Bircher Muesli

It is my poor hubby's first day off in 11 days, so I wanted to give him his favourite breakfast.  Being the (generally) virtuous bloke he is, this isn't a fry-up, but a plate of Bircher Muesli and lots of fruit.  On a lovely sunny early Autumn morning, it hit just the spot.  It is essential to use a good quality muesli base for this, and I like Dorset Cereals - not cheap but great quality.  Start the night before. For three servings (he has the leftovers tomorrow), put 9 heaped tablespoons of muesli in a bowl and pour over fruit juice to just cover - I used apple juice.  stir well, cover and leave in the fridge over night.  The next morning, grate an apple, peel and all, and stir into the muesli with a splash more apple juice.  Now stir in yoghurt, whatever flavour you like, but I went with peach yoghurt to match the flavours of the fruit.  Use as much or as little as you like to get the texture and consistency you prefer.  Spoon into plates and serve with a selection of perfect fruit - I used a glorious French white peach, skinned and sliced, some wonderful scottish raspberries and local strawberries, and a handful of brambles from the wild bit at the bottom of the garden, still warm from the briar.  This could only have been improved by eating it on a balcony overlooking the Devon or Cornish coast, but you can't have everything.  With gallons of tea, toast and homemade marmalade, I hope the old man had an oasis of rest before back to the slog again tomorrow.

Courgette and Sweetcorn Fritters with Tzatziki (revisited)

I've blogged courgette fritters before, and they are a great favourite of ours.  However, I tinker with the recipe, and discovered today that using self raising flour, instead of my usual plain, makes for a much lighter, fluffier fritter.  I made a batter with 2 very heaped tablespoons of SR flour, 2 eggs (from a neighbour's chooks, and fresh as anything) and a tablespoon or so of milk.  Mix well with a whisk, and season lightly with salt and plenty of pepper.  Allow to sit for half an hour.  Meanwhile, grate two medium courgettes, sprinkle with a teaspoon of salt and let them drain in a colander while the batter rests.  Strip the kernels from an ear of fresh corn (or use a small, well-drained tin), and finely-chop a couple of spring onions.  Break up a 100g block of feta into small chunks.  Now, drain the courgettes really well by squeezing handfuls tightly and then drying even more in kitchen paper.  Stir everything into the batter, and fry tablespoons of the batter in hot sunflower or rape seed oil until golden brown on each side.  You can do this in advance and reheat in a hot oven on a non-stick baking sheet for 10 minutes - they'll puff up again.  Make the tzatziki by grating half a cucumber and mixing with a small pot of Greek yoghurt, a grated clove of garlic, the juice of half a lemon, a handful of mint, finely-chopped, and salt and pepper.  Serve with the fritters with salad and perhaps roasted tomatoes, or maybe ham if you want some meat.  A great dish for kids, packing a real veggie punch, and definitely under a fiver.

Rhubarb Fool

Hubby went to the excellent pick-your-own Rectory Farm in Stanton St. John on Thursday, and picked some wonderful asparagus, which is late this year, but with an intense grassy flavour.  He also got some of their main crop outdoor rhubarb.  Normally, this is fairly green, but the variety they grow here is the most amazing red colour, and is tender and not too tart.  We baked it with sugar, orange zest and juice, and when cool, folded the drained fruit through pillows of softly-whipped double cream and 0% Greek Yoghurt, (about 2:1 ratio) with a tablespoon of icing sugar to sweeten.  Served with shortbread thins (recipe follows) this is a delicious dessert to have in early summer - a perfect blend of tart/sweet fruit, creaminess and crisp biscuitiness. 

Poached Rhubarb with Ginger Yoghurt and Pistachios

This was pretty as a picture and delicious after a rich meal of roast duck.  Now, you COULD spend all day chopping crystallised ginger into tiny chunks and adding to Greek Yoghurt and honey, or you could just go buy a tub of Rachel's Greek Yoghurt with Ginger.  Guess the option I took.  The forced rhubarb was gently roasted with the zest and juice of a blood orange and some sugar, then chilled.  Come pudding-time, the rhubarb and yoghurt are gently swirled together and topped off with some chopped pistachios.  So simple, so utterly divine, so try some.  This would also be perfect after a spicy Middle Eastern or Indian meal.

Aubergine and Beef Stacks with Lemon Yoghurt Dressing

I love a well-made moussaka, but it is NOT low-fat!  All that olive oil and (usually) fatty lamb, which of course gives flavour but pushes the fat content sky high.  Add to that, the rich eggy, yoghurty, cheesy custard topping, and it is a no-go zone.  So, this revamped and deconstructed version from the marvellous Australian Women's Weekly 21-Day Wonder Diet is a God-send.  It consists of a base of slices of sliced, baked aubergine, courgette and red pepper (very lightly spritzed with olive-oil spray and laid on baking parchment, then baked for around 20 minutes).  Meanwhile, dry-fry 250g of lean (5% fat) organic beef in a non-stick pan until browned, breaking up with a wooden spoon.  Add a very finely chopped onion and clove of garlic, a quarter teaspoon of ground cinnamon, a teaspoon of tomato puree, two peeled, chopped tomatoes, and 200mls of beef stock.  Cover and simmer gently until the beef is tender and the liquid has reduced.  You can add other veg too - I added some sweetcorn and chopped, roasted pepper.  Right at the end, add some chopped fresh basil.  Now, layer the roasted veg on a warm plate, top with the mince and a spoonful or two of 0% Greek youghuret mixed with lemon juice and sumac (if you have any), and add some salad leaves or watercress on the side.  We added a few baby new potatoes for carbs.  Delicious - all the flavours of moussaka, and virtually none of the fat.  Without the potatoes, this comes in at around 320 cals per portion, which can't be bad!  Just make sure you are mean with the oil when roasting the veg.

Baked Aubergines with Yoghurt and Cucumber [#250]

We had such a feast of vegetables tonight: boiled globe artichokes with little ramekins of melted butter and lemon juice; these wonderful aubergines from Nigel Slater's book 'Tender'; chargrilled courgettes; sauteed spinach with garlic; jammily roasted tomatoes - all served on a big platter with crisp bread and a dish of tapenade. We spent ages picking at this wonderful mezze of veg - sometimes, you really don't need meat at all. Our regular deliveries from Riverford Organics are turning us into almost vegetarians, which is a good thing indeed. Do try this aubergine recipe, though - you don't need 'finger' aubergines as Nigel specifies - I used an ordinary one, halved and the flesh scored, drizzled with olive oil, and baked until the flesh was soft and scoopable with a spoon. Heaven. Followed up with a big dish of cherries and some white-fleshed peaches, we have exceeded our 5-a-day quota in one sitting. picture courtesy of The Daily Telegraph and Nigel Slater

Eton Mess

There are so many versions of this recipe, and it is really up to the cook to decide how they want it. For me, there needs to be the right balance betweeen creaminess and fruitiness - sometimes, there is just too much cream. I slice strawberries (these ones from Rectory Farm just north of Oxford) and mix them with more strawberries, pureed, and lightly sweetened. Then I mix softly whipped cream with some Greek Yoghurt to cut the richness and crumble in store-bought meringues - absolutely fine for this, as they stay nice and crisp. Then I layer the fruit and cream mixture in a glass, rather than mixing it all together - that way, you can taste each of the constituent parts, and it is less of a 'mess' - but each to their own, if you like to whack it all in a bowl and mix it together, then don't let me stop you!

Orange Yoghurt Water Ice [#128]

I should have started this sooner! I was hoping that my ice-cream maker would do its duty, but it was pathetic today - it is only one of those ones you freeze overnight, and it didn't have enough welly for either the quantity or the texture for this ice (not at all creamy - a sorbet really with a bit of yoghurt). We had to resort to a plastic box in the freezer, and were only able to scrape together a few scoops from around the edges tonight - my fault, and it will be fully frozen tomorrow. We served it, as Nigel suggests, with slices of fresh peach and also some luscious ripe cherries from Kent. The ice was tart and refreshing - I expect it would be totally marvellous on a blisteringly hot July day, but it is rainy, windy and chilly outside - well, we can dream!

Lamb Chops with Oregano and Tsatziki [#121]

Marks and Sparks had the most beautiful chops from Welsh Salt Marsh lamb, which were perfect for this recipe, and they cooked to delicious sizzling perfection under the grill. Served with tsatziki made with Total Greek yoghurt, and pick-your-own potatoes, spinach and broad beans, it all made for a very good Sunday evening meal, washed down with a glass of herbal, rich Cab Sauv from Australia's Margaret River region.

Broad Beans in Their Pods with Dill and Yoghurt [#107]

Well, this recipe is a perfect example of The Challenge making me cook dishes I would just have passed over. The idea of hairy-lined, tough, broad bean pods, stewed for 15 minutes and then eaten with yoghurt wasn't at all inspiring. Well, what a revelation! They were so good, we have decided they have to be an annual treat! You absolutely HAVE to have small broad bean pods - no bigger than your index finger, as Nigel says. Fortunately, we were able to pick them from Binsey's Medley Manor PYO to our specifications. They were uber-beany, the dill lifted the flavour at the end, and a spoonful of sharp Greek yoghurt (Total....of course!) complemented them perfectly. Do try this if you can get the right beans - you won't regret it!

Strawberries with Fromage Blanc [#102]

I know this just looks like strawberries and cream, but I promise you, this little recipe is so much better. Essentially, it is double cream, softly whipped and mixed with equal quantities of Greek or thick natural yoghurt, some sugar to sweeten lightly, and then a whisked egg white folded through. Leave this to chill for an hour and you'll then have billowing clouds of light creaminess to serve with your strawberries - preferably good ones from a pick-your-own or allotment, not the supermarket. Lovely and light finish to a meal of chicken and chorizo kebabs and roasted vegetable couscous.

Rosewater and Yoghurt Panna Cotta [#100]

Lovely, delicate version of panna cotta - as Nigel says, it isn't a recipe for purists, but I thought the yoghurt (Greek, of course!) added a lovely tang to the whole thing, as well as a beautifully silky texture. I blended some local strawberries with a spot more rosewater, and mixed some chopped strawberries in, to make a delicious compote that accompanied the creams nicely. Excellent dinner - before the lamb, we had home-made tapenade on toasted ciabatta, with a sharp and refreshing Bacardi and lime Daiquiri. We know how to live!

Baked Salmon [#93]

Nigel's original recipe calls for dill, which I didn't have. Still lovely, though, a great big side of organic farmed salmon, baked in parchment and foil with lemon and a touch of Noilly Prat vermouth. Served cold with a dish of grated cucumber mixed with mayo and Greek yoghurt, lemon juice and mustard, and with Jersey Royals and asparagus to accompany. Very English, very early summer, loads of leftovers. Followed with the remaining little Lemon Amaretti Cream Pots from yesterday. Heaven.

photo courtesy of www.apotofteaandabiscuit.blogspot.com

Frozen Vanilla Yoghurt Sorbet

Three Nigel recipes today! This little beauty is tucked away on the freezer for tonight to accompany roasted rhubard (recipe above). This is scarcely worth printing as a recipe it is so simple: tip a 500g tub of Total Greek yoghurt into a bowl, and beat in 4 level tablespoons of caster sugar. Add 2 teaspoons of real vanilla extract (or the wonderful vanilla paste in little jars you can now buy, so you get the seeds) and either churn in an ice-cream machine, or put in a plastic container and freeze (whipping every hour or so to break up crystals). Sneaked a spoonful (of course!) and it tastes divine, echoing the last mounds of icy snow I can see in the garden from the kitchen PS: tasting notes this was soooooo good, almost better than a full fat cream version (of course, Greek Yoghurt isn't without a fat content, but considerably lower than double cream, egg yolks, etc) I really, REALLY recommend this ice and can see that I will be making it many times

Spiced Roast Potatoes with Yoghurt and Mint

Lovely way with potatoes, and I made it even easier by sprinkling the potatoes with a little turmeric and grinding over garam masala spices from a pepper mill, then spraying the whole thing with groundnut oil from a pump dispenser. Whacked it in the oven, next to the roasting butternut squash, and 30 minutes later, a lovely spicy supper. The minted yoghurt is essential - I used Total Greek Yoghurt, 'cos it is just the best thing in the world, ever! I also used brilliant frozen, chopped mint - yes, you did read that right! - in a ziplock bag from Waitrose. A most useful product, and also in the range is coriander, parsley and chives.