Salade Niçoise.

 

There are many opinions on what should be and should not be included in Salade Niçoise.

The most traditional and early recipes are very basic and contain only a few ingredients (tomatoes, anchovies and olive oil).

Other traditionalist views also state that it should be served in a wooden bowl rubbed with garlic, no vinegar should be in the dressing, no lettuce should be served, the tomatoes should be salted three times and it should be an arranged rather than a tossed salad!

You will encounter many "rules" and even more contradictions and differing points of view the more you read... they are French after all.

Over the years other mediterranean ingredients have been added such as black olives, cucumber, peppers, hard boiled eggs etc

For me there are just a few loose rules to follow - use anchovies or canned tuna - never both.

Don't use cooked veg such as potatoes, french beans - though one recipe I read used very young fresh uncooked green beans marinated (and thin slices of raw artichoke also marinaded) which is fine by me.

The addition of salad leaves also seems contentious to the purists, but thats their problem... So for me a few seasonal leaves mixed with herbs fines (a finely chopped mix of parsley, chervil, chives and tarragon) are an acceptable ingredient.

The above salad is tinned tuna seasoned and mixed with a little extra virgin olive oil, rocket with herbs fines, hard boiled egg, tomatoes, black olives, green pepper, spring onions, radishes and cucumber with a dressing made from  dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, seasoning and extra virgin olive oil.

Some of these ingredients were used because thats what I had in my garden (rocket, cucumber, radishes and spring onions), what was seasonal in the shops or to hand - red pepper would probably be better than green and if I didnt have spring onion I would more likely use red onion.

Remember top chefs, including michelin starred ones have been heavily criticised for adding none traditional ingredients to this salad and trying to make it there own resulting critics calling it "a massacre of the recipe", a "sacrilege", and a violation of the "ancestral traditions", so just do your own version.

 

Cucumber Tartare.

 

Peel and deseed a cucumber then finely chop.

Season with salt and pepper, mix a dressing of lemon juice, dijon mustard and extra virgin olive oil and dress the cucumber.

Finally mix in chopped dill, chopped capers and place in lightly oiled pots and chill in the fridge for ten mintutes or so.

Turn out onto plates and serve.

Tuna and Bean Salad.

 

A nice and easy starter dish with no cooking involved.

Drain a tin of cannellini bans and dress with extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, season and mix in chopped parsley.

Place on a plate around seasoned tinned tuna pieces.

Finely slice onion and place on top.

Sprinkle with smoked paprika before serving.

Lamb Souvlaki with Greek Salad.

 

For the marinade mix together crushed garlic, dried oregano, ground cumin, tomatoe paste, olive oil, a couple of bay leaves ripped up, fresh lemon juice, sherry or red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.

Cut your lamb into 1cm cubes and cover with the marinade -leave covered in the fridge for at least a day. 

Before barbequing or griddling the meat bring up to room temperature.

For the greek salad use halfed small tomatoes, chunks of cucumber, sliced red onion, black olives and cubes of feta cheese.

I also mixed in fresh oregano and a small amount of mint, parsley and basil.

For the dressing crush a small amount of garlic with some salt in a mortar and pestle until it is a paste and mix with extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, a dash of sherry vinegar, pepper and some chopped fresh oregano.

Dress the salad before adding the feta and serve with the lamb.

Celeriac Remulade.

 

Perpare a dressing of vegatable oil, a splash of white wine vinegar, a good glug of lemon juice, plenty of salt & pepper, a teaspoon each of dijon and wholegrain mustard.

Peel your celeriac and chop into small battens (julienne) and quickly dress to stop dis-colouration.

Add a bunch of finely chopped herbs - I used dill, parsley, a little tarragon and chives - its best to avoid hard herbs such as rosemary and very strong flavoured ones like mint or sage.

Leave for at least an hour or so before serving so the flavours merge and the celeriac softens.

Serve with cold meats, saucisson, smoked salmon etc. and  some good bread.

Artichoke, Asparagus, Pea and Broad Bean Stew.

 

A very easy and delicious vegatable stew which is ideal for serving with lamb or alongside polenta chips for a vegaterian version.

The essential thing for this stew is a very good homemade veg stock to add depth and flavour.

I used pre-cooked artichoke hearts for this, if using fresh prepare and cook them beforehand.

Add a very finely chopped clove of garlic to some olive oil in a pan and gently cook through with out colouring.

Cut the asparagus into smaller pieces and add to the pan and cook for a minute or so.

Add the stock and bring to a simmer.

Add the chopped artichoke hearts, peas and broad beans and bring back to a simmer.

Cook until the veg is cooked through - this will only a few minutes, sprinkle with a bunch of chopped parsley and a few shreded mint leaves and serve.

You could also leave to rest after adding the peas, beans and chokes, allowing all the flavours to merge and reheat before serving.

White Cabbage, Fennel, Shrimp and Chervil.

 

First make the dressing with a tea spoon of dijon mustard, a little sherry vinegar, a good amount of lemon juice, salt & pepper and extra virgin oilive oil.

Finely shred the white cabbage & fennel and dress. 

Cover and leave for ten minutes or so  - the acid in the dressing will "cook" the cabbage and take the edge off it.

Mix in the cooked shrimps and a bunch of chopped chervil (a mix of 1/4 tarragon and 3/4 parsley is also good if you dont have chervil), and serve.

Spring Sauce.

 

A very tasty sauce that is a take on mint sauce / salsa verde - at this time of year you could subsitute wild garlic for traditional garlic and add jack by the hedge (garlic mustard), it's great with lamb but you could adjust the herbs to suit chicken, beef, fish or game.

Chop a clove of garlic and add salt and pound in a mortar & pestle until it is a pulp.

Add a little chopped mint, a chopped bunch of parsley, lemon zest and a dash of juice, a dash of sherry vinegar, a grind of pepper and a glug of extra virgin olive oil and keep grinding it down until it is a paste.

Very finely chop a spring onion and mix in.

Leave for all the flavours to merge and serve.

Cornish Pasties

 

Can they be called Cornish if they are made in London? Who cares!

Peel and dice potato, swede and turnip (one or the other is fine if you can't get both) and cook in salted water until par cooked - I diced mine quiet small so this only takes a few minutes - drain and leave to cool.

Finely slice a beef steak - it doesn't have to be an expensive cut, in fact a cheaper cut such as frying or rump works better, and fry in a little oil - again it doesnt have to be cooked right through, put into a bowl to rest.

In the same pan add beef stock and reduce down until its a thick syrup, add any resting juices from the beef and scatter in finely chopped thyme - leave to cool.

Mix all the cooled ingredients together in a bowl and season with salt and a good grind of pepper.

Roll out puff pastry and cut into circles.

Place the filling into the centre and fold the pastry over and then crimp the edges to seal.

Brush with beaten egg yolk and bake until the pastry is cooked.

Shin of Beef, Ginger, Soy, Noodles and Pak Choi.

 

Season the diced beef shin with salt and pepper and brown off in small batches in a casserole in a little veg oil and set aside.

Deglaze the casserole with a little apple juice and add to the beef.

Add a little more oil and fry a couple of finely chopped garlic cloves and a thumb of ginger chopped into match sticks until softened.

Remove the pan from the heat and return the beef and juices, then add a teaspoon of red current jelly (any other fruit jelly such as crab apple, hawthorn etc will do so long as its not too sweet), a good glug of soy sauce a whole chilli, and the juice of half a lime.

Add a little more apple juice until it is about three quaters of the way up the meat cover and put in a low oven - about 120 degrees - the longer and slower it is cooked the better.

After a few hours cooking the meat should be falling apart. If there is too much liquid cook without a lid for the last half an hour to reduce.

Half or quarter the pak choi and soften in a little oil and slightly salted water until wilted.

Serve with noodles and the wilted pak choi.

Tomato, Basil, Pine Nuts and Parmesan.

 

This is a tomato salad with a deconstructed pesto.

Place a large bunch of basil leaves in a bleder with extra virgin olive oil and blitz.

Leave to infuse then strain through a fine sieve or muslin cloth.

Chop and slice your tomatoes and place in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

Scatter with slightly crushed toasted pine nuts and ripped up basil leaves.

Mix a little good quality vinegar such as sherry vinegar into your basil oil and drizzle over the tomatoes.

Scatter with parmesan shavings and serve.