Spaghetti with a Marinated Cherry Tomato Sauce

One of the nice things about having someone else in the house is that Ariana likes Pasta and now I have the perfect excuse to cook it and not feel guilty about it.   Today I made this simple and yet incredibly tasty pasta dish that  Ariana and I both really enjoyed, and the Toddster dined on leftover meat and potatoes.  Everybody was happy!



One of the things I like most about pasta is it's incredible versatility!  You can dine on a simple dish of just buttered pasta with a bit of cheese and be just as happy as you would be with a more complicated dish.   Pasta is the perfect thing to cook when you are tired and starving and you want a tasty meal on the table that doesn't take a lot of effort.



It can be as simple as opening a jar of sauce, heating it and dumping it on the pasta, which trust me . . .  I have done on occasion.   Lacking in inspiration, but still wanting something tasty to eat.  There are some very good pasta sauces out there and there are some really blah ones.   The trick is to experiment and taste a few different ones to find your favourite one and then to stick to that one.

 

Today I took advantage of all the ripe cherry tomatoes in the garden at this time of year and in the shops, and created a fresh sauce of cherry tomatoes that I quite simply marinated in a mix of vinegars and good olive oil.



Tossed with the fresh pasta, and heated through, I then topped it with some tasty crispy bread crumbs that added a bit of texture and another layer of flavours.  All in all it was simple and quite delicious.

 

You do need to marinate the tomatoes in the dressing for about an hour before you use them, but if you do that and then go off and do something else, you can just cook the pasta when you are ready to serve and your meal will be on the table pronto.

 

It's delicious, inexpensive and very simple to make.  I reckon even Todd could make it with a little bit of direction!  Who says fine dining needs to be complicated or expensive?  I hope you'll give this a go and that you enjoy it as much as Ariana and I did!

*Spaghetti with a Marinated Cherry Tomato Sauce*
Serves 4

Printable Recipe     

Simple, quick, easy and delicious!  The cripsy crumb topping is fabulous.  

320g of dried spaghetti (12 ounces)

600g of cherry tomatoes (4 cups)

3 TBS basil leaves

6 TBS extra virgin olive oil

2 TBS good red wine vinegar

1 TBS good balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

extra olive oil to taste

For the crispy crumb topping:

2 slices of good white bread, crusts removed and made into coarse crumbs

2 TBS olive oil

fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

a pinch of garlic powder

3 TBS finely grated Parmesan cheese   

Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and squeeze over a bowl to remove the juice and the seeds.  Discard the juice and seeds.   Tear the basil and add to the tomatoes.   Pour over the olive oil, and both vinegars and a healthy seasoning of salt and pepper.  Mix well to combine, pressing the tomatoes lightly down into the marinade.  Allow to stand for minimum one hour at room temperature.  Don't refrigerate.  

  

Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions in lightly salted boiling water until al dente.   Drain and return to the pan.  Add the tomatoes over a high heat, stirring to combine and heat through.   Drizzle with a bit more olive oil and serve.

Make the crispy crumb topping as the pasta is cooking. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet.   Add the bread crumbs, along with some seasoning and the garlic powder.  Cook, stirring and shaking over medium heat until the crumbs brown.  Remove from the heat and quickly stir in the Parmesan cheese, making sure it is well combined.   Set aside.

Pass the crispy crumb topping at the table.

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Spicy Blueberry Sauce

I love, love blueberries and we are right in the midst of our blueberry season here in the UK at the moment.  I know my sister has been picking the juicy little blue jewels for a few weeks now in Canada.  I can never get enough of them during the season and I always freeze tons to use in the Winter months.  Today I decided to make a delicious sauce with them!

 

You can never have too many sauce recipes in your repertoire I don't think!  This one has incredible flavours and it really pretty to look at.  I used fresh ginger root, ketchup, chopped shallots, English mustard, honey for sweetness, some chili flakes for a bit of heat and of course lots of those gorgeous blue berries.



Chili flakes???  You say, chili flakes?   Yes!  This is a savoury sauce meant to be served with grilled meats and fish . . . not with pancakes, although you certainly could if you really wanted to.   But this is a sauce that just begs to be served with grilled chicken and pork . . .  turkey . . . salmon.   Salmon is incredible with this.  Trust me.



Today I served it with some grilled chicken and it was fabulous together.   Sweet with some heat and a little bit of spiciness from the chili flakes and ginger.  You can adjust the heat however you wish by adjusting the amount of chili flakes you add.  I do hope you will give it a try and that you will love it as much as we do!

*Spicy Blueberry Sauce*

Makes about 1 1/2 cups  (335g)

Printable Recipe

You can use this as a barbeque sauce or just as an accompaniment to grilled meats.  It goes very well with chicken, pork and salmon.

300g of fresh or frozen blueberries (about 2 1/2 cups)

75ml of liquid honey (1/3 cup)

60ml of tomato ketchup

pinch red chili flakes

1 shallot, peeled and minced

2 tsp grated fresh gingerroot

1 tsp fresh lime juice

1/4 tsp English mustard

salt and pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan.   Bring to the boil over medium heat, then reduce to a slow simmer and cook until thickened, about 35 to 40 minutes.   Taste and season to taste with some salt and pepper if desired.  Set aside to cool.  Store, covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Note - you can puree this with a blender if you wish, or keep it chunky.   It's your choice.  I, myself, like it chunky.

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Late Summer Berry Crumble

   

This is the perfect dessert for this time of year.   Late summer.   We are just getting to the end of the strawberries and the Blueberries and raspberries are at their best.   Let's get ready to crumble!



 I actually used frozen blueberries and strawberries for this.  Our blueberry bushes are not really producing this year.  I don't know what we have done wrong.   And our strawberries are long since done, but I had frozen berries.  So what I did was I just gently mixed them with the raspberries and put them into the oven for about 10 minutes before I added the remaining ingredients.



It worked beautifully.   They were perfectly thawed and ready for me to sprinkle over the white chocolate and the buttery crumble mixture.

 

The white chocolate perfectly sweetens the fruit so you need no other sugar in the filling.   It's a delightful mix of sweet and tart . . .



And that topping  . . .  it is just the right amount of buttery and crispness . . .  part of it sinks down into the fruit thickening the juices.  It's just delightful.   Especially when served up with dollops of clotted cream.   All that rich cream melting down into the fruit and buttery crumble.   Oh so moreishly scrumptious.  We quite, quite love this.


 

 *Late Summer  Berry Crumble*
Serves 4 to 6, depending on appetites

Printable Recipe  

A delicious way to use up the last of the summer berries.  I use strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.  Any sweetness comes from the delicious addition of some white chocolate.  The buttery crumbs are it's crowning glory!  

300g of strawberries, washed and hulled (about 2 cups, cut in half if large)

200g fresh blueberries (2 cups)

200g fresh raspberries (2 cups)

100g of good white chocolate, broken into bits (about 1/2 cup)  

For the topping:

240g plain flour (1 2/3 cup)

140g of chilled butter, cut into bits (10 TBS)

80g sugar (scant half cup)  

 

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.   

Butter a six cup deep casserole dish.  Gently mix the berries and pour them into the dish.  Scatter the white chocolate bits over top.

Measure the flour and sugar into a bowl.  Drop in the butter.  Rub it into the dry mixture with your finger tips until the mixture resembles dry bread crumbs.  Sprinkle this evenly over top of the fruit.




Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the crumble topping is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling up.   Serve warm with or without lashings of cream!

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My August Seasonal Favourites!

I have always been a strong proponent of seasonal eating. Not only is locally produced seasonal food less expensive  but it also tastes a lot better!  It also helps to reduce your carbon footprint, and to be honest, I think that it's the most natural and healthiest way to eat.

I was just thrilled to be chosen as the CSMA's Seasonal Food Star of the Month!  Yay!!  If you click HERE, you can download their Seasonal Calendar of the month which includes some of my seasonal eating and cooking tips and recipes for August eating.  You can also read my profile here.  

I think August has to be one of my favourite food months as all of the local produce starts ripening and coming in for harvesting.   You have all of the early apples and the blackberries are ripening in the hedgerows not to mention all of the blueberries, plums,  tomatoes, beans, courgettes, peas, apricots, raspberries, gooseberries . . .  there is no end to all the deliciousness which is available to us this month!

I thought it would be fun this morning to share some of my favourite seasonal August Recipes with you all!    There's a bit of savoury and a bit of sweet.  In short, something for everyone!






We just adore this fresh Corn and Bean Salad which makes great use of the fresh corn, tomatoes, peppers and courgettes which are available at all of the farm shops and markets at the moment!  So tasty!





*Corn and Bean Salad*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Beautiful and colourful, this is one very tasty, and healthy salad! Try it out at your next barbeque!

For the dressing:
the juice of 3 limes
170g tub of Greek Yoghurt
(about 1 cup)
2 ounces olive oil (1/4 cup)
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
a large handful of fresh coriander, chopped (cilantro)

For the salad:
1 (415g or 15 ounce) tin of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well
1 (415g or 15 ounce) tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels, uncooked (can use one tin of niblets corn, drained)
1 medium courgette, washed, trimmed and cut into small cubes
1 red bell pepper, trimmed and cut into small cubes
4 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into cubes
6 spring onionss, thinly sliced



Make the dressing by whisking together the lime juice, yoghurt, olive oil, garlic, salt and cayenne pepper. Fold in the chopped coriander.

In a large salad bowl, combine the beans, corn, chickpeas, red pepper, courgettes and spring onions. Pour the yoghurt lime dressing over top and toss to combine. Serve at room temperature.



This is a beautiful and simple dish which makes wonderful use of the fresh summer vegetables from the garden or local markets in August.  This fabulous Pasta with Chicken and Summer Vegetables dish with it's delicious sauce and  hugely adaptable variety of vegetables  is sure to become a favourite with your family!  Very fresh and tasty!  Quick to make as well!  All you need is a fresh crusty loaf and you have a complete meal, plus you will haved gotten in more than a few of your needed five a day!



*Pasta with Chicken, Pancetta and Summer Vegetables*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is one of those quick and easy dishes where you can throw in just whatever vegetables you have to hand. I had courgettes, beans, leeks and tomatoes. You may have something else. Chard is very nice, as is asparagus and peas.

12 ounces Pasta, cooked until al dente
3 ounces chopped pancetta
2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 whole leeks, trimmed, washed and sliced thin
a large handful of garden fresh beans (I used a mixture of green and yellow)
1 medium courgette, washed, sliced in half and then into half moons
4 medium ripe tomatoes, quartered
4 ounces of finely grated parmesan cheese
4 ounces dry white wine (1/2 cup)
4 ounces double cream (1/2 cup)
a small handful of fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Shaved Parmesan Cheese to serve

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain well, (reserve a mugfull of the pasta cooking water) rinse, drain again and then set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally until most of the fat has been rendered and the pancetta has started to brown. Toss in the chicken and leeks. Continue to cook, stirring, until the chicken is cooked through and the leeks have softened. Add the beans and courgettes. Cook and stir for several minutes. Add the tomatoes and the wine, allowing it to bubble up. Allow to bubble until the wine reduces by half. Stir in the cream and the cheese. Cook and stir to melt. Season to taste with some salt and pepper and stir in the basil leaves. Serve immediately with some Parmesan Shavings scattered over top. Delicious!



Those with a sweet tooth won't want to miss out on this delicious Lemon Poundcake with it's fabulous blueberry sauce!  I love this sauce.  It's great with this cake, or stirred into lemon yogurt, spooned over ice cream, on pancakes . . .  there is no end to it's delicious versatility!   The cake is no slouch either.  You will love it!  The two together are a marriage made in heaven.



*Lemon Pound Cake with a Blueberry Sauce*
Serves 12 to 16
Printable Recipe

A delicious lemon scented buttery cake, topped with a lovely lemon butter icing and served with a blueberry sauce. Heaven.

For the cake:
250g (9ounces) butter, softened
250g (1 1/2 cups) caster sugar
2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large free range eggs
250g (2 cups) self raising flour, sifted

For the lemon butter icing:
3 TBS butter
110g (3 3/4 ounce) icing sugar, sifted
2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

For the Blueberry Sauce:
200g fresh blueberries (about 2 cups)
1 TBS water
25g caster sugar (a scant 1/4 cup)
the grated zest of one lemon

Preheat the oven to 350*C/180*F/gas mark 4. Butter and line the base of a deep 8 inch square cake tin with baking paper. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar with an electric whisk until pale and creamy. Beat in the lemon zest and the vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating only until just combined after each addition. Fold the sifted flour into the batter in two batches. Spread the batter into the prepared baking tin and level off.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until nicely risen and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. If you think it is getting too dark, cover loosely with some foil wrap. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan before turning out oonto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the blueberry sauce, place all of the ingredients into a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and allow to simmer over low heat just until the berries begin to burst, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

To make the icing beat the butter with an electric whisk until very soft and white. Beat in the icing sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice. Spread over the top of the cake.

Serve the cake cut into squares with the blueberry sauce on the side.



Got plums?  Then you will want to take advantage and bake up this fabulous Plum Clafoutis!  Who says clafoutis can only be made with cherries?  Plums make an excellent Clafoutis!  So simple and so tasty!



*Plum Clafoutis*
Serves 8 - 10
Printable Recipe

Deliciously simple . . . yet impressive.

softened butter and caster sugar to butter the dish with
10 ripe but firm plums, halved and pitted
4 large free range eggs
6 TBS caster sugar
5 TBS plain flour
450ml of cream (2 cups)
1 TBS orange flower water
the grated zest of one orange
70g of flaked almonds (1/2 cup)
icing sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark5. Butter a large round baking dish or flan dish. Dust with sugar, knocking any excess out.

Place the plums down into the dish, cut sides down. Beat the eggs together with the sugar and flour until smooth. Whisk in the cream, orange flower water and orange zest. Pour the resulting batter over the plums in the baking dish. Sprinkle with the almonds. Bake for 40 minutes, until well risen, lightly browned and set. Remove from the oven. Cool to lukewarm. Dust with icing suga and cut into wedges to serve.

Note - baking times are subjective and vary according to your own oven. I can only speak from my experience with my own oven. If you think that your clafoutis is browning too quickly, then you may loosely cover it with some foil during the last ten minutes of baking. If you find that it's not set by the end of the suggested cooking time, then by all means leave it in for a bit longer. I also like to have all of my ingredients at room temperature when I start, so take your eggs out of the fridge about an hour before you want to use them and measure out the cream and allow that to come to room temperature as well. This may allow for a shorter baking time. If your ingredients are cold then it will take longer of course!

Also I use Double Cream for this.



WE just adore this Apple and Blackberry In and Out.  No pretention here. Just plain and simple ingredients presented in a plain and simple way.

 

Mmmm . . . you just can't beat a buttery pudding, filled with tart apples and sweet blackberries (my addition) topped with a healthy dollop of rich clotted cream.  It's a MUST!



*Apple and Blackberry In and Out*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Apparently this is a real favourite in Devon when made with just apples. I added Blackberries because they taste good, and they always look so pretty when paired with apples.

8 ounces self raising flour (2 cups)
4 ounces shredded beef suet (1/2 cup Can use grated ice cold butter instead)
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced
a large handful of blackberries
1/2 pint of milk (about 1 1/4 cups)3 TBS Caster Sugar



Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Butter a 9 inch round baking dish. Set aside.

Mix the flour, suet and sugar together. Add the apples and enough milk to bring the mixture to a dropping consistency. Fold in the blackberries, gently. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and then bake until it is brown and crunchy on top (30 to 35 minutes.) Eat warm, spooned out into bowls and topped with dollops of clotted Cream.

Note: If your apples are very tart, you may add a bit more sugar if you wish.

 

There is nothing nicer than a nice pan of hash for supper!  It's quick.  It's easy.  It's delicious.  This one makes good use of  new potatoes, red onions and corn . . .  and has an added spark of sweet chili sauce!   Fabulous!  Economical.   Simple to make.  If you are like me, you always have a tin of corned beef in the larder!  It's so handy for spur of the moment meals.  You can use fresh sweet corn if you have it rather than a tin!



*Corned Beef, Sweet Corn and Red Onion Hash*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A quick and simple version of corned beef hash, that not only uses things I always have in my store cupboard, but also tastes fabulous!

1 large red onion, peeled and finely chopped
340g tin of corned beef (regular sized tin)
330g tin of sweetcorn, drained well (about 1 cup)
a large handful of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 TBS sweet Chili Sauce
500g pack of small new potatoes, halved
2 TBS olive oil
salt and pepper

Cook your potatoes in a large pan of boiling lightly salted water for about 12 to 15 minutes, until just tender. Drain well and cool. Once cool enough to handle, cut in half again.

Heat half of the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened with out browning.

Place the potatoes, corned beef (flaked), sweetcorn and sweet chili sauce into a large bowl. Tip in the softened onion and give it all a good mix. Season to taste with some salt and black pepper.

Heat the remainder of the oil in the skillet. Once hot add the potato mixture and cook, over medium heat, stirring from time to time, until the potatoes begin to brown and crisp up.

Preheat your gril to high. Smooth the potatoes over into a flat cake. Increase the heat to high under the pan and cook for a few minutes to really crisp the bottom. (Cover the handle of the skillet with foil if it is not oven safe.) Flash the pan under the grill for about another 3 to 4 minutes to brown the top.

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Nectarines Baked in Cream

I picked up a couple of punnets of nectarines in the shops on Saturday. They looked so good sitting there and nectarines are one of Todd's favourite fruits.

I do confess. I like them too.



Once I got them home though and inspected them a bit closer, I realized that these "ripen at home" stone fruits were never going to ripen at home . . . I could tell that they would stay hard as could be and then by the time they were soft enough to each out of hand they would actually be mealy and tasteless . . .




Tis an all too familiar story, that I read far more often than I would like I'm afraid. Why oh why do the grocery shops do that to us. I am sure that they spray these fruits with something to retard their ripening so as to keep them on the shelves longer . . . and in the process actually ruin the fruit completely . . . sigh . . .




I then had the brilliant idea to cook them. I felt that cooking them would bring out all those beautiful nectarine flavour!!!

Actually when cooking with fruit, they should be a bit on the hard side in my opinion in order to be at their best.




I thought at first a crumble of sorts . . . we do love our crumbles here.

But then I felt a bit lazy and so I just bunged them into a baking dish, poured some sweetened vanilla cream over top and dusted them with toasted flaked almonds.

Easy peasy, lemon squeazy. Hot dang!!! These were scrummily delish!Q Just goes to prove that it is usually the simplest of things in life that brings us the most pleasure . . .



*Nectarines Baked in Cream*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Quite simply tasty.

6 fresh nectarines
300ml of double cream (a generous cup)
4 ounces caster sugar (a generous half cup)
1 vanilla pod, split in half lengthwise or 1 tsp vanilla paste
a generous handful of toasted flaked almonds

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Lightly butter a shallow baking dish, large enough to hold all the fruit.

Skin the nectarines by dropping them into boiling water for a few minutes. After a few minutes, the skins should just slip off. Remove the stones by running a knife blade around the fruit and then twisting the two halves in the opposite direction. Discard stones and cut each half in half again, to give you quarters. Drop them into the prepared dish.

Heat the cream over medium low heat, along with the sugar and Vanilla pod or Vanilla paste ( if using). Heat only until the sugar is dissolved. Pour this mixture over top of the nectarines, leaving the vanilla pod in if you used one. Sprinkle the flaked almonds over top.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the fruit is gorgeously tender. Allow to cool before serving.

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Pear and Almond Tart

This is a simple and delicious traditional type of tart that is perfect for people who are not really fond of desserts that are overly sweet.



The combination of a rich frangipane type of filling, a crisp crust and buttery textured poached pears are just wonderful together. Tinned pears are actually perfect in this, but do dry them off very well before using.



It's also the perfect tart to use stoned fruits with . . . cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots . . . all go equally as well. Just make sure they are very ripe. You can also use poached pieces of apple and quince.



I like to bake this tart with the bottom of the tart ring removed, so that the bottom of the crust lies directly on the baking sheet. This ensures a crisp bottom. The filling is quite moist and I find that the crust doesn't crisp up as much as I would like if I keep the bottom in the tart tin. The contact of the bottom of the crust with the baking sheet conducts the heat much better. Don't worry about anything leaking. It just won't happen.



It's really quite easy and not at all complicated. It just looks that way! They'll think you slaved all day over it!

It can be our little secret!!



*Pear and Almond Tart*
Serves 8
Printable Recipe

This is a delicious pear tart that is not overly sweet. A classic tart that works well with other fruits also. You can use peaches, cherries, apricots or berries as well quite successfully. (Raspberries are really wonderful this way.) Sliced apples and quince also work very well.

enough flaky pastry to line a 9 inch tart tin
(your own or ready made)

for the almond cream:
200g of sliced almonds (2 cups)
200g of caster sugar (1 cup)
7 ounces butter, room temperature (3/4 cup plus 2 TBS)
4 tsp brandy (optional)
2 large free range eggs
2 TBS whole milk

You will also need:
a tin of pear halves in juice, drained well
(You'll need 6 to 8 halves, depending on the size of the pears)
3 TBS apricot jam



Preheat the oven to 190*C/ 375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick liner. Place the ring to a 9 inch tart pan, with a removable bottom, on the paper. (This tart works out best when you use only the ring, and not the bottom. Due to the moistness of the filling the pastry browns nicer on the bottom when you do this.)

Roll out your pastry to fit into the ring and place it into the ring, trimming as necessary. Chill while you make the almond cream.

Combine the almonds with 50g of the sugar (1/4 cup) in a food processor. Process until finely ground. Set aside. Beat the butter on medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the remaining 150g (3/4 cup) of sugar and mix to incorporate. Add the almond/sugar mixture and beat until thoroughly combined. Add the salt, brandy (if using) and 1 egg. Mix thoroughly. Add the remaining egg and the milk and mix until light and fluffy.

Fill the tart shell with the almond cream, smoothing the top with a rubber spatula. Arrange the fruit attractively on top. Bake in the heated oven until the crust is golden brown and the filing is set, about an hour and twenty minutes to an hour and a half. The filling should be firm and spring back when lightly touched. Transfer to a wire rack.

Warm the jam in a small saucepan over low heat, just until it is liquid. Press it through a sieve to make a glaze. Brush the warm glaze over the fruit tart right away while it is still hot.

Allow the tart to cool completely before unmolding. Serve at room temperature.

A dollop of clotted cream goes very well!

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