Chili Cheese Calzone

A very close friend of mine got me a wonderful birthday present recently. It was an afternoon making street food at a leading local restaurant. At the course he and I learned a number of new recipes and tips to improve our cooking as well as having a lot of fun in doing so. I can safely say that it's one of the best birthday presents I've ever had. One dish we learned to make, while I sported an extremely ironic "Vegan Chef" hat supplied by my friend, was Calzone. The version we made contained Rocket, Mozzarella Cheese and Mushrooms. I'm not the biggest fan of Mushrooms but I saw the potential of the concept of calzone and decided to do my own take on it.

There was more Clapton on the player when I started the project. This time his landmark 1992 offering "Unplugged". In common with many other contemporary music legends the record sees Clapton treating some of his most famous numbers, plus some newbies and lesser known pearls, with acoustic instruments. Along with Neil Young's, Rod Stewart's and Kiss' take on this genre, Clapton's is one of the best. For those who wondered if Clapton, after a turbulent creative period in much of the 1980s, was still God, here's proof that the epithet remained justified.

If you fancy a taste of this record you can do worse than click on: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQL8vLGlM3mmh0vEpglq9x2LAPThDj19T

The ingredients of this dish were the following:

For the filling:

Five tomatoes cubed.
Ten leaves of Fresh Basil Shredded thinly.
Five Spring Onions cut into thin pieces.
Eight Ounces of Chili Cheddar Cheese cut into four equal pieces.

For the Dough

Two Hundred Grams of Wholemeal Bread Flour.
Four Ounces of Garlic Salt.
One Hundred Grams of Olive Oil.
One Sachet of Yeast.
One Hundred Grams of Water.

The method:

Prepare the filling by frying the Tomatoes, Basil and Spring Onions on a low heat in Olive Oil for around fifteen minutes stirring regularly. Once this is done leave the ingredients on one side to cool down.

Next make the Dough by adding the Bread Flour into a large mixing bowl with the Garlic Salt and Olive Oil. Stir these ingredients together and then form a hole middle of them.

In another bowl stir the Water and Yeast together and try and ensure the yeast is fully blended in with the Water. Add the Water and Yeast to the Bread Flour and the Garlic Salt and stir the ingredients together.

Then knead, which you may find very cathartic, the ingredients together until you find you have made a large ball of dough. This should take you around five to ten minutes. Then cover the bowl with cling film and leave the dough in the fridge for one hour to rise.

After one hour remove the dough from the fridge and cut it into two equal pieces. Roll each piece of dough out into a large circle. Add one part of the mixture each to the two circles of dough and  two pieces of the Cheese.

Put the Calzones on a foil-covered baking tray and bake in the oven on Gas Mark Seven for fifteen minutes. After that remove them from the oven and consume or leave in storage to eat cold no more than two days after cooking.

These Calzones had plenty of freshness from the Basil, Tomato and Spring Onion while the Chili Cheese added a real fire and richness.

All Hallows Soup

The reason the Pumpkin has become associated with Halloween in this country is that it is usually hollowed out to look like a skull and then a candle is inserted in it to create a Jack O'Lantern. It wasn't always like that. In fact until the Pumpkin became widely available, following influence from the United States, the Turnip was the vegetable of choice for making such Lanterns. The legend of the Jack O'Lantern originated in Ireland where it is said an individual made a bargain with the Devil and as punishment is forced to walk the Earth with only a hollow turnip to light his path.

Less well-known on this side of the pond are Pumpkin's qualities as a source of food. Over in the States it is used in the sweet Thanksgiving Dish Pumpkin Pie. Here however it is often overshadowed by its more flavoursome counterpart in the squash family, the Butternut Squash. The taste of the Pumpkin is certainly not as accessible and immediately likable as the Butternut Squash, but when combined with the right ingredients it can make some wonderfully comforting Autumn and Winter dishes.

The clocks had just changed and the crisp winter sun crept through the park like the rust of red and gold over the green leaves of the trees it contained. I was having a spot of downtime having in the space of less than week taken in a gig by legendary blues guitarist Robert Cray, Tuesday Tapas, Snooker and Darts through work, a cookery class with a very good friend of mine, a night out in a midland city, a meal in another midland city with a close friend and a buffet tea with my parents. To follow up I had the christening of the first child of some other friends to look forward to,plus a possible midweek game of pool and a lot more.

The temperature had quickly dropped and some heat was needed which inspired me to make a Pumpkin Soup.

I had acquired the only studio album by Eric Clapton's side project Derek and the Dominos. It's not only one Clapton's greatest works, either solo or as part of a working band, but also one of the best records of all time. The record, called "Layla and other Assorted Love Songs", features not just the timeless title track but lots of other country blues classics generated by a man seemingly at war with himself emotionally.

The ingredients for this soup were:

One Pumpkin, de-cored and de-seeded and cut into cubes.
Five Pickling Onions diced.
Two Cloves of Garlic diced.
Four Tomatoes cut into cubes.
Eight Ounces of Red Lentils.
One teaspoon of  Dried Basil.
One teaspoon of Ground Cumin
One of teaspoon of Black Pepper.
Two Birds Eye Chili Peppers ground down very finely.
Six Pumpkin Seeds.
Pine Nuts.

The method is as follows:

1. Warm some Olive Oil on the hob in the bottom of a deep sauce pan or Le Cresceut.
2. Add the Pumpkin Seeds and cook them for ten minutes turning regularly. Then remove them and set to one side.
3. Add the Pumpkin Cubes and heat for fifteen minutes.
4. Add the Pickling Onions, Cloves of Garlic, Chili, Lentils and all spices and heat through for a further twenty minutes stirring regularly.
5. Add the Tomatoes and stir them thoroughly to allow their juices to soften the mixture- especially the Red Lentils. Stew on the hob for another twenty minutes then leave to one side to cool.
6. Blend the soup and return to the Le Cresceut dish.
7. Warm through and serve topped with the Pumpkin Seeds and some Pine Nuts.

The Tomatoes and Spices gave this soup a rich yet fiery taste that brought the taste of the Pumpkin Flesh to life. Meanwhile the seeds added an extra crunchiness that made the Soup something out of the ordinary.

HOLY FLAPS!

It was a wet Sunday and therefore a day for doing some baking. However I’d already enjoyed an action-packed weekend with an evening of whisky on the Friday Night, followed by a sly game of Darts in the Amber Valley and a catch up over a cup of the not so hard stuff in the industrial suburb of the town I reside in.

The record on the Player was Seal’s excellent sophomore effort “Seal II” . There’s something extremely uplifting about listening to this album on a wet Sunday Morning. The captivating voice and powerful arrangements, which somehow combine mild rave, trance and easy listening, are more than enough to motivate. The pick of the tracks are the storming opener “Bring it On” and the ubiquitous love song “Kiss From a Rose” . I say ubiquitous, it certainly was in the summer of 1995 when it was constantly on the radio during a holiday I took to Canada that summer. For me the record also brings back memories of long-gone, wet Sunday mornings lying half conscious on a sofa in a flat in Huddersfield while staring out of the window at the distant, dark hills of the Northern Peak District. It was during this experimental period in my life that I first picked up my copy of this wonderful album.

The ingredients of this recipe were as follows:

195grams of  Unsalted Butter.
195 grams of Caster Sugar.
195 grams of Porridge Oats
50 grams of Sultanas and Mixed Peel.
2 tablepoons of Honey.
1 teaspoon of Nutmeg.
1 teaspoon of Almond Essence.

The method to make this recipe is as follows

1. Mix together the Butter and Sugar until it is fluffy.
2. Add in Porridge Oats, Honey, Nutmeg and Almond Essence.
3. Stir together until there is a thick paste.
4. Pour into a high-sided, thoroughly greased baking tray and cook in the oven on Gas Mark 4 for 45 minutes.
5. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool down for 5 minutes.
6. Put in the refrigerator for 5 hours.
7. Remove from the fridge and cut the mixture into bite size squares to serve.

Initially I thought I’d blown it in making this recipe as when I took it out of the oven it was too runny. However by putting it in the refrigerator for a time I was able to make the ingredients solid again. The Honey and Almond Essence gave the flapjacks a genuine sweetness while the use of the Oats made the flapjacks high in fibre to create a sweet but healthy treat.

Crunch time- the flapjacks are neatly arranged on a plate for serving 

Smoked Shepherds

It was heavy cloud but there was no rain. The trees retained almost all their leaves and were very still in the slight breeze. Whether trying to make sense of the week at school, a term at university or, latterly, the events of the working week, I've always come back to the same wood over the last twenty years. Normally it's been with a Dog in tow. Various Dogs over the years have joined various incarnations of me in wanderings through the quiet security of the wood. It's the best place I know to switch off from the cares of professional life.

On this occasion the wood and the Dogg were aiding me in stepping back from a challenging, but not insurmountable, hurdle in my professional life that had raised its head that week. One the difficulties of doing the job I do is switching off from events at the office when I'm away from there. As I've got older I've learned to be less neurotic and anxious and learned to let go. On the last Sunday in September I found three ways to do this. The first was the walk in the wood.

The second way was music. On the player  when I got home was Dire Straits' superlative live album "Live at the Majestic San Antonio 16 August 1985". The album finds the band well into their record-breaking tour in support of their best-selling 1985 smash "Brothers in Arms". They are on form with strong versions of classics such as "Sultans of Swing" and "Walk of Life". However the pick up of the tracks is the deliberate, gritty opener "Ride Across the River".

The third way was creating a new recipe in the kitchen. I hit upon a vegetarian version the classic dish "Shepherds' Pie". I aimed to give the dish a smoky and earthy taste to reflect we were well now into the Autumn Season.

The Ingredients of this dish were was follows:

For the Filling:

One tablespoon of Caraway Seeds.
One tablespoon of Smoked Paprika.
One teaspoon of White Pepper.
One tablespoon of Tomato Puree.
One Leek, topped and tailed and sliced thinly.
One Red Pepper, de-cored and de-seeded and cut into small squares.
Two Shallots, topped, tailed, peeled and then diced.
Six Spring Onions, topped, tailed, peeled and then diced.
Three Hundred Grams of Quorn Mince.
Three quarters of a pint of Carlsberg.
A quarter of a pint of Vegetable Stock.

For the Topping:

Six Red Potatoes, peeled and cut into slices.
One Sweet Potato, peeled and cut into thin slices.

The method was as follows:

1 Fry in a Le Cresceut in Olive Oil the spices, Tomato Puree, Red Pepper, Leek, Shallots and Spring Onions on a medium heat for twenty minutes.

2. Add the Quorn Mince and cook for a further ten minutes.

3. Add the Carsberg and simmer for fifteen minutes.

4. Add the Vegetable Stock and warm through for ten minutes.

5. Steam both sets of Potatoes for twenty-five minutes.

6. Spread the filling in a rectangular, greased ovenproof dish.

7. Mash the Potatoes and spread over the top.

8. Bake for twenty-five minutes on Gas Mark Four until the topping is crisp.

In making this dish I had set out to create something with the taste of the smoked and earthy stews you find on the continent. I achieved this with the use of the Caraway Seeds, Smoked Paprika and the Carlsberg. The Tomato Puree meanwhile gave the filling a real richness and the Quorn Mince provided plenty of protein.

So as to ensure the topping was a little more healthy, I mixed the Red Potatoes with Sweet Potato which meant less starch that would turn sugary when consumed. It also made the topping a little brighter.

Smoked Top- the colourful pie is fresh out of the oven and ready to serve. 

Side on- the smoky filling sits well next to a sample of the topping

Scotch Cornered

I had covered almost five hundred miles in two days but the Dogg, The Panda (the make of car not the animal) and I had made it. We had found ourselves in the far North East at a converted cooperage overlooking the bay with stunning views inland to fields festooned with hay bales. The spire of a Church, that was almost steampunk in design, jutted up from near a set of thin trees huddled on a hillside. It was picture postcard stuff no question . 

The building we were in had a conservatory with a glass ceiling and the place had almost every facility you could think of. On the Sunday Night, which was the third one in September I was cooking for challenging and specialist tastes. 

I found inspiration from a cookbook of traditional Scottish recipes many of which seemed to be stews laced with Game and/or Beef. However it was necessary to make the chosen stew vegetarian so as to make it suitable for those I was cooking for. 

On the Player on the way up, and therefore fresh in my mind while prepping this meal, was Mark Knopfler’s peerless soundtrack to the film “Local Hero” . This film was set near to where we were staying and in fact the iconic phone box featured in the film situated at nearby village Pennan was once painted by my Genial Great Uncle. 

The album itself contains lots of atmospheric synth work, trademark twanging guitars, one song sung by the late Bearded growler Gerry Rafferty and “Going Home” a tune used regularly at football matches as well as an encore at Dire Straits concerts and his own solo gigs once Knopfler binned that band. The pick track however is “Stargazing” it may be short but it has epic qualities and is a good one to listen to if you’re looking for motivation to do something out of your comfort zone. 

The ingredients for this recipe were as follows: 

10 Ounces Green Lentils 

5 Red Potatoes Cubed 

3 White Onions fully diced

3 Shallots fully diced 

2 Cloves Of Garlic diced 

4 Rainbow Carrots Sliced thinly two yellow one purple one orange 

Tablespoon of Rosemary 

Tablespoon of Thyme

Tablespoon of Smoked Paprika 

Quarter pint of Vegetable Stock

Quarter of a pint of Red Wine 

The method was as follows: 

1. Boil the Lentils in a pan of water on the hob for thirty minutes. 
2. Fry the Potatoes with the Rosemary and Thyme in a deep frying pan for fifteen minutes.  
3. Add to the frying pan the red wine, Smoked Paprika  and the carrots and fry for a further twenty minutes.
4. After this add Onions Shallots and Garlic and fry for a further ten minutes 
5. Drain the Lentils and add them to the frying pan with the Vegetable Stock and stew everything for a further twenty five minutes . 
6. Serve with some boiled Broccoli.

The Rainbow Carrots which were yellow, purple and orange respectively added a sweetness and flavour to this dish. The Lentils and red Wine also provided a richness that would otherwise been provided by the game had I made this as a meat dish.

Far East Fish

It was Saturday, it was showtime it was work and it wasn't. It was attending a show at a former industrial hotbed in England. Myself and two of my dynamic colleagues were promoting our business at a show that featured a fairground, medieval battle re-enactments and a free massage. It was a successful day and round two of promoting the show was to start the following day.

It was early Saturday Evening by the time I got home and I decided I needed a spot of brain food in the form of oven-baked Cod. However I decided to put a different twist on it. I was inspired to do so by a fantastic book, that's written by Niki Segnit called "The Flavour Thesaurus". The book was gifted to me by two good friends residing in the land of Blonde Beer and Northern Mill Towns. This book looks at pairing different ingredients that work well together in recipes and there are some pairings that are unusual but effective. One such pairing involved pairing White Fish, Dill, Ginger Root and Turmeric in a way that chefs often do in Far Eastern Countries like Laos.

The ingredients for the meal of Baked Cod with a side of baked Sweet Potato pieces was as follows:

For the Baked Cod

2 Cod Fillets.
One tablespoon of Dill.
One tablespoon of Turmeric.
One tablespoon of Soy Sauce.
Four Spring Onions chopped up thinly and topped and tailed.
Five ounces of diced Root Ginger.
Sesame Oil.

For the Baked Sweet Potato Pieces

One Sweet Potato, topped, tailed, peeled and cubed.
One Red Pepper, de- cored de-seeded and cut into small squares.
One tablespoon of Ground Coriander
One tablespoon of Dried Mint
Sesame Oil

On the player was Tricky's  masterful1995 portrayal of Urban Grime filtered through the medium of trip hop "Maxinquaye". On tracks such as "Hell is around the Corner", "Black Steel" and "Ponderosa" Tricky tells dark tales of urban suffering and dark places. That morning as I walked past the crumbling red-brick terraces and bay windows framed by fading curtains on the way to the showground, I imagined similar stories to those Tricky told being enacted inside these houses.

The method then for this dish was as follows:

1. Cover the bottom of a high sided ovenproof glass dish with Sesame Oil. Add the Sweet Potato Pieces, Pepper, Ground Coriander and Dried Mint. Stir them together and then spread evenly throughout the dish.

2. Cook in the Oven on Gas Mark 5 for 45 minutes.

3. In the meantime put the Cod Fillets on a sheet of foil and lay the Ginger Root pieces and Spring Onion pieces on and around the Fillets.

4. Spread the Dill, Turmeric and Soy Sauce evenly on the Cod Fillets then use a brush to glaze the Cod with Sesame Oil.

5. When the Sweet Potatoes have cooked for 45 minutes remove the dish from the oven and stir it.

6. Wrap the Cod its accompanying spices and Spring Onions in the foil to make a parcel, place on a baking tray and add to the oven with the Sweet Potatoes. Cook the Cod and Sweet Potatoes for a further 20 minutes on Gas Mark 6.

The Pepper, Sweet Potato, Ginger Root and Spring Onion all came from the excellent local greengrocer close by to where I live. The dish itself lived up to and exceeded my expectations. I'm quite traditional when it comes to making dishes with Cod and prefer to make it with traditional English Root Vegetables or as part of Fish & Chips. However injecting Mint, Turmeric, Sesame Oil, Coriander and the Dill into the recipe took it in a new and delicious direction.

The Sweet Potato cubes, Red Pepper and spices cooked with them also provided a substantial but healthy adjunct to the dish and helped keep my energy levels for the forthcoming adventures at the show the next day.

Orange is the new white- the Cod and Sweet Potato are clustered together on the serving plate and give an authentic taste of Laos. 

Jockeying with the Bourbons

The first weekend in September 2018. A time to rest, a time to re-group and a time for Dogg and I to disappear off on a fourteen mile walk deep into the countryside so that I could reflect on an epic summer. Traditionally the first or second weekend in September is one where I do little bar a quiet walk, a spot of pottering and the odd cooking project. Self-care in this way after a busy summer is an important lesson I have learned over the years.

The weekend's cooking project was a spot of baking. I realised I hadn't put many baking recipes on the blog for a while. Accordingly I decided to make some Bourbon Biscuits. This was something I'd not done since an ill-fated attempt to do so back in 2009 for some erstwhile workmates during my infamous "Fat Elvis Years."

The preparation of the Bourbons was a two day process. On Saturday 1 September I made the dough for the biscuits using the following ingredients:

7 Ounces of Caster Sugar
8 Ounces of Margarine
19 Ounces of Plain Flour
The White & Yolk of 1 Egg
1 tablespoon of Drinking Chocolate

Neil Young’s 2010 effort “Le Noise” was on the player. The album finds Young teaming up with producer Daniel Lanois, famed for his work with U2 and Bob Dylan, who puts his own unique touches to Young's Sound and in the process helping create a record that is fresh and vital.

The method for this part of the baking was as follows:

1. Cream the Margerine and Sugar until fluffy.
2. Add the Egg and drinking chocolate and stir in.
3. Add the flour gradually and stir in until all the ingredients are combined.
4. Knead the ingredients together until a thick piece of dough is formed.
5. Roll out the dough into a flat circle.
6. Cut up into 18  rectangles that are of an equal shape as much as possible.
7.Cook in oven on a greased baking tray for 14 minutes at Gas Mark 3.
8. Leave to cool overnight in the fridge.

The next afternoon on 2 September it was time to make the buttercream filling. The record on the player this was Jethro Tull's professional and occasionally outstanding 1974 effort“Warchild”. The edition I listened to had a large number of bonus tracks that were as good as the original album and if you want to invest in the record I'd recommend this version.

The ingredients for the Buttercream were:

8 Ounces of margarine
8 Ounces of icing sugar
1 tablespoon of powdered drinking chocolate

The method was simply creaming all these ingredients together in a mixing bowl until I had created a pliable spread. I then spread the Buttercream on 9 of the biscuit pieces. Next I put the other pieces on top of each of the buttered pieces to make 9 Bourbon Biscuits.

I recall how I had also made these biscuits back in the early summer of 1997 as a thirteen year old with little behind me and how things had changed so exciting since then. The biscuits went down well with family and friends alike during the ensuing week and were definitely an improvement on the 2009 version I made of these biscuits.

Sunshine Shine Brightly on my Bourbons today- the biscuits after preparation were arrange tastefully for serving.