Seasonal local food recipe No: 146: Felicity’s perfect potato salad

Just about all cooks, especially American ones, have their favourite recipe for potato salad. This is Felicity Cloake’s attempt at the perfect one.

If you’d like to see how she got there, along with lots of other examples, have a look at How to make perfect potato salad in her Guardian series How to cook the perfect…

Perfect with the Cornish new potatoes in our veg boxes this week. (But please – no salad cream..!)

Serves 4
Preparation / cooking time: 20 minutes (+ time to cool)

600g waxy potatoes
½ tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
115g good mayonnaise
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
3 spring onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp capers, chopped
2 anchovies, finely chopped
Small bunch of chives, finely chopped
Handful of parsley, finely chopped
Handful of mint, finely chopped

Boil the potatoes in well salted water for about 15 minutes until tender. Meanwhile, whisk together the mustard and vinegar with a pinch of salt, then whisk in the oils. Cut the cooked potatoes into halves, or quarters if large and toss with the dressing, then leave to cool.

Stir the remaining ingredients into the mayonnaise, keeping back a pinch of each of the herbs for garnish, then, when the potatoes are cool, drain off any remaining vinaigrette and toss them into the mayonnaise.

Garnish with herbs and serve.

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Seasonal local food recipe No. 145: Delia’s rhubarb and almond crumble

Everyone has their favourite version of rhubarb crumble. Danny Barry, Camel CSA’s talented treasurer, says: “I’ve got a Delia one which I loooove.”  This particular take on the classic English pud is from Delias’s Vegetarian Collection.

Serves: 6
Preparation and cooking time: 50 minutes

Ingredients
2 lb (900g) rhubarb
4 oz (110g) golden caster sugar
1 rounded teaspoon grated fresh root ginger
For the crumble:
4 oz (110g) whole almonds, skin on
3 oz (75g) chilled butter, cut into small dice
6 oz (175g) self-raising flour, sifted
2 level teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 level teaspoon ground ginger
4 oz (110g) demerara sugar

To serve: custard or pouring cream

Method
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C). You will also need either an oval ovenproof baking dish measuring 7½ x 11 inches (19 x 28 cm) and 1¾ inches (4.5 cm) deep, or a round ovenproof baking dish with a diameter of 9½ inches (24 cm) and 1¾ inches (4.5 cm) deep.

Begin by preparing the rhubarb. First of all wash it, then trim off the leaves and cut the stalks roughly into 1 inch (2.5 cm) chunks. Next, toss them in a bowl with the sugar and freshly grated root ginger, then place them in the baking dish and keep on one side.

Now make the crumble, which couldn’t be simpler, as it is all made in a food processor. All you do is place the butter, sifted flour, cinnamon, ground ginger and sugar in the processor and give it a whiz till it resembles crumbs. Next, add the almonds and process again, not too fast, until they are fairly finely chopped and there are still a few chunky bits.

If you don’t have a processor, in a large bowl, rub the butter into the sifted flour until it resembles crumbs, then stir in the almonds, which should be fairly finely chopped by hand, cinnamon, ginger and sugar.

 Now you need to press the rhubarb very firmly with your hands all over the base of the dish to spread it evenly without too many large lumps sticking out. Then simply sprinkle the crumble mixture all over the rhubarb, spreading it right up to the edges of the dish, and, using the flat of your hands, press it down quite firmly all over; the more tightly it is packed together the crisper it will be. Then finish off by lightly running a fork all over the surface.

Now bake the crumble on the centre shelf of the oven for 35-40 minutes, by which time the rhubarb will be soft and the topping golden brown and crisp. Leave it to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving, then serve it warm with custard, pouring cream or ice cream.

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Seasonal local food recipe No. 144: Cornish asparagus with chorizo and poached egg

The British asparagus season may be delayed, but here in Cornwall it’s already begun. Camel CSA’s weekly veg boxes each have a freshly-picked bunch of this delectable vegetable from Cornish Asparagus at Lower Croan, Sladesbridge, near Wadebridge.

And we’re proud of the fact that the total food miles = barely 2!

Roger and Gill Derryman of Cornish Asparagus have produced some recipe ideas for their customers. This is the simplest one.

Serves 2

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 12 minutes

Ingredients
A bunch (approx 250g) of Cornish asparagus
1 tbsp olive oil
110g chorizo, sliced
2 eggs
Handful of chives, chopped

Preheat the oven to 210C. Put the Cornish asparagus into a roasting dish, add the olive oil and place in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

In a dry hot frying pan add the slices of chorizo. Cook on both sides for two minutes until the paprika oil oozes out of the slices. Remove from the pan and reserve the paprika oil.

Meanwhile place a pan of boiling water on the hob and bring to a fast rolling boil. When you have three minutes to go before serving, crack two eggs into the boiling water and immediately lower the heat to low-medium for two minutes. Then turn the heat off completely.

Remove the Cornish asparagus from the oven and place on a serving dish, sprinkle over the hot chorizo slices and add the poached eggs. Finally drizzle over the paprika oil from the frying pan and finish with the chives.

Simple recipes for fresh Cornish asparagus

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Seasonal local food recipe No.143: Cauliflower cheese soup

This cold, wet spring weather invites soup! This recipe for a “perfect winter warmer” is from BBC Good Food magazine.

Serves 6

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients
knob of butter
1 large onion , finely chopped
1 large cauliflower (about 900g/2lb), leaves trimmed and cut into florets
1 potato , peeled and cut into chunks
700ml vegetable stock (from a cube is fine)
400ml milk
100g mature cheddar , diced

Method
Heat the butter in a large saucepan. Tip in the onion and cook until softened, about 5 mins, stirring often. Add the cauliflower, potato, stock, milk and seasoning.

Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and leave to simmer for about 30 mins until the cauliflower is soft and the potato almost collapsing.

Whizz in a food processor or crush with a potato masher until you get a creamy, thick soup. Top up with more milk to thin a little if serving in mugs. When ready to serve, warm through, ladle into mugs or bowls, top with the cheese pieces, then stir through before eating.

You can make it ahead up to two days in advance, cool, cover and leave in the fridge until needed, or freeze for up to one month.

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Seasonal local food recipe No.142: Misticanza (sauteed mixed greens)

This Italian recipe tosses an assortment of green leaves with chilli and garlic in oil in a hot pan to make them more interesting.

It’s recommended by Bridget Gould, one of Camel CSA’s three expert growers, and comes from Bringing Italy Home by Ursula Ferrigno.

Any spring greens will do. Bridget says: “I have also used black kale to make this delicious dish and will be trying it with turnip tops when they’re available!”

Serves 4

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients
675g mixed greens (spinach, Swiss chard, purple sprouting broccoli, endive)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1-2 small hot chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
extra virgin olive oil

Method
Trim and thoroughly wash the leaves and vegetables.

Fill a large pan with three litres of water and bring to the boil. Add salt to taste. Stir in the greens and boil for three to five minutes, or until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold water and drain again. Squeeze to eliminate all the water, then chop coarsely.

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over a medium heat. Add the garlic and chillies and cook lightly to soften. Add the greens, and saute until heated through. Season with salt and pepper. To serve, sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil or fresh lemon juice.

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Seasonal local food recipe No.141: Swiss chard (or spinach), blue cheese and pine nut lasagne

This tasty vegetarian dish is recommended by VegBox Recipes. They say: “This is an amazingly delicious recipe for Swiss chard or spinach lasagne. We kept going back for more.”

Serves 4

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients
1 packet of no-cook lasagne sheets
500g Swiss chard (or spinach)
2 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
200g tub of half-fat creme fraiche (or Greek yoghurt)
75g pine nuts
200g blue cheese, such as Dolcelatte or Gorgonzola
200g mozzarella cheese
½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon olive oil

750ml milk
1 oz butter
2 heaped tablespoons cornflour
1 bay leaf
75g parmesan cheese (or Cheddar)

Method
Pre-heat the oven to 180C (gas mark 4, 350F) . Heat a large pan (dry) and add the pine nuts. Cook, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes, until they start to brown. Put them in a bowl, to stop them burning.

Peel the onion and chop finely. Peel and crush the garlic. Wash the chard or spinach leaves and dry thoroughly (a salad spinner is ideal). Chop roughly.

Gently heat the olive oil in a large pan. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 5 minutes, until the onion is starting to go translucent. Add the chard or spinach and the nutmeg and stir well. Cover and cook for 3 minutes, until the chard or spinach has wilted.

Mix in the creme fraiche. Crumble the blue cheese and add to the chard or spinach mixture. Grate the mozarella and add. Stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To make the sauce, put the milk in a pan, add the bay leaf and bring to a gently boil. Simmer for 5 minutes on the lowest heat setting. Remove the bay leaf. Turn off the heat.

Mix the cornflour with 1 tablespoon milk or water, to form a thick paste. Pour into the milk, whisking constantly. Heat gently until the sauce thickens. Simmer gently for 3 minutes. Add more milk (a little at a time) if the sauce is too thick. Then add half ofthe cheese and stir well, to melt it. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Put ¼ of the cheese sauce into the bottom of a lasagne dish (about 9 or 10 inches in length). Cover this with ½ of the chard or spinach mixture. Top with lasagne sheets. Repeat. Top the lasagne with the remaining cheese sauce. Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese.

Bake for about 45 minutes until the lasagne is bubbling and the top is golden brown. Top tip: this is easier to serve if you let it stand for 10 minutes after baking.

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Seasonal local food recipe No.140: Sag aloo (chard or spinach with potato)

A quick and easy dish that can be made totally with the contents of Camel CSA’s veg boxes over the past fortnight – bar the spices, of course.

This version’s from Riverford Organic Veg but originally came from the Schumacher College at Dartington. They say: “Nice with rice, yoghurt raita and Indian pickles as a vegetarian meal or as part of a bigger Indian meal.”

If anything, the stronger-tasting Swiss chard is better than spinach on this occasion.

Serves: 4
Preparation and cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients
1 large onion chopped
2 large potatoes cut into 1/2 inch cubes or smaller
400g spinach or chard, stalks removed, coarsely chopped
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tsp clove garlic coarsely chopped
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
olive oil and butter

Method
Fry the cumin seeds in a heavy bottomed pan in the oil and butter until just starting to brown. Add the onion and fry until starting to brown. Add the potato, garlic, turmeric, ginger and garam masala, then fry until starting to soften. Add the chard or spinach and cook until it collapses over the potato. Salt to taste.

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Seasonal local food recipe No.139: A cake of swede and potato

This week’s recipe is in honour of the Pastygate scandal that rocked Westminster this week. (The humble swede is a vital ingredient in a traditional Cornish pasty). 

It’s another Nigel Slater special from his book Tender. Also a good way to use some of the Camel CSA garlic in our standard veg boxes this week.

He says: “The swede’s ability to sponge up liquid is shown to good effect when it is baked with butter and vegetable stock. When it is teamed up with potato and seasoned with garlic and a spot of mustard, it is as near to a main course as I feel you can safely get with this particular root.”

Serves: four

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: One hour 30 minutes

potatoes – 500g
swede – 500g
garlic – 4 cloves
butter – 85g
Dijon mustard – 2 heaped teaspoons
thyme leaves – a level teaspoon
vegetable stock – 55ml

Peel the potatoes, then cut them into very fine slices. A sharp knife is fine,but if you have a mandoline (the vegetable slicer, that is, not the lute-like stringed instrument), use that. Whatever, your slices should be almost thin enough to see through. Do the same with the swede, keeping the slices in cold water to prevent them browning.

Set the oven to 190°C/Gas 5. Peel and thinly slice the garlic. Over a moderate heat, melt the butter in a flameproof dish or sauté pan about 25cm in diameter. When it starts to bubble, turn down the heat and add the garlic. It needs to soften slightly without colouring – a matter of five minutes or so. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the mustard. Tip about two-thirds of the mustard and butter out of the pan and into a jug.

Drain the potato and swede slices and pat them dry with kitchen paper or a clean tea towel. Put a third of the vegetables into the pan, layering them neatly or just chucking them in as the mood takes you, then drizzle them with some of the mustard butter in the jug. Season with the thyme leaves, pepper and salt. Be quite generous with the salt. Repeat this twice, so that all the slices of vegetable are layered with the thyme and the mustard and garlic butter. Now pour the stock over the top.

Cover with a circle of greaseproof paper or kitchen foil, pressing it down well on top of the cake. Bake for about an hour and ten minutes, until tender to the point of a knife. Remove the foil, turn the heat up to 220°C/Gas 7 and bake for a further ten minutes until the top has coloured and crisped a little.

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Seasonal local food recipe No.138: Roasted cauliflower gigli with pine nuts and currants

We’re continuing with the roasted cauliflower theme this week, this time with pasta. It’s another delicious vegetarian dish from restauranteur/chef Yotam Ottolenghi. He says: “The sweet and salty combination of currants and capers is a Sicilian mix that’s both interesting and scrumptious. I love it.”

Gigli are fluted, flower-shaped pasta (gigli is Italian for lilies). They’re good with a hearty, chunky sauce like this one.  

Serves: four

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
1 medium cauliflower (around 480g)
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and black pepper
65g currants
2½ tbsp white-wine vinegar
½ tsp caster sugar
¼ tsp saffron strands
2 red onions, peeled and cut into large dice
4 stalks celery, the stems cut on an angle into 1cm slices, the leaves picked and torn
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
250g gigli (or campanelle, or other short pasta)
50g pine nuts, toasted
20g salted capers, rinsed
20g parsley leaves, roughly chopped
10g celery leaves

Method
Heat the oven to 240C/465F/gas mark 9. Break the cauliflower into bite-sized florets. Toss with a tablespoon of oil and a pinch of salt, spread on an oven tray and bake until golden and semi-cooked, about 15 minutes.

In a small saucepan, gently warm the currants, vinegar, sugar and saffron, then set aside to infuse.

Pour the remaining oil into a very large sauté pan. Add the onion and celery stems, fry on medium-high heat until they begin to colour and soften – about eight minutes – then add the roasted cauliflower and garlic, and sauté for three minutes.

Meanwhile, boil the pasta in plenty of salted water until al dente. Drain and add to the cauliflower pan. Stir in the pine nuts, capers, currant mix, half a teaspoon of salt and lots of black pepper, taste and adjust the seasoning. Stir in the parsley and celery leaves, and serve immediately.

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Seasonal local food recipe No. 137: Roasted curried cauliflower

Roasted cauliflower is trending everywhere at the moment – even on BBC’s Masterchef. It seems that roasting this “Marmite” vegetable can transform dyed-in-the-wool cauliflower haters into lifelong fans.

San Francisco-based foodie Darya Pino considers this her best recipe of all time (that’s some claim!)

She says: “What’s weird is that this is just roasted cauliflower, it couldn’t sound any less glamorous. The coolest part of all is that anyone (like ANY anyone) can make this.

“I like to add curry powder to mine, but you can play around with whatever spices you like, or just make it plain. It still freaks me out how good this recipe is.”  

Serves: 2-4

Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients
1 large cauliflower (or several small ones)
curry powder
olive oil
sea salt

Method
Preheat oven to 250C, Gas Mark 9. Meanwhile break the cauliflower into medium-small florets and place into a large bowl or baking pan. Be sure the pieces are as evenly sized as possible, or they will cook unevenly. The smaller you make the pieces, the quicker they will cook and the more caramelized they will become.

Drizzle cauliflower pieces generously with olive oil and season well with salt and curry powder. Distribute evenly in a single layer at the bottom of a baking pan. If necessary, use a second baking pan to be sure the pieces aren’t too crowded.

Cover the pans with foil and place into the oven. Roast, covered, for 10-15 minutes. The cauliflower should be slightly soft and start looking translucent. If not replace foil and cook another 5 minutes.

When the cauliflower has finished steaming, remove the foil and toss with tongs. Continue to roast, stirring every 8-10 minutes until the tips of the cauliflower begin to brown and become crisp. Approximately 30-35 minutes.

Adjust salt to taste (you will probably need another sprinkle) and serve.

• Believe it or not, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall suggests making roasted cauliflower as a nibble to go with drinks. He seasons it with lemon juice and smoked paprika before roasting or putting it on the barbeque.

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