Posts tagged paprika

Bean Chilli

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Bean Chilli

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ometimes you just need chilli and cornbread in your day. I love a comforting chilli, slow cooked and more often than not these days, made with chunks of braising beef that can be shredded rather than the traditional mince. However, sometimes time isn’t always in the equation for the privileges of slow cooking! On my meat free days or for vegetarian (or vegan) guests, I often make this version and its the smoked paprika that is the winner here for that ‘meaty’ replacement. That said, don’t you dare think about skimping on that. If you don’t have paprika, sorry you’ll need another trip to the shops!

It offers the same comfort and depth of flavour. I know I sound like a broken record but this really can be knocked up in 20-30 minutes max. It really is just a task of opening a lot of cans and stirring. But the take home is that it is wholesome. Its leans away from processed foods and its really cheap. 

9 times out of 10 I will make a cornbread loaf to accompany this (recipe here) but if time does not permit you can enjoy this in SO many ways. Serve on rice for the extra grains or just devour in a bowl like soup. I like to pimp the toppings here with guacamole, soured cream, grated cheddar and coriander. Dip crunchy tortilla chips into it or heck…make a nachos and get that grill on! It also makes an excellent vegetarian burrito filling with eggs and rice. Ok…stop it now I’ve given you quick, cheap and versatile.

Serves 4 (I have never made less than this and would advise you make a batch. It serves 2 with extra and is great reheated/frozen for an even quicker ready meal!)

  • 1 x can mixed beans (I always use Napolina for the quality but any mixed beans will do. Avoid anything in a sauce already)
  • 1 x can black beans
  • 2 x cans chopped tomatoes
  • 1 red onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 tsp each ground cumin, coriander, smoked paprika,
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes (use as much as you like. I like to use chilli flakes rather than fresh to control the spice here)
  • 1 lime

Toppings & Sides

  • Soured cream OR plain yoghurt with a squeeze of lime
  • Grated cheddar cheese
  • Chopped fresh coriander
  • Guacamole (Or mash 1 avocado with juice from 1/2 a lime and some salt and pepper)
  • Cornbread (see here)
  1. Get yourself a heavy based casserole dish or saucepan.
  2. Heat a splash of sunflower oil and add the onion. Sweat for 8-10 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a further few minutes.
  3. Add the spices and chilli and cook for 1 minute.
  4. Drain the beans and wash them briefly. Add the beans to the pan and stir. Season.
  5. Add the tinned tomatoes and stir. Wash out the tomato cans with a little water and add that too until its a thick/thin as you desire.
  6. Simmer for 5-10 minutes to let everything warm through. 
  7. Add the juice of 1/2 lime and serve with your toppings and sides!

Don”t feel bound by the beans I suggest here – 2 cans of your favourites will work well. I suggest a mixed can as a base and then go wild with your second – chickpeas or extra kidney beans work well here.

Roasted Spicy Chickpeas & Smashed Avocado

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Roasted Spicy Chickpeas & Smashed Avocado

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t is only in writing this now that I realise how few ingredients are in such a winning recipe and one that also looks so aesthetically pleasing and tempting to devour. This recipe is so time efficient and labour friendly but it is a really lovely mix of flavours and textures. Not to mention (again) that it is rather pretty with all the colours. A great quick and pleasing fix for an impromptu guest of a date night that you’d rather be buying take-out for.

I sometimes end up cooking with ingredient combinations simply because they look beautiful together. And this one helpfully also taste amazing. Creamy rich and vibrant avocado topped with crunchy and spicy ‘pop corn’ like chickpeas.

I’d also highly recommend making a double batch of chickpeas and keeping some aside for lunches or snacking when these cool and crisp up. They make a good nibble with a glass of bubbly. The avo/guacamole mixture and the chickpeas also makes a great open sandwich topping on toasted rye or soda bread. Or simply with friend halloumi or stuffed in a burger bun. The options are endless!!!

Serves 2

  • 1 x can chick peas
  • 2 x ripe avocados
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 large bunch coriander, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp ground cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, chilli flakes
  • 1 large handful pumpkin seeds
  • 2 x salmon fillets
  1. Preheat the oven to 220°C.
  2. Start by draining the chickpeas and rinsing. Dry off as much excess moisture as you can and pat dry with kitchen towel (don’t worry too much about this).
  3. Tip them into a bowl and add the ground spices, salt and pepper and a good splash of sunflower oil and toss to combine.
  4. Tip onto a roasting tray and roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes (cooking time will depend on the size of peas). Check during cooking and toss them around. They should be roasted, golden and turning crisp.
  5. Meanwhile, mash the avocado in a bowl until smooth. Add all but a handful of the coriander, the juice of half the lemon and some seasoning. Mash together then set aside.
  6. When the chickpeas are ready, remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
  7. Heat a frying pan until hot and add the pumpkin seeds (dry pan). Toast until they start to turn brown and make a popping sound. Remove from the heat when this happens and add them to the chickpeas. Heat the pan again hot, almost smoking. Season the salmon and then add to the pan skin side down to crisp the skin. After 30 seconds or so, turn to sear the flesh side. Sear the edges too then pop the salmon into the oven and cook for 7 minutes.
  8. Add the final handful of coriander to the chickpeas when they have cooled slightly.
  9. When the salmon is ready, plate up! Place half the avocado in the middle of your serving dish and top with half the chickpeas. Add the salmon on top and serve with a good wedge of lemon for squeezing. (You can also serve this with a dollop of yoghurt if the spices are a bit punchy).

 

Cajuan Salmon and Sweetcorn Puree

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Cajuan Salmon and Sweetcorn Puree

Jess - cajuansalmon2

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k. I’ll admit this isn’t very festive…or wintery…or seasonal. Apologies. But frankly the unprecedented warm weather recently has sent us all into a state of confusion!? And following a few too many glasses of mulled wine after the annual village Christmas carol concert and a need for something fresh, filling and quick, Cajuan salmon seemed like the obvious choice…? Obvious right?

Serves 2

  • 2 salmon fillets
  • 1 tsp of smoked paprika and cayenne pepper
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 can sweetcorn
  • 1/2 lime, zest and juice
  • Pinch chilli flakes
  • 30g butter
  • Bunch coriander, chopped
  • Mix of broccoli – purple sprouting and normal (enough for 2), chopped into florets
  • 1 banana shallot, halved and finely sliced into half moons
  • 1 tbsp flour
  • Sunflower oil for frying
  • Natural yoghurt to serve
  1. Marinade the salmon in the dried spices, some seasoning and the olive oil and put in the fridge for about 20 minutes
  2. Heat a good layer of sunflower oil in a frying pan until hot. Mix the flour and the chopped shallots in a bowl and season.
  3. When the oil is hot add the shallots and fry, moving around with a fork, until deep golden and crisp. Tip into a bowl lined with kitchen roll and season. Set aside.
  4. In the same pan, add another drop of oil and stir fry the broccoli gently until charred. Set aside to keep warm in a low oven.
  5. Simmer the sweetcorn in the canned juices and enough water to cover for 3-4 minutes. Drain
  6. Add to the bowl of a food processor while hot and add the butter, chilli, coriander, juice and zest of the lime and some seasoning. Puree until smooth and taste. Set aside to keep warm in a pan.
  7. Finally, heat a splash of oil in your frying pan until hot. Fry the salmon, skin side down for about 5 minutes, turning halfway, depending on the thickness. Equally this would be excellent grilled on a grilled but mine was out of action!Jess - salmon
  8. When ready to serve, spoon a generous helping of sweetcorn puree onto a warmed plate. Top with the salmon. Mix the crispy onions with the warm broccoli and serve on the side and sprinkle with any extra coriander leaves.

Add some natural yoghurt if the what gets too much!

Jess - broccoli

Barbeque Chicken and an Italian Stuffed Flatbread

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Barbeque Chicken and an Italian Stuffed Flatbread

 

Balmy summer evenings and a seduceable glowing barbeque like this evening, consistently bring out this beauty of a recipe and reinforce my opinion that Jamie Oliver, is in fact, descended from God! Ok…….this may be taking it a little far, but this cheeky barbeque marinade from ‘Jamie at Home’, is without doubt my most favourite and not a summer goes by that we don’t devour this, with smiles and sticky faces. Its great for coating a leg of lamb, rack of pork ribs or, in our case, a spatchcoked chicken- its devine. Served alongside a fresh, cleansing coleslaw and a cry-worthy Italian stuffed bread, supper is done and dusted……

Marinade

  • 1 heaped tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 tbsp fennel seeds
  • 5 cloves
  • bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked
  • bunch of fresh rosemary, leaves picked
  • zest and juice of 1 orange
  • 1 bulb garlic, crushed
  • 4 heaped tsp sweet smoked paprika
  • 6 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 130ml tomato ketchup
  • 8 tbsp olive oil
  • 10 bay leaves
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 spatchcoked chicken or your chosen meat
  1. Grind the cumin, fennel seeds and cloves in a pestle and mortar with some salt and pepper.
  2. Chop the thyme and rosemary leaves and combine with the orange zest, juice and garlic and place into a large bowl with the spices. Mix together.
  3. Add the rest of the your ingredients and mix thoroughly.
  4. Now add your chosen meat and coat completely with the marinade to cover all the surfaces. Cover with cling film and leave in the fridge to marinade for as long as possible or at least an hour.
  5. When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 180°C. Cover the chicken with foil and roast for about 1 hour to cook the majority of it and release the juices. Finally, finish the cooking on the barbeque, which will crisp the skin and the outside and give a crunchy texture. Use the excess marinade to baste the chicken as it cooks.

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This flatbread is absolutely delicious. I filled mine with a rich, punchy blue cheese but any good melter does the job. A (and I stress- good quality) buffalo mozzarella is stringy and mild or a personal favourite for its meltworthy quality, taleggio is tasty and gooey but here I have used a blue cheese which is just down-right decadent and rich. It was a little overpowering if I’m honest but it makes a lovely alternative to a hunk of filling, stodgy bread as it is lighter, crispier and doesn’t steal the show from the main event- the chicken (did I mention is was amazing yet…………?)

  • 200g strong white bread flour
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 150g cheese, taleggio, buffalo mozzarella, blue cheese or any other good quality melting cheese
  • Flaky maldon salt
  • 1 sprig of rosemary, leaves picked
  1. Sieve the flour into a large bowl and add the oil, a pinch of salt and 100ml of warm water.
  2. Mix with a spoon or fork until combined into a smooth dough (you may need a splash more water depending on your flour). Form into a smooth ball and place in a bowl, cover with cling film and leave for 30 minutes
  3. Then, knead the dough for a few minutes until elastic and smooth. Divide into two and place back in the bowl to rest for 15 minutes, covered.
  4. Preheat the oven to 225°C . Roll one half of the dough as thinly as possible (a couple of mm) into a large circle and place on a lined baking tray. Grate the cheese over the top and a pinch salt if you want.

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  5. Roll out the other halve of the dough to the same size and place over the cheese. Pinch the edges together to seal in the cheese.
  6. Scatter the top with salt, rosemary and a drizzle of oil. Make a couple of slits in the top to let out the steam.image
  7. Bake for 25 minutes until crisp and golden. You may need to check the underneath of the bread to check it is crispy towards the end. If not, return to the oven directly onto the racks without the tray for a few minutes.

Finally, a lovely tangy coleslaw. Any, in fact, will do but I however got carried away and opted for a lovely Thai infused/Asian Slaw which- I know, I know, does not go ideally with a barbeque chicken and an Italian, cheesy bread, but, all the same, our hungry stomaches didn’t protest too much….

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Slaw

  • ½ a red cabbage
  • 4 carrots
  • 2 spring onions
  • 1 bunch coriander
  • 1 handful of salted peanuts

Dressing

  • 8 tbsp lime juice
  • Zest from 1 lime
  • 6 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp sesame seed oil
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 good pinches of brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
  • 1 garlic clove, grated
  • 1 fresh red chilli, finely chopped
  • 1 large bunch of chopped basil and coriander leaves
  1. Using the shredding attachment on a food processor, shred the cabbage and carrots, separately, then combine in a large bowl.
  2. Slice and finely chop the spring onions and add to the cabbage mix and add a handful of chopped coriander.
  3. To make the dressing, mix together all the ingredients in a jam jar and shake thoroughly together until combined. When ready to serve the salad, coat the cabbage in the dressing and top with the salted peanuts.
  4. Serve!