Refrigerator dough pizza with video

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Twenty years ago I started my rocky relationship with dough. For some reason I like to do things the hard way. Never having produced a loaf in my life, I embarked on mastering sourdough bread and making my own natural yeast starter. With my digital thermometer, proofing baskets and imported strong Canadian flour, I was practically ready to start my own bakery. Sadly, my result was a bucket of murky black slop that made my flat smell like a brewery. Deflated but tenacious, I BOUGHT yeast and tried again. My rocky loaves were more akin to weapons than a sandwich ingredient.

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milk chocolate pecan ice-cream

Last year, after purchasing my rice maker, I swore I wouldn’t buy any more kitchen appliances. That promise was short-lived. After my recent sojourn to Garson’s Farm (see corn post) and acquisition of five buckets of raspberries, I wanted to (or more like HAD TO) make sorbet. (I didn’t have the jars to make jam, so it was the only solution) My Magimix ice-cream maker only accommodates one litre and I had double that amount of mixture. In the end I made half sorbet and the rest granita. Icy treats do require a fair amount of effort and forward thinking and one litre just doesn’t seem worth it. My husband and two sons can polish off a container of ice-cream quicker than you can say ‘Haagen Dazs.’ If you can make two litres at once, it makes it a bit more worthy.

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Chiang Mai prawn jungle curry

Last Saturday I had a crushing hangover, and it was nearly a grade five (I categorize them 1-5, with five being the most evil). It’s the sort where even if you go running, take aspirin all day, eat donuts and drink ten glasses of water- nothing is going to help you feel better. In the evening, when you start to feel a little more human, some foods can bring you relief. Curries, with their sweat-inducing character, are top of the list. I chose to make a proper home-made job and whizz up my own paste.

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Corn field serendipity

I kind of feel sick right now because I’ve just eaten 6 leftover corn cakes for lunch. Don’t get me wrong, they were delicious but I could not stop eating them. Yesterday was my children’s last day of freedom before school starts  and we decided to have a day out at Garsons, which is a pick-your-own farm in Esher. www.garson.co.uk The sun was shining and after collecting five containers of raspberries we discovered the corn.  We cracked them right off the tall stalks and took them home to shuck. The problem with going to these places is that you get over-excited and pick too much. By the time I got home, I had now gone off the idea of making raspberry jam and had 23 ears of corn to deal with.

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Summer salad in a cup

As the sunny weather dwindles in England there is still something to be cheerful about-ripe, late summer vegetables. Gazpacho is one the best ways to reap their tasty goodness. Its bracing icy texture and sharp garlic tomato flavour are pure refreshment. For the last couple of weeks my family and I were in Antibes, in France’s sunny Cote d’Azur. The beautiful seaside beaches and lovely towns are straight out of a movie set, but I can’t say the same for the food. You need to fork over big cash to get the good stuff. Even the local market made the London Borough market look like a bargain. We struggled to find good food that wasn’t overpriced but did come across a little gem cafe run by three Danish women, called Copenhagen. They made a gazpacho which featured a salsa of granny smith apples. The crisp tart fruit in the velvety smooth vegetables was pure genius. Although it’s Spanish by heritage, this quintessential cold soup is served all over the Mediterranean. Over the years I have created different versions for magazines and a previous cookbook, Small Bites. Anything from beetroot (fantastic colour and taste), ancho chili puree, chopped boiled egg, croutons or crabmeat can be used to top off or swirled through. One basic stays the same though-RIPE vegetables.

Gazpacho with granny apple salsa
prep time 10 minutes
serves 6

500g or approx. 6 juicy ripe tomatoes
half a large cucumber or 2 small Lebanese
1 medium sweet white or red onion
1 pepper (yellow or red)
1 handful of white crusty bread
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
400ml/1 and 3/4 cup chilled vegetable or chicken stock
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp pimenton (smoked Spanish paprika)
1 granny smith apple

Roughly chop the vegetables, except the apple, discarding the cores and cucumber peeling. Save a small amount to dice up for the salsa. Mix the vegetables with the vinegar, oil, salt, paprika, bread and stock. Puree in a blender or food processor until very smooth. Core and finely dice the apple. Mix with the reserved diced veg and set aside. At this point you can chill the soup for 3 hours or pour immediately over cups of ice. Sprinkle the diced vegetables over and drizzle with a bit of extra virgin olive oil.

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Strawberry cream cake

I was visually overcome yesterday in Whole Foods Kensington by a striking tower of strawberries. Boxes of sweet, dark red fruit with long green stems were stacked high and (even better) on sale- 2 for £5. Yes, I know you can get them cheaper in other stores but these smelled and looked liked real strawberries in season. The sad little under-ripe pink ones you see in the supermarket just depress me. Even if they look good, the taste is vacant. I don’t shop often at Whole Foods, but when I do, it’s an all-out pilgrimage. Watch this space because I’m going to do a whole posting on it soon. Its a complete inspiration to go there and the free tastings don’t hurt either. Whatever you buy, you know your precious items are going to taste lovely.

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REAL hot chocolate fudge sauce

Growing up, Sunday evenings were our family’s designated night for dessert. Apple pies, fruit cobblers and all sorts were produced but the one I really treasured and dreamed about all week was the banana splits. Scoops of ice-cream, thick hot fudge sauce, chopped nuts, whipped cream and a maraschino cherry were sinfully devoured fast-as-lightning so the ice-cream didn’t melt.

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Fresh beef, mango and mint spring rolls

The only thought that comes to mind when you bite into these Vietnamese crystal spring rolls is utter refreshment. No deep fat fryers are required, but I won’t lie and tell you that they are a doddle. A deft hand is needed for rice paper wrappers, which can be slippery nightmares. But even when less-than-perfect looking, they still taste amazing. Nigella Lawson demonstrated them on her Forever Summer program and I can’t say they were very beautiful. If hers aren’t, then you’re certainly allowed a few wonky ones. I have been making them for years and the trick is not to hurry and keep them skinny. Too much filling makes them rip and then you can start to get edgy. Get everything chopped, ready and then get a feel for the technique.

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A taste of Vietnam

The first sound I heard when we arrived at our hotel in the old quarter of Hanoi, was a rooster crowing across the street. Clearly, fresh food was close by. The sun-kissed ingredients of Vietnam were tasty indeed and the chicken and pork tasted like the old days, before battery farming drummed out all the fun. Little food stalls with mini stools (best suited for people under 4 feet tall) line the streets everywhere, each with their specialty: pho, fried spring rolls, bun cha (noodles with pork) or banh mi (grilled pork sandwiches). Pho, the National dish of Vietnam, is noodle soup with beef, chicken or pork and garnished with chilis, herbs and fish sauce. Its eaten primarily for breakfast but you see people slurping it up all day. Your stomach will be full for about an hour and then you need to eat again. Hence all the abundance of street food. One of my older posts has a recipe for chicken if you fancy making some. (see tab for recipes)

Fruit is practically super-sonic there. Menus have laundry lists of choices; watermelon, lychee, mango, pineapple and all sorts. Curries and spring rolls also incorporate it, making the sweet/sour tastes come alive. We simply did not have a bad meal, not one gripe to speak of. As we moved from Hanoi to Hoi An, a city further South, it just kept getting better. The best bit was that it was cheap as chips. Even at a sit-down restaurant you weren’t set back more £15.00

The lack of bad smells really surprised me. That whiff of fermenting fish that pervades most Asian markets was non-existent. It’s surprisingly clean for such a gritty urban city. If you had to choose a downside to Hanoi it would be the millions of motorbikes that swarm through the streets like a pack of bumblebees. You need a neck like an owl to spot which direction they are zooming from. Little grannies wander into thunderous intersections, whilst balancing heavy goods on shoulder poles, without even a glance. Miraculously, the bikes swerve around them as if some guardian angel was hovering over them. One little granny was walking with boiling oil on one of her two balanced trays, frying tofu. Safety shmafty!

So over the next couple of posts I want to share a few of the dishes I experienced. This prawn cake recipe is typical of the street food eaten there. When the prawns are roughly pureed in the food processor, the sticky flesh bonds together so there is no need for egg. The sweet chili dipping sauce that accompanies it can be used for all sorts. Grilled salmon, chicken or anything fried is divine with it and it keeps in the fridge for ages.

prawn cakes with sticky chili sauce
Makes 8 cakes, serves 4 as a starter

500g raw peeled prawns, 400g
3 shallots, thinly sliced
3cm chucnk ginger
1 lime, zested
1 handful coriander chopped
half red chili, thumb sized seeded and diced
1 tbsp fish sauce

250ml rice vinegar
175g castor sugar
1 red chili sliced

In a small saucepan, boil the sugar and vinegar with a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes until syrupy. Remove from heat and let cool completely.

Place the ginger, coriander, 2 of the shallots, and half the chili in the food processor and blend until fine. Add the prawns, lime rind, and fish sauce and pulse until chunky. Grind plenty of black pepper over. Form into 8 flat cakes. Preheat oven grill. Brush both sides of the cakes with a tiny bit of vegetable oil and place on a baking tray fitted with a rack. Cook for 2 minutes one side and turn over. Cook another 2-3 minutes or until opaque. Add the chili and remaining shallot to the vinegar syrup and mix. Serve the warm cakes with the sauce.

photo Maja Smend, food styling Jennifer Joyce

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Easy lemon ricotta gnocchi (really)

Home-made pasta was a regular event in our house growing up. My Italian mother Louise would make all types and for special occasions she would painstakingly create potato gnocchi. It was a BIG deal. Our long family table (which sat all 11 of us) would be piled high with flour and we would all help with ricing the boiled potatoes and then cutting and rolling. Served up with a rich tomato ragu, they were divine and one plate was never enough. But they did have a sinister side to them though. My sisters and I called them potato bombs; hours after eating they would start expanding in your already ‘full’ stomach. Track suit bottoms or elasticated waistbands were the clothing of choice when indulging in this delicious but pasta.

Last year I wanted to create a gnocchi recipe for my book, but not with potatoes. It was through sheer laziness that I settled on the ricotta variety. These can be made start to finish in less than one hour, don’t require as much messing around and are guaranteed not to cause any stomach gripe. Good quality ricotta and ’00′ flour (Italian finely ground flour) are the key to their light fluffy texture and you can buy both at most supermarkets. A little bit of garlic and lemon round out the flavour for a superb pillow-like pasta.

Pommodoro is my favorite sauce to serve with them but try others like; butter and fried sage, pan-fried cherry tomatoes and mozzarella, or broccoli and Italian sausage. Luca, my Venetian friend, taught me this recipe and its quick and delicious. The secret is using good ruby-red tinned tomatoes. Buy ‘whole peeled plum’ instead of passata or chopped. In the Naples area, where most of them are produced, the best tomatoes are chosen for whole peeled plum, and the lesser are pureed. My family and I make this at least once a week with spaghetti and other dishes. Not a bad idea to buy the cans by the case.

lemon gnocchi with pommodoro sauce
prep time 35 minutes cook time 15 minutes
serves 4

lemon gnocchi
500 g/1 lb good-quality full-fat ricotta
2 egg yolks
half garlic clove, finely chopped
35g/1/4 cup finely grated parmesan
1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tsp sea salt
200g/7oz ‘00’ flour, plus extra for dusting
semolina flour, for dusting

Pommodoro sauce
2 x 400g/14oz tins peeled plum tomatoes
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
pinch of crushed dried chili
1 tsp salt
small handful of torn basil leaves

Place the ricotta in a fine sieve for 5 minutes to drain off as much liquid as you can. Scrape into a large bowl, add the egg yolks, garlic, parmesan, lemon rind and salt and mix well. Add the ‘00’ flour and mix. It should come together to form a light and sticky dough. Dust a work surface with a bit more ‘00’ flour and place dough on top. Gently roll dough in the flour and mix in so it’s not too sticky. Knead for a few minutes, then cut into 4 pieces. Roll each piece on the counter with the palms of your hands to form a long 21/2 cm (11/4 inch) thick cylinder. Cut into 2 cm (3/4 inch) lengths with a knife and place on a tray lined with baking paper and dusted with semolina flour. Repeat with remaining pieces. If you aren’t using it until later and want to refrigerate it, then cover with another sheet of baking paper and then plastic wrap. This will keep dry for up to 12 hours.

To make the sauce, heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute or until slightly golden. Add the tomatoes and salt and cook on medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes until thick and no watery liquid is left. Use a splatter screen to keep it from spraying your kitchen. While its cooking, use a flat wooden spoon to break up the tomatoes. Remove from heat and set aside until using. This can be reheated at anytime.

Bring a very large stockpot of salted water to the boil. Drop in the gnocchi and once they float to the top, cook for another minute, then use a small sieve or slotted spoon to scoop them out of the water and place in the warm tomato sauce. Gently toss the gnocchi through and mix in the torn basil leaves. Serve with grated parmesan.

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