I wasn’t planning on such a long blog break but life has been busy with a 4 month old keeping me on my toes.  He has no interest in pretty napkins and taking photos, unless of course they are of him or perhaps a bottle of milk.  I didn’t manage to blog much last year and I’ve missed it so blogging more is a New Year resolution of sorts.  If anyone is still reading this blog then thanks for sticking around!

This roasted butternut squash risotto is a regular meal through winter.  I love the vibrant orange of the squash to warm up a grey day.  It’s easy to throw together and comforting to eat.  I’m sure I don’t need to tell you how to make risotto but I do mine a little differently by adding quinoa for a healthier and lighter meal.  If that isn’t your thing just make your favourite risotto recipe, roast the squash and add both the squash and kale to your risotto at the end.

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Serves 2

½ butternut squash, peeled and diced

2-3 cavolo nero leaves finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon olive oil

Knob of butter

1oz quinoa rinsed

2-3oz Arborio rice

500ml stock (I use chicken stock)

Hard goats cheese or parmesan, grated

For the roasted squash: line a baking sheet with parchment.  Spread out the butternut squash, sprinkle with thyme and drizzle with olive oil.  Roast in the oven for approx 35 minutes at Gas mark 7.

For the risotto: Heat the oil in a sauté pan and add the shallot or onion.  Sauté over a low heat until translucent.  Add the garlic and continue to sauté for a further minute.  Add the butter followed by quinoa and Arborio rice.  Sauté for a two minutes until the rice becomes translucent and the quinoa is slightly toasty.  Deglaze the pan with a ladle full of stock or white wine if you prefer.  Once the stock is absorbed by the rice add another ladle full and continue with this method until the rice is cooked, about 25 minutes, stirring between each addition of stock.  Add the roasted butternut squash and chopped kale.  Cook for a further minute then turn off the heat, add the grated cheese and cover with a lid.  Leave the risotto to rest for two minutes then serve with more grated cheese on top if you like.

Roasted Summer Vegetables and a Rosy View

There is a rose in our garden coming out in full bloom.  If you knew what bad gardeners we are you would be impressed.  A few weeks ago my husband cleared an over grown and mostly dead flower bed which had been doing a good deal of looking very ugly for the past year.  We took ourselves off to the garden centre and set about buying plants having no clue what we were doing except that we wanted a few hardy shrubs and a rose bush.  We returned home somewhat out of pocket but with a car boot full of promise.  My husband dutifully planted everything while I idled with a book in a chair offering up helpful and sometimes not so helpful directions.  He planted, we watched, we waited.  The centrepiece of our new flower bed is an English rose bush and I’m happy to report this morning there are two lovely heads in bloom.  The rosemary we bought is thriving, the fuscia is doing well.  As for the others, the less said about those the better.  You can’t win them all.  The tenuous link to this salad being that we can now sit outside and enjoy our lunch with a decent view.

I’ve been enjoying roasted vegetables in various incarnations so far this summer.  I buy whatever is in season but the main players have been fennel, courgettes, carrots, tomatoes and of course kale.  In this version I used up some potatoes and threw in an avocado but I’ve also mixed roasted veg with pasta, quinoa and even millet.  The flavour comes from the roasted veg as they caremelise in the oven, the lemon zest adds a bright note to the whole affair, toasted nuts or seeds add crunch and of course goats cheese for tang.

Serves 2

1 large potato peeled and cut in to chunks

2 carrots peeled and sliced to your liking

½ large fennel bulb or whole bulb if smaller, cut in to wedges.

8 or so small plum tomatoes cut in half or quarters if larger

1 bunch of kale or other greens

1 avocado peeled and sliced

Handful of pumpkin seeds, toasted

Goats cheese

1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

Zest of half a lemon

Teaspoon rosemary

Preheat oven Gas Mark 7, line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Parboil the potatoes, drain and set aside to steam.  Prepare the other vegetables.  Add the potatoes, carrots and fennel to the first baking sheet.  Sprinkle with rosemary and olive oil.  Place on the shelf of the oven.

Lay the tomatoes cut side up on the other baking sheet.  Drizzle with oil and roast in the bottom shelf of the oven.  Keep an eye on the vegetables, turning occasionally.  Everything should be done after about 40 minutes.  The vegetables should be golden and the tomatoes should be beginning to caremelise.

Once the vegetables are ready add the kale to the baking tray to allow it to slightly wilt for about one minute.  Remove from the oven and grate over the lemon zest.  Serve up the roasted vegetables and kale in bowls, top with the tomatoes, avocado, goats cheese and pumpkin seeds.  Season to your liking.

Parsnip and Pea Risotto

Last weekend I thought I’d been having a busy time of it lately, then this week happened and I realised I’d had it easy.  Just to add to my already simmering stress levels my car decided to break down.  I’m looking ahead with hopeful anticipation to a less hectic week and a fully functioning car to get me from A to B.  Oh and I totally missed my blogs second birthday but since it’s a blog and not a person I think I can get away with it.  Meanwhile, Autumn has fully arrived with grey skies and rain pouring down.  I’ve started making lots of stews and risottos.  Anything I can eat out of a bowl makes me feel comforted and warmed.  As much as I dislike the cold I do adore winter root vegetables and parsnips are always at the top of my list.  As soon as they were available at the market I busted out one of my favourite winter risottos.  It’s a starch fest but it is oh so good.  I particularly love this after a long day at work.  I get home, relax in a hot bath and then make this in my pyjamas.  Music on in the background, I love the ritual of gently coaxing the risotto in to a lovely creamy texture.  Parsnips are sweet and starchy, making the texture even creamier.  The peas balance things out with a dash of vibrant green.  Much needed vitamin C as cold season is upon us.

A few notes on my method.  I use quinoa in my risottos.  I’ve spoken about this before.  I think it is a great idea as makes it an all round healthier and slightly lighter meal.  It’s also a great way to hide quinoa for those who aren’t so keen.  You get a slight nutty crunch but it really isn’t very noticeable.  If you hate the thought then simply use more risotto rice instead.  I also don’t use white wine to deglaze the pan as I never seem to have a bottle open at the right time!  We’re not really white wine drinkers in this house.

Parsnip and Pea Risotto

Serves 2

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1-2 shallots finely chopped

1 clove garlic crushed

Knob of butter

2 parsnips, peeled and cut in to fine matchsticks about an inch in length

½ cup frozen peas

1 tsp fresh thyme leaves

35g (1 ½ oz) quinoa rinsed (optional)

75g (3oz) Arborio risotto rice (more if you aren’t using the quinoa)

600ml gluten free stock

White wine to deglaze the pan (optional)

Hard goats cheese or parmesan, grated

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or sauté pan.  Add the shallot and gently sauté until translucent.  Add the parsnips and continue to sauté until they are just beginning to soften slightly.  About 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and sauté for a couple of minutes more.  Next add a knob of butter to the pan and when melted add the quinoa followed by the rice.  Now add your thyme leaves.  Cook for a couple of minutes before deglazing the pan with either a little stock or white wine.  Once the wine or stock has been absorbed by the rice begin to ladle in your stock stirring gently between each addition.  (I usually keep the stock heating in a pan on the back burner).  Continue this process for 20 to 25 minutes until the rice is cooked and the stock is used up.  If you run out of stock you can add more water from the kettle.  5 minutes before the risotto is ready add the frozen peas.  When the peas are cooked through and the risotto has reached your desired consistency add some grated parmesan, turn off the heat and allow to sit covered for 2 minutes.  Serve and grate more parmesan over the top.

My Week in Lunches

Whenever I have some time off work and I’m spending it at home I like to abandon my work day sandwiches and eat something a little different for lunch.  It’s an opportunity to eat a little bit healthier.  I’ll generally just create something for myself out of whatever is in the fridge and needs using.  It has to be something that comes together quickly as I am usually coming in and going out again.  This week a bag of kale was sitting patiently in my fridge so it featured pretty heavily in my lunch time munching.  The general pattern is veggies, a grain and some protein, usually an egg, cheese or toasted nuts of some description.  I might write up a couple of these as recipes in the coming weeks.  It’s back to sandwiches next week sadly.  What have you been having for lunch lately?

I’m Keen on Quinoa

I made a salad using that super grain quinoa with my roasted tomatoes and it was deeelish.  I threw together what was hanging around in our fridge (now, sort of working again).  Roasted fennel, creamy avocado, roasted tomatoes and lemon zest quinoa. Perfect.  This weekend has seen us out for walks, more blackberry picking, buying two pairs of shoes for autumn (me, not him), having guilt about buying two pairs of shoes, lots of cooking and eating, burying my head in new cookery books, drinking tea and reading, writing very long sentences, just relaxing.  I think I recommend it.

 

I haven’t specified amounts here as this really is a thrown together salad depending on how many people you are feeding.  I made this for just little old me.

Quinoa

Tomatoes, roasted

Fennel bulb chopped and fronds removed

Lemon zest

Squeeze of lemon juice to taste

Extra virgin olive oil

Avocado peeled and chopped

Preheat oven gas mark 5, 190°C, 375°F

Roast tomatoes using this method.  Spread fennel across a baking tray and roast for approximately 30 minutes.  You will probably need to have the fennel on the top shelf of your oven and the tomatoes below if you are making them at the same time.  You may need to adjust your oven temperature accordingly.  Cook your quinoa according to the pack instructions.  (I really like this video for cooking quinoa from Sarah at My New Roots). Once the quinoa is cooked add the lemon zest and leave it to steam with the lid on until everything else is ready.  When you are ready to serve your salad fluff the quinoa with a fork and combine with the tomatoes, fennel and avocado.  Add a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil and eat at room temperature.