Mushrooms with an Asian shitake cream sauce

September 23, 2014September 8, 2022 Belinda

This sauce is well worth adding to your repertoire. It is incredibly versatile being equally wonderful with pasta, rice, chicken, grilled meat and seafood. No-one will be able to figure out why it tastes so gorgeous and exotic and you will wow your guests with it. Oh and it’s quick and easy!

Serves 4 as an entree

1 lb fresh shitake mushrooms
3 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup white vermouth or white wine
1 tbsp thin soy sauce
1 tsp dark sesame oil (toasted is great)
1/4 tsp grated orange zest
1/8 tsp Asian chile sauce
1 tbsp finely minced fresh ginger

To do in advance, (up to 8 hours) discard the stems from the fresh shitake mushrooms. Cut each cap into 4 wedges. Set aside the unsalted butter and chopped chives. In a bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients, then refrigerate until you’re ready to cook the dish.

Place a 12 inch saute pan over medium high heat. Add the butter and when it’s melted, add the mushrooms.
Saute the mushrooms until they absorb the butter, then add the cream sauce. Bring the sauce to the boil and boil the mushrooms, stirring until the sauce has thickened enough to lightly coat the back of a spoon. (about 4 minutes) Add the chives to the sauce, and serve with whatever you like.

Asian flavors · Nuts · Vegan · Vegetable sides

Pan seared broccoli with toasted pinenuts and Asian orange sauce

September 23, 2014 Belinda

This is a super vegetable dish and works really well served with fish or chicken or even just steamed rice. It’s very light, with the nuttiness of the toasted pine nuts and the clean, tangy flavors of the Asian orange sauce.

Serves 2 to 4 as a side dish

1/2 cup pine nuts
1 large broccoli head,about 1lb
3 whole green onions
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp flavorless cooking oil

For the orange sauce
1/2 tsp grated orange rind
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp Asian chile sauce

Preheat the oven to 325F to toast the pine nuts.
Cut the stems then trim off the tough ends and peel the stems with a vegetable peeler. Cut the stems on a sharp diagonal into 1/8 inch thick slices. Separate the broccoli florets, you should have about 4 cups broccoli.
Discard the root ends of the green onions and cut on the diagonal into 1 inch lengths.
Combine the broccoli and green onions and refrigerate.
Toast the pine nuts for about 8 minutes until golden brown, then remove and set aside in a bowl.
In a small bowl, combine all the orange sauce ingredients.
Place a 12 inch saute pan or a wok over a high heat. When it’s hot,add the cooking oil and when it starts to smoke, add the vegetables and garlic, stirring for about 30 seconds, then add the orange sauce.
Immediately cover the wok/saute pan and let it steam for about 20 seconds, then remove the cover and stir fry for a few seconds. (If the broccoli has not turned a bright green, replace the lid and steam for another 20 seconds)
As soon as the broccoli turns bright green, stir in the nuts and immediately transfer to a serving platter, serving at once.

Do-ahead · Vegetable sides · Vegetable-related

Middle Eastern herb filo pie

July 15, 2014September 8, 2022 Belinda

Another gem from Ottolenghi. With Sephardic roots, this is a wonderful centerpiece for a dinner party, whether vegetarian or not.

Serves 4
2 tbsp olive oil plus extra for brushing the pastry layers
1 large onion, diced
1lb Swiss chard, stems and leaves finely shredded but kept separate
5 oz celery, peeled and thinly sliced
2 oz green onions (scallions) chopped
2 oz arugula
1 oz flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 oz fresh mint, chopped
2/3 oz dill , chopped
4 oz ricotta cheese, crumbled
4 oz aged Cheddar cheese, grated
2 oz Greek feta cheese, crumbled (not pre-crumbled)
grated zest of 1 lemon
2 large organic eggs
1/3 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp superfine sugar (caster sugar)
9 oz filo pastry

Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Pour the olive oil into a large, deep frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 8 minutes without browning. Add the chard stems and celery and continue to cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the chard leaves, increase the heat to medium high and stir as you cook for about 5 minutes or until the leaves wilt. Add the green onion, arugula and herbs and cook for 2 mins more. Remove from the heat and transfer to a colander and cool.
Once the mixture is cool, squeeze out as much water as possible and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the three cheeses, lemon zest, eggs, salt and pepper and sugar and mix well.
Lay out a sheet of filo pastry and brush it with some olive oil. Cover with another sheet and continue in the same manner until you have 5 layers of filo brushed with oil, all covering an area large enough to line the sides and bottom or an 8 1/2″ pie dish, plus extra to hang over the rim of the dish. Line the pie dish with the pastry, fill with the herb mix and fold the excess pastry over the edge of the filling, trimming the pastry as necessary to create a 3/4″ border.
Make another set of 5 filo layers brushed with oil and place them over the pie. Scrunch up the pastry a little to create a wavy, uneven top and trim the edges so it just covers the pie.
Brush generously with olive oil and bake for 40 mins until the filo turns a nice golden brown.
Remove from the oven and serve warm or at room temperature.

Asian flavors · Vegetable sides

Spicy cracklin' cauliflower

June 3, 2014February 7, 2016 Belinda

I am a roasted cauliflower fanatic and this is one with lots of powerful spices. This dish can be served hot, at room temperature or even chilled the next day. So versatile and an explosion of taste in the mouth for very few calories!

Serves 4
1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets (about 6 cups)
1 cup diced red onions
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tbsp garam masala
1/2 tbsp fennel seeds
1/4 tsp crushed red chile flakes
2 tsp salt
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/2 tbsp grated lemon zest
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat the oven to 400 F
Place the cauliflower, onions, canola oil, curry powder, garam masala, lemon zest, fennel seeds, red chile flakes, salt , garlic, ginger and pepper in a large bowl.
Toss the ingredients together and blend until each piece of cauliflower is coated with the oil and spices.
Place the mixture in a large baking pan and roast for 30 mins until the cauliflower is crisp tender, turning the cauliflower every 10 mins to cook evenly.
When done, the cauliflower should be golden brown so you might need to cook it a little more, depending on your oven.
Place the cauliflower in a large serving bowl and mix in the peas and cilantro

Gluten Free · Vegetable sides

Simple parmesan roasted cauliflower with garlic and onion.

June 2, 2014February 7, 2016 Belinda

Last night I didn’t feel like much to eat, certainly not any meat and as I was looking in the fridge for inspiration, I noticed a very large cauliflower lurking in the back of one of the shelves.
It was still okay, but just starting to react to the restrictive plastic wrapping and time sitting in the fridge, so I decided to turn it into nutty, cheesy slices of roasted cauliflower.
MY, was it good! I even had the leftovers straight from the fridge for breakfast.

Serves 4
Preheat the oven to 425 F
Cut 1 head of cauliflower into florets or slice straight through the whole cauliflower making 3/4 inch “steaks”.
Toss these (don’t worry if the “steaks” fall apart.) in a large bowl with 1 medium chopped onion, 4 thyme sprigs, 4 – 6 tbsp olive oil, 4 unpeeled cloves of garlic (or garlic powder to your liking) and salt and ground pepper.
Toss around gently with your hands until well coated and tip onto a baking tray, roasting and tossing occasionally until almost tender, 20 mins or so.
Grate 4 to 5 heaped tbsp parmesan cheese straight onto the 1/2 cooked cauliflower and return to the oven for another 20 mins or until they are tender when pierced with a fork and browned and crispy. Remove the thyme stalks, squeeze the garlic out of it’s peel, or leave in it’s peel and serve. The onions should be starting to blacken which gives an even nuttier flavor.

Do-ahead · Vegetable sides · Vegetable-related

Creamy gratin of roasted tomatoes

May 24, 2014September 8, 2022 Belinda1 Comment

A really delicious, creamy but summery side dish. It’s also great to serve as reheated leftovers with scrambled eggs for breakfast.
I’m addicted to any gratin, but this one uses intense, roasted tomatoes with fresh thyme. Well worth roasting the tomatoes yourself, as they’re so easy to do.
The roasted tomato recipe is below the main recipe.

Serves 6 to 8
30 oven-dried tomato halves
about 1/4 of loaf of bread: French, Peasant, focaccia, rosemary, etc.
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1-2 tsp minced thyme leaves, preferably fresh
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1-2 tsp chopped chives or chervil
1/3 cup shredded Gruyère cheese or Parmesan

Prepare the oven dried tomatoes. See the recipe below called “Oven dried tomatoes” These dried tomatoes can be made a day or two in advance and stored in the refrigerator until you are ready to proceed with the recipe.
Prepare croutons: Preheat oven to 300ºF. Remove crusts from bread. Cut into 1/3-inch slices, and then cut into 1/3-inch cubes. Spread cubes in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake until cubes are dry and crisp, about 40 minutes. Toss the croutons with a spatula about every 15 minutes for even cooking. Cool completely and store for about a week at room temperature. As an alternative, you can also use homemade croutons for salads.
Prepare gratin: Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Butter a 9×12-inch oven-proof dish with at least 1-inch sides that is large enough to hold all the tomatoes in a single layer.
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil, and add the garlic and time, and cook for a couple of minutes until the garlic is softened, but not brown. Add the dried tomato halves and 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook gently for a couple more minutes.
Add the cream and bring to a boil. Add the croutons and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the mixture to the prepared gratin dish. Dot with the the remaining butter and bake for about 40 minutes until bubbly and nicely browned. Sprinkle with chives and serve.

OVEN DRIED TOMATOES
Oven temperatures vary, so your tomatoes may bake faster or slower than what’s called for in the recipe. The longer and slower you can dry the tomatoes, the better, because the flavors become more concentrated the longer the tomatoes bake. Through this process, normally bland winter tomatoes become fairly edible and summer tomatoes become super intense, delivering an out-of-this-world taste experience.
39 large fresh plum tomatoes             2 Tbsps kosher salt
2 Tbsp granulated white sugar         1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced             1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves

Line two cookie sheets with aluminum foil. Place a baking rack on each cookie sheet.
Cut the tomatoes in half and remove the stem core. Gently squeeze out most of the seeds and place the halved tomatoes closely together, cut side up, on the baking racks.
In a small bowl, combine the salt and sugar. Sprinkle generously over the cut side of the tomatoes. Let the tomatoes sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature. The salt and sugar will help draw out the moisture in the tomatoes.
In the meantime, preheat the oven to 225ºF. Transfer the cookie sheets to the oven. Bake the tomato halves for 3 to 4 hours, checking about every 30 minutes. Rotate trays half way through for even baking. The tomatoes are done baking when they start to shrivel but are not completely dried.
When cook enough to handle, turn the tomato halves over and gently peel away the skins.
If you like, in a bowl, dress the tomatoes with the olive oil, freshly sliced garlic, black pepper and fresh thyme. Delicately layer the tomatoes in a flat container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Because all the moisture is not extracted, the tomatoes will spoil.