Gorgonzola and Leek Risotto

The garden is covered with golden brown leaves, the wind is whistling through every crack and crevice in the house and I can finally get back to wearing my beloved boots, hats and gloves - yes, it's autumn and I love it. It also means that I can start making risotto again; I know there are summery risotto recipes out there but really, for me, it's a cold weather dish.

This one, creamy with gorgonzola, is perfect for these increasingly dark evenings. Make it when you've got the kitchen to yourself - then switch on the lights, pour yourself a glass of wine and watch the wild weather outside from your warm, cosy haven, whilst stirring the risotto and contemplating life.

I am sending this to Speedy Suppers, the blog challenge hosted by Sarah at Maison Cupcake and Katie at Feeding Boys, as the theme this month is cheese.

I am also entering my risotto (with extra leeks) into Extra Veg, a blog challenge run by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and Michelle (Utterly Scrummy) and hosted this month by Emily from A Mummy Too. 

RECIPE

Serves 2 generously

2 leeks

50g butter

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 glass dry white wine

1 litre hot vegetable stock

250g carnaroli or arborio rice

120g Gorgonzola

10g parmesan, grated

Chop the leeks very finely. Melt the butter with the oil in a wide saucepan, add the leeks and cook gently until softened, being careful not to colour them as leeks can turn very bitter if they start to brown.

When the leeks are soft, tip in the rice and stir well so that all the grains are coated in the buttery juices. Turn up the heat to medium and pour in the wine. Keep stirring until it is absorbed.

Start adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, making sure it is all absorbed before adding the next, stirring all the while to make sure the rice doesn't start to stick.

The rice should be cooked after about 18 minutes (it should still have a slight 'bite' to it). You might not need all the stock or you may need a little more (you could just add boiling water).

Add the blue cheese, roughly crumbling it in and stirring so that it melts into the risotto. You can also beat in the parmesan at this point or you can sprinkle it over just before eating if you prefer.

Anglesey Eggs - Ŵyau Ynys Môn

I think it's fair to say that Welsh cuisine does not play a prominent role on the world's culinary stage. However, Wales does now take pride in supplying some fine produce, enjoying international recognition for its beef and lamb, fresh fish and seafood and some unique cheeses. There is an increasing number of chefs in Wales eager to make full use of local foods, made and supplied by artisan food producers and traditional dishes are slowly finding themselves back in the limelight.

This then is my St. David's Day contribution to the Welsh culinary revival. Traditional to Anglesey, this delicious dish of potatoes, leeks, eggs and cheese reflects a time when meat was a scarce luxury, like the other more well-known recipes for Glamorgan sausages and Welsh rarebit. I like to think I haven't strayed too far from how my ancestors would have made it; the leeks and potatoes came from ten miles away, the eggs from a local farm and the cheese... well, the cheese is Caerphilly so it admittedly had a slightly longer journey. 

As I'm sending this to the Shop Local challenge, created and hosted by Elizabeth from Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary, I would like to mention the Llainwen eggs I used in this dish. These beautiful free range eggs have a deep orange yolk that I haven't found anywhere else. The farm, situated in the Vale of Clwyd, has been in the family since 1739 and all their eggs come from a variety of traditional breed hens who happily roam around the fields, truly free-range. Visitors are always welcome on the farm, to see first-hand how the hens are looked after. As you can see from the photos, you get seven, multi-hued eggs in every gorgeous box. 

             

RECIPE - Serves 4 as a starter or 2 as a main course

300g potatoes

3 leeks

oil (olive/sunflower/vegetable)

3 eggs

300ml milk

20g butter

20g plain flour

50g Caerphilly cheese, grated

salt and pepper

Peel the potatoes and cook in boiling salted water for about 15-20 minutes, until soft. 

In the meantime, prepare the leeks by slicing them in half length ways and then chopping them finely. Put them in a colander and wash thoroughly under running water. Drain well. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large frying pan, add the leeks and cook gently until softened, being careful not to colour them as leeks can turn very bitter if they start to brown. 

Hard boil the eggs, drain and remove the shells when they're cool enough to handle.

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C. 

Drain and mash the potatoes, then mix with the softened leeks and season to taste with salt and black pepper. 

To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Cook for a couple of minutes, then off the heat, slowly add the milk, whisking continuously. When all the milk has been added, bring slowly to the boil and keep whisking over a medium heat until thickened and smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in half the cheese. 

Slice the eggs in quarters and arrange in an ovenproof dish (or use individual dishes as I have done in the photo). Spoon the potato and leek mixture around the eggs and pour the cheese sauce over the top. Sprinkle over the remaining grated cheese. 

This can all be prepared in advance and left in the fridge until you want to cook it.

Cook in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown. 

Chicken stuffed with goat's cheese and herbs

I dream of having a big kitchen, the kind where people can sit and chat, read the newspaper with a cup of coffee, lend a hand with the cooking without getting in the way... My kitchen is small. I'm not complaining (although it may sound like it) because it's perfectly formed and fulfils its function very well. It's just that when I have friends and family over for dinner I have two choices - I can either prepare everything in advance which allows me to take part in the conversation happening in the dining room or I can cook there and then which means that I miss out on everything else that's going on.

Needless to say, I usually prefer the first option, that of preparing most things in advance, thus maximising time spent with my guests. This chicken dish (the inspiration for which comes from an old Good Food magazine) fits the bill on many counts. Firstly, it can all be prepared ahead of time and simply put in the oven when needed. Secondly, the chicken is cooked on a bed of courgettes and tomatoes which means that you can dispense with a separate vegetable, leaving you with less to do in the kitchen and minimising the washing up. This method of cooking also ensures that the chicken stays nice and moist. Finally, and most importantly, it's delicious, with a great balance of flavours - crisp saltiness from the pancetta, creaminess from the cheese and mild sweetness from the vegetables.

The thyme and oregano used in this dish mean that it can be sent to one of my favourite challenges, Herbs on Saturday, created by Karen from the inspirational Lavender and Lovage and hosted this month by Jen at Blue Kitchen Bakes .

I'm also sending this over to Javelin Warrior's weekly challenge, Made with Love Mondays which encourages us all to cook from scratch and provides a fascinating, eclectic mix of recipes to try every week.

 

RECIPE - serves two

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
100g firm goat's cheese
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
6 slices of pancetta (or thinly sliced streaky bacon)
2 courgettes, thinly sliced lengthways
1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
250g tomatoes, any kind, thinly sliced


Pre-heat oven to 190°C.

Slice the chicken breasts almost in half from one long side and open them out like a book. Cover with cling film and bash with a rolling pin to  flatten them. Season on all sides. Put half the goat's cheese on each piece of chicken and sprinkle with some of the thyme leaves and oregano. Roll the chicken up to enclose the cheese, then wrap each one snugly in three slices of pancetta.

Lightly oil a shallow gratin dish, then arrange overlapping rows of courgettes and tomatoes over the base. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and thyme sprigs. Place the chicken breasts on top.

Bake for 45 mins until the pancetta is crisp and golden and the courgettes are tender. Cut in half diagonally if you so wish and serve with new potatoes or good bread.

Pear, prosciutto and blue cheese salad

This salad is perfect for autumn; it's still (just) warm enough to want to eat salads but this also provides the big, hearty flavours that I start to long for at this time of year, making you feel full and satisfied.

Pears, blue cheese and prosciutto are a classic combination that never fails to please so this salad is worth bearing in mind for a quick starter if you've got friends coming over for dinner. It works really well as a lunch dish too. A delicious vegetarian version can be made with minimal fuss - just dispense with the prosciutto (obviously) and sprinkle over some roughly chopped walnuts.

A note on ingredients - I used Perl Las when I last made this - it's an organic cheese from Carmarthenshire with a strong but creamy flavour and those unmistakable blue overtones. It works particularly well in sauces and salads but you can substitute it with any strong blue cheese you happen to have. The best pears to use are the harder variety ones here; this is not the place for very ripe, mushy pears. My favourite ones in salads are Conference pears.

As you can see from the photo, it does have an undeniable 'eighties' look to it. However, I don't think that this is anything I should apologise for - it tastes great and that's what counts.

I'm sending this over to Nazima and Pierre at their wonderful new blog, Franglais Kitchen - they're hosting this month's Simple and In Season challenge, started by Ren from Fabulicious Food.




RECIPE - serves 4 as a starter

2 pears
100g prosciutto
50g blue cheese
50g single cream

Salad leaves

Wash the pears and cut into quarters, removing the core. Then cut each quarter in half again, giving you eighths.

Wrap prosciutto round each segment of pear - I find that half a slice of prosciutto is enough for one segment.

Melt the cheese and cream gently in a pan, being careful not to let it boil. It should be a pouring consistency - if it's too thick you can add a little milk or even water to thin it slightly.

Put a handful of salad leaves on a plate, arrange the prosciutto-wrapped pears on top and then drizzle over the sauce. It doesn't need any salt because of the blue cheese.

                                 

Involtini di melanzane

Aubergines just shout summer to me. I know you can get them all year round but they're at their best from July to September, and seem to typify mediterranean cuisine. These little aubergine involtini are common throughout southern Italy. Most versions include mozzarella and ham although GL's mum uses mortadella in hers, saying that it adds a certain aromatic dimension. My rendition though comes via Nigella. There's no meat in it but the combination of salty, sharp feta with milky, melting mozzarella works perfectly. The added crunch of pinenuts that she suggests are a perfect contrast to the softness of the cheese. I don't however use the raisins that she includes in her recipe - even though they are used quite extensively in Sicilian savoury cooking, I personally only like them in sweet dishes. I add fresh mint and oregano rather than parsley and dried mint and dispense with the melted mozzarella topping, preferring just to use a small amount of passata with a few fresh basil leaves thrown over after I've taken it out of the oven.

I'm entering this into the fabulous Forever Nigella challenge started by Sarah at http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/forever-nigella and hosted this month by Amy from Cooking, Cakes and Children http://www.cookingcakesandchildren.com/2012/07/forever-nigella-17-sizzling-summer/. Let's hope that the Sizzling Summer will have arrived by the closing date at the end of July!




As it includes lovely fresh mint, basil and oregano, I'm also sending this over to Herbs on Saturday, thought up by Karen from the wonderful Lavender and Lovage http://www.lavenderandlovage.com/herbs-on-saturday, with guest host this month Vanesther of Bangers and Mash http://bangermashchat.wordpress.com/2012/07/01/july-herbs-on-saturday/



RECIPE (adapted from Nigella's recipe in her fantastic book Feast)

2 large aubergines
100g feta cheese, crumbled
125g ball mozzarella, finely chopped 
25g parmesan, grated
75g pinenuts
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1 clove garlic, crushed
zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 egg, beaten
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

about 400g passata
extra oil for grilling the aubergine slices

Cut the aubergines into thinnish slices and brush with oil. Cook on a very hot griddle until soft and striped. Remove to a plate as you go.
Pre-heat the oven to 190°C.
Mix all the other ingredients together (except the passata).
Put a small amount of filling on each aubergine slice and roll it up, making sure the filling won't fall out. Place them into a lightly greased gratin dish, pour over the passata, a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for about 25-30 mins.
As Nigella states, this is better if you can leave it to cool slightly once it's come out of the oven - 10 mins should probably be enough.

Pear and gorgonzola crostoni

....or cheese on toast, Italian style.

This 'crostone' is a decent sized snack, perfect for a light lunch, not to be confused with 'crostini' which are smaller, bite-sized pieces of toasted bread, usually served at aperitif time ('...ini' suffix in Italian indicating something small, '...oni' indicating something big).

The combination of blue cheese and pear is not a new one I know but the two work perfectly together. You get the best results from using a really strong blue cheese in order to offset the sweetness of the pear. I've used gorgonzola here but make sure it's piccante (which is the strong one) rather than the milder gorgonzola dolce. Roquefort and stilton are excellent too.

You need a thick slice of crusty bread for this. I've found that anything with seeds or nuts in really enhances it, my absolute favourite being walnut bread. However, it's good with just a decent wholemeal or white loaf too so just give it a go.

RECIPE - serves 1

a thick slice of crusty bread (see note above)
gorgonzola 'piccante' or similar blue cheese, enough to cover the bread
half a pear, thinly sliced
a drizzle of honey (optional)

Lightly toast the bread on both sides. Slice the cheese, not too thinly, and cover the toasted bread with it. Put it under a hot grill until bubbling. Top with the pear slices and drizzle with honey.

A dish for St. David's Day - Risotto with leeks and Perl las

The daffodils are out, classrooms are full of singing children and the Red Dragons are flying high, all of which can only mean one thing - it's St. David's Day (and we're doing rather well in the Six Nations rugby).

In previous years, living in Italy, I tried to celebrate St. David's Day with some Welsh feasting but while Brains SA and Penderyn whisky have always gone down very well with the Italian side of the family, my efforts at making some traditional dishes of Wales have not met with the same success. It is perhaps better to draw a line under the Welsh faggots (made from pig's liver) incident; suffice to say that the meal did not tempt GL to delve further into 'Cuisine Cymraeg'.

So this year, I'm taking the 'Entente Cordiale' approach, using Welsh flavours and ingredients to make a very Italian risotto. Leeks, the national vegetable and symbol of Wales form the base of the risotto, and Perl Las, a Welsh blue cheese is added at the end. Both sides of the Italo/Welsh alliance are satisfied.

Dydd Gwyl Dewi hapus.

RECIPE

Serves 2 generously

2 leeks

50g butter

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 glass dry white wine

1 litre vegetable stock

250g carnaroli or arborio rice

120g Perl Las or other blue cheese (Gorgonzola is used in Italy)

10g parmesan, grated

Chop the leeks very finely. Melt the butter with the oil in a wide saucepan, add the leeks and cook gently until softened, being careful not to colour them as leeks can turn very bitter if they start to brown.

When the leeks are soft, tip in the rice and stir well so that all the grains are coated in the buttery juices. Turn up the heat to medium and pour in the wine. Keep stirring until it is absorbed.

Start adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, making sure it is all absorbed before adding the next, stirring all the while to make sure the rice doesn't start to stick.

The rice should be cooked after about 18-20 minutes (it should still have a slight 'bite' to it). You might not need all the stock or you may need a little more (you could just add boiling water).

Add the blue cheese, roughly crumbling it in and stirring so that it melts into the risotto. You can also beat in the parmesan at this point or you can sprinkle it over just before eating if you prefer.

                                 

Tarte Flambée

On holiday in Alsace last year, we ate this bacon, cream and onion tart (Flammkuchen in German) constantly, despite the hot, August weather! The version that follows is not really authentic as I added cheese to the basic ingredients but it certainly works. Prepared quickly with some leftover pizza dough, it made an excellent aperitif, served in thin slices with a glass of chilled prosecco (although a Crémant d'Alsace would be more culturally appropriate).

For the dough base, see the recipe for Perfect Pizza.

TOPPING

2/3 tablespoons double cream or crème fraîche
80g sliced pancetta or streaky bacon (I prefer smoked), roughly chopped
Half an onion, very thinly sliced
80g gruyere cheese (optional)

Spread the cream over the top of the dough and then cover with the onions, cheese and bacon. Add pepper if you wish but it probably won't need salt because of the cheese and bacon.

Bake in a very hot oven (highest temperature possible) for about 10 minutes.