OTAGO FARMERS MARKET
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| Weekly recipes on offer from the Mobile Kitchen Thanks Sarah for your beautiful photos! |
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| Alison cooking in Mobile Kitchen photos Sarah Cowhey
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| is it really winter photo Sarah Cowhey |
Do i or do i not have enough layers on....? I can hear the wind howling round the house i don't see any signs of snow at this point which is encouraging. Thank goodness i love what i do and that is COOKING! Thank goodness i have such wonderful products to create with today; Chorizo sausage from Waitaki Bacon and Ham, www.waitakibaconham.co.nzdeep,green, richly-robust Cavolo Nero from Brydone Organicswww.organicnz.org/organic-nz.../brydone-growers-and-farm-shop, maginficent cheese from Whitestone www.whitestonecheese.co.nz.
Whew it was a windy day, i was wondering if i would get anything cooked as the gas had no chance of staying alight with wind like that!
But hey being the true professional i am we did get some food eventually and i got to admit the soup was wicked. I hope you try out these simple recipes and as i say time and time again get a few good quality ingredients in your fridge or pantry and your cooking need not be complicated.
WILTED CAVOLO NERO WITH GARLIC AND CHILLI
This is a great way to simply cook this deeply flavoured, robust green.
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| photos Sarah Cowhey |
Pinch dried chilli flakes
Extra virgin olive oil
Lemon (optional)
METHOD
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.
Lay a clean cloth on a tray or large plate this is to drain and cool your cavolo nero down.
Meanwhile prepare the cavolo nero by removing the leaves from the fibrous stalk, discard the stalk and wash the leaves well in cold water. Drain.
When the pot of water is boiling add the leaves and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and lay out in a single layer on the cloth.
Heat a large frypan up to medium hot, add a glug of oil, add the garlic and let fry for a few seconds so it turns a light golden colour and it gives off a nutty smell. Add the chilli flakes and all the leaves, season with salt and pepper, toss to combine and warm through.
Serve with a half of lemon if desired and a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. It partner’s well with all meats, fish and also great with a toasted sliced of good bread.
PASTA WITH CAVOLO NERO, CHORIZO AND PARMESAN
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| photo Sarah Cowhey |
Serves 4
400g pasta
80 ml olive oil
2 onion, peel and sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
300g chorizo (or bratwurst)
24 sage leaves
300g cavolo nero (or silverbeet, kale or spinach), remove stalks and wash well
1 tsp salt
180ml boiling water
Oil for frying
80g parmesan
Method
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large pan and fry onions, and garlic over high heat until they begin to caramelise. Add chorizo slices and half the sage leaves and gently stir until sausage is partly cooked.
Plunge the prepared cavolo nero into the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes. Remove and drain well.
Bring the pot of water back to the boil and cook your pasta (follow the directions on the packet).
Roughly chop the cavolo nero and add to the chorizo’s, when the pasta is cooked drain and add immediately to the pan, season with salt and cracked pepper toss to combine and cook for 1-2 minutes. Serve immediately with plenty of freshly grated parmesan cheese.
CHORIZO BROTH WITH CAVOLO NERO
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped200g cavolo nero, stalks removed and finely shredded
Method
Heat 2 Tbsp of the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and chorizo, then cook for 5 minus until soft. Throw in the potatoes and cook for a few mins more. Pour in the stock, season lightly and bring back to the boil. Cook everything for 10 minutes until the potatoes are on the brink of collapse.
Use a masher to squash the potatoes into the soup, then bring back to the boil. Add the cavolo nero and cook for 5 minutes until tender. Ladle the soup into bowls, then serve drizzled with the remaining olive oil.
CHORIZO – can be a fresh sausage, in which case it must be cooked before eating. In Europe it is more frequently cured by smoking. The distinctive smokiness and deep red colour usually comes from dried smoked red peppers.
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| Photos Sarah Cowhey |
They are great added to soups, cassoulets, wonderful with eggs, and great tossed with potatoes and mixed through salads.
PASTA-DORO www.pastadoro.co.nz
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| Photo Sarah Cowhey |
Whether it is fresh or dried it is arguably one of the all time great meals. It makes the perfect light lunch or a comforting dinner and it is always a hit with children.
A lot of people think fresh pasta is superior to dried - not true! It’s just that they have a different role to play in your dish. Dried pasta generally is made from flour and mostly water, which means that it lasts longer and retains a fantastic bite. It is great with seafood, oily tomato sauces, whereas fresh pasta is silky and tender and suits being stuffed with creamy and buttery sauces.
HOW TO COOK PASTA
FRESH AND DRIED
the most important lesson I have learnt with cooking pasta is not to over-cook it! It needs to have a slight bite. And getting the appropriate pasta for the right sauce…
Always use a large pot with enough water so the pasta has plenty of room to move around. Simply 2/3 full a good-size pot up with water and a generous pinch of salt.
Bring to the boil. Only add the pasta when it is on a rolling boil. I tend to read the packaging on the pasta packets as they can vary. But the best test is to remove a piece and bite into it to test it. It should be tender to the bite not soft!
Give the pot of pasta a frequent stir to prevent over cooking. As soon as it is done, drain most of the liquid, reserving some of the liquid as it is good to add to your sauce. Add to your favourite sauce!
CHEESE PLATE – as I have previously mentioned if you are serving cheese always have it at room temperature, match it with some good quality chutney or relish that will work with the cheese. Strong cheese goes well with something sweet, aged with something fresh like pears or apples. Soft cheese pair’s well with crisp celery, a few grapes and some oat cakes.
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| photo Sarah Cowhey |
Try to concentrate on either one or two good quality cheeses, some fresh market bread or good quality oat cakes and team it up with the appropriate accompaniment.
Alison would like to thank the following vendors for their wonderful produce
BOUCHE – PICKELS, SAUCES AND CHUTNEYS
WHITESTONE CHEESE
WAITAKI BACON AND HAM
BRYDONE ORGANICS
Follow me on face book Alison Lambert taste of my life and www.alisonmarketchef.blogspot.com