Author Archives: MGG

Red Pepper Puree

Posted in Appetizers & Snacks, Pasta & Rice Dishes by

This is a miracle recipe. It’s simple to make, and you can use it for so many things — atop crackers or toasted French bread for an appetizer (ooh — try it with goats cheese!), as a topping for chicken or fish, or mixed with chopped tomatoes for a pasta sauce. All you need are four red bell peppers.

Heat the oven to 475F/245C.

Arrange the whole peppers in a roasting tray and roast for 35-40 minutes, turning every 10 minutes as the peppers blacken. Remove when peppers have collapsed.

Cover the tray with foil and let the peppers cool.

Working over a bowl to catch the liquid, remove the peppers’ skin, core, and seeds. Put the pulp in a food processor, add a large pinch of salt, and puree.

You can easily adjust the flavors by adding cumin, grated ginger, minced garlic, chili pepper, fennel… or whatever you like.

Yield: About 1 cup.

Green Rice

Posted in Pasta & Rice Dishes by

This little side dish, taken from The New York Times ages ago, isn’t just delicious — it’s also an easy way to sneak vegetables into your meal. Great for mothers to make for kids, or for reluctant vegetarians to make for themselves.

8 servings

2 cups loosely packed trimmed spinach, rinsed and dried
1/2 bunch parsley, stemmed, washed, and dried
1/2 bunch cilantro (coriander), stemmed, washed, and dried
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups long-grain rice, like American
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

Tear the spinach, parsley, and cilantro into rough bits and put in a food processor with salt and 1/2 cup water, then puree.

Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and add the rice. Stir to coat and cook 2 minutes. Stir in the pureed spinach mixture and 2 1/2 cups water. Heat to boiling, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook 14 minutes.

Turn off the heat and let rest 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve topped with toasted pine nuts.

Corn Chowder

Posted in Soups & Chilis by
This is a great soup for a cold night — so file it away for the winter months. It could easily make a very filling meal on its own, served with a rustic loaf of bread and some vegetables on the side.
Makes 8 servings

2 oz. bacon (Canadian bacon), diced
2 cups diced sweet onion
2 large carrots, cut into chunks
1 celery rib, diced
1 red bell pepper, cut into chunks
1 lb. yellow-fleshed potatoes such as Yukon Gold, peeled and cut into chunks
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
6 fresh thyme sprigs
3 cups corn (from about 6 ears), drained if canned
2 1/2 to 3 cups heavy (double) cream
1 tsp. fine sea salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. smoked chili powder
Finely chopped fresh chives for garnish

Cook bacon in a wide 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside.

Add onion, carrots, celery, and bell pepper to bacon fat and cook, stirring, until onion is softened, 8 to 10 minutes.

Add potato, broth, and thyme and simmer, covered, until potatoes are just tender, about 15 minutes.

Add corn and cream and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Add seasonings, then stir in bacon and heat through. Garnish with chives.

Pasta with Gorgonzola and Arugula

Posted in Pasta & Rice Dishes by

“Arugula. It’s a vegetable.” So said Steve Martin’s character in the movie My Blue Heaven. My brother and I used to love to repeat that line. Arugula — known as rocket in Britain — is actually more of a salad leaf with a distinctive flavor. Here, it balances the cheese wonderfully.

2 Tbsp. butter
8 oz./225g Gorgonzola
6 oz. arugula (rocket), washed and dried
1 lb. cut pasta (shell shapes work best)

Bring a large pot of water to boil for pasta.

Meanwhile, melt butter over low heat in a small saucepan. Add Gorgonzola and cook, stirring frequently, until cheese melts. Keep warm while you cook the pasta.

While the sauce keeps warm and the pasta cooks, tear the arugula apart (pieces should not be too small).

When pasta is al dente, remove, drain, and toss with arugula and cheese mixture. Add plenty of salt and freshly ground pepper and serve.

Stuffed Peppers, Two Ways

Posted in Beef, Poultry, Vegetables by

In doing a cook-off a while back with stuffed peppers, I came up with two winners, each with a different taste. One has more of a Mexican flavor and the other one is more Italian. I couldn’t decide which to keep, so I kept them both.

Mexican Stuffed Peppers

Adjust the hot seasonings as you like — you could even add chopped green chilis for an extra kick.

Serves 6

6 large bell peppers
1 lb. ground (minced) beef or turkey
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
1 8-oz. jar mild Mexican salsa
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (cheddar or hard mozzarella are good substitutes)
Fresh cilantro/coriander leaves, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350F/175C. Cut the tops off the peppers and reserve. Remove the membrane and seeds from inside the peppers.

Put the oil in a pan and heat over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until onion is translucent. Add turkey, crumble and brown. Remove from heat and add remaining ingredients. Spoon mixture into peppers and cap with pepper tops. Place in a baking pan filled with 1/2 inch of water and bake for 35-40 minutes or until peppers are tender.

Italian Stuffed Peppers

If you prefer, you could replace the sausage with another half-pound of ground beef or turkey.

Makes 4 servings

4 large green bell peppers
2 tsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 lb. ground (minced) beef or turkey
1/2 lb. Italian sausage meat
1 Tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. dried marjoram
Salt and pepper to taste
4 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1 generous tsp. butter

Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Cut off the tops of the peppers but keep them to one side. Remove all membrane and seeds from inside the peppers.

Heat the oil in a pan and saute the onion and 2 cloves chopped garlic. Add the ground beef and sausage and cook through. Remove from heat and stir in herbs, salt, and pepper.

Stuff peppers with meat mixture and cover with tops. Place in ovenproof dish and bake for about 1 hour.

Just before the peppers finish baking, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook for about 2 minutes. When peppers are done, pour the sauce over the insides of the peppers and serve.

Turkey Stuffing

Posted in Holiday, Leftover Ideas, Poultry by

It’s way too early to think about Thanksgiving or Christmas, I know. But this, a recipe for the stuffing inside your holiday bird, really is delicious at any time of year — and it’s a great way to use that bit of French baguette you didn’t eat the other day. Frugal cooks, here’s one for you.

You can use it either as stuffing or dressing — the term for stuffing that you cook and serve on its own. And as a dressing, it works great alongside many types of meat, from turkey cutlets to pork sausages.

1 chicken bouillon cube
2 Tbsp. butter
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 celery stalks, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
2 short *stale* French baguettes (in America, you can use 1 bag Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing) — or use the equivalent in stale bread
1 tsp. each sage, oregano, ginger, rosemary, marjoram, thyme, white pepper, and celery seed
2 eggs

If making this as a dressing, preheat oven to 350F/175C.
Dissolve bouillon cube in 1 1/2 cups water and set aside.

Melt butter in medium saucepan. Saute onion and celery until onion is transparent. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Put celery mixture in large bowl and add bread and herbs. Combine with wooden spoon. Add eggs.

Add the chicken broth a small amount at a time. Make sure the mixture doesn’t “glop” together; rather, make sure the stuffing still separates when mixed. (You may not need to use all of the broth.)

To serve as turkey dressing, place mixture in casserole dish and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. To serve as stuffing, place inside bird.

Thai Soup with Potato

Posted in Soups & Chilis by

This is easy to make and delicious. It’s perfect if you’re fighting a cold — just adjust the chili as needed. This recipe serves two but is easy to double.

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 medium red onion, peeled and finely sliced
1/2 Tbsp. salt
1 large garlic clove, finely sliced
1 lemon, zested in strips
Fresh ginger (sugar lump size), peeled and finely sliced
1 small red chili, seeded and diced
1 chicken stock cube, dissolved in 600ml boiling water
400g baby new potatoes, sliced to the width of a 50p coin or U.S. quarter
Massive handful cilantro (coriander leaves)
Cilantro (coriander) sprigs for garnish

Heat the oil in a large pot and stir in the onion and the salt. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, until limp and juicy. Stir in the garlic, and when aromatic, add the lemon zest, ginger, and chili. Add the stock and potatoes. Bring to the boil, stir, reduce the heat slightly and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

When the soup is almost ready, rinse the cilantro and chop it, stalks and all. Stir into the pot and adjust the seasoning, if needed, with salt and lemon juice. Serve with a sprig of cilantro in each bowl.

Bread and Butter Pudding

Posted in Other Desserts by
For those unfamiliar with this delectable British dessert, think of this as French toast baked in the oven with loads of sweet, jiggly custard. Traditionally, it’s made with orange marmalade — but I have replaced that with apricot jam, which is more to my taste. Whichever one you use, this dessert will be true comfort food.
Serves 8

 

575 ml low-fat milk
575 ml single cream
1/2 Tbsp. vanilla extract
Softened unsalted butter
8 slices good-quality white bread, crusts intact
Jar of apricot jam (as smooth as possible — no bits)
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
200g sugar
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Put the milk, cream, and vanilla in a saucepan. Set over low heat and bring slowly to the boil. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, butter the slices of bread. Spread the jam liberally on four slices and top with the others to make four sandwiches. Cut them across to make triangles and arrange in a generously buttered baking pan, slightly overlapping the triangles.

Beat the eggs and yolks with the sugar in a bowl until they form a smooth foaming mixture. Pour the warm milk and cream mixture slowly onto the eggs, stirring constantly with a whisk, and continue whisking to make a smooth custard. Ladle this carefully over the bread and leave to soak for 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 160C/320F. Bake for 45 minutes or until the pudding pulls away slightly from the sides of the pan and jiggles when shaken.

Serve warm, or refrigerate overnight and serve very cold. In both cases, dust the top with confectioners’ sugar before serving. Blueberries or raspberries go well with this.

Classic Steamed Artichokes, and How to Cook Fennel

Posted in Vegetables by

This is the classic way to eat those beautiful artichokes you see in the produce aisle. My mom would make these all the time when we were growing up, and we loved to dip the warm leaves in the warm butter.

It’s an elegant appetizer, but I can imagine it would also be great to serve to children — it’s true finger food, and very easy to make.

Serves 4

4 artichokes
4 cups water
4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
4 garlic cloves, chopped (not minced)
4 bay leaves
1 Tbsp. salt
24 black peppercorns
24 coriander seeds
2 tsp. fennel seeds

Slice off the stem of the artichokes as close to the base as you can. Peel off the tough outer leaves of each one. If leaves are thorny, use kitchen scissors to trim the tips. Rinse thoroughly.

Place the artichokes, stem end down, in a saucepan large enough to fit a lid over the artichokes. Add the water and the rest of the ingredients, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20-35 minutes, until tender.

Cooking time will vary, so check for doneness by lifting an artichoke from the pan and piercing the bottom with the tip of a knife. If it pierces easily, it’s ready.

As soon as the artichokes are ready, melt some butter for dipping. Estimate 2-3 tablespoons per person and serve in tiny bowls at each plate. Add salt to the butter for the best taste.

Eat by peeling the leaves off one by one and dipping them in the butter, then scraping off the meaty base of the leaf with your teeth.

When most of the leaves have been peeled away, don’t throw the artichoke away — the best part is yet to come! With a short, sharp knife, carefully cut out the hairy center of the artichoke. Cut the heart into pieces and dip into the melted butter. The taste is out of this world.

How to Cook Fennel

Another vegetable that many cooks may pass over in the store is fennel bulbs, though it’s one of the vegetables commonly used in a roasting pan with turkeys or chickens. I only discovered it when on a cooking course in France three years ago. It has a sophisticated, delicate taste and a wonderful texture when cooked this way.

All you need is one fennel bulb and some olive oil to serve 4 as a side dish.

Slice off a very thin slice at the base of the bulb, then cut off each stem where it meets the bulb (all you want to be left with is the bulb). Peel off any discolored layers on the outside of the bulb.

Cut the fennel bulb lengthwise, then cut each half into four wedges.

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil, drop the fennel wedges in, and simmer for five minutes. Remove immediately and place on the plate. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Camembert, Goats Cheese, and Tomato Tart

Posted in Appetizers & Snacks, Breakfast/Brunch, Casseroles & Savory Pies by

This is an easy recipe using puff pastry. The camembert and goats cheese work together perfectly, but you can easily vary them. I made this tart when some friends came over for lunch one day, but it could also work as a savory brunch dish, or as an appetizer, cut into small pieces.

250g puff pastry, defrosted if frozen
3 Tbsp. Dijon mustard (don’t overdo this)
3 flavorsome tomatoes, thinly sliced and drained of as much juice as possible
Salt and freshly ground pepper
8 large basil leaves, roughly torn
125g camembert cheese
100g goat’s cheese
2 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, or 1 Tbsp. dried
Olive oil

On a floured surface, roll the pastry out large enough to line a 10-inch pie plate. Line the plate and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, then trim the pastry neatly around the edge.

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F degrees. Spread the mustard all over the pastry base, then top with tomatoes in concentric circles. Season to taste and scatter the basil on top. Cut the camembert into thin slices and arrange a circle around the outer edge. Cut the goat’s cheese into thin pieces and arrange in the center. Sprinkle over the thyme and a few drops of olive oil (any more than this and the pastry will be soggy).

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the cheese is tanned and bubbling. Best served room temperature.