Recipes

Daniela Cascella’s Cooking Outside the Circle of Fire

2nd November 2011 » Permalink: Daniela Cascella’s Cooking Outside the Circle of Fire

A culinary nonsense limerick (Cooking some of the creatures featured in Chris Watson’s album, Outside the Circle of Fire)

There once was a fine chef called Mike
He’d steam beetles (1), put them on a spike.
He’d braise hippos (2) as such
Roast deer stags (3) with keen touch (4)
He’d stew hyenas (5), that fine chef called Mike.

Notes:

1 RATTLE OF WOOD. Deathwatch beetles, the rattle of wood over a black stream.
2 AT DUSK. The Maasai say hippos spend the day on the river bed telling jokes. At dusk they surface, laughing.
3 DEEP ROAR. The deep roar of a red deer stag.
4 What a clever reference.
5 CONTACTS. Hyena contacts.

Heitor Alvelos’s Take a glass of water…

14th October 2011 » Permalink: Heitor Alvelos’s Take a glass of water…

Take a glass of water from Lake Titicaca

Feidhlim O’Neill’s My mother’s BROWN BREAD RECIPE, hence the emphasis on imperial measurements….

6th August 2011 » Permalink: Feidhlim O’Neill’s My mother’s BROWN BREAD RECIPE, hence the emphasis on imperial measurements….

Very healthy and easy to make bread. No proofing needed since the rising is a chemical process not organic one. You can add nuts or seeds as desired.

Ingredients:

20ozs. Strong brown flour (or 10ozs Canadian Strong Brown and 10ozs normal strong brown)
5ozs. white flour
2ozs. porridge oats
2ozs. wheat germ
1 teaspn (rounded) Baking soda.
625mls =1 ¼ pts Buttermilk or diluted 500ml tub of Yogurt works too
1/4 teaspoon Salt

METHOD

Preheat Over to 180°C
Mix flours, wheat germ and porridge oats in a bowl sieve in soda (to make sure no lumps) and salt.
Mix well then add the buttermilk.
Mix but just enough (a minute or two tops) – if you mix too much the bread will be flatbread – purists say you need to use a wooden spoon for this part.
Mixture should be wet but hold together in a ball.
Use non slick bread tins (for a loaf effect) or more traditionally flattened the mixture on a non stick baking tray.
Sprinkle with more oats if desired.
Bake at 180°C for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 160°C and bake for a further 20 minutes approx. Its done if you put a skewer into the bread and it comes out dry.
Remove from tin and place on a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy

Oren Ambarchi’s 2 x sumptuous fish recipes from the Ambarchi kitchen both derived from traditional Sephardic recipes that go way back

30th June 2011 » Permalink: Oren Ambarchi’s 2 x sumptuous fish recipes from the Ambarchi kitchen both derived from traditional Sephardic recipes that go way back

POISSON SAUCE ROUGE

Ingredients:

Flour
3 Red Peppers
2-3 Cloves of garlic, peeled
1kg (2lb) of white fish fillets such as Flathead or Snapper
4 tablespoons of Peanut Oil
Juice of 1 Lemon
Mediterranean Parsley
Salt & Pepper

1. Roast the red peppers in a hot oven (about 200-220 degrees) – make sure
they’re fleshy – put them on a baking tray in the oven until their skins are
blistered & black. Turn them over once so the skins are blistered on both
sides. Take them out and leave for 10-15mins.
Once they are cool enough to handle, peel them and remove the seeds & stem. Keep
the juice but make sure there are no seeds in it.
2. Blend the peppers and the juice of the peppers to a cream together with the
garlic + the salt & pepper in a food processor
3. Pour the sauce into a pan & heat through being careful not to burn it. Heat
it through gently until it begins to bubble.
4. Lightly flour the fish & then saute in the oil turning over once
5. Take the fish out & add a little salt & pepper + the lemon juice
6. Serve with the sauce poured over the fish and the chopped parsley sprinkled
on top

Best served with cous cous & a Mediterranean green salad (tomatoes, cucumbers,
parsley, a little mint, lemon juice, olive oil, salt & pepper).

POISSON AUX CITRONS CONFITS

1.5kgs (3lb) of White FIsh Steaks or Fillets such as Flathead or Snapper
3 Preserved Lemons (these are lemons that have been preserved in salt – easy to
make but even easier to buy readymade in a jar from a store)
4 Tablespoons of Peanut Oil
175ml of Water
1 Teaspoon of Smoked Paprika (or regular paprika, however the smoked version is
goooood)
1/4 Teaspoon of Turmeric
Salt + Pepper
4 Tablespoons of chopped Coriander

1. Mix and beat the oil and water with the paprika, turmeric, salt, pepper and
chopped coriander and marinate the fish in it for 30mins
2. Rinse the preserved lemons under cold water & remove the pulp (important!).
Once the skins are rinsed cut them into small pieces & spread half of them on
the bottom of a baking dish
3. Lay the fish on top and pour the marinade over it
4. Cover with the remaining lemon skins
5. Bake in the oven at 220 degrees for 20mins

As per the previous dish this one is best served with cous cous & a
Mediterranean green salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, a little mint, lemon
juice, olive oil, salt & pepper).

Bon Appetit!

Tim Medcalf’s The Coma

15th June 2011 » Permalink: Tim Medcalf’s The Coma

Trouble sleeping? Waking up too early? Try “The Coma”

2 shots (88ml) of good bourbon. I’d recommend Woodford Reserve.
1.5 measures (30 ml) of Night Nurse Cold Remedy.
Ice

Hellooooo oblivion!

Renato Balsadonna’s Pasta con Gamberi

6th June 2011 » Permalink: Renato Balsadonna’s Pasta con Gamberi

Ingredients for 4 people:

Garlic x3 cloves.
Olive oil.
Fillet of Anchovies x5.
Pepperoncino.
Fresh cherry tomatoes 14/16, chopped.
Fresh flat leaf parsley, a very good handful.
Fresh prawns (unshelled) 200g.
Dry White wine for cooking, 1 glass.
Salt & pepper.
100g pasta per person preferably
Linguine, De Cecco.

Method.

Take a large deep pan for the pasta and fill it with water, add a small handful of rock salt if you have some. Bring to the boil and add the pasta. Cook the pasta for the exact time it says in the pack. Normally about 11/12 mins.

Meanwhile take a large sauté pan and poor in olive oil, enough to make a film of oil on the bottom of the pan. With the back of a wooden spoon press the pealed garlic cloves into the oil (I find this easier to do in the pan before I put the oil in otherwise it’s slips and slides!) until lightly browned, take care not to burn the oil or the garlic. When lightly browned take out the garlic take off the heat and add the anchovies and break up so they almost dissolve into the oil. It might spit a bit when adding anchovies so take care.
Put pan back on the heat and add the prawns and the White wine and stir, let the wine evaporate (the heat should be quite high for this).

Add the chopped cherry tomatoes and stir allow them to boil in order to make a little sauce.

Add a pinch of pepperoncino, enough to add a little flavour and depending on how hot you want it.

Add salt & pepper.

When pasta is ready remove immediately from the heat drain pasta in a colander, tip pasta onto prawn mixture and mix together. Stir in the fresh parsley leaves and serve immediately.

Christian Fennesz’s Chicken Soup

22nd May 2011 » Permalink: Christian Fennesz’s Chicken Soup

Free Range corn fed chicken breast and legs
Parsley root and leaves
Leek
Red and yellow carrots
Celery
Fennel
A couple of small tomatoes
One large red onion
Salt and pepper

Chop onion in half and place in a large saucepan (like a woman’s breasts).
Heat on stove until brown.
Halve the other vegetables and add to the pan.
Throw in the parsley.
Add 2 litres of water to the pan.
Add the chicken.
Gently cook for 3 hours.

Optional: add noodles/dice vegetables.

As you serve, chop ingredients into smaller pieces and add liquid and noodles if required.

Marjolein Kuijsten’s Leftovers Soup

3rd April 2011 » Permalink: Marjolein Kuijsten’s Leftovers Soup

[From dinner eaten on April 1st 2011…]

In a saucepan, bung together:

leftover rice
sajoer (mixed veg & spices and coconut milk)

add water and/or more coconut milk and part of a tablet of mushroom bouillon

heat well and devour

Sampled and enjoyed on April 3rd 2011

Vicki Bennett and Bryce Kretschmann’s Recipe for Disaster

24th March 2011 » Permalink: Vicki Bennett and Bryce Kretschmann’s Recipe for Disaster

Stuck for what to make for those dinner guests? Just clear a space, put some plastic sheeting on the floor, crank up a very long Terry Riley record and put on a nice pinny.

Ingredients:

1 Human being
1 brightly coloured plastic cape
1 gallon of Hellmans Extra Heavy Mayonnaise
3 boxes of instant mashed potato
3 jars of Heinz onion gravy
2 tins of supermarket baked beans (not too sweet)
1 dozen asparagus
1 large cabbage
1 packet grated cheese

Garnish with sliced red onion, radish

Drink beer

Add the above to a human in accordance with your mood and their disposition.
Preferably in front of an audience.
For money.

Michael Esposito’s Bread of the Dead

23rd March 2011 » Permalink: Michael Esposito’s Bread of the Dead

Pan de Muertos (Mexican Bread of the Dead)
Original Recipe Yield 1 large round loaf

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup margarine
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons aniseed
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1/4 cup white sugar (for the glaze)
• 1/4 cup orange juice (for the glaze)
• 1 tablespoon orange zest (for the glaze)
• 2 tablespoons white sugar (for the glaze)

Directions

• Heat the milk and the butter together in a medium saucepan, until the butter melts. Remove from the heat and add them warm water. The mixture should be around 110 degrees F (43 degrees C).
• In a large bowl combine 1 cup of the flour, yeast, salt, anise seed and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Beat in the warm milk mixture then add the eggs and orange zest and beat until well combined. Stir in 1/2 cup of flour and continue adding more flour until the dough is soft.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.
• Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size. This will take about 1 to 2 hours. Punch the dough down and shape it into a large round loaf with a round knob on top. Place dough onto a baking sheet, loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until just about doubled in size.
• Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven let cool slightly then brush with glaze.
• To make glaze: In a small saucepan combine the 1/4 cup sugar, orange juice and orange zest. Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 2 minutes. Brush over top of bread while still warm. Sprinkle glazed bread with white sugar.

Charles Powne’s Arati’s Spicy Coleslaw

16th March 2011 » Permalink: Charles Powne’s Arati’s Spicy Coleslaw

1/2 head green cabbage
1-2 tbsp lemon juice
3/4 C yogurt (plain, whole milk)
generous handful of cilantro leaves, stems removed
1 Tbsp black mustard seed
1 serrano chili, diced
2 Tbsp cooking oil

Finely chop the cabbage. Add lemon juice, yogurt and cilantro leaves. Stir well, then set aside. Heat oil in frying pan until hot, nearly smoking. Add diced chili and mustard seeds, stirring until mustard seeds begin to pop. Pour oil/seeds/chilis onto coleslaw. Stir again.

Let rest in fridge for an hour before serving.

Mike Harding’s A Nice Cup of Tea

7th March 2011 » Permalink: Mike Harding’s A Nice Cup of Tea

In 1946, just a few years before his death, George Orwell wrote a piece for London’s Evening Standard newspaper, “A Nice Cup Of Tea”. You can read the full text below. He makes tea in a very different way to me, but this article is part of the centuries-long debate about how to make a good cuppa…

www.booksatoz.com/witsend/tea/orwell.htm

Here is my recipe…

It is absolutely essential that the water used for making a proper cup of tea is boiling. Do not accept anything less than boiling water poured into a mug (or cup).

1 x Denby white squares mug

Tea – the type of tea depends on what time of day it is that you wish to drink your beverage. I have a cup of Yorkshire Tea first thing, English Beakfast Tea with breakfast, Ceylon Tea late morning and Daarjeeling in the afternoon.

Milk – I always put the milk in first. This is a controversial aspect of tea-making. I use semi-skimmed organic and prefer my tea quite milky. The milk, of course, must also be cold.

Water – the water MUST be boiling hot.

Stir to your desired strength (I personally prefer quite weak tea).

Please remember to recycle your teabag. I put it in the compost bucket for the worms…

[The perennial British argument over the best way to make a cup of tea dates back to at least the 17th century, when a cookbook warned that “the water is to remain upon it no longer than whiles you can say the Miserere Psalm very leisurely”.]

Ega Bar’s Chris Gonga’s Balham Falls

4th March 2011 » Permalink: Ega Bar’s Chris Gonga’s Balham Falls

[Pic: Sandra Jasper]

A vodka-based cocktail found in Touch’s local, Ega.

Chilled Russian Vodka, Mandarin, Napoleon Liqueuer, Lemon and Gomme topped with Ginger Beer. Served in a cool flute.

www.alterega.co.uk

Jane Gardiner’s Pink Grapefruit and Gin Sorbet

20th February 2011 » Permalink: Jane Gardiner’s Pink Grapefruit and Gin Sorbet

2 x 460 gm/16 oz tins pink grapefruit segments
75 gm/3 oz/6 tspns granulated sugar
100 ml/4 fl oz/Half a cup of gin

Method:

Empty juice from both tins into a saucepan. Add sugar and boil for 5 minutes until a syrup forms. Cool.
Add the grapefruit segments and gin and liquidise.
Put the sorbet in the deep freeze for one hour. Remove and stir thoroughly, then put back into freezer.
Remove from freezer and soften in the refrigerator for an hour before needed.

NB Scoopfuls of the above when added to a very innocent cocktail called ‘Summertime’ (the ice had run out) turned it into a lethal concoction renamed ‘List to Starboard’ in honour of our actor friend Robert Lister who was with us at the time.

Lesley Handford’s Glacier Carrot Cake

29th October 2010 » Permalink: Lesley Handford’s Glacier Carrot Cake

8oz plain flour
8oz light soft brown sugar
NO SALT
1 tspn baking powder
2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
6 fl. oz sunflower oil
2 eggs lightly hit
NO VANILLA ESSENCE
1lb carrots, cooked and pureed
4 oz chopped walnuts
2 oz dessicated coconut

Mix the dry ingredients (by hand if you wish) → sticky. Beat or hit the carrots in. Fold in the walnuts and coconut. Pour into tin → oven 180ºC for 1 ¼ hours or until cooked – soggy in the middle – and leave to cool.

Frosted runny top:

8oz low fat cream cheese
8oz icing sugar
1 tspn lemon juice

Do not or do (as you wish) put cheese in mixes, add icing sugar and lemon. Pour all over cake even if its hot because it is too boring to wait.

ENJOY with friends

Alice Kim’s Yachaejeon or Vegetable Pancake

3rd October 2010 » Permalink: Alice Kim’s Yachaejeon or Vegetable Pancake

Here is the recipe for yachaejeon or vegetable pancake. (We also call this pajeon. Pa means green onions, and yachae means vegetables. Jeon means fried pancake.) This is an all-time favorite dish for Koreans. It often appears on our table, and a lot of Koreans crave this on a rainy day. It goes well with rice, or by itself as well. You’ll notice how you can experiment with what goes into the batter, like adding onions to it.

1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup green onions chopped in a roughly two-inch length
3 cups Asian chives chopped (or if you don’t have this, just replace with more green onions)
1/2 cup zucchini shredded
2/3 cup shrimp and/or scallops (optional)
eggs (optional)
oil for cooking
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp rice vinegar

In a mixing bowl, combine 1/2 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 2/3 cup of water.
Add green onions, Asian chives and zucchini into the flour mixture.
Mix the batter well.
On a heated fry pan, drizzle about a tablespoon of oil and spread the batter, like when you are making pancake. Lower the heat to medium.
Place the seafood on top of the vegetables and press down with a spoon or spatula.
When the pancake is cooked about 70%, with the rim turning brown, beat one egg and spread it around the center of the pancake. Cook a couple of minutes over low heat.
Turn over the pancake with a spatula.
Add more oil as needed.
Serve it with a dipping sauce of soy sauce and vinegar combined.

You can get a video of making this dish here

Maxim Bashevoy’s Food for spies

8th September 2010 » Permalink: Maxim Bashevoy’s Food for spies

Make pancakes (not blinis, they are too thick)
Fry some minced beef
Make parcels out of pancakes and put minced beef in it with some spy stuff like poison capsule, tracking chip etc. (surprise!)
Fry parcels for a bit to seal

Serve immediately

Edwin Pouncey’s Mediaeval Ales

6th September 2010 » Permalink: Edwin Pouncey’s Mediaeval Ales

Strong Ale

8 lbs. Hugh Baird brand English Pale malt
1 1/3 lbs. Baird) Pale malt, roasted.

For darker ale, roast to amber: 30 mins. at 225 F. followed by 30 mins. at 300 F. For lighter, roast an hour at 225 F.
around 3 lbs. rolled oats
14 to 16 qts. water (main batch)
14 will produce 1 1/2 gallons of ale; 16 will produce 2 gallons
6 to 8 qts. water (second runnings)
1 pkt, Danstar brand Nottingham ale yeast
1 pkt, Danstar brand Windsor ale yeast

Pre-heat the oven to 225 degrees F. Measure out 1 1/3 lbs. of pale malt, and place it in an e.g. 9 x 13 inch baking pan. When the oven is hot, place the malt in the oven and bake for 30 mins. Then increase the heat and bake another 30 mins. Or, for a lighter colored ale, simply bake 60 mins. at 225 F. Remove and set out to cool.

Sanitize an insulated tun and two fermentation vessels (two 3-gal. food-grade plastic buckets with lids).

Boil water for first runnings (14 to 16 qts.). Crush the malt, mixing the amber (baked) malt with the pale malt. Then mix the oats with the crushed malt well.

If your tun has a false bottom or other similar device, pour in enough boiling water to cover it. Then pour in all of the grain. Finally, slowly ladle the remaining water over the grain, pouring from some height.

Cover the mash tun and let sit 30 mins. Open and stir well, then close and let sit another 3 1/2 to 4 hours. This is a hot mash, so it will need this long period of time to mash (convert the starches into sugars).

Put the water for the second running on to boil. Set up the first fermentation vessel under the drain valve or tube of the insulated tun, and slowly run the liquor from the first mash into the first vessel. Close and set aside to cool.

After the first liquor has been drained out, and when the water for the second running has reached a boil, pour it into the damp grain. Allow to sit for 30 mins, then set up the second fermentation vessel and run this liquor into it. Close the second fermenter, and allow both to cool overnight.

In the morning, sanitize a smaller pan or ladle, a Pyrex measuring cup, and a spoon. Also boil about a cup of water and cool it, covered. Rehydrate the packets of yeast into 3/4 cup of the boiled water. Pour this yeast mixture into the two fermenters, 2/3 into the strong main batch, 1/3 into the second runnings. Use the sanitized ladle to aerate each of the batches (by picking up liquor and pouring it back in turbulently).

Close the fermenters (filling the water locks, if any) and allow to ferment.

Weak Ale

For 2 1/2 gallons of ale:
Ingredients:
4 2/3 lbs. Hugh Baird brand English Pale malt
1 1/2 lbs. rolled oats
13 qts water
1 pkt Danstar brand Nottingham ale yeast
1 pkt Danstar brand Windsor ale yeast
1/4 oz. Light Oak chips

Boil water. Crush the malt, then mix it well, while still dry, with the oats.

Open up the insulated tun and place it on the floor near the stove (where the boiling water is). Pour 2 quarts of water into the tun from a reasonable height, moderately slowly.

Pour all the dry grain into the lauter tun.

Slowly pour 3 more quarts of boiling water over the grain. Don’t stir. Put the cover on the tun and let it stand for 10 mins. Then add 1 more quart of boiling water. At this point, there should be a very small amount of visible liquid. Put the lid back on and wait 20 more mins.
Now take the lid off and stir it all up. It should be about the consistency of fairly thick porridge. Put the lid back on and do something else for a while – at least an hour and a half. (I went out for a beer with some friends for 3 1/2 hours.)

Open up the tun and stir in 3 more quarts of boiling water, and stir. Close up again and wait 25 more mins.

Finally, add remaining boiling water (4 quarts)

Stir well.

Set up the sanitized fermenter. Open the mash tun valve (or otherwise start straining out the wort, that is the liquid part, from the grain. (Unlike modern methods, I did not recirculate the liquid in any way.) The first gallon should go quickly; straining the last gallon should be done somewhat more slowly in order to get most of the liquid out.
Close the fermenter and let the wort cool overnight.

Rehydrate both packages of yeast according to the package instructions (being careful to use water that has been boiled and cooled, and a glass that has been sanitized in some way). Pitch the yeast into the wort, and shake, stir, and otherwise agitate the wort in order to aerate it.

Let the ale ferment for a day; the yeast should have started, and activity should be well under way. Boil the oak chips in approx. 1 cup water. When the water is the color of a cup of tea, take off heat and allow to cool some. Pour off water, then add approx. 1/2 cup of water back into chips. Raise this to a boil again, then allow to cool; it should be just barely darker in color than normal water. Add this oak-water to the wort.

Let the ale ferment for a couple more days. Draw off and serve.

BJNilsen’s Sea Leopard

2nd September 2010 » Permalink: BJNilsen’s Sea Leopard

Frank Hurley, Shackleton Expedition
Thursday, 30th March, 1916. N33, 8:32pm.

Abundance of bird life,
Temp. 35, Wind in North East.

A day of activity. The watchman called an alarm at 5 am to the effect that our flow was cracking up and all hands turned out immediately. All equipage was removed to safety but shortly before breakfast, a recurrence took place, the floe breaking up into a smaller section about 100 yards square. One crack passed under the runners of our large boat, ‘the james caird’ and opened so rapidly that we just saved her from falling in. A pronounced undulating swell is noticeable over the surface of the ice, apparently coming from the north west. All the large floes are breaking up under its influence, and in order to avoid a contretemps, the party is halved, taking a four hour watch.

A huge sea leopard, was secured during the morning, which enables us to increase the meat daily ration; and essential expedient to preserve the strength of all, under the present uncertain circumstances. In the stomach of the leopard, were found some 50 predigested fish, in excellent condition, their stomachs in turn crammed full with amphipods. The fish is reserved for tomorrow´s breakfast. The remainer of the dogs shot and skinned, and some steaks cut of the young dogs born in Antartica were fried, and proved exquisitely tender and flavoursome, especially Nelson, who tasted like veal.

Nicki Myers’s 3 flour bread

20th August 2010 » Permalink: Nicki Myers’s 3 flour bread

for breadmakers…

200 g spelt flour
100 g wholemeal flour
75 g white flour – all flours to be bread flours
280 g warm water
20 g butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon yeast

That’s it !