As you all know, I have been bringing Nigel to bed with me each night this week.  Ever since he fell through my letter box I haven't been able to put him down . . . seriously.  This just may be his best book yet, but then again . . . I say that every time a new one of his comes out.



I love his cookery-books because they read like a great conversation with your bestest foodie friend ever . . . I could just sit and read his prose for hours . . . but then, I get hungry so I have to put him down and high tail it into the kitchen . . . to put some of what I have read into practice you know.

 

He says he not a chef . . . and I guess technically he isn't, but he's one heck of a cook and a pretty good source of inspiration when it comes to cooking and eating. I could just eat his words and be quite happily fed . . . but the glutton in me really wants to eat his food too . . . and so I do.

 

One thing I really love about his style of cooking and his recipes is that they are profoundly inspirational . . . good solid basic skills and backbones, that . . .  with a bit of knowledge about the chemistry of food and the way flavours actually work together . . .  you can grab and run with them . . . flesh them out . . . put your own stamp on them . . .

 

One of his early September recipes is a lovely salad of plums, lentils and coppa, which is a lovely air dried Italian ham . . . (pg 357 in the book).  It sounds fabulously delicious and the picture next to the recipe looks wonderfully scrumptious . . . a plate full of lovely lentils, plums and lentils . . . with a decadent looking dressing which looks steeped in herbs just gilding a corner of it's surface . . . I look at it with longing . . . wondering what the dressing is . . . but alas . . . there is no recipe for it.



So . . . I look at his recipe, and it begins to come alive for me . . . I can almost taste the sweetness of those ripe plums against the saltiness of the ham . . . and that nutty bite and meaty texture of the Puy lentils.  It all looks and sounds so good . . . and I am craving it for our tea . . . I think about it for two days . . . and then I decide to do what I can with his recipe.



I had some lovely plums . . . not too ripe,  sweet and still firm, perfect in every way, and quite able to stand up on their own in a salad.  I didn't have any coppa . . .but I did have a nice ham hock sitting in my fridge, just begging to be used.  It may not be most people's choice as they can be a bit fatty . . . but they can also be fabulously tender and flavorful, indeed most succulent  . . . when simmered with a bit of onion, a bay leaf and some cloves . . . just  until the meat falls away from the bone.  If you let the hock cool down in the liquid, it stays all lovely and  moist.

 

I wanted a creamy dressing though . . . something more than the simple herb lemon and oil that Nigel has put into his recipe . . . something that would go well with the ham and the plums . . . and the lentils too.  A dressing that would bring an added depth to the sweetness of the plums . . . calm the saltiness of the ham . . . and really bring those nutty lentils to life.  Something that would go pow in my mouth and dance across my tongue without taking away from anything else in the salad.

 

I decided on a creamy raspberry vinaigrette . . . filled with lovely bits of garlic, basil . . . flat leaf parsley.  Some grainy dijon mustard for texture, a touch of honey for just a hint of sweetness . . . rich extra virgin olive oil, with it's light peppery quality . . . blitzed together to give a creamy emulsified dressing that would be very much at home on this salad . . . yes, it does make far much more than you need . . . but that's not really a problem.

 

I can see this dressing going very well on lots of different salads.  It will keep for about a week in the refrigerator, but I wouldn't keep it longer than that because of the fresh herbs.  You will also want to bring it to room temperature before using after storing it in the fridge.  It would be fabulous on a sweet potato salad . . . with perhaps some cranberries and toasted pecans, spring onions . . . oops . . . there I go again.  I grabbed that ball and started running.

 

In any case do try this salad.  It's not quite Nigel's, but I thank him greatly for the inspiration.  This is the perfect autumn salad . . .a wonderful marriage of color, texture  . . . and flavor.  Hearty enough to be the whole meal.

Quite, quite looking forward to the leftovers for my lunch today. ☺

 

*An Autumn Salad of Fresh Plums, Ham Hock and Lentils*
with an herbed raspberry vinaigrette
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Loosely based on a recipe from Nigel Slater. I was inspired.

1 ham hock
1 small onion, peeled and cut in half
a few cloves
a bay leaf
2 cups of Puy lentils
3 cups of boiling water
1 cup dry white wine
2 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
a handful of flat leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped
1 pound fresh FIRM ripe plums, unpeeled

For the dressing:
75ml of red wine vinegar
2 TBS raspberry vinegar2 TBS chopped fresh basil
1 fat clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1 TBS chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 TBS liquid honey
1 TBS grainy Dijon mustard
375ml of extra virgin olive oil (1 1/4 cups)
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Start early in the day by cooking the ham hock.  Place it into a saucepan along with the onion, cloves and bay leaf.  Cover with boiling water.  Bring back to the boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer.  Cook until the meat is very tender.  Allow to cool completely in the liquid.  Once it is cold, remove, discarding any liquid and peel off the fat.  Tear the ham into large chunks.

Bring the water and white wine to the boil.  Rinse the lentils under cold running water, drain, then tip them into the pot with the wine mixture.  Bring back to the boil, then reduce to a slow simmer and cook for 20 to 25 minutes. They should be tender, but not mushy, with a bit of an almost nutty bite.  Drain them well and then rinse with cold water.  Tip into a bowl, adding about 1 tsp of olive oil, tossing them to coat them with the oil.

Whisk together the red wine vinegar, raspberry vinegar and garlic with a stick blender in a tall beaker.  Tip in the herbs, mustard and honey.  Whisk again.  Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking continuously until completely amalgamated.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place the lentils in a large shallow salad bowl.  Add 1 TBS of the vinaigrette and toss together with the flat leaf parsley and chopped spring onions.  Wash the plums, dry with some paper kitchen toweling and then slice them in half, discarding the stones.  Slice each half into 2 or 3 wedges, depending on the size of the plums.  Gently fold them into the lentils, along with the ham hock chunks.  Add a few TBS more of the dressing, tossing gently to combine.  Sprinkle with a few coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley sprigs and serve, along with a nice crusty loaf (if desired.)

One of the challenges I have had over here is developing new ways to cook some of my favourite  recipes that I enjoy from back home . . . the same ingredients are not always available here . . . and I have had to figure out substitutes for a variety of ingredients.

Last night I went to bed with Nigel Slater . . . and I have news for you . . . tonight I'm going to do it again.  YES!  My copy of Kitchen Diaries ll arrived through my letter box yesterday and I am in love.  Just look at that cover with all of it's tasty looking splodges. 

Nigel . . . Nigel . . . Nigel . . . you sure know the way to a woman's heart.

From Nigel's page:


"His words touch something deep and primitive: appetite. A gorgeous book in the pure sense." Sunday Telegraph

BUY IT NOW!

You won't regret it.  Then you can go to bed with him too.

Note:  I bought my own book and was not paid or reimbursed for anything I have said here today.  I just love Nigel Slater . . . end of. He cooks like I cook, and like I want to eat.

I was recently sent a selection of Cookery books to review.  As you know I just love cookbooks and have a vast collection . . . Todd moans whenever a new one comes through the letter box . . . but, alas that is just something he has to live with.  I am of the opinion that one can never have too many cookbooks . . . Marriage is a give and take, besides . . . he reaps the rewards of my fetish every night when he sits down to tea.

 

The first one is a bit of a novelty book, entitled "Beer, a cookbook."  Recipes by Kimberley Willis.  It's a fun little book, not too large or hefty, but there's a lot packed into it's pages.  There are 40+ recipes in this book, which is roughly about the size of a clutch handbag, each of them accompanied by a tasty looking photo.



There are recipes for starters, mains, sides and amazingly even desserts, each one containing detailed instructions and a tasty looking photo, not to mention some bartenders advice near the bottom and a heads-up rating . . . easy, medium or hard . . . so that you can pick according to your skills or desire.

It's a very sturdy book, each page being composed of heavy card, which has a glossy wipe proof surface.  (I guess that's in case you sample too much of the beer while you are cooking and get sloppy??)

Interspersed between the recipes are fun quotes like this one from Frank Zappa:

"You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline . . . it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least, you need a beer."

It's a cute little book, and would make the perfect Birthday Gift, or even Christmas Gift, for the beer connoisseur on your gift list.  I haven't actually cooked anything from the book, so can't really say how good the recipes are, but purely from a novelty point of view, this book gets an "7" from me.  It's colourful, sturdy and there were a few things in it that I have bookmarked for a later date to try.



The first one probably being these really delicious looking Chocolate Stout Lava Cakes !  There's also a pot roast that looks really tasty and tender as well.

Beer, a cookbook
Published by Adams Media
ISBN 10: 1-4405-3370-9
ISBN 13:  978-1-4405-3370-9
copyright 2012 by F+W Media, inc.



The second book is also a bit of a Novelty book, based loosely on the popular Hunger Games novels and film.  I was a great fan of the books and loved the movie, so I was quite interested in this book.  From the back cover:

When it comes to the Hunger Games, staying alive means finding food any way possible. Katniss and Gale hunt live game, Peeta's family survives on the bread they make, and the inhabitants of the Seam work twelve-hour days for a few handfuls of grain . . . all while the residents of the Capitol gorge themselves on delicacies and desserts to the heart's desire.

For the first time, you will be able to create delicious recipes from the humble District 12 to the extravagant Capitol, including:

• French bread from the Mellark Family Bakery
• Katniss's favourite Lamb Stew with Dried Plums
• Rue's Roasted Parsnips
• Gale's Bone-Picking Big Game Soup
• Capital Grade Dark Chocolate Cake

There are nine tasty chapters . . . Breakfast, Breads, Soups Stews and Salads, Humble Beginnings (starters), Seafood, Poultry Dishes for the Brave, Meat, Wild Game,  and Just Desserts.  There is also an Appendix containing Katniss's Family Book of Herbs, Acknowledgments and a full Index.

Hard covered and 241 pages containing more than 150 recipes inspired by the Hunger Games Trilogy and written by Emily Ansara Baines.  (It is unofficial and unauthorized, approved, liscensed, or endorsed by Susanne Collins, her publishes, or lionsgate entertainment corp.)  Emily Ansara Baines is a writer who has worked as a professional baker and caterer throughout the East Coast of American, most recently New York City.



Each recipe seems to be well written, with great instructions and tips included from your "Sponsor."  The downside is that there are no photographs at all, and I do love my cookbooks to have at least a few scrummy pictures.  But, aside from a few recipes I would probably never cook, like "Fightin' Fried Squirrel . . . there are also a great number of really delicious sounding ones like Mixed Messages Mixed Berry Jam, Apocalyptic Eggs Benedict, Katniss's Craved Cheese Buns, Harvest Heirloom Apple Cake and Thick and Gooey Double Chocolate Banquet Brownies.  Again, I haven't cooked anything from this book . . . but I probably will.  It's been hard these past three weeks getting in any cooking time with all the renovations going on.  I am giving this one an "8".    Pictures would be nice, but most of the recipes sound quite delicious and it has great novelty factor. It would make a perfect gift for the Hunger Games fan!

The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook, by Emily Ansara Baines
Published by  Adams Media
ISBN-13: 978-1-4405-2658-9
ISBN-10: 1-4405-2658-3
$19.95 (CAN $20.99)

Here in the UK you can get it from Amazon for £14.44



The final book, and my favourite of the three, was Not-So-Humble Pies by Kelly Jaggers, also published by Adams Media.   150 delicious, decadent and savory recipes for one of my favourite foods of all . . . Pie!

The book is split into three parts.

Part 1 - Not so Humble beginnings
Chapter 1 Pastry and cookie crusts
The first chapter, pie crusts, offers tons of options. Pastry type crusts like the perfect flaky crust, butter crusts and options like a buttery, spicy cheese crust. Cookie type crusts include gingersnaps, pretzels. There are also shortbread type crusts which fall right between the two using a cookie type recipe to make a crust for a pie.

Chapter 2 - Toppings
The second chapter covers toppings, classic crumb toppings, meringue, stabilized whipped cream, and sauces.

Part 2 - Sweet as Can Be
Chapter 3 Creams, Custards, and Chiffons
Creams, Custards and Chiffons.-Nothing as simple as a chocolate cream pie, these are things like cantaloupe cream, vanilla rum meringue and for people who prefer a more traditional flavor profile, white chocolate chiffon.

Chapter 4  Fruits, Nuts and Berries
 Based on classic recipes, these up the gourmet and wow factor, an apple pie gets a savory cheddar crust to contrast the sweetness of the apples, peach and ginger combine in a hand pie perfect for picnics.

Chapter 5  Tarts, Tartlets, and Rustic Pies
 These are the "dressed up for guests" dessert pies. Fine ingredients, flavors and textures like apple rose, white chocolate ganache and praline cream.

Part 3 - Savory Situations
Chapter 6  Dinner Pies
 The savory flavors that make a main course. There are lots of tarts in this chapter as well that would work well as a side dish like the spinach and artichoke tart. Lots of cheese based tarts and pies as well.

Chapter 7  Spicy, Salty, and Exotic Pies
All of the recipes in this book put some pretty unusual twists on the family classics, but this chapter really pulls out all the stops  by adding chilis, spice and salt to classics.



Each part is beautifully photographed as are a lot of the recipes . . .

 

Lavender Infused Lemon Pie

The recipes all appear to be very well written, although having said that, the crust recipe that I chose to bake did have an inconsistency in it.  It called for 1 egg, not specifying the size, or the fact that you only need the yolk, at least I could not find anyplace where the white was called for.  I used a large egg and had thrown in the whole egg before I realized that in the directions it said the yolk.  It turned out fine though, so no worries.

 

I chose to bake the Fresh Blackberry Tart with Spiked Creme Anglaise recipe from chapter 5, Tarts, Tartlets and Rustic Pies.  This is blackberry season here in the UK at the moment and they are something that I have a lot of and that I love to use in the autumn.

 

The crust was quite forgiving . . . and not all that different from a short bread cookie.  Nom! Nom!  It was very rustic and not too frou frou . . . this was a plus for me last week with all of the construction work going on.



The filling was very easy to throw together, although I did find that the cornflour didn't dissolve in the alloted standing time so if I make it again, I will add a touch of lemon juice.  It will not only help to preserve the colour, but also add a nice little hint of sharpness that I think will go well with both the berries, the sweet crust and that scrummy Creme Anglaise.

 

*Fresh Blackberry Tart with Spiked Creme Anglaise*
makes 8 servings

Creme Anglaise is a slightly thickened custard sauce that is used as a garnish on all sorts of desserts.  Here the sauce is spiked with a touch of bourbon and drizzled over slices of warm blackberry tart.  If you don't care for bourbon, you can use rum or creme de cassis, or omit altogether.

2 cups fresh blackberries
2 TBS cornstarch
2 TBS sugar
1 short crust for tarts, rolled into a 12 inch circle
1 TBS butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 TBS bourbon
2 egg yolks
3 TBS sugar

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine the berries, cornstarch and sugar until well combined.  Let stand for 5 minutes.

Place the pastry onto the prepared baking sheet.  Spread with the blackberry mixture, leaving a 1/2 inch border.  Fold the pastry just over the edge of the berries, then dot the top with butter.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the pastry is golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

In a small saucepan over medium low heat, add the cream and vanilla.  Bring just to a simmer.  In a large bowl, whisk together the bourbon, egg yolks, and sugar until smooth.  Whisking constantly, gradually add 1/2 cup of the cream into the egg yolks.  Immediately add the egg yolk mixture back into the pot and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 6 minutes. 

Serve the tart slightly warm with the creme anglaise drizzled over the top.



We quite enjoyed this lovely tart and I have no less than 15 other recipes flagged to try out over the next few weeks/months.  If they are all as nice as this one . . . well, we have a real winner here!

Not-So-Humble Pies, by Kelly Jaggers
Published by Adams Media
ISBN 10: 1-440503291-5
ISBN 13L 978-1-4405-3291-7
$17.95 (Can $18.99)
Available here in the UK from Amazon for £12.74

I give this book a "9."  It lost a point for the inconsistency I found in the crust recipe.

Disclaimer - Please note that although I am given these books free of charge for review, I am under no obligation to give positive reviews.  My opinions are honest and  my own.

A DOCUMENTARY BY Ismael Ferroukhi

EL BULLI

 
I was recently sent a review copy of the Documentary Film, EL BULLI - Cooking in Progress, by Ismael Ferroukhi

Ferran Adria is widely considered to be the best, most innovative and craziest chef's in the world.  Each year he closes his "2nd in the World" rated restaurant for six months so that he and his team can retire to his cooking lab to create and  test his new menu for the upcoming season.

This fly-on-the-wall documentary  chronicles one six month period of this testing beautifully.  You feel as if you are being given a spectacular view of something that not very many people get to see and experience.

At first I found the sub-titles a bit off-putting . . . I am not a person that really likes sub-titles.  I usually find them very distracting . . . but after about 5 minutes, I was completely enthralled in what was happening on my television screen . . . taking us from the initial experimentation of the team, to their finished creation . . . this film was a fascinating journey for this "foodie" to be able to watch.

I found myself at turns wishing so much that I could taste what they were tasting . . . to smell what they were smelling . . . This is something which I do at home . . .albeit on a much smaller scale and with much humbler equipment, but this is the way I love to cook.  To me cooking is not just about the recipe . . . it's about ingredients and taste and pushing the best of what you have available to you to it's very limits and bringing out the very best of it that you can.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the journey this film took me on.  I was enthralled, entranced and inspired.

The Toddster . . . well, he could have taken or left it.  But . . . what does he know.  He's happy just opening a tin.  For the connoisseur of fine cooking and haute cuisine . . .  to the amateur cook who is simply fascinated with the journey from store shelf to plate, this is a must see film, in my opinion.  But then again . . . I may be biased.  It may not be everyone's cup of tea . . . but it was my cup of tea.





Many Thanks to  Artificial Eye for sending it to me.