A Trip to Borough Market & A Risotto of Pearled Spelt with Wild Mushrooms

One beautifully sunny day last week I paid a visit to one of my favourite places and got a bit snap happy. 

London has lots of fantastic markets and although Borough is somewhat of a tourist trap, particularly on a weekend, it is still a great place to take a wander.

First off - Monmouth Coffee. The queue tends to stretch out of the door and down the street, but it is well worth the wait. They know their coffee and it is the best - smooth, rounded and rich with a subtle sharpness.

Moving on through the hordes, bunches of flowers feature alongside stalls brimming with all sorts of artfully displayed vegetables, bread, fish, preserves, chocolate… 

I went to seek refuge in Neal's Yard Dairy. Total heaven for any lifelong cheese devotee.

How do you approach an angry welsh cheese? 

....Caerphilly!

I wandered round, soaking up the sights and becoming increasingly hungry. So headed for this stall on the edge of the market to sate my hankering for cheese. They serve up generous helpings of new potatoes with melted raclette smeared over the top

But, the cheese toastie's reputation preceded it

The rumours were not mistaken - crunchy, golden toasted sourdough bread surrounding rich and tangy melted cheese with a subtle alliaceous (proud of this word) edge. Totally delightful!!

I was a happy bunny. So with my bag brimming with goodies, I bounded off down the Southbank alongside the swarms of tourists to catch up with some friends.

A Risotto of Pearled Spelt with Wild Mushrooms

There aren't many places where you can find such wonderful mushrooms. So, wanting to put mine to good use, I made this spelt and wild mushroom risotto. 

Spelt is an ancient form of wheat introduced by the Romans to Britain, and it is, apparently, better for you than wheat. Either way, it takes on flavour well and its nuttiness lends itself well to the earthy mushrooms.

Ingredients:

200g Pearled Spelt

25g dried porcini mushrooms (soaked in 150mls boiling water)

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic (crushed)

Sprig of thyme (chopped)

150ml white wine

About 1 Litre of stock (chicken or vegetable bouillon will do)

Salt and Pepper

50ml double cream or creme fraiche (optional - to add richness)

200g or so of wild mushrooms

50g butter

1 clove garlic

Sprig chopped parsley

Sprig of chopped parsley and chives to garnish

Parmesan to serve

First soak the spelt in lukewarm water and the porcini in 150ml boiling water both for half an hour or so. 

Meanwhile, finely chop the onion and soften in some olive oil. Once soft add in the garlic and cook a little longer. After a couple of minutes, drain the spelt and add into the pan. Drain the porcini mushrooms (reserving the liquid) chop roughly and add into the pan with the thyme and white wine and reduce.

Add the porcini soaking liquid into the hot stock and then gradually, ladle by ladle (as you would any risotto) add the stock into the risotto. Simmer gently, stirring all the while. It will take around half an hour for the grains to swell and soften. 

Meanwhile, heat a big pan with a knob of butter and a little olive oil. Slice up the mushrooms and toss into the pan on a high heat, followed by the clove of garlic and a little salt and pepper. Be sure not to overcrowd the pan as this will stop the mushrooms from caramelizing. Fry quickly for a few minutes, until the mushrooms are golden. Stir in the parsley and set aside.

Taste the risotto for seasoning, at this stage you can stir in some cream, if you're into that sort of thing - and lets face it, who isn't?

Serve topped with the sauteed mushrooms, herbs and some grated parmesan.

Spiced Pumpkin Pilaf with Crispy Onions and Saffron Butter

I came across these absolute beauties last weekend

So, inspired by a recipe I had seen in the Moro cookbook, I whipped up this opulent spiced pilaf, studded with toasted pistachios, currants and nuggets of bright squash.

We ate it for Sunday lunch with a simple roast chicken, but it works just as well on its own, alongside a salad or with some tenderstem broccoli.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

600g squash (peeled and cut into 1cm cubes)
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

100g butter
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tsp ground allspice
2 red onions, finely sliced
30g currants
70g shelled pistachios, lightly toasted
1/2tsp ground cardamom
300g basmati rice soaked in cold water for 30mins to 1 hour
500ml veg stock or bouillon (approx)

For the crispy onions:

2 large onions very finely sliced (ideally on a mandolin)
Vegetable oil

To serve:

100g butter, melted & mixed with 3 tbsp boiling water and a pinch of saffron
Sprig of parsley, chopped
Greek yoghurt, seasoned with a little crushed garlic and some salt and pepper


Preheat the oven to 200C.

Peel and chop the squash into 1cm cubes, toss with chilli, cumin, salt and pepper and olive oil and roast until tender - about 20 mins.

Meanwhile, make the crispy onions by heating vegetable oil (about 2cm deep) in a wide, heavy bottomed pan. Once hot, but not smoking, fry the onion in batches until golden brown and crisp. Drain on some kitchen roll.

Melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed saucepan and add the cinnamon and allspice, toss in the onions and cook gently until soft and caramelised - about 15-20 mins. Add in the currants, pistachios and cardamom and cook a little longer.

Drain the basmati and toss into the pan to coat in the buttery onions. Stir in the hot stock, cover with a round of greaseproof paper, put on the lid and cook over a medium heat for 5 mins, making sure it is not catching on the bottom. Then stir through the cooked squash and taste for seasoning (checking that there is enough liquid in the pan). Replace the lid and greaseproof and cook for a further 5 mins or so until the rice is tender but retains a little bite.

Serve drizzled with the saffron butter and scatter crispy onions and parsley over the top and a dollop of Greek yoghurt.

AMEN to RAMEN

I didn’t buy into the craze for Ramen until a few weeks ago when Lucy came down to London, we decided to try out Bone Daddies in Soho. It is headed up by Ross Shonhan of Zuma and Nobu and with a CV like that he can’t fail to make some baddass noodle soup. The place is always rammed, we queued for around a quarter of an hour at 4 in the afternoon but it is so worth the wait. 

The starters are delicious – the fried chicken is great, if a bit unnecessary once you see the size of the bowls, but Ramen is undoubtedly the main event. 

Two vats of steaming noodles were swiftly delivered to our table and even more swiftly devoured.  On our waitress’s suggestion Lucy went for the Soy Ramen, which was good:

I preferred my choice - the T22 - although I'm not sure Luce would agree.

It is all about the bones and this place has mastered the art of stock – the broth is rich and almost creamy. 

They pile in spring onions, beansprouts, mizuna and crispy chicken skin and it was totally delicious – a simple idea done perfectly.

Someone thoughtfully had the idea of providing hair ties and plastic aprons along with garlic crushers and chilli to add to the mix  - it is no date food!

Ever since, I have been dreaming of chicken soup. So this weekend, Cat and I made our own simplified Ramen recipe.

Miso Chicken Ramen with Griddled Corn and Kale

This soup is easy peasy, although it does need a bit of time and the ingredients can be changed or pared down at will. It is filling, warming and delicious.

Serves around 6

For the broth:

1 chicken

1 onion

2 thumb size pieces of ginger peeled

2 sticks of celery

2 carrots

1 lemon

4 cloves garlic

S & P

30g miso paste or miso soup paste

Additions:

Beansprouts

2 Handfuls Kale

6 spring onions

Handful Chives

2 corns on the cob

2 sheets sushi seaweed divided into 4

6 eggs (boiled for 6 minutes and peeled)

200g Buckwheat Ramen noodles (I used clearspring noodles from waitrose)

Chilli Oil:

200 ml sesame oil (can be substituted for a flavourless oil)

1 tsp chilli flakes (depending on how fiery you like it)

3 cloves garlic, crushed

Soy sauce to season

First, place the chicken in a casserole dish, stuff the chicken with the halved lemon. Cut the onion into two and pop into the casserole along with the ginger, celery, carrots, whole garlic cloves and ginger. Season with salt and pepper, fill the pot with water until the chicken is almost covered and bring to the boil. Simmer gently for an hour and turn off the heat. Check whether the chicken is cooked – if not put back on the heat for a little longer. Once cooked, take the chicken out of the pot and strip all the meat off the bones. Put the bones back into the pot with the liquid and veggies and carry on simmering gently for another 30 mins. I also took the skin off the chicken, laid out on a grill pan and grilled until crisp. Then chopped it up and sprinkled on top of the soup for a bit of savoury crunch.

Meanwhile prepare the rest of the ingredients. Griddle the corn until slightly blackened, then cut off the cob. Blanch the Kale in some boiling water for a couple of minutes and refresh in some cold water. Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet and set aside. Slice the spring onions and chives.

For the chilli oil, mix together the oil, chilli flakes and garlic in a small saucepan, bring to the boil and turn off. Leave to Cool.

Back to the stock – strain off the bones and vegetables and discard making sure to reserve the broth. Place the liquid in a pan and reduce for a few minutes, whisk in the miso paste or miso soup paste and taste for seasoning.

To assemble, share out the noodles amongst the bowls along with the chicken, kale, beansprouts, corn, spring onions, chives, an egg and a piece of sushi seaweed, which adds an interesting savoury edge. Ladle over the hot stock, drizzle with chilli oil and a dash of soy sauce.