Seafood Risotto and an Italian Deli experience

Of all the countries I have visited, my first choice would always be Italy.  I first visited with my parents when I was 15 years old and immediately fell in love with the markets, the architecture and the art.  It took until 2009 before I was able to return and found it was even better!

Montalcino

Of course, for me, food is a really important part of my holiday and it's lovely to try to recreate dishes that you have tasted on holiday.  Getting the right ingredients makes all the difference when making dishes from another country.  I was delighted when UFUUD contacted me to try some products from their extensive selection.

An Italian Deli in Montalicino

UFUUD is the UK’s place to buy Italian food online, it is synonymous with high quality and tradition. As the number one portal in the UK to purchase traditional products, they offer a wide array of exclusive goods that come from 60 local producers throughout 16 regions of Italy. Some of their most popular products include cold cuts, pasta, ready-made sauces, oil, rice, vinegar and sweets, to name a few. At UFUUD  they have the passion to satisfy the tastes of everyone looking to savour the tastes that are the foundation of our country’s gastronomy.

Here is what I ordered from UFUUD :

The website it easy to use and each product comes with detailed information about the product including the ingredients (where appropriate) conservation information and chef's advice.  Search the site by FOOD, DRINK, ORGANIC OR PROMO.


The products in the photo collage above were used in the Seafood Risotto. The carnaroli is a lovely quality, creamy but it didn't disintegrate when cooked in the risotto.   I loved the big soft chunks of long fin tuna, quite unlike those I usually buy in a tin, it was much more like real fish.  The marinated anchovies were soft and delicious and not overly salty.  The Romaniae Terrae Pecorino caused some comment from the family who asked why I had a 'roll' in the fridge!  The cheese is semi-hard and has a good strong flavour.  I found the wheat berries a bit of an annoyance as they are too hard to eat.  I dare say they add flavour to the cheese.  The other ingredient is my wild garlic pesto.

Seafood Risotto
Serves 4-6

1 tbsp olive oil from the Long Fin Tuna
1 onion, finely chopped
250g Carnaroli risotto rice
900ml fresh fish or vegetable stock, hot
4 tbsp wild garlic or other green pesto
180g Long Fin Tuna, drained
40g Marinated Anchovies
240g prawns
100g Romaniae Terrae Pecorino

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. 
2. Add the rice, stir for 1 minute, add a 50ml of stock and simmer until evaporated then add 400ml of the stock and simmer again, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes, until most of the stock has been absorbed.
3. Add the remaining stock and repeat, cooking for a further 10-12 minutes, until the rice is cooked but still has a slight bite to it.
4. Stir in the pesto and cook for 1 minute.
5. Remove from the heat, stir in 60g of Pecorino finely chopped or crumbled and season to taste.
6. Add the tuna, anchovies and prawns and gently stir into the risotto.
7. Serve with the remaining 40g of Pecorino in finely shaved slivers over the top.

Other dishes that I have made with the goodies from UFUUD are Taragna Polenta for my Mackerel with Madeirean Special Sauce.




I used a little of the left over chocolate pastry from the Double Chocolate Tartlets to make some mini tartlets and filled them with a mixture of cream cheese, double cream, some of the juice and chopped up cherries from the Sun-Cooked Morello Cherries and, of course, a cherry on top, absolutely gorgeous.  The only thing about these cherries is they have the stones in, so you do have to be careful of your teeth!

The Cinnamon Chocolate Bar  is rather gritty in texture, but has a really good chocolate flavour.

This little jar of Mostarda, Spicy Fig Mustard, undoubtedly stole the show.  I just loved the contrast of the sweet, jammy fig chutney and the spicy mustard. At £9.00 it's expensive for  160g  so definitely a special treat.  It would be possible to buy substitute products at a much lower price, but it is precisely the quality of the products that UFUUD stock that makes them worth having.  Not everything is expensive, many of the products such as the pastas and polenta are good value, as well as good quality.  But there is no doubt that UFUUD provide an authentic deli experience and I certainly will be visiting again.

Labels: chocolate, long fin tuna, marinated anchovies, morello cherries, mostarda, pecorino, Pesto, Polenta, prawns, risotto, Seafood, UFUUD, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 20:58 15 Comments

Cheese and Wild Garlic Scones

I've been out gathering Wild Garlic again. The flowers are starting to bloom on the plants and soon the leaves will  become more tough and not so good for cooking.  Scones are a really good vehicle for all sorts of flavours both sweet and savoury and the cheese worked really well with the wild garlic.


Cheese and Wild Garlic Scones
makes 6-8 depending on the size of your cutter!

225g self-raising flour
1 level tsp baking powder
50g butter
100g finely grated cheese
30g wild garlic leaves, finely chopped
1 tsp of dry mustard
1/4 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
1 egg
milk

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C
2. Mix the flour and baking powder and rub in the butter until it looks like breadcrumbs.
3. Stir in the cheese and the finely chopped wild garlic leaves.
4. Beat the egg in a bowl and add to the mixture, add enough milk to bring it together into a soft dough.
5. Dust your work surface with flour and gently pat the dough into a round about 2 cm thick, cut out your scones.
6. Place on a greased and floured baking tray, brush the tops with a little milk.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the scones are golden brown.
8. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Labels: Bake, butter, cheese, Scones, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 20:16 22 Comments

Wild Garlic Hummus, Wild Garlic Pesto and Green Chicken - Obsessed by Spring Foraging

I make a batch of hummus every month and freeze it in portions, so we always have hummus available, it's my husband's favourite filling for his lunchtime sandwich.  I was looking for ways to use the wild garlic I had picked and, as hummus contains garlic, I decided to try making it with wild garlic.
Sometimes I forget just how fortunate I am to live in the country, mostly in the cold dark days of winter.  However, I am reminded of the joys of country living  in spring when everything starts to grow again.  Close to where I live there are some woods with a burn (stream) running through them and this is my favourite place to walk.  This year the Wild Garlic (Ransoms) have gone completely berserk and are covering the roadsides as well as the side of this little waterway.

We even had a late flurry of snow this weekend but you can see that the flowers are nearly ready to pop on this particular wild garlic plant.

Wild Garlic Hummus
250g cooked chickpeas
3 tablespoons of tahini
1 lemon, juiced
50g wild garlic, roughly torn
60ml olive oil
some of the cooking liquid from the chickpeas or water

Put all the ingredients into your food processor and process.  Add cooking liquid or water until you have the thickness and texture you prefer.




Wild Garlic Pesto
If you ask how best to preserve foraged wild garlic you will find many people will direct you to make pesto.  So I did! It has a stunning colour and an intense flavour and you can freeze it for later.

You need:
100g wild garlic leaves, roughly torn
50g nuts (I used almonds)
200 ml oil (I used olive oil)
75g cheese (I used a combination of grated cheddar and parmesan)
Pinch of sea salt

Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.  Serve with pasta, risotto or however you would usually serve pesto.




Green Chicken or Turkey Breast

1. Roughly tear up the wild garlic leaves and put them and the rest of the ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth.  
2. Loosen the skin of the chicken or turkey breast and rub some of the mixture under the skin, directly onto the breast meat.  Then rub the rest of the mixture over the whole bird.
3. Roast  breast side up for 20 minutes at 180C, then turn over and roast for the time appropriate to the size of your bird to make sure it is cooked through.  Test by piercing with a skewer at the thickest part and the juices will run clear when it is cooked. 

Wild Garlic Omelette
I hope you have enjoyed this foray into the world of foraged food and you are encouraged to seek out some wild food for yourself.  Please be very careful what you pick and where you pick it from, getting someone to show you which plants are safe is the best way to learn. 



I'm adding these recipes to Cooking with Herbs, the Linky Party run by Karen at Lavender and Lovage 


I'm also entering this seasonal wild garlic for Ren Behan's Simple and in Season which is being hosted this month by Helen at Fuss Free Flavours

Labels: foraging, green chicken, hummus, omelette., Pesto, ransoms, Turkey, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 21:26 26 Comments

The Foragers Kitchen - A Review

Wild Garlic growing locally

I suppose that I have been foraging most of my life, although until recently I probably wouldn't have called it that! As a child we collected rose hips which were sent off to make rose hip syrup, I think the school got paid for them. We always picked brambles (blackberries) and wild strawberries and raspberries and I remember one bumper 'field mushroom' year when my father-in-law would come back from the field every morning with his pockets full of mushrooms. Another time there were so many sloes we made sloe wine which was sweet and delicious.

In the Forager's Kitchen by Fiona Bird you will find over 100 easy recipes both savoury and sweet featuring all kinds of foods you can find for free in the countryside, in town and at the seaside.

The introduction is beautifully written, full of lively description and useful advice. There is a section of helpful Ground Rules and a serious piece about misidentification, there is even a list of 'Useful Kit for Foragers'

The Chapters

Flowers and Blossom

Honeysuckle

Fiona starts by introducing us to some common edible flowers with instructions on how and when to harvest them, store them and crystallised. The chapter includes recipes for Wild Elderflower and Gooseberry Curd, Honeysuckle Jelly, Violet Macarons with Primrose Cream, Gorse Water, Wild Cherry Blossom Panna Cotta and Couscous and Chicken infused with Linden.

Woodland and Hedgerow

Nettles in my back garden!

I am very tempted by the recipe for Douglas Fir Chocolate Pots however,I need to find a Douglas Fir first! I will be foraging for nettles, we have no shortage of them, to make Salmon and Nettle Fish Cakes. I have a Hazel tree but it has never provided me with any nuts, if you are lucky enough to find some Wild Hazelnuts you could make the delicious sounding Salted Caramel Wild Hazelnut Shortbread.There are some useful tips about foraging for fungi and recipes for Griddled Field Mushrooms as well as Pan-Fried Puffball with Carrot and Cardamom Purée which includes chickweed! I can't wait to be able to eat chickweed as we have it growing everywhere in summer. Recipes for wild watercress and Sorrel are also included.

Fruits and Berries
 

Brambles

More familiar territory here with a basket full of wild fruits and berries, starting with a classic Wild Venison with Blackberry Sauce. Bilberry (Blaeberry in Scotland) lurk among heather moors but if you find some you can combine them with Hazelnuts in a Crumble Cake which can be served warm for dessert or cold at tea time. I was once lucky enough to find undamaged windfall Quince and wish I had had this recipe for Quince and Wild Thyme Sorbet at the time. Mini Damson Tartes Tatin look stunning in the photograph and I am fascinated to find out what Crab Apple and Wild Honeysuckle Jelly tastes like.

Sloes

Hedgerow jam, Sloe Gin and Wild and Wicked After Dinner Treats complete this chapter.

Herbs

Wild Garlic or Ramps

There are five recipes using Sweet Cicely including Sweet Cicely and Rhubarb Sorbet and Sweet Cicely Cookies.  The Wild Blossom Tempura looks fun too must try and track down some Sweet Cicely.  I've also never seen 'Jack-in-the-Hedge' or Garlic Mustard but will be looking out for it now as the Garlic Mustard and chickweed Buschettas look really tasty. There are also recipes using Wild Thyme, Scots Lovage and Borage.

I have access to plenty of Wild Garlic or Ramps and there are six recipes for this delicious spring leaf, including the New Potatoes in Ramps and Lemon which I made.



New Potatoes in Ramps and Lemon (serves 4)
800g new potatoes
8 ramps (wild garlic) leaves, ashed and dried
25g butter
Zest of 1/2 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper
2-3 ramps (wild garlic) flowers, washed, dried and segmented

1. Scrub the potatoes (to remove loose dirt).  Cut any larger potatoes in half.  Cook in a minimum quantity of boiling water for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are just soft.
2. Meanwhile chiffonade the ramps leaves (roll the leaves up tihgtly and cut into thin shreds)
3. Drain and reserve the potatoes, and add the butter and lemon zest to the pan.  Return to the heat briefly to melt the butter, then add the shredded ramps leaves.  Cook for a minute to wilt the leaves, then return the potatoes to the pan.
4. Toss the potatoes in the butter lemon, and ramps and season  with freshly ground pepper.
5. Turn  into a warm serving bowl and scatter the tiny ramps flowers over the top before serving. 

Printable Recipe

Sea And Shore
Foraging at the seashore is not something I'm so familiar with, so this is a really useful chapter with clear descriptions and photographs of the different seaweeds, shellfish and molluscs.  Apparently Hebridean children once ate sugar kelp as candy (sweeties) and Chocolate Sugar Kelpmores are Fiona's answer to the craze for salted caramel!   Sea Lettuce also gets the sweet treatment as Sea Lettuce Madeleines, Lemon and Sea Lettuce Ice Cream or Sea Lettuce and Caramel Sauce. It seems to be a very versatile sea vegetable as there are also recipes for Sea Lettuce fish parcels, Scotch Quail Eggs with Sea Lettuce and Sea Lettuce and Prawn Panna Cotta.  Other dishes include Seaweed and Butternut Squash Cakes, Beach Popcorn, Simply Razor Clams, Samphire with Place in Sweet Pepper Sauce and Wild Mussels in Dandelion and Burdock Beer.

The chapters end with some notes about Foraging and the Law including UK, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, US and Canada.

Labels: Brambles, Cico Books, Cook book review, forage, hedgerow, Sloes, The Forager's Kitchen, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 10:58 7 Comments

Seared Scallops with Leek Tagliatelle and Chilli Jam

I love scallops, they are a real treat and ideal to serve when you have friends or family round for supper. I found a recipe for Seared Scallops with leeks and lemon chilli butter on the BBC Good Food website and used that as the basis for my meal.

I'm eating fish twice a week for a Healthy, Happy Heart.  You can find out more about how you can increase your Omega 3 levels and improve your health at the Fish is the Dish website.

I've never made a leek tagliatelle but it was really easy to do and very tasty indeed and, as it is steamed, you don't lose the vitamins either.
I really liked this recipe, but I already had some wild garlic butter in the freezer, and wanted to use that instead of the lemon chilli butter.
 

Wild Garlic

I added a teaspoon of Galloway Chilli Lime and Ginger Jam to the pan with the wild garlic butter after the scallops had been seared and caramelised.

This is Sheena, our local Chilli Queen from Galloway Chillies,  at the Farmers Market where I bought a couple of jars of her lovely Chilli Jam.


I felt that the dish,  as described on the website, wouldn't be substantial enough for a main meal, so I made some buttery mashed potatoes topped them with the leek tagliatelli, the scallops and the garlicky, buttery, chilli juices.  The whole dish was an absolute delight.

I'm entering this recipe for Herbs on Saturday a recipe sharing blog event hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage.

Labels: Chilli Lime and Ginger Jam, Fish is the Dish, Leeks, scallops, seared scallops, Wild Garlic

posted by Janice @ 21:00 13 Comments