Ham and Vegetable Gratin with Celeriac Mash

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 celeriac head (450g)

half an onion (I use 50g frozen)

1 leek (100g)

Your choice of filling vegetables - I used

   1 courgette, chopped into bite sized pieces (200g)

   80g kalettes, roughly chopped

   200g broccoli spears

30g butter

90g ham, shredded

20g panko breadcrumbs

20g reduced fat grated cheddar

black pepper, nutmeg, paprika

250ml milk (I use unsweetened almond milk)

8g arrowroot powder or kudzu

oil

Nutrition Info (per serving)

Calories: 301

Protein : 15g

Carbohydrate: 31g

Fat: 14g

Dietary Fibre: 6.5g

Method

1. Wash and roughly peel the celeriac.  Chop into large pieces and microwave in a covered container with a little water for 7 minutes.
2. Mash the cooked celeriac with the butter.
3. Pre-heat the oven to 200C.
4. Heat 1tsp oil in a frying pan to medium hot and fry the onion and leeks for about 10 minutes.
5. Microwave the kalettes, and courgette for 3 minutes in a covered container without water.
6. Microwave the broccoli spears for 2 minutes in a covered container with a little water.
7. Drain all the vegetables and put in an oven proof container.
8. Add the ham.
9. From the 250ml milk, measure out approximately 50ml into a small bowl.  Stir in the arrowroot/kudzu and mix well.
10. Heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan with a good sprinkling of paprika and nutmeg.  When the milk is hot, pour in the arrowroot/kudzu mix, stirring thoroughly.  The mixture will thicken. Add more seasoning to taste.
11. Mix the sauce into the vegetables and ham, cover with the celeriac mash, and sprinkle over the breadcrumbs and cheese.  Finish with a good grating of black or rainbow pepper.
12. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes until golden brown.

Rosemary, Butternut Squash and Ham Stew

This is one of those 'what have I got in the kitchen?' stews, made on a day when you notice the first autumn tinges of red and gold in the trees, and you need to keep turning the heating on and off!





Nutrition Info (per serving)
Calories: 508
Protein: 21g
Carbohydrate: 68g
Fat: 17g
Dietary Fibre: 13g

Ingredients (makes 3 servings)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon chopped dried rosemary
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp garlic puree
1 butternut squash
1x 400g tin red kidney beans
1 x 400g tin chick peas
180g chopped cooked ham hock
2 dsp mirin
2 dsp reduced salt soy sauce

Method

• Peel the butternut squash and place whole in a microwavable dish.  Microwave for 5 minutes, cut in half, and microwave each half for a further 5 minutes.  Scoop out the seeds, and chop the squash into bite-sized pieces.
• In a large saucepan, add the oils and onion, fry over a medium-high heat until golden brown, add the garlic puree and rosemary, stir and take off the heat. Turn the heat down to medium.
• Quickly add water to about a cm depth and stir to stop the onion mixture sticking.  Add the kidney beans, chick peas, squash and ham hock and spoon over the mirin and soy sauce. Stir well.
• Put the lid on the saucepan, and continue to cook over a medium heat for another 20 minutes without stirring.  Take the lid off, stir well, and continue to cook for another 5-10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated, and the whole flat smells of rosemary.
• Serve immediately whilst your mouth is still watering.

Turkey, Ham, Mushrooms and Asparagus in a Creamy Sauce

This has become my favourite recipe of the week.  It's not my own, it's been adapted and simplified from this recipe http://www.lekue.es/en/Chicken-Roll.  This LeKue steamer is one of my top kitchen gadgets - it's right up there with the kettle, the rice cooker and the microwave.  Of course, you don't have to use the steamer, you could use a covered microwaveable bowl instead.

Ingredients (serves 1)
100g mixed frozen mushrooms
100g chopped asparagus
1 shallot (small sweet onion), chopped (about 40g)
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp soy sauce
85g turkey escalope, cut into bite-sized pieces
50g cooked ham, cut into bite-sized pieces
25g dairylea or other processed soft cheese

Nutrition Info (assuming you use a spoon to eat up the sauce...)
Calories: 330
Protein: 38g
Carbohydrate: 13g
Fat: 14g
Dietary Fibre: 4g

Method

• Put the mushrooms, shallot, and asparagus in the case and sprinkle olive oil and soy sauce on top.
• Add the raw turkey and the cooked ham and finally the dairylea cheese.
• Close the case, and microwave for 6 and a half minutes until the turkey is cooked.
• Serve immediately.

Pea, Potato and Ham Soup

Nutritional Info (per serving)
Calories 224
Protein 10g
Carbohydrate 43g
Fat 3g
Fibre 8g




Ingredients (serves 2)
300g potatoes
150g frozen peas
80g onion, roughly sliced
100ml soy milk
20g parma ham, chopped
salt

Method

• Steam the potatoes whole in their skins in the microwave for about 10 minutes. (I use the LeKue steam case.
• About 5 minutes into cooking time, add the sliced onion and frozen peas and finish steaming.
• Puree in batches in the blender.  Put into a saucepan and heat gently.  Add salt to taste.
• Pour into two bowls, and divide the ham over the two bowls.

Chicken, Bacon and Boursin Rolls in White Wine

This is absolutely delicious!  It's not an original recipe, and there do seem to be many variations on the internet.  It looks impressive, but is very easy!

Ingredients
2 small chicken fillets
2 slices of bacon
40g Boursin (soft garlic cheese)
80ml white wine
freshly ground black pepper

Method

• Preheat the oven to 190C.
• Put the chicken fillets flat in a plastic bag and flatten them as much as possible with a rolling pin or heavy tin.
•  In the middle of each fillet, put 20g of Boursin and roll the chicken up.
• Roll a slice of bacon around in the other direction to cover the cheese, and keeping the ends underneath the chicken roll.
• Put both rolls in an ovenproof dish (I use the Lekue steamer), and pour over 80ml white wine.
• Cover and bake in the oven for 15 minutes, and then uncover and continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes until the bacon is browned.
• Serve with new potatoes and a selection of vegetables.

Chilli Gammon and Potato Stew

This was inspired by The Flavour Thesaurus and its description of a Korean soup called Gamjatang.  I googled Gamjatang and found that it was a spicy soup made from pork bones, potatoes and other vegetables and spices.

Not having half the herbs and spices, and not even wanting to cook with pork bones, I came up with this adaptation.  It was delicious, and hopefully the fermenting kimchi will have the usual effect of helping my cold!  All of the ingredients are according to taste...

Ingredients (serves 1)
1-2 potatoes
roughly chopped gammon
Stock cube
a bit of garlic puree
a bit more ginger puree
a tablespoon of kimchi
1/4 chopped white cabbage



Method

• Halve the potatoes and boil them in water with a stock cube until almost tender.
• Add the garlic and ginger puree, the chopped gammon, the cabbage and the kimchi, and simmer with the lid on for about 5 minutes until the gammon is hot and the cabbage is cooked.
• Serve immediately, steaming hot.

Gammon and Chilli Bean Vegetable Casserole

Nutrition Information (per serving)
Calories 147
Protein 11g
Carbohydrate 17.5g
Fat 3.5g
Dietary Fibre 5g





Ingredients (serves 5)
200g gammon, cooked and roughly chopped
1/2 onion (about 100g), chopped
425g (1 tin) Mexican Style Chilli Beans
1/2 white cabbage (about 280g)
1/3 kabocha (Japanese pumpkin, about 160g)
160g packet spinach, roughly torn

Method

• Put the chopped onion in a saucepan.  Soften in a little water over a low heat for about 3-4 minutes, until all the water has evaporated, and the onion is browned.
• Steam the kabocha in the microwave for 8 minutes.  Chop roughly, including the skin.
• Add the chopped cabbage, kabocha, gammon and spinach to the saucepan.
• Add the tin of beans, then fill the can with water to rinse it out, pouring the water into the saucepan.
• Cover and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, and everything is hot.
• Serve immediately.

New Potato, Asparagus and Bacon Hot Salad

Ingredients
4 new potatoes
4 pieces asparagus
4 pieces of lean bacon or proscuitto ham
1 thick triangle processed cheese (I used processed mozzarella)
Black pepper

Method

• Wash the potatoes, but don't peel. Cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Wash and cut the asparagus diagonally into bite-sized pieces.
• Cut the bacon or ham into small pieces.
• Put the potato pieces into the LeKue steam case and into a 500w microwave oven for 2 minutes.
• Add the asparagus and bacon and continue cooking in the microwave for 1.5 to 2 minutes.
• Add the processed cheese and microwave for one more minute.
• Stir and add freshly ground black pepper to serve.
  

Toshikoshi Soba

In Japan, on New Year's Eve, it is traditional to eat soba (buckwheat noodles). This link explains some of the traditional beliefs about toshikoshi soba http://www.jpn-miyabi.com/Vol.12/toshikoshi-e.html.

I didn't eat soba on New Year's Eve, but I did have it for dinner tonight! This isn't a traditional soba recipe - this is just what I wanted to add to my soba... Again apologies for the photo, the colours really aren't coming out in artificial light.


Nutrition Data
Calories: 458
Protein: 34g
Carbohydrate: 55g
Fat: 13g
Dietary Fibre: 5g

Ingredients (serves 1)
60g dried soba (buckwheat noodles)
400ml of dashi (stock)
1 heaped teaspoon of red miso
200g firm tofu
50g cooked thick slice of gammon, chopped
1 teaspoon dried wakame seaweed

Method

• Heat the stock until boiling, turn down the heat to simmer and add the soba noodles. Cook for 5 minutes until al dente.
• Meanwhile, cube the tofu and add to the pan along with the wakame and chopped gammon. Stir in the miso and serve.
  

Flower Snacking Plate

I really need to improve the lighting for taking photos in this new house - they're coming out really insipid-looking...

This came from an idea I saw in a magazine whilst I was away.

Cut the crusts off 5 or 6 pieces of bread and roll each piece thinly with a rolling pin.

Arrange 4 or 5 pieces around the edge of a round metal tin and press the final piece into the bottom. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 15 to 20 minutes until the bread is crisp and browned at the edges. Leave in the tin for a couple of minutes and then put on a wire rack to cool.

Put the bread 'flower' on a plate and fill with ham/cheese rosettes, cooked vegetables, fruit and boiled eggs etc.

Balsamic Figs, Ham and Blue Cheese

I had this same snack minus the balsamic vinegar last night, when I got home from work. It definitely needs a sprinkling of balsamic vinegar and lemon zest to bring out the flavour of the figs, which otherwise get dwarfed by the flavour of the raw ham and blue cheese.


Nutrition Data
Calories 130
Protein 5g
Fat 4.5g
Carbohydrate 21g
Dietary Fibre 2g

Ingredients (serves 1)
2 fresh figs
15g cured ham (eg parma ham)
10g soft creamy blue cheese (I used Arla Danablu, but a mild dolcelatte would be good)
1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
a little lemon zest (optional)

Method

• Quarter the figs and put on a plate. Roughly tear over the raw ham, and crumble over the blue cheese.
• Sprinkle with the balsamic vinegar and lemon zest.
• Serve immediately.
  

Cabbage, Carrot and Ham Stirfry

This was very tasty! I made it for supper when I got back from work last night. Knowing I was going to be tired, I cut up the carrots and garlic in the morning and kept them in the fridge, I never want to mess around with fiddly preparation at the end of a working day - the meal has to be ready quickly!



Nutrition Data
230 calories
Protein 1g
Carbohydrate 16.5g
Fat 13g
Dietary Fibre 5.5g




Ingredients (serves 1)
1/4 cabbage (about 250g), shredded
1 medium carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 clove garlic, sliced thinly
8 slices (about 30g) of dry cured ham (nama ham in Japan), not separated and torn into small, thick pieces
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
about 2 teaspoons olive oil
pepper

Method

• Put a teaspoon of olive oil in a saucepan and fry the ham and sesame seeds for a couple of minutes. You could use bacon (and less oil), but I rather like the taste of the cured ham, even when cooked. Plus it was what I had in my fridge!
• Add the carrot, garlic and cabbage and the rest of the olive oil, and fry for about five minutes until the carrot is just tender and the vegetables are turning golden brown.
• Serve immediately with a good grating of mixed pepper.
  

Fig, Melon, Mozzarella and Parma Ham Salad

Ingredients
3 slices melon
1 fig, cut into 1/3s
mozarella slices
3 slices raw ham
a little maple syrup and lemon juice


Method
Arrange all the ingredients on a plate and sprinkle with a little maple syrup and lemon juice.

Rolled Ham and Vegetables

This recipe has been adapted from one in my housing company's monthly magazine. This is a popular bar snack in Japan. It's delicious hot, but I'm going to have it cold at work tomorrow sometime, together with some rolled omelette and edamame! Minus the beer of course...





Ingredients
3 slices parma ham or other raw ham
3 long green beans, cut in half and then finely sliced lengthways
same length of carrot, julienned
30g enoki mushrooms, the ones that look like pins
1 teaspoon of sesame oil for frying
For the dip (optional)
1 tablespoon each of soy sauce and mirin (recipe also uses same quantity of sake, but I didn't have any)

Method

• Prepare the vegetables.
• In a small frying pan heat the oil over a low heat.
• Roll the vegetable strips in the ham.
• Put in the oil seam-side down and fry until golden brown, turn and repeat twice or three times more - about 6 minutes.
• Serve hot with the dipping sauce.
  

Melon, Proscuitto Ham and Blue Cheese Salad

This is just to make me remember that the combination is basically good, but these are the ingredients I would use in future...
Ingredients
Thick slices of melon
Slices of proscuitto ham
Dolcelatte soft blue cheese
1 teaspoon each of olive oil and lemon juice


Method

• Arrange 3 wedges of melon on a plate and the ham on top.
  
• Scatter crumbled blue cheese over the top.
• Combine the olive oil and lemon juice, and drizzle over the salad.
  

Goya Champuru

My all time favourite food! This picture was one I took a couple of Christmases ago... Goya champuru is really easy to cook, and goya is a very cheap vegetable in summer. It's just beginning to come down in price to under 200 yen for a large goya now, so I'm starting to eat it more again. In the summer, it's only about 70yen.

Goya is also known as bitter gourd. It's very high in vitamin C. Usually vitamin C is destroyed when you heat it, but with this vegetable it isn't.

Unfortunately, goya/bitter gourd/nigauri is going to be hard to come by in the UK as it needs hot weather to grow, you might be able to find it in a Japanese supermarket...

This is my recipe, I don't use oil or fatty ham in my version... I also use a lot of goya, and it's very filling! It takes about 5 minutes to cook!


Ingredients (serves 1)
1 goya
200g pack firm or extra firm tofu, drained
1-2 teaspoons of soy sauce
60g of parma type ham, or smoked salmon
1 egg

Method

1. Halve the goya lengthways and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon. Slice into 1/2cm semi-circles. Put in a saucepan
   
2. Wrap the tofu in about 3 sheets of kitchen paper and microwave on high for about 2 minutes to drain. Cut into 12 cubes and add to the saucepan.
3. Pour the soy sace over the tofu and turn the heat to high. Add the ham or smoked salmon and stir fry until the liquid has just about evaporated.
4. Crack in the egg and stir everything thoroughly until the egg has set.
5. Best served immediately, although I often cool it and then take it to work for lunch.

Note: Apparently if you put the cut goya in a colander and sprinkle with salt and leave it for 15 minutes before washing, this removes some of the bitterness. I skip this step! In Okinawa and Hawaii, they often use Spam and oil to cook it, which also counters the bitterness. I love the taste of goya and often eat it raw during the summer.

Bacon, Avocado and Stilton Kedgeree

Ingredients
· 8 rashers smoked back bacon, derinded
· 110g stilton
· 2 ripe avocados
· 570 ml stock
· 225g long grain rice
· 1 bunch spring onions
· handful of fresh chives
· 4 hardboiled eggs
· 50g butter
· 4 tbsp single cream or sour cream
· pepper

Method

1. Heat the stock, then add the rice, bring to the boil and then stir, cover and simmer for 15 minutes until the rice is tender and the stock has been absorbed. (This can be done in advance, eg the previous night, but mix with a tablespoon of olive oil to stop the rice sticking together.)

2. Halve, stone and peel the avocados. Reserve 4 slices for the garnish and dice the rest. Grill 4 rashers of bacon until crisp, then chop finely. Finely chop the spring onions, cut the chives with scissors and crumble the stilton. Chop the hardboiled eggs.

3. Put the remaining bacon under the grill. Heat the butter in a large frying pan over a moderate heat. Add the chopped bacon, avocado and spring onions to the pan and cook for about 1 minute. Turn the heat down slightly.

4. Add the rice, eggs, stilton, cream and most of the chives (reserve about 1 tablespoon for the garnish). Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir gently until piping hot.

5. Garnish with grilled bacon and slices of avocado. Sprinkle chives on top and serve immediately.

Note: I use brown rice and cook it in the rice cooker. I also fry parma ham instead of bacon in a little olive oil with the avocado and spring onions. The picture shows this version, served on a bed of spinach.

Okonomiyaki

Credit: http://japanesefood.about.com/od/holidaytraditionalfood/r/okonomiyaki.htm with amendments!

Serves 4-6

Okonomiyaki is said to be Japanese-style pizza. This recipe makes Osaka-style okonomiyaki. There are lots of toppings. Okonomi means according to your taste, yaki means grilled. The only essential ingredients are the flour, stock, eggs, cabbage and spring onion. Any other ingredients can be added, according to your taste. I like to cook proscuitto ham and kimchi (pepperdew peppers from Sainsbury's work well instead of kimchi!)

Ingredients:

• 2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cup dashi soup stock, water, or any other stock
  
• 4-6 eggs
• 1 - 1 1/4 lb cabbage
• 6 tbsps chopped spring onion
• 2/3 cup bonito flakes, if liked
  
• 12 - 18 strips of thinly sliced pork or beef
• For toppings:
• Ao-nori (ground or fine strips of green seaweed)
• Okonomiyaki sauce, tonkatsu sauce, or fruity brown sauce
  
• Mayonnaise

Preparation:

Pour the stock or water in a bowl. Mix the flour in the stock. Rest the batter for an hour in the refrigerator. Chop cabbage fairly finely. Take about 1/2 cup of the batter (to make one sheet of okonimiyaki) in another bowl. Mix chopped cabbage (about 1/4 lb) and chopped green onion (about 1 tbsp) in the batter. Make a hole in the middle of the batter and add an egg in the hole. Stir the batter. Add meat and kimchi or your choice of toppings in the batter. (Some people like to add meat and seafood). Heat a large frying pan and oil slightly. Pour the batter mixture over the pan and make a round. Cook 5-7 minutes , flip the okonomiyaki and cook for 5-7 more minutes. Flip the okonomiyaki again, spread okonomiyaki sauce on top and drizzle with mayonnaise in a criss-cross pattern. Sprinkle seaweed over the sauce. Sprinkle katsuobushi (bonito flakes) and beni-shoga (red ginger) if you like. Makes 4-6 sheets.