MONDAY MOUSSAKA
21 October, 2007
There's not much better to do with the remains of a Sunday roast lamb than to mince it up for a moussaka. The cooled lamb fat recooked into the
shivering slices of aubergine melting with the mountain flavours of thyme and sage recalls the best of Greek home cooking. I simply mix the remains
of the roast, including gravy, add lashings of tomato puree (ideally home made, to get the rich garlickiness or you can use passata or a tin of plum
tomatoes, but the flavour is of course less intense), a handful of flat leaf parsley and some sprigs of sage. You can use a mincer but it's just as
good on the blade of a magimix. But not too smooth, there's something wickedly reminiscent of the previous meal when you come across little lumps
of the richly scented lamb. Saute the mixture in some olive oil, add some stock if necessary.
I find it best to avoid too much fuss with aubergines. Just slice them round into a bowl throw in some salt and oil, make sure they are coated and put
them into the oven until they are soft and golden.
Line the bottom of the cooking bowl with breadcrumbs (Anna del Conte advises that every cook keeps a jar of breadcrumbs in the fridge - a great way
to use up uninteresting bread), layer aubergines and meat until it's full. Sometimes if I have leftover roast potatoes I layer them too. Cook up enough
bechamel to cover the whole, making sure you get it down the sides of dish like a comfortable duvet. You can put sprinkle parmesan to grill at the end
of cooking if you like but I always wonder how Greek that is.
TENDER WORDS
Tender (2009) tells the story of Nigel Slater's love affair with his garden in
Islington and the many seedlings he has raised in his box-hedged vegetable patches. It’s a magnificent volume, like a medieval knightly
treatise with pictures of his Eden, its produce and many of the recipes he has created from them.
23 May, 2010
FOOD FROM THE HEART
Cooking is a basic human instinct. We’ve been eating, chopping, shaping, flavouring, enticing ingredients into something delicious
since time began. But as the way many of us live has changed, the basic skills we require to cook, are no longer valued and it’s often easier to
let others take control of what we eat.
21 April, 2010
IN A RIGHT FISH STEW
This week we had sustainable fish stew. It’s a quick and easy way to feed a gang of hungries on a Friday night and
doesn’t need much else but some good bread and wine. Like all stews, you need balance, rich liquid and a range of potent flavours steaming
from your pot.
15 March, 2010