Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Caponata and Sopranos Re-run



We recently started watching again The Sopranos. I guess it was an inevitable result of the lack of some serious action in our lives,which is mostly full of wet nappies and teething issues at the moment. The best company to watch Tony Soprano's killer lines is Sicilian Caponata with bread and some fine red wine.
Here is the easy recipe :

§ 100g green pitted olives
§ a handful of capers drained and chopped
§ 4 medium aubergines, chopped
§ salt and ground black pepper
§ extra virgin olive oil
§ 1 big red onion chopped
§ 30ml red wine vinegar
§ 3 medium tomatoes chopped
§ a tbsp sugar or honey
§ handful parsley chopped

  1. Sprinkle the aubergines with salt and leave to drain in a colander for 30 minutes.
  2. Heat some of the olive oil in a saucepan and brown the aubergine on a moderate heat for 10 minutes. When cooked, set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.
  3. In a separate saucepan, heat the remaining olive oil and sauté the onion along with the tomatoes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the olives and cook for 20 minutes.
  4. Add the cooled aubergine and the capers.
  5. In a separate bowl, mix together the red wine vinegar and sugar. Add this to the pan and cook for 10 minutes or till the red wine vinegar has been absorbed.
  6. Transfer to a large bowl, add the chopped parsley and mix well.
  7. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil to serve.
  8. Serve hot or cold.
Apologies for the bad iphone photo, it looks like I have -temporarily- lost my lovely camera. It must be somewhere between those unused nappies and the rattles.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Cauliflower Steak. Yes. Yes. Yes.



Preheat oven to gas mark 2. Using sharp heavy knife and starting at top center of cauliflower head, cut two 3cm thick slices of cauliflower, cutting through stem end. Set cauliflower steaks aside.

Cut into florets all left from the remaining cauliflower head. Steam florets for 10 minutes, set aside and then add milk in medium saucepan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Transfer the mix in to a blender. Add 1 cup cooking liquid from the steaming water and puree until smooth. Keep warm.

Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Brush cauliflower steaks with additional oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add cauliflower steaks to skillet and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer skillet to oven and bake cauliflower steaks until tender, about 10 minutes.

Divide puree between 2 plates; top each with cauliflower steak.

Here served with parmesan on top.