recipe spring

Meatballs with Hidden Veggies Tomato Sauce

Meatballs are a great fun make for children (and adults!) of all ages. This recipe makes fairly traditional pork and beef meatballs buts cooks them in a veggie-packed tomato sauce for an added nutrient boost that’s also big on flavour. Serves four.

INGREDIENTS:

For the Meatballs:

200g lean pork mince

200g lean beef mince

2 tablespoons dried breadcrumbs

30g Parmesan or Cheddar cheese, finely grated

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 clove garlic, finely chopped or crushed

1 heaped teaspoon dried oregano

1 large pinch each of salt & pepper

To Serve:

wholewheat pasta

grated Parmesan or Cheddar cheese

For the Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, finely diced

1 clove garlic, finely chopped or crushed

1 carrot, scrubbed & grated

1/4 butternut squash (peeled, deseeded) OR 1 small courgette, grated

1 red pepper, deseeded & grated

1 x 680g jar tomato passata

1 heaped tablespoon tomato puree

1 heaped teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon Worcester sauce

1 large pinch each of salt, pepper & sugar

1 small pinch dried chilli flakes, optional

METHOD:

1. Start with making the meatballs. Weigh and assemble all the ingredients and place in a large bowl. Squish together with your (well washed) hands until very well combined.

2. Using your hands shape the mixture into 12 equal sized balls (about the size of a walnut), set aside on a plate until you are ready to cook. Now wash your hands very well.

3. Prepare all the vegetables for the sauce, finely chop the onion and garlic and grate the carrot, squash/courgette and pepper.

4. Heat the oil for the sauce in a large saucepan or casserole dish. Fry the onion for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and all the grated vegetables and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

5. Stir in the tomato passata, then fill the jar 1/3 full with water. With the top on shake the jar and pour the water into the pan. Stir in the tomato puree, oregano, Worcester sauce, salt, pepper, sugar and chilli flakes if using. Bring to a simmer and cook the sauce for 15 minutes, stirring from time to time.

6. For very little children or the veggie-phobic blitz the sauce with a hand-held stick blender or in a food processor until smooth. Bring back to a simmer.

7. Carefully drop or spoon the meatballs into the sauce. Cover the pan with a lid and leave to cook for 20 minutes. DO NOT STIR the balls for at least 15 minutes as they need to firm up and cook.

8. Serve on a bed of (wholewheat) tagliatelle or spaghetti, with grated Parmesan or Cheddar cheese. Delizioso!

Potato Pancakes (Placki Ziemniaczane)

Cross between a pancake and a rosti these Polish potato and onion pancakes are quite delicious, particularly when served with goulash.

The mixture makes around 12 small pancakes.

INGREDIENTS:

500g peeled potatoes, grated

1/2 tbsp plain flour

1/4 onion, finely chopped or grated

1 egg, lightly beaten

salt

vegetable oil

METHOD:

Once grated leave the potatoes in a bowl for 5 minutes then press the potatoes firmly to get rid of any excess water.
Add the flour, grated/finely chopped onion, egg and a generous amount of salt. Stir together until well combined.
Heat a small amount of oil in a frying pan and fry the pancakes (spread the minutes thinly in a pan) until golden on both sides.
Remove them from the pan onto paper towel to soak up any excess oil.

Borscht

A delicious and very traditional Eastern Europe super-healthy soup, made with a mix of root veggies and tomatoes and in particular beetroot to give the soup it’s distinctive glorious deep red colour.

Traditionally the soup is garnished with sour cream and chopped dill. Additionally with horseradish, boiled potatoes, fried onions and boiled eggs too if you wish. Do vary the veg content as to what roots you have in, though of course you must use beetroot.

Thanks to Emilia at The Old Granary Pierogi for contributing this recipe, which was a delicious and popular dish at our latest Kindle Centre Eastern European ‘Big Eat’.

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

1/3 celeriac, peeled and grated

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1 parsnip (or preferably parsley root if you can find it), peeled and grated

2 large beetroot, peeled and finely chopped or grated

2 litres vegetable bouillon (I like Marigold, it’s also GF too)

1/4 savoy or other cabbage, very finely shredded

1 x 400g tin butter beans (or equivalent cooked in advance)

1 clove garlic, left whole

1 tomato, peeled and chopped or 4 tbsps tinned chopped tomatoes

2 bay leaves

2 whole all spice

salt and pepper

1 tbsp lemon juice

METHOD:

Prepare all the veggies following the ingredients list.
In a large saucepan fry the chopped onion in the oil, until translucent. Add the grated carrot, parsnip/parsley root and celeriac and fry for 3 more minutes.
Add the beetroot to the pan along with the hot bouillon. Bring to a simmer.
Add the finely sliced cabbage and the beans (including the water from the tin), a whole peeled garlic clove, bay leaves and all spice. Season to taste with plenty of salt and pepper.
Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve with sour cream and chopped dill. Alternatively you can add a hard boiled egg and/or slices of fried Polish smoked sausage (Cabanossi is a good choice) or boiled potatoes mashed with golden fried onions.

Asparagus Tart

A delicious and pretty spring tart. Instead of using all asparagus you could bulk out the tart with a layer of sautéed onions or leeks on the base and/or add other spring vegetables like broad beans, peas or broccoli. Feel free to replace the Gruyere with Cheddar or any other cheese to your liking.

For the Pastry:

130g Plain or Wholemeal Flour (or a mix of the two), or Gluten Free Flour, plus a little extra for rolling

65g Butter, straight from the fridge, plus a little extra for greasing

Salt & Pepper

1 egg yolk and a little cold water

For the Tart Filling:

400g Asparagus, washed

3 free range Eggs

200ml Creme Fraiche

1 heaped tsp Dijon Mustard

100g Gruyère, grated

Salt & Pepper

1 tbsp finely grated fresh Parmesan

METHOD:

1) Start by making your pastry. Easiest and quickest in a food processor, but can be made by hand too. If using a processor blitz the flour, salt, pepper and butter together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and blitz again. With the machine still on add a little very cold water and continue to add until the mixture starts to come together in one piece. Wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before using.

2) Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/Gas Mark 6.

3) Snap off the tougher ends of the asparagus and throw away, slice the stems into 1 to 2cm slices, retaining spheres approximately half the width of your tart case. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes until almost tender. Immerse in cold water, drain and set aside.

4) Lightly beat the eggs then stir in the creme fraiche, mustard, grated Gruyère and a pinch of salt black pepper. Set aside.

5) Lightly grease your chosen tart case with butter.

6) Roll out the rested pastry on a floured surface into a round slightly bigger than your case. Transfer to the case. Hang any excess of pastry over the sides. Prick the base all over with a fork. Place a piece of greaseproof paper over and fill with baking beans to weight down the pastry. Bake for 20 minutes, remove the beans and bake for a further 5 minutes. While still hot trim the pastry around the top of the tart case to make a neat edge.

7) Place the small slices of asparagus in the bottom of the tart case. Pile on the creme fraiche filling. Now carefully arrange the asparagus spheres in a pretty ‘sunshine’ design on the top. Sprinkle over the Parmesan.

8) Bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes until firm to touch and golden brown on top.

Rhubarb & Stem Ginger Fool

23rd April 2018

Rhubarb and ginger are a delicious combination and together with whipped cream and Greek yogurt rhubarb fool offers the perfect balance of sweet, creamy and tart. This is an extremely easy but sublime pud, top with crumbled shortbread or stem ginger cookies for added luxury. Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS:

300g rhubarb stems, washed

1 blood orange, juiced, or an ordinary orange

30g light brown soft sugar

1 dessertspoon finely chopped stem ginger

1 dessertspoon syrup from the stem ginger jar

150ml double cream

150ml Greek yogurt

2 teaspoons runny honey

cookies or biscuits to serve, optional

METHOD:

Slice the rhubarb into 4 to 5cm lengths. Slice thicker pieces into narrow strips.
Place the rhubarb, orange juice, sugar, ginger and syrup in a saucepan. Place on a gentle heat and cover with a lid.
Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring from time to time, until very tender but just about holding some shape. Take off the heat and leave to cook completely.
Meanwhile whip the cream until soft peaks form and then lightly whip in the yogurt and honey.
Once the rhubarb is fully cooled ripple through the cream and yogurt. Serve in small bowls or glasses and top with shortbread or ginger cookies if you wish.