Rainbow Trout Pasta

Rainbow Trout Pasta

Firstly, I must apologise for my absenteeism. Turns out that third year at university is pretty hard work, and takes over your entire life for weeks at a time, subsuming any non-dissertation related activity that you might fancy doing. Luckily, my dissertation is now done and dusted with, so I am free to return to writing about delicious food, rather than witchcraft in Papua New Guinea, which is quite a relief I must say. I need to make the most of it given that I have another 11,000 words to write in the next few weeks which may result in my disappearance from the blogosphere once again!

This recipe is a very quick and easy, but still delicious, midweek meal. It takes only 15 minutes to throw together, and can be adapted to fit whatever it is you have in your fridge and cupboard. I have used rainbow trout as it is a more affordable option than salmon, but you could use salmon if you are more monied than me. I am often wary that since giving up meat I might not be getting all the right nutrients, or enough of them, so I think it is good to throw in some fish every now and again – especially if it is sustainably sourced.

Ingredients

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 small red onion

2 cloves of garlic

150g chestnut mushrooms

1 fillet rainbow trout, de-skinned and de-boned

225g pasta

Handful of frozen peas

Salt and pepper to season

Method

Set a pan of salted water to boil on the hob, cover and leave until boiling. In the meantime, finely slice your garlic, mushrooms and onion. Hopefully, your fishmonger will have filleted and de-boned your fish, but if not the easiest way to get the bones out is with a pair of tweezers under a bright light! As you will see from the photo, our fishmonger did a rubbish job so my boyfriend took on the tweezering! Once you have de-boned the fish, you can gently peel the skin off the back, making sure not to take any of the flesh with it. Once de-boned and de-skinned, finely slice the fish fillet.

Matt and the tweezers

Place a frying pan with 2 tbsp vegetable oil on the hob, and once hot, add the onion. Fry the onion until transparent and soft on a low heat (this will take about 5 minutes). After the onion has been frying for 5 minutes, add the pasta to the boiling water and leave to cook for approximately ten minutes or until al dente.

In the meantime, once the onion is soft, add the garlic, mushrooms and fish to the frying pan and fry for a further 7-9 minutes. Once the fish is cooked, and the mushrooms are softened, pour the cream into the pan and turn to a very low heat (you don’t want the cream to curdle or separate). Season with salt and pepper.

Approximately 1-2 minutes before the pasta is ready, add the frozen peas to the boiling water so they get a chance to defrost. After a couple of minutes, take the pasta and peas off the heat and drain. Take the sauce off the heat, and stir the pasta through the sauce. Season to your preference, and then tuck in!

This is a very speedy recipe so there isn’t really any point at which I could give you something to do, but if you fancy it whilst you’re eating, or simply at any other time when you’ve got a moment to spare, have a look at bloodandchampagne. It is a photographic blog, of beautiful interiors and houses of a minimalist, industrial and scandinavian ilk. The photos, and their contents are inspiring; now my dissertation is finished, I intend to while away many an hour gazing at them, and dreaming that perhaps one day my home will look something vaguely like this. Perhaps yours already does, or perhaps this will give you some ideas if you are bored of where you’re sat whilst you read this!

Aubergine, Chickpea & Spinach Curry

Aubergine, Chickpea & Spinach Curry

This is a delicious, simple and easy recipe, perfect for a quick weekday meal when you want to put together something tasty and healthy. The flavours are subtle but work really well together, especially with the nuttiness of the chickpeas, and the richness of the aubergine. I served this with a crispy paratha on the side to mop up the leftover juices, but it would work equally well with some rice. And if you’re trying to be healthy, or just want a lighter meal, then the curry is just as good on it’s own.

Ingredients (serves 4)

1kg fresh spinach

4tbsp sunflower/vegetable oil

1 large red onion

400g tinned chickpeas

2 garlic cloves

1 red chilli

1tbsp coriander seeds, ground

1tbsp cumin seeds

1 large aubergine

400g tin chopped tomatoes

Salt and pepper to season

Put a pan of salted water onto boil, and once boiling, add the fresh spinach and cook for two minutes. Once cooked, drain away the boiling water and pour cold water over the spinach. Drain the cold water then squeeze the spinach gently to remove as much water as possible from it. Chop finely and put to one side.

Next, finely chop the garlic, chilli and onion. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan, and once hot, add the onion, chilli and garlic. Following this, add the cumin and coriander seeds and the chickpeas, and leave to fry for 3-4 minutes. Once the onion is softened and transparent, add the aubergine and mix well. Leave this to fry for a further 5 minutes, until the aubergine is slightly softened and has taken on some colour. Finally, add the tomatoes, spinach and a pinch of salt and pepper, then bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and leave to cook for approximately 15 minutes.

Whilst the curry cooks, you could have a look at the wonderful No More Page 3 campaign. This campaign, set up by the brilliant Lucy Ann-Holmes, is trying to get the Sun Newspaper (a particularly unpleasant British tabloid for those of you readers fortunate enough not to be from this tiny island) to remove the topless pictures of women that feature on page 3. This campaign has gathered huge momentum, and gained support from Girl Guides, Mumsnet and several of the big teachers’ unions in the UK. Page 3 is a demeaning, and misogynistic feature of the newspaper, that objectifies women and teaches young boys and girls to see women as sexual objects rather than equal human beings. Moreover, boobs aren’t news! The campaign has a petition, with 135,748 signatures at the time of writing, and could really do with more. If you agree with the campaign (and you don’t have to be from the UK to do so) please sign the petition. Banning Page 3 is such an important step in fighting for gender equality in this country.

By now, your curry should be cooked and ready to eat. Serve it with your chosen side, and tuck in. Bon appetit!