Tomato Orange Soup With Grilled Three Cheese sandwich

Photos © Nick Young 2011

I think that a good tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich is the ultimate comfort food.

I have been making this soup for many years, I'm not sure where I learned it… Most likely from the great Erik Michel!

Soup

1 small yellow onion
4 medium carrots
A splash of olive oil
1 orange, peel & juice
2 lbs tomatos, chopped
3 cups vegetable stock
1 tsp salt

Sauté the onion and the carrots with a splash of olive oil. Add the orange peel, juice, tomatoes, salt and vegetable stock. Simmer for around twenty minutes to allow the tomatoes to break down. Blend with a hand blender*, or traditional blender and serve with a sprinkling of fresh cilantro or basil, your choice.

Sandwich

2 slices bread
1 oz cheddar
1 oz provolone
1 oz mozzarella
2 slices red onion

Layer the three different cheeses and red onion between the bread and cook in a panini press or on a stove top griddle. Serve garnished with the little salad. I garnished mine with sugar snap pea sprouts.

As I started this recipe today I got the news that a friend, Mark Goode, passed away in his sleep this morning, he was only 39 years old… For what it's worth, I dedicate this recipe to him.

Me with Mark, RIP

* I highly recommend purchasing a hand blender, they are so much more convenient than a traditional blender.

Baba Ganoush

Photos © Nick Young 2011

Here's my take on the classic dip.

1 Large Eggplant (aka Aubergine)
1/4 cup tahini paste*
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
2 lemons, juiced
Salt and pepper

Roast the eggplant in a 400° F oven for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally. Once done halve and scoop out the flesh, place on a cookie sheet and put back in the oven for about 10 minutes to dry out a little.

Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor.

Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and serve with tortilla chips or warm pita bread.

*Tahini paste can be found at most middle eastern grocery stores, or on Amazon.com

Bread With Oat Grain

Photos © Nick Young 2011

This a really wonderful, and simple, bread that I've been making for about twenty three years. It was taught to me by the multi-talented Erik Michel when I worked as a commis chef in his restaurant, in Ripley, Surrey UK.

The only thing I've changed is that I use a steel cut oat grain/groat for a finer crumb and, I think, I may be using a little more olive oil.

As this recipe uses no dairy, fat, or egg wash, it is suitable for vegans.


3 lbs Bread flour
4 ozs Steel cut oat grain (or whole grain if you prefer)
30 ozs Warm water
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tsps salt
3 tbsps sugar
2 packs of dried yeast

Add the yeast, oil and sugar to the 30ozs of warm water and put in a warm place until the yeast begins to bubble.

Sift the flour in to large bowl, add the salt and the oats. Make a well the center of the flour and add the yeast mixture. With your hand, work the flour and the liquid together.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and knead until smooth. Place the dough in a oiled bowl, cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Turn dough out onto the floured surface and knead again until all the air is knocked out. Divide the dough into three roughly equal pieces. Each piece can be then be shaped into a loaf or divided further to create rolls.

Dust the top of the shaped loaf with flour and make three or four diagonal incisions across the top and place in a loaf tin. Pre-heat the oven to 375° F and allow the dough to rise to roughly double in size.

Once the loaves have risen place in the oven. The bread should take around 30 - 40 minutes to bake. When ready, turn out of the loaf pans onto a cooling rack. To check that the bread is ready tap the bottom of the loaf, it should be firm and make a hollow sound.

To make a crustier loaf, place a dish of water in the bottom of the oven.

This bread does not have all the preservatives that you find in store bought bread, so I recommend slicing and freezing any that you don't expect to eat within a day or two.

Enjoy!

Here's a video;

Chick Pea Salad

Photos © Nick Young 2011

This is a very tasty salad, and it's pretty quick to make, once the chick peas are prepared. Of course you can speed it up further by using canned chick peas instead, just be sure to rinse and drain them first.

1 lb dried chick peas (aka garbanzo beans) prepared according to instructions.
1 red pepper, finely diced
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
4 cups baby arugula, chopped
10 ozs cherry tomatoes, halved
5 ozs shredded asiago cheese
1tsp salt
2 tsp paprika

Balsamic Dressing

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 heaped tsp grainy stone ground mustard
2 cloves garlic, crushed
pinch of salt

Once everything has been chopped and diced, combine all together with about half the dressing; the rest can be used as an all purpose salad dressing and keeps well.

Serve in a romaine lettuce leaf and sprinkle with a little extra arugula.

Quick & Easy Lentil Curry

Photo © Nick Young 2011

This lentil curry is really simple, easy and very tasty! This recipe makes a pretty large amount but keeps well, I take it to work several days a week for a no hassle lunch.

The heat is fairly mild, which suits Louisa, but I like it hotter so I add some red pepper flakes or hot sauce to mine.

1 lb green lentils
1 can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 1/2 package Golden Curry sauce mix *
2 1/2 cups of water
Cashews and/or peanuts

Cook the lentils until tender, according to the package instructions and drain.

In a pot sauté the garlic, onions and green pepper. Add the lentils, tomato and water, bring to a simmer and add the Golden Curry sauce mix. Keep simmering until thickened and its ready.

Serve on it's own or over some rice. I like to add some cashews or peanuts for a little crunch.

* This Japanese style Golden Curry sauce mix can be found in most good asian grocery stores and on Amazon.com.

Spinach & White Bean Quiche

Photo © Nick Young 2011

This recipe makes two 12 inch quiches. For speed and convenience I use pre-made pastry circles from the grocery store, if you have time to make the pastry fresh go for it!

You can put almost anything in a quiche and is a great way to use leftovers. They can be eaten hot or cold, I often pack a slice for Louisa's lunch.

2 pastry circles.

1 pint of milk (an imperial pint which is 20 ozs, not U.S. which is 16 ozs).

5 eggs

10 ozs fresh spinach

2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

16 ozs white beans (I use great northern beans)

2 cups of grated cheddar 

olive oil

salt & pepper

Pre heat the oven to 375ºF.  

In a large pan heat some olive oil and brown the garlic, add the spinach and remove from the heat; tossing the spinach in the oil and garlic until wilted.  

Beat the eggs and the milk together with salt and pepper to taste. Line your quiche pans with the pastry and distribute the spinach, white beans and cheese evenly between them. If you use canned beans be sure to rinse and drain them first.

Fill each quiche with the milk and egg mixture, place in the oven and cook for around 40 minutes.

Black Bean Tacos With Feta Cheese And Coleslaw

Photo © Nick Young 2011

These black bean tacos are made with the tangy red and white cabbage posted here.

I made these with prepared dry beans but canned beans work fine.

1 can black beans.
1/2 red onion, chopped.
1/2 green pepper, finely diced.
1/2 packet taco seasoning (any brand, 1.25ozs type).
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped.
Flour tortillas.
Crumbled feta cheese.
Coleslaw (see recipe linked above).
Limes, on the side.
Sour cream, on the side.

Saute the onions and green pepper, add the canned black beans, including the liquid, add the taco seasoning and cilantro (reserve a little for a final garnish). Cook down the liquid, stirring all the while, until the mixture has thickened, allow to cool a little.

Heat up a stove top griddle or iron skillet. Fill the flour tortillas with a couple of spoonfuls of the black bean mixture, sprinkle in some feta and fold in half.

Once the griddle or skillet is hot add the filled tortillas and brown slightly on each side. Top with the coleslaw and serve with a lime wedge and some sour cream on the side. Garnish with a sprinkling of the remaining chopped cilantro.

Enjoy!

My First Post - Tangy Red & White Coleslaw

Recently my 16 year old daughter made the request to switch to a vegetarian diet. She always had a love of animals and an aversion to animal cruelty/testing etc. so felt it was hypocritical of her to continue to eat meat. However, she will continue to eat fish occasionally, so her diet will really be pescetarian.

Here is one of the first things I made, a tangy red and white cabbage coleslaw.


1/2 small white cabbage, shredded.
1/4 small red cabbage, shredded.
5 medium carrots, grated.
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced.
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped (optional).

This will make quite a lot of coleslaw so, unless you are feeding a large group, I suggest you ziplock and refrigerate most of it and make the dressing to order as you need it.

Dressing

1 cup mayo.
1 cup plain greek yoghurt.
1 lime or lemon, juiced.
2 tsps ground cumin.

I advise adjusting these amounts to personal taste.

The reason I make a lot of this is that it can be added to other dishes, such as black bean tacos. (see next post!)