I want an Italian Grandmother!

I have just read 'How to make Pesto like an Italian Grandmother' from 101cookbooks.com and have to say I am jealous.

I have always loved pesto, I even remember being caught by my mum and dad as a kid eating it straight from the jar.

Quite often I make my own pesto and have always made it in either a food processor or blender. Although I have always loved the flavour of my home-made pesto, I do have to admit that the 'homogenized emulsion' (as Heidi rightly phrases it) that I end up with doesn't.

The idea of chopping all the ingredients is so simple but revolutionary to my pesto fixation. Instead of adding the pesto emulsion to my pastas or my delicate ricotta gnocchi, this new chopped pesto is fantastic. The pesto doesn't stay in a clump because the fats from the pine nuts, Parmesan and olive oil don't have a chance to emulsify like in mayonnaise or a vinaigrette. Instead each ingredient from the tiny flecks of basil, to the garlic separate from each other with the heat of the pasta or gnocchi and coat it perfectly.

This is a new awakening to my world of pesto. I now know that I will always enjoy my ricotta gnocchi with a beautiful pesto.

All I can say is that I wish I had an Italian Grandmother to have shown me all of this years ago!

Go check out 101.cookbooks.com

Recipe of the Week: Tomato Soup with Veal Meatballs and Rice

Why Tomato Soup

Ever since I can remember I have always loved tomato soup. Whenever I have tomato soup I somehow feel better. As a small child I can remember being in Europe during the cold, raining winters and often having tomato soup. Yet I can also remember asking my mum to make me tomato soup during warmer weather too.

I think tomatoes are a vegetable (or fruit) that are perfectly balanced. Their acidic properties are often used to bring out other flavours. Think of sliced tomatoes with basil, fresh mozzarella and a drizzle of olive oil and salt. How fragrant does the basil become, or creamy the mozzarella, or sweet the tomatoes? Or even think of salt and pepper on a slice of tomato, just the perfect balance of sweetness, saltiness and pepperiness.

Tomato soup accordingly, brings out my love for tomatoes; the sweetness, the freshness and better yet comfort food in a bowl.

I have realised that it is my mum who always made this soup for me, so I asked her a couple of weeks ago for the recipe. She was more than happy to make it for me, and it was while she was making it that she told me it was my Oma’s (what I call my grandmother in Dutch) recipe originally, and that this is why i remember having it in Europe all the time.

My Oma was never much a cook or food enthusiast; she cooked because food needed to be on the table. This recipe probably only ever got made because she had tomatoes that needed to be used.

What I love so much about her tomato soup is that it is just that, tomatoes. There are not a lot of other added ingredients such as carrots, celery, or tomato paste that so many other recipes call for. Leaving the tomatoes to do their magic.

One important thing about this recipe, is that you need very very ripe tomatoes. This way the best flavour is created. However if you can’t wait for your tomatoes to over ripen, or if you have made it and feel it is missing that little something, feel free to add at most a tablespoon of tomato paste. As I am sure that the tomatoes we have today unfortunately will never taste as pure as the ones my Oma would have used.


Ingredients

20 ripe tomatoes
2 red onions, roughly chopped
2 brown onions, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic, sliced
500ml chicken stock
300g veal mince
1 egg
50g breadcrumbs
40g rice
Olive oil for frying
Salt and pepper
1tablespoon tomato paste (optional)

Method

In a large saucepan heat the olive oil and sauté the onions and garlic. Turn the heat down and continue to cook until the onions are translucent and just starting caramelising. When they reach this point, add the tomatoes and stock.

Turn the heat down to a low simmer, and cook for up to a good hour. You want the tomatoes and onions to be mushy.

While the soup is simmering soak the rice in cold water.

Take the soup off the heat and pour it through a sieve. You may need to put the soup through in 2 -3 batches. Continue to push the tomato puree through the sieve with a wooden spoon until only skin and seeds remain. This can start to seem tedious but well worth the effort, as this pulp contains the most flavour and will also thickens the soup slightly.

Return the soup to a clean saucepan, and check for seasoning. If needs be add a little tomato paste. After seasoning turn the heat on medium. Drain the rice and add to the soup. Let the soup simmer for 10-20 minutes until the rice is just cooked. The rice can be slightly under as it will continue to absorb liquid and cook further.

For the meatballs; in a large bowl add the egg, breadcrumbs and plenty of salt and pepper. Mix the mince thoroughly until all is combined. If the mix seems a little wet add a little more breadcrumbs, but not too much. You want these meatballs to be as they say MEATballs, not dumplings.

Roll the meat into balls around 10-cent in size. Fill a small saucepan with water and bring to the boil. When the water is just balling drop 6-10 balls into the water and let them poach until the water comes back to a boil. Remove with a slotted spoon and drop into the tomato soup. Continue until all meatballs are cooked and added to the soup. Serve with a slice of crusty bread.

Serves 6

Bon Appetite

Recipe of the week: Roasted Beetroot Salad

Why Roasted Beetroot Salad

Firstly, my mum and brother-in-law love beetroot. Secondly, a friend asked for one of the recipes below after I was explaining to them how I roast beetroot, and lastly they are just perfect right now because they are in season.

Beetroots are native to the coasts of western and southern Europe and the Mediterranean Seas. They are a root vegetable that can be boiled, pickled, steamed or as I prefer; roasted.

This scarlet coloured vegetable is great in salads, especially during these colder months as they naturally have a sweetness that is balanced by a slight earthy bitterness of most root vegetables.

I think that our appreciation for beetroot has been impaired over time by the tinned, jarred and sliced version that has some how become an iconic ingredient in the ‘Australian burger’ along side the ever disturbing tinned pineapple. Beetroots are simple to cook, and should not just be dismissed to a tinned vegetable used in burgers and sandwiches.

I have included two recipes for Roasted Beetroot Salad, as I couldn’t decide between them. The principles are generally the same, the ingredients are just different, so please feel free to use your own gourmet licence.





Roasted Beetroot Salad with Apple, Sugar Snap Peas, Walnuts and Rocket


This salad is simple yet delicious. I think it comes down to the combination of different textures. Crunchy apples and walnuts matched with the smooth sweet beetroot and the crisp sugar snap peas.

Ingredients

1 bunch or 3-4 tennis ball size beetroots (with the stalk and leaves on)
2 oranges
1 brown onion, quatered with skin on
2 granny smith apples
150g sugar snap peas
100g walnuts
250g rocket
1 lemon
20ml good quality extra virgin olive oil
20ml vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Firstly roasting the beetroots. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Cut the stems and leaves off and lay them in the bottom of a lightly greased roasting pan. The stems will provide a great insulated base to roast the beetroots on, as well as providing moisture and flavour. Place the beetroots with the skins on (this will preserve their flavour and colour and save you some mess) top of the leaves.
Place the onions, and 3 orange halves around the beetroots. Pour 1/2 cup of water in the pan and season with a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Cover the roasting pan with foil and roast in oven for 40 – 60 minutes. Check the beetroots after 40 minutes by inserting a knife through the foil into a beetroots (this will prevent you loosing all the steam if the beetroots are not ready). The beetroots should feel tender similar to a potato or other root vegetable.

Once cooked take out of the oven and leave to cool slightly before removing the foil.

When cool, peel off the skins. This should be easy to do; however if the skin does not come off with such ease use a small knife to help peel them away. Cut the beetroots in half and then into wedges.

For the salad. Prepare the sugar snap peas by removing their strings. (The strings are a small thin strip of fibre that runs vertically on the straightest side of the pea. It is removed by pinching the top of the pea and pulling the fibre down until it is removed.) Blanch the sugar snap peas in salted water and refresh in iced water till cold.

Cut the cheeks off the apples and cut into thin half moons. Drizzle with a little lemon juice to avoid them browning.

In a dry frypan toast the walnuts until warm.

The Dressing. Squeeze the 1/2 orange and lemon – you should have roughly 20ml of liquid. Pour the juice into a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Combine the two oils together and while whisking with one hand slowly pour the oils with the other until an emulsion is formed. Check for seasoning.

In a large bowl place the rocket, apple, and walnuts and dress with 2 tablespoons of the dressing or enough until the leaves are lightly coasted and glossy.

Lastly right before serving toss the wedges of beetroot through the leaves. (You don’t want to add them too early as the will colour all your salad reddish purple). To finish drizzle with a little more dressing.

Serves 2 as a main course
Or 4 as a side salad

Roasted Beetroot Salad with Blue Cheese, Apple, Pear and Truffle Honey Dressing



This salad is wonderfully robust. The combination of pear, apple, honey and beetroots creates a great depth of sweetness, while the hint of spicy rocket and the salty blue cheese break through separating each sweet element.

Ingredients

1 bunch or 3 – 4 tennis ball sized beetroots (with the stalks and leaves on)
2 Granny Smith apples
2 William pears
50g blue cheese such as Roquefort or Gorgonzola crumbled
50g Rocket
1teaspoon honey
1tablespoon truffle oil (or substitute the honey for1 teaspoon of truffled honey)
1 tablespoon seeded mustard
30ml white wine vinegar
50ml vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Prepare and Roast the beetroots as above.

For the Salad. Cut the cheeks off the apples and pears and slice into thin 1/2 moons. Drizzle with a little of the vinegar to stop them going brown.

The Dressing. In a large bowl place the honey and mustard, vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Whisk to combine. If using truffle oil add to the vegetable oil. While whisking with one hand slowly pour the oil with the other until an emulsion is formed. Check for seasoning.

In a large bowl place the pear, apple, crumbled blue cheese and the rocket. Add 3 tablespoons of the dressing and toss.

Right before serving add the beetroot and toss. Finish with a drizzle of dressing and some cracked pepper.

Serves 2 as a main
Or 4 as a side salad or entrée.

Bon Appetite

Recipe of the week: Ricotta Gnocchi

Why Ricotta Gnocchi?

These light and fluffy dumplings are a delicious alternative to pasta, and better yet they are so simple to make.

In Italian gnocchi means dumpling, to the Florentines they are known as topini, translation: field mice, because they look like such in shape and size. Gnocchi are commonly made from potato and flour. However, my recipe for ricotta gnocchi are made from almost all ricotta cheese, and just a hint of flour and egg to keep them together making them ever so light.

Unlike their potato alternative, which can carry anything from a light tomato based sauce to a rich meaty stew; ricotta gnocchi are just luscious with a drizzle of melted 'nutty' butter, some herbs and Parmesan.

To be honest with you, if you haven’t already been able to tell, I love these dumplings, and have been craving them all week so I thought I would share them with you.



Ingredients

500g ricotta
2 eggs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan (not the pre-grated stuff)
4-6 tablespoons plain flour
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Put the ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, salt, pepper and a good pinch of nutmeg in a large bowl and mix. Add the flour and fold through. You are looking for a 'dough' that is just soft to the touch.

On a lightly floured surface spoon a heapful of the ‘dough’ onto the surface. Sprinkle more flour onto your hands and lightly roll into sausages a little wider than your thumb.

Don’t worry if the dough feels too wet and soft. It should be. If it sticks to your hands or work surface, feel free to add more flour. This recipe for ricotta gnocchi is meant to be light and should feel soft (that is what makes them so light and gorgeous to eat). Cut the sausages with a sharp knife lightly floured, into lengths about 1.5 cm.

Gently place them on a floured plate or chopping board and leave until time to cook.

These gnocchi can be made anywhere up until the day ahead. You just need to keep them covered in single layers, not touching in the refrigerator.

To cook, bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Once boiling turn the heat down slightly so that the water is simmering, remember that these dumplings are delicate.

Lower the gnocchi, a couple at a time, on a slotted spoon or spatula into the water. I usually cook up to 10 at a time. You can vary this amount just remember you don’t want to overcrowd the pan. Boil them until they float back to the surface, this usually is about 2 minutes. Remove from the water and place on a warm serving dish, and repeat until all are cooked.

Serves 4

I usually serve a simple butter with these gnocchi, as I don’t want to take away from their feather-light deliciousness with a heavy overpowering sauce that you can serve with any pasta.

Here are a couple of suggestions:

Butter, basil and pine nuts

50g pine nuts
30g butter
1 bunch basil
Parmesan to serve



Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over a low heat until golden. When your gnocchi are cooked and placed in a warm serving dish, melt the butter in a hot saucepan. When the butter is sizzling and starting to look golden brown toss in a good handful of torn basil and pour over the gnocchi. Serve with a sprinkling of the toasted pine nuts and grated Parmesan.

Alternatively you can substitute the basil and pine nuts for sage and flaked almonds.

Gorgonzola Sauce

15g butter
2 tablespoons cream
75g Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
Flat leaf parsley chopped to serve

For something a little richer, before cooking your gnocchi melt butter and cream in a saucepan over a low heat. Add the Gorgonzola and stir until all are creamy about 1 minute. Turn off the heat until your gnocchi are cooked. When cooked, heat the sauce and pour over your gnocchi. Serve with a sprinkling of parsley.

Bon Appetite

Recipe of the Week: Pan Fried Salmon with Ginger and Soy Sauce

Why Salmon

Many friends are always saying they should cook more fish at home. For some unknown reason they have this notion that cooking good fish at home is hard. This recipe is dedicated to all those friends. I love this salmon dish, which is not at all hard and shows how easy it is to cook at home.

Salmon is such a versatile fish to cook. For me it is one of the easiest fish to cook with, as you can match it with nearly any combination of flavours. Salmon can be enjoyed raw, medium and well done, so it is a great fish to practice your cooking with as you will always be able to enjoy it.

This recipe, if followed, allows for the fish to be just raw and translucent in the middle surrounded by a creamy soft pink flesh around it that should just flake away with a fork.

Ingredients

2 salmon fillets skin on (175-200g each)
20g fresh ginger grated
2 garlic cloves grated
50 ml soy sauce
50ml mirin or sherry
15ml vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Firstly, for the marinade mix the ginger, garlic, soy sauce and mirin together and season with salt and pepper. You may not need any salt depending on your soy sauce.

Once combined pour into a shallow bowl which your salmon fillets will fit in. Place the fillets skin side up so that the pink flesh is in contact with the marinade. Leave in the refrigerator any where from 15 minutes to 3 hours. The longer the fish is left to marinate will increase the depth of soy and ginger flavours in the meat.

Take fish out of the fridge for a good 20 minutes before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature.

In a large, heavy frying pan heat the oil over a medium to high heat until very hot. Lightly pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, and season the skin side with a little salt.

Place the fish skin side down in the frying pan and hold down for 15 seconds until you feel the flesh relax in the pan - this will help prevent the fish from curling up while cooking and create that delicious crispy skin – and continue with the other fillet.

Once both fillets are in, turn the heat down and turn the fillets over. Cook for 1 minute, then add your marinating juices and continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes.

To check if the fish is ready take the fish out and place it skin side down. With a fork gently separate the flakes. The centre should look translucent to raw. Remember that your fish will continue to cook after is off the heat, so if you think it looks a little raw, perfect! It will be just translucent, and perfect when you eat it.

Reduce the marinade in your pan until slightly thickened and serve poured over your fish.

This dish is best served with white rice and steamed greens, such as beans and brocollini.
Personally I always cook my rice in a rice cooker, this way I can put the rice on before taking the fish out of the fridge and I know it will be ready.
I prepare my vegetables while the fish is coming to room temperature and put them on when I put my fish on to fry.

Serves 2


Bon appetite

Autumn is here…

It is the season in which the days get shorter and nights get longer. Sydney life moves from celebrating our beaches to curling up with feel-good-food indoors.

Get the most out of what’s in season with stone fruits, figs, pears, pomegranates, pistachios, green beans, kipfler and sweet potatoes.

Unlike summer where we spend time at the water celebrating the warmth and sun with light and refreshing food, autumn is a time where we create our own warmth through food that gets a little richer but continues to have that hint of the lingering sun of summer.

Here are a few recipes to inspire you for the following months.

Bon Appetite



Fig, Ricotta and Walnut Salad


You can always tell when autumn is around the corner because you start to see figs in your local grocer. I love the delicateness of their sweet jewelled inside when you rip them open.
As much as I love figs I am quite fussy when it comes to eating them. Unless bought and eaten on the same day fresh figs don’t seem to taste as perfect.
This salad however reinvented my fussiness for figs. The smooth creaminess of ricotta, crunch of roasted walnuts and sweetness of the figs dressed in a red wine vinaigrette is a perfect salad for autumn.



Ingredients

4 large ripe figs
200g fresh ricotta cheese
50g walnuts
150g spinach leaves
150g rocket leaves
1 bunch basil

Red wine Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon walnut oil (optional)
1/4 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika


Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Place walnuts on a dry roasting tray and toast in oven for 10-15 minutes until warm.

Break up the ricotta with a fork, season with salt and pepper, and set aside. Roughly tear the basil leaves and toss with the spinach and rocket in a bowl. Cut the figs into quarters and arrange along with the warm nuts on the green leaves. Lastly carefully place small spoonfulls of the ricotta on top.

For the red wine vinaigrette;

In a small bowl whisk together the vinegar, paprika powder and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour the oils into a pouring jug and while whisking with one hand slowly pour the oil into the vinegar with the other hand until the two liquids emulsify.
Dress the salad right before serving.

Serves up to 5


Smoked Trout Linguini with Asparagus and Pistachio and Rocket Pesto


This pasta is easy to make while making a stylish impression.
To me the combination of pink smoked trout flecked through hues of the light to dark greens of the pistachio pesto is reminiscent of the leaves in autumn starting to change colour from greens through to reds.



Ingredients

250g good quality Linguini
225g smoked trout fillets
1 bunch green asparagus
150g Pistachio and Rocket Pesto

Pistachio and Rocket Pesto
2 garlic cloves
80g shelled un-salted Pistachios
40g rocket
40g grated Parmesan
250ml olive oil

Method

Make the Pesto first. Mince the garlic. Put the nuts in a blender or food processor and pulse until coarse. Add the rocket and continue to pulse until a crumbly paste forms.
Scrape out into a bowl and stir in the garlic paste, Parmesan and oil.
Season to taste. You may not need any pepper due to the rocket. When using, it is ideal to let the pesto come to room temperature.
Makes 1 1/2 cups
(To store put into a container and cover with a thin layer of oil and refrigerate. Will keep up to 2 weeks.)

Trim the asparagus ends. I do this by simply breaking the ends off with my hands. I find that where it breaks off naturally will be where the woody end is.
Cut into 1inch stems keeping all of the top spears together. Blanch the stalks in salted water and keep aside. Then continue by blanching the spear tops and keeping aside.

Blanching is simple: simply bring salted water to the boil. Add your asparagus and wait for the water to come back to the boil. When the water is boiling take them out and refresh in iced water. This will ensure that you have bright green asparagus for your pasta that is not over cooked. You can use this technique for any green vegetable.

Lastly cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water until al dente. Use the packet instructions as a guideline to how long you should cook the pasta for, but set a timer for 1-2 minutes under the suggested time. You will want to check your pasta when the timer goes off to see if it is al dente.
Drain and tip back into the same pan you cooked it in. Toss the pesto, asparagus and flaked trout through the pasta and serve.
The amount of pesto is a guideline for this recipe. You can use as little or as much as you like (the recipe above is for 1 1/2 cups of pesto!).
Serves 4-6

Pomegranate, Chocolate and Turkish delight Truffles


These gorgeous balls of dark chocolate speckled with small pink gems of Turkish delight, and the tangy sharp finish of pomegranates are the perfect way to finish a meal, or just enjoyed with coffee.
Perfection in a ball, what more can one want.






Ingredients

350g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
250ml double cream (thickened cream)
1 1/2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses*
50g Turkish delight, chopped into small cubes
50g cocoa powder

Method

Bring the double cream to the boil and add 250g of the dark chocolate. Turn down the heat and stir until the cream and chocolate melt completely into each other. Take off the heat.
Stir in the pomegranate molasses and Turkish delight. Pour into a container and allow to cool in the fridge, for up to an hour.
When the mix is firm, with a teaspoon scoop spoonfuls of the mix and form into round balls with your hands. Place truffles in the freezer to set further.
Meanwhile put the cocoa powder on a small tray with a rim, or a bowl with a semi flat base and set aside. Place the remaining 100g of chocolate in a bowl and place over a pan of simmering water. When chocolate is melted take off the heat, and with the truffle resting on a fork start to dip into the chocolate. Roll the truffles in the cocoa powder.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge until required.
Makes approximately 25 truffles.

*Pomegranate molasses is used primarily in Mediterranean cooking. It is also called pomegranate syrup. Pomegranate molasses is thick, dark and has a tangy yet sweet taste. It is available from good delicatessens.