Tuscan tomato and white bean soup

October 27, 2013September 9, 2022 Belinda

Gorgeous, smooth and velvety. Lovely for the Fall.

Serves 4

3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 anchovy fillets, chopped
3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 28oz can good quality tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 14 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
finely grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan.
Cook the onion for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the garlic and anchovies and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the broth, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper and rosemary.
Reserve 1/3 of the white beans then add the remainder to the soup.
Stir to combine and bring to the boil.
Cover with a lid, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat and puree the soup in a blender or with an immersion stick blender.
Return the soup to the saucepan and stir through the reserved white beans to heat through.
Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh parsley and remaining tbsp of olive oil.
Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese

Spanish style chicken traybake

October 21, 2013January 10, 2016 Belinda

Another one of those great throw-everything-in-a-roasting-dish recipes! This time, from the Hairy Bikers recipe book.

Serves 4

1 large onion, cut into 8 pieces
1 large red onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 green pepper, deseeded and cut into strips (optional)
1lb small potatoes, quartered lengthways
8 whole large cloves of garlic, unpeeled
8 medium tomatoes, quartered
8 oz chorizo, preferably picante, skin removed
8 large boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 heaped tsp sweet or smoked paprika
1 tbsp dried oregano
Good olive oil
Ground black pepper and sea salt

Preheat the oven to 400 F
Put the onions, potatoes, peppers, garlic and tomatoes in a large roasting tin and season with sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper then sprinkle lightly with olive oil
Toss everything together lightly and roast for 20 to 25 minutes

While the vegetables are cooking, skin the chorizo and cut the meat into thin slices. Set aside

Put the chicken thighs on a board and carefully slash each one 2 or 3 times with a knife. Season all over with salt and pepper and rub into the chicken.

Mix the paprika and oregano together and set aside

After 20 minutes or so, take the roasting tin out of the oven, scatter the chorizo over the vegetables and turn everything a couple of times.

Place the chicken on top of the vegetables and chorizo and sprinkle with the paprika and oregano.
Season with a little salt and black pepper, sprinkle the chicken pieces with a little olive oil and return to the oven for 40 to 50 minutes until the chicken is cooked.

There are so many variations to this recipe and you certainly don’t have to stick to the quantities of this recipe. Use you imagination!

Meat

Sweet chili roasted sausages and butternut squash

October 19, 2013February 8, 2016 Belinda

These all-in-one-pan roasts are divine and fast. Great for working people to throw together at the end of a hard day and you have a delicious meal. This dish is incredibly simple but just a little different because of the sweet chili sauce and cilantro.

Serves 4

8 good pork sausages (I use sweet Italian)
2 tbsp sweet chili sauce
1 small/medium butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
2 small red onions, peeled and quartered
12 cherry tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small handful cilantro, leaves picked and chopped

Heat the oven to 400 F.

Put the sausages in a bowl with the sweet chili sauce and shake around until they are fully coated with the sauce. Tip them into a large roasting pan.

Toss the butternut squash and red onion in with the sausages.

Nestle the cherry tomatoes around the dish and then drizzle the lot with the olive oil.
Season with salt and pepper and roast for about 30 minutes, or until the sausages are golden brown and the vegetables tender.

Scatter with the chopped cilantro and serve in the center of the table with crusty bread to mop up the juices

Fish · Gluten Free · Whole30 compliant

Mediterranean fish

October 10, 2013January 6, 2017 Belinda

This recipe is one I made up when I only had a few things in the fridge. I was looking for something light but flavorful and was thrilled with the way this came out and it only took 15 minutes to cook!

Serves 2

2 x 6oz pieces of fish like sole, cod, halibut, but not too thick.
3 medium sized onions, sliced
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
2 lemons, juice and grated rind of both of them
1 lemon for squeezing the juice over the fish and grated rind when seasoning the fish
1/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives, halved
1/8 to 1/4 cup drained capers, roughly chopped
3/4 pint (punnet) of cherry tomatoes, halved
salt and pepper
1 tbsp butter and 2 turns of the pan of olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil and /or parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 F

Season the fish fillets with salt, pepper, grated lemon rind and sprinkle with a little olive oil. Set aside.

In a shallow, heavy pan that has a lid, (I have a heavy round cast iron one) heat the butter and olive oil gently until starting to sizzle, then put in the onions and garlic, stirring to coat with the oil and butter.. Leave them on a low heat to caramelize for about 45 mins, stirring occasionally, then add the capers, olives, cherry tomatoes, salt and pepper and lemon rind. Stir and saute for another 5 minutes.

Add the lemon juice, parsley/basil and mix well. Lay the seasoned fish fillets on the mixture in the pan and spoon the sauce over to 3/4 cover the fish so it picks up the flavors of the mixture. Sprinkle with the extra lemon juice and put the lid on.

Bake at 400 F for about 15 mins, checking to see if the fish is cooked. Don’t over cook! There should be a good amount of juice in the dish.

This is lovely served with my leek and dill pilaf recipe.

Asian flavors · Curry

Easy spinach, tomato and chickpea curry

September 29, 2013September 13, 2018 Belinda

Easy, tasty and healthy. What could be better!

1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/4 inch piece ginger, grated
6 ripe tomatoes
1/2 tbsp oil
1 tsp ground cumin (I roast mine, it’s worth it)
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp turmeric
a pinch of chili flakes
1 tsp yeast extract (I use Marmite, but you could also use beef or chicken stock concentrate)
4 tbsp red lentils
6 tbsp coconut cream
1 head of broccoli, broken into florets
15 oz can chickpeas, drained
6 oz bag of baby spinach leaves
1 lemon, halved
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds mixed with 1 tbsp chopped cashews

Put the onion, garlic, ginger and tomatoes in a food processor or blender and puree.

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the spices, fry for a few seconds and add the puree and yeast extract.

Boil together for about 2 minutes then add the lentils and coconut cream.

Cook until the lentils are tender, then add the broccoli and cook for about 4 minutes.

Stir in the chickpeas and spinach, squeeze over the lemon and swirl through the sesame and cashew mixture.

Serve with brown rice, if you like

Dairy-free · Do-ahead · Gluten Free · Poultry · Whole30 compliant

Tender and crisp whole chicken legs with sweet tomatoes, garlic and basil

September 20, 2013September 9, 2022 Belinda

This is a simple, family friendly Jamie Oliver recipe that ALL the family will love, especially if you serve it with really good ciabatta bread that you can dunk in the gorgeous juices.

This takes minutes to put together as you just chuck everything in a pan without any pre-cooking then it needs looooong, slooooooow gentle cooking.
What happens in the pan is well worth the wait as the skin gets super crisp (my favorite part) and the meat gets sticky and tender and falls off the bone. The tomatoes are slow roasted and create a terrific broth and you just squish the garlic out of it’s skin with a fork and it’s incredibly sweet.

Serves 4

4 or 5 large whole organic chicken legs
salt and ground black pepper
a really big bunch fresh basil, leaves picked and stalks finely chopped. (I buy a large plastic container of basil from Trader Joes.)
2 or 3 big handfuls of red and yellow cherry tomatoes, halved and ripe plum tomatoes, quartered
2 whole large heads of garlic, broken up into cloves. (Try and choose heads with large cloves)
olive oil

Play with the recipe, it’s incredibly forgiving. My favorites to add are olives and Chorizo.

* Optional additions
Fresh chopped chili or dried red chili flakes
1 good handful of pitted Kalamata olives
2 handfuls baby potatoes.
1 drained can of cannellini beans
1 whole mild or spicy Spanish chorizo, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch slices.

Preheat the oven to 350 F
Season the whole chicken legs all over really well, (even more than you are comfortable doing) and put them into a snug-fitting shallow-ish heavy pan in one layer.
Throw in all the basil leaves and stalks, then chuck in your tomatoes.
Scatter the unpeeled garlic cloves (chopped chorizo, potatoes, beans and Kalamata olives, if using) into the pan and drizzle over some olive oil.
Mix around a bit with your hands, pushing the tomatoes (etc) underneath the chicken.
Place in the oven for 1 1/2 hours, turning the tomato mixture halfway through, until the chicken skin is crisp and the meat falls off the bone.

* You can serve with the unpeeled garlic cloves, just tell your guests to squish the cloves with their knife or fork so the sweet, tender garlic oozes out.

Gluten Free · Vegetable sides · Vegetable-related · Whole30 compliant

Oven roasted ratatouille

June 16, 2013January 7, 2017 Belinda

This is the very best recipe for ratatouille that cooks all together, has that toasty flavor and is packed with garilcky, basil flavors. You can double or treble this or even make it for a crowd, spreading it out over baking sheets. It’s also great at room temperature and so easy to prepare.
All you need is some great tapenade, good bread and a BBQ boned and marinated leg of New Zealand lamb and you’re in heaven!!

Serves 4

1lb cherry tomatoes, whole or small tomatoes, halved
3 -4 medium zucchinis
1 medium eggplant
1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into 1inch squares
1 yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into 1 inch squares
4 fat cloves garlic, chopped small
1 large onion, peeled and cut into 1 inch squares
1 small red onion, peeled and cut into 1 inch squares
6 tbsp good olive oil (or more if you want)
1 large handful of fresh basil leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper (plenty)

For a less traditional Ratatouille, you may want to try cauliflower florets, leeks, chopped into 1″ cubes or butternut squash also cut into 1″ cubes.

You will need a large shallow roasting roasting tin, about 16″ by 12″ or so
Preheat the oven to the highest setting

Gently put the tomatoes, eggplants, zucchini, peppers, onions and any other vegetables you use in a very large bowl and sprinkle over the chopped garlic. Roughly tear up the basil and sprinkle over the vegetables with the olive oil. Make sure all the vegetables are well coated with the oil and finally season really well with salt and pepper. Toss really gently until everything is well incorporated ( I like to do this with my hands, it’s gentler and easier and fun.) and then gently tip out onto a large baking shallow sided baking tray.
Roast on the highest shelf in the oven for about 30 to 40 minutes or until the vegetables are roasted and tinged with brown at the edges.
Remove from the oven and serve straight away.