The Simple Dressing that Packs a Punch

Tags

asparagus, Cape Town, Clifton Kitchen, Cooking thorugh the seasons, dressings, fish, Kate Abbott, lemons, marinades, Olive oil, Parsley, Pasta, roast chicken, Vit C

I use this dressing a lot; it serves as a sauce, a dressing and equally well as a marinade. I love it with fish, roast chicken, over asparagus and I have even tossed it through some pasta.

With autumn flapping around our heals it is a good time to increase the intake of Vitamin C. This dressing goes a long way toward ensuring I do and becomes a firm staple in my kitchen throughout the winter season. The dressing keeps well for about a week in the fridge.

Ingredients

lukewarm water

250 ml fruity extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 2 large lemons

A good handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

2-3 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 tsp. dried oregano

Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Method

Combine 70 ml lukewarm water and half the olive oil in a small saucepan. Whisk in the lemon juice, parsley, garlic and oregano; Season to taste.

Next, heat all the ingredients over low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring gently and often; after about 5 minutes add the rest of the oil and combine until emulsified.

Place in a jar with a screw top lid and store in the fridge. Shake before use.

Options:

To change the flavour, you can add some of the following ingredients if you choose. Chilli fresh or dried, finely chopped sage, finely chopped mint, finely chopped basil, or finely chopped anchovy.

Aromatic Warmth & Heady Fragrance ….. the inspiring notes for todays menu

Tags

Bobotie, Carrots, corriander, Crab meat, cumin, fish, ginger, Onion seeds, salmon, Seasoning, Spices, spinach, Turmeric

It’s a clear bright sky today; the wild almond which towers over the entrance to the Clifton House is breaking out with blossoms, soon they will fall to the ground like snowflakes; the wonderful fragrance of cardamom coffee wafting from the kitchen pricks the senses. I fancy something fragrant and mildly spicy for dinner.

The pantry store cupboard holds a store of heady scents and warm colours, I find just what I need for the Fish Bobotie which I will serve with a warm salad of carrot, spinach tossed together with a cumin, lemon and garlic dressing. I pick fresh curry leaves from the little tree in the herb garden and add a few Kaffir lime leaves to the bundle. The curry leaves provide a mild aromatic warmth to the Bobotie which I feel the dish just cant do without. The kaffir lime leaves are optional.

Aromatic Fish Bobotie served with Carrot, Spinach and cumin salad with toasted black onion seeds

Deliciously fragrant and mildly spicy, a good dish for entertaining friends.

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 cans of skinless and boneless pink salmon ( drained mass 270 g)

1 can crab meat (drained mass 113 g)

2 slices of bread

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. ground coriander

½ ground cayenne pepper

Thumb size piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped

1 onion peeled and finely diced

1 cup of cream

1 tsp. turmeric powder

2 large eggs

Salt

Black pepper

6-8 curry leaves

4 kaffir lime leaves finely sliced (optional)

Method

Set the oven temperature to 180C

Drain the cans of salmon and crab meat and place in a bowl.

In a separate bowl tear the bread into chunks and cover with the cup of milk, leave to soak.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan, add the cumin, coriander, cayenne and sauté for a few seconds, add the chopped ginger, sauté for a few more seconds then add the chopped onion. Sauté until the onion is tender and soft. Add to the bowl with the fish and crab and mix through. Squeeze the bread reserving the milk for later; add the bread to the mixture in the bowl. Mix all thoroughly but gently together and place in a buttered oven proof dish.

Add 1 cup of the cream to the reserved milk in which the bread was soaking, add the turmeric, the eggs, beat together lightly and season with salt and pepper. Pour this custard liquid over the fish mixture. Add some curry leaves pushing them gently down on top of the custard. Add a sprinkling of the finely sliced Kaffir lime leaves.

Place in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until the custard is set and is a nice golden colour.

For the warm salad

Carrot Spinach and cumin salad with toasted black onion seeds

The secret to this salad is good quality organic carrots and spinach and lightly pan roasting the onion seeds

Ingredients

500g cooked carrots

250g baby spinach washed, blanched and squeezed dry

½ tsp. ground cumin

2 garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped

½ tsp. sea salt

Juice of half a lemon

1/3 tsp. castor sugar

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tsp. pan roasted black onion seeds

Method

Slice the cooked carrots into long strips, about 3-4 strips per carrot. Place into a salad bowl, together with the spinach, layering as you go.

Pound the cumin, garlic, and salt in a mortar and pestle. Mix in the lemon juice, sugar and olive oil until well amalgamated.

Pour the dressing over the carrot and spinach and sprinkle with the roasted black onion seeds.

Lunch For One–Lightly Poached Salmon Served With Fig & Raisin Chutney

Tags

chutney, cooking, farmed salmon, figs, fish, food, home made bread, Olive oil, Oregano, organic, raisins, salmon, Seasoning, wine

Steel grey in colour the choppy waves capped with white foam, heave and churn wildly below my garden deck, it is as always quite an awesome site. It’s raining too and I am pleased that I shopped for food yesterday.

Tomatoes cut in half lightly drizzled with olive oil, topped with a smidge of Demerara sugar, a light sprinkle of Greek oregano and salt and pepper, are roasting off in the oven. It should take about an hour and half at 180C to reduce them to a concentrated richness. When done I put them in a pot, add some chicken stock, correct the seasoning and simmer for about 5 minutes then blend the lot together. Sometimes I will strain the soup, most times I prefer not to. By roasting the tomatoes you get a rich unctuous creamy textured soup yet it has no cream, served with some crusty homemade bread and a good bottle of wine it makes a perfect light dinner or a starter.

But for lunch; a nice piece of fresh farmed salmon seasoned and gently poached in about two table spoons of the fat, skimmed off the top of the stock from last night’s coq au vin, it adds another layer of subtle flavour. I serve the salmon with some fig and raisin chutney which compliments the fish beautifully.