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Friday 31 May 2019

Asparagus with Breadcrumbs, Capers, Lemon and Herbs.

For the caper, lemon and herb crust lightly toast some white bread crumbs in a pan.
Place in a mixing bowl and add chopped capers, the zest of a lemon, chopped parsley, grated parmesan and melted butter.
Mix and reserve.
Remove the woody ends of the asparagus, place in a baking tray, roll lightly in rape seed oil, add a dot or two of butter, season and bake at 180 for 10-15 mins, depending on the thickness of the stems until tender.
Plate the asparagus, pour over the melted butter from the baking dish, scatter with the topping and serve.

Stuffed Tomatoes with Basil and Herb Salsa Verde.

For the stuffing tear up some semi stale bead and lightly toast until it colours slightly (you can also use bread crumbs if you keep them in store), place in a mixing bowl with a good bunch of chopped parsley leaves.
Chop a few shallots and fry in good oil until crispy but be careful not to burn and add to the bowl.
Grate in some good cheese, I used pecorino,  but you can use parmesan, comte or any good quality cheese, add to the bowl drizzle in some melted butter, add some ground pepper and mix together.

For the basil salsa verde place a large bunch of basil in a blender. Add some other herbs such as parsley, a little mint, chives etc but nothing to over powering as you the basil to be the dominant flavour, a little dijon mustard, a dash of sherry vinegar and capers.
Blitz while drizzling in extra virgin olive to make a smooth sauce.
this sauce also work very well with tomato and tomato based salads.

Cut the top off your tomatoes, de-seed and cut out the cores and discard but save any flesh for the stuffing.
Lightly season the inside of the hollowed out tomatoes with salt and stuff with the breadcrumb mixture.
Replace the tops and lightly brush the outside with oil. Place on a baking tray and bake for 180 degrees for 20 - 35 mins depending on the size of your tomatoes.
Plate up and drizzle with the basil salsa. Serve.