Lemon sole, red onion and baked potatoes

Last night I made a new dish - pan fried lemon sole, red onion gratin and garlic and lemon baked potatoes. I was really in the mood for some fish - I wanted a light but tasty Sunday dinner that gave me some vitamins and was fairly healthy. I started a new job this week and it threw me out food wise and instead of taking in food I was indulging in a lot of M&S lunches so felt I needed to make up for that!

Onion Gratin (based on Jamie Oliver recipe)

Take four red onions, quarter them and then flake out the layers into an oven proof dish
Slice up four cloves garlic and add to onion along with some olive oil, a glass of white wine and some salt and pepper
Mix together, cover with tinfoil and put in the oven to roast until soft (approx 45 mins)
Take off foil and allow to roast until they start to caramlise
Then add four tablespoons of creme fraiche, a small cupful of gruyere cheese and a small cupful of parmesan
Roast until all golden and yummy looking (very techy terminology here!)

Lemony, garlicky baked potatoes

As many potatoes as people pricked with a fork and wrapped in foil
Bake in oven until cooked through (medium ones will take 50-60 mins)
Remove foil and bake until skin is nice and crisp
Take potatoes out the oven and allow to cool for about 10 mins
Cut potatoes in half and scoop out the insides into a bowl
Add some olive oil, a couple of finely chopped garlic cloves and the juice of half a lemon
Mix up then add milk as needed to make lovely silky mashed potatoe
Spoon mashed potatoe back into the skins
You now have two choices:

1. Leave the halves apart and top with sliced tomatoe and cheese and bake until golden on top
2. With the cheese in the red onion you may feel more cheese is too heavy. In which case press together the halves of potatoe to make 'whole' potatoes again and bake for another 10 minutes. If the halves won't stik together knit them with a coktail stick!

I did the 2nd option and they were really light, fluffy and zesty.

Lemon sole

Take as many fillets as there are people
In a dish give a quick salt and pepper to the fillets then dust with flour
Gently shake off any excess flour
Heat oil in a frying pan
Fry skin side down until the skin is crisping then flip over to cook for another 1-2 minutes or until cooked

Serve with glasses of the white wine you opened earlier and enjoy!

The Doric Tavern

On Wednesday I had dinner with my friend Mac at The Doric Tavern on Market Street, Edinburgh. It is just across from one of the entrances to Waverly Station which was great for me as I was going back to Dundee - it's a good place to meet up if train travel is involved. The Doric serves traditional Scottish food in paired back surroundings that reflect the history of the building and with none of the usual kitsch tartan-shortbread trappings you often get in restaurants that deliver traditional Scottish food.

I had the Cullen Skink for starters and Mac had a pear and wlanut salad that looked very tasty. I had never had Cullen Skink before and was a bit worried at the idea of a soup based on fish and dairy. But it was light and the fish was chunky and not too overpowering. Next, Mac had haggis, neeps and tatties which were served in the old fashioned trimuvirate of scoops - albeit almond shaped ones. But sometimes old Skool is what you want and certainly Mac seemed quite happy with his choice. I had a goats cheese and beetroot salad which was lovely - just the right balance of cheese, beetroot and salad leaves. Of course, I had to balance the salad by ordering a side of chips - chunky wedges that were perfect to satisfy the craving for carbs I had. I am sure many diners who consider themselves sophisticates in the arena of food would balk at my behaviour but what is food if not something to enjoy?

So - a good meal and fabulous company made for an excellent evening!

nick nairn cook school

When we are in Tesco we sometimes browse the recipe book selection and a week or so ago saw this book at a good price and decided to give it a shot. I haven't ever used a Nick Nairn recipe before and we both liked the look of the section on techniques. It doesn't just explain the techniques in text but has very good accompanying pictures for each step. I mean, unless you have been shown how do you know what egg whipped to a 'ribbon' state looks like?

So, with my birthday coming up Andy perused the recipe book and suggested he make the flourless chocolate cake. It involved whipping up egg whites and then egg yolks with sugar - using seven eggs no less - and folding in melted chocolate to make the cake. The cake is a strange one because it rises hugely and then when you cool it it collapses in on itself - usually you don't want a collapsing cake but for this one the idea is to make sure through all your whipping and gentle folding that it rises high with even air bubbles and then collapses gradually and evenly until you get a light, moist and rich sponge that is between a mousse and a dense choclate sponge.

Well, I have to say I would have been fairly daunted by this and, while there were a few exclamations at points during the baking, Andy turned out an amazing cake that was choc cake heaven! He served it with creme fraiche and ginger sauce which really complemented the Green & Blacks dark chocolate used in the cake. What more could you want - a husband that makes amazing chocolate!!

Mason and Cash mixing bowls

One particularly important piece of equipment for me is the mixing bowl. I like a traditional Mason and Cash mixing bowl - the ceramic ones with a cream inner and darker cream/mustard outer side. I like the weight they have so they don't go skiting off the surface and they are good for keeping your mixture cool. Plastic I don't mind for things like tossing veggies in olive oil before roasting but I don't like the idea of using them for other stuff. You can get them from John Lewis or from M&C direct. I think it is important to find what works for you and then you will be more inspired on those days when you woudl like to make a victoria sponge but aren't quite managing to move your body and do it. Knowing you have good, fail proof equipment that you enjoy using can make all the difference. But then, maybe it is just me who creates relationships with inanimate objects!!!

Utensils

Everyoen is different and so I don't really go in for those lists of utensils you must have if you are going to be a good cook. But I do like hearing about what others couldn't live without in case it gives me inspiration and I love browsing the Lakeland Limited catalouge for that tool you can't imagine you could now live without.

I am quite an intuitive cook - usually I judge whether the cake or roast is done just by looking at it and relying on my internal clock (I can't turn up on time for anything to save my life but for some reason the lack of time keeping skills doesn't stretch to the kitchen). But, I got this wee cake tester skewer from Lakeland that is in fact very useful in case you are making a recipe for the first time and just want that assurance it is baked/cooked all the way through. The tip turns red when your food is done which is handy if you are making a much bigger roast than usual and are not quite sure if your guesswork is going to prevent upset tummies later on.

I also got the Kenwood Flexible Spatula - I hadn't used a spatula since living at home and used wooden spoons instead and I had forgotten just how much more cake mix you can ensure ends up in the cake and not the sink with a spatula.

Lemon Drizzle Cake

A few days ago I attempted to make for the first time a lemon drizzle cake. I really like lemon cake, particularly after a heavy meal. It is cakey and dessert-like but the lemon gives it a freshness and zing that makes it seem light and almost healthy as a choice (even though I imagine it isn't!).

One of my favourite cookbooks is 'The Complete Farmhouse Kitchen Cook Book'. My mum gave me an old copy she had and it has been a regular source of good recipes and old favourites. So I used the recipe on page 322 which was really easy to do and produced a really good cake - the only thing I felt was that there was a bit too much syrup for my liking - it made the cake almost too lemony so next time I will probably half the quantity.

Tangy Lemon Cake
Ingredients

125g/4oz butter
175g/6oz caster sugar
Grated rind and juice 2 lemons
2 beaten eggs
175g/6oz self-raising flour
A little milk
50g/2oz granulated

Method

1. Cream butter, caster sugar and lemon rind until fluffy
2. Gradually beat in eggs
3. Mix in flour and add about 4 tbsp milk to soften mixture - should be soft enough to drop off end of spoon when shaken gently
4. Grease a 1kg/2ib loaf tin
5. Bake in a moderate oven, Gas 4, 350F, 180C, for 45-50 minutes until risen and golden, firm on top and shrinking from the sides of the tin
6. Just before cake is ready to come out of the oven, prepare the lemon syrup. Heat lemon juice and granulated sugar gently until sugar is dissolved
7. As soon as cake is out the oven, while still in the tin, pierce top all over with a skewer and pour over the syrup Leave in the tin until cold.

Boiled Egg Sandwiches

Yesterday I had out in a good session at the gym and was looking forward to some salad and fruit for lunch sitting in the sun. But instead the rain came down and rather than summer it felt like winter. So, instead of healthy but cold salad I made a favourite treat that was warming comfort food. I took an egg and boiled it and when it was done scooped it out into a cup and mashed it with salt, pepper and a knob of butter. I then slathered it on a toasted white roll and ate it with a hot cup of peppermint tea. It was delicious! Much better for curling up with a book and watching the rain come down than a salad!