More scrumptious eating for autumn

The tale of the orange squash: that is the orange flesh of a squash (or gourd) not the watered down fruity drink.

Although the outer skin was as tough as a leather rugby ball and the colour of khaki the inside was a fantastic tangerine and the squash made a superb soup. An unprepossessing outer shell hid a lovely rich flesh.

The soup recipe I chose to use with the squash was

Squash, carrot and ginger soup 

• Approximately 1.5kg/3lb 6 oz peeled and deseeded squash 3cm/1 in cubes 
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 2 medium carrots - chopped
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into cubes
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp clear honey (optional)
• 5cm/2in piece fresh root ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1.5 litres/2½ pints vegetable stock
•  freshly ground black pepper

The squash I was given yielded a little over 1.5 kg. You can either adjust the rest of the ingredients to suit or just enjoy a thicker soup. I don’t use honey or salt, by choice. If you read my previous post you’ll realise that cutting into the flesh of a squash is tough indeed. However place it in the bottom of an oven while cooking something else - for an hour - and the flesh yields to a sharp knife more easily. When the squash has been de-seeded  cut the flesh into chunks or 1 inch cubes.

Have a large re-useable plastic bag ready for tossing the vegetables in the olive oil. The method is very straightforward: 

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
2. Tip the prepared, cubed squash into a large, resealable freezer bag with the onion, carrots and red pepper. Add half the oil and pepper and toss everything together until the vegetables are evenly coated. Tip into a large roasting tin and spread out to form a single layer.
3. Roast in the oven for 40–45 minutes, or until tender and tinged brown. Drizzle over the honey, if using, 5 minutes before the end of cooking.
4. Place a large, deep-sided saucepan over a medium heat, add the remaining oil and, when it is hot, add the ginger and fry it for a minute. Pour in the stock and bring the whole to the boil. Remove the vegetables from the roasting tin then stir them into ginger and stock mix and add pepper for seasoning. Bring the whole to the boil, simmer gently for a few minutes. 
5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and, using a food processor blend the mixture until smooth. Return to the heat to warm through and serve ( or cool down and freeze).

The carrots, pepper and orange flesh make this soup look bright, warm and nourishing. The added ginger gives it an extra zest. 

Enjoy! 

Healthy and scrumptious eating for autumn

This time last year I had let up on my healthy eating regime, and, of course, I put on weight. Not immediately. I was still exercising: walking, swimming, running on the spot and doing steps up. But I relented a little on my hitherto strict carbohydrate intake. The introduction of one potato, for instance, or a slice of bread, a biscuit or three or, of course, cake, put on the pounds.

In order to up my calorie intake for winter - we need it as temperatures drop - without growing to look like a pumpkin I have found a use for spicy squash, mustard and other ‘hot’ ingredients.

A good friend of ours brought two squashes to us. She had grown them on her allotment. One was flat and light in colour and weight. The other was as tough as a leather football. 

That weekend I was baking biscuits for a craft fair and, as the oven was on, I placed the smaller squash at the bottom of the oven. After an hour of biscuit-baking I removed the squash too. Because its thick outer skin was now much softer I could get a knife into it easily. I removed the skin, sliced the flesh into wedges and removed the seeds.

I chopped the flesh roughly, parboiled it and put it in the fridge, covered until I was ready to make it into soup. The flesh was pale but, mixed with carrots, it was looking like a healthy, free, filling lunch. 

The quantities of ingredients I used are for six servings but if you only want to make a small batch my suggestions for cooking-for-three are shown in brackets. I don’t add salt, out of choice.

Squash and carrot soup: 

FOR 6 (3)

2 onions chopped (1)

1tbsp olive oil

1 squash, peeled and diced

4 carrots, peeled and sliced (2)

2 sprigs fresh thyme or basil leaves only (1)

Salt ( if desired) and black pepper

1.5 litres hot vegetable stock (750 ml)

Parsley for garnishing

Crème fraiche for garnishing

The method is a standard soup-making affair. I use a large double-handled, non-stick, iron-bottomed casserole which acts as a deep frying pan or wide saucepan. And I make soup on the induction hob:

In a large flame-proof pan fry the onion, over a medium heat, in oil, until soft. Add the roughly-diced squash and sliced carrots and stir. Cook them for a further 5 minutes, watching that the onions don’t get too brown and overcooked. Add the herbs and season well with freshly-ground black pepper. Pour over the stock and bring the whole to the boil. 

When the soup is bubbling away turn the heat to low. Allow it to simmer gently for 30 minutes, or until all the vegetables are cooked through and soft.

If you are using it straight away pour the contents into a food processor, blend for 30 seconds until smooth, garnish with creme fraiche or thick Greek Fage yogurt and parsley.

If you don’t want to eat it immediately allow the soup to cool, blend it in the food processor and pour it into a sealed container for chilling in the fridge or freezing.

                                   *

Next time I will write about a richer recipe for a lovely soup made from squash with orange flesh. It tastes superb with a little added ginger.

We’ll get through autumn in style! 

Boeuf for a winter’s night

Boeuf Bourgignon

While my husband has been unwell I’ve shared the cooking. Once he’s got started his ideas come flooding back and he’s good to go but, some evenings, his post-surgery anxiety prevents him from taking the initial steps.

At our local French restaurant, owned and run by French chef Christophe, I enjoyed a superb boeuf bourgignon. I had made it myself the week before but my sauce was less rich than Christophe’s. On the day of our visit our hyperactive chef was up a ladder repainting the exterior to his eaterie. At any moment I expected him to strip off his overalls, wash his hands, tie on his wrap-around apron and start cooking but on this day he stuck to one thing. Decorating!

When we left I asked him how he got such a rich sauce for his boeuf bougignon. My recipe was a ‘Delia’ and was part-cooked with white wine ( that was a mistake - red wine is a must). After a lot of joshing from Christophe about using a Gordon Ramsay recipe he said the secret to a good boeuf bourgignon was in separately cooking each of the ingredients and laying them to one side until your dish was ready for the oven. And then there was the special, secret ingredient.

‘What’s that, Christophe?’

‘It’s a trade secret.’

However, undaunted, I took to my cookbooks and discovered The Hairy Bikers wrote a recipe very in keeping with the Frenchman’s preferred method: each part of the dish treated separately. The net result was a truly rich,thick sauce and melting meat. It took approximately 2 hours 5 mins as I used ingredients for two people - cut down from a recipe for six.

Stage 1

9 oz good-quality braising steak (diced)

2-4 tbsp olive oil

freshly ground  ground black pepper

31/2 oz lardons ( or diced bacon) 

1/2 onion (finely chopped) and 1 clove garlic ( crushed or finely chopped)

38 cl red wine

1 tbsp tomato puree ( a generous spoonful)

1 beef stock cube

1-2 bay leaves

leaves from a sprig of thyme

1. In a large saucepan heat 2 tbsp olive oil, season the steak with ground black pepper, take a third of the meat and brown the steak evenly over a medium heat. Lay to one side. When the steak is browned all over transfer it to a flame-proof casserole dish.
2. Pour a little more oil into the pan in which the beef was browned and fry the bacon for 2-3 minutes until it is crispy and beginning to brown. Scatter the bacon over the meat. Add a touch more oil to the frying pan and fry the chopped onion over a low heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring often until softened. Stir the garlic into the pan and cook for one minute more. Turn the oven on to 170 degC, 150 fan or gas mark 3.
3. Add the cooked onion and garlic to the pan with the meat and pour over the wine. Stir in the tomato purée and 150ml/5fl oz water. Sprinkle the stock cube into a little water, allow it to dissolve, pour over the meat, add the herbs and stir. Place the casserole on a ring, bring it to boiling point and quickly allow it to simmer for a moment. Stir well, cover with a lid and transfer it to the oven. Cook for 1 hour 20 mins, or until the beef is almost completely tender. This stage can take 13/4 hours if you are cooking for six.

Stage 2

1oz butter. 

12 silverskin onions 

5 oz button chestnut mushrooms, wiped, peeled and halved or quartered (5 oz).               

2 heaped tbsp cornflour

2 tbsp cold water

freshly chopped parsley, to garnish

1. While the beef is cooking, wash and peel the mushrooms and halve or quarter them.
2. A few minutes before the beef is ready, ie by the time it’s tender, melt half of the butter in a large non-stick frying pan with a touch of oil and fry the onions over a medium heat for about five minutes, or until golden-brown on all sides. Tip into a bowl. Add the remaining butter and mushrooms to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes over a fairly high heat until golden-brown, turning often. 
3. Mix the 2 tbsp cornflour with the 2 tbsp water in a small bowl until smooth. Don’t halve the flour ingredients if only cooking for two. It’s best to keep 2 tbsps flour & water to keep the sauce thick and rich.
4. When the meat is tender remove the casserole from the oven and stir in the cornflour mixture, followed by the onions and mushrooms. Return to the oven and cook for 45 minutes more, or until the beef is melting and the sauce is rich, tasty & thick. 

Enjoy!

A superb sample of French cuisine in your own kitchen.

And the trick is to use red wine and keep the sauce thick and rich. I still don’t know what Christophe’s secret ingredient is but this version from The Hairy Bikers was almost as good.

Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Nexus Methodist Church in Bath

has a smaller institution in Eastbourne Avenue, Fairfield Park, BA1 6EN.

When three of us rescued the Larkhall Art Trail event this time last year the Nexus church was keen to get on board and act as a hub for artists’ work.

The Claremont Community Centre, no longer Claremont Nexus Church, had been a space for play groups and a prayer room and other events but less so an art gallery.

Now it’s hosting a year-round art event. David Ringsell had his own show up until mid-October. From now until January more artists’ work is on show: Ruth Davies, Joanna Cacanas, Pam Jones, Niall Briggs ( the curator and Nexus pioneer worker), Dominique Coiffaitt, David Ringsell, Liz Carson and my husband - Richard Olver.

We had a private view two Fridays ago and the cafe has been open since. This Saturday a group of us are selling pre-Christmas goodies at an early Christmas craft fair. That’s on November 9th from 10:30 am to 4 pm. 

I do hope the Claremont Centre takes off as a community hub. I sense more volunteers are needed to operate the tills and serve lunches say on Tuesdays, Fridays and every Saturday rather than just on an occasional basis. It’s such a good light, bright location and Niall is impressive with his hands-on, can-do approach. 

But if we want a community space to serve our community we have to serve it, otherwise I fear it won’t survive. Our local is threatened with being knocked down to make way for new builds. Now is the time to foster local amenities. 

As they say ‘once they’re gone, they’re gone’ 

Apologies for the pause in my blogs

Psychosis and post-surgery trauma

When my husband first showed signs of post-surgery trauma he sat bolt upright in bed for three nights and had to ‘sleep’ in the guest room. Not only had he had the shock of being told to use a catheter on himself - something he wasn’t expecting and which hadn’t been discussed pre-surgery - he was also not told he had no cancer cells lurking in the prostate. (That was why he’d been in surgery in the first place. A fifteen minute investigation to be 100% there was no prostate cancer. )He had been assured surgeons would be able to tell if the area was clear of cancer during the procedure. Not to be told that meant Richard had the triple anxiety of 

a) recovering from anaesthetic

b) having to shove a catheter up his willy

c) not knowing if there was any prostate cancer 

On the third day after being wide awake ( ie in a state of shock) he dialled 111 and had an appointment at Outpatients. The medieval-looking catheter ( to be used straight after surgery until he could self-dilate ie put a catheter up his willy by himself) was leaking and the fourth stage of Richard’s trauma came about at midnight on the Sunday night

d) the post-surgery catheter was wrenched out from his penis without depressing the balloon first ( which should have been done) and without anaesthetic - he hit the roof in pain.

I will, of course, be filing a complaint about that dreadful weekend in late July. However worse was to come:

In August, after weeks of being told by three GPs that he had a hernia, Richard had to ring round three hospitals to see which one would operate on it. For the weeks of mid-August to mid-September Richard was frightened to move or lift anything. That gave me a trapped nerve in my neck as I was having to do things which irritated my sciatica.

August bank holiday was dreadful for both of us. In mid-September Richard was very stressed about another surgical procedure but went to see a consultant in a neighbouring town. He did perform ops on hernias - unlike surgeons at our hospital in Bath - but the kindly consultant examined Richard and quickly told him he had no hernia at all. That should have come as a relief but it left an anxious Richard in a state of bewilderment.

By September the medical dramas, pain, uncertainty, concerns about his bladder ie using a catheter on himself, overloaded his over-taxed brain. On the weekend of 20th September he had a psychotic episode. Thank goodness we were due to see his GP first thing that Monday morning. Richard was talking nonsense and his GP referred him to our local mental health team immediately. They came out to see him two days later and have been in touch every few days since.

I have looked into post-surgery trauma and it is more common than one would imagine. It is, of course, especially prevalent in cancer patients. But the sadness in Richard’s case is that he neither has cancer nor a hernia but believed, through the worst ravages of the psychosis, that he was dying.

His body is in a good state but his shattered mind is only now being rebuilt. And for a 15 minute procedure the cost to his mental health has been far too great.

Full of falafel

I ought to write a book entitled 'Red Kidney Beans - Your Lifelong Friends.'

The really rich chocolate cake I serve to my gluten-free mates is yummy. It has a smashing chocolate ganache and a healthy (sugar-free) cream cheese filling.

Fudgey chocolate brownies, also made with a red kidney bean base, are a delight. And in both cases I use truvia sweetener rather than sugar. Very healthy.

I have taken to eating falafel in a big way since experiencing vegan and Levantine cuisines. Our local Lebanese does a full-of-flavour falafel lunch and our closest, newest vegan restaurant bathes their falafels in a pomegranate salad. Highly recommended.

While Richard has been between surgeries ( one with general anaesthetic, another local) I've been 'In and Out of the Kitchen' a la Damien Trench as portrayed by comedian Miles Jupp on radio 4. This week's episode of 'In and Out...' on iplayer/ BBC Sounds sees Jupp, as culinary expert Trench, giving up his command of the kitchen so his partner can cook. A bit like in our house. Richard is usually the cookist. But now the kitchen is, temporarily, my domain.

I'm cooking shop-bought falafels for our evening meal tonight but have cobbled together a recipe for homemade ones. It’s awfully easy! And I'll be making more at the weekend, with my friends the red kidney beans.

Ingredients

For 15 falafel balls

400 g can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 chopped onion

#4 tbsp Farchioni Il Casolere cold-pressed olive oil

1 glove garlic ( or the equivalent amount in chopped leeks or chives)

3 tbsp gluten-free flour eg buckwheat or oat flour*

1 tsp black sesame seeds ( or flax seeds)

(2 tbsp crushed cashew nuts - optional)

2 tsp ground cumin or paprika

1/2 tsp chilli powder or chilli flakes

1 tsp ground black pepper 

1 further tsp olive oil

(Add salt to taste if desired)

* oat flour is made in the food processor by grinding down porridge oats until they resemble the consistency of flour

Method

1 Using only 1 tsp oil and 1 tbsp flour pulse all the ingredients in the food processor. Leave the rest of the oil and flour for the moment.

2 When mixed transfer to a bowl, fold in the rest of the flour and put the whole in the fridge for half an hour to make a firmer 'dough'. Have something in a glass and put your feet up! 

3 After half an hour heat the 4 tbsp oil in a frying pan. Meanwhile remove the 'dough' from the fridge and break it up then roll it into roughly one inch-wide balls. If you prefer you can omit the extra #olive oil and the frying stage: you can bake the falafels instead. They do come out less crispy but bear in mind baked falafels contain fewer calories. If you stick to the frying method each ball should be around 95 calories and take approximately six minutes per side to cook. They are ready when brown on each side. If you bake them in a pre-heated oven put them on a baking tray at 375 deg F,190 deg C, 170 fan, flipping them over half way through, for 25 minutes.

Serve with a flat bread, sweet freshly picked  tomatoes or Fage Greek yogurt. It's a quick,easy and nutritious meal. And the red kidney bean, a lifelong friend, is a superb base. You can add a little cooked, mashed beetroot if you like added colour and flavour. If you have any falafel balls left over they will keep in the fridge, covered, for up to four days. 

I hope you enjoy my cobbled-together recipe. There are many versions in cookery books and online but we love this one with red kidney beans! 

Sent from my ipad

Two Soups?

Not content, last week, with resorting to stilton and broccoli soup, nor pea and ham, for lunch, I found I needed another recipe. Fresh kale was sitting in fridge number one, as were larger than average carrots. What to do?

Kale soup, perhaps? Now there's an idea.

Not only does the recipe leave us with plenty of kale for another day and in another way but it also uses up many of our many carrots. Kale is vitamin rich: it contains vitamins K, A, C, B6, B1, B2, B3, D and can also provide us with manganese, calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron, phosphorus and potassium. Eating foods containing magnesium may help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Kale is known as one of the most nutritious foods in existence.

It also contains antioxidants that help reverse damage by free radicals. These devils are known to drive aging and cancer. Antioxidants found in kale also lower blood pressure, and are anti-inflammatory, anti-viral and anti-depressant. When cooked it wilts like spinach but it contains 4 1/2 times as much vitamin C as spinach. What’s more a cup of kale has more vitamin C than a whole orange! Kale contains bile acid sequestrants too. They bind bile acids in the digestive system which reduces the total amount of cholesterol in the body. A juice made from this super superfood, when drunk daily over 12 weeks, increases good HDL cholesterol and lowers LDL cholesterol.

Macular degeneration can be supported by eating orange foods eg apricots, carrots, orange peppers but also kale. These foods contain lutein which reduces the risk of macular degeneration development. And eating kale is much better for your digestive system than taking lutein-containing supplements. It can be eaten as a salad or made into kale crisps:simply drizzle olive oil over kale leaves, add salt and bake in the oven until dry.

However, today, I am sharing with you my kale soup recipe, having been very pleased with the taste. The sweetness is from the carrots and it certainly doesn't feel like you are being forced to eat boiled cabbage, even though kale is a brassica!

Ingredients
2 tbsp cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion - finely chopped
4 medium carrots - roughly chopped
200 g curly kale - chopped
2 garlic cloves - crushed
700 ml chicken stock or vegetable stock

( some recipes suggest adding pepper for flavour and milk for extra creaminess)

The method is a straightforward soup-making one:

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat, sweat the vegetables, minus the kale, for 10 minutes to soften the onion. Introduce the kale and sweat for 5 minutes whereby it should have wilted. Add the stock, bring to the boil, then simmer for 20  minutes. I cool the soup if I'm not wanting to serve it immediately and finish off by blending it for 30 seconds in the food processor until it is smooth.

I don't find the soup needs added creaminess and I leave out the milk. If you have chives or leeks growing in the garden they are an excellent substitute for garlic. The garlic taste isn't, however, too strong. And the colour of the soup is a golden yellow with green speckles. Magnificent!

Eating or drinking kale on a daily basis is one of the simplest ways you can ensure your body is in a good position to fight free radicals and it's a good support for your whole system.

But I'm told kale is a bugger to grow in your back garden, requiring time, manure and a lot of 'fiddling' ... unlike spinach which is a doddle!