Tag Archives: salad

June 5, 2021

Tropical Beetroots

By lettercollumkitchenproject

May was certainly a blow out, the weather meant we didn’t know whether we were  coming or going. I was sat here one evening with the sun on one side of the house and rain on the other and my husband said it was just like living in the tropics. I love this  optimism-  12c, socks on and we’re in the tropics!

The garden has jungle potential with all the rain and the seedlings have been rather battered but the warmer weather has to arrive soon and hopefully they’ll perk up 

Despite the crazy weather we have plenty growing in the tunnels, lots of salad, spinach, fennel, chard and herbs. The beans and peaches are coming on and the first of the beetroots are ready. Like all home grown vegetables, the first ones are usually the sweetest and greeted with enthusiasm.

Baby beetroots are delicious and we always grow a few different varieties which are great for the colour scheme

In better weather years the peas might be thinking of podding up in June but this year there’s not a chance, they’re hugging the ground but hey ho we have frozen peas to fill the gap. 

We have plenty of mint, it doesn’t mind the weather and we have a big patch growing outside. Mint is one of these herbs that comes back every year, in fact if it wasn’t contained it would invade the entire garden. We’ll be able to pick this all summer long, well into autumn when the cool nights will burn the leaves and it’ll die back for the winter.

A favourite combination is beetroots, peas, lentils, and mint, the earthiness of the lentils complementing the brightness of the beets and peas.

 

Beetroot, Peas, Lentils and Mint with Whipped Ricotta

200g Puy lentils or lentils vert

½ tsp salt

100mls extra virgin olive oil

4-6 small/medium  beetroots

200g peas, fresh or frozen

Handful fresh mint

1 red onion (optional)

1tsp sugar

2 tbs white balsamic or white wine vinegar

1 tsp Dijon mustard

200g ricotta

Salt and black pepper

Wash the beetroots, trim the greens off but leave a little at the top otherwise the beets will bleed. There are two ways to cook the beets, roasting or boiling. Roasting definitely boosts the flavour but takes three times as long as boiling. For me how I cook the beetroots depends on how organised I am.

To roast the beets, pre heat the oven 180c. Wash the beetroots then rub a little olive oil over each one then put into a small roasting tray and cover with foil. Roast for one and a half hours at 180c then check whether they are tender by piercing with a sharp knife. 

To boil, cover with water, bring to the boil then simmer for 30 minutes. Check by piercing with a sharp knife, if it slips in easily they’re ready, if not give a further 5-10 minutes cooking and try again

Whichever way you cook the beetroot – this can of course be done ahead of time – they need to cool enough for peeling. The skins should just slip off when ready.

To cook the lentils put them into a small saucepan with at least twice the volume of water. Bring to the boil then cover with a lid and turn to a gentle simmer for 20 minutes. Check that they are ready then tip into a sieve and rinse under the tap. Put the lentils into a bowl, season with salt and drizzle a little olive oil over. 

Blanch the peas in boiling water for a couple of minutes then drain and refresh under the cold tap.

If you are using onion, peel it and slice very thinly. I like to rub the onion slices with a little salt. This tenderises and separates the rings.

Rub the peel from the beetroots then dice into roughly 2cm pieces. Season with a little salt. Strip the mint from the stems then chop small. Put all of the above ingredients into a bowl but don’t mix yet. The less mixing the brighter the salad will be.

Make the vinaigrette in a small bowl. Whisk the vinegar and Dijon together then slowly drizzle in the oil whisking continuously to emulsify. Taste to check, if it needs brightening up add a little more vinegar and/or salt. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and gently toss together. Do not overmix.

For the whipped ricotta, drain any liquid from the pot then tip the ricotta into a bowl. Season with a little salt and a few grinds of black pepper then drizzle over 1-2 tbs extra virgin olive oil then whisk together with a fork and it’s ready to go! (a great trick for pasta too)

Serve the salad with a spoonful of whipped ricotta on top.

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , | posted in beetroot, General foodie news, lentils, peas, Salads

August 27, 2020

Tomato Party

By lettercollumkitchenproject

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Storm Ellen did a superb job of flattening our beans but fortunately the tomato tunnel stood strong and our beautiful tomatoes are still ripening and bursting with flavour.

The feasting is endless. Tomatoes with everything.

Whilst browsing for tomato ideas I came across a recipe for Panzanella. It was the picture that caught my fancy as a salad using old bread that was dried then got wet again sounded odd. I checked out a few more recipes and realised this idea had real potential and no better chance of success than when surrounded by ripe home grown tomatoes.

Panzanella originates in Italy where there are ripe tomatoes and dry bread aplenty. These simple ingredients paired with the best olive oil and vinegar that you can lay your hands on make a stunning salad.

The first step is to dry out the bread, which proved easier said than done in a West Cork kitchen. I used thick slices of sour dough bread as recommended and spread it out in a bread basket and left it in the kitchen to dry.

In the south of Europe where these recipes originate bread bought in the morning is stale by the evening, hence the proliferation of recipes using old bread but no such luck here. Two days later the bread was still perfectly edible and far from dry so I turned the oven on for assistance.

I couldn’t resist rubbing the slices of bread with a cut clove of garlic before ripping it into small pieces and tossing with a drizzle of olive oil. ( if you like garlic bread, you will like this) I spread the bread on a baking tray, popped it in the oven and ten minutes later it was beautifully dry .

Now is the moment to make this recipe if you live in this part of the world. The local tomatoes are ripe and at their full flavour potential. The only time of the year we can eat such tasty tomatoes without travelling. Check out the farmers markets and small stores that sell home grown vegetables

This recipe is well worth the effort = dry bread and tomatoes tossed together with olive oil, vinegar and basil makes a sublime combination however odd it might sound, a real flavour and texture bomb in the mouth.

Simplicity at its best

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Panzanella

Tuscan Tomato and Bread salad

 

4  large ripe tomatoes

4 thick slices sourdough or country bread

3 cloves garlic

1 small red onion.

1 bunch basil

150mls extra virgin olive oil

50mls vinegar – the best you have

1 tsp Dijon mustard

Salt and black pepper

Anchovies in oil (optional)

 

Put the oven on 180c

Cut the crusts from the slices of bread, rub with a cut side of garlic – no need to peel it.. Tear the bread into small pieces (2cm).

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Put it into a bowl, drizzle over a little olive oil 1-2tbs, toss well then spread out on a baking tray. Bake for ten minutes then check. The bread should be crisp but not brown.

Dice the tomatoes into 1 -2cm cubes, sprinkle over a little salt and put them into a sieve or colander and set them over a bowl to catch the juices. Leave for 15-20 minutes.

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Peel and finely slice the red onion. Massage in a few grains of salt to separate and soften the onion. Peel the remaining 2 cloves of garlic and chop very finely.

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Put the garlic into a small bowl together with the Dijon mustard, vinegar and the juice that has run off from the tomatoes. Whisk these together then drizzle in the olive oil whilst continuing to whisk until you have a creamy emulsion. Stir in the sliced onion.

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Put the tomatoes and dried bread into a bowl – approx. 50/50 of each. (Keep any remaining bread to top other salads or soup). Chop the basil and add to the bowl, pour over the dressing then toss together until well mixed. Leave aside for ten minutes to let the flavours to mingle before serving.

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in General foodie news, italian, Salads, tomato, vegan, vegetarian, Vegetarian Recipes

June 4, 2020

Potato Capers

By lettercollumkitchenproject

We had planned to be in Greece at this time giving a culinary tour of Syros but as we’re grounded we’re enjoying lots of Greek recipes which can be made anywhere! Syros is where we first encountered capers growing on shrubs that cling on the rocks overhanging the sea. Capers grow on small shrubs that grow wild in stone walls and crevices all over the Mediterranean. They are used to liven up all manner of salads, sauces, pastas and fish dishes adding a salty citric kick.

Capers are flower buds which need to be harvested early in the morning before the buds open, and rushed home to be preserved in salt or pickled in vinegar. Once preserved they keep for a long time and they are widely available in Ireland. My preference is for capers preserved in salt, they are fatter and more succulent but use whatever you have or can lay your hands on.

 

This recipe is to celebrate the arrival of the new potatoes, it’s fresh and zingy as summer food should be with herbs, feta, capers and a yoghurt, olive oil and lemon dressing.

Potato and Feta Salad

 

500g small waxy potatoes

4-5 spring onions or one red onion

1 tbs capers – rinsed well

2tbs black olives

100g feta

handful flat leaf parsley

handful mint

100mls olive oil

1 tsp Dijon mustard

juice ½ lemon

2 anchovies (optional)

3tbs natural yoghurt

 

 

Soak the capers in a bowl of fresh water

Cook the potatoes gently with their skins on, this will take 15-20 minutes depending on size. Take off the heat, drain and  cool then peel and chop into a large dice. Season with a little salt.

Tidy up the spring onions then chop finely or peel and finely chop the red onion

Rinse the capers in a sieve under the tap

Chop the parsley and mint

Put the potatoes, spring onion, capers, black olives and chopped herbs into a bowl and crumble the feta on top.

To make the dressing put the Dijon mustard, anchovies – if you are using them, olive oil, lemon juice and yoghurt into a jug and buzz until smooth, or, chop the anchovies finely and whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl

Pour the dressing over the salad and gently toss together.

 

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in General foodie news, Greek, Salads, vegetarian

March 27, 2020

Posh Carrot Salad

By lettercollumkitchenproject

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This is just what we need at this time, carrot salad elevated to a vegan prawn cocktail status. It’s guaranteed to cheer up the day and boost our immune systems.

This is a rehash of a salad that we’ve been eating for years but re-assembled. The carrots and avocado are a great source of vitamin C and antioxidants and the toasted seeds provide omega 3’s and crunch.

I enjoy eating this dressed with a little vinaigrette but a drizzle of olive oil and squeeze of lemon juice would be good too.

 

1 ripe avocado

2 carrots

20g sunflower seeds

1 tsp soya sauce or tamari

1 tsp Dijon vinegar

1 tbs vinegar – your best

3-4 tbs extra virgin olive oil

Carefully split a just ripe avocado in half and remove the pit. Peel each half  – the skin should peel back with very little assistance with a knife. Just nick the skin with a knife and with a bit of luck the skin peel back by hand. Put each half in a small bowl.

Peel and grate the carrots then pile the carrots on the avocado

Heat a dry pan and gently toast the sunflower seeds then toss together with a little soya/tamari sauce.

Whisk the vinegar together with the vinegar using a fork then slowly whisk in the olive oil Season with a little salt or a few drops of soya/tamari sauce

Scatter the seeds over the carrots then drizzle over a little vinaigrette

Any left-over vinaigrette can be stored in the fridge – jam jars with lids or recycled mozzarella tubs work well here

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in avocado, carrots, dairy free, General foodie news, gluten-free, Salads, sunflower seeds, vegan, vegetarian

August 3, 2019

Summery Courgette, Green Beans and Pea Salad

By lettercollumkitchenproject

August really is the month in Ireland for home grown Mediterranean‘ vegetables although in fact they are actually fruits! Tomatoes, aubergine peppers and courgettes are sun loving fruits that are eaten as vegetables. The sun loving being the reason they take all summer to ripen.

Our courgettes have been taking their time. We’re still hovering around the plants wondering whether there are any ready to pick, which is in fact a good thing. Baby courgettes are the sweetest and tastiest and delicious in salads.

We’ve been eating a courgette, green bean, basil and pea salad – having an abundance of green beans at hand and cheating with peas.  It’s delightful combination of textures and summery flavor

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The peas and beans are blanched but the courgettes are raw but don’t seem so. They are salted and rinsed before being dressed which gives them a crisp but tender bite .

 

Check out the farmers markets and local growers  as courgettes grown close to home will be fresher and taste better. If you can find little yellow ones they’ll be great for the colour scheme but green ones taste equally as good.

 

Courgette, Green Bean and Pea salad

 

250g French beans

1-2 small courgettes

200g fresh peas -= frozen is good

handful fresh basil

100mls olive oil

zest 1 lemon

juice of half or to taste

1 clove garlic

1/2tsp dijon mustard

salt and pepper

 

Slice the courgettes thinly, sprinkle with salt and toss well.

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Put aside in a bowl or colander for at least 15minutes.

Top and tail the beans. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a half tsp salt and the beans. Cook for 4 minutes then lift out of the water and drop into a bowl of cold water. Let them cool then drain

Bring the water back to the boil then add the peas. Cook for 1 minute the drain and drop into cold water to cool. Drain and shake off excess water.

Rinse the courgettes, take a handful at a time and squeeze to remove the water. Repeat until all the courgettes are done

Put the courgettes, french beans and peas into a bowl, roughly chop the basil and add then season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Grate the lemon zest on top of the vegetables

Peel and chop the garlic. Whisk the garlic, lemon juice and Dijon mustard together then whisk in the olive oil. Season with a little salt

Gently toss the dressing with the vegetables. Add more salt or lemon to taste.

 

 

Lettercollum Kitcheb Project are hosting two events for the Taste of West Cork festival in September. The first on Friday 6thSeptember is ‘Dinner from the Garden’, a seven course tasting menu shared around the kitchen table at Lettercollum and the second is “A Taste of Valencia’, tapas and paella accompanied by music and flamenco dancing in O’Donovans hotel on Tuesday 10thSeptember. Tickets for both events are available at the shop or by email.

 

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in beans, courgette, General foodie news, peas, Salads, vegan, vegetarian

January 6, 2019

What’s With The Cabbage?

By lettercollumkitchenproject

Before Xmas I received an email asking me if I had thought about what we were going to do for Veganuary in the shop (eating vegan food in January) it was from someone called Shane whom I presumed to be Shane Red Strand Coffee. I shot back an answer saying thanks for the idea, that it could be good fun and the next thing we got a box of samples in the post from a different Shane altogether of pretty vegan products!

The Veganuary idea does seem like a good idea  – to detox after Xmas, cut down on emissions by not eating meat and generally save our selves and the planet. And we have a lot of vegetables still growing in our garden.

The warm wet weather has the cabbages shining brightly, the leeks are standing to attention and the green stuff – parsley, spinach and kales are quite happy so there’s plenty for eating.

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Just the thing for a January detox – I have to say although I don’t take detoxes too seriously, I do think it’s good to make a little effort especially after all the feasting.

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My son Darragh came up with this recipe. He was home for Xmas and knocked this up for lunch one day. I had just come in from a walk and was ravenous. I thought this was delicious. The lightly pickled cabbage, grated beetroot, toasted seeds and something else that had a very interesting texture and flavour but wasn’t a vegetable. It was double toasted, shredded tortilla wrap. Highly recommended especially served with tahini sauce.

The recipe will make a large bowlful. Scale the recipe down proportionately if you want less.

Not yet named salad

2tbs olive oil + 50mls for dressing

1 fatty clove garlic

½ small red cabbage

½ sweetheart or york cabbage

1 tsp salt

1 large beetroot

1 bunch parsley – chopped

150g pumpkin seeds

tamari

2 large tortilla wraps

50mls lemon juice

 

Peel the garlic then finely chop – crush in a mortar if you have one – together with a little salt. Mix with 2 tbs olive oil . Leave aside.

Wash and tidy up the cabbage then slice thinly.

Begin slicing from the top of the cabbage, then half way down cut the cabbage in half and remove the stem. Finely slice the remaining cabbage

Put into a large bowl and toss with a teaspoon of salt. Leave the cabbage aside.

Peel and grate the beetroot.

Heat a small frying pan, turn the heat to medium and add the pumpkin seeds. Gently toss or stir until they begin to colour and smell a little toasty. Remove the pan from the heat and sprinkle over soya sauce or tamari. Tip into a bowl and put aside to cool.

Heat a large frying pan then reduce the heat to medium and fry the tortillas, on at a time, cooking each side until it becomes a little toasty (not burnt). Brush the tortillas with the garlic oil and cook briefly once again. Stack the tortillas then roll them into a loose cigar. Cut on the diagonal to make wedge shaped pieces.

Put a clean t-towel on the counter. Put the cabbage handfuls at a time over half of the towl – don’t tip the bowl because all the excess liquid will follow. Fold the t-towel over the cabbage and pat dry then gently roll the towel and pat again . Tip the cabbage into a clean dry bowl.

Add the grated beetroot and chopped parsley.

Drizzle over the olive oil and lemon juice then toss to mix.

Add half of the pumpkin seed and the shredded tortillas then toss again

Tip into a clean bowl and sprinkle pumpkin seeds on top.

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Tahini Sauce

 

Juice 1 lemon

1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2 big tbs light tahini

a pinch of salt

a little water to thin the sauce

Put all of the ingredients into a bowl except for the water and whisk until amalgamated. Thin with water to achieve a thick pouring consistency.

This salad is best eaten soon after making. Don’t forget to drizzle tahini sauce on top

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in beetroot, dairy free, General foodie news, gluten-free, Salads, vegan, vegetarian, Vegetarian Recipes

January 8, 2016

Kale, Avocado and Orange Superblast Salad

By lettercollumkitchenproject

It’s a sure sign that Xmas is over when the decorations come down and all that remains is a pile of lost property. We seem to have a lot of abandoned scarves this year. There’s a pile of them on the desk in the sitting room waiting to be reclaimed. This indicates not only that a lot of people received a scarf this year for Xmas but also that it wasn’t cold as they left our house without them. Spectacularly wet and windy yes, but not cold!

According to my mum the cold is on it’s way so best get prepared for the onslaught with plenty of vitamin C.

January brings the most delicious oranges. The big Spanish oranges are divine – juicy and bursting with flavour. Oranges from Spain are about as local as they get in this part of the world and worth seeking out.

I always look forward to the orange season and we consume vast amounts of them juiced, thrown into smoothies for breakfast or as general portable snacks. They also sneak into our lunch and dinners.

Oranges are great for brightening up winter salads.

They pair well with beetroots or fennel, with lentils and roasted vegetables and also with this recipe, a superfood blast of kale, avocado and orange.

Kale is well known to be the King of the supergreens, stacked with vitamins A, C and K, it is one of the most nutrient dense food available and avocados are right up there on the superfood list too so paired with orange this salad should up your odds on staying healthy this winter!

When choosing the kale for this salad go for small leaves rather than big and the avocados should be firm but with a bit of give, not hard, nor squishy.

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Kale, Avocado and Orange Salad

 

150g kale

1 big or 2 small ripe avocados

2 oranges

1 red onion

25g sunflower seeds

25g pumpkin seeds

1tsp tamari (optional)

1 tsp dijon mustard

1tbs cider or white balsamic vinegar + 1tsp for the onion

3tbs olive oil

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Wash the kale and shake off excess water. A salad spinner is excellent if you have one, otherwise resort to the old fashioned wrapped in a t-towel swing. Strip the center stem from each leaf then stack a few together and roll up like a cigar. Cut the kale into skinny ribbons and put them in a bowl.

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Juice half an orange, put 2 tbs of the juice into a cup and keep the rest aside. Mix the 2tbs juice with one teaspoon of dijon mustard, 1tbs cider or white balsamic vinegar then whisk in the olive oil with a fork. Season with a little salt and pour over the kale. Massage the dressing into the kale with your hands, leave aside for five minutes then massage again.

Peel the red onion and cut it in half. Slice thinly then sprinkle with a little salt. Toss them about and give them a quick rub to separate the rings. Put them into a bowl and drizzle a little white balsamic over them. Toss them well and put aside.

Heat a small frying pan, add the pumpkin and sunflower seeds and toss them together. Cook them on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes, shaking the pan regularly so they don’t burn. When they are lightly golden take them off the heat and shake the tamari over, if you are using it, then tip them onto a plate to cool.

Peel the orange with a sharp knife, removing the skin and pith in one go.

Using a small sharp knife cut each segment of orange from the outer membrane. Do this over the kale so the excess juice falls into the salad.

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Cut the avocado in half vertically. Hold one half firmly with one hand then wiggle the other half gently with the other hand. The avocado should come apart. Remove the pip and the peel and dice into cm cubes.

Toss the avocado cubes in the reserved orange juice, this will prevent discolouration.

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When you’re ready to eat toss the avocado, onion and orange segments with the kale and sprinkle the seeds on top.

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2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in General foodie news

January 20, 2015

Yuzana on a Beach

By lettercollumkitchenproject

We’ve discovered a delicious new salad. It’s known as  Yuzana- a salad from Burma,

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It’s an intriguing kind of upscale cole slaw with lots of different dimensions. Super skinny slices red and green cabbage,  julienne of carrot, Honey toasted cashew nuts, peanuts and sesame seeds. chunks of tomato, garlic and chilli, crispy fried chickpeas and  split dal and then there’s something else. It tasted quite earthy, a little fermented. I thought it might be some kind of mushroom.

We asked the lady of the house and she said she didn’t know what this ingredient was called, just that it was Burmese, so we asked her if we could have a look and she came out of the kitchen with a sachet on a plate. It was very dark, soft and  a little bit stringy and we were none the wiser until we got back to our hammocks and googled Yuzana.

Yuzana are a Burmese company that pickle tea leaves. The chilli seasoned tea leaves are pickled then buried underground where they ferment. No wonder there’s such a flavour impact. There have been some dodgy write ups about their ethics and ingredients – the dye used was banned everywhere that knew about it and it would be difficult if not impossible to get in Ireland so I was thinking ‘pickled kombu’. I think that would deliver that intense umami that a little bit of Yuzana does.

It’s definitely one to try when we get home.

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Here’s a run down of the ingredients that I noted. I’m sure it would be a delicious combo whichever way you interpret it.

Red cabbage – very finely sliced

green cabbage – very finely sliced

carrot – super skinny julienne

tomato – a few meaty chunks

green chill chopped pretty small

garlic- thinly sliced

a handful of toasted peanut, sesame seeds and cashews

deep fried legumes – chickpeas, split peas, fava beans

lime juice, olive oil and salt

about 1 tbs of the mysterious pickled tea leaves

Put on a big bowl and toss everything together.

 

 

 

 

Comments Off on Yuzana on a Beach   |  tags: , , , | posted in burmese, General foodie news, gluten-free, One pot wonders, Salads, Thai