SPELT LIKE THIS.

Whilst Fred is sifting through his wheat free repertoire (god that's hard to say out loud), I thought I'd begin mine.

Now, to me, pasta is the most loved, most used, and most flexible ingredient in my larder. It comes in every shape and size, and making it from scratch is one mighty reward. But what it consists of is the enemy to all gluten and dairy allergies. So, I have been on a rampage to find pasta that knocks down these almighty barriers.
To be truthful, the search was easier than I thought. Most supermarkets stock varieties of wheat and gluten free pasta, which is a god-send if you eat it as much as me. If you tread far and wide, you can even get pasta which is wheat, gluten, dairy, and egg free. And vegan. NICE.

For non dairy eaters go for Spelt pasta, which is made from 100% spelt flour and water. NO eggs. This is what I went for - purely to see how it managed to bind together like usual pasta, without the use of eggs. Spelt is a species of wheat so is not gluten free. Beware.

So, here is a very simple recipe, which tastes oh-so delicious and is edible to all with a dairy intolerance. Change the lasagne for gluten free if this affects you. The sauce is just as good with any shape of pasta. I know there are far more wild and interesting things out there which I could hunt down but, for the moment, this will hit the spot.

OPEN SPELT LASAGNE WITH CHILI AND AUBERGINE RAGU.SERVES 2

ingredients:
6 spelt lasagne sheets
2 tbsps olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 crushed garlic clove
1 aubergine, roughly chopped
2 fresh tomatoes, finely chopped and de-seeded
200g chopped tomatoes
half a red chili, finely chopped and de-seeded
half a glass of red wine
pinch of salt and black pepper

Heat up the olive oil in a large frying pan and add the chopped onion.When the onion is soft, throw in the tomatoes, aubergine and garlic. Stir regularly and make sure it doesn't start to burn. Tomatoes can be pretty acidic if not cooked long enough, so you really want to slow cook this sauce. It makes it all the more tasty too.

Pour in the red wine and turn up the heat. Simmer so that the alcohol burns off. Then put on a low heat for 10 to 15 minutes until the vegetables are juicy and tender.

Add the chili, salt and pepper.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta sheets and simmer for 8 minutes (or as directed on the packet). Once al dente, drain and serve, layering the sauce in between the sheets. Such a tasty dish, and full of goodies.

If you can eat dairy, cover the pasta in Parmesan. Serve with a few leaves of basil.

Have ideas on cooking with free-from ingredients? Please let me know them so I can try them out!

WHEAT THE DEVIL?

A Happy Post-Easter to you all.

Apologies for the long delay. I have spent the holiday in France gorging on creamy, stomach-swelling tartiflette, french bread, and greedy amounts of chocolat chaud with cream (or rather cream with a dash of hot chocolate). I know. Yawn. It's alright for some.

But while I was out there, munching on the finer things in life, it came into me how blooming lucky I am and how much I take for granted being allergy and intolerance free to all food. Having to ask what is in every dish before eating it, putting a brave face on when you want to be polite, or going on endless wild-goose chases for substitutions to the no-can-eats in a delicious looking recipe sounds like hard work to me.

FRIENDS OR FOES?

But where there is a will there is a way, and those who need to find a way often do it with the ultimate style. Over the next few weeks, I call out to you all, whether averse or sensitive to certain foods, to laden me with your YUM recipes, restaurants that cater for all, and intolerance-friendly ingredients that are highly underrated. I am far too (and gratefully so) naive on the matter, and want to find out what I'm missing - it could, after all, be an entirely better option to cooking with things that I mindlessly gobble up.

So on that note, while you all think of ideas, I'm off to find my friend Mr. F. Haines, - a wheat and gluten free man - to peer over his shoulder as he experiments in the kitchen...

WASTE NOT WANT NOT.

Having a fridge full of leftovers is my fortnightly joy. It is the only time you can scrape the mould off the yogurt and no-one knows the difference. The stew has lost its freshness but tastes better than it did the first time. The wrinkly apples are screaming to be put into a crumble. The stale bread in the bread bin looks the perfect friend to welsh rarebit or pappa al pomodoro. And the old cheese is at its best.

Leftovers let you be frugal yet still generous. Using them up makes you environmentally friendly without giving it a thought. And, best yet, you can be as creative as possible. And who will mind if it goes wrong? It would have only gone in the bin.

So it's time to give the old dears a second chance...

This weeks fresh(ish) leftovers are as follows:
Half a Roast Chicken, Eaten yesterday, Taken off the Bone (approx. 300g)
Stock made from the Bones
1 Rasher of Smoked Bacon
Last Batch of Homemade Yogurt
Broccoli
Three Boiled New Potatoes
1 Browning Banana
Half a Mango

And here are the old pots in the fridge that should have been used a LOOOONG time ago:
Harissa Paste
Tom Yum Soup Paste
Very Lazy Red Chillies
Thai Green Curry Paste
1 Scraping of Pesto

I'm going to try to whip as much of a dîner délicieux as I can using as many as these as possible - the fridge has been rather kind this week, I must admit. So that means the bacon and pesto will have to be left til tomorrow's sarnie, and the Harissa should probably be thrown.

So, who's for giving some life to a Thai chicken curry?

No coconut milk, you squeal? No rice? Rice we have. There is always rice. Coconut milk is also something that must always be in the larder. NEVER let it run out. Leftovers NEED coconut milk.

Curry is a great one for using up what you've got and need to get rid of. It's in the same category as soup: chuck it all in and boil it up. (But do check the sell by date just in case. Most of the time it's there for a reason).

LEFTOVER GREEN THAI CHICKEN CURRYSERVES 3

300g torn chicken
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsps green curry paste
1 450g tin of coconut milk
1 ladle of chicken stock
2 scantily chopped shallots
2 broccoli stalks, broken into smaller trees
1 tsp very lazy red chillies.
3 cooked, chopped new potatoes
half mango, sliced
three large tablespoons of natural yogurt - homemade
200g dry basmati rice

sliced banana

Warm up some olive oil, stir fry oil or sunflower oil (see what you've got) in a heavy based pan or wok. Throw in two tbsps of green curry paste, and fry for about 2 minutes, with regular stirring. Now, add the coconut milk and stock.

Make sure the chicken is skin-free and torn into medium sized strips. Add to the coconut mix. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes(If you are using raw chicken, bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through).

Add the broccoli.

Boil a pan of water and cook the rice - cooking times vary so check the packet.

Add the red chilli.

Once the broccoli is cooked, throw in the chopped new potatoes to the curry - if they are already cooked they only need a short simmer to heat up, and they are lovely in their original new potato (or old in this case) form.

Add the mango to sweeten it up - it works deliciously with chicken.

Once the rice is cooked, drain and serve in a large bowl. Ladle the curry over the rice. If you have lime, use it. Give it a good squeeze over the curry. Serve with chopped banana - trust me it's good. Dollop the leftover yogurt on top and devour.

Can't wait until next fortnight's luxury leftover load!

MUM'S SIGNATURE DISH

POACHED EGG ON LEEKY MASHED POTATO W/ HONEY ROAST SALMON.

I KNEAD BREAD

Today, my Sunday morning kicked off punctually at 8 o’clock, setting out of the house with baking buddy, Miss Mackenzie, on the hunt for yeast and bread flour, in preparation for a morn of energetic bread making. I wanted my house to smell like a bakery. I wanted to breathe in those heavenly fumes, waft the warmth into my nostrils and watch the perfectly formed dough rise in the oven...


My mum – Happy Mother’s Day to her – is, and always has been a queen for whipping up a freshly baked loaf, mixing flavours and always succeeding in getting a warm approval. And as I am away from the comfort of her kneading expertise, I felt the ‘knead’ (ahem) to brighten up my weekend with a loaf of the highest ‘a la mère’ quality.


Asking around for thoughts on flavours just put me right back to where I started. Any amount of fresh inspiration couldn’t erase the thought of one particular combination. I was advised to add Marmite to my bread. Or Parmesan cheese and sun-dried tomatoes, or blue cheese and rosemary. Even the sound of banana and apricot couldn't shake me. But stubborn as I am, the thought of walnut and honey baked in a warm loaf makes me want to collapse into a heap of joy. Its sweet crunch, humid from the oven, and spread with a little melted butter, tops them all. It has no place in the bread bin and MUST be eaten immediately; no time wasted, just instant pleasure.

So, we kneaded the dough. And let it rise. And baked it. And ate it. And what a perfect complement to a, not so lazy, Sunday morning.

WALNUT AND HONEY BREAD

INGREDIENTS

500g strong white/wholemeal bread flour (either works)
7g dried yeast
300ml warm water
25g butter
Extra flour for dusting
1tbsp honey (or molasses if you’ve got it –even better)
50g crushed walnuts

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C/ 450 degrees F/ gas mark 8. Mix all the dry ingredients together, and then rub in the butter. Make a well in the flour mixture and pour in the warm water. Use your hands to combine the ingredients until you have a non-sticky ball. Knead the dough well on a floured table, for approximately ten minutes until it bounces back when pressed.
Place into a bowl and cover with a damp tea towel. Find your warmest place in the house, apart from inside the oven. Leave it to rest until the dough has risen to double its original size (usually 1 ½ hours), knock the air out again, and leave it to prove once more for about 30 minutes. Add the walnuts and honey, and shape into desired form. Place into a large, deep, floured bread tin, or a floured baking tray for about 8 rolls. Bake in the heated oven for 30-35 minutes, until the dough is cooked and the top, brown.

Now, slice, and serve with a knob of butter, your favourite jam and a mug of fresh coffee. Mmmmmm...

Glutton for nourishment?

Food tasting. Everyone loves the thought of it, as long as it doesn't involve boiled innards.

The general census is that food tasting couldn't be easier: when the fork comes to mouth, what's there not to like? But to do the food justice, you have to tweak your taste buds. It is easy to know what's bad and what's good but can you tell the good from the very good? If so, here is your chance to get involved.

The country’s largest agricultural show, the Royal Bath & West in Shepton Mallet, is advertising for a member of the public to join the panel of expert judges at this year’s event. A day of sampling, sipping and slurping. And very difficult decisions.

Applicants must be in it to win it. Shortlisted applicants will be put to the 'taste' test, proving their knowledge of local and seasonal produce.

To apply visit http://www.bathandwest/glutton-nourishment/122/ and fill in an application form. Have I done it? Definitely!

Did I mention payment comes in the form of samples from home-growing participators? I'm drooling already...but ff you'd rather stall-hop than scoff, you can buy tickets for June now, at bathandwest.com.

CRÈME DE LA CRÈME

WOOO. It worked! I think my guests were satisfactorily stuffed. A night filled with wine, chatter, heated debates - one too many glasses of cheap vino at this stage - and most importantly, good food. There was even mention of a Round Two.

STARTER: Grilled haloumi wrapped in pancetta, with a rocket salad and balsamic dressing.
(c/o mysterious flatmate - Rose Cottage's equivalent of the Stig).

"The starter was best", slipped politely into post-meal reflection by fellow Come Diner, Miss Mackenzie.

MAIN: Lemon marinated salmon with primavera risotto. A wee bit bony...but fresh and delicious.

and DESSERT: Rose-scented panna cotta with rhubarb compote.

Groans all round - and good ones, I think! Well worth re-creating this dreamy pud, so here's the recipe for your own indulgence:

The original recipe was taken from p. 36 of Stella mag last week, and adapted slightly for serving in wine glasses rather than from moulds.
SERVES SIX:

For the panna cotta:
150ml (5fl oz) full-fat milk
600ml (1 pint) double cream
3 strips lemon rind
6 small sheets of gelatine (or 3 teaspoons of powdered gelatine)
1 tsp rosewater
150g (5 1/2 oz) caster sugar
several good squeezes of lemon
groundnut oil, for greasing (I went without this and made the recipe in wine glasses).

For the rhubarb:
900g (2lb) rhubarb
300ml (10fl oz) water
150g (5 1/2 oz) sugar
good squeeze of lemon

Gently heat the milk and cream with the lemon rind and simmer until the mixture has reduced by about a third. Be careful not to let it boil.
Put the gelatine in a bowl and cover with water. Leave to soak for about 15 minutes.
Add the rosewater and sugar to the cream with just enough lemon to cut through the richness and stop the flower water being cloying.
Lift the wet gelatine our of the water and squeeze out the excess liquid. Add to the cream and stir to help the sugar and gelatine dissolve (the cream need to be warm for this to happen).

Lightly oil six little pudding tins or dariole moulds (or use wine glasses like I did - no need to oil them), with a flavourless oil such as groundnut, then ladle in the cream. Leave to cool then put in the fridge to set.

Trim the rhubarb and cut it into 4cm (1 1/2 in) lengths. Mix the water and sugar and heat stirring from time to time, until the sugar has melted. Add the rhubarb and poach gently until just soft (the rhubarb must not collapse).
Remove the fruit carefully with a slotted spoon, add a good squeeze of lemon to the poaching liquid and boil to reduce. It should be slightly syrupy and will become more so as it cools. Leave to cool, then pour over the rhubarb.

To serve (if using the moulds), unmould the panna cotta by sliding a knife down the inside of the mould, invert onto a plate and shake well.

Spoon the rhubarb around or beside the panna cotta (or on top of the panna cotta if using a wine glass), and decorate with rose petals.


I prepared these the night before the dinner party, in true Blue Peter fashion, and they were perfectly set. Although easy on how many you try...at least leave some the guests.

Definitely a wooer. And if you are on a budget - it cost around £25 to serve 7 diners. SUCCESS!