Mmmm, look at that bowl of health- proteiney, vitaminey, health. And it was delicious too – what more do you want? Dark green lentils and quinoa together, rather than one or the other, have proved to be a textural treat, and the salty mackerel mixed with sweet, juicy squash make for a great flavour balance too.
Tastes good hot, tastes good cold, and wouldn’t be too bad with some pomegranate either.
Click through for recipe.
I cannot bang on enough about how easy and delicious this meal was. And it was created in less than half an hour, with ingredients that would have cost a few mere pounds per portion – I shit you not.
The inspiration for having a tomoatoey, sausagey mix came from Spuntino’s unbelievably good sausages with cheddar grits. Eff knows what they put in that to make it so amazing, but my simpler polenta and toulouse sausage version is a more than adequate every-day substitute.
I used Toulouse sausages for easy instant flavour and cooking them in a can of tomatoes with a spoonful of dried chipotle gave the dish the smoky sweetness it required. Omitting the cheese from the polenta made it much healthier without particularly compromising on flavour, though I don’t doubt a handful of strong cheddar would be a decadant but satisfying addition. For a vegetarian version, some sauteed aubergine, courgette and peppers would make a fine substitute. A smoky ratatouilleif you will.
Served with a load of wilted garlicky spinach, you could say it was like having exotic sausage and mash, and ended up feeling like a real treat dinner in the wasteland of January budget-health cooking.
Click through for recipe
Pork, apples and mustard are like the food equivalent of Cher, Dionne and Tai (AKA BFFs) and this comforting casserole goes to prove it. So it looks like a bowl of sick, what of it?
Using tart cooking apples and fiery english mustard prevents it from being too sweet and the apples cook down as it simmers away to give it a nice thickness. That combined with the rich pork and creaminess make for a satisfyingly warming winter dish, that is both cheap, quick and easy to make. Plus, adding just a couple of spoons full of low-fat creme fraiche to achieve said creaminess means it’s not so unhealthy either.
Would probably be nice with a bit of leek thrown in (as you fry the pork) should you have any knocking around.
Serve with a hunk of bread and/or some green vegetables.
Click through for recipe
My life is ruled by soup. It’s cheap, portable, healthy and I have more carrots than I can shake a stick at. This one was a winner because it tasted amazing on the first day I had it and didn’t make me want to kill myself by the third day I had it (more than can be said for a half-arsed French onion soup the following week).
The roughly equal mixture of carrots and lentils meant it wasn’t as sickly as standard carrot soup can be, whilst having a definite point of difference from a straight-forward daal. The lentils also made it more filling, while the warming spice mix made it just what you need on a dour winter day.
Click through for recipe
Frozen fruit blended with booze was never going to taste shit was it? I recently tried Nigella’s Watermelon Daquiri and was inspired to try other spirit/fruit combos and thus happened upon the following berry and gin based treat. The alcoholic slushy possibilities are endless I reckon: frozen strawberries and vanilla vodka, frozen pineapple with dark rum and a splash of coconut cream.
Frozen berry and gin martini recipe after the jump…
It recently occurred to me that as a jerk marinade has a fryable base of blended onion, it would probably make a pretty good paste for a jerk-flavoured Carribean curry. It turns out it does, simmered slowly with coconut milk, stock and some on-the-bone (for extra flavour) chicken, so here’s the recipe.
The paste is adapted from Food Stories’ amazing jerk marinade, with normal rather than spring onion to retain full flavour when fried, and considerably less sugar, since the sticky glazed finish it produces with barbequed meat isn’t needed here. I used an on-the-bone chicken breast quarters which was nice served sliced and off-the-bone, but thighs or drumsticks would be good too.
Eat with rice and peas, a slice of lime, and a rum-based drink.
Recipe after the jump…
American crayfish are taking over the Thames. Fact. But, good old Crayfish Bob is putting a stop to it, and catching the bastards before they can wipe out the native white-claw crayfish entirely.
And what better way to wipe them out than to eat them? This week, at East London’s Two Degrees festival, Crayfish Bob is serving up the juicy creatures, caught from the Thames, with a locally grown salad and a glass of Rose made in Tooting, all for just a fiver.
Side note on the salad: Hogweed in salad = delicious, who knew?
Bob’s crayfish dinners at Two Degrees are sadly (especially for the crayfish!) sold out for the rest of the week, but that man’s got a job to do, and I trust in him to keep cooking up those snappy bad-boys until he’s killed them all dead, so keep an eye on his (pretty amazing) website for more dates. PS: I heard a rumour he’ll be at Glastonbury.
Bob – Killing them crayfish for the good of the Thames. Bob photo by Toby Smith – probably not on his iphone.
Cheap, relaxed restaurants in North London are a bit of a black hole in my good places to eat knowledge. Since being invited to eat at The Hideaway Neighbourhood Bar & Kitchen last week however, I now have at least one place I will be able to recommend or visit on excursions north of the river.
The menu focusses on pizza and calzone, with classic toppings and fillings, proving that it is better to do one thing really well than offer up a jack-of-all trades mix of options. Indeed, both the Puttanesca (with rich, salty olives, capers and anchovies, and sweet, juicy cherry tomatoes) and Parma (slivers of parma ham with peppery fresh rocket) that we ordered, both boasted fresh, flavoursome toppings, crisp bases and gooey mozzerella, making them fine examples of proper, home-made pizza. The pungent pot of aioli that accompanied, for the purpose of dipping the crunchy, doughey crusts, was certainly worth bonus points too.
A selection of simple salads, bursting with generous portions of fresh ingredients, provided the perfect accompaniment.
True to its name, The Hideaway has the perfect neighbourhood ‘home-from-home’ feeling. A huge fairy-lit garden, informal decor, welcoming staff, and alluring cocktail list mean that when you’ve finished your pizza, whiling away the rest of the evening, as I did, with a margarita, seems only right – especially, as if often the case, there is live music on.
Prices are reasonable, food is good, drinks are strong and the atmosphere is warm and friendly – what more could you want? Well, other than a branch in South East London…
The Hideaway
020 7561 0779
114 Junction Road
London,
N19 5LB
The best tapas is Barcelona is not the easiest thing to find. I always want to find somewhere that the locals would go to, and isn’t too tourist-ridden, but those places are often the most hidden and unassuming, and thus impossible to find.
Thanks to the good old internets though, I found El Xampanyet, nestled in the Barceloneta area and it was a treat. Obviously I can’t claim to be enough of a connoisseur to call it the best in the city, but if you’re after something a bit more authentic than ketchupy Patatas Bravas, you could certainly do worse.
The bar itself is pretty small, with a lot of tiny tables, and hungry people squashed together enjoying anchovies, meats and Catalan favourite, pan con tomate with a cool beer or Cava.
There was no menu when we went. You just sit down and let them bring you a surprise selection of dishes until you can take tapas no more. As well as delicious oily fishes with juicy sun-dried tomatoes, we had four or five different cured meats and chorizo, a cold roe based dish, pickled-pepper and sour-cream topped potatoes, dense tortilla and to finish, nutty biscotti and pastries dipped in sweet, sticky Catalan cider.
Apols for lack of food pics, was too busy scoffing to manage to take many, so instead enjoy these of the bar itself, and trust me that it was the shit.
Bill was about 76 euros for four, with a good few Cava top ups and a couple of beers.
Go:
Montcada, 22
08003 Barcelona, Spain
933 197 003
Da Polpo is the latest addition to Russell Norman’s group of central London, Italian ‘small-plate’ restaurants, which also includes Polpetto, Polpo, and the more New York inspired, Spuntino.
Rather than offering identical menus, each restaurant has a particular focus, and Da Polpo’s thing is meatballs, and small, sharable, ‘pizzettes’, which are served alongside a seasonal selection of salads, meats and other mini Italian dishes.
Having been to and loved the orig, Polpo, a few times, I got myself along to Da Polpo yesterday and left impressed and pleasantly full. I had little doubt that the food would be fresh, full of flavour, and amazing, which it was. I also loved the relaxed, informal atmosphere and the friendly and attentive service. With tables over two floors, and seating at the bar, getting in doesn’t look like it will be too much of a problem even on busy evenings, and I will defs be returning.
Here’s what we had:
Complimentary focaccia with whipped ricotta – light, tasty, and a great start to a meal.
Whole mozzarella with broad beans – doused in olive oil and loads of salt and pepper. Summer on a plate – defs order.
Traditional beef and pork meatballs – rich, tangy sauce, tender melting meat laced with loads of herbs. Pork and fennel version also sounded really good.
Fennel, endive and almond salad – big fat toasted almonds were a particular treat.
Courgette, mint and chili pizzette – mega-hot chili (in a good way), crisp base and fresh light flavour from the courgette and mint. Perfect for a sunny afternoon.
All Italian meals should end with an affogato. Good coffee, good ice cream – win.
The bill came to £42 for two, with four plates, dessert and a caraffe of house wine, which is not bad at all.
Check out Eat Like a Girl for some great pics of the interior and some more dishes.
Da Polpo
6 Maiden Lane London WC2E 7NA
020 7836 8448
