Food for 'Grazing'

Sometimes it's a terrible affliction to be working from home and a food writer. Research just makes you hungry and the kitchen is only a few steps away. Perhaps this is why so many of these TV chefs are so overweight. However, there is an advantage to being close to a fully stocked kitchen, which is that I am more likely to try and whip up something wholesome, rather than reach for a candy bar, an impossibility in my home anyway - we never buy them.

I like to graze, meaning that I prefer little bits of food often rather than a big meal. This habit is quite good as it keeps a healthy metabolism, provided you graze on the right thing! Here are a couple of dishes to keep in the refrigerator that can be used for a light lunch that is full of flavour, or like I have done in the picture, served in small bowls as a snack.

This is a blue recipe

Chickpea Salad
This is really tabbouleh with chickpeas instead of Bulgar wheat. Here's a couple of things I have learned about salads:
Cold salad straight from the fridge is not very nice, the flavours are muted and for me eating ice cold vegetables just makes me shiver. So take the salad out and leave it to stand for a while before serving, if you have been storing it.
Next thing is that the way you assemble you salad is not crucial but does make a difference. I always dress in the same sequence - oil, acid (lemon juice, lime or vinegar), salt and pepper. I do this so that the liquids don't wash the seasoning to the bottom and the oil is thicker than the acid so goes first.

Ingredients for 3 people as a side or snack
- two cups of cooked chickpeas (canned or cooked yourself)
- One large tomato finely chopped
- 4 inch piece of cucumber unpeeled and chopped
- Tablespoon each of mint and parsley roughly chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
- juice of half a small lemon, yielding a couple of teaspoons
-Kosher salt
-Black pepper

Mix the chickpeas and vegetables
Add the oil and mix
Add the lemon juice and mix
Add the herbs and mix
Add salt and pepper and... mix

This is a blue recipe

Moutabal
I love this dip. Smear onto sandwiches, dip with carrot or celery sticks or scoop with flatbread. If you're worried about bitterness make sure you cook the eggplant/aubergine long enough so the flesh becomes sweet and caramelised.

Ingredients for a large cereal bowlful of dip
- 1 Large eggplant/aubergine
- 2 tablespoons of tahini
- 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
- Extra Virgin Olive oil
- Roughly chopped parsley
- kosher salt

- Quarter the aubergine, salt the flesh and cook in a hot oven (450f at least) until the white flesh is brown and creamy
- Wait for the flesh to cool and scoop it out from the skin
-Dump into a blender with the tahini and lemon juice and blitz until smooth and creamy
- Test for salt, add more if desired
- Pile into a bowl, drizzle with grass green olive oil and sprinkle with parsley

Try not to go weak at the knees ;-)

Store Cupboard Staples - Oils

A good selection of condiments, spices, herbs and other staples are vital to your kitchen. I usually spend more for good quality products here because they last a while anyway and it makes such a difference to your food. Wholefoods (or Greenlife as it's called here in Asheville) has a really excellent selection of this kind of stuff but if you are looking for something exotic or really rare, you could try World Market, Dean and DeLuca and even Amazon.

OILS
Oil isn't just something you fry with, it can add flavour to food as well. I have 4 types of oil that are always in the cupboard...

Olive Oil - Light and extra virgin. The light is for cooking (frying onions or garlic for tomato sauce, for example) and the extra virgin is for dressings. Don't bother using extra virgin for frying, the taste is marred and it's too expensive. It's difficult to say briefly how important olive oil is in a whole range of cuisines and the variety of flavours. Keep at least one type and try different ones from different countries and regions as the tastes are incredibly diverse. Download this article from Saveur to learn more about the complex wonders of olive oil.

Canola Oil - For frying and roasting. This is a very healthy oil. Don't be fooled into buying the more expensive that says it has Omega oils in it. It's a con. All canola oil has these oils!

Sesame Oil - For flavour. It burns at a low temperature so if you use it in a stir fry mix it with canola. Use it in marinades and salad dressing for that authentic Asian taste.

Truffle Oil - Decadent, delicious and addictive. My sister-in-law turned me onto this oil and I am hooked. Get a good quality oil without any chemical ingredients. Black truffle is most common, Antonio Carluccio sells a wonderful white truffle oil at his chain Carluccio's that I adore and is sadly not available in the US. Don't fry with this, it is for flavouring and a little goes a long way! Sprinkle over scrambled eggs, add to steak at the last minute before serving or make an eye popping caesar salad dressing.

In addition to these there are plenty of nut oils such as walnut and coconut that I urge you to try. Experiment and discover your next delicious creation!

Aubergine/Eggplant Baked Pasta

I know, I know, yet another pasta al forno dish! I can’t help it, I find baked pasta so comforting and easy for larger numbers. Make sure you make enough sauce otherwise it gets really dry when baked.

Serves 3-4

- One 500 gram packet of short pasta (rigatoni, macaroni, gomiti, penne etc)
- 1 tablespoon of light olive oil
- 800 gram tin of plum tomatoes
- ½ pint of yoghurt
- Tablespoon of pesto (the best you can get or homemade is ideal)
- 1 large aubergine (eggplant) finely sliced into rounds
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup of hard Italian cheese – a mixture of pecorino and parmesan would be great

- Heat the oil and add the tomatoes

- Cook down to make a thick sauce (this takes quite while, about 40 minutes) , add salt to taste

- At the same time cook the pasta in well salted water

- Add the pesto and mix well – remove from heat

- Add yoghurt and mix well

- Put the cooked pasta in a baking dish

- Pour over the sauce

- Top with aubergine and cheese

- Cover and bake for 30 minutes

- Cook uncovered for another 10 minutes until cheese is bubbling and the aubergine is cooked through

Potatoe Salad Without Mayonnaise but still good!

THIS IS A BLUE RECIPE

This potato salad is a lovely alternative to the usual mayonnaise drenched one. It is simple to prepare and probably much better for you. We ate it with salty fried halloumi and it was the perfect accompaniment. Boil lots of potatoes so you can keep it for a few days and add it to packed lunches – we made the mistake of not doing this!


-500grams of baby new potatoes or small waxy ones that will keep their shape when cooked, halved or quartered depending on size
- 1 large clove of garlic minced or grated
- 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar (or experiment with other less sweet types of vinegar)
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- salt and pepper
- large handful of chopped flat leaf parsley

- Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender
- Meanwhile combine the vinegar, oil, garlic, mustard. Salt and pepper – a good grinding of each. Taste for seasoning.
- Drain potatoes when cook through, return to the warm pan, add the vinaigrette combine well and cover pan with a lid to keep the potatoes warm and allow the heat to take the edge of the garlic – stand for 5 mins or so
- Before serving add the parlsey

A Perfect Tomato Sandwich

I used to hate uncooked tomatoes. Then I realized that I just hated cold, unripe, tasteless and watery tomatoes. When I moved to Italy soon changed my opinion face I was with tiny pomodorini bursting with flavour. On my return to the UK my love affair with the tomato ended – why? Because most of the tomatoes available in shops were from Spain, Holland even Israel, meaning that with the intense farming and refrigeration you end up with perfect looking tomatoes all year round and zero flavour. The thing is, tomatoes are not that difficult to grow, but we have become so insistent on having every ingredient possible available all year round that we are sacrificing on quality.

Now I am in Zambia and local tomatoes, farmed non intensively and locally are bursting with delicious, acid-sweetness. Juice from the tomato is think and red not thin and watery. Perfect for a fresh, healthy and irresistible tomato sandwich.

To make the perfect tomato sandwich, try following my method and see what you think.

• Use locally produced tomatoes that are deep red and really soft.
  


• The tomato should be room temperature; I keep my toms in the fridge but bring one or two out before I use them and allow them to lose that horrible bland chill
  


• Thinly slice the tomato with a serrated knife on a plate lined with kitchen paper to absorb the water, remove seeds if the tomato is particularly watery, or you plan to eat the sandwich later (Eg. In a packed lunch)
  


• Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise onto a hotdog/burger bun, crusty cob or roll. This bread is dense so absorbs additional moisture without going pappy – white is best because it is slightly sweet and brings out the flavour of the toms
  


• Put your slices of tomato onto the bread and sprinkle with salt
  


• Shred some basil leaves and add, don't be stingy
  


• Drizzle a very small amount of olive oil over
  


• Serve.