The Broad Palate – July ’24

Salad Days –  a trio of salads, ideal for barbecues – no lettuce required 😁.

Watermelon, Feta and Mint Salad – serves 3 to 4
N.B. This also makes a great summer breakfast!

  • ½ a large watermelon, chilled
  • 200g block feta cheese
  • 1 mugful of mint leaves, washed and coarsely chopped
  • Black pepper and olive oil (extra virgin preferably)

Method:

You don’t need exact quantities, though – go by eye.
Chop melon flesh into generous bite sized chunks, spread out onto a large platter.
Sprinkle the crumbled feta over, then the mint.
Season with black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil, and serve ASAP.

3 ‘O’ Salad – serves 4 

  • 1 small red onion, peeled
  • 4-5 large oranges
  • ½-¾  jar pitted black olives

Method:

This is best made a couple of hours before serving, and left to marinate.
Halve and thinly slice the red onion into fine half-moons. Remove the skin and pith from the oranges using a sharp knife, and cut into segments (flesh only), reserving any juice.
Place the onion, orange segments and olives into a shallow serving bowl along with any remaining juice.
Finally, just before serving, sprinkle with a little sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.

Mexican Corn Salad (Esquites) – serves 4

  • 1 bag frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 3 tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt
  • Juice and zest of one lime
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 4-5 spring onions, finely sliced
  • 1 red pepper, finely chopped
  • 100g feta, crumbled (add more if desired)
  • 1 small bunch coriander, chopped, leaves only
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon caster sugar or to taste
  • Pinch chilli flakes, to taste

Method:

For the dressing, combine the mayo,  yogurt or sour cream, garlic, lime zest and juice.
In a hot frying pan, dry fry the sweetcorn, watching it like a hawk until it’s nicely charred but not too blackened. Transfer to a large bowl.
Add all the other ingredients and mix well.
Garnish with lime wedges and extra coriander if desired. Serve at room temperature.

Many thanks to Ann Shaw 🙂

Bon Appetit!

Ann’s previous recipes:

The Bishops' Kitchen

 

To revisit the Bishops’ Kitchen recipes provided by Richard Childs
Please click HERE🙂

#Broadwindsor #Blackdown #Burstock #Drimpton #Hursey #Kittwhistle #Seaborough #Dorset #WestDorset #Community #Village #July #Community #TheBishopsKitchen #TheBroadPalate #WestDorset #Salad #Food #HomeCooking #BeTempted #CookWithKids #Enjoy #BeSafe #StaySafe

The Broad Palate – June ’24

This month, The Broad Palate offers you:

Roasted Vegetable Ratatouille – serves approximately 6

Very versatile made in a big batch and frozen in portions. I like to add some braised celery as it adds a lot of flavour, similar to fennel but at a fraction of the price. Also try…

  • Adding a can of  butter beans, serve on toast with a fried egg on top.
  • Blend to make a smooth pasta/lasagne sauce (packed with hidden veg!)
  • Lay cod steaks (+ orange or lemon zest?) on top of  4-5 ladlefuls of ratatouille in a frying pan. Cover with a lid and heat through gently so that the fish steams on top of the ratatouille. Garnish with chopped parsley & sliced olives.

Ingredients:

  • 4-5 sticks celery, de-strung and cut into 2-inch lengths (optional)
  • Knob of butter
  • 2 aubergines/2 courgettes/2 medium onions, peeled/5 large tomatoes/2-3 peppers (all cut into approximately 1.5 inch  chunks, roughly equal in size)
  • 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • Large pinch of chilli flakes (or to taste – for flavour, not heat)
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 cartons passata (or 2 tins tomatoes blended until smooth)
  • 1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in ½ cup hot water
  • 1-2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (to taste)
  • Olive oil and salt/pepper plus sugar to season

Method:

Preheat oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Put the the celery (if using ) on to braise in a lidded pan on the hob with a little water and knob of butter until softened.
Meanwhile, mix the other vegetables in a large bowl. Add olive oil, salt and pepper to coat everything well and roast on oven trays for approximately 25 minutes or until softened and slightly charred.
Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a large, deep frying pan or hob-friendly casserole and gently heat, then add the garlic and chilli and cook for 2 minutes, followed by all the other ingredients. Let the mixture bubble gently for about 25 minutes*, stirring occasionally to ensure it doesn’t stick, then season well with more salt, pepper and sugar to taste. (*Alternatively put everything in a slow cooker on low for 3 hours!).

Jean’s Tea Loaf (makes 1 loaf)

Great with a cup of tea – you can leave the butter out completely if you prefer, but I add a little in as I prefer the texture. You can always slather salted butter on a slice before eating!  N.B. You’ll need to soak the fruit and sugar in the tea overnight. This is adapted from my cousin Jean’s recipe (from Llanbedrog, North Wales 😊) – Ann.

  • 400g mixed dried fruit
  • 300ml strongly brewed tea of your choice (use 2-3 teabags)
  • 100g dark muscovado sugar
  • 250g self-raising flour
  • 50g cold butter, diced (optional)
  • 1 heaped teaspoon mixed spice
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • Zest of 1 orange or of 2 satsumas

Method:

The night before, put the dried fruit, sugar and tea in a large bowl, mix well and cover.

The next day, preheat oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4.  Grease and line a 2lb. loaf tin.
Rub the butter (if using) into the flour. To the fruit/sugar/tea mixture (i.e. do not discard any of the liquid), add the flour /butter mix (or just the flour), plus spices, zest and egg and mix well.
Transfer to tin and bake on lower shelf of oven for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Cool before removing from tin. Keeps well in an airtight tin for a week, and freezes well (double-wrapped in foil).

Many thanks to Ann Shaw 🙂

Bon Appetit!

Ann’s previous recipes:

The Bishops' Kitchen

To revisit the Bishops’ Kitchen recipes provided by Richard Childs
Please click HERE🙂

#Broadwindsor #Blackdown #Burstock #Drimpton #Hursey #Kittwhistle #Seaborough #Dorset #WestDorset #Community #Village #May #Community #TheBishopsKitchen #TheBroadPalate #WestDorset #Baking #Food #HomeCooking #EatCake #YumYum #TeaLoaf #Ratatouille #BeTempted #CookWithKids #Enjoy #June #BeSafe #StaySafe