The Leftovers

23/07 THE LEFTOVERS

When there is nothing in the fridge, and all you have are half leftovers from dinner the night before there is only one solution. The master plan which only involves one ingredient to make it the leftovers work for you. An egg. You can tie any old scraps together to make something deliberate and delicious with just one egg. 

There is no wrong way to do this, or indeed a right way. This is just the a result of the leftover greens I had, and a need for something fried and molten. The salad was a mix of greens with a lemon/oil dressing, clinging to the last of its life with its sharp tang. To add more sharpness some balsamic was splattered on the egg, which oozed with the yolk and became an instant hot dressing. Dive headfirst into the fridge, leftovers are life. 

Ingredients (all approximate) - 

1 Egg

1/2 Fennel
300g Brussel Sprouts
200g Broccolini
2 Baby Cos Lettuce
1 Avocado
50g Parmesan
1 Lemon


What I did - 

No point going into great detail about the salad, because it can be substituted with any salad left wilting in the fridge - or indeed some cold roast vegetables. This salad was a big green slap in the face. Steamed broccoli and sprouts added hot to a bowl of chopped lettuce, fennel and silky avocado. The dressing was grated parmesan, lemon juice and olive oil emulsified together by the heat from the steamed offerings.

The next day it was still crisp - fennel is a hardy vegetable - and only had softened the rest slightly. I wouldn't go after a two day old version, a haggard bowl is never appealing. Now for the saucy bit. The egg was cracked into a frypan with a small slug of oil, fried to perfection (about a minute and a half), then slid off the pan onto the greens.

Dusted with salt + pepper and polka dotted with balsamic vinegar. Hard to resist plunging a knife deep into the yolk - so don't. Sacrifice the egg for survival.

JG

Sesauliflower!

13/07 SESAULIFLOWER

When a craze takes hold is it hard to shake - at the moment a craving for sesame oil and hunting Pokemon. With the world suddenly obsessed with Japanese pop culture - at a level not seen since the millennium - this hybrid evolved. This is all the power up you will need to go out into the night for hours on end to hunt down creatures all over the city.

Not hard to make, this only need a couple of ingredients - vegetable drawer leftovers. The cauliflower has been transformed by the extreme heat of the iron griddle. A most underrated kitchen weapon. The sesame seeds and oil boost the flavour to its maximum. You only need to add chilli and salt to taste then get out there, gotta catch 'em all.

Ingredients (all approximate) - 

1/2 Cauliflower
1 Cos Lettuce (smallish)
2 tbls Sesame Oil
2 tsp Sesame Seeds
1 tsp Chilli Powder (or to taste)
Salt

*I made this again for 2, doubled the recipe and added an any-way-you-like-egg on top


What I did - Oven preheated to 200degrees

The only rule of the griddle is you never oil the griddle. Slice the Cauliflower into 1cm(ish) slices, the smaller pieces will crumble off but no matter. Lie them flat on the top of the iron ridges. Liberally snow large flakes of salt over, followed by 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds then the red heat of the chilli powder. Finally lubricate lightly with 1 tablespoon of Sesame oil, just to force the heat through the white tufts. Blast in a 200 degree oven for about an hour until the white vegetable has transitioned through a warm ivory to a pale gold.

Cut the lettuce into slices and break the green leaves apart into a welcoming bowl. Place the delicate burnished cauliflower across the top. Make sure to scrape the burnt, salty shards and seeds from the iron griddle - cooks treat. Add the remaining sesame seeds and oil to the top with a final sprinkle of salt.

Let it sit for a couple of minutes to let the oil filter down each leaf to the depths of the bowl. Grab a fork. Recharge. Gotta catch 'em all.

JG

Phoenix BBQ

10/07 PHOENIX BBQ

There is a primal heat burning deep in the iron grills of a barbecue claiming their first victim - be it vegetable or meat, none are safe. The scalding flames heat the iron ferociously with every ingredient sacrificed to it transforming in a charred smokey haze. There is more to a barbecue then shrivelled sausages using methods that slightly refined, haven't changed since the dark ages where cooking on an open fire meant survival.

Meat is essential. Imparting new depth and flavour to the grill each time, the fats charring and smoking through each round of cooking. Barbecued meats are best charred on the outside, heated through but then bloody and rare when cut open. Sausages however need thorough cooking because even Mrs. Lovett can't predict the contents, have a little priest? 

Vegetables benefit incredibly from the slow, intense heat. Wrapped in tinfoil cocoons they need only salt and pepper (to draw the moisture) and a little oil (to speed the heating). Clamped in the iron barbecue the metamorphosis from harvest to banquet is mysterious but glorious. Now you know what lies in the fire - shadow and flame - waiting to appear at the table.

Ingredients (all approximate) - 

4 Spicy Sausages (chorizo or chilli pork)
1/4 Red Cabbage
3 Large Zucchini
1/4 Pumpkin
2 Corn
2 Lettuce (cos)
4 Large Mushroom

Salt + Pepper
Nutmeg
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil
Leftover Wine (any)


What I did - 

I dont intend to over complicate barbecuing because i know everyone has they own way. This is just the way i fashioned over the years, from watching family and friends variously cook on gas grills, open fires, buried embers. The vegetables are all self contained and can be improvised with anything else, quantities expanded or simply ignored. Just follow your nose, careful not to burn it.

(Clockwise from Top Left: Cabbage, Lettuce, Pumpkin, Corn, Mushrooms, Sausage, Zucchini)

Sausages: Just have them at the ready, they don't need anything else.
Cabbage: Cut the quarter into thirds, lengthwise. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, a dash of olive oil and then finally a splash of dark vinegar. Wrap up tightly in tinfoil.
Zucchini: Make an incision lengthwise. Dress with salt and pepper to draw out the moisture and a small slick of oil to aid the heat from the bbq. Wrap each one individually, otherwise they will all mush into one.
Pumpkin: Slice the pumpkin into large even discs. Leave the skin and seeds on. Add salt and pepper to the top of each piece. Add some olive oil to help the pumkin cook through faster. Wrap each slice separately for cooking.
Corn: Corn on the cob. Nothing to see here. Leave in their papery skins. Wrap each tightly in tinfoil.
Lettuce: May seem unusual, but cooks to perfection. Cut the base off so that each leaf is separated. Wrap each head in a tinfoil cocoon, make sure its tight or the lettuce will poke out and burn instantly.
Mushroom: Cut the mushrooms in half (quarters if they're huge) and bundle in a tinfoil nest. Dust with salt, pepper and half a nutmeg shaved over the top. Seal the bundle tightly because the mushrooms will release a lot of moisture, which they need in order to thoroughly cook and shrivel.

With the bbq ignited and slowly heating up, start by 'cleaning' it. All this is is wishing the flat grill with a splash of old wine which will loosen the old charred parts and grease. Scrape it down into the bbq and let the fire consume. Now its ready for the foiled harvest.

Put the sausages first on the hottest part - they should be thoroughly cooked through with darkly charred skin. Arrange the rest of vegetables on the different parts of the grill. The trick here is to not worry about over-cooking. Just make sure you rotate all the items around the BBQ, from the hottest points to the coolest.

The tinfoil helps regulate the heat so that if the parcels are flipped and rotated - every 5/10 minutes or so - they will all cook evenly. Darkly. Smokily. Deliciously. If the bbq has a resting rack, you can leave the cooked items to warm first while the rest finished off. Usually sausages first, through to the corn last.

When ready to serve, arrange all the vegetables in a large bowl. Taking care to slowly peel them from their metal cocoons, so that no foil ends up being eaten and that any excess juice is run off. Don't fear burns or blisters (on the food) instead embrace them, they are the soul of the BBQ.

JG

Pie Face

05/07 PIE FACE

Spending a weekend in a witches coven, summoning demons and brewing mischief conjured some unusual spirits. In all truth I was just in the country with very old friends - demonic friends, special people to be sure. After venturing through forests and clambering over muddy tracks there was an inordinate amount of food eaten, mind altering wine downed and roaring wood burnt to fire our souls. 

One of these nights beckoned this monstrosity, only in appearance - not taste, to our cabin. A vegetable pie, without any of the fuss but all of the flavour. The vegetables have been tainted and woody by the tomato and mushrooms, forming the flavour base for the red pie. It is simple, warming, and devilishly good. You can take pastry more seriously but why? Especially when a grinning ghoul radiates warmth from the oven.

Ingredients (all approximate) - 

1/4 Pumpkin
1 Sweet Potato
2 Potato
250g Mushrooms
3 Carrots
100g Artichoke (marinated)
250g Tomato Puree
1 Cup Red Wine
Salt + Pepper
3 Sheets Puff Pastry (Supermarche quality)


What I did - Oven preheated to 180degrees

This is a slow comfortable recipe. Nothing to stress over, just potter round for a couple of hours with a comfort movie in the background - preferably with Meryl Streep. Start by using a wide baking dish, either cast iron or thick ceramic. Heat up the mushrooms with the artichokes and butter, letting the marinade and butter draw out all the flavour from the fungi.

Next braise the carrots, adding the potato, pumpkin and sweet potato until the liquid has been absorbed. Add the red wine in a hot splutter. Once it settles and is simmering fast add the tomato puree. Clamp a lid on and bake for an hour - until all the vegetables have softened, but not yet a mush. Take out of the oven and let cool for half an hour.

Once its cooled enough you can dover with the pastry lid, any hotter and the pastry would melt into an unpleasant gloop. Its easiest to make a lid out of strips, they cook faster with ridges that crisp deliciously. Add a face should you feel a ghoulish spirit.

Bake again for another 30 minutes until golden - verging on burnished. Take out of the oven and serve messily onto plates, devour near a wood fire and with deep red wine. No responsibility will be taken for over-eating or drinking because this pie is demonic.

JG