Courgettes for inspiration

 There can be nothing more delectable than freshly picked baby courgettes, boiled or steamed and sprinkled with an olive oil and lemon juice dressing.    Also the large ones can be fried, stuffed, stewed and roasted.   Combined with other ingredients one can make delicious soups, pies, tarts and even cakes. A wonderful vegetable, that I intend growing in my garden, next year.    

  

 COURGETTE SOUP

You can prepare this delicious soup with leftover vegetables.

750 g (1 ½ lb) courgettes, thickly sliced

2 leeks, white parts only thickly sliced

1 large onion, thickly sliced

1 clove garlic

4 medium potatoes, cut into chunks

2 scant tbsp butter or margarine

1 litre (4 cups) tasty, hot vegetable or chicken stock

1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf – 2 sprigs of dill -1 sprig of parsley)

1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper

2-3 tbsp yellow cheese of your choice

Salt

1 liqueur glass of brandy, optional

Cream for serving 

      

        Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, and stir in the vegetables and keep stirring for about 5 minutes.    Pour in the stock and the bouquet garni and simmer,  covered, for 20 minutes, and allow to cool.  Discard the bouquet and blend the vegetables until smooth.  Heat the soup, add the cheese and the Cayenne, taste and add salt, if necessary.

         Just before serving, reheat the soup, add the brandy, if using, and simmer for 2 minutes more.  Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with cream.

                                                                     

  STUFFED COURGETTE FLOWERS

   

This is my own recipe for stuffed courgette flowers.   You could prepare the stuffing with any cheese you like, bacon or ham, onions, scallions, a vegetable of your chose and an ingredient to bind all together such as eggs and bread crumbs.

25-30 courgette flowers, stem and calyx removed and carefully washed

Stuffing:

2 tbsp olive oil

4 leeks (white part only) finely chopped

2-3 spring onions, finely sliced

500 g (1 lb) courgettes, coarsely grated

Very little salt

A knob of butter

250 g (½ lb) bacon finely chopped, sauteed and patted with kitchen paper

2 tbsp dill, finely chopped

200 g (almost 7 oz) graviera from Crete, or gouda or a mild Cheddar, grated

90 g (3 oz) kefalotyri  or pekorino or Parmesan, grated

250 g (½ lb) anthotyro, grated or

200 g (a small tub) thick Greek yogurt, stirred

3 medium eggs, beaten
120-150 g ( 4-5 oz)  dried bread crumbs or more, if necessary

1 tsp pepper or less if preferred

Salt to taste

(You will have left over stuffing to make a tart or au gratin)

250 ml (1 cup) tasty, hot vegetable or chicken stock or more, if necessary

Sauce:

4 tbsp butter

4 heaped tbsp cornflour

1 small sprig of sage

750 ml (3 cups) hot vegetable or chicken stock

Nutmeg

White pepper

125 ml (½ cup) cream or more

          First prepare the stuffing.  Gently sauté the leeks and the spring onions in olive oil, sprinkle with salt, add a little hot water, cover the saucepan and simmer until the vegetables are soft, adding more hot water, if necessary.  Then add the courgettes and simmer, covered until soft and dry.   Stir in the butter and reverse into a bowl.   Add the bacon, dill, cheeses, yogurt, if using, the dried bread crumbs and the pepper.    Taste and add salt keeping in mind that the eggs will be added last.  This should be a very tasty filling.

          Fill the flowers carefully, as they are very fragile.  Place a teaspoon of filling into each flower, drawing the petals over to secure it from falling out.   In a large flat saucepan arrange each stuffed flower next to the other (standing on the stem portion).  When the saucepan is full, add the stock and cover the flowers with baking parchment and the saucepan lid, and bring gently to a boil.   Remove the saucepan from the stove and place it in an oven heated to 180 C (350 F) for about 30 minutes, adding more hot stock whenever needed.

         Meanwhile, prepare the sauce.  Melt the butter and sift in the cornflour, stirring for 2-3 minutes, over low heat.  Add the warm stock in portions, and each time, whisk the sauce until it has thickened. Add the nutmeg and the sage and correct the seasoning.   Add some stock and barely simmer for 10 minutes more, remove the saucepan from the fire and keep the sauce hot.  Just before serving discard the sage, sprinkle with lemon juice to accentuate the taste and stir in the cream.

       

   Serve the courgettes flowers, with the stem part facing up, cover with hot sauce and garnish with sprigs of fresh sage.

         

       

COURGETTE AND WALNUT CAKE

    

 Try baking this cake and improve it according to your taste.  I’m giving you the ingredients for a small loaf tin.

125 ml (½ cup) mild olive oil

200 g (1 cup) sugar

2 medium-sized eggs

30 g (1 oz) melted dark chocolate, cooled

Vanilla

130 g (1 cup) self-raising flour, mixed with

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda

A pinch of salt

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

¼ tsp ginger powder

¼ cup coarsely cut walnuts, sprinkled with

2 tbsp of the flour mixture

          Whip the olive oil and sugar until the sugar melts.  Add the eggs, one at a time,  the cooled melted chocolate and the vanilla and stir until no streaks are visible.  Fold in the flour and, finally, the walnuts.  Pour the batter into a buttered loaf tin, lined with parchment paper, and bake in an oven, preheated to 180 C (350 F) for 35-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.  Serve the cake at room temperature.

        

   

  

Little Janna's Birhday

  

  

 Today, the 21^st September, my great-granddaughter Janna is a year old!!!   Our fondest love and very best wishes to the birthday girl and our congratulations to her doting parents and grandparents.    May she be as happy, lovely and loved, as she is now, for the rest of her life.

This is a suggestion for a birthday party for a one-year-old!   Naturally, food must be kept as simple as possible.  Finger food (“small eats”, as we used to call them many years ago) is, perhaps, the best choice for both toddlers and grown-ups.  Small sandwiches, a few cupcakes, a birthday cake and fruit juice and milk are all you need.

      

BIRTHDAY CAKE FOR A ONE-YEAR-OLD GIRL

This is a light cake with pink and white icing.

210 g (7 oz) butter, at room temperature

210 g (7 oz) sugar

Vanilla

4 eggs, separated, whites whipped stiff, with

1 pinch salt

210 g (7 oz) self-raising flour mixed with

1 heaped tsp baking powder

 Icing

90 g (3 oz) butter, softened

360 g (12 oz) icing sugar

3-5 tbsp milk

1-2 drops pink food colouring

          Cream the butter then add the sugar and salt and beat until light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and the vanilla.   Sift in the flour and baking powder mixture and mix well.   Finally fold in the whipped egg whites until no streaks are visible.

         Place in a cake tin, lined with baking parchment, and bake in an oven preheated to 180 C (350 F) for about 35 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. 

Remove the cake from the tin and leave it to cool.

         For the icing, slowly combine the butter with the icing sugar, then add the milk mix until the icing is spreadable.  Remove half the icing, add the food colouring and mix until thoroughly combined.

       Spread the cake with the white icing and decorate with a piping bag with the pink icing. Let it harden and happy birthday to your baby girl!!

Autumn Diet

         It seems that this will be a turbulent autumn.

         Fortunately, a proposal for Syria to place its chemical weapons

under international control, seems to have placed the drums of war on hold.

         At home, strikes have been proclaimed by the Primary and Secondary School Teachers, the administrative employees of the Universities, the Hospital Doctors and the Public Servants’ Unions, starting in mid-September.

         Yesterday, the workers of the defence industries gathered outside the building of the Houses of Parliament in Athens, protesting against the privatisation of  their industries.

  

        To return to the object of this blog, for as long as I can remember, every autumn, I’m determined to follow a   healthier diet.    Here are some recipes you might find interesting.      

                           

                      

A SALAD FROM  THESSALONIKI

                                 

          Try this salad.   It is not as complicated as it seems

½ kg (1 lb) white cabbage, finely shredded

125 g (4 oz) red cabbage, finely shredded

2 celery stalks, finely chopped

3 carrots, coarsely grated

½ a yellow pepper cut into julienne strips

½ a red pepper cut into julienne strips

1 spring onion, finely chopped

1-2 sweet gherkins finely chopped

½ cup parsley, finely chopped

½ tsp salt

80 ml (1/3 cup) red wine vinegar

Ice cold water

Salad Dressing

2 tbsp good wine vinegar

6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

½ tsp Dijon mustard

Juice and zest of an orange

1 tbsp honey

Salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all ingredients until the sauce thickens.

            Season the red cabbage with ½ tsp of salt, mix well and refrigerate for about an hour.    Then rinse thoroughly with cold water.

 Fill half a large bowl with ice-cold water and 80 ml (1/3 cup) wine vinegar, add the white and the marinated red cabbages and refrigerate for half an hour, at least.  Then strain, dry and lay in a cold salad bowl.  Add the remaining ingredients, the salad dressing, toss thoroughly and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

    (Serves 6) 

  

CHICKEN BAKED IN A SALT AND FLOUR CRUST.

1300 g (1 lb 10 oz) chicken trimmed, washed and dried

2 garlic cloves, sprouts removed

Fresh thyme, sage, and rosemary sprigs

Salt and pepper

CRUST:

600 g (about 1 1/3 lb) flour

600 g (about 1 2/3 lb) coarse salt

1 tsp each of dried thyme, sage and rosemary 

500 ml wine or more if necessary

Pepper

2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

                Sprinkle the chicken cavities with a little salt and pepper and stuff with the thyme, sage and rosemary sprigs and half the garlic cloves. Truss the chicken, tying legs and wings close to the body and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper.

               For the crust, mix flour with salt and thyme, add the wine a little at a time until you have a soft pliable dough.  Roll out the dough and drape over a prepared baking tin, lined with backing parchment.   Sprinkle the dough evenly with the chopped garlic, lay the chicken in the centre and wrap the dough tightly over the chicken, forming a packet. 

              Bake the chicken in a pre-heated oven to 180 C (350 F) for 1 ½ hour. Break or cut the crust and discard. Serve the chicken with a potato salad and a green salad and enjoy.      Really good.

  

                                                   

                                 

CHICKEN WITH MUSHROOMS IN MUSTARD SAUCE

             This light dish is very tasty and easy to prepare. It is equally good without the mushrooms, if you prefer.

4 chicken breasts, sliced

1 tbsp butter

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and freshly ground white pepper

A little nutmeg, optional

1 medium onion, grated

4 spring onions, finely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

250 g (½ lb) fresh mushrooms, sliced

A little salt

The leaves of 4 sprigs of tarragon, chopped

1-2 tbsp mustard of your choice

300 ml (10 oz) light cream

2 tbsp dry white wine

        Sauté the chicken slices in butter and olive oil, on both sides, until cooked, sprinkle with salt, freshly ground white pepper and a little nutmeg, if using, and place in a dish and keep hot.

        In the same utensil, place the dry and the spring onions and the garlic and cook until soft. Add the sliced mushrooms, sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated.  Transfer the chicken back into the saucepan and add the tarragon.   Mix the cream with the mustard and the wine, pour over the chicken and simmer for 2-3 minutes more.  Serve with the same wine you used for the cooking.  

AUBERGINES, COURGETTES AND PEPPERS IN TOMATO ASPIC

                  

      Prepare this dish in summer, when vegetables and herbs are at their very best.  You could use carrots instead of the cubed aubergines, or just aubergines and red and yellow peppers.

3 aubergines, the long variety

3 tbsp olive oil

4-5 medium courgettes

2-3 sage leaves

Salt and pepper

2-3 pickled red Florina peppers, (from a jar)

500 ml (2 cups) fresh tomato juice

14 g (1/2 oz) powdered gelatine

1 large clove garlic, bruised

1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

2 tbsp finely chopped parsley

1 tbsp tarragon vinegar

1 tsp honey or more, to taste

A few drops Tobasco sauce

Parsley leaves for decoration.

          Line a 25cm (10 in) loaf-tin with cling film and brush with olive oil.

Slice two of the aubergines thinly, lengthwise, sprinkle with salt and let them drain.   Rinse, dry and sauté the aubergines in olive oil and 2-3 tablespoons water and set  aside to drain on kitchen paper.  

         Cut the remaining aubergines into cubes, following the same procedure, and set aside.

          Slice the courgettes lengthwise and simmer in salted water with the sage until tender.   Dry on kitchen paper, and set aside.

    

          Drain the peppers from the jar and remove any scorched skin.  Cut them into quarters, pat dry and set aside.

          Boil the tomato juice gently for ten minutes, with garlic, tobasco, vinegar, honey and salt.  Discard the garlic, taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly.   Soften the gelatine in cold water and add to the hot tomato juice and stir well until dissolved.
 

         As the tomato starts to set, pour a little into the loaf-tin, garnish with parsley leaves, refrigerate and let it set.     Place the aubergines slices over, leaving about 5 cm (2 in) hanging over the sides of the loaf tin.   Pour a little of the tomato juice over, refrigerate and let it set. Add the courgettes sprinkle with 1/3 of the herbs   and cover with tomato juice. Refrigerate and let it set once more.  Continue the same procedure with the peppers sprinkled with herbs, the cubed eggplants sprinkled with herbs,  pouring the remaining tomato juice over.   Cover with the overhanging eggplants and chill for at least 6 hours

.

        When ready to use, unmould on a bed of crisp lettuce leaves and sprinkle with olive oil.

(Serves 6).

  ONIONS STUFFED WITH ANTHOTYRO AND APPLES

                                   

  

 Very tasty, if well seasoned!

6 medium onions,

500 g (1 lb) anthotyro (crumbled) or ricotta

5 tbsp kephalotyri or Parmesan, grated

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tbsp butter, at room temperature

1 tsp fresh marjoram, chopped

2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

1 tart green apple peeled and grated

3 slices ham, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/8 tsp Cayenne

½ tsp grated nutmeg

120 g (½ cup) low fat cream, if using anthotyro

1 tbsp cold butter cut in small pieces

           Remove the roots from the onions.  Cut a slice off the top of each onion, without removing the skin.   Bake the onions in a hot oven pre-heated to 200 C (400 F) for about 40 minutes or until soft.   Combine the cheeses (reserving 2 tbsp grated cheese for further use) with the eggs, cream (if using), butter, apple, ham, herbs and season with salt, freshly ground black pepper, Cayenne and nutmeg.

        Meanwhile skin the onions and remove the inner rings carefully, leaving only two rings to form a cup.  Season the onion cups with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

  

         Blend the removed, inner rings of three onions until smooth and combine them with the cheese mixture and mix well together; taste and add a little salt, pepper, Cayenne pepper, and nutmeg, if necessary.

       Stuff the onions liberally, sprinkle with the reserved grated cheese and dot with butter.   Return the onions to a moderate oven 190C (375 F) and bake for a further 30 minutes or until golden brown.  

                  

ANOTHER RECIPE FOR STUFFED ONIONS

                   

                      

6 large onions, peeled

350 g (11.5 oz) veal, minced and sauteed in olive oil with

1 grated carrot and

3 tender celery  stalk, finely chopped

6 tbsp grated kasseri or Parmesan or Cheddar, or a mixture

2 cloves garlic crushed

1 tbsp of marjoram, finely chopped

1 tbsp tomato paste

Salt and pepper and freshly grated nutmeg to taste

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Olive oil

          Boil the onions until tender and set aside to cool.  Cut the onions in half horizontally and remove the inner rings leaving only two or three rings to form a shell.

       Blend three of the removed onion rings until smooth.   Place them into a bowl with the rest of the ingredients, reserving 2 tbsp grated cheese for further use, and season with salt and pepper.   Mix all the ingredients well together, and fill the onions right up to the top. Sprinkle with the reserved grated cheese. 

 

    Place the onions in an oiled baking dish and brush them liberally with olive oil.   Add 250 ml (1 cup) water around the onions and bake them for 30-40 minutes, or until lightly browned. 

(Serves 6)

. 

                                                

BROCCOLI AND CAULIFLOWER SALAD

                                        

  This a large, colourful salad.

1 broccoli cut in florets

1 cauliflower cut in florets

1 green, 1 red and 1 yellow peppers, trimmed, seeded, thickly sliced and halved

2 carrots peeled and cubed

Salt

Sesame oil, (not the oriental kind)

1 tbsp finely chopped parsley, and

1 tbsp roasted sesame seeds for garnishing

Salad Dressing

2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar

5 tbsp sesame oil (not the oriental kind)

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 scant tbsp honey

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Lemon juice, if necessary

            Place the first four ingredients in a baking tin lined with baking parchment, season with salt and pepper, drizzle with sesame oil and roast in an oven preheated to 190 C (375 F), until tender.   Arrange the vegetables attractively on a flat salad dish.     

          For the dressing blend the vinegar with the mustard, honey, salt and pepper and then add the remaining oil gradually, until the vinaigrette thickens.  Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt, pepper and lemon juice, if necessary. Dredge the vegetables with the dressing, cover and refrigerate.  One hour before serving remove the salad from the refrigerator and allow it to reach room temperature. Serve sprinkled with the sesame seeds and parsley.

(Serves 6-8)