Stuffed Courgette Flowers

Unless you grow courgettes then you will probably find it difficult to get hold of courgette flowers.   If you do grow your own like me, you will probably be pulling your hair out right now as to how to keep up with all the courgettes that are appearing.   You turn your back one minute and they have morphed into marrows!!!   Its tough to know what grows fastest – courgettes or bindweed!!

And there are so many different types that together they look like a still life!   I prefer them when they are small, and I am definitely with the Italians on cooking and eating the flowers, or tearing the flowers into shreds and scattering over salads so nothing goes to waste.    

Anyway this weekend I was scratching my head as to what I could do with all the courgettes that keep on coming.   I have put them in with pasta, even made them an alternative to pasta by grating them into long strands and serving them with pasta sauce, baked them, eaten them as salads and given them away to everyone I can think of, but nothing so far that made them into a star ingredient in their own right. Until now!!!   After trawling through all my cookery books I took inspiration from some classic Italian recipes and tweaked them to accommodate what I had in the fridge Continue reading →

Sticky Chicken with Pineapple and Cucumber Salad

 When you first read the title of this recipe you may find the idea of a pineapple and cucumber salad rather strange – but I promise you it really works and offsets the chicken which is cooked with soy, honey, ginger and chilli.    The pieces of chicken are really succulent and a great contrast to this refreshing simple salad.   I leave the core in on the pineapple when I dice it but you can take it out if you wish.  

In my student days in London, I lived next door to a malaysian girl and she used to make this all the time as it was easy to do in our tiny bedsits.   This is a really  quick recipe in terms of the time it takes you to put together and doesn,t need any fancy cooking equipment.  It is also a recipe that is easy to scale up or down.  

If you dont want to joint the chicken yourself I would get the packs of mixed chicken drumsticks and thighs that the supermarkets sell for about £3 – and you only need a small pineapple – preferably only just ripe or just under (which is just as well as that is all supermarkets seem to have on the shelves!). Continue reading →

Baba Ganoush

Legend has it that this dip was invented by a member of the royal harem.   The arabic term means “pampered papa”!!  It is a wonderful smokey and creamy dip – charring of the aubergine skin adds the smokey taste that this dip is famous for.  Wonderful with the Rack of Lamb with North African Spices but see below  under Tips and Alternatives for other suggestions.

I always make this the night before to let flavours develop although this isn’t essential although it does help if you want to get ahead.  Continue reading →

Rack of Lamb with North African Spices

Tender lamb marinated  (here we have used rack of lamb but see suggestions for other cuts under ingredients) the day before in fragrant, warming north african spices that everyone will love because there is no chilli heat.   Serve it with a wonderful smokey, creamy aubergine baba ganoush.

Continue reading →

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