Classic Nut Roast

This is one of the favourites in our family. Depending on the nut varieties, you will get a different taste every time.

Serves 6.

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 onion, chopped 
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed 
• 125 g mushrooms 
• 2 tsp plain flour 
• 300 ml stock, or water 
• 175 g mixed nuts (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, whatever), chopped 
• 175 g wholewheat breadcrumbs 
• 1-2 tbsp soy sauce dried herbs 
• salt and pepper to taste 
• 2 tbsp plain flour or breadcrumbs for coating 
• 4 tbsp oil for roasting

Heat oven to 190º C.

Heat oil in large saucepan and add the onion and the garlic and fry gently for 5 mins. Add the mushrooms and fry for a further 5 mins. Sprinkle the the flour on top and stir well, then pour in stock (or water) and bring to the boil, stirring all the time.

Let the mixture simmer for 2 – 3 mins., then remove from the heat. Stir in nuts, breadcrumbs, soy sauce and herbs and then season. Turn mixture out onto a board sprinkled with flour or breadcrumbs, using hands to form into a loaf shape.

Roll loaf in the flour so that it is coated all over.

Put oil in roasting tin and heat in oven for a few minutes. Put the nut loaf into the tin and turn it to coat it all over in the hot oil (mind your fingers). Bake for 40 – 45 mins. until crisp, spooning some of the oil over the top of the loaf after about 30 mins.

¡Bon provecho! 

Lemon and Hazlenut Loaf Cake

Here is another one of my favourite cake recipes:

150 g butter or margarine

175 g sugar

1 lemon, rind and 1 tablespoon juice

2 large eggs

100 g flour

75 g ground hazelnuts

a pinch of salt

Heat oven to 170° C.

 

Cream together the butter or margarine, sugar and lemon rind. Beat in the eggs, one by one. Sift in the flour and stir in the nuts, lemon juice and salt. Spoon the mixture into a buttered and lined 450g loaf tin and smooth the top.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until golden and cooked through. Leave in tin to cool completely. Remove from tin.

 

Make icing by mixing the icing sugar with enough lemon juice to make it smooth, then spread over the cake and allow to drizzle over the sides. Sprinkle with lemon rind.

 

Enjoy.

Lamb, Prune and Almond Tagine

A Tagine is a shallow, glazed earthenware pot with a tall conical lid. But you can use any tight-fitting casserole dish.

900 ml stock

300 g prunes

1 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp ground turmeric  

2 tbsp cumin seeds 

2 tbsp chili powder

4 cinnamon sticks  

4 bay leaves

2 tsp coriander seeds

5 large cloves garlic

50 g ground almonds

6 tbsp olive oil

1.4 kg lamb leg steaks

12 shallots

75 g clarified butter

1 tbsp honey

2 large onions, chopped finely

toasted almonds

1 carrot, chopped roughly

chopped parsley

salt and pepper

Blend together the coriander, cumin, chilli powder, paprika, turmeric, garlic and 4 tbsp oil. Coat the steaks with the paste and cover and chill for at least 5 hours or overnight.

 

In a large casserole, melt the butter, add the onions and carrot and cook till soft, then remove and fry the lamb on each side.

 

Add a little stock and bring to the boil, scraping up the sediment from the bottom. Return the onion and carrot and add 100 g of prunes. Add remaining stock with the cinnamon, bay leaves and almonds; season. Cover and cook at 170º C for 2 hours until the meat is really tender. 

 

Meanwhile fry the shallots in the rest of the oil and honey until a deep golden brown. Add to the casserole 30 – 40 mins before the end of the cooking time. Take the lamb out of the sauce and put to one side. Bring the sauce to the boil, bubble and reduce to a thick consistency. Return the lamb to the casserole, add the remaining prunes and bubble for 3 – 4 mins. Garnish with almonds and parsley.

 

Clarified butter, otherwise known as ghee, can be cooked at a higher heat than fresh butter as it has no milk solids and won’t burn as easily. 

 

To make: Melt butter in a small pan and heat gently without allowing it to colour. Skim off the foam as it rises to the top, leaving the milk solids to sink to the bottom. Pour the clear butter into a bowl through a sieve lined with kitchen paper. Allow to settle for 10 mins then pour into another bowl, leaving any sediment behind. Cool, then store in a jar in the fridge for up to six months.

 

Delicious. 

Melon, Cucumber and Almond Soup

The hot temperatures of summer are perfect for a cold soup, something that the Spanish would call a Gazpacho. The good thing about Gazpachos and other cold soups is that they are very convenient in their preparation. There is no cooking involved. Here is a recipe for one of my cold vegetable soups.

The following would serve 4 – 6 people as a first course:

1 large cucumber, peeled and de-seeded

1/4 honey melon, cut into cubes

1/8 red watermelon, cut into cubes

1 medium onion, chopped finely

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tsp ground almonds (peeled, not toasted)

1/4 cup of yogurt6 – 8 mint leaves

1/4 cup of virgin olive oil

15 ml dry sherry

salt and pepper to suit

to garnish: a few toasted almonds, crushed

some more mint leaves

Chop cucumber and the melons into small cubes. Chop the onion and crush the garlic roughly. Add salt, pepper and the finely chopped mint leaves. Let it all sit for 20 minutes. Put everything into a blender along with yogurt and mint, plus the olive oil, and blend until smooth. Add some bottled still water until it all feels creamy and soupy. Pour into a bowl and chill for 2 hours.

Before serving adjust consistency, i. e. add some more water or yogurt, if needed. Add seasoning, if necessary. Stir in the dry sherry, and garnish with the toasted almonds and some bits of fresh mint.

Enjoy.

Wild Mushroom and Walnut Soup

 

The following is a recipe for one of my favourite soups. I came across the recipe in a cookery book by Delia Smith. I have tried it on numerous occasions. The whole family loves this soup.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The following would serve 8 people as a first course:

 

 

125 g wild mushrooms

25 g dried mushrooms

275 ml boiling water

50 g butter

2 medium carrots, chopped finely

2 celery stalks, chopped1 medium onion, chopped

125 g walnuts, ground

1 leek, washed and chopped

2 bay leaves

1 tspn chopped fresh or 1/4 tspn dried thyme

1/4 tspn dried sage

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 litres hot water

2 tspn lemon juice

75 ml dry sherry

75 ml single cream

225 g wild mushrooms, keep 4 whole and chop the rest

salt and pepper to suit

 

 

Place the dried mushrooms in a jug with 275 ml boiling water and leave to soak for 30 mins. In a very large saucepan melt 50 g of butter, then add all the prepared vegetables and herbs, stir well over gentle heat until everything is coated with butter, then pour in the dried mushrooms and their soaking water, followed by 2 litres of hot water. Add some salt, bring to gentle simmer and keeping the heat low, let the soup barely simmer for 1 hour.

 

 

Place a colander over a large bowl and strain the soup into it. Remove the bayleaves and puree the veg with a little bit of the stock, then return this to the rest of the stock. Wipe out the soup saucepan and return it to the heat with 25 g of butter. Lightly sauté the chopped mushrooms for about 5 mins. Pour in the soup mixture, stir in the walnuts, season and cook gently for 10 mins. Slice wafer thin the remaining 4 mushrooms and stir in the cream, sherry and lemon juice and garnish with the raw mushrooms.

 

 

Enjoy.