed - although I would probably use the real thing, black pepper, 2 tsp balsemic vinegar, 2 tsp olive oil - stand for 3-4 hours;

pre-heat oven to 220degC/430degF.

Add 4 unpeeled garlic cloves and 8 sm tomatoes under and around the meat; place in oven and cook for 30 mins; then lower the heat to 130degC/270degF and cook for another 2 1/2 hrs, basting the meat. Cover with foil if it seems to brown too quickly.

Rest on counter under foil for 5 mins before carving, ladling the juices over farro or bulgar (should you wish to eat that!)

that's the official version, at least. I'll let you know...

Pistachio Biscotti

This is a Weight Watcher's recipe. Looks like something that would be fun to make with the kids and it's vegetarian, for what that's worth, as it's a dessert!

110g/4oz plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

50g/1 3/4 oz low fat polyunsat'd margarine

zest 1/2 orange

75g/2 3/4 oz soft light brown sugar

50g/1 3/4 oz chopped pistachios

1 tsp instant coffee dissolved in 2 tsp hot water (or real!)

1 egg white

*  Pre-heat oven to 180 degC/400F; line baking tray with non-stick banking parchment

* "Sift" (or not!) flour and baking powder into a large bowl; add margarine and rub in until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in orange zest, sugar and pistachios.

* Add dissolved coffee and egg white and knead to a soft dough, adding a little water if it is too dry.

* Shape the dough into a log 5 cm/2 in wide and 5 cm/2 in high. Place on baking tray and bake for 35 mins until golden and firm.

* Remove from the oven and cool for 15 mins. Then cut into 10 slices. Lay them side down on the baking tray and bake again for 10 mins until golden.

Alternatively, use chopped almonds instead of pistachios.

Sounds easy. Must try it.

Butterscotch Cream Cheese Dip

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened (lo-fat ok)

1/4 cup butterscotch ice cream topping

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl; mix with wooden spoon until smooth OR combine ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. Chill. Serve with fresh fruit - Granny Smith apples cut into wedges are particularly delicious.