Don't skip a beat!

Many a time I have been red as a beetroot (probably due to all the embarrassing experiences I've encountered) and many a time I have enjoyed eating beetroot in all its forms.

In my younger days I would enjoy pickled beetroot in salads and sandwiches, delighting at how the juices would turn everything a lovely shade of pink, including fingers, lips and tongues! There's nothing wrong with that but it has much more versatility.

Beetroot is relatively easy to grow and tiny beetroot can be picked and enjoyed for their baby sweetness whilst others can be grown to full size and harvested. The double beauty of beetroot is that the leaves can be picked and eaten in salads.

There are many varieties to choose from and, as well as the velvet burgundy, they come in an array of colours including yellows and oranges and candy striped pinks. They can be eaten cooked or raw, hot or cold. The possibilities are endless.

In Hungary I enjoyed shocking pink beetroot soup where they also use beetroot to make borscht (a sour soup served in many Eastern European Jewish communities).

In Ambleside I enjoyed a colourful beetroot starter served cold.

In Harrogate I enjoyed a rich chocolate velvet cake made with ... Yes - Beetroot!

At home I roast beetroot along with butternut squash, adding pecan nuts for the last 10 mins. This is served with a tangy cheese such as feta. The following day I eat it cold from the fridge! As a starter it can be pimped up a bit with salad leaves, a mustard dressing and topped with roast vegetable crisps.

So, without beating around the bush, you just can't beat beetroot!

Hungry in Hungary!

For the first time in nearly two years I missed writing last week's post. My weekend was spent with girlfriends in Budapest, Hungary, and there was just so much to do and see (including a 10k run) that time ran out.

We stayed in Pest where the robust buildings lined streets which had seen much turmoil over the years and crossed the Danube to Buda in order to climb the hill to the castle and view Pest from a great vantage point.

Autumn had arrived with cool sunny days and chilled clear nights. Time for some comfort food. I would say that my friends enjoyed quite a lot of meat and fish dishes and my vegetarian meals were certainly different. The presentation was always immaculate and the waiting staff friendly and informative. My highlights were pea soup and beetroot soup which were both attractive and appetising.

Warm bean salad

A raw vegetable curry with coconut broth eaten in the Jewish quarter 

I would have liked Goulash but wasn't able to find a vegetarian version. I do make it at home sometimes and this is my recipe:-

Onion, carrot, cabbage, courgette, celery, potato

Vegetable/olive oil

Tinned tomatoes

Cooked kidney beans

Tomato puree

Vegetable stock

Seasoning, paprika, mixed herbs

Gently cook the vegetables before adding tomatoes, beans, puree, stock and herbs.

Simmer for approx 20 mins and check seasoning.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream or plain yogurt.

Autumn Comfort!

The morning mist is descending, the leaves are twirling their way to the ground and the fruits are dropping from the branches. Perhaps this is the reason we refer to Autumn as Fall. Despite the sunshine today the temperatures have also dropped and, whether feeling the chill or feeling the blues, we seek comfort. This comes in many forms, including hearty and tasty food.

Today I have cooked mushroom and sage gnocchi. It's earthy and fulfilling and even my non-vegetarian husband enjoyed the meatless meatiness of the mushrooms.

2 echalion (banana) shallots

300g mixed mushrooms

8 sage leaves

100g dry white wine

400g gnocchi 

100g butter

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Use 50g butter to slowly cook finely chopped shallots. 

Add finely chopped mushrooms.

When browned add wine and chopped sage (reserving some), bubble and reduce.

Put to keep warm.

Melt 50g butter and fry gnocchi until browned.

Combine with the mushroom mixture and season.

Fry a few sage leaves in oil as a garnish if required.

 

Hopefully there will be another glass or two of wine left in the bottle for you to do a cheers to the funghis (fun guys) past and present who have made our worlds a little brighter.

Get Wind Of This!

I am currently training for another 10k run and am reminded of a previous confession (New Year's Resolutions! Blog dated 11.1.15). At that time my friend and I would run in the evening (after tea) and whilst I parped my way around the course, she would laugh until she wet herself! Well now I run first thing in the morning before breakfast and no longer have a problem.

Let's not beat about the bush though. Vegetarians are definitely prone to wind and the main vegetable culprits (containing high amounts of unabsorbable carbohydrates) include:

Beans, brocolli, cabbage, cauliflower, artichokes, onions and Brussels sprouts. 

Also lentils and fruit such as raisins, prunes and apples.

Perusing a magazine at the hairdressers the other day, I think I may have found the solution; 

And for my friend;

So wish us good luck with our run - we will be panting all the way!

Flying the nest!

One child returned to University today and the second starts next week. By this time next week I will be an empty nester and either cheering wildly or sobbing uncontrollably!

I have always imagined, had I been to university, that I would have lived in some cosy bedsit, reading my Cranks' Recipe Book with a pan of lentil soup permanently bubbling away on the single stove and that I, due to lack of funds for nourishment, would be a petite size 8. Perhaps that's the way it used to be but how things have changed...

Residential "Halls" are pretty good and kitted out with oven, hob, kettle, microwave etc. There is still the choice of being catered for or not. A myriad of student cookbooks are available with and without vegetarian options. Although being vegetarian was cheaper than being a carnivore back in the day, nowadays there are cheap cuts of meat on offer and vegetarian food has become exciting and, a little more expensive. For example, halloumi cheese is as expensive as bacon. Also, buying and cooking for one is more expensive and the small branches of supermarket found in every student area tend to charge a premium as they have a captive audience; hardly fair for those on a tight budget!

My son spent his first year eating pot noodles, crisps and goodness knows what else; not to mention the lashings of liquid he consumed! Instead of shrinking in size he became larger and unhealthier. By his third year, armed with Jamie O's Ministry of Food book, he was sharing digs with four friends and had a cooking rota which was a great success. They even had a pre-Christmas Dinner with all the trimmings. When the proceedings got a little noisy the grumpy neighbours called the police who were amused to find the boys in their cracker hats and festive jumpers singing hearty renditions of Christmas songs!

Child number two is a good baker but has rarely cooked so, along with her essential cushions and fairy lights, I have armed her with a student cookbook and girly matchy-matchy utensils in the hope that she learns to enjoy cooking and remains a healthy size and weight!

Sherry Baby!

Returning from Ibiza and feeling chilled and relaxed got me thinking about Spanish food, drink and customs. I wrote about Spanish tapas in my blog Top Tapas dated 23/8/15 and touched on the history behind tapas food. It all started with the sherry drinkers in Andalucia protecting their drink from fruit flies by placing a piece of bread over their glasses. Over time, the bread was eaten and more and more snacks were introduced as an accompaniment to sherry until they became a meal in their own right.

Sherry is a fortified wine, meaning that a distilled spirit such as brandy is added. These wines include Marsala, Port, Madeira, Vermouth and Sherry. 

Sherry comes from the area around Jerez in S/W Spain, has protected designation of origin status and ranges from extremely dry to very sweet. The accompaniment to the strong and varied flavours of Spanish tapas is generally a (dry) fino sherry served chilled. New Sherry Bars are popping up in London and around the country as Spanish cuisine is embraced.

It's all a far cry from those sweet wedding reception sherries of old or the musty old bottle brought out on Christmas Day. In the late 1980s/early 1990s I remember pre-drinking at Yates Wine Bar where a dock or schooner of sherry was gulped down to get the night started. It was served at room temperature and was pretty disgusting but it did hit the spot. Apparently it was an Australian fortified wine and not actual sherry. Another memory of the eighties was hosting an impromptu after-party and as everyone raided our drinks cabinet one guest drank almost a full bottle of Emva Cream!

My parents still enjoy a glass of sherry every day at around 4-5pm before making dinner. They recently bought new glasses but were somewhat perturbed to find they were smaller than their old ones! They may need a top-up! "Salud!"

Noah and the F(l)ood!

Chilling on the White Isle so just a brief blog this week. 

The food has been good with lots of healthy/vegetarian cafes. Breakfast consists of wonderful creamy yogurt with muesli, fresh fruit kebabs and pancakes. Lunchtimes offered hummus, Mediterranean salad and cheeses. My evening meals were pasta arrabiata, tapas and breaded Camembert with salad. 

The restaurant last night was reached by a steady uphill climb culminating in spectacular views and an amazing sunset. Less spectacular was the delicacy menu consisting of alligator, ostrich, zebra, camel, kangaroo and bison! OMG! Even my meat eating friends were shocked! Presumably these delicacies were fresh from the freezer, unless of course there was a zoo at the back of the restaurant!

It's a shame there's no modern day Noah to save these animals from being f(l)ooded!