The last week(s?) have been spent trip planning and packing. The last 2 years of our lives are now in 31 boxes, and the next 1 is on 1 spreadsheet.
As our kitchen infrastructure, remaining time, and budgets tighten, the rules for making meals at home have become as follows:
1) Are the ingredients unfussy / easy to prep?
2) Can everything be cooked in 1 pot or pan?
3) Does it store and reheat well so that 1 cooking session can last 2 or 3 meals?
4) ... is it a punnet of strawberries from the farmers market?
The recipes below will hopefully provide a few ideas for when you're feeling over-worked and under-flush. Remember! Use what's already in your kitchen or very nearby. If an accessory ingredient is missing, improvise. These recipes are for when you already have enough stress in your day.
Asparagus and Cheese Frittata
This currently being the thick of asparagus season, they were going for £4 for 2 bundles at the Perry Court Farm stall at my Sunday morning haunt, Queens Park Farmers Market in London. So I went to get while the going was good.
The English summer bounty at the Perry Court Farm stall at Queens Park Farmers Market
Makes 2-4 portions
Ingredients:
4-6 eggs, depending on size of eggs and how much leftovers you want
1 bundle asparagus, segregated into fat and skinny stalks
1 medium-sized onion
1 large ball fresh mozzerella (cheddar or halloumi or brie will work too, if that's what's in the fridge)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
- Set oven to grill at medium heat
- Finely chop the onion, and chop the fat-stalked asparagus into 2-3cm segments
- Turn stove on to medium heat. Drizzle the olive oil into the skillet, then add the onions and fry until they soften and turn slightly translucent
- Add the chopped asparagus, and stir fry for ~3-5 minutes
- Lightly mix 4-6 eggs in a bowl (leave room for yellow and white streaks), season lightly with salt, add to skillet and distribute evenly
- When most (but not all) of the egg is cooked, turn off the stove. Add half of the skinny asparagus across the skillet, cover with cheese of choice, then add the remaining asparagus to form criss-crosses as above
- Place the skillet in the oven just under the grill (you can leave the oven door open if you're worried about the skillet handle)
- Grill for 5 minutes. This will be enough to grill the asparagus and melt and brown the cheese
- Season with black pepper (I used a sprinkle of Turkish red pepper flakes as well - it brings more fragrance than heat)
- Divide into segments and serve with salad leaves
Fried Tang Hoon (glass noodles)
Carrots, spring greens and spring onions have been recent features in my Riverford Organic vegetable box. Perfect for this light, tangy, Thai-twangy dish.
Makes 4 portions
Ingredients:
Some combination of carrots, spring greens, any sort of cabbage, leeks, shitake mushrooms, golden / enoki mushrooms, spring onions
1 large onion, chopped finely
1/2 bulb garlic, chopped finely
~400 grams tang hoon (aka glass noodles, green been or mung bean noodles)
3-4 tablespoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons lemongrass powder
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 lime, quartered
- Slice all the vegetables into thin strips
- Soak the glass noodles in a bowl of cold water
- Using a wok or a large chef pan, turn stove to medium-high heat and add 2-3 glugs of olive oil
- Add the chopped garlic and onion and fry for 1-2 minutes until soft
- Add the vegetables. Carrots and spring greens take longer; leeks and mushrooms take much less time
- Season with lemongrass powder, white pepper, chili powder and fish sauce. Stir fry and let sit for ~7 minutes. You can add a few splashes of water to keep the bottom of the pan moist, but not too much as the vegetables will naturally "sweat"
- Add the glass noodles (but not the cold water) to the pan, and fold in everything together as the noodles soften. Season with more fish sauce and lemongrass powder to taste
- Slice the spring onions on the bias and add as garnishing
- Serve with a wedge of lime, to squeeze over the plate of noodles
Half and Half Vegetable Pasta
Named as such since half the veggies are cooked, and the other half added raw as garnishing right at the end. Aside from the olives, the vegetables used here once again came from my fortnightly Riverford Organic vegetable box, and The Tomato Stall at Queens Park Farmers Market.
Makes 4 portions
Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped finely
1 large bulb of garlic, chopped finely
Olive oil
500g pasta (I used organic wholewheat). Spirals or penne can pick up bits of onion and garlic well
1 small jar of pesto
Salt and pepper
Cooked veggies: Any combination of broccoli, red/orange/yellow/green peppers, brown/field mushrooms, asparagus, courgettes, eggplant. Chop roughly and set aside
Raw veggies: Any combination of various-coloured cherry tomatoes, black olives in brine, green scallions / spring onions, wild garlic, flat leaf parsley, fresh basil.
- Bring a large pot of water to a fast boil. Add a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil. Add the pasta, cook for 10-12 minutes depending on how al dente you like your pasta
- While waiting for the pasta to cook, chop up the "raw" veggies. I tend to slice the cherry tomatoes in half so they don't slip away when I spear them with a fork
- Drain the water from the pot, set the pasta aside. Wipe the pot dry, put it back on the stove at medium-high heat and add a couple of glugs of olive oil
- Add the chopped onion and garlic and fry for 1-2 minutes
- Add the veggies for cooking (broccoli will take the longest so add that first). Fry for 5-7 minutes. Never put the lid on the pot / pan when stir frying veggies - it will turn the greens a gormless yellow
- Turn off the flame
- Add the cooked pasta, and the jar of pesto, and the raw garnishing veggies. Season with black pepper. Stir until everything is evenly coated with pesto
- Season with salt only if the pesto hasn't done enough
If you're clearing out the fridge or larder anyway, feel free to pimp this up with shreds of ham or flaked smoked fish e.g. mackerel or trout.
Reheat, repeat.
