Tag Archives: basil

Plum Crisp + Frittata

13 Oct

CrispOn Sunday, BSA invited some lovely friends of his over for lunch. M and I chatted about what we should serve, and decided on a typical brunch-y meal that our family loves. Lots of bits and bites to eat (toasted breads, croissants, smoked white fish, james, cheeses, bagels, cream cheese) and two main dishes: frittata and plum crisp.

The frittata was a variant of the frittatas I have made earlier, but with added inspiration from my friend Karo’s post. I sauteed rounds of leek in butter until they were soft, and then I grated a couple of zucchini (courgettes), squeezed the liquid out of them, and added them to the leeks with a little more butter. Sauteed them until they were soft, and then made the frittata with some beautiful goat’s milk cheese for added flavour. This was a delicate and beautiful frittata, finished in the oven to make it puffy and brown!

For the plum crisp, I decided to be a little brave. I sliced the plums into quarters, and then chopped them up. I added cinnamon, vanilla, grated nutmeg, and a little basil – it gave the fruit a slightly savoury deep hit of flavour that was totally gorgeous. The crisp was embellished with oats and almonds. Beautiful, served with yogurt mixed with brown sugar and vanilla.

Serves 6 – 8 people

  • 12 ripe dark purple plums, quartered and chopped, skin still on
  • 1 tbsp + 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 + 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 + 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp basil
  • 1 tbsp + 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 4 tbsp butter, cubed
  • 1/2 cup sliced almonds, crushed
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400C (200F).

In chosen baking dish (I used a rectangular Pyrex dish), tumble in the chopped plums. I kept the skins on – but obviously took the pits out!

Sprinkle 1 tbsp flour, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, basil and 1 tbsp vanilla over the plums and using hands (or a spoon if you want to be neat!), mix thoroughly.

Crush the sliced almonds – I put them in a little zip log bag and bashed them with the bottom of a wine bottle! A rolling pin works just as well 😉

In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup flour, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla, oats, butter, crushed almonds, and salt. Use your fingers to really work the butter into the rest of the ingredients, and taste. Adjust spices if need be.

Sprinkle the crisp over the plums, and bake in the oven for 25 – 30 minutes, or until the plums are soft and bubbling. The plums will have let go of deep dark purple juices and the whole thing will be gorgeously lush. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or plain yogurt, scented with a bit of brown sugar and vanilla.

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Vegan Dinner + Asparagus with Couscous

5 Oct

Just back from New York – what an amazing trip! Had lunch at Per Se on Saturday, and will review it soon. Friday was great fun too. I had my very curly hair cut at Ouidad – she is the Goddess of Curly Hair, and an incredible inspiration. And because this was New York, and I was having a wonderful time, I stopped in at Dean and Deluca on my way home and browsed.

Dinner!Oh that place is just a total culinary paradise. I wandered around for an hour, just inhaling the aromas, and browsing everything. If I had more room in my suitcase, I would have bought the store! It was as if I was in a curated foodie dream … the olive oils, the truffles, the ice creams, the cheeses… and the fruits and vegetables! Of course it was terrifically expensive, but so beautiful. I found such fresh fruits and vegetables – everything perfect, and at its peak. When I got home, I decided to study what I had bought and treat it with great simplicity and respect.

My hostess, and dear friend T, is a vegan. I wanted to make her dinner, and it was a cold and stormy night, so I was inspired by the end of summer wealth of fruit and vegetables available at Dean and Deluca. I wanted to make a meal full of strong sensuous flavours that would not overwhelm us, and yet would nourish the senses. It was such a pleasure to cook with this produce, at its height of freshenss. It was easy to make something bright and beautiful. We had:

  • Eggplant (aubergine) dip made from roasted eggplant, tomatoes and virgin olive oil
  • Beautiful fresh bread
  • Fresh figs (I was going to poach them in white wine, but I tasted them, and they were so perfect, I decided to leave them in their glory)
  • Roasted baby heirloom tomatoes and garlic, with fresh basil. Very easy and very quick – 200C (400F) oven – pop in a tray of sliced tomatoes, garlic and basil, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Roast until the entire house is scented and everything is soft and slightly burnt, and luscious.
  • Hand rolled couscous with asparagus, mint, basil and meyer lemon
  • Reisling poached pear sorbet by Jeni’s Ice Creams (I had a Salty Caramel for non-vegan me which was mind blowing) – you can order for delivery!

For the asparagus with couscous, which will serve four, or two, with leftovers for the weekend, you will need:

  • 1 bunch fresh organic asparagus (about 1 – 2 cups)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive oil
  • 1 cup couscous (I used this amazing hand rolled couscous but garden variety is just fine!)
  • 1 bunch fresh organic mint (about 1/2 cup)
  • 1 bunch fresh organic basil (about 1/2 cup)
  • 1 Meyer lemon

Prepare the asparagus first. For each stalk, snap the bottom off with your hands. The asparagus will snap naturally, and you will be left with shortened stalks, but the best part. Discard the bottom bits.

Chop the asparagus into 2 inch or so sections. Boil about 1 cup of water in a medium saucepan on high heat. Add a bit of salt. Dunk the asparagus into the boiling water. Watch carefully. The asparagus will turn bright green. You want to remove it from the water almost as soon as it cooks – taste and see but I usually only leave it in for a minute or two. This ensures its very fresh, slightly crisp and yet cooked. The asparagus we had was sweet and very pure tasting without any adornment.

Use a sieve if you have it and take the asparagus out of its hot water bath and immediately dunk it in ice water or put it in a bowl and run cold water over – this will stop the cooking process. If you can, save the water the asparagus was cooked in for the couscous. Once the asparagus has been well cooled, set aside in a little bowl.

Using the same saucepan (and the same water if youre lucky), prepare the couscous. You will usually need about 1 1/2 cups of water to 1 cup of couscous, but follow directions on the package. I usually add a dollop of extra virgin olive oil to the boiling water for flavour and a sprinkle of salt. Once the water is boiling, add the couscous, stir, and take off heat. Cover, and let stand, steaming quietly to itself, for about 5 – 10 minutes. Once the couscous has absorbed all the water, take the lid off, and fluff. It will then be ready to serve.

While the couscous is absorbing all its water, chop the mint and basil fine and set aside. Grate the skin of the lemon, and set aside. Squeeze at least 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and set aside.

I thought I would spice this up with some Moroccan spices, dark and dusky, but the flavours were so clean and beautiful, I left them out completely!

Couscous!Once the couscous is ready, stir in the mint, basil, lemon zest and lemon juice. Taste for salt, and if you want, add a teaspoon of olive oil for depth of flavour. Let stand for a few minutes to come to room temperature, and then stir in the asparagus. Serve at room temperature.

This is the perfect last hurrah of summer!

Please forgive the iPod photos! I forgot my camera!

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Spinach Pie

20 Aug

Today, around 11am, I realised I had a houseful of hungry women to feed – me, my sister, our mother, and the Au-Pair Nation (3 in total, though in M’s house it seems to be in constant flux!)… So went to the fridge to have a mosey about to figure out what I could cook. The quickest, easiest, and freshest thing seemed to be a spinach pie, with basil from the garden, and a ripe tomato to add colour, prettiness, and sweetness. I love cooking on the fly like this. I love checking out whats fresh, what looks delicious, and thinking up creative ways to cook it. This kind of meal is my favourite – unplanned, and yet with a certain urgency to it.

We sat down to eat at around 1230 or so – and the cooking was really a series of pottering about, mixing, tasting, stirring, sauteeing… It was very organic (as were the ingredients), and even baby Z got into the equation when she went to the garden to help Essia pick the basil! This pie will serve 6 – 8 people for lunch, and is wonderful on a hot summer’s day as it really does taste wonderful lukewarm, or even cold. You can try it with lots of different toppings (sauteed onions or mushrooms come to mind), and you can choose to add or subtract cheese, as is your wish. I used some sour cream and a little milk with the eggs, but if all you have is condensed milk, water, cream – use that. Its a very forgiving dish, and will really adapt to what you have.

Its also best, in my opinion, looking very rustic. This is not fancy restaurant fare. This is healthy, delectable home cooking, and it shouldnt pretend to (or try to) look polished and refined. There is a certain lustiness to this kind of cooking and food that people really respond well to.

I baked this in a medium sized Corningware dish, but if you want to bake it in a pie pan, go right ahead. Its easy peasy, and so delicious. Plus, I find people love pie. It feels like you have done a huge amount of work, when you really havent – and they feel like you have treated them to something magical.

For the crust

  • 1 1/2 cups unbleached organic flour plus extra for rolling out
  • 3/4 stick (6 tbsp) frozen butter, grated
  • 1/3 – 1/2 cup cheddar cheese (or parmesan, pecorino, goats cheese, whatever you like)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1 egg

Preheat the oven to 170C

Measure the flour into a small bowl, and grate the butter over. Use your fingers to mix the butter in well, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese and salt and pepper in, and using your fingers again, mix well.

Break the egg into the flour mixture, and mix well, until a dough forms. Knead this dough, using the heel of your palm, until it feels very soft and elastic.

Let it sit for about 10 minutes in the fridge, and then roll it out, very thin, flouring your rolling surface and pin first.

Transfer the dough to your baking pan, ensuring that its even, and goes up the sides of the pan, and prick all over with a fork, remembering to prick along the sides as well.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the crust has browned nicely. Remove from oven, and allow to cool, though if you are cooking the filling whilst baking the crust, its fine to assemble immediately upon removing the crust from the oven. Dont mind the sizzle 😉

Filling + Assembly

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 (Vidalia) onion, chopped well
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1/3 cup white wine
  • 4 – 5 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped fine
  • 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
  • 1 large tomato, sliced into 6 even slices
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tbsp sour cream
  • 1/3 cup milk, cream or half and half
  • 2 + 1 tbsp grated parmesan
  • A few rough chunks of goats or sheep cheese, roughly chopped (optional)

In a large frying pan, over medium heat, saute the chopped onion in the olive oil, and season well with salt, pepper and dried basil. Once the onion has become soft and glossy, add the white wine, and allow to simmer until the wine has almost completely reduced.

Add the chopped spinach all at once, and saute until wilted. Remove from heat, and let cool for a few minutes.

Chop the basil leaves fine, reserving 6 for the top of the pie, and mix the rest into the cooled spinach. Cut a large tomato into six equal slices, and set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat together the ggs, sour cream, milk and 2 tbsp parmesan.

Mix the egg mixture into the spinach mixture, and taste for seasoning. Adjust if needed.

Pour the spinach-egg mixture into the pre-baked crust. Lay the reserved tomato slices on top, and top them with the six reserved basil slices. Strew a few chunks of goat’s cheese into the pie, if you feel like it (I kind of poked them into the filling), and sprinkle about 1 tbsp parmesan over all.

Bake for about 40 minutes in a 170 C oven, and allow to cool for at least 5 – 10 minutes before serving.

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Tomato Salad

9 Aug

I know, a tomato salad. Simple, right? Well, yes, and no. Tomato salad needs only a few ingredients, but this is one dish where organic, fresh and local really count. Go to the market, or the grocery store, and really look at the vegetables on offer. Smell, feel, prod, poke. When you only use a few key ingredients, freshness is all. A good tomato is one you can actually smell – that ineffable scent that is only tomato. This is a dish to have up your sleeve when you are serving heavy foods. Its fresh, delicious – tasty and sweet. Its a perfect complement to stews and breads – the juices of the tomatoes beg to be mopped up and savoured.

This salad brightens up any meal. When I make a grilled cheese sandwich, I serve a small side salad of these tomatoes. When I have a huge hoard over and am serving stew or sausages, or anything heavy, I offer these tomatoes. Its so easy to make and is really a wonderful addition to any party meal. When you serve lots of people, you want them to feel abundance. Adding an extra dish, especially one as easy as this, makes people feel your generosity.

This dish is all about the tomato. Make sure you pick ripe, bright, red, luscious ones – and try and make them organic if possible. It really makes a difference! Cooking is not just about putting ingredients together – its about forethought when shopping!

Feeds about 12 – 14 people

  • 4 cups red cherry tomatoes
  • 4 cups yellow / mixed tomatoes
  • A pinch of sugar
  • Lemon Juice
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Fresh Basil
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 very thinly sliced white onion (optional)

Please note that you should buy the best tomatoes that are available – if you see that big fat beefsteak tomatoes are the best in store at the moment, get those. Just make sure you deseed them.

Cut the tomatoes in half (if small) or in large chunks, deseeded (if large)

Let the tomatoes sit in a bowl, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar. This will encourage the tomatoes to let go of a bit of their juice.

Sprinkle about 3 – 4 tablespoons lemon juice over the tomatoes.

In a separate bowl, sprinkle a few tablespoons lemon juice over the onions (if using), and let them sit until the acid in the lemon juice has mellowed out the onions.

Salt and pepper liberally.

Cut about ½ cup of fresh basil over.

Slick about ½ cup of olive oil over.

Mix. Taste. Adjust.

Refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavours to meld. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.

If you have any left overs, blitz in the food processor with some chili for a wonderful salsa which is great with pita chips. Or roast in a very hot oven, with a few slivers of garlic until almost blistered and burnt, and mix with some hot cream for a pasta sauce that is out of this world. Or add to a stew or soup the next day. Tomatoes are so very versatile and add a hit of sweetness and brightness to any dish.

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Mushrooms and Couscous

3 Jul

I first had this dish in a “wymyn friendly” cafe in Observatory, Cape Town. The place was a little intimidating (identifying as I do as a woman 😉 ) but the cooking was outstanding. Unfortunately, it closed down because the chef and the front of house manager were partners, and when they ended, the cafe ended. But while it was operational, I ate here on a regular basis to have this meal. Its charm is in its simplicity and clarity, and yet its attention to colour, texture and taste. Its an easy meal to make, but incredibly satisfying for a vegetarian, and a vegan too if you substitute olive oil for butter, and leave out the parmesan.

I made this for MZ one evening when everyone was exhausted and tired. It was so comforting, you could feel the mood around the table change. It was good.

The other thing I love about this is that is so easy to adapt – you can make it for yourself, or you can serve it on a platter, with the golden fluffy couscous, and the beautiful steaming mushrooms arranged in generous synchronicity. Such pleasure.

I usually make this for 4 – 6 people but feel free to double or halve or even quarter!

Couscous

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 white onion, minced
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil or 1 tbsp fresh basil, minced
  • 500 g box of couscous
  • 1 1/4 cups of boiling salted water or vegetable stock (see note)
  • Couple tablespoons of butter or olive oil
  • Salt

First, pour out your couscous and measure the number of cups. Most boxes of couscous can vary by up to half a cup of couscous, though you should get about 2 1/2 cups of couscous in a 500 g box. You will want exactly half the amount of couscous, for your boiling water or stock. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, over medium heat, soften the onion and garlic in the olive oil. When soft and glossy, add basil and a little salt and mix well. Take off heat, and add the couscous. Mix well so that the onion is completely combined with the couscous.

Pour over boiling salted water or vegetable stock, and immediately cover for 5 – 1o minutes, until the water is completely absorbed into the couscous.

Using a fork, fluff the couscous, adding small slithers of butter or a glug of olive oil and tasting for salt. Set aside, covered until ready to serve.

Mushrooms

  • 3 -4 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 white onion, minced
  • 2 – 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 – 3 cups mixed mushrooms (portobello, white, Swiss brown), peeled and roughly chopped (you want large pieces)
  • 1 – 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 2 – 3 tbsp dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 1/4 cup water or veegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup half and half (very optional)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Handful of baby spinach + handful of fresh basil

In a large frying pan, over medium heat, soften onion and garlic, and season with a little bit of salt and pepper. When the onions are glassy, turn heat up to high, and add mushrooms in batches of 1 cup each. You want them to sear a bit, and burn a bit before releasing their juices. Stir well, and continue moving the mushrooms about the pan.

When all the mushrooms have been added to the pan, add the balsamic and soy sauce all at once. This will quickly steam in the pan, caramelising some bits of the mushrooms, but also encouraging them to release their juices. As the liquids begin to come out of the mushrooms, do not stir. Add a few slivers of butter over the mushrooms and allow the heat and steam to melt the butter into the mushrooms. This will do two things: it will flavour the mushrooms, and bring out their incredibly rich and meaty taste, but it will also thicken and encourage the sauce that is being created from their juices. The alchemy of heat and ingredients!

Add the dijon, wine, water and half and half (if using) and mix extremely well. Taste for seasoning and adjust. Allow to boil down by about half, but ensure you still have some liquid at the bottom of the pan. Set aside until ready to serve, or serve immediately.

Just before serving, reheat gently, and add a handful of baby spinach, and a handful of fresh basil to the pan, stirring to wilt.

Assembly

To serve this dish you will need:

  • Couscous
  • Mushrooms
  • About half a cup of toasted pine nuts
  • Another handful of fresh basil or Italian parsley, chopped roughly
  • Thin slices / shards of old parmesan (optional)

On a beautiful serving platter, arrange the couscous so there is a small well or dip in the middle. Mound the mushroom mixture into the well, and pour sauce over the sides, so you soak the couscous, but still allow its fluffy goldenness to shine through. Sprinkle the pine nuts over, and then the basil or parsley. Finally top with shards of parmesan if using.

Delicious!

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Pesto

1 Jul

Glowing green. Scented with basil, pine nuts, pecorino and garlic. Goopy, gooey goodness. I am nuts about pesto. Its so easy to make – about 5 minutes cooking time to toast the nuts, and the rest a few pulses in your food processor. You can eat this so many ways: straight from the bowl (as per usual!); stirred through pasta or even rice; as an amazing addition to a sandwich or salad dressing; and, as I will be using it, as the base of a terrific lasagne.

Pesto can be made with so many things – any green vegetable – or go further – let your imagination take flight – use butternut, sun ripened tomatoes, mushrooms even. Try it with almonds, macadamias, walnuts, and change the cheese – blue, parmesan, etc. Its so flexible, and so delicious.

Note that I use some rocket in this recipe (about 1 to 3 in terms of the basil) because basil in Malaysia is very strongly flavoured. If your basil is the gentler variety, feel free to omit the rocket entirely.

For about 2 cups you will need:

  • 1 1/2 cups pine nuts
  • 2 cups (150 g) well packed, washed basil
  • 3/4 cup rocket
  • 5 large cloves of garlic, chopped into chunks
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 cup grated pecorino or parmesan
  • Up to 1 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil

First off, toast the pine nuts. In a non stick pan, over medium heat, layer the pine nuts. Make sure you keep stirring with a spatula. These go from golden toasty to burnt in a split second, so be careful.

Put your basil into food processor and add about 1/4 cup olive oil. Pulse a couple times so its completely chopped. Add the rocket, and pulse again.

Add the pine nuts, and pulse well, adding a little more olive oil if you feel it is needed.

Add the garlic and salt, and pulse again. Add the pecorino or parmesan, and mix with spatula. Turn out into a bowl, and add a little more olive oil until its the consistency that you prefer.

I would certainly make this at least 1 day in advance to allow the flavours to meld. Save covered with a slick of olive oil, covered, in the fridge.

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Green Pasta for MZ+BSA

27 Jun

While visiting M a few months ago, I was able to cook in her wonderful kitchen (using knives that a friend of BSA had hand made!) and enjoy all the bounty and amazing-ness that was Whole Foods! I could so live in that place!

One of my favourite concoctions was this green pasta. BSA seemed to like it enough that he went for thirds (or was that fourths?). Either way, it is made with the freshest and greenest veg you can find. Feel free to adjust, though these go well together. The mushroom adds a warm muskiness that holds everything else together.  This dish bursts with energy and vibrancy, and its so delicious. Simple, and not creamy either, which is satisfying without being overwhelming.

You could serve this with all sorts: couscous, rice, even a toasted brioche, but angel hair pasta, to me, has the delicacy that this dish needs.

Feeds 4 hungry people

  • Approximately 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 5-7 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 250 g mushrooms
  • 2 cups baby spinach, thinly sliced into ribbons
  • 2 cups artichoke hearts
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup white wine (or alternatively, veg stock and lemon juice, if you dont want alcohol)
  • 1 cup broccolini (or other type broccoli) roughly chopped
  • Few leaves fresh basil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup or so parmesan and more to serve
  • Angel hair pasta

Start with about half the olive oil, or enough to thickly coat the bottom of a large non stick pan. You should have a green gold puddle. Add more olive oil as needed while cooking. Turn heat on low.

As oil heats, throw in all the thinly sliced garlic. It will infuse the oil, and add depth to the flavour of the finished pasta. Watch as garlic gets soft but dont allow it to brown.

Meanwhile peel and slice the mushrooms, and add to pan, putting heat up to medium low. Stir well and encourage the juices of the mushrooms to let go.

Prepare spinach by taking leaves, rolling them into little cigar shapes, and cutting into ribbons. Add to pan and saute to wilt.

Roughly chop artichoke hearts, and add to the pan. Stir all ingredients together, to introduce them to one another and immediately add wine (or veg stock/lemon juice). Allow to braise for a few minutes, and check for flavour. Add salt and pepper to taste. Note: I usually add white pepper to this dish so as not to whack all the delicate flavours over the head with ground black pepper.

Roughly chop broccolini, and add it to the steaming pan. Turn off heat after a few minutes. Use a light hand with this recipe and work quickly. You want your ingredients to cook, but you dont want them to boil and leach all their flavour and freshness. Remember that the heat will continue cooking the vegetables for quite a while after you take the pan off the fire.

Tear a few leaves of fresh basil in half, or crush them between your fingers to release their amazing scent and oils. Add to the pan and mix all together.

Cook angel hair pasta, reserving 1/2 mug of cooking liquid. Drain pasta. Mix vegetables and pasta together by adding pasta to the vegetables rather than vice versa. Use tongs and mix well. Add a little of the pasta cooking liquid if you think its too dry. You might want to add some lemon juice or another splash of wine. Grate parmesan lightly over and mix well.

You could use many different vegetables for this beautifully delicate dish. Asparagus comes to mind, as do peas, rocket, french beans.

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