Love is Shellfish.

Valentine's day has been and gone, (not that we really give a toss) and as you may have guessed, the boy and I showed our devotion at the weekend with some gourmet offerings.  On Friday I made moules mariniere.  I challenge you to find a better way of showing you care.  Flowers?  Chocolates?  Sickly little teddy bear holding a lacy heart?  Try standing at the kitchen sink for an hour, scrubbing mussels and scraping barnacles in icy water; now that is true love.  It was worth it though, the mussels were plump, firm and orange, no stringy, watery creatures here.  The simple, classic sauce, consisting of shallots, garlic, white wine, butter and parsely set them off beautifully.  We accompanied the steaming bowl of shellfish with some frites and french bread and another glass or two of sauvignon blanc.  So French we could have been in gay Paree.

The boy returned the favour on Sunday with a slow cooked beef in Guinness stew, flavoured with thyme and served with new potatoes and brussel sprouts.  I felt rather jaded, due to the rubbish, rainy weather, and spent the day watching films and reading, with the comforting aroma of the stew permeating the house.  Cosy.

As an aside, I'd like to share a link with you to a couple more food and drink related blogs I have discovered lately.
http://hungryhollowaiians.tumblr.com/
The hungry Hollowaiians is a good old London friend of mine and a couple of her buddies, trying new recipes weekly in a Monday night supper club stylee.  The recipes are created, reviewed and costed in an easy to follow manner.  Rather different to the chaotic, rambling nature of this blog.  But that's why you like me, right?

http://coldcounter.co.uk/
Cold Counter is the project of friends of above London friend, executing a genius idea.  As the blog says; "We try the UK's obscure cold drinks, so you don't have to".  With tongue firmly in cheek, an ever expanding range of the strangest sodas in the country are dissected.  Best of all they take submissions.  I have a can of Red Thunder hanging around somewhere, courtesy of Aldi...not dared drink it yet though....

After such a hefty session I needed something to mop up the boozy toxins.  Perusing the kitchen cupboards for inspiration I came across a bag of pearl barley and I tracked down this recipe for a pearl barley risotto on the Channel 4 food website:
http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/healthy/pearl-barley-risotto-with-roasted-squash-red-peppers-and-rocket-recipe_p_1.html
Pearl barley risotto with roasted squash and red peppers.  It might sound  like it'd be a bit chewy and virtuous but actually it was gorgeous and perhaps healthier than a normal risotto, as pearl barley isn't quite as refined.  It certainly did the trick of making me feel wholesome again.

Gastro Gout and a Mile of Wine...

Writing for my supper was a good experience.  The boy and I went for two "Gastropub" type meals during the first week of February.  This month has been very busy so far.  I've has some refresher driving lessons free through the AA, bonus, just need to get a new car now, one that lasts longer than 2 months...I've signed up to the Derby 10k again and stepped up the running, much easier now the outside temperature has struggled above minus four.  I spent a Saturday drinking far too much wine in some actually pretty nice bars in Derby.  I spent another  happy Saturday rummaging through the spoils when Judy's Vintage Fair came to town:
http://www.vintagefair.co.uk/
 Back to the suppers, the publication I was writing reviews for is out at the end of this month, and I think I can tell you that it is the first Derbyshire Food and Drink Guide.  You may have come across the Nottinghamshire version.  At their request we ate at the Spotted Cow in Holbrook, a favourite of mine anyway, and Twenty Four, the pub in the Red Lion hotel in Belper.  The Red Lion is one of the Finesse group of hotels which include the Lace Market hotel in Nottingham and the Cathedral Quarter hotel in Derby.  I'll talk more about my reviews once they publish the magazine but generally, although I had to write with a "positive spin" I didn't have to stretch my imagination too far and enjoyed two really nice meals.  I felt a bit self conscious doing it, and felt like a free loader being treated to bottles of wine and a three course dinner for two, when all I had to do was write a few hundred words?  I got over that anxiety pretty quickly though.  It was fairly challenging getting a well balanced review with comments about all aspects of the dining experience; food, decor, ambiance etc. in a paltry 210 words, so I did have to work a bit.  I also felt like I was going to get gout by the end of the week, due to a large amount very rich food and wine.  Occupational hazard I suppose.
Speaking of wine, Derby is quite famous for it's ale, micro breweries and the drinking "Mile" down Ashbourne Road.  Well, always a trailblazer, and not much of a real ale drinker, myself and two trusty wine drinking cronies have mapped out our very own "Wine Mile" for your delectation. 
We started in the DEDA (Derby Dance Centre) bar.  This is a pleasant space currently showcasing a stunning photography exhibition by a lady called Hilary Shedel.  Nice decor (I wanted to steal the colourful plastic chairs for my garden) and a  nice wine list were let down by zero atmosphere and grumpy staff who looked like they couldn't wait for us to leave.  So leave we did, on to the Red Zebra wine bar, where we were greeted effusively by proprietor James, who said we could come in if we were "over 18".  As we have a collective age of around 100 (hah hah!)  This was high flattery indeed, the smoothie.  We drank a very good bottle of shiraz.  Little touches such as the bowl of olives which was placed on the table when we arrived, the decadently sized wine glasses (wanted to steal these too, didn't) and the charmingly decorated, frou-frou little bathroom made Red Zebra an eclectic treat, I'll certainly be back, I'd like to try one of their wine tasting evenings.
http://www.redzebradrinks.com/
Finally we moved on to bar 16 in the Cathedral Quarter Hotel (what is it about the Finesse group numbering rather than naming their establishments?)  Again we couldn't fault the hospitality, but the bar was a touch dark, and a touch overpriced.  We consumed a  third and a fourth bottle of red.  things got rather fuzzy after that.  I managed to skin my knee but not ladder my tights, good skills!  I hope you enjoy the "Wine Mile" should you decide to partake.

Jettisoning January

Since my last blog I have moved a step closer to making a living from my love of food and my pen wielding attempts.  The boy found an exciting prospect for me in the local paper, an advertisement seeking budding restaurant critics.  I called the number and was asked to send a sample review which I did last weekend (we ate at the Gourmet Burger Kitchen in Nottingham last Friday.)  They liked my review and have accepted me as a writer.  On Tuesday me and the boy are going to review an establishment in Holbrook, we get free dinner in exchange for my 210 words.  Nice work!  I may also be reviewing a gastro pub in Belper on Friday.  I'd better not tell you the name of the publication or the places I'm reviewing yet, once the publication has been published I will.  Exciting times.
Anyway, back to the good stuff, what have I been eating in the last week?
As mentioned we ate at GBK last Friday, which didn't disappoint.  Its a chain but the standard of food was good.  The burgers are mahussif!  The selection of toppings and sides was really mind boggling.  We had homemade onion rings as a starter, washed down with a nice cold Budvar.  The rings were huge, and really crispy, tasty and just the right kind of greasy, how an onion ring should be.  I went for a classic cheese burger and the boy opted for a hot and spicy habanero burger.  The burgers didn't come with fries which I initially found disappointing.  We ordered a side of fries and when the burgers came we realised why they came solo...I only managed about 3 fries in the end.  Great burgers, made with good quality beef and cooked to your liking, which in our case was medium rare.  All the right extras; big gherkins, salad etc.  Cute little tomato shaped ketchup dispensers on the table.  A good budget option if you're sick of Nando's.
We stayed over in Nottingham, as a kind Facebook friend who is a mover and shaker in London's art world, donated her hotel room to us when she couldn't make it up for the opening of the new exhibition at the Contemporary.  The hotel was the city centre Ibis.  It was great to be so central.  After GBK we tried to see Black Swan but both city centre movie houses were sold out.  This forced us to hit Brass Monkeys for cocktails; one of the best cocktail bars in the UK, in my humble opinion.
http://www.brassmonkeybar.co.uk/
I giggled inwardly whilst supping a "Lil Ginger Bitch".  Yum.
Saturday we paid a visit to Murat, the Turkish supermarket, and actually purchased a tub of "Cemen" dip.  It is kind of like a Turkish harissa, but contains lamb stock so is not vegetarian.  (I'll state the obvious, shall I?!) We used it as a marinade for vegetable kebabs, served with their delightful, baked on the premises Turkish flatbread.
We visited the Contemporary before heading home and really liked Jack Goldstein and Anne Collier's work, particularly Jack Goldstein's records.  Check it out.  The bar is good too.
This weekend has been  a gourmet extravaganza to see out miserable January.  The entire Burns clan descended upon us for the weekend.  Friday I cooked a vat of Thai Mussaman curry, chicken to ring the changes.  It was beautiful, I used on the bone chicken pieces and cooked it for a couple of hours until the meat was falling off the bones.
Saturday I grabbed a sandwich for lunch, but this was not just any old sandwich.  It was a sandwich from Jack Rabbits:
http://www.jackrabbitskitchen.co.uk/about-jack-rabbits/

Jack Rabbits is located on Queen Street, opposite the Dolphin pub and Red Zebra wine bar.  They cook up lots of gourmet food and sell it to individuals to re-heat at home in a gourmet, TV dinner stylee.  2009's disastrous cottaging expedition was fuelled by vats of Jack Rabbits Mongolian curry.  As well as "Home cooked meals to take away" they do cobs.  They will only do one kind of cob each day, based on whatever meat they have roasted.  Saturday it was roast pork, served in a bakery fresh ciabatta roll, with rocket, tomato and wholegrain mustard.  Wrapped in greaseproof paper and tied with a ribbon no less.  The freshest, tastiest, most attractive cob for miles around.
Saturday night we made a traditional Burns night supper, complete with haggis, neeps and tatties.  The haggis was from award winning Scottish butcher Simon Howie.
http://www.simonhowiebutchers.co.uk/
It was the best haggis I've eaten and I've had haggis for Burns night the last 3 years in a row, it is becoming a new and welcome family tradition.  We avoided whiskey this year but made up for it with vats of wine, and a pub quiz marathon, good times. 
Today we drove out to Osmaston to have lunch in a country pub.  The village is picturesque, lots of the buildings are thatched.  We went to the Shoulder of Mutton pub, next to the tiny little village shop and post office.  There appeared to be some kind of Landrover convention going on.  The pub was busy and they don't take bookings but we managed to secure a table straight away.  The wait for food was quite long but there are signs up warning of this, everything is cooked fresh from scratch so during busy periods it can take a while.  We enjoyed anticipating our food and had a couple of shandies and a good bit of banter.  Funnily enough all the ladies had scampi & chips and all the boys had roast beef.  I hoovered mine up, I'd better get those running shoes on tomorrow, porky gourmet is not a good look.
During our post prandial stroll we found a big tree to climb with a swing and everything, and I spotted snowdrops coming through, a heart warming promise of spring.  Bye bye January.

Fennelicious Fish.

The boy came home with a fennel bulb a few days ago, something I have never knowingly cooked or eaten before, so I was intrigued.  Apparently this vaguely celery like, aniseedy vegetable goes wonderfully well with fish, so I did a little research and came up with a recipe that sounded promising.  I forget where I got this recipe now, it wasn't from a well known chef but something someone had posted in cyberspace, which just appealed to me.  So I shall "retweet" it for your viewing pleasure.
(I hate all those Twitter terms, don't you?  I am on Twitter but update it about once a year, which kind of defeats the object....I'm just not interested enough in the witterings and twitterings of the likes of Jonathan Ross).
This recipe didn't even have a title so I shall call it Baked Fish with Fennel.
(Quantities for 4)
250ml olive oil
500g fennel bulb, finely chopped
700g leeks finely chopped
1 bunch of spring onions finely chopped
500g tomatoes skinned and finely chopped
salt and pepper
4 fish fillets. 
Any firm, white fish will be good for this.  Given the topicality of sustainable fishing (Jamie's Fish Supper, Hugh's Fish Fight, Gordon and his sharks)  I decided to give the poor Cod a wide berth, (I do anyway, we always have Haddock from the chippy) and chose Coley instead.  I've made fish curries with Coley before but this recipe is more delicate, something where the flavour of the fish is really on show.  I found it completely delicious and can't understand why Coley has such a bad (catfood) rep.  It is totally undeserved.  The fillets I bought from my friendly, Derby fishman were large and firm and cost me less than a quid each.  Can't be bad.

Preheat your oven to gas mark 6 (200C / 400F)

There is quite a bit of chopping to do to start off with, but the boy pitched in so it didn't take us long. 

1. Chop all your veg and skin the tomatoes (plunge into boiling water for a minute or two before doing so, much easier).
2. Heat 100ml olive oil in a deep frying pan, then add the fennel, leeks and spring onion and saute.  After a few minutes add the tomatoes and simmer until the mixture thickens.
3. Spread the mixture evenly in a roasting tin or dish.  Place the fish fillets on top and drizzle with more olive oil.  Bake for 15 minutes, until fish is cooked through.
4. Remove from the oven and let the fish cool down for a few minutes.  Dress with the remaining olive oil.

Cest ca!  So easy.  We had ours with diced, roast potatoes, but this would go with  other things I think, brown rice if you are trying to be virtuous?  I was worried the flavour might be too aniseedy, but the cooking and the sweetness of the leeks, olive oil and tomatoes turns it into something mellower altogether.  The fish was delicious, beautifully firm, thick white fillets, which held their shape and flaked to perfection.  Jamie is right; Coley is the new Cod.  Try it.  Fennel and fish is a winner.

Happy New Year, Duck!

I don't know why, but the numerous disappointing and unmemorable (or unremembered due to copious amounts of champagne) New Year's Evenings I've had have not totally banished the sparkle and excitement for me. I still feel like its an occasion and enjoy being full of anticipation for the year ahead. 2010 was a fairly hideous year, all things considered, so I was extra glad to see the back of it, and looking forward to feeling (for a week or so at least) wiped clean and full of promise. A special night called for a special dinner (and a good stomach liner) and I went for the aforementioned Yotam Ottolenghi duck recipe. I have posted the whole recipe below, aren't I good?

If you can't get blood oranges (and I couldn't) normal oranges are fine, I used these and a carton of freshly squeezed blood orange juice rather than squeezing my own oranges. I got my duck from the poultry man in the Guildhall Market, it was French Barbary duck, apparently Gressingham duck is the best choice but I have never cooked duck before so wasn't too bothered about the finer points of duck type. The breasts were very large (hyuk) and good value I thought. I halved the quantities as I only cooked for myself and the boy.

Seared duck breasts with blood orange and star anise:
4 duck breasts (180 - 200g each)
2 tbsp fennel seeds
a pinch of dried chili flakes
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 tsp coarse sea salt
240ml blood orange juice (from about 4 oranges)
plus 4 whole blood oranges
180ml red wine
2 tbsp sherry vinegar
16 star anise
6 dried chilies

1.Score the skin of the duck breasts in a diamond shape.
2.Mix the fennel, chili flakes, cumin, salt and pepper and massage into the duck with your hands. Leave to marinate, preferably overnight.
3.Trim the top and bottom off each orange, stand them up and peel with a knife, following the curve of the orange, to remove all peel and pith. Slice each one horizontally into 6 slices and set aside.
4.To sear the duck, heat a large, heavy frying pan (one for which you have a lid). Place the duck breasts in it, skin side down and cook for 3 minutes until the skin is golden and crisp. Turn and cook for 3 minutes on the other side, then set aside somewhere warm.
5.Discard most of the fat from the pan and add the wine, vinegar, orange juice and star anise. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5-6 minutes, until reduced by about half. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Return the duck breasts to the pan and stir to coat them in the sauce. Cover with a lid and simmer for 7 minutes.
6.Add the dried chilies and orange slices to the pan, cover again and simmer for another 3 minutes.
7.By this time the duck should be medium-rare. Remove the duck breasts from the sauce, place on a cutting board and leave to rest for a few minutes. Check and adjust the sauce.
8.Slice the duck breasts at an angle, and serve with the orange slices and the sauce drizzled on top.

We had this with sweet potato mash and savoy cabbage. The sauce is absolutely gorgeous, complex, rich, sweet, spicy and sour; so many levels of flavour. The duck was delicious and felt quite decadent and different. The recipe might seem like a bit of a ball-ache to do, but it is really simple if you follow Yotam's steps and well worth the effort; cheers duck.

Mezzy Chrimblenast.

Well that's it over for another year. We had a good one. I was delighted that the boy broke the "no more cookbooks" rule and brung me "Ottolenghi: The Cookbook" for Chrimblenast. I've long been an admirer of Yotam's weekly recipes in the Guardian; he cooks a lot of wonderful, inventive veggie food, but he isn't actually a vegetarian and the cookbook contains lots of great meaty recipes. He focuses on a few "star ingredients", including salt, garlic, lemon, olive oil, coriander, mint, yoghurt, pomegranate, tahini, sumac and Za'atar and feta cheese. What's not to like? I will be cooking something speshul for NYE out of this book, I am considering the seared duck breasts with blood orange and star anise, I'll keep you posted.
As well as a foody book, the boy's sister brung us a basket full of tasty bits and pieces, with the emphasis on spices, including caraway seeds, green cardamon pods, cinnamon, lime leaves, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, pomegranate seeds, kalonji onion seeds, saffron,and dried birds eye chilis. All of which will come in well handy for making my Yotam Ottolenghi recipes. I haven't got around to mentioning the fascinating book she gave me for my birthday, also a foody present. It's called The Flavour Thesaurus and is by Niki Segnit. It is a study of taste and an exploration of food combinations; those that do and don't work. Bacon and banana anyone? It is a really fascinating book and useful if, like me, you want to break free from slavishly following recipes and develop your innate sense of what works in the kitchen.
We stuck to the traditional flavour combinations for Christmas day, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Grilled streaky bacon cobs with bucks fizz for brekko, then a steady drip of olives and gherkins kept us going until the main event. As there were only two of us we didn't have a whole turkey, but a free range stuffed turkey joint from Sainsbury's was very good quality and loads of meat, enough for boxing day curry and sandwiches on the train up to mum and dad's on Monday. Trimmings consisted of pigs in blankets, sage and onion stuffing, honey and thyme roasted carrots, roast parsnips, crisp fresh sprouts and divine, garlicky, buttery roasties. A few hours after this delight we were tucking into the third bottle of red and a smorgasmic cheese board. The day was quite sedate apart from a short, late visit to see the smoggy round the corner, a far cry from last years pineapple mojito fuelled mayhem!
Leftovers fuelled hangover dispatching bubble and squeak patties served with bacon and eggs. Toast and honey? Nah! We revisited the cheese, and are about to tuck into a classic boxing day turkey curry. The boy's folks gifted us with a spice grinder, and the brother with an ingenious chopping device so it has been an all mod-cons curry, so convenient we've hardly had to cook! Well, I've been sitting here typing to you and swilling down shiraz; nice work if you can get it, and still more than a week off. Cheers, and Merry Christmas.