Pasta with Broccoli, Anchovies, Garlic and Chilli Bread Crumbs

OK … under a year since the last post so I’m not doing too badly but I’ve decided to get back in to writing about food again but keeping it simple. This means that often (like today) I’m not going to walk you step by step through a recipe (yeah – no photos of each ingredient laid out in a perfectly colour coordinated flat lay). Where recipes are online, I’ll link to them and note the changes I’ve made. If warranted, I’ll include the recipe.

So we start today with the Australian Women’s Weekly’s Pasta with Broccoli et al. The AWW tells you to use orechiette (the little ear-shaped pasta) but really – use whatever shape you want. In our case, because I always make the pasta, it is some kind of flattish pasta that comes straight out of the machine with no extra effort (this, despite the teenager suggesting I do stuff like make eleventy-million orechiette by hand …).

This is the type of recipe that’s kind of a guideline. It’s for four but I was cooking for two and used a bunch of broccolini (no idea of weight), 2 (maybe 3) anchovies (and these are, of course, entirely optional) and I added lemon zest to the chilli crumb.

Now look – making the crumb (pangrattato if you’re feeling Italian) is an extra step but it’s definitely worth it. To reduce the number of pans used, I made the crumb first and re-used the same pan for the broccolini etc. Of course, I had to put the crumb into a separate bowl so only saved on the type of dishes, not the number! I would advise NOT skipping the chilli and, as always, lemon rind (and definitely the lemon juice) adds extra freshness.

Super easy, almost vegetarian and gets you a healthy dose of greens! You could easily add extra greens (peas, sugar snap peas, asparagus etc) if you wanted.

Giuseppe dell’Anno’s Focaccia Genovese

This from Giuseppe’s Italian Bakes: Over 60 Classic Cakes, Desserts and Savoury Bakes. Giuseppe was fab on Great British Bake Off so I hoped to make far more than the one recipe I managed from this book. Maybe I’ll revisit it again at some time …

The recipe is spread out across multiple pages in the book so to save on space in my recipe folder I (loosely) write out the recipe below. The result was delicious but much thinner and crispier than you will be used to if you buy commercially available focaccia. I’m trying to get to the bottom of this – do I use the wrong size pan? Are commercial focaccia just a pale imitation of the real thing?

I made a half portion.

Dissolve 1/4 tbsp honey in 180g of tepid water in a jug. Put 300g flour and 2 tsp yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer and, with the mixer on a low speed very slowly pour in the honey/water mix. Once all the water is added add 1 tbsp olive oil and mix until the dough comes together. Sprinkle over 1tsp of salt and continue mixing for 10-15 minutes until you have a very smooth dough.

Flour the bench, tip the dough from the bowl onto the bench and cover with the bowl for 15 minutes.

Flatten the dough into a rectangle about 30×15 cm and envelope fold. Oil a 25x40cm tin (shallow is fine) and then push the dough into the tin. It will not, at this stage, cover the base. Cover and allow to prove for 50 minutes.

Now spread it further … you should now be able to cover the surface of the tin. Smooth the top with your hands, sprinkle with 1tsp of salt. Prove for 40 minutes.

In a glass jar, shake together 30g olive oil and 50g water to form an emulsion.

Lightly dust the focaccia with flour then dimple using half the length of your fingers (that is – deep dimples, not little finger tip ones). Pour over the emulsion – spread over with your hands – and leave to prove for another 50 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 240C (dell’Anno doesn’t specify if this is fan or not … so I went 220C fan) – he does specify a lower shelf, so it may well be a good option to use a pastry bake/pizza option if you have one. Bake for 15 minutes.

When done, place on rack to cool and brush with a little extra olive oil while still hot for extra shine.

Best eaten immediately.

I do like his con cipolle option – he cuts onions into slices 3-4 mm thick, mixes with a little olive oil and microwaves for 1-2 minutes before spreading on focaccia (at the emulsion stage).

Delicious indeed, but not thick and fluffy!

Book Review: The Vinegar Cupboard

I guess in some ways this sounds like a somewhat weird book. Is it about making vinegar? Is it about all the tricksy things you can do with vinegar about the house? No … The Vinegar Cupboard is all about different vinegars and uses for them in cooking.

It is a beautiful book to look at and has won its author, Angela Clutton, multiple awards and certainly opened my eyes to just how many different types of vinegar there are. I really wanted to have a crack at Clutton’s soda bread recipe (because – bread) – where a mix of milk and vinegar (cider, in this case) acts as a substitute for buttermilk. (And, if you’re not aware, this mix works perfectly well in all sorts of baking if you find buttermilk is not available). However, the library wanting the book back and some super hot weather has stymied me on that front.

But … never fear as quite a few months ago I had a go at the whole roasted onions. It’s a simple recipe – you take onions, top and tail them (so they are stable) but leave the skin on. Make crosses in the tops of the onions, then, into a pan. Stuff the tops with some fresh time, drizzle over olive oil and balsamic vinegar, season and then carefully add some vermouth or cider to the pan (but this time not over the onions). Cover with foil and bake for about 45 minutes. Then, baste with the pan juices, dot butter on the onions and bake for a further 45 uncovered.

We didn’t nail this first time around – the cooking times were a bit short (maybe we had massive onions) so the centres of our onions were a bit firm. Also – one onion per person is a LOT (maybe those massive onions again!) so I think that it might be a good idea that once they’re cooked, you remove the skins, break the onions down and serve as a side dish rather than a whole entity.

This book is full of interesting recipes and don’t worry about sourcing the more esoteric vinegars, as Clutton provides alternatives.