Polenta Napoletana

I am usually somewhat a purist when it comes to pizza, taking something as delicious as pizza and substituting the delicious chewy dough base, browned and bubbling, for some ground up cauliflower, arguably the blandest vegetable. That said, this recipe, which uses baked polenta is wonderful, and I give it a pass because its creation came not from a desire to cut out carbs or to lose weight, but simply because it is so delicious.

Start by heating a litre of water in a large saucepan to a rolling boil, and dissolve in two stock cubes, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and some dried oregano, sprinkle in the polenta whisking rapidly until the polenta is smooth and the whisk will stand up in the polenta without falling over.

Spread the polenta over an oiled swiss roll tin, with a palette knife until it is smooth and covers the whole tine, and bake it in a very hot oven for about half an hour until it is crisp and the top has hardened slightly.

For the topping you can choose pretty much whatever you want, I use a concentrated tomato puree as the base, and cover it with cherry tomatoes, cut in half and placed cut side up.

For the other toppings, you pretty much let your imagination run wild, This can be a good dish to use whatever you have in the fridge, here I use mushrooms, black olives, feta cheese, and then a couple of balls of torn mozzarella. Drizzle with extra virgin oil and season with some sea salt flakes, and some freshly ground pepper.

Bake again in a hot oven until the tomatoes have become burnished and shiny, and the cheese is melted. Serve cut into wedges with a fresh green salad.

ingredients

for the polenta base:
250g dry polenta
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 tsp dried Oregano
salt & pepper, to taste

for the topping:
tomato concentrate
mushrooms, sliced
feta cheese, crumbled
pitted black olives
cherry tomatoes, halved
mozzarella balls, torn
olive oil
salt & pepper

Tagliatelles à la crème aux champignons

This is a recipe I am inordinately proud of, and is one that I have been making for years, I started this website partially so that I would have somewhere to write down all the recipes I have developed and honed over all the years. This is one of my favorites, and it tastes incredibly luxurious despite being incredibly simple to make.

Start by wiping and chopping your mushrooms, don't wet them or they will be slimy. Cooking mushrooms is incredibly simple yet it is so often done badly, there are a few simple rules, firstly don't crowd them, or they won't brown, secondly always cook them in butter, as olive oil has too brusque a flavour and will overpower the delicate mushrooms, finally never salt them until they have finished cooking, if you season them too soon they will ooze out all their water, and will be slimy.

Put a large knob of butter in a cold heavy based frying pan and crush in two cloves of garlic, heat gently until the butter melts and add the chopped mushrooms, stirring to coat them in the butter, they will give out some liquid as you cook them, and when this liquid has been soaked back up, add a small glass of white vermouth to the pan. Stir over a high heat until all the vermouth has evaporated.

Start cooking your pasta, I like to use fresh tagliatelle. Then add 400ml of single cream, and stir to combine, simmer it for a few minutes and season with salt and pepper, and a little parsley if desired. Turn off the heat and add some grated parmesan to taste, stir in the cheese until the sauce is smooth. Drain the pasta and top with the cream sauce, stir so that the sauce is well distributed through the pasta and serve garnished with chopped parsley.

ingredients

400g fresh tagliatelle
300g mushrooms
400ml single cream
small glass white vermouth
grated parmesan, to taste
small knob butter
salt & pepper
chopped parsley, to garnish

Hot Cross Buns

This is not a recipe post, I have never made hot cross buns and I usually delegate that responsibility to my mother, but as some long forgotten french philosopher once said, the act of eating and more importantly enjoying food is just as important as the act of cooking, so with this philosophy in mind, I shall continue.

I adore hot cross buns, but I only eat them once a year, holidays permitting, on good friday. I find the culture of supermarkets selling hot cross buns year round, often in quirky flavours like toffee apple or cranberry rather vulgar. There is something lovely about only eating these homemade on good friday, still hot from the oven and spread thickly with salted breton butter. Many people toast hot cross buns. I have never left them long enough to even get cold before I eat them, so this is an impossibility.

One of my favorite things about homemade hot cross buns, is the glaze, my mother generally makes this out of marmalade, letting it melt and then thinning it slightly, and it makes the most wonderfully sticky and pungent syrupy topping. Truly, a springtime treat.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Lasagne

Beef lasagne is a classic, undoubtedly, but given that every family has their own recipe, and their own preferences for how lasagne should be served, giving a recipe seems slightly pointless. This is something slightly different, as it uses roasted pumpkin and sauteed swiss chard in the place of a beef ragu, and it is surprisingly good.

Start by roasting your pumpkin, cut it into large cubes and place it on a baking tray, lightly drizzled with oil, and seasoned with salt and pepper. Roast in a hot oven for about 45 minutes until the surface has blackened slightly and the skin is falling off. Sautee the chard by washing it in cold water, and without drying it, place it in a saucepan over a low heat, season with a little salt, you won't need too much as the chard is already quite salty, and a little pepper.

Make a bechamel by whisking 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil with 4 tablespoons of flour over a medium heat until it combines to form a roux. Off the heat add about 400 ml of milk slowly, whisking until it combines and there are no lumps. Place the pan back on the heat and stir it gently with a wooden spoon until it thickens, and when it is thick and has lost its floury taste, then season with salt, pepper and a hint of freshly grated nutmeg.

To assemble the lasagne, put about half the swiss chard, drained and half the roasted pumpkin, mashed slightly with the skin removed in an ovenproof dish, and top with about half a jar of tomato passata. Cover with uncooked sheets of lasagne and repeat, adding another layer. Finally top with the bechamel sauce and cover with grated parmesan. Bake in a medium hot oven for about half an hour until the cheese has browned and the sauce underneath is bubbling.

ingredients

400g pumpkin, diced
400g swiss chard
4 tbsps vegetable oil
4 tbsps plain flour
400 ml milk
1 packet lasagne sheets
1 jar tomato passata
75g parmesan cheese

Irish Soda Bread

My love of bread is very well documented, and I am always on the lookout for new types of bread to buy or make. There is something so therapeutic about kneading dough, the feeling of squashing it onto the bench beneath your fingers, the satisfying sound of the air seeping out of the risen dough as you knock it back. The only thing I don't like about kneading dough, is having to clean flour from the worksurface afterwards, thankfully with this recipe, that stage is omitted.

Soda bread has the same crumb, aspect and texture as any other bread, the way that it differs is that instead of using yeast as a raising agent, it uses sodium bicarbonate, more commonly known as baking powder, hence the name, soda bread. This gives the bread a slightly different flavour, and means that you don't need to rise the bread in cycles and knock it back, and that you can have a loaf on the table in under 45 minutes, this is a massive boon if you live in the middle of the country, and are unable to simply pop out to the bakery.

Start by making your buttermilk, you can buy buttermilk in the supermarket, but being able to make a simple imitation means that you can always be prepared to make this bread whenever you fancy. Measure 4 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into a measuring jug, and then top up to 400 ml with milk, stir until the milk curdles, and then takes on a vaguely yellow tinge. If it looks thoroughly unappetising, then you've got it right.

Next weigh 500 g of multigrain flour, and place it in a bowl along with 1tsp of baking powder and a large pinch of salt. Working quickly pour over the buttermilk mixture and stir with a fork to combine. Turn the mixture out onto a floured baking tray, and knead it together on the tray, working it into a ball, flatten the ball slightly and then use a sharp knife to cut a large cross into the loaf, cutting almost through, bake at 200 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.

ingredients

500 g multigrain flour
1 tsp baking powder
large pinch salt
400 ml milk
4 tsp apple cider vinegar

For the Love of Pizza

The history of pizza is long and contested, some say that it originates with the greeks, who topped their bread with oils and herbs, and sometimes cheese, the more accepted story, is that it was created in Naples, where it evolved from the garlic, cheese and basil topped flatbreads which somewhat resemble modern focaccia.

Popular legend holds that the modern neapolitan pizza was created in 1889 when, in honour of the visiting Queen Margherita, a local pizzaiolo created a pizza in her honour, which he swathed in the colours of the italian flag, using red tomato sauce, white mozzarella and green basil. According to recent research, this story is total baloney, but it's a rather nice tale nonetheless.

I am not a food snob, my love of pub grub and greasy spoons is well documented and is mostly lampooned by my friends, however, I will admit that when it comes to pizza, I prefer something slightly more refined than your average take-away can deliver. Maybe living in Italy for a year has destroyed my ability to enjoy doughy take-out pie, but after living in a country where you can buy the most amazing pizza on the street for a mere euro, it is difficult to spend a tenner for a pizza that usually ends up being a thorough disappointment.

My ideal pizza is always topped with artichoke hearts, I am almost addicted to these as a topping, they are simply fabulous, and have been my favorite for as long as I can remember. Also brilliant is asparagus. I am fairly indifferent to asparagus generally, except in this case. Rocket is also great when added after the pizza has been cooked, adding a crunchy freshness to the pizza.

Finally, egg. Egg makes the most wonderful pizza topping, baked on top of the pizza so that the white has cooked and the yolk is still runny, providing some much needed lubrication. The use of egg on pizza is highly controversial in my family, and for those who haven't tried it is sounds bizarre and horrific, but it's one of my favorites.

White Chocolate and Raspberry Victoria Sponge

One of my fondest memories of being a child was when my mother made a birthday cake every year for my birthday, I haven't been at home for my birthday for a few years now, given that my birthday is in october, but these memories were reborn last year when my housemate Zanna made me a beautiful chocolate cake for my birthday.

This year, mostly thanks to the suggestion of my friend Alice, I sought to bring the same joy that I had felt to someone else, and made a cake for my friend Morgan. Given that Alice was busy working, my friend Ali and I got to work. I will admit to not having actually made a sponge cake in many years, but it turned out pretty well, so it's either thanks to Ali, or its just like riding a bike. I think it's probably thanks to Ali. (unlike me he remembers to check the oven before the sponge burns to a cracker)

Start by creaming together your sugar and butter until it is light and fluffy, and crack in four eggs and mix them together until combined. Add the self-raising flour one spoonful at a time, folding in the flour gently. Separate the mixture between two lined cake tins at 180 for around 20 minutes until risen and springy, or until a skewer pushed into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove the cakes from their tins and place them on a wire rack, wait until they've cooled entirely, and spread the tops of both of the cakes with raspberry jam. Place one cake on top of the other, and you can turn your attention to the whipped cream icing.

Place your double cream in a clean and dry glass bowl, and start to whip it with an electric whisk. Whip until it forms soft peaks, but isn't yet hard or discoloured, if your cream has a yellowish tint you have whipped it too long and you are now on the way to making butter, it will be delicious on your toast, but won't make a good cake topping. When the cream has been whipped, and this will take a while, fold in 8 tablespoons of icing sugar and two teaspoons of vanilla.

Spread the icing over your cake, making it smooth and even, though you will struggle to get it entirely flawless, and its lack of perfection is part of what I love about this topping. I am not the greatest cake decorator, unlike both my mother and my housemate, both of whom are practical artists. This icing is great for me, because it has an imperfect elegance.

Top the cake with upside down raspberries, and surround the outside with white chocolate fingers.

Not only is this cake delicious, and you can alter it using whatever sponge cake you like, red velvet would be particularly good, but it is also gloriously pretty, and the combination of the white chocolate and the red raspberries is particularly elegant.

ingredients

for the cake

225g softened butter

225g caster sugar

4 eggs

225g self raising flour

for the topping

600ml double cream

8 tablespoons icing sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 x 114g boxes white chocolate fingers

150g raspberries

Coffee, my beloved

I have many, many vices, which I won't enumerate here, but one of my greatest vices is coffee. Living in England, where a good cup of coffee is about as rare as the white stag or the black rhino is a challenge, now I am generally not a food snob, I love nothing more than a pub lunch or a takeaway, but when it comes to coffee, I am a braggart, I abhor instant coffee, I'd rather just drink tea than subject myself to a mug of tasteless watery nescafe.

I also loathe instant espresso machines. Whilst placing a capsule into a machine may be incredibly convenient, this doesn't make up for it being awful for the environment, and for it lacking the refinement of using real coffee.

I do, if I'm at my parent's home in Paris, like to use whole beans, and grind them myself using a peugeot coffee grinder my mother received as a christmas present from my father a few years ago. Yes it is hard work grinding the coffee beans by hand, and it isn't something that you can do every day, but on the occasions when you have time, boy is it worth it.

For some people, coffee is just a means to a highly caffeinated end, but for me, coffee is a ritual, and thus the choice of coffee beans is also highly important, and for me the best coffee comes from guatemala. I am generally fonder of coffee from the americas than of african coffee, which tends to be rather harsh and overly bitter. Guatemalan coffee is rounder and richer than kenyan or ethiopian coffee, and the bitterness isn't overwhelming.

I also feel that what you use to make your coffee is important. A few years ago I was given an italian espresso machine, you fill the bottom with water and the middle with coffee, the water boils and the pressure pushes it up through the coffee making a delicious espresso.

If I am in search of a longer coffee then I am also partial to a cafetiere or even a drip coffee, which makes a more protracted, and a slower coffee. I also can't abide by drinking coffee out of a mug, and always use a small espresso cup.

Though it might seem like my obsession is fairly extreme, coffee is possibly one of the only things of which I actually consider myself a connoisseur. So while this article might seem rather pretentious and entirely lacking in introspection, I am well aware that I take my caffeinated vice a little too seriously.

Sweet Potato Mac & Cheese

I'm not usually a fan of mac & cheese, I usually find it too gloopy and claggy for my tastes, however this version is rather better than most, as the sweet potato cuts through the cheese sauce lightening the dish wonderfully.

The first time I made this I made a few errors, my first mistake was that I used a flavourless light cheddar, this dish really requires a sharp, mature cheddar, which will give the dish a great piquancy. The other mistake I made was in omitting the feta cheese, which is really necessary to lend a salty and light respite to the heavy cheese sauce.

To start, peel and dice the sweet potato, cook until tender and soft, and remove from the pan to a bowl with a slotted spoon and mash slightly with a fork, cook the pasta in the water, and while this is happening, start making your bechamel.

Place the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, and when it is melted, add the flour and whisk it into a roux. Remove the pan from the heat and add the milk slowly, whisking it together, ensuring that there are no lumps. When all the milk has been added return the pan to the heat and stir with a wooden spoon until it thickens.

When the sauce has thickened add a teaspoon of french mustard and about two thirds of the grated cheese. By this time your pasta will be cooked, add it to the bowl with the sweet potato, gently combine the potatoes and the pasta, and crumble in the feta. Add the cheese sauce and combine, If you wish you can add some pancetta, use cubed pancetta and fry it in a pan with a little olive oil, and then add it to the pasta and potato mixture, making sure to not add the grease.

Next, transfer the whole mixture to an ovenproof dish, and add the bechamel, stirring to combine, and top with the rest of the grated cheese, place the dish in a hot oven until the cheese has melted and browned, and is bubbling.

I can't get over what an improvement this dish is to artificial, industrial boxed mac & cheese, the potato adds a lightness and the cheese sauce is thick and sharp.

ingredients

500g sweet potato
300g macaroni
60g butter
4 tablespoons plain flour
500 ml semi skimmed milk
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
pinch paprika
75g feta cheese
150g mature cheddar
salt & pepper

Roasted Vegetable Risotto

I made this for the first time last night on a whim, and I will admit that I am quite taken with it. I invented this recipe fairly randomly, after my friends asked me to cook them dinner, and it was thankfully successful.

Start by slow roasting your vegetables, I used courgettes, red onion and red peppers, but you could also use any vegetables you like. Dice the vegetables into small chunks and sprinkle them with a little salt and some freshly ground black pepper, drizzle them with olive oil and toss, ensuring that they are fully coated in the oil. Grate or mince over a few cloves of garlic, and place them into a medium hot oven for about half an hour. About 10 minutes before the risotto is due to be finished, add some sun dried tomatoes, which add a nice tang to the risotto.

After the vegetables have been cooking for around 10 minutes, start on your risotto, finely chop half a red onion and put it into a mini blender to achieve a fine chop. Put the contents of the blender into a large frying pan with some salt and pepper and sweat it off for a few minutes on a high heat. Add the rice, and a little white wine if you wish, and cook off the wine, stirring as it cooks.

Make up your stock, and you will need quite a lot, I normally make about a litre to start off with, and then when the first litre has been absorbed, I taste the rice to see how chewy it is, and how much more stock it will require. Add the stock a bit at a time stirring with a wooden spoon until the stock has absorbed and then adding more, continue until all the stock has been absorbed and the rice is tender.

When the rice is cooked take the frying pan off the heat and add a large knob of butter, add some parmesan and stir it into the risotto. Remove the vegetables from the oven and add the risotto to the tray, use wooden spoons to toss the risotto and the vegetables together until combined, and serve, on warmed plates.

I created this on a whim and I will admit that I am immensely proud of it, it has a vibrancy and tang that makes it the perfect antidote to bland and boring white risottos, which so often lack interest and taste. This also makes the perfect dish for feeding a lot of people, as upscaling the quantities is pretty simple.

Ingredients

400g arborio rice
1 litre vegetable or chicken stock
small glug or white wine or vermouth
90g freshly grated parmesan
3 courgettes, diced
3 red peppers, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper
olive oil
large knob butter

Fried Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich

This is truly one of my favorite breakfast recipes, it's gloriously simple and fantastically cheap, and it takes mere minutes to make. This dish was a favorite of Elvis Presley's, who would eat these sandwiches as a midnight snack, cooked by his mother in bacon fat, my version is a rather more svelte.

There are many variations on this sandwich, some of which include bacon, some butter the bread first, and some even include honey. This version is as simple as it can possibly be, using only three ingredients, and not even using any cooking fat, just a griddle to create picturesque smoky lines.

Take two slices of industrial packaged bread, I find white works best, and spread them both with peanut butter. The kind of peanut butter you choose depends on your preference, but I prefer the unsweetened crunchy kind. You can use smooth if you prefer, but whichever you choose it mustn't be too runny, otherwise the peanut butter will drip out when you try to cook it.

Peel a banana and mash it on a board, and then add it to one of the slices of bread, on top of the peanut butter, place the other slice of bread on top, peanut butter side down. Place the sandwich on a hot griddle, and leave it until the bread is crunchy on the outside, and flip it, cooking until the sandwich is warm through and cooked on the other side.

ingredients

2 slices white bread
crunchy peanut butter
1 banana