To all miso addicts, you might like this. Very much! You have been warned 🙂
An idea of this creamy deliciousness occurred to me when Mariko, one of my Japanese friends was telling me about sliced potatoes baked under cover of miso dressing – something popular in her hometown. I didn’t have any large potatoes available, plus I was in the mood for a creamy warmer. And so it is, creamy, tasty, and comforting meal !
Garnished with roasted onion, ginger and turmeric.
To make a portion for 4, you’ll need: 500 g of baby potatoes 1 litre of vegetable stock 2 tsp of white miso 1 tsp of barley miso 2 medium shallot onions, chopped 1 tbsp of freshly grated ginger salt, pepper, crème fraiche 1 tbsp of turmeric
The instructions for this soup are uncomplicated;
Fry shallots and grated ginger on a glug of olive oil in heavy bottomed pan until soften, add chopped potatoes and mix it all together. Pour vegetable stock mixed with miso, and simmer covered until all soft, and ready. Season to your taste with salt and pepper. Using a kitchen blender mix it until smooth. Serve immediately with a dash of crème fraîche and grounded pistachios.
Yes, we all love eggs Benedict for Sunday brunch. Having said that it’s good to switch one’s habits from time to time, isn’t it. French toast is such great alternative.
My secret to a good moist (everyone's favourite word, I know) French toast uses double cream rather than milk.
The recipe is very simple and it goes like this:
150ml double cream zest from 2 oranges juice from 2 oranges 1 tsp of muscovado sugar 2 eggs
Mix all the ingredients together in a shallow bowl and soak the bread for 10 mins or so. The older the bread, the longer it can soak. Fry it on a heavy bottomed pan with a teaspoon of butter until golden brown, then flip it and once ready, serve with fresh fruit and a cloud of icing sugar.
It has been a while since I last had duck in my kitchen. Mostly because I used to enjoy my portion of Duck Confit when travelling to Paris a good few times a year. And from my own experience no one does it as good as in France. So instead of messing with a rather traditional meal, I decided to rebel and roast the duck breasts in a more unusual way – poached with rhubarb and cashew nuts. The result speaks (and tastes) for itself! 😋
Step One:
Season the duck breasts with salt, pepper and rub with thyme .
Marjoram could also work if you prefer a stronger flavour.
Place them skin down on a pre-heated heavy bottomed pan and fry for 7-8 mins. That’s the best way to keep the meat succulent and avoid it drying out. Finish with turning the duck breasts skin side up on a rack in a roasting tin in the middle of the pre-heated oven. Cook for 15-18 minutes, depending how you like your duck cooked.
Step Two:
Place the rhubarb stems in a pot, season it with a sprinkle of thyme, cashews nuts and a few drips of honey. Cook it for 10 mins, keeping a lid on the pan, until softened. If you like it more “al dente” then check it after 7 mins with a fork to see if the stems are firm enough to your liking. I like mine soft and juicy 🙂
Serve on poached rhubarb with nuts caramelised in honey and thyme.
This moment when you realise that there is quite a sizeable chunk of chicken after a Sunday roast. What to do with it?
Or rather how to make it tasty in an inspiring way for a hot August?
My Mum used to shred leftover pieces of a roast and season ot with salt and pepper , garnishing with a bit of mustard on top, and serve it on toasted sourdough. So it wasn’t difficult for me to give life to this memory and elevate it with some more seasoning.
Place a tablespoon of butter on the frying pan. Once butter has melted add sprinkle generously with a tbsp of paprika ( smoked paprika if like me you prefer a strong flavour) follow this with a pinch of turmeric. When all blended add a handful of shredded chicken and sprinkle an additional amount of paprika. Then it’s up to you as to how flavoursome you want your chicken – you could opt for an extra tablespoon of paprika rather than pinch. You will see how beautifully coloured the chicken becomes.
At this moment you can turn the heat off and stir gently all together to blend everything evenly.
When ready place the mixture on toasted sourdough and grate parmigiano regiano cheese, and add sliced avocado.
Finish with chopped spring onion to compliment the flavour.
Comfort food. Classic of the classics. Quintessentially French ‘manger’.
This autumnal meal, in Anglo-Saxon dictionary also known as a Burgundy Beef, is a great option for weekend cooking for many reasons. Especially when you host a small dinner party for your friends. Its a really good warmer and indulgent enough to not bother with a starter. Unless a crusty baguette is considered as a starter…
As usual, I didn’t follow any particular recipe to make this excellent meal, so here are ingredients used in order to create the #boeufbourguignon
600g of good quality diced beef
8-10 chestnut mushrooms
4 shallot onions
4medium carrots
2parsnips
bunch of lemon thyme
1 whole garlic
2 tablespoons of dried garlic leaves
2 tablespoons of smoked salt
2 tablespoons of white/green pepper
1 bouquet garni
3 bay leaves
2-3 cox apples
3 tablespoons of freshly grated ginger
1 bottle of reasonably good wine (cheap=bad)
2 tablespoons of goose fat or good butter to fry the meat
From my experience it is good to fry the seasoned (with salt&pepper) beef in a heavy bottomed dish, ideally using goose fat. This not only fries the meat well but also keep it moist at the same time. When the meat is done, put it to the side and using the dame dish braise the onions, mushrooms, thyme, garlic, ginger and herbs until golden brown and softened.
When ready, add the meat and braise together for a few minutes with a generous splash of wine from the bottle.
At the same time on a low heat – using another pot – braise together (using a remaining spoon of goose fat) chopped carrots, parsnip, apple and dried garlic leaves cover with a lid to keep the moist. The smaller the chunks of the veggies, the shorter the time of braising. It shouldn’t take more than 10 mins to do so. Do not worry if some of the chunks aren’t soft enough. They’ll will be when mixed with meat and wine for additional 3 hrs of cooking.
When all is ready to be mixed together into one large heavy bottomed pan, finish it with the remaining wine from the bottle and stir well. Braise the contents, covered with lid on a very low heat for about 3-3,5hrs unit beef is very soft and succulent and flavours are just perfect. Don’t worry, when it comes to boeuf bourguignon, you’ll know when it tastes perfect.
TIP; Divide wine into 3 parts so you’ll know how much to use and when.
1st part for braising the meat,
2nd for braising the vegetables
3rd for the final stage when both, beef and vegetables are mixed together.
Serve in the bowl with topped with a fresh baguette. And a glass of red wine, obvs!
One of the rare days when you have time to yourself. So you’re not in a rush to jump out of your pyjamas. And to run to town early morning. Sundays are for celebrating time at home. Well, ideally.
And what’s for brunch? Eggs royale obviously. Home made. Just perfect. With no filter.
style dispenser 