Category Archives: Vegetables

Summer’s First Corn

On the way home yesterday from dropping our younger daughter off at camp in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, we stopped at a farm stand for our first corn of the summer. Sweet white Jersey corn, fresh from the fields.

Paired with fresh Jersey tomatoes, it’s one of our favorite meals on a hot summer night. That’s the whole meal. Just tomatoes and corn. Washed down with a cold beer, of course.

Where do you get your favorite summer corn?

Cranberry Beans the Greek Way

So Schruggling, a frequent commenter and friend of my sister the OBS Housekeeper, e-mails me Thursday and lets it slip that he is heading to Ferry Street in Newark to buy fish on Saturday with his friend John Kaldes, fellow Big Pharma Guy and author of the cookbook Made in Greece (casual sip…). Schruggling’s wife is Greek, and they always make all this great Greek food, and John is going to help them make Greek octopus with tomatoes for Christmas Eve.

Then, after all that, Schruggling does not invite me to come along with them.

Ferry Street in Newark is like, what, 28.4 minutes away from me by MapQuest? And they’re going to be buying fish and talking food the whole time? And John is a real live, honest to goodness cookbook author ? And Schruggling’s not inviting Me???? Me, with the food blog? The food blog that the NY Times Online just linked to? That Me?

Sure that there is some mistake, I email back suggesting that I could join them, we could do dueling octapus dishes, put it on the blog, won’t that be fun?

And Schrugglin’ emails back something like – We’re not sure what time we’re leaving, it’s going to be a last-minute thing, blah, blah, blah. Maybe some other time.

Okay, fine.

It’s a Guy thing. Or a Greek thing. Or a Big Pharma thing. Actually, it’s not even a Big Pharma thing, since they both work for Generic Pharma, it’s a Big Pharma Copycat thing.

What do I care? I don’t need them to hang Greek. Ferry Street isn’t even a Greek neighborhood – It’s Portuguese. I can go to Astoria, a real Greek neighborhood. Plus, I have these Greek friends across the street who have us over for these amazing lamb dinners and who give me olive oil from their family’s olive grove in Crete and who once left me a whole shopping bag filled with all this great Feta and stuff from Astoria, and they have promised to take me shopping with them in Astoria, we just haven’t found a mutual free Saturday morning…

But who cares? I can out-Greek you anytime, Schruggling. I don’t need you and your friend. Your fellow-copycat Big-Pharma, so what if he wrote a Greek Cookbook friend…

Then Schrugglin’ emails me Friday to tell me that he and John have firmed up their plans for Saturday and can I still meet them and how is 10am at the Popular Fish Market on Ferry Street?

And I am so there….

Since this post is getting way too long, I am going to have to save the whole fish market octopus thing for my next post, since it will involve picture of tenacles and suckers and stuff like that and I haven’t even made it yet.

What I will tell you is that Schruggling (who I had never met till today) is really cute and nice and I feel like I’ve known him my whole life, probably because he knows everything about my whole family from OBS. And John is really gracious and nice, and very serious when it comes to this cooking stuff, and I learned a lot.

Thanks, guys, it was really, really fun. And thanks John for putting up with us. And for the recipes. I even bought your cookbook, and can’t wait to try it out.

And I didn’t mean that stuff I said about you guys, or that whole Big Pharma copycat thing…Well, technically, maybe you are copycats, but if you weren’t we’d all be paying thousands of dollars more for drugs.

And of course, there’s a recipe…

Cranberry Beans, Greek -Style

While we were on Ferry Street, John bought some cranberry beans (he called them raspberry beans, isn’t that just so Greek?). So of course we bought some too. And while we were standing in line to pay, John told Mr TBTAM how to make them, and he made them for dinner tonight. I have a feeling we did not do them exactly right, but they were still delish.

1 pound of Cranberry Beans, unshelled
Tomato paste (we used 1 small can diced tomatoes)
1-2 tbsp Olive oil
1 medium onion, diced small
We added chopped garlic and a bay leaf (We couldnt remember if John said to add them, but it semed right)
Salt and pepper to taste

Shell beans and place in saucepan with water to cover. Bring to a boil and boil for about 5 -10 minutes. Drain and discard the water. (This makes them less gas-producing.)

Cook tomato paste or tomatoes in pot for a few minutes. Add the onion, garlic and olive oil and cook a few minutes longer. Add the beans and a bit of water, barely to cover.

Simmer for 1-1 1/2 hours till soft. Serve on crusty bread as an appetizer, or as a side dish for dinner. We served it as a side dish along with grilled sausages, salad and a nice crusty bread.

Cheese-Stuffed Eggplant

He’s actually a pretty darned good cook, the man that I married.

Last Saturday Mr TBTAM whipped up a little din-din using recipes from Nick Stellino’s cookbook Mediterranean Flavors. This little gem of a cookbook features flavors and recipes based on the cuisines of Italy, Greece, Turkey, Spain, North Africa and the Middle East. Stellino’s recipes are beautifully written, with clear, easy-to-follow instructions that leave nothing in doubt, making them suitable for even the most novice of cooks. (The recipe that follows is my abbreviated version of Stellino’s instructions.)

Dinner also included Tunisian Chickpea Soup (recipe another day) and green salad with a lemon vinaigrette. Friend Annette supplied dessert, a gorgeous fruit tart from the Food Emporium under the Queensboro Bridge.

Let’s just say that by the time we were all done, the eggplants weren’t the only thing stuffed….

Cheese-Stuffed Eggplant
These actually taste very light, and are wonderful as an appetizer, side dish, or if you are vegetarian, a main dish. The only change in this recipe is to use Kosher instead of regular salt, so I increased the quantity a bit.

4 Japanese Eggplant
1 tsp Kosher salt
2 tbsp olive oil
6 tbsp grated Parmigiano Reggiano
4 tbsp goat or ricotta cheese
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 egg, separated
1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
2 tbsp oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 head roasted garlic
2/3 cup chicken stock

Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise, leaving skins attached. Score flesh with a sharp knife, but don’t cut through the skin. Rub cut surfaces with 1/2 tsp salt. Place eggplant halves cut-side down on paper towels and drain for 15 mins.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Brush cut surfaces of eggplant with olive oil and place cut side down on 18×13 inch non stick baking pan. Bake for 15 mins. Cool for 15 mins.

Gently scoop the pulp from the eggplant, leaving skins intact for later. Put pulp in food processor, and add 2tbsp Parmesan, goat or ricotta cheese, remaining salt, pepper, egg yolk, bread crumbs, sundried tomatoes and roasted garlic. Pulse till just mixed, about 30 secs.

Whip egg whites till stiff. Fold into the eggplant mixture with a rubber spatula. Fill the reserved eggplant skins with the eggplant mixture, mounding slightly. Place in a 9×13 inch baking dish and pour chicken stock around them. Sprinkle eggplant halves with the remaining Parmesan cheese and bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 mins., until golden brown. Cool for 5-10 mins. and serve.

Stellino serves them on a small bed of tomato sauce. We just had them as they were – delicious.

Deliciously Ugly Aubergines

“Is that a placenta or food?” asks my sister when she sees what I have made.

Very funny, sis. This stuff happens to be de-lish, despite it’s off-putting appearances. Making it perfect for my entry in the Ugliest Gourmet Contest being hosted by Not Eating Out in New York. And the first eggplant recipe that I actually like (I have a thing about the texture).

So shut up, close your eyes and eat it. You’ll thank me when you’re done.

Augergines in Spicy Honey Sauce

Modified from Tamarind and Saffron, by Claudia Roden, via BBC Food. Aubergines is what they call eggplant outside the United States. I like saying “aubergines”. It makes me feel so, well…European.

2 medium to large aubergines
Olive oil
Kosher salt
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2in fresh root ginger, grated or finely chopped
1 cinammon stick
1 1/2 tbsp cumin
A pinch of cayenne, to taste
6 tbsp honey
1 lemon or lime, juiced
1/2 cup water

1. Peel the aubergines and cut into rounds about 1/3 in thick. Dip them in olive oil, turning them over, and sprinkle with salt.
2. Cook on a griddle pan or under the grill, turning them over once, until they are lightly browned. They do not need to be very soft, as they will cook further in the sauce.
3. In a wide saucepan or frying pan, fry the garlic in 2 tbsp of the oil for seconds only, stirring, then take off the heat. Add the ginger, cinammon or cumin, cayenne, honey, cinammon stick, lemon juice and water.
4. Put in the aubergine slices and cook over a low heat, either in batches so that they are in one layer, or together – rearranging them so that each slice gets some time in the sauce – for about 10 minutes or until the slices are soft and have absorbed the sauce. Add a little more water if necessary. Serve hot.

Sauteed Broccoli

My good friend W taught me how to make this dish while we were vacationing with her family in Maine last summer. She lives in Rome and this is the way she makes broccoli at home. I’m doing this from memory, so I hope I got the ingredients right. We’ll be visiting W and her family in Rome in a few weeks, so I’ll double check the recipe then. Even if I left something out, this was delish!

Sauteed Broccoli wth Garlic, Red Pepper and Croutons

1 head broccoli
5 cloves garlic, chopped
Day old bread
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Red Pepper Flakes (Start with 1/4 tsp, add more if you like it hot)
(Optional: Grated Parmesan Cheese)

Wash broccoli, and cut the florets from the head. (If you want to use stalks, trim them and cut into thin slices for quicker cooking.) Cook broccoli in boiling salted water till crisp-tender, but still bright green. Drain well.

Cut bread into small cubes. (1-2 cups of croutons for a head of broccoli) Toss with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toast in large skillet over low medium heat on top of stove, or in a 400 degree oven till browned, turning several times. Set aside.

Heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil in skillet till hot. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, just enough to soften but not brown. Add broccoli and cook, stirring and chopping it up into small pieces with the side of the spoon or spatula while it cooks, till it is soft. Season with salt and red pepper flakes while it is cooking. Add croutons, stir and serve. If you are my daughter, sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.

Hash Browns

Mr TBTAM makes a mean batch o’ hash browns. Some people call them home fries. I call them delicious. They’re great with fried eggs for breakfast, or cooked up with some roast beef for dinner (we call that hash). To make it healthier, use olive or canola oil.

The best way to be sure you have will be able to make home fries is to serve baked potatoes for dinner. Cook a few more than you’ll need, and you’ll have the makings of a great breakfast tomorrow.

Mr TBTAM’s Hash Browns

3 baked potatoes, skins on, diced
1/4 cup diced onions
1-2 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt and pepper

Ketchup and/or hot sauce

Heat a frying pan till nice and hot. Add enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom well and heat.

Add potatoes and lower heat to med high. Let sit about 3 minutes or so till bottoms of potatoes are browned. Add onion. Toss. Cook, watching carefully and turning only when the bottoms are browned, about every 3 minutes or so. After most of it is browned, you can toss a bit more frequently to prevent the onions from burning. The trick is not to turn too often and to let the potatoes brown before turning them, otherwise you end up with mashed potatoes.

Season with salt and pepper, remove from heat when perfect and serve immediately with ketchup and/or hot sauce.

Roasted Cauliflower

Once you’ve eaten it, you’ll never want cauliflower any other way… Recipe from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine Jan 2007. (Thanks, Nancy!)

Roasted Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower
extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and fresh coursely ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 475. Trim outer leaves of cauliflower and cut stem short. Slice into flat slices, keeping the florets attached as much as possible. Place cauliflower slices on a foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Flip cauliflower gently over using a spatula and drizzle with more oil and season with more salt and pepper.

Cover baking sheet tightly with foil and place on lowest rack of the oven. Cook 10-15 minutes. Remove foil and continue to cook until bottoms of cauliflower are golden, 8-12 minutes. Carefully flip the cauliflower and bake another 8-12 minutes.

Serve hot with olive oil to drizzle if needed.

Got HPV? Have Some Carrots…

My patients who have HPV invariably ask “Is there anything I can do myself to help clear this infection?”

“Actually”, I tell them, “there is. Most importantly, don’t smoke. And eat your fruits and veggies.”

That’s right. Have a carrot. Or a tomato or some broccoli. Or better yet, a papaya. Because numerous studies suggest that women who eat more fruits and vegetables have lower rates of HPV infection, faster clearance of HPV once they get it, and lower rates of cervical cancer overall.

We don’t know which of the many vitamins and substances found in fruits and vegetables are responsible for this antiviral effect. It could be the combination of substances rather than separate vitamins themselves, since treatments using supplements rather than foods have not been effective. And it’s not at all clear if these foods are helpful once precancerous lesions are established. If veggies do work to prevent cervical cancer, it is most likely early in the natural course of HPV infection.

Large controlled trials are still needed, but, while we are waiting for that evidence, I see no down side to telling my patients with HPV to increase their dietary intake of fruits and vegetables if, like most Americas, they don’t get enough already.

How much fruit and vegetables? According to the American Cancer Society, everyone should have five or more servings of a variety of fruits and vegetables daily to help prevent cancer.

Here’s a great recipe for Carrots.

Glazed Carrots with Lemon (Adapted from the Silver Spoon Cookbook)
The original recipe used sesame seeds instead of pine nuts, and pearl onions instead of shallots. I’ve also made it substituting olive oil for the butter, and it tastes just a delicious.

1 ¾ lb carrots, fairly thickly sliced
3 tbsp butter
2 shallots, chopped
Strained juice and grated rind of ½ lemon
1 Tbsp pine nuts
1 tbsp chopped parsley
Olive oil for drizzling

Put carrots in a bowl. Add water to cover and a pinch of salt. Let soak for 15 minutes then drain. Melt butter in a pan and add shallots. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add lemon juice and rind and cook for a few minutes more. Add carrots, season with salt and pepper and cook for a further 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, lightly toast the pine nuts in a heavy skillet.

Transfer the carrots to a small serving dish, sprinkle with pine nuts and parsley. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

Serves 4

———————————————————————————-
Here are a few references…

Int J Cancer 2005, 117 (4):629-637.

Cancer Epid Bio & Prev 2005. 14: 1149-1156.

JNCU Monograph. 2003;(31):29-34.

Sweet Potato Curry Puffs, Chili Fish with Sweet Lemon Salad

It’s only taken me three years to finally make something from Donna Hay’s beautiful cookbook Off the Shelf, which I received some time ago as a holiday gift from Irene. It’s not that I don’t look at the book – I do. The photos are gorgeous, and the food looks really good. Donna Hay started her career as a food stylist, and it shows. I swear, she could make a dirty pot look appetizing.

But the book is almost too gorgeous to be called a cookbook. It reminds me more of a coffee-table book about cooking. Think of a paper verion of Giada De Laurentiis’ show on the Food Network. I hate that show. It’s over-edited, over-produced, perfect knife sounds overlaid whenever she slices an onion, fancy angle shots on the food, that perfect little smile every time she looks at the camera. Annoyingly perfect. And nothing like a real kitchen.

But I do like Off the Shelf. Why? Because, despite the styling, the recipe ideas in it are wonderful. Really. And they’re different, yet often very simple to make. Recipes like warm potato and tuna salad, spaghetti with asparagus and lemon cream, salmon on fennel salad, crisp rice omelet. There are a lot of light recipes in here, too.

The book is organized atypically, if not exactly intuitively, according to category of staples that you might have on your kitchen shelves. (Some might argue that miso paste is not really a staple for most of us, but we’ll let that go.) Chapter titles are Pasta, Rice, Grains and Lentils, Mediteanean, Asian, Pastes (harissa, miso and curry pastes, mustards), Bake (flour, baking powder, nuts chocolate)and Sweet (sugar, honey and the like). Within each chapter, there is a section called Basics, then Tricks and Tips, then a whole lot of recipes.

Hay’s point in organizing her book this way is to get you thinking about ingredients in your cupboard not just as something on a shopping list for one recipe, but as inspiration for meals. That’s a good idea for cooks who might buy Asian Red curry paste for a single recipe, then stick it in the fridge and forget about it for a year. If you find yourself asking “What else can I use this stuff for?” then Off the Shelf is the book for you.

Every single recipe in this book has an accompanying photo. To make room for the photos, the recipes are written in the briefest of form, anywhere from 4 – 9 on a page. This means that there are few instructions. For example, the recipe I made last night starts out “Cook 1 tablespoon peanut oil, 1 chopped onion and 1 tablespoon Thai green curry paste for 1 minute.” Cook it where? On the stove? In the oven? And in what kind of pan? And what size onion? Now, I knew to saute it, and because I read the recipe, that I’d need a pan big enough to hold the sweet potatoes that were coming up next. And I used a medium onion. So if you know a bit about cooking technique, the recipes have all you need, and you’ll appreciate the opportunity to do your own thing without being spoon fed. But if you’re a fledgling cook, this book may not be for you.

One other thing – Quantities are often weight, not volumes. But I don’t mind that, I have a great little kitchen scale with a bowl attached. And I feel so European cooking by weight…

In addition to her cook books, Donna has a web site and a magazine. Her motto is “Turn simple into special”. Here’s a quote form her bio:”…cooking has allowed her to create a brand that is accessible to anyone who has a kitchen.” When I read that, I realized what exactly it is that annoys me about her book – she is using branding techniques on simple foods, selling us capers and flour and sugar as something more than the plain ingredients they are. She doesn’t need to do that, anymore that Giada needs to overlay sizzling sound clips when she throws a pice of meat into a pan. It’s over-styling. She should have put the energy into writing the recipes, as far as I’m concerned.

…But I’m rambling. The whole point of this post was to tell you that I finally got over myself enough to actually make a few items from the Off the Shelf, specifically from the Pastes chapter. I made Chili Fish with Lemon Salad, and served it with Sweet Potato Puffs. The meal was absolutely delicious, and my family loved it. The three items were a great combo on the plate and on the palate.

So now, depite my complaints about it, I’m totally sold on this cookbook as a great source of ideas, and can’t wait to make something else from it.

Sweet Potato Curry Puffs

These are like samosas. They have a nice bite to them. Since the recipe itself was written as a single paragraph with ingredients in the sentences, and lacked basic intruction or an ingredient list, I’m re-writing it here the way I think Donna should have.

1 tbsp peanut oil
1 chopped onion
1 tbsp Thai green curry paste
600 gm (about 3 cups) peeled and finely diced sweet potatoes (I used yams)
3/4 cup coconut cream (I assumed that meant coconut milk)
1/2 cup thawed frozen peas
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 beasten egg
5 inch puff pastry rounds (Sorry, that’s all she says. Actually, what she says is “Place [mixture] in the middle of 5 inch puff pastry rounds.” Not how much filling, or how much pastry. I’d say you need pastry enough for about 24 rounds, but have no idea how much pastry I’d need to make to get that. I used store bought pastry, got 16 puffs, and had some filling leftover.)
8 oz Yogurt
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint (or more)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat 1 tbsp peanut oil till hot, then saute 1 chopped onion and 1 tbsp Thai green curry paste for 1 minute. Add sweet potatoes and coconut cream and cook, covered, over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add peas and chopped coriander and allow the mixture to cool. (Actually, I added the coriander with the potatoes.) Meantime, roll out puff pastry and cut into 5 in rounds. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place round onto sheet, and place about 2 tbsp filling into it. Fold over pastry and press edges to seal. Brush with egg wash. Bake for about 20 mins till puffed and golden. Serve with plain yogurt blended with some chopped fresh mint.

Chili Fish with Sweet Lemon Salad

The real star of this dish is the lemon salad, so I’m giving it it’s own photo. It is absolutely an amazing little side dish that I know I’ll be making again and again. You can really use any Asian spice rub on the fish. It’s the combo with the cucumber and the lemon salad that makes it special.

Sweet Lemon Salad
4 lemons
1/2 cup sugar
1 red chili, seeded and chopped (That may be too hot. We used red chili pepper flakes, about 1/8 tsp)
1/4 cup chopped mint
cracked black pepper and salt to taste

Peel the lemons, removing and discarding the white pith. Chop the flesh into a dice. (Hard to do this without losing all the juice, so we just used a grapefruit knife to get out the sections and served them whole. In Hay’s book, it looks like thye used a tiny melon baller to get the lemon pieces.) Combine with sugar, chili, mint, pepper and salt.

Chili Fish on Cucumber
4 – 7 oz pieces firm white-fleshed fish (We used Telapia)
2 tbsp Asian red chili paste
2 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp peanut oil
2 sweet cucumbers, sliced to serve

Spread the chili paste on the fish and sprinkle with coriander. Heat oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. (We used a regular saute pan, and needed a little more oil) Add fish and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until tender.

To serve, place the cucumber slices on plate, top with the fish. Spoon some lemon salad on the side and serve.

Category: Food

Ragging about Ragout

Found and made this recipe from Epicurious tonight. The vegetable combination (pearl onions, peas and artichokes) really appealed to me. It paired nicely with some smashed red bliss potatoes and chicken. However, I think it needs something in the way of spices. I did add a bay leaf to the sauce, and kosher salt and ground pepper, but something was missing.

I had looked around the web for similar recipes to get some ideas, but found nothing. I thought about spicing up the onions a bit more, maybe tossing the artichokes onto the baking pan with the onions to brown them a bit also. Maybe some balsamic vingear or lemon? But I couldn’t decide what to do, and truth be told, on a week night I wasn’t feeling adventurous enough to risk spoiling it and having to start all over. So I pretty much made it as written (though I did cut back a bit on the butter, and used both pearl and chopotle cipollini onions.) It really was good, but next time I’d like to take it up a notch, as our friend Emiril would say.

Suggestions, anyone?

Ragout of Pearl Onions, Peas and Artichokes

1 1/2 pounds pearl onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt broth
1 10-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, drained, halved lengthwise (I used canned)
2 cups fresh peas or frozen, thawed

Cook onions in large pot of boiling water 2 minutes. Drain and cool. Peel onions.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Transfer onions to rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Bake until tender and golden, shaking pan occasionally to turn onions and brown, about 35 minutes.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add stock; boil until liquid is reduced to 1 cup, about 10 minutes.

Add onions, artichokes and peas; simmer until onions and peas are crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Add 4 tablespoons butter; stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes 6 servings.

Category: Food

Carrot Fritters and Basa with Yogurt Sauce and Harissa

harissaI saw this jar of Harissa at Fairway last week, and decided to buy it, mostly because it is such great label, don’t you think?

Harissa is, according to the label, “an essential ingredient in Moroccan cuisine. It has a variety of uses which range from marinating olives to enhancing the flavor of a broth or served on the side.” The ingredients of this particular brand are hot peppers, salt and olive oil. But I suspect there are as many recipes for Harissa as there are Moroccan cooks. A quick perusal of the web found these at Gourmet Sleuth and CD Kitchen.

I combined elements of these two recipes (1 and 2) for carrot fritters on BBC’s food site (a great source for ethnic preparations, by the way), and used Harissa instead of the chiles called for in the recipe. I also made some Basa, and used the yogurt sauce forboth that and the fritters. Coriander found it’s way into both the fritters and the yogurt sauce.

My husband and I had a good time sharing the stovetop for this dinner. He cooked the fritters, I did the Basa, side by side and we didn’t even fight once. Of course, this means that neither of us felt it was our duty to do the dishes, so the kitchen is still a mess…

 

carrot fritters pic

Carrot Fritters
These were absolutely delicious. The yogurt sauce and harissa worked well as accompaniments. Next time, I think I will increase the carrots a bit. Maybe try to find a way to make them without oil, although the amount we used was really not that large.

1/2 cup flour.
4½fl oz soda water
1 egg, lightly beaten
¼ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp turmeric
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp Harissa Sauce
4 large carrots
8 spring onions (scallions), finely sliced
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
2¼fl oz vegetable oil
Yogurt Dressing (recipe follows)

1. To make the carrot fritters, preheat the oven to 315 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the flour, soda water, egg, cumin, coriander, turmeric and salt in a bowl and mix well. Add the Harissa, carrot, spring onion and coriander and stir to combine.
2. Heat a frying pan on a medium-to-high heat, add the oil and heat until hot. Cooking in batches, add two tablespoons of batter per fritter and cook for two minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Cook the remaining fritter batter, adding extra oil if necessary. Place the fritters on an ovenproof plate lined with paper towels and keep warm in the oven while you cook the scallops.
3. Place three carrot fritters on each plate, top with more cilantro and scallops and drizzle with the yoghurt dressing. Serve with Harissa on the side.

Basa
Basa is a mild tasty fish that my husband calls the poor man’s Telapia because it is cheaper and we enjoy and use it in the same ways.

2 Basa fillets
kosher salt
pepper
1 tbsp flour (optional)
2 tbsp peanut oil

Wash and dry fillets. sprinkle generously with salt and pepper (or mix the salt and pepper with the flour and dust lightly). Heat the oil in saute pan. When hot, add basa fillets and cook about 3-4 minutes per side till nicely browned and just done. Drizzle with yogurt sauce, and top with a dollop of Harissa.

Yogurt Dressing
4½oz plain yoghurt
1 tbsp lime juice
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
chopped cilantro, about 2 tbsp

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.

Category: