Summer Bean Salad

Summer Bean Salad

This recipe makes for a delicious lunch or a light dinner that is perfect for a warm, summery evening (not that we’ve had many of those yet in England). What’s more, it keeps for a few days in the fridge, so you can make lots of it and keep going back for more! It’s also a great one for using up ingredients that you’ve got left in the cupboard and the vegetable draw in your fridge, and can be adapted to suit the flavours and foods you like the most. I prefer to make this salad with a tahini dressing, rather than the usual French dressing, as I think this makes it much more interesting and adds great depth to the overall flavour of the dish. You should be able to buy tahini in your local supermarket, or if you happen to live near the Curry Mile like me, then you will be able to get hold of it very easily indeed!

Salad Ingredients (serves 4)

1 red pepper

1 aubergine

4 cloves garlic

1tsp paprika

1tsp ground cumin

Vegetable/sunflower oil

1 tin flageolet beans

1 tin cannellini beans

1/2 tin artichoke hearts

Handful of cherry tomatoes

4 spring onions

1/4 cucumber

100g feta

Handful of coriander

Handful of mixed seeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin etc.)

Dressing Ingredients 

2tbsp tahini

3 tbsp virgin olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 garlic cloves

Pinch of salt and pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 190c. Dice the aubergine and pepper, and place in a large roasting tray. Squash the cloves of garlic with the flat side of a large knife, then add to the tray. Toss everything in vegetable or sunflower oil, and sprinkle with paprika, ground cumin, salt and pepper. Pop in the oven for 30 minutes.

Whilst the veggies cook, rinse and drain the flageolet and cannellini beans, and then add them both to a large bowl. Quarter the artichoke hearts, and halve the cherry tomatoes and then add these to the bowl too. Finely slice the spring onions, cucumber and coriander and chuck these into the same bowl. Finally, place the mixed seeds in a frying pan and dry fry for around 3 minutes, so they are warmed through and lightly toasted. Following this, sprinkle the seeds over the rest of the salad ingredients. Lastly, take the feta and crumble it finely over the ingredients in the bowl.

Next up is the dressing. Before measuring out the tahini, be sure to mix it thoroughly whilst it is still in the jar, as it often separates out. Once you’ve done this, take a jam jar or measuring jug and pour in the tahini and olive oil. Stir these together until combined, then add the lemon juice, salt and pepper. Finally, peel and crush the garlic cloves and stir these through the dressing until all the ingredients are combined. Taste to make sure it is as lemon-y and salty as you want it to be – everyone seems to have a different preference!

By now your veggies should be roasted to perfection, so take them out of the oven and tip them into the bowl with all the other ingredients. Pour over the dressing, and mix everything together. Season with some salt and pepper and then tuck in!

Baked Eggs with Tomatoes and Butter Beans

Baked eggs with tomato and butter beans

This recipe was a bit of an experiment, but one I was rather pleased with I must say. I guess it is a take on an English breakfast, but less greasy and more delicious and healthy!

It makes for a quick, tasty midweek supper, and is useful for using up things in the cupboard and fridge that need eating pronto. There are lots of different versions of this dish that I have come across, but this is my version and so I hope you like it! I served this with some crusty white bread, but you could also have this on its own or with a simple green salad.

Ingredients (serves 2) 

1tbsp vegetable oil

1 small red onion

1 garlic clove

Handful of cherry tomatoes

1 red pepper

1 tin chopped tomatoes

1 tin butter beans

Handful of fresh spinach

1 tsp paprika

1/2 dried chilli flakes

4 eggs

1 baguette

Salt and pepper to season

Method

Heat the oven to 180c. Place 1tbsp vegetable oil in a a wide ovenproof pan and heat on the hob. Finely chop the pepper, onion and garlic then place into the pan once the oil is hot. Leave these to fry for 5 minutes, making sure to stir them every so often. Add the cherry tomatoes and fry for a further 2-3 minutes. Next, pour in the chopped tomatoes and butter beans, then add the spinach, paprika and chilli. Stir all the ingredients together, turn the heat down and leave to simmer for 10-15 mins. Season with salt and pepper.

Take the pan off the heat and one by one, crack the eggs over the dish. The eggs will join together and cover the surface of the sauce. Don’t worry if your pan isn’t wide enough for 4 eggs, you can use 3 or even 2, depending on how much you like egg!

Eggs ready to go in the oven

Place the pan, with the lid off, in the oven and leave for 15 minutes. After this time, check whether or not the eggs are cooked, and give another 5 minutes if necessary. The cooking time also depends on how you like your yolk – runny or hard! I prefer a soft yolk so tend to go for a slightly shorter cooking time. When the dish has about 5 minutes left to cook, put the baguette in the oven to heat through.

Whilst the dish is in the oven, why not take a look at the Guardian’s Week in Wildlife, a series of photos produced each week of images of nature and wildlife from around the world. I really like that you can see the photo, but are also given the story behind the photo. I love looking at each new series and seeing what has been captured that week – there’s always something different and the photography is beautiful. My favourite this week has to be the 2 bears playing in Romania.

Once the baguette is hot, and the eggs are cooked remove both from the oven and serve. Happy eating!

Baked eggs

Chocolate Guinness Cake

Chocolate Guinness Cake

And so my degree is finished. 3 years of essay writing and philosophising comes to an end. And I can’t say I’m entirely thrilled at that prospect – I love being a student and I love living in Manchester, and I don’t really want either to ever come to an end. The thought of being in the real world is rather scary and not particularly attractive. So what better way than to drown my graduation sorrows than with an enormous chocolate guinness cake?

This is a well-loved Nigella recipe which I only discovered last year, when I learned that it was my boyfriend’s birthday cake of choice. Whilst it isn’t his birthday just yet, I had a feeling that this cake might help him get through all his revision and exams that he’s currently doing, whilst also providing me with some much needed comfort now that I’ve got to be a grownup.

If you haven’t made this cake before, go into your kitchen and make it this second. It is absolutely delicious – it is rich and dense and moreish and the deepest, darkest colour, without being sickly or sweet. The sponge, made using cocoa and guinness has a slight bitterness to it, whilst the cream cheese icing cuts through the richness of the cake perfectly. On top of that, it is incredibly easy and very satisfying to make – especially once you’ve iced it, and it really does look like a (mini) pint of guinness with the cream, frothy head on top.

Cake Ingredients 

250ml guinness

250g unsalted butter

75g cocoa powder

400g sugar

145ml sour cream

2 eggs

1tbsp vanilla extract

275g plain flour

2 1/2tsp bicarbonate of soda

Icing Ingredients 

300g full fat cream cheese

150g icing sugar

125ml double cream

Method

Heat the oven to 180c and grease a 23cm springform tin. Pour the guinness into a pan and place on a low heat on the hob. Slice the butter and add this to the pan, stirring every so often as the butter melts. Once the butter is melted, add the cocoa powder and sugar to the pan. Stir the ingredients together – but don’t worry if it’s a bit lumpy, it will be mixed more later.

In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla extract and sour cream until they combine. Then add the chocolate-y guinness mixture to the bowl and beat until combined. Finally, add the flour and bicarb and beat the mixture until there are no lumps left.

Cake mixture ready for the oven

Pour the mixture into the springform tin and then lick the bowl clean! Pop the cake into the oven for 45-60mins. I know this is a somewhat vague cooking time, but depending on your oven the cake will cook at different speeds. However, one thing I have noticed regardless of the oven, is that because of the relatively long cooking time, the top of the catch has a tendency to catch and burn slightly. To avoid this, keep an eye on your cake, and if you think it might be burning on top, make a tin foil hat for it, and place this over the springform tin, covering the whole surface of the cake. This way, the cake will keep cooking, but the top will not burn.

How your bowl should look once your cake goes in the oven!

Check your cake after 45 minutes, by placing a knife in the middle and seeing if there is any batter on the knife when you remove it. It may need an extra 5 minutes or so – but be careful, the joy of this cake is how dense and damp it is, so the last thing you want is to overcook it and dry it out.

Whilst the cake cooks, have a watch of this video of babies trying lemons for the first time. Their reactions to tasting the lemons are hilarious and this video never fails to make me smile – their facial expressions are priceless. It seems apt that such a happiness-inducing recipe should be accompanied by something as funny as this video.

Once cooked, take the cake out of the oven and remove the sides of the springform tin. Leave the cake on the side to cool completely – this will take around 90-120 mins.

Cake fresh from the oven

Whilst the cake is cooling, it is time to make the icing. Place the cream cheese in a mixing bowl and whisk (either by hand, or using an electric whisk) until the cheese is light and fluffy. Following this, fold in the icing sugar, and then the cream. Whisk once more until the mixture is combined – don’t worry about making it stiff, it should stay nice and creamy. Once the cake is cooled, spread the icing atop the cake, making it look as much like the top of a pint of guinness as you can! Finally, cut yourself a gigantic slice and forget about being a grownup.

Moroccan Tagine & Couscous

 

Moroccan Tagine & Couscous

Once more I must apologise for the Peckish Pescatarian’s silence over the last few weeks. I’m almost finished with my degree and so everything has been pretty hectic and essay-centred. The end is now in sight though, as I’ve begun work on my last ever essay, and finish my degree a week today, which is terrifying! And what better way to counter that terror of being a grownup with some delicious, warming food.

This recipe is adapted from a BBC recipe, as I wanted to select which vegetables made up the basis of the tagine. I opted for carrots, parsnips and sweet potatoes but you can really chuck in anything that takes your fancy. The combination of spices and flavours in this recipe make for a really fragrant, delicious meal and an excellent leftover lunch! I served this with couscous, but it would also work with some crusty bread or just on its own if you’re not that ravenous.

This recipe uses a chermoula pasta, which is normally a marinade for fish, but in this dish, provides the basis of the flavour and acts more like a curry paste I guess.

One last thing – this recipe takes quite a while to prepare, but is really easy and so worth the time it takes. Once you’ve made the paste and fried the veg, you can simply pop it in the oven and go about the rest of your day!

Chermoula Ingredients (serves 4)

1 1/1 red onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves

Thumb-sized piece of fresh root ginger

65ml lemon juice (normally about 2 lemons, if they’re juicy!)

65ml olive oil

1tbsp honey

tbsp ground cumin

1tbsp paprika

1tbsp turmeric

1 tsp chilli powder

Handful of fresh coriander

Tagine Ingredients (serves 4)

1tbsp olive oil

2 carrots, cut into medium-sized chunks

2 parsnips, cut into medium-sized chunks

2 red onions, roughly chopped

2 leeks roughly chopped

8 dried apricots, roughly chopped

Handful of raisins

1 vegetable stock cube

240g couscous

Handful of fresh coriander to serve

Method

Heat the oven to 200c. Chuck all the chermoula ingredients into a blender and whizz until you have a smooth paste.

Chermoula Paste

 

 

Take a heavy-bottomed pan and pour in 1tbsp olive oil and place it on the hob. Once the oil is hot, put the chopped carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, onions and leeks into the pan and fry on the hob for around 1o minutes, making sure to stir so none of the veg catches.

Veggies!

 

Add the chermoula paste, apricots and raisins to the veggies and pour in 280ml water. Put a lid on the pan and bring to the boil. Once the tagine is boiling, take it off the hob and put it in the oven for 45 minutes, with the lid still on. After 45 minutes, turn the oven down to 180c and cook a further 45 minutes.

Whilst the tagine is cooking, why not have a meander through The Dogist. This is a blog dedicated to documenting dogs, rather than people, that the photographer comes across when he’s out and about in the US. If you’re a dog lover like me, then you’ll love these photos and the assortment of furry friends found within them.

Once the tagine has about 10 minutes left of cooking time, make your couscous. Boil the kettle and make 450ml of stock. Put the couscous in a large bowl, and pour over the stock. Cover with a plate or tea-towel and leave for a few minutes. Check the couscous is cooked (if its not, just pour through a bit more stock). Finally, run a fork through the couscous to make sure it doesn’t all stick together in lumps.

Tagine bubbling away!

By now, your tagine should be ready to devour. Serve it with some couscous and fresh coriander and  بالصحة  (bon appetit in Arabic!)

 

 

Globe Artichokes with Vinaigrette and Crusty Bread

Artichokes & Vinaigrette

This is just a quick and easy recipe, but I love it because of how simple is is, and because of how delicious artichokes are! This makes a great starter at a dinner party, or a good snack if you’re feeling a little luxurious. This is a recipe that dates back to when I was little – I remember eating artichokes dipped in balsamic vinegar and thinking it delicious, and also great fun, as artichokes are very much a finger food – especially when you get to the heart and have to rip off all the funny little hairs in order to get to the good bit!

Some people spend forever preparing their artichokes but I personally don’t see the point – it takes too much time, and is unnecessary as there are always going to be bits that you won’t eat, regardless of whether or not you chop off the tips of the leaves before cooking.

I have opted to serve these with crusty white bread, as this can be used to mop any excess oil and vinegar, but it is up to you whether you do the same!

Ingredients (serves 2) 

2 large globe artichokes

2 garlic cloves, peeled

2 bay leaves

1/4 of a lemon

100ml balsamic vinegar

100ml olive oil

Salt and pepper to season

Crusty white bread to serve

Method

Place a large pan of water on the hob, with the garlic cloves, lemon, bay leaves and a dash of salt, and leave until it comes up to the boil.

Meanwhile, try and give your artichokes a good rinse. I realise this is tricky because they are very tightly put together, but if you can get into all the nooks and crannies then that’s great. Once washed, chop the ends of the stalks off – these are the most bitter and dry part, so not worth eating!

Once the water is boiling, pop the artichokes into the water, cover with a lid and turn to a low heat so the water continues to simmer. Leave these to cook for around half an hour – or until the outer leaves come away easily. The bigger the artichoke the longer it will take to cook!

Whilst the artichokes are cooking, mix together your balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Once this is done, why not have a gander at this article about street artist ATM and his recent ‘graffiti’ that has been appearing in London. ATM has created a series of beautiful paintings of Britain’s endangered birds on buildings around the capital city. The result is wonderful, and much better than most of the other street art you will have seen. I for one shall be keeping an eye out for these lovely feathered friends when I head to London next week. These paintings also act as a timely wake up call to the fact we need to stop messing around with the environment, and start acting to prevent climate change, and the extinction of various species of animals and birds.

Once the artichokes are cooked, drain the water and dig in. Pull away the individual leaves and dip the bottom of them in the vinaigrette, then eat the little fleshy bit at the bottom of each leaf. Once you have peeled away and eaten all the leaves (which takes a while – although some of the very inner leaves won’t have any fleshy stuff to eat so can be discarded quickly) you will get to the heart of the artichoke. This is the most delicious part! With a sharp knife, carefully cut away all the hairy stuff and the end of the stalk, until you are left with the smooth green heart. Give this a good soaking in the vinaigrette and enjoy!