Spicy Chicken and Couscous

Another popular dinner is chicken and couscous which I serve with fine green beans and a rich tomato sauce.

It is a very quick and straightforward meal to put together

Tomato Sauce
In a saucepan soften a sliced red onion in a little olive oil
Add a tin of chopped tomatoes, a squeeze of tomato puree, a splash of worcester sauce, 1 tsp english mustard powder, a splash of white wine vinegar, 1tsp soft brown sugar, salt and pepper.
Bring to the boil then simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes

This sauce is good made in advance and reheated

Spicy Chicken
Cut boneless chicken thighs into pieces, cover with chicken seasoning, fry in 1 tbs olive oil for 10 - 12 minutes until brown

Serve with couscous which has been soaked in chicken stock for 5 minutes, use a fork to lighten the grains then let it have 1 minute in the micro wave so it is really hot.

The green beans are boiled in a little water for 5 minutes

Rye Bay Scallops

Scallops from Rye Bay Fish Shop are a delicious plump succulent treat.

When I arrived home last night a kilo were waiting in the fridge (with two dressed crabs).

Tonight I will be cooking a few quite simply. Heat a little butter with some olive oil, add some chilli and finely diced chorizo, pop in the scallops and cook for a minute on each side, add black pepper a squeeze of lemon  and  a tiny dash of pernod. Turn up the heat for a minute, plate and add chopped fresh parsley.

The medieval town of Rye is in East Sussex, perched on a hill overlooking the river Rother and Romney Marsh. Its cobbled streets and historic houses are full of rich history, intrigue and smuggling tales. In particular Osling of wool from the famous (and delicious) Romney Marsh sheep.

The Fish Shop can be found at New Road on a bridge over looking The Salts.  Rye is a Cinque port and was once an important maritime centre. Today the sea is some two miles from this charming town

Every February Rye has a scallop festival www.ryebayscallops.co.uk/  which is a great time to visit. Taking the train from Ashford or Hastings makes for a good day out.








So here are my scallops ready to eat.

The Veg Box

I cannot now remember why I bought some ricotta cheese as I find it bland with a slightly unpleasant slippery texture.  However there it was in the fridge and I couldn't quite bring myself to throw it away.

Also lurking on the bottom shelf were a selection of slightly past their best red, yellow and orange peppers.

So I turned to The Veg Box

This quirky recipe book box collection is published by Hamlyn. It has 14 books and 20 recipes in each book, the vegetable bookmarks are wacky twist. The books have titles such as

• Artichokes and Asparagus
• Beetroot and Radishes
• Sweetcorn and Tomatoes

and the book I selected was called Aubergines and Peppers. The recipe I settled on was Pepper Terrine with Ricotta. 

As you can see it looks very appealing, but the taste was insipid and the texture slimy. Where did it end up? in the bin of course.

I do still recommend The Veg Box 

Ricks Crab Tarts

Rick Stein has been one of my favourite chefs for a long time. I just love his combination of food, humour, recipes, stories of local personalities and adventures across the globe.

Taken from his book on Spain crab tarts with garlic tomato and tarragon were by far the most mouthwatering appetiser that I have cooked for quite a while.

If you put Rick Stein Crab Tarts Spain into google you will find the full recipe courtesy of the Guardian. This will give you a full version of the method. Here are my shortcuts.

Use ready rolled short crust pastry (but do not re roll it as it will shrink) Cook your pastry in tartlet tins and allow to cool.

For the initial sauce instead of whole crabs use a fish stock cube in 200ml of water and just add this to tinned tomatoes, one whole garlic clove bruised, white wine, brandy, bay leaves, tarragon (I used dried) and parsley stalks in the quantities Rick describes.

Simmer for 30 minutes then strain through a sieve into a clean bowl. You should have a smooth rich tomato sauce.

In a separate pan cook the onion/shallot, carrot and chilli until soft. Add 225g of tinned tomatoes and the tomato sauce you prepared earlier. Season to taste.

I got to this stage and let everything cool. Later I added 300 grams of crab meat I used Cornish fifty fifty crab (white and brown mix) from seafoodandeatit.co.uk

I then put the tomato and crab mixture into the cooked tartlet cases and topped them with fresh breadcrumbs (2 slices of white) mixed with a couple of tbs of olive oil.

They reheated for about 8 minutes in 220 degrees/gas 7

and here they are

Wasabi

Takeaway Sushi and bento is increasingly popular particularly in London. This week I passed through the magnificent new Kings Cross station twice and both times bought food from Wasabi.

My carry out eat on the train dinner of succulent sushi was very fresh.  It was the Harmony box set 15 pieces in total, there was plenty including

• a selection of salmon, tuna, and shrimp nigri
• crabmeat and avocado hosmaki
• prawn mayo gunkan
• californian rolls

As you can see pickled ginger, soy sauce and wasabi paste are included.  All for £6.95. I also had a packet of wasabi peas so hot they made my eyes water.

On my return the next day a late lunch snack of chicken gyoza noodle soup looked appetising

Perhaps I should of realised that two thirds of this dish comprised of rice noodles. There was very little broth and the fresh vegetables consisted of shredded carrot, a small amount of chinese leaf and one mange tout. Chilli, spring onion and coriander "garnish" added some interest. The prize was three delectable soft steamed chicken dumplings. I will not be going back for another noodle dish also this soup was almost the same price as last nights (too much to finish) sushi.

There are however a lot interesting Japanese alternatives hot and cold which I think are worth a try.

I also like the way you can fill a box with mixed sushi of your choice.

Wasabi is in its 10th year and the quite newly opened Kings Cross branch is number 26 in the capital.

The station has a lot of alternatives including Pizza Express, Giraffe, Pret, Benitos Hat (mexican) and Leon so there is no shortage of variety to sustain you on your journey.

www.wasabi.co.uk/

A Taste of Summer

Parmesan Chicken and Ceasar Salad is one of our definitive summer meals

The recipes are adapted from Delia's Summer Cooking first published in 1993 and just as relevant today.

For the chicken crush a garlic clove with coarse salt and add to a beaten egg, with some ground black pepper.
Use this mix to cover 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs. If you can cover and leave in the fridge for an hour or so (although last night I skipped this step and it was fine)
Blitz 2 slices of bread to make crumbs and grate in some parmesan cheese.
Cover each chicken thigh with the bread crumbs
Drizzle with olive oil and cook in the oven 190 degrees for about 40 minutes basting occasionally

For the salad I like crispy cos or romaine lettuce

Make croutons by cutting 2 slices of bread into cubes, add grated parmesan and olive oil. Cook on a baking sheet for about six minutes. Leave to cool

I have this great fairly old mini blender which I use to make the bread crumbs and then the dressing. A liquidiser would do just as well.

For the dressing add the following to the blender/liquidiser 1 egg, 1/2 tsp mustard powder, splash of worcester sauce, squeeze of lemon or lime, 1 anchovy. Blitz until smooth. Add 5 fl oz olive oil blitz until thick and creamy.

To assemble wash and dry the lettuce and break into pieces, add the dressing, top with the croutons and add some finely grated parmesan cheese.

This dish also goes well and looks great with a side of fresh asparagus boiled for 5 minutes

The French Pantry

It is 26 degrees in the shade. In the market square dogs tongues hanging out lie with their backs to walls trying to escape the rays.  Stall holders mutter and shake their heads as the ice from the fish counter melts, trickling down onto the cobbles and cheese ripens and softens.

The sky is deep blue and cloudless in Ludlow, Shropshire on the sort of day that you feel smug that you are holidaying in this country.

Ludlow has been called the food capital of England. Tucked away on Tower Street is The French Pantry bistro and deli.

Inside this small bistro the greeting is welcoming and the decor inviting. The reasonable priced lunch menu has ample but not excessive choice.  Eight starters include haddock rillettes, warm gateau of crab with saffron sauce and french onion soup.

Freshly cooked warm bread and sparkling water arrived promptly. We opted for a pichet of french sauvignon blanc 50cl for £9.95

We skipped the starters and went straight to the main courses, Fish and Seafood pie, Toulouse Sausage with mustard sauce and Cassoulet all sounded tempting. However our choices did not disappoint.

Plump shiny mussels in a traditional mariniere sauce were served with sizzling frites.  Confit canard came with velvety aioli and the piquant chicken 'basquaise' with garlic sautéed potatoes.  All were perfectly cooked and delicious.

Mellow coffee was served in individual cafetieres and there was plenty of it.

The French Pantry opened in 2007 as a combined shop and small restaurant importing from small French provincial food and wines producers.  Last month they expanded the shop and moved it next door with a small cafe at the back.  The restaurant grew to fill the vacated space.

It is well worth a visit

www.thefrenchpantry.co.uk/

Pizza, Land Hut and Express

Pizza, it never fails to please.

Does anyone remember Pizzaland?  It arrived in the UK in 1970 and was original and different. It started in London spread to the Northeast and eventually had 140 branches. I remember the excitement of two slices of cheese and tomato pizza with coleslaw and a jacket potato.

Pizzaland was eventually taken over by the ever popular Pizza Hut.

We love home made pizza, funnily enough always with coleslaw but not the synthetic 1970s version.

Take a pizza tray and add the dough base (I make mine in a the bread maker)
Spread with one tbs of tomato puree and a little grated parmesan cheese
Add thinly sliced red onion, peppers and halved cherry tomatoes
Scatter over sliced salami and cubed panchetta
Cover with plenty of grated mature cheddar
Make a small well in the centre and add two raw eggs
Cover with a light grating of parmesan cheese

Cook for 16 - 18 minutes at 220 degrees

The addition of eggs were a discovery at Pizza Express another good chain (love their buildings) and are now always included in my home version

Serve the pizza with coleslaw, grate white cabbage and carrot, add finely chopped red onion and mayonnaise, season to taste

At the Blue Water Good Food Show in March I bought these great peelers made by Kisag a Swiss Company they are perfect for quick coleslaw.

See Kisag trio peeler set at £12.95
www.kisag.co.uk/