The Recycled Cook

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Piedmont Peppers Another vegetable dish for you today which can either be used as a starter, a side dish or even on as a light supper. The original recipe uses dried anchovies but I have substituted Serrano ham in this version. To make this as a vegetarian option simply revert back to the anchovies. Firstly halve the peppers, cutting through the stem which makes the presentation better. This is easiest with a large, sharp cooks knife. De-seed and take out the core. Place some thinly sliced slivers of garlic in the base of each pepper, bashing them lightly with the handle of the knife to release their flavour. Tear some small slices of cured ham such as Bayonne, Serrano, Parma or, as I do sometimes, Carmarthen ham (legend has it that the Romans took this idea back to Italy and created Parma ham).  Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with black pepper. Add some small sweet basil leaves if you have them or tea...

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Fennel, Cucumber and Apple Salad A very easy, if a little dangerous vegetarian cooking blog from me today. This is a simple side salad which can be served with any light lunch dish but it works particularly well with a warm Quiche. The contrast of hot and cold adds another dimension to what would otherwise be a very simple dish. In truth this is not so much of a salad as a cold pickle as all the ingredients are allowed to rest in a mixture of lemon juice and vinegar. As always with these dishes there are no hard and fast rules about the ingredients or the proportions, it is a matter of what you have available and how adventurous you are feeling. I had a Fennel bulb and a green Apple available as well as some baby courgettes but I could have equally added radish celery or a fruit such as Mango or Pineapple. Now comes the dangerous bit, you need to slice the ingredients thinly and the best way to do this is with a Mandolin (if you ha...

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Spanish Omelette This is not strictly speaking a traditional "Tortilla Española" but is made in the style of one using whatever it is you happen to have available in your fridge.  The traditional version is usually baked in the oven although you can make them using two frying pans, flipping them over half way through cooking. I prefer to start off in a frying pan and then finish the cooking under a hot grill. I have added cheese as it gives a nice crusty finish to the tortilla and adds bags of flavour too. Start by slicing and chopping your ingredients into a large frying pan. There are no rules as to what you can use but try and create a balance of flavours.  I have used new potatoes (still in their skins), red pepper, onion, some spring onion, celery and chorizo. I also added a few slices of left over Parma ham. For a vegetarian version just leave out the meat content. Saute lightly in butter and olive oil until your ...

The Recycled Cook Cheese and chive jacket potato Jacket potatoes are one of those really comforting dishes that seem to have been around forever, w e all have our favourite   toppings. Chucking the potato in the microwave and adding your topping is one way but they can be a lot more interesting than that too. Prick the skin all over and put straight onto the rack in the oven on 200° (Gas mark 6) and bake for about 40 mins, turning half way through cooking.  The time will vary depending on the the size of the potato. Use any large potato you have available. After baking, halve and gently score the potato in a criss cross pattern, being careful not to pierce the skin but if you do it is not disastrous. For this one I used left over cheese from the fridge and fresh chives from my  garden.  You can substitute finely chopped spring onion for the chives. Scoop out the centre and place in a mixing bowl, season well with salt and black pepper...

The Recycled Cook Boiled egg and soldiers with a twist This is my attempt at taking one of my all time favourite breakfast dishes, boiled egg with toast soldiers and giving it that extra little twist. To be honest this recipe is a derivative of a restaurant dish by one of the UK's top chefs, Nathan Outlaw (great name) but he takes it a lot further, using duck eggs and making freshly baked saffron bread, I know my limits. This is a dish that could be served as a special breakfast or as a lovely brunch for family and friends. Having made this for the first time and realising just how much preparation is involved I would recommend doing some of these stages the night before and keeping the ingredients in the fridge, you will give yourself far less pressure. Before you start make sure you have two bowls of prepared ice water ready.  Firstly boil your eggs for approximately five to six minutes depending on your preference, You want the white firm but the yolk soft.  Im...

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Spanish Croquettes Anyone who has been to Spain will I am sure be familiar with these lovely potato and cheese savouries called Croquetas. Strictly speaking I suppose these are Welsh Croquettes but I am sure nobody will mind. In keeping with the theme of this blog this is another way of using up leftovers, in this case I have used leftover mashed potato, cheese and ham. To make these as vegetarian dish simply leave out the ham and possibly add some cooked onion or red pepper instead. Mix the cheese ham and mashed potato in a large bowl then add some smoked Paprika or Pimienton.  This comes in a Sweet "Dulce" variety or a spicy "Picante" version which is  my preference. You shouldn't need to add egg to bind these as the natural starch in the potato combined with the cheese should be sufficient. Roll them in the palms of your hand into a ball and then form them into the traditional cigar shapes. You c...

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Onion Jam Having been given half a dozen extremely large white onions that a friend of mine grew on his allotment I originally set out to make some onion jam with them and in the process that also turned into a classic French onion soup. I will start with the jam and do a separate blog for the soup later. Is it technically recycling when you set out to make one thing and end up making two?  Probably not but they are both great ways to use up rather a lot of onions and they both start of the same way. First of all you need to peel and thinly slice the onions into a large saucepan. If you use a M andoline , as I have done, make sure to use the guard provided or risk slicing your fingers as well as the onions. I usually start off just slicing the vegetable but see the guard long before I get anywhere near my fingers. Sweat off the onions with some cubes of unsalted butter and olive oil, I used a garlic infused oil but that is just ...