Earlier this year I had the opportunity to meet Catherine Fulvio and have a quick chat, she mentioned she was filming a new tv series for RTE, but never mentioned the fact that she had a brand new fantastic book hitting book shops this month. I got a copy from the folks at Gill and MacMillan to flick my way through and it is packed with great Italian recipes and lots of lovely food shots. I have three copies to give away this week so you can try and grab a copy via twitter, facebook or on the entry form below. I'll be posting a few of Catherine's recipe here on the blog this week and remember to check out her RTE show Friday's at 8.30pm!
Beef Carpaccio (Carpaccio di manzo) Of all the delicious things to come out of Harry’s Bar in Venice, including the Bellini cocktail, carpaccio tops the list for me. Generally, carpaccio refers to very thinly sliced raw beef, but nowadays the term is widely used, from swordfish carpaccio to pineapple.
300g fillet steak, cut into wafer-thin slicesextra virgin olive oil 1 tbsp lemon juice salt and freshly ground black pepper rocket, to garnish Parmesan shavings
Spread the slices of steak on a serving platter. Drizzle with olive oil and the lemon juice. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Garnish with rocket, sprinkle over the Parmesan shavings and serve. It’s possible to buy beef carpaccio precut and prepacked, but I always buy it fresh and ask my butcher to slice the beef. That way, I’m assured of freshness and provenance.
To be in with a chance of getting your hands on a copy of Catherine's book, all you gotta do is answer this simple question.
What is the name of Catherine Fulvio's Cookery School? A: Ballymaloe Cookery School B: Ballyknocken House Cookery School C: Cooks Academy Please note that by entering this competition, you will be signing up for The Good Mood Food Blog newsletter, but if you don't wish to subscribe, please put "NS" after your answer. The competition will close on Thursday evening (2nd Sept) at 9.30pm. Only one entry per person please!
I do have to apologise for another chorizo recipe but I think it may just be my current food addiction. Hopefully there won't be too many complaints! While I was in London recording episodes for Market Kitchen down at the Borough Market a few weeks ago, there was an amazing little Spanish food shop called Brindisa which was selling all different types of chorizo and an amazing selection of fantastic, high quality Spanish ingredients. Myself and Leonie, the amazing Market Kitchen home economist, picked up some and we actually used it in one of the dishes I cooked on camera.
Brinidisa also had the coolest little stall just beside where we were filming, where there was two busy stall holders with a massive hot plate frying up thick pieces of chorizo for the funkiest sambos I have ever seen. I later learned, after a quick google, that these little babies are famous right the way around the world, with mentions in many travel guides from Japan to Australia!
Brindisa Chorizo and Rocket Sandwiches Isn't it amazing that some of the most tasty dishes are always the easiest. This recipe is hardly a recipe really, it's a case of assembly when you get down to it. Do try and get your hands on some good quality chorizo from a speciality Spanish food shop if you can, it makes all the difference in taste!
Serves 2 4 good quality fresh chorizo sausages, halved 2 roasted piquillo peppers, sliced 2 large handfuls of rocket leaves 2 ciabatta, lightly toasted A good drizzle of olive oil A splash of balsamic vinegar A good pinch of sea salt and crushed black peppercorns
In a large hot frying pan, fry the chorizo halves until roaring red and sizzling on both sides. Toast the ciabatta halves and slice in half. Toss the rocket leaves in a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Season with a little sea salt and black pepper. Assemble the sandwich, place the chorizo on the ciabatta, add a few thick slices of roasted peppers, and some dressed rocket leaves. Devour immediately!
Since the launch of the book I have been asked to do quite a few kids school demonstrations, and although I was a little apprehensive at first, I have pretty much grown to love them. The amazing thing that I forget about everytime I do a demo, is just how excited they get about food, and not only that, but how much they actually take in, when you speak about food. Today a little guy, around 7 years old, bravely stuck up his hand during the demo, in front of all of his mates and asked me, what was the best healthy substitute for mayonnaise. I was totally taken aback because it just shows that these kids are really thinking about the food that is being cooked! Having grown up learning how to cook from a very early age, I guess I always took that sort of knowledge as granted and to a certain extent it was just a part of normal life for me. After reading recent reports that 1in 5 of Ireland's children are obese, it's quite disturbing to think that these kids with unhealthy diets are growing up without that sort of knowledge. Knowledge which could potentially change their lives and have a dramatic impact on their health both now and in the long run.
From what I can see on the TV and in the press, the problem with kids eating unhealthy diets doesn't lie with the schools, they can only do so much, the problem and the solution lies with the food routines set out by the parents at home. Which is why an emphasis has to be put on teaching those parents who can't cook, the basic meals and cooking habits which will set them up to run a healthy, happy household. I am of course coming to you from the viewpoint of someone who doesn't have kids and I don't mean to get all preachy on you, I know there are time constraints and all sorts of other factors to consider but when you see kids who have such an active interest in food you seriously have to question where the problem actually lies. What do you think?
Food politics aside, I started a brand new weekly food column with Cork based newspaper, The Cork News, a few weeks back and it has been getting a really great response so far! Here is the recipe from today's column!
Garlic and Rosemary Chicken with Roast Cherry Tomato Salad Although I do try to buy as much in season vegetables as possible I just can't resist using cherry tomatoes in this tasty little dish. The good thing about roasting the them is that it brings out the best from even the most tasteless tomatoes. By feeding them with a little sea salt, black pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar you are guaranteed little morsels packed with punchy flavour. It's dishes like this which are really simple and full of flavour that make mealtimes far more enjoyable and take the hassle out of cooking for groups. Feel free to adapt the recipe as you wish, try using different herbs, different salad leaves, just use what you have.
Serves 4 4 chicken breasts 6 cloves of garlic 2-3 sprigs of rosemary 4 tablespoons of olive oil A good pinch of ground black pepper A good pinch of sea salt
For the salad: 4 tablespoons of olive oil 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar A good pinch of ground black pepper A good pinch of sea salt 1 large punnet of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half 120g of rocket leaves 1 small red onion, finaly sliced Shavings of parmesan cheese to serve
In a bowl whisk together the olive oil and balsamic vinegar for the salad. Add the tomatoes to a large roasting tray cut side up, pour half the dressing over and toss to combine. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Place in an oven at 200oC/Gas Mark 6 for about 35 minutes or until the tomatoes have reduced in size. While the tomatoes are roasting in the oven, in a pestle and mortar or with the back of a knife, crush the garlic cloves with a little sea salt, until you have a fine paste. Remove the leaves from the sprigs of rosemary, and add them with the mushed garlic, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, and chicken breasts to a bowl and allow to marinade while you prepare the rest of the salad ingredients. On a large hot griddle pan, fry the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes either side, depending on the size, but just make sure they are cooked through. In a large bowl, toss together the rocket, roasted cherry tomatoes, red onion and remaining dressing. Serve alongside the chicken with some shavings of parmesan cheese.
Well with the new year well in swing, and the days becoming brighter, I am already starting to get excited about the whole new season of ingredients to play with in the kitchen. I love really light and bright salads and getting back into the garden means being flooded with lots of fresh and tasty veg to make my way through!
There are so many options when it comes to salads, and you can make them as healthy or different as you want. For me it just depends what sort of mood I'm in, but when I'm in a really healthy buzz, I absolutely love using as many fantastic healthy ingredients I can get my hands on.
I don't know if you have come across a brilliant little food company called Good4U foods in the supermarket, but they produce a load of really healthy ingredients that are so easy to incorporate into salads. I originally thought the company was UK based because of their web address, but last year I got an email from the lovely Laura Butler who started the company with her mum Bernie in Limerick. I was thrilled to hear they were Irish based which gives me even more reason to rave about them. Their full range of products include, alfalfa shoots, brocco shoots, sunflower shoots, and a whole host of seeds which are all perfect for sprinkling over salads! Stay tuned to the blog this week as I have a fab competition coming up from the Good4U folks!
Rocket Power Chicken Superfood Salad As the winter months are thankfully coming to end, I am already starting to look towards more fresh and healthy dishes. Thankfully the days are becoming longer and brighter, now don't get me wrong, I'm all about comfort food, but as we start to look towards the spring nothing beats a really fresh and zingy salad. This Rocket Power Chicken Superfood Salad ticks all the boxes for me, it's perfect for a healthy lunch box, just save the dressing until the last minute. I absolutely love Brocco shoots and Lentil and Bean Shoots from Irish owned health food company Good4U, and they can be found in most supermarkets, perfect for boosting healthy salads! The Good4U range has a whole host of healthy ingredients which include, alfalfa shoots,
Serves 2 100g bulgar wheat 170ml boiling water A drizzle of olive oil 2 chicken breasts A little black pepper 25g brocco shoots 60g lentil and bean shoots 150g soy beans 30g spinach leaves 30g rocket leaves
For the dressing: 2 tablespoons of lemon juice 1 tablespoon of natural yoghurt 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil 1/2 teaspoon of English dried mustard A good pinch of sea salt and black pepper
Place the bulgar wheat in a bowl with the boiling water and cover with cling film. The bulgar wheat will cook in the water while you can get on with the rest of the salad. Season the chicken breasts with a little black pepper, brush a griddle pan with a little olive oil and cook over a medium high heat for 4-5 minutes either side or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken and slice thinly. While the chicken is cooking, cook the soy beans according to the packet, drain and rinse in cold water, set aside. Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together in a small bowl. In a large bowl toss the spinach, rocket, brocco shoots, lentil and bean shoots and soy beans with the dressing. Assemble the salad with a layer of bulgar wheat on each plate, top with the salad leaves and shoots and finally place the chicken slices on top and serve!
Last Twinnerparty recipe today! Hope you are all set for tomorrow night, I will write a few tips later on to save time, like the things you can make ahead and so on. A huge thank you to Julian from Bubble Brothers who has posted his suggestions for wines to go with the full meal, so if you are into your wines, head over there to see which wine goes with what! Kick off time for the twinnerparty is 7pm, with an aim to serve the first course at 7.30pm, but as we are all mostly from Ireland, timing of things normally goes out the window, but sure we'll see!
Beetroot, Goats Cheese, Pine Nut and Rocket Salad
This is a really tasty starter dish which is perfect for preparing the ingredients ahead of time and simply assembling them at the last minute to create a pretty impressive salad. If you don't want to roast the beetroot yourself, you can by precooked vac packed ones in the supermarket.
Serves 6 6 medium sized beetroot 75g pine nuts 250g goats cheese, cut into bitesize pieces 60g rocket leaves 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard Half a clove of garlic, minced A good pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper
You can cook the beetroot ahead of time if you wish, simply wrap them in tinfoil, place on an oven tray and bake for about an hour at 190C/Gas Mark 5 or until you can insert a fork smoothly. Remove from the oven, allow to cool, then peel with knife and slice into quarters. On a large frying pan, over a medium heat, toast the pine nuts, until golden brown, make sure to keep an eye on them as they can burn quite easily. In a large bowl whisk together the Dijon mustard, oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper and set aside. When you are ready to serve the salad, arrange the beetroot quarters and goats cheese pieces on each plate. Toss the rocket leaves in the dressing and place a little on each plate. Finally scatter each plate with the toasted pine nuts and serve straight away!
Who else is ready for the lighter foods season to start? I love Christmas and all the festive food that comes with it but after all the leftovers are eaten I am more than ready to start eating healthy dishes again. As January rolls in the focus will quickly change to healthy dishes to help all those with optimistic New Years resolutions and I can't wait!
There is nothing more exciting for me than the feeling of starting something new! So as you can imagine I am already looking forward to 2010 and the start of a brand new decade. Now everyone has new years resolutions but sometimes its easier, if even a bit scary to look at the big picture and start thinking what the next 10 years might bring! I'm still having a think about where I want to be in 2020, but one of the big things on my list is to keep eating healthy food and exercising so I'm ready for the next ten years! So come on new decade we're READY FOR YA!
Avocado, Parmesan and Rocket Pasta
As I may or may not have mentioned I am addicted to avocados! They are packed with healthy nutrients and vitamins so all the more reason to eat them. I have been coming up with different recipes just to stick them in to my diet and this is one of my favourites. Look for avocados which are slightly soft to the touch when you press them with your fingers. The only thing to remember about avocados is that, unless you give them a spritz of lemon juice they tend not to like sitting around, so always prepare them last.
Serves 4 250g of wholemeal pasta 70g of rocket leaves, roughly chopped 2 avocados 1 clove of garlic, minced 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar A good handful of grated Parmesan cheese A good pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper
Cook the pasta according the instructions on the pack. While the pasta is cooking, add the rocket, Parmesan, garlic, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl and set aside. When the pasta is cooked, drain it and then add it to the bowl. Pour in the vinegar and olive oil and stir the pasta until it is nicely coated. You should end up with stringy cheesy green pasta- YUM! Slice the avocados in half and remove the stones, slice thinly and add to the pasta. Serve straight away and devour!
I first tried this salad as a kid, and back then I was never really convinced on the addition of pears. Even going as far as insisting on the pears having to be picked out, but then again I was a pretty, particular, little brat! I guess you could say, my palate has slightly expanded since then, and I can truly say that I now appreciate this punchy flavour combination. We had this with barbequed mackerel for dinner on Sunday and I'm not sure about the combination, but this salad really stands strong alongside whatever dish you choose to serve it with.
Rocket, Pear, Parmesan and Pine Nut Salad Toast the pine nuts in frying pan for a minute or so until they turn a nice golden brown. Make sure to keep your eye on them as nuts cook really quickly, I can't tell you how many times I've burnt a pan of nuts and I still haven't learned my lesson!
Serves 4 120g of rocket 2 pears, peeled, cored and sliced wafer thin. A good handful of parmesan shavings 50g of pine nuts, toasted
Dressing: 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar 1 clove of garlic, minced A good pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper
In a large salad bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the rocket and toss in the dressing until evenly coated. Scatter the toasted pine nuts, parmesan shavings and pear slices on top of the rocket. Serve straight away and enjoy!
Myself and Sofie made this bread to go with the Spatchcock chickens the other weekend. It is Sofie's adaptation of a Swedish recipe. The bread is a really great discovery and I would definitely try other flavour combinations for the filling.
Sofie's Rocket and Feta Cheese Bread This is a really healthy tasty bread with a really different filling.
3 x 7g sachet of dried yeast 2 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon of honey 600ml lukewarm water 125g oat flakes Approx 500g wholegrain flour
2 large handfuls of rocket 200g feta cheese A good handful of fresh herbs of your choice. A good handful of green olives roughly chopped.
Put the yeast in a bowl, and mix it with the salt and honey, add half of the water and let the yeast dissolve. Allow the mixture to sit for 10-15 minutes or until it has become frothy. Add the rest of the water and mix the oats and flour into the bowl. With a wooden spoon, combine the ingredients until a dough forms. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoon of flour over the dough and leave it for an hour and a half. While the dough is rising, in a bowl mix together the rocket, feta, herbs and olives. Preheat the oven to 225°C and dust a baking tray 30x40cm with flour. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and divide in two. Roll out both halves into equal shaped oval pieces. Put the first piece on the baking tray. Sprinkle the rocket, feta cheese, herbs and olives evenly over the dough. Gently put the second piece of dough over the filling and squeeze the edges so that they are sealed. Place the bread in the oven for 30 minutes or until it is nicely browned. When the bread is cooked leave it to cool on a wire rack before serving.
Originally a middle eastern ingredient bulgar wheat is made from cracked wheat kernels. It's an excellent store cupboard ingredient which is highly nutritious and can be stored for long periods of time. This wholegrain product is packed with fiber and protein, but is low in calories, plus it's so easy to make. If you have never tried it before I would describe it as mix between couscous and brown rice.
Bulgarwheat Chicken Rocket and Parsley Salad This sort of recipe is perfect for entertaining, it can easily be made the night before and stored in the fridge.
Serves 4-6 people. 200g bulgar wheat. 1 teaspoon of vegetable bouillon powder. 3 chicken breasts. A large handful of parsley, roughly chopped. A large handful of rocket, roughly chopped. 400g tin of chickpeas, drained and roughly chopped. 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. A good pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper.
Place the bulgar wheat in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Stir through the vegetable bouillon powder, cover with cloth or a cling film and allow to sit for about 30 minutes or until all the water is soaked up. Brush the chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Heat a griddle pan over a high heat and just before it begins smoking add the chicken breasts. Reduce the heat slightly and cook on both sides for approximately 6-7 minutes either side depending on the size of the chicken breasts. Remove the chicken from the pan and roughly chop into bitesize pieces. Add the chicken, parsley and rocket to the bulgar wheat and stir through to combine. Season with a good pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper and stir through the remaining olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Transfer to a serving dish and enjoy!
What is it with caterers who seem to think the only solution to feeding a large amount of people means sticking everything in a deep fat fryer? Recently I have been to more than 3 events which have resorted to battered chicken nuggets, onion rings, and cocktail sausages! Now I'm not going to completely condemn them as I did have a quick nibble, as most people do, but I would far rather some simple, fresh finger food with healthy ingredients which don't rely on a vat of boiling fat to make them look pretty!
This little antipasto salad is my simple solution to any pre dinner nibbles. Three tasty ingredients combined to make a delicious little starter which can be thrown together in no time at all. Best of all it looks so damn good your guests will think you went to a whole lot of bother! To be honest this is more of a sit down affair, but if you did want to transform this dish into proper finger food, simply toast some small slices of bread, spread with a little pesto, wrap a few rocket leaves, wafers of parmesan cheese and crushed olives in some parma ham slices, place on the pesto toast and hold together with a cocktail stick.
Simple Antipasto Salad This is a great base for any salad so feel free to throw in some lovely extras if you so wish. Things like toasted pine nuts, garlic croutons, and sun dried tomatoes would all work great in this. If you buy olives unpitted, simply crush them with the back of a knife and remove the stone with your fingers.
3 large handfuls of rocket leaves. (Arugula) Half of a 100g jar of green olives (pitted). 1 packet of parma ham slices. 1 Large handful of wafer thin parmesan cheese slices. 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. A small pinch of ground black pepper.
The method for this one is so easy- Simply mix together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and black pepper in a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and toss gently. Tumble the salad onto a large serving dish and serve. Make sure to provide lots of crusty bread to eat alongside and enjoy!
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