Gloriously green: broad bean and dill hummous

Summer is here (not quite sure where the past few months have gone - life has been on fast-forward of late). The sun is shining, the washing is drying on the line and the tomato plants are actually bearing fruit (albeit green at present). Afternoons are spent in the garden with Master LBG tearing round in nothing but a nappy pulling the heads of flowers and eating handfuls of soil when my back is turned (boys will be boys, it seems).

This week's battle has been with the paddling pool. Rather than pack the pool neatly away in its box at the end of the sunny season last year, it was stowed unceremoniously in the corner of our leaky shed and has remained there throughout the Autumn, Winter and Spring. Mr LBG promised to clean it off a couple of weekends go but despite several 'helpful' reminders from his loving wife, I found myself busy with a scrubbing brush, sponge and bucketfuls of hot soapy water on Monday morning. After forty-five minutes of heavy scrubbing (hot and bothered is an understatement), I deemed the pool to be sanitary enough for use. I puffed up my lungs and set to inflating the three rings. Parents of older children will immediately recognise my fatal error and are probably chortling quietly to themselves at my ineptitude. I still have much to learn and am constantly reminded that I am still a novice in the parenting stakes. You guessed correctly. Punctures. In two of the rings. Note to self: ALWAYS inflate paddling pool prior to spending precious time and energy on cleaning. Better still, dispose of (admittedly, very cheap) paddling pool each September and simply buy a new one next year. 

Anyway, onto broad beans. Note lack of seamless topic transition. I simply felt the need to share my paddling pool woes. 

Broad beans are divisive, I find. Not in quite the same way as Brussel Sprouts but divisive all the same. In my own household even, we are divided. Mr LBG is a huge fan and might even go as far as naming them as his favourite vegetable. Master LBG is quite keen to insofar as he enjoyed them a fair few times before he realised they were a 'vegetable' and therefore to be regarded with extreme suspicion along with ALL other vegetables. I am not particularly keen on the broad bean, I must admit. What I dislike about he broad bean is the tough outer casing with its dull, greyish tone. It was years before I discovered (in a fancy restaurant) that one could enjoy beautiful, vibrant green broad beans if one took the trouble to slip them out of their skins prior to serving. What a revelation!

Someone clever once said that 'life is too short to stuff a mushroom' and the same could be said about peeling a cooked broad bean. For me, therefore, they are an occasional treat. I love them with peeled and popped into a pan with some smoked bacon lardons - delicious! I also particularly enjoy them whizzed up into this tasty dip. You do need to peel the beans once cooked but it is worth the bother for this vibrant green hummous. We enjoyed it as a pre-dinner nibble with some stunning purple carrots and wedges of cucumber but is works brilliantly as a canapé served on mini toasts and topped with a small piece of crisp pancetta.

Quantities are approximate - add more oil or lemon juice if you prefer a thinner consistency. This is quite thick. We just made enough to serve as a dip for 2-3 adults but is easy to scale up. It works very well with frozen broad beans too.

Broad Bean Hummous

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

500g Broad beans in pods (weight before podding)

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Juice half small lemon (approx 1 tbsp)

Handful fresh dill, finely chopped

Salt and pepper

1. Pod the beans and simmer in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Plunge into cold water or cool in a sieve under running cold water. Slip the beans from their tough, grey outer skins.

2. Pop the beans into a food processor (a mini one is best, or you could use a pestle and mortar), along with all the other ingredients and blitz until you have a smoothish consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning/lemon juice etc until you have the dip of your dreams!

A taste of Summer on a cold evening: tapenade crusted salmon

I love living in a village. 

I loved living in the city too but I can't imagine going back. There are things that happen in rural England that simply can't be matched by the bright lights and sophistication of urban life. Much as a small dose of glitz and glamour is good for the soul, I adore the simpler pleasures of village fetes and fairs. Today was a case in point. I was summoned invited to attend the Christmas meeting of the village 'Coffee and Chat' at the church. Being somewhat younger than those likely to attend, I can't say that I was filled with delight although the promise of a mid-morning sherry did gladden the heart somewhat.

Black olives, capers, anchovies and garlic: tapenade

Upon arrival (small son in tow), I was greeted with all that is best about English village life. The church was festooned in festive displays of greenery from villagers' gardens arranged artfully by a group of amateur flower-arrangers. There was a sales table groaning with homemade chutneys and jams plus various gifts no doubt found at the back of donators' present drawers. The raffle table was piled high with prizes including a tin of tomato soup and a bottle of Blue Nun (!). Ladies wearing flashing antler hairbands made tea and coffee and handed round mince pies. After half an hour or so of chattering, carol sheets were handed out and we romped our way through verses of Hark the Herald, Good King Wenceslas, The Holly and the Ivy, The First Noel and others. Unaccompanied but all in good voice thanks to the 11.30 am glass of sherry! My son was cooed over by everyone, much to his delight, and his Christmas jumper was admired by all. The raffle tickets were drawn and a buzz of excitement and anticipation filled the air; Doris* had lost her tickets, Frank* didn't want the beautifully-iced Christmas cake and asked for another ticket to be drawn and Edith* was thrilled to win twice-over. Simple pleasures, as I said. But ones that can't help but raise a smile and warm the heart.

(*Names have been changed to protect the lucky winners!!)

All this has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with today's recipe. In fact, this recipe is about as far from seasonal as you can get. At this time of year, I tend towards the comfort of hearty casseroles and meaty pies but occasionally, I crave something suffused with the sunshine of warmer months. Last night was one such occasion. Salmon fillets feature regularly on our weeknight menus and I am always looking for new ways to serve them. This time, I created a delicious tangy tapenade to spread on top and then roasted the salmon to form a tasty crust. 

Tapenade is easy to prepare and relies mainly on storecupboard ingredients so it is a handy one for whipping up to serve alongside drinks when unexpected guests call at Christmas. Keep a couple of part-baked baguettes up your sleeve so that you can make some quick crostini and bingo; instant canapés to impress your visitors. There are lots of variations of this tasty snack but all include black olives, capers, garlic and anchovies. I like to add a few fresh herbs too - flat leaf parsley and a few fresh thyme leaves by preference. Obviously, the better the olives the better the tapenade but I just used a tin of regular supermarket pitted black olives here and it still tasted pretty good! Traditionally, this would be made with a pestle and mortar but I use a mini-processor on the pulse setting. You are not looking for something totally smooth here - a bit of texture is a good thing.

I served this with roasted courgettes and broccoli as that is what I had but in the past, I have made a sort of roasted vegetable ratatouille of courgette, red pepper and cherry tomatoes. The tapenade is also great with cod too!

The recipe here makes enough tapenade for 4 servings. If serving two, I would advise making the same quantity of tapenade (a smaller amount is tricky in a processor) and save the rest as a snack the next day.

Tapenade crusted salmon

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Tapenade:

150g black olives

1 tbsp capers, rinsed

1 large anchovy (or 2 small - mine were huge!)

1 small clove garlic

2tbsp lemon juice

2.5 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 tsp fresh thyme leaves

Salmon:

4 tbsp breadcrumbs

4 salmon fillets 

1. Place all the ingredients for the tapenade into the bowl of a small processor and pulse until blended but not smooth. Alternatively, pound with a pestle and mortar. If time, set aside for 30 mins or so for the flavours to mingle.

2. Pre-heat oven to 180C. Mix the breadcrumbs into the tapenade and spread the mixture onto each of the salmon fillets.

3. Roast for 20 minutes until salmon is cooked.

Speedy toddler lunch: roast chicken quesadillas

When we moved house a few years ago, we were delighted to be leaving behind the freezing and falling apart mess that was our rented home for the year that we spent making sure that a 'move to the country' was indeed for us. We were excited about our new home but very sad to be leaving behind the ancient, solid-fuel fired Aga that we had come to love. We were both new to Aga cooking and, after a few disasters, soon learnt to love its versatility. Our favourite Aga treat was the fabled 'Aga toastie'. For those not lucky enough to have been acquainted with the culinary sensation that is the 'Aga toastie', it is essentially a toasted cheese sandwich. It is better though. I cannot explain why really. It just is.

To make an Aga toastie, you simply make a cheese sandwich according to your tastes (Cheddar and onion marmalade for me please). Grab some of that clever silicon baking sheet stuff and pop it on the hot plate. Pop your sandwich on top and lower the lid over the whole thing. Moments later, open the lid and flip the sandwich over and repeat. In just a couple of minutes flat, you have the fluffiest, toastiest toastie you have ever eaten. No need for butter on the outside so you could almost argue it is healthy.... Well, perhaps not. Maybe just 'less bad for you'.

Anyway, no more Aga toasties for us. Instead, we have discovered the joy of the quesadilla. Almost as speedy (you have to preheat the pan rather than having the instant heat of the Aga, but needs must!), and equally versatile and tasty. We all love them and I found them to be an instant hit with my son which is handy as I am always in need of a speedy lunch that can be whipped up in moments after a hectic morning of singing, clapping and waving at Jo Jingles. Yes, my life really is that glamorous!

My son could eat little mini-wedges of these at around 10 months but they would probably suit baby-led-weaners earlier than this.

Being a creature of habit, I like the cheese and onion marmalade or chutney combination best. Sometimes I throw in a slice of two of ham for added excitement. But you can fill your quesadilla with almost anything, though cheese is a fairly essential element (queso meaning cheese, after all). For my son, I sometimes do cheese and grated apple or tuna, sweetcorn and cheese (think 'tuna melt'). Today I used shredded leftover roast chicken, chopped tomatoes and Cheddar. Mushrooms and onions work well if they are fried off a little to soften before adding to the filling. My husband likes a few jalapenos for the authentic Mexican kick. The fillings really are as diverse as your imagination. Vary the cheese according to the fillings - I once tried an Italian perversion of this Mexican snack with pesto, grated courgette, tomatoes and mozzarella. It worked a treat!

Here is how to make one...

Quesadilla

Serves 1

1 flour tortilla

Fillings of choice (e.g. shredded chicken, tuna, ham, mushrooms, tomatoes, roasted red peppers, spring onions, pesto with grated courgette and mozzarella etc...)

Handful grated cheese - Cheddar, Gruyere, Mozzarella (match the style of cheese to your filling)

1. Take a griddle pan or even a large non-stick frying pan and set it on the hob to heat up to a medium heat.

2. Lay your tortilla on a chopping board and add your fillings to one side of the tortilla only. Sprinkle with the cheese. Fold the 'empty' half of the tortilla over the fillings (don't overfill) so that you have a semi-circle.

3. Fry the filled tortilla in the dry pan on a medium heat for a minute or so on one side before flipping over and cooking the other side. You are aiming for a nice crisp tortilla and melty cheese goodness on the inside. Watch closely as they do burn easily!

Vegetable fritters - speedy teatime idea for babies and toddlers

No. My son did not appreciate the parsley garnish!

Some days it feels as though all I do is prepare meals! My 15-month old son is on a slightly different mealtime schedule to us due to fitting in naps and his bedtime which often occurs before my husband gets in from work (we relish a 'grown-up' meal together in the evenings!). Much as I love to cook, preparing two different lunches and two different evening meals can leave little time for getting out and about. Where possible, I try to cook meals that are suitable for us all and just heat up a portion for my son the next day. I also like to keep the freezer full of speedy meals and snacks that are perfect for when time is short.

These very tasty fritters freeze really well and can be cooked directly from frozen in just ten minutes. They also take merely five minutes to make and are ideal for those days when you I open the fridge and realise all you I have is an egg and a couple of bendy carrots! They are a great way to disguise any vegetables that little ones usually reject and are easy for little hands to eat - they would make a great dish for younger babies following the baby led weaning approach. For my son, these are a great tea-time meal in themselves. He loves them and we have tried various vegetable combinations - sweetcorn and courgette being his favourite. The fritters also make a good light lunch or brunch for adults served with a poached egg and/or a slice of bacon.

Vegetable Fritters

Inspired by this recipe from Annabel Karmel

Makes approx. 8-10 small fritters

30g plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 large egg

1-2 tbsp milk

170g mixed vegetables* (sweetcorn, peas, courgette, carrot, spring onion)

Olive oil for frying

Pinch of salt (optional and for 12 months+ only)

*Vegetables such as carrot or courgette should be grated and squeezed in a tea-towel to get rid of excess liquid. Sweetcorn is great in these, either alone or mixed with grated courgette.

1. Place the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and combine. Make a slight well and crack the egg into the well. Mix together with a touch of milk until you have a thick but smooth batter. 

2. Stir in the vegetables.

3. Heat oil in a frying pan. Take heaped teaspoons of the batter and drop into the pan, pushing down with back of the spoon to create a rough circular shape. Cook for 1-2 minutes until golden and then flip over and cook for 1-2 minutes on the other side. Once golden and slightly crisp on the outside, they are ready. Cook in batches.

4. To freeze, simple wrap the cooled fritters in foil in portion sizes (my son will eat around 4 of these but he is very greedy!). When ready to eat, place on a baking tray in oven at 180C for 8-10 minutes.

TECHNICAL QUESTION!!
If anyone reading this can help, I would be enormously helpful. The background template for my blog does not appear correctly on mobile devices such as iPads. This makes my blog look rather ugly unless viewed on a desktop/laptop. I have no idea how to fix this as I am very un-techy. Can anyone shed any light?! Please?! I would be hugely grateful for any advice.