Roasted Beetroot Tart with Goat’s Cheese, Walnuts, Oatmeal Crust

Sorry I’ve been neglecting you recently. It’s not that I don’t love you any more it’s just that I’ve been really busy with life and people and working on an exciting new business venture that I am desperate to tell you all about.

But not just yet…

First a recipe, because that is why you are here after all. You’re obsessed with food probably, like I am.

I buy beetroots from the market, then I roast them and then I decide what I am going to do with them. Roasted beetroot is a great thing to have in your fridge. You can just add it to a salad with some goat’s cheese & walnuts (classic flavour combinations) if you can’t be bothered with the whole “making the tart” thing or are pushed for time. You can puree it with some chickpeas to make this brilliantly bright magenta coloured Beetroot Hummus, or blend it with some stock into this stunning  Spiced Beetroot Soup.

I had pinned this recipe for a Beetroot, Goats Cheese & Walnut Tart on to my Food I Want To Make My Own board and remembered a recipe for a tomato tart with a walnut oatmeal crust that I had cut out of a magazine. You know when you want to find something and you find everything but that one thing?

Anyway, I did eventually find it in  a pile of papers in a draw. This crust is a bit like a cheesecake base if you know what I mean, the oats, wholemeal spelt flour and finely chopped walnuts are mixed with olive oil to make a base that you press into the tart case with your hands and push it up the sides.

It’s worth the hassle. You get a slightly thicker than normal, rustic, nutty, crumbly biscuity base that is perfect with the goats cheese & beetroot. And it makes a nice change.

Roasted Beetroot, Goats Cheese & Walnut Tart with a Walnut Oatmeal Crust

Serves 4-6 vegetarian. Adapted from Alexandra Cooks

Roasting beetroots:

• 3 or 4 tennis ball (or smaller) size beets (you may not need it all for this recipe)
• olive oil salt & pepper, dried or fresh thyme

Preheat oven 200C. Trim the beets, leaving the root and about 2 inches of stalk still attached, if possible, then wash them gently to get rid of any mud. Dry them and put them on a lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt, pepper and thyme. Roast for 45-50 minutes (depending on size) until tender all the way through.

Leave until cool enough to handle and, using gloves, cut off the roots and stalks then rub off the skins with a small knife. They should come off easily. Remember, beetroot stains, so be careful.

For the pastry crust:

• 135 g wholemeal spelt (or normal) flour
• 65 g oats
• 50 g walnuts, very finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• black pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• up to 120 ml cold water

Mix together the flour, oats, walnuts, salt, pepper & thyme in a large bowl with a fork. Then add the olive oil and, using a fork, mix it into the dry ingredients, mashing it together so it is evenly distributed and resembles crumble.

Then slowly drizzle in the water (you may not need all of it) mixing it with the fork until it starts coming together. Using your hands bring it together into a ball and knead gently just until it holds, don’t overwork it. It will be crumbly. Wrap in cling film and put in the fridge for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, caramelise the onions…

For the filling:

• 1 large red onion, finely sliced
• salt & pepper
• thyme
• balsamic vinegar (or balsamic syrup)
• honey
• a splosh of red wine or sherry
•  a handful of walnuts, roughly chopped (40 g)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 pot (125 ml) goats (or greek yoghurt)
• rice milk/oat milk/goat milk (or you choice of milk)
• 75 – 100 g goats cheese, crumbled
• fresh dill or parsley to serve

Cook the sliced onions in a frying pan in a few tablespoons of olive oil over a medium high heat with the salt, pepper, thyme, a drizzle of balsamic & a squidge of honey, stirring occasionally until starting to soften, caramelise and stick to the pan, about 8 minutes. Add a splosh of wine or sherry to deglaze the pan and scrape any sticky caramelised bits off the bottom. Cook for a couple of minutes more to cook off the alcohol and reduce any liquid. Leave to cool while you prepare the pastry.

Preheat oven to 200C. Oil and flour a 9 or 10 inch tart tin/dish. Flour you work surface  and rolling-pin and roll out your pastry to a flat disc as thin as you can go. This is quite tricky because of the walnuts. I gave up and started to press the disc into the tart tin with my hands. Using your fingertips and heel of your hand press it out and up the sides of the tin any way you can! A flat-bottomed mug can be quite useful too. When you have the base reasonably even, trim off any bits hanging over the edge and use them to fill any holes.

Prick all over the base with a fork and bake the pastry case for 10-12 minutes, remove from the oven and lower the heat to 180C.

Spread the caramelised onions evenly over the base then chop 2 or 3 beets into chunky cubes. Scatter these evenly over the base too. You may not need it all. Tumble over your walnuts.

In a measuring jug whisk together the eggs, yoghurt, salt & pepper. then add enough milk to take it up to about 400 ml and whisk together again.

Have you crumbled goats cheese ready, open the oven door and slide out the tray, place the tart on the tray then pour the milk mixture evenly over the filling, top with the crumbled goats cheese and carefully push the tray back in the oven. This should stop any spillage.

Cook for 35-40 minutes until puffed and golden. Leave to cool for about 10 minutes before serving sprinkled with fresh dill or parsley and a green salad on the side. It is also lovely served at room temperature for a picnic.

All it needs is a nice glass of wine to go with it. Any suggestions?

I will tell you all about our new business venture in my next post…..

Enjoy the long weekend!

Wholemeal Chocolate Chunk and Hazelnut Cookies

Just a quick post because I promised you the recipe for these last week after my first Healthy Baking with Chocolate workshop. I am in the middle of writing (and editing heavily) a speech on the relationship between food and health, particularly cancer, for the Marbella Women’s Week conference next week.

I say I. I mean we. Actually he is doing an awful lot of the editing and an awful lot of adding bits in too. It’s only a ten minute talk. I need to focus. So instead I’m writing about cookies.

Now I’m not saying you should eat these every day or anything but compared to most cookies these are much healthier.They are made with olive oil instead of butter. I use honey and maple syrup (or miel de cana) instead of sugar and the wholemeal spelt flour gives them a lovely flavour.

It’s Mother’s Day in the UK tomorrow so these are for my mum. She loves a biscuit with a cup of tea. They probably have too many bits in for her taste but it’s the thought that counts and I’ve ordered flowers in colours that match her lounge cushions and curtains so I should be safe. She does love it when things match.

Wholemeal Chocolate Chunk & Hazelnut Cookies Recipe

Makes 10-12 cookies. Vegan, wheat-free.

• 150 g wholemeal spelt flour
•  1 tsp baking powder
•  1/2 tsp baking soda 
• 1/4 tsp salt
•  4 Tbsp maple syrup or miel de cana
•  1 Tbsp honey or agave syrup
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
•  a few drops of almond extract (optional)
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
•  about 70 g 70% dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 60 g hazelnuts or almonds roughly chopped

Preheat oven 175 C. Line a baking sheet with baking paper

In a bowl mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nuts and chocolate together  well.

In a jug whisk together the oil, maple syrup/miel de cana, honey/agave, vanilla and almond extract, if using. Pour this into the flour bowl and gently mix together until just combined.

Take a tablespoon of the mix and put it on the lined tray, pressing it down slightly with your fingers. Continue with the rest of the mix leaving  an inch or so in between each so they can spread. Bake for 11 minutes until just golden, leave on the tray for 1 minute then remove to a wire rack to cool. This stops them drying out. Store in an airtight container.

 Happy Mother’s Day Mum!

Now back to the speech…

Caramelised Baby Leek Spelt Flour Tarte Tatin

I bought a bunch of these baby leeks at the farmer’s market and wanted to make something special with them rather than just chopping them into other things like I would normally. They are so much easier to peel and chop than normal onions and the flavour is mild and sweet. They also cook quicker. This is why they end up being ingredients in other dishes. I am intrinsically lazy and if I have leeks (or spring onions come to that) in the house the normal onions just sit there waiting.

Making a Tarte Tatin is not as scary as it sounds. You just have to be confident when you turn it out. And this one has none of the butter and sugar used to make the caramel that is usually abundant. I use honey and balsamic vinegar instead. You still get the nice sticky, sweet and caramelised effect that you need in a Tarte Tatin just fewer calories and less messing about. Yay.

I used my olive oil spelt flour pastry (recipe here) for this tarte but you could use shop bought puff or shortcrust pastry if you like. I used about half of the pastry for this 8 inch tarte. Use the rest to make a quiche or empanadas.

You will need an ovenproof frying pan/skillet with a metal handle (plastic melts in the oven and gets messy). The amounts below are for my 8 inch/20 cm frying pan that serves 1 (or 2 at a push) with a nice salad. Whatever size you make you will need to fill the pan snugly with the leeks so adjust the amounts accordingly.

Caramelised Baby Leek Tarte Tatin Recipe

Serves 1-2. Vegetarian

• about 250 g baby leeks
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp honey
• sea salt & black pepper
• dried thyme
• balsamic or sherry vinegar syrup reduction (it comes in squeezy bottles)
• a handful of breadcrumbs
• finely grated manchego/parmesan
• olive oil spelt flour pastry (or your choice of pastry)

Preheat the oven to 200 C. On a floured surface,  roll out the pastry to about 2 or 3 mm thick and cut out a circle about the same size as the top of the frying pan. Put in the fridge to rest.

Prepare the leeks by cutting off the dark green ends, cutting in half lengthwise and rinsing under the tap to remove any dirt hiding under the layers.

Put the olive oil in the frying pan/skillet and cover the base, round side down with a snug/tight even row of leeks. You can trim the leeks to fit the pan You want to fill any gaps as much as possible. Drizzle over the honey and balsamic vinegar syrup. Season well with thyme, salt & pepper and cook over a medium heat for a few minutes.

Sprinkle a handful of breadcrumbs and a little grated cheese all over the top of the leeks and remove from the heat.

Cover the leeks with the circle of pastry and tuck the edges down the inside of the pan encasing the leeks. Prick all over the top of the pastry with a sharp knife and bake for 25-30 minutes (depending on size) until the pastry is cooked.

Using oven gloves, remove from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes. When ready to turn out, run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the sides. Using oven gloves if still hot, place a large plate upside down on top of the pan and press down hard, then quickly and carefully flip the whole thing over so the pan is upside down and the tarte falls out onto the plate. Remove the pan and replace any leeks that may have fallen out of their place.

Serve warm or at room temperature with a simple green salad.

The only thing to be scared of is picking up the hot pan without oven gloves. Don’t do it. It really hurts. But the tarte was worth it.

Apple, Pear and Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

This is the next recipe from my Sweet & Healthy series that I didn’t realise I was doing until I just looked at all the recipes and photos I had waiting to publish and noticed that they were all sweet treats that are good for you. The previous recipe in the (now) series was for this Vegan Banana Bread with Dates & Almonds.

This is because The Washer Up likes something sweet to take to work with his lunch and I always end up snacking on whatever it is too, so it has to be healthy. These are brilliant for breakfast if you don’t have time to make anything and terrific for that afternoon tea break when you need a sweet fix.

They are like sweet apple and cinnamon porridge in a handy portable muffin disguise. And the oats really do keep you full for longer, it’s true. There is no butter and no sugar in these just olive oil and honey for sweetness. I made them using ground almonds to keep them gluten-free but you could use wholemeal spelt (or normal) flour instead.

I adapted the recipe from an amazing website called The Healthy Chef. I have the feeling it won’t be the last time I use one of her recipes if these muffins are anything to go by.

Apple, Pear & Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

Makes about 12 muffins. Gluten-free. Adapted from The Healthy Chef

• 200 g (2 cups) rolled oats (GF)
• 125 g (1 cup) ground almonds (or wholemeal/spelt flour)
• 25 g (1/4 cup) flax meal (ground flax seeds)
• 80 g (1/2 cup) raisins (I used moscatel, so juicy)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 250 ml/1 cup (2 small pots) goat’s (or Greek) yoghurt
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large apple, grated
• 1 pear
  

Preheat oven to 160 C and line your muffin tin with paper cases.

Add the oats, flax meal, raisins, yoghurt, oil, vanilla, baking powder, cinnamon, honey and beaten eggs to a bowl and mix together. Leave to soak for 10 minutes to soften the oats.

Then grate in the apple with the skin and any juice up to the pips and mix through. Then add the ground almonds (or flour) and fold in gently.

Use an ice cream scoop (or large spoon) to fill the muffin cases then sprinkle over a few oats. Bake for 15 minutes then slice the pear into thin circles and place one on top of each muffin. Return to the oven for another 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Brush the tops with a little honey while still warm. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store in an airtight container.

Coming up soon in my Sweet & Healthy series: Chewy Fruit & Nut Muesli Bars and Wholemeal Chocolate Chunk & Hazelnut Cookies.

Hasta Pronto!

Apple, Vanilla and Cinnamon Spelt Flour Galette

Apples, vanilla and cinnamon, enough said really. Heavenly combination whether in a tart or a scented candle. And if you bake the tart you can save the candle for when guests come round because this fills the house with its sweet perfume.

Or make the tart when guests come round and selfishly save the candle for when you are cosied up on the sofa with a glass of (mulled) wine, perhaps. Either way it’s a winner and cheaper than a scented candle.

I have perfected my sweet spelt flour olive oil pastry recipe using honey instead of sugar so not only is it delicious and beautiful it is also good for you.  This recipe has no sugar, no butter, no dairy and no eggs.  The base is spread with a layer of Kellie’s vanilla apple sauce that I also used in this recipe before overlapping the thinly sliced apples in concentric circles and folding up the edges of the pastry.

Apple, Vanilla & Cinnamon Galette Recipe

Makes 1 large galette, Vegan.

For the Vanilla Apple Sauce

• 500 g apples, peeled, cored, chopped
• 4 tbsp honey
• 100 ml water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Put all ingredients in small pan,  bring to boil, lower the heat and simmer for 15 mins until soft. Puree, taste adjust honey and vanilla to your liking. Leave to cool.

For the Pastry

• 250 g wholemeal spelt flour
• a pinch of salt
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp honey/agave syrup
• up to 100 ml cold water

Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl then slowly drizzle in the oil and honey, mixing & mashing it into the flour with a fork until evenly combined and crumbly.

Slowly pour in the water a bit at a time mixing it with the fork until it comes together (you may not need all the water) then bring it together with your hand, kneading just a little until it forms a cohesive ball. Do not overwork it or it will be tough. You can refrigerate it at this time if you have time.

Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface, turning it quarter turns as you go to stop it sticking, to the correct size about 2-3 mm thick. Flour the edges of your largest dinner plate and turn it onto the pastry then cut around it so you have  large circle. Carefully remove the circle (roll it onto a floured rolling-pin) and transfer it to the lined baking tray. Put it in the fridge while you prepare the apples. You can make mini ones with any leftover pastry using a saucer or side plate.

• 2 small apples, peeled, cut into 1/8th wedges, cored then thinly sliced
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• zest of 1/2 orange
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 or 4 tbsp vanilla apple sauce (see above)
• honey/agave syrup
• water
• olive oil

Preheat the oven to 190C.  Leaving a border around the edge of about 1 – 1 1/2 inches clear, spread about 4 tbsp of the apple sauce evenly over the base of the pastry circle.

Overlap the apple slices in a circle all around the outside edge just inside the border. Then make another overlapping circle of apples going the other direction just inside the first one. Finish off with a mini circle going the same direction as the first in the middle of the circle.

Carefully roll up the edges of the pastry towards the fruit turning the tart or paper as you go until it is all done. Brush the edges of the pastry with a little olive oil and drizzle and brush the apples with a little honey/agave syrup.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and the fruit is cooked. Leave to cool for 10 minutes then melt a few tablespoons of honey in a small saucepan with a tablespoon of water until it forms a smooth syrup. Paint this all over the fruit to create a shiny glaze and serve the galette warm.

This is one of the recipes from my Healthy Baking Workshop held a few weeks ago. My next workshop is on Saturday 15th December from 5pm – 9pm at Pepe Kitchen cookery school in Benalmadena, Malaga. I will be cooking and sharing  recipes from my Festive Christmas Party Menu with Middle Eastern flavour,  the perfect antidote to all that turkey. Great for a crowd, buffet or more intimate dinner party. Here is what we will be cooking….

………………

Spiced Cauliflower Soup with Chestnut Dukkah

Roasted Beetroot & Cumin Hummus with Toasted Flatbread Croutons

Lebanese Lentil Salad with Pomegranate, Fresh Herbs & Toasted Almonds

Sweet Potato, Feta & Coriander Filo Cigars with Tahini Yoghurt Sauce

Jewelled Pumpkin & Saffron Rice Pilaf with Cranberries, Pistachio & Chargrilled  Halloumi

and for dessert

Tarta de Santiago

a traditional light cake (gluten-free & dairy free) made with ground almonds flavoured with orange zest

served with an orange & mandarin sauce

……………………….

For more information and to reserve your place contact Pepe Kitchen directly.

Italian Courgette Crostata with Goat’s Cheese, Garlic and Basil

There is a whole field of courgette plants that I pass every morning with the dog. I have been watching the vegetables grow out of their delicate sunshine flowers and waiting for the day that I arrive and they have  all been harvested. I really hope they don’t leave them too long. They do that a lot here. Leave the courgettes to get too big before they pick them. I know if you grow your own that it is difficult to keep up with the mountain of courgettes that the plants produce but on a farm there is no excuse.

There is nothing worse than big, fat, watery courgettes. You really need them when they are young, firm and still squeaky. Like these ones I found at the market on Sunday.  These were only a euro for a kilo so I had to buy a kilo obviously.

Then you get home and realise you have a load of courgettes. One of my favourite things to cook with them at the moment is this crostata, we have it for dinner about once a week. A crostata is a freeform tart, an Italian version of a French galette. You cut a big circle of pastry, leave an inch or two border spread the base with some ricotta or yoghurt mixed with garlic & herbs, then make pretty concentric circles with courgette slices and brush with some herby garlic oil. You then roll up and crimp the edges and bake. It’s as easy as that, especially with this quick olive oil pastry recipe.

Courgette Crostata with Goat’s Cheese, Garlic & Basil Oil

Serves 4-6 as part of a meal. Vegetarian. Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

For the spelt olive oil pastry:

• 250 g spelt or wholemeal flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp dried herbs (I used 1/2 thyme 1/2 oregano)
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) olive oil
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) cold water

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt and herbs, drizzle in the olive oil mixing/mashing it in with a fork until well combined (a bit like crumble mix). Measure out the water then add an ice-cube to it. Slowly pour the cold water (not the ice-cube) into the flour and mix it in with the fork until just absorbed then bring it together with one hand kneading a little just until it forms a cohesive ball. Do not over work or it will be tough. shape into a flat disc, wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge until ready to use. It doesn’t need long but will keep well for a few days like that.

For the filling:

• 2 firm small/med. courgettes, sliced into 1/2 cm coins on a slight diagonal
• 1 pot goats yoghurt (about 100ml) or ricotta or greek yoghurt
• a handful of grated manchego cheese (or parmesan/cheddar)
• 25 gr crumbled goats cheese or feta
• grated lemon zest 1/2 tsp
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• a pinch of dried chilli flakes (optional)
• 1+1/2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• fresh basil leaves, finely sliced (plus extra for garnish)  or 1 tsp basil pesto
• salt & black pepper

Lay the courgette slices on kitchen paper, sprinkle with salt and leave to sit while you prepare the pastry & filling.

In a small bowl mix (or blend) together the olive oil, garlic, chilli flakes, basil (or pesto) & lemon zest. Mix 1 tbsp of this in another bowl with the yoghurt (or ricotta), and cheeses. Season with salt & black pepper.

Preheat the oven to 200C and line a baking sheet with baking paper.  Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface, turning it quarter turns as you go to stop it sticking, to a very rough circle about 2-3 mm thick.  Take your largest dinner plate or serving plate,  place it lightly on the pastry and cut around it, remove the excess pastry and keep it in the fridge if there is enough for another small tart. Remove the plate with a sharp knife and lift the circle carefully, on a floured rolling pin, onto the lined baking tray.

Leaving a border round the edge of about an inch or two, spread the cheesy mixture out evenly over the pastry. Dry the tops of your courgette slices well with kitchen towel and then start laying them, overlapping slightly, around the edge still leaving the border clear.  When you have finished the outside circle start another circle going in the opposite direction just inside the first. Then overlap a few slices in the middle. See pictures above for these stages.

Drizzle and/or brush the rest of the garlicky herb oil all over the courgettes and then start to fold up the edges by turning the paper and folding and pleating as you go. Brush the pleated border with a little olive oil and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes until bubbling and golden. Leave to sit for 5 minutes then scatter over a few fresh basil leaves and serve.

Serve with a simple lemon & olive oil dressed green salad or this delicious White Bean Mash. This is a very versatile recipe, you could easily switch up the herbs and cheese to use whatever you have in the fridge.

I know I said I bought a kilo of courgettes and I only used two of them in this dish and I also know that a lot of you are overrun with courgettes at certain times of the year so maybe, like me,  you could have a go at making this deliciously light Zucchini Green Chilli Cornbread or these very moreish Baked Zucchini Fries as well.

Have a Great Weekend!!

 

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Spinach and Green Chilli Basil Oil

It’s that time of year again. You know it’s definitely Autumn when you see piles of beautiful squashes at the market and I’m tripping over knobbly pumpkins growing out of the fences at the side of the road as I run past the fields with the dog in the morning.

This is the first of many squash and pumpkin recipes to come and I make no apology for that. Their sweet savoury substantial flesh is a welcome addition to any soup or stew and its versatility and ability to slip seamlessly into the cuisine of any country make it an easy choice for this greedy vegetarian,

Some of my personal favourite and most popular recipes feature  the mighty squash. These Butternut Squash & Chickpea Cakes spiced with Cape Malay flavours are easily my most viewed recipe. This Indian Spiced Smashed Pumpkin is comfort food at its best and this Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake with chocolate ganache is heaven.

So after Africa and India we now set foot back in Europe with a classic Italian recipe served with a green and spiced up version of an Aglio Oglio sauce made with our homegrown green chillis which we are now harvesting for the second time this year.

So, I don’t know how many of you out there have ever made Pumpking Gnocchi before, but I have.  They were a complete disaster, dense, heavy and unappealing. You couldn’t eat more than two or three before feeling like your stomach was about to explode. I tried, obviously. Not a good idea.

That kind of put me off ever trying again but that was two years ago and my skills and knowledge have improved slightly since then. And The Washer Up wanted me to, so here I am.

The mistake I made last time, I now know from watching countless cookery programmes on TV, was adding too much flour to the mix. It’s easily done because you think the mixture is too wet and that it will fall apart in the water when you cook them. Trust me, go easy on the flour, you’ll thank me for it. And so will your stomach.

*Mine were probably slightly under floured this time as you can see from the raw shot above. They look like very soft gnocchi, but this made them so light and fluffy when they were cooked. You didn’t get that “Oh god I’ve eaten a duvet” feeling afterwards. A trick is to cook one first and try it. If it doesn’t hold, add a little more flour to the mix.

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Spinach & Green Chilli Basil Oil

Serves 2-3, vegetarian. Adapted from Cranks Recipe Book

• 375 g peeled, cubed squash or pumpkin
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• a pinch chilli flakes
• salt & black pepper

Preheat oven to 190C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Put the squash cubes on the tray, drizzle over the olive oil, sprinkle with the spices and season with salt & pepper. Toss with you hands so evenly coated and lay out in one layer on the tray. Bake for 15-25 minutes until soft, depending on the size of your cubes.

• 50-75 g plain flour ( I used white spelt flour)
• 30 g finely grated parmesan or manchego cheese
• 1 small spring onion green parts, finely chopped
•  a handful of basil leaves, finely shredded
• salt & pepper

Mash the pumpkin with a potato masher then sieve over 50 g flour and mix well. Then add and mix together the parmesan, spring onion and basil and season with salt & pepper to taste.

Using floured hands, shape the mixture into small walnut sized ovalish balls, put on a floured, lined tray, then roll over with a floured fork to make the pattern and store in the fridge until ready to cook.

*See note above about adding a little more flour a bit at a time and doing a test run if unhappy with the consistency. But don’t add too much flour or your cooked gnocchi will be very heavy & dense.

For the sauce:

• 4 or 5 tbsp olive oil
• a handful of spinach leaves, chopped
• a handful of basil leaves, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
• 1 green chilli, deseeded & chopped
• a cup of the hot pasta water (from cooking the gnocchi)
• shaved parmesan for garnish
• pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan for garnish

Heat the oil in a  frying pan large enough to hold the gnocchi over a medium heat and add the sliced garlic and chilli. Cook slowly until the garlic is starting to brown (but don’t let it burn) then remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, cook the gnocchi in lots of boiling salted water for about 2 minutes. They will float to the top when they are cooked.  Reserve a teacup full of the hot cooking water, put the garlic oil back on the heat and add about half of the cup of pasta water when hot.Reduce this slightly while the gnocchi cooks and add the chopped spinach and basil to create the sauce. Season with salt & black pepper.

When the gnocchi are cooked and you are ready to serve, heat them up in the same pan as the sauce for a minute or two (you can add the rest of the cup of pasta water if it needs it) and then serve garnished with the shaved parmesan & toasted pine nuts.

Buon Appetito!

Grape and Fennel Seed Spelt Focaccia with Sea Salt and Basil

I see these grapes every day while running with the dog. They are hanging over a fence saying “steal me”. But I don’t. Even though the farmer on the other side of the fence is letting most of them turn to raisins on the vine. It’s all inspiration though because I have now started thinking about raisin recipes.

Grapes are kind of underused in cooking I think. There’s the Veronique thing with sole and they go very nicely on a cheese board of course. About the same time last year I made a White Grape & Manchego Cheese Tartlet that I sprinkled with fennel seeds and served with an elderflower syrup.

The combination of flavours work really well together. The herb should really be tarragon though, not basil,  to follow on with the anise fennel theme but our plant is on its way out so basil was my next choice. It’s an Ottolenghi recipe that I’ve adapted using spelt flour instead of normal and I added the sea salt and herbs. I like the scattering of sea salt on top to contrast with the sweetness of the sugar and fennel seed topping.

Grape & Fennel Seed Focaccia Recipe

Makes a 20 x 30cm focaccia, vegan, wheat-free.

Adapted from Ottolenghi The Cookbook

For the starter:

• 15g fresh yeast ( or 1 sachet dried)
• 210ml bottled lukewarm water
• 165g spelt flour (I used wholemeal)

Put the yeast and water in a large bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until the yeast dissolves. Add the flour, stirring until you get a porridgy consistency. Cover with a damp cloth and leave in a warm place for about 2 hours to double in size.

For the dough:

• 165g spelt flour (wholemeal or white)
• 1+1/2 tsp light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp olive oil plus extra for brushing
• 1 +1/2 tsp sea salt plus extra to sprinkle

Mix the doubled in size starter (above) with the flour, sugar & olive oil in a bowl. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 6-8 minutes then add the salt and knead it into the bread for about 2 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Brush the inside of a bowl with some olive oil put the dough in it and brush the surface with more oil. Cover with a damp cloth again and leave in a warm place for an hour until doubled in size.

Tip the dough out onto a floured surface and gently stretch it with your fingers into a rectangle. Fold one of the short edges of the rectangle into the middle, then fold the other short end over that so you get 3 layers. Brush the inside of a 20 x 30cm baking tin with oil and put the folded dough in it with the seam underneath. flatten it out with your fingers until it nearly fills the tin, cover with cling film and leave to rise for another hour. Go back 3 or 4 times in the hour to press it out with your fingers to reach the edges. By the end it should fill the tin, have lots of finger bumps and be about 2cm thick.

For the topping:

• 150g seedless grapes (I used a mix of red & white)
• about a tbsp raw/brown sugar
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• flaky sea salt
• fresh tarragon leaves (or basil)

Preheat oven to 220C.  Halve the grapes lengthways and stud them all over the dough.  Mix the sugar and fennel seeds together and sprinkle this all over the top too.

Bake  for 10 minutes then lower the heat to 190C and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until slightly browned & cooked through. Remove from the oven and brush with olive oil while still hot and then sprinkle over some sea salt. When ready to serve strew or tear over some fresh tarragon or basil leaves.

This is lovely as a snack, supper or picnic with some mature cheese (like a Manchego or Parmesan) and a glass of wine. Or serve as part of a continental breakfast or brunch instead of croissants and pastries.

Enjoy!

Peach and Almond Spelt Cake with Passionfruit Syrup

Summer is all about fruit in Andalucia. It is at the moment anyway. Fruit and tomatoes, which are technically a fruit anyway. We went to the market this weekend and bought two kilos of peaches for a euro and quarter of a kilo of passionfruit (which is a lot) for the same price, one euro. Passionfruit are usually ridiculously expensive, I couldn’t believe it.

I have been photographing these peaches while walking the dog and today we saw some almonds hatching out of their furry jackets on the trees next to them.

I have been blending peaches, passionfruit pulp and orange juice for breakfast smoothies (with flaxmeal, flax seeds and flax seed oil) but still nowhere near using them all and I saw two gorgeous peach cake recipes, both on beautiful Italian blogs, that I couldn’t get out of my head.

A Peach & Mead Cake on Juls’ Kitchen and a Peach & Hazelnut Cake on Lucullian Delights both had me desperate to try something similar. I added Amaretto (my liqueur of choice) in the absence of mead and swapped the hazelnuts to ground almonds. I also decided to use a mix of white and wholemeal spelt flours and used coconut oil and olive oil instead of butter. So it’s dairy and wheat-free. As well as moist and delicious.

You could obviously serve it with some cream or ice cream but to keep it dairy-free and because of the pile of bargain passionfruit, I made a passionfruit syrup/coulis or sauce, whatever you want to call it, to pour liberally over the top. Make sure you buy the old and wrinkly looking ones that are ripe.

Peach & Almond Spelt Cake with Passionfruit Syrup

Makes 1 cake, Vegetarian, Wheat-Free, Dairy-Free. Adapted from Lucullian Delights

• 500 gr peaches (I used 4), peeled and sliced
• 3 tbsp soft brown (or raw) sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 or 3 tbsp Amaretto
• 1 tbsp cornflour/cornstarch (maybe)

Put the peaches, sugar, cinnamon and 2 tbsp amaretto in a small saucepan and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes. If it is still a bit liquidy you can dissolve the cornflour in some amaretto and stir that in. Keep cooking until it thickens like jam. Leave it to cool while you make the cake.

• 3 eggs
• 175 gr soft brown (or raw) sugar
• 1+1/2 tbsp oat milk (or any milk)
• 1 +1/2 tbsp amaretto
• a few drops of almond extract
• 75 gr olive oil plus 75 gr coconut oil (or 150 gr melted butter)
• 100 gr ground almonds
• 180 gr white spelt flour (or normal flour)
• 120 gr wholemeal spelt flour, or normal wholemeal flour ( I used 100 g wholemeal spelt flour plus 20 gr flaxmeal)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• a big pinch of salt

Whisk the eggs and sugar together for a few minutes until light and fluffy then add the milk, amaretto, almond extract, both oils (or melted butter) and mix well. Sieve over the dry ingredients, tipping  any wholemeal bits left in the sieve into the bowl too, and fold them into the wet ingredients gently with a rubber spatula until just combined. Don’t overmix or it will be tough. It is quite a sticky batter.

Preheat the oven to 175 C and oil and flour (or breadcrumb) the inside of your cake tin. I used a 23 cm 9″ cake tin with a removable base. If your cake tin is smaller you will get a deeper cake and may have to cook it for longer.

Pour about two-thirds of the batter into the cake tin then cover with an even layer of the peaches. Tip out the rest of the batter onto the peaches and cover as much as you can. Cook for 30-40 minutes until lightly browned and a cocktail stick come out clean. Leave to cool completely on a wire rack and dust with icing sugar if you like before slicing.

Passionfruit Syrup Recipe

serves 4-6, vegan, gluten-free

• about 9 passionfruit
• the juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 2 tbsp soft brown (or raw) sugar

Halve the passionfruit and scrape out all the pulp with a teaspoon into a small saucepan. Squeeze over the lemon juice and add the sugar. Bring to the boil stirring occasionally, then lower the heat and simmer for about four minutes. Taste and add more sugar/lemon juice as required. It should be tart and sweet at the same time and your kitchen will smell amazing!

Serve each slice of the cake with a generous drizzle of the passionfruit syrup.

Buen Provecho!

Rustic Plum and Lavender Galette

This post is dedicated to my Auntie Pat who left us unexpectedly on Monday night.  She was an amazing woman who lived life to the full and was always there for everyone no matter what. She has left a huge void in all our lives and no one really knows what to do next.

A Shining Star

She was like the sun

And we were all little planets floating around in her orbit

Some  near, some far away

But all held together by the magnetism of her warmth and love

They say the sun is just a huge star

And that the stars died millions of years ago

But we can still see them at night

So as long as there are stars up in the sky

She, the sun, will never die

I used the same wholemeal olive oil pastry recipe that I used for my Fresh Fig & Goat’s Cheese Quiche but added a few tablespoons of sugar, reduced the salt and added some dried lavender instead of the rosemary and oregano.

I’ve been wanting to make a galette for a while now but when I saw this recipe with stunning pictures on Cafe Fernando I knew I had to copy it. Arranging the plums like this is not as difficult as it looks but slicing them is a little fiddly, you need quite firm plums if you pardon the expression.

This amount of pastry made enough for one large galette and two mini individual ones. I cut around a large dinner plate for the large and two bread plates or saucers for the mini ones. I made a mini fig galette a mini plum. You could use nectarines, peaches, apples, pears or apricots too. Just try to keep them in one layer so the fruit doesn’t get too wet and make the pastry soggy.

Rustic Plum & Lavender Galette

Makes 1 large plus two mini individual galettes. Vegan.

Pastry recipe from Chocolate & Zucchini. Filling from Cafe Fernando

Prep time: 35 mins Cooking time 45 mins

• 250 g wholemeal or spelt flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp chopped dried lavender (optional)
• 2 tbsp raw or soft brown sugar
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) olive oil
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) cold water

Mix the flour, salt, sugar & lavender (if using) in a large bowl then slowly add the oil mixing/mashing it in with a fork until crumbly. Add an ice-cube to the water and slowly pour it (not the ice-cube) into the flour and mix it in with the fork until just absorbed then bring it together with one hand kneading a little just until it forms a cohesive ball. Do not over work or it will be tough.

Roll it out on a lightly floured surface, turning it quarter turns as you go to stop it sticking, to the correct size about 2-3 mm thick. Flour your largest dinner plate, turn it onto the pastry and cut around it so you have a large circle. Carefully remove the circle to a piece of baking parchment and put in the fridge for 30 minutes while you prep the filling. Make mini ones with the leftover pastry using small bread plates or saucers.

• plums (I used about 8 or 9 small ones and a couple of figs for the mini galette)
• 2 tbsp or more raw or brown sugar (depending how sweet, or not the plums are)
• 1 or 2 tbsp ground almonds (optional) I used this with the figs to soak up their juices
• olive oil
• apricot or plum jam
• water

Prepare your fruit by halving, removing the stones and slicing them into 3- 5 mm thick pieces. They don’t have to be perfect, it’s easier if the fruit is underripe.

Preheat the oven to 190 C. Place the pastry circle on the baking paper on a baking tray. Leaving a border around the edge of about 1+ 1/2 inches clear, sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar (plus the tablespoon of ground almonds for juicier fruit) evenly over the base of the pastry circle.

Overlap the fruit in a circle all around the outside edge inside the border. Then make another circle of overlapping fruit, going in the opposite direction, just inside the first one. Finish off with a mini circle going the same direction as the first one in the middle of the circle. (see pictures above).

Start to carefully roll up the edge of the pastry towards the fruit turning the tart (or paper) as you go around until it’s all done. Brush the edges of the pastry with olive oil and sprinkle the sugar all over the fruit. Use more if you think the fruit is very tart.

Bake for 40 -45 minutes (25-30 for the minis) until the pastry is golden and the fruit cooked. Leave to cool for 10 minutes. Make the glaze by melting a few tablespoons of seedless jam in a pan with a few tablespoons of water until it forms a smooth syrup. Paint this all over the fruit and serve the galette warm. Some vanilla ice cream or  creme fraiche would be nice to go with it but it is good on its own too.

I just wish she could be here to enjoy it.

For you Auntie Pat

With Lots of Love