Pasta e ceci

So I recently read about this dish, pasta e ceci, here, and it was mouthwatering enough to get me to try and make it at home. Some Googling resulted in a few recipes, here and here, which I used to cobble together a version of the dish using what I had around the house. Served it up for dinner to three hungry men and they wolfed it down, so I would consider that a success.

Pasta e ceci
Serves four hungry people

Ingredients

500g dried chickpeas
2 carrots
1 stalk of celery
4 small tomatoes, skinned,de-seeded then chopped
1 litre of cooking water (or use plain water/mild stock)
250g of small pasta shapes (ditalini, short cut macaroni, etc)
4 small onions, finely chopped
2 sprigs of rosemary
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp chilli flakes
olive oil
Salt and pepper to season

Method

1. Put dried chickpeas, carrot, celery, and one sprig of rosemary into large pot. Cover with water by at least 2 inches. Simmer for 2-3 hours (check for doneness - the chickpeas should be tender but not mushy). When done, drain and reserve at least 1 liter of the cooking water, and discard the carrot, celery and rosemary.

2. Pour the olive oil into a heavy based saucepan and heat gently. Finely chop the other rosemary sprig and add it to the pan and fry over a gentle heat till it begins to release its aroma.

3. Add the onions and garlic to the pan and fry over a gentle heat till soft and golden.

4. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for just a couple of minutes before adding the cooked chickpeas, water and the seasonings. Simmer for approx 20mins, then remove about half of the soup and process through a food mill (use a blender if you don\'t have a food mill). Return the pureed soup to the pan.

5. Add the raw pasta then simmer gently, stirring regularly to make sure the pasta doesn't start sticking to the base of the pan. Add a little more water/stock if necessary.

6. Once the pasta is done, let it rest for a few minutes before serving.

7. Serve with a little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil (I didn't bother, but served some crusty bread and rocket on the side which paired nicely).

Carrot and Feta Cake

Couldn't resist this recipe from good old Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Savoury cakes are fantastic - they feel a little bit indulgent but it's ok to eat them for dinner!

Carrot and feta cake

Adapted from The Guardian

Ingredients

 

50g butter, plus a little extra for greasing the tin
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
100g plain flour
100g cornmeal
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 carrots (about 200g), peeled and grated
200g feta, crumbled (recipe calls for 180g but my packet of feta was 200g)
2 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped (original recipe calls for dill but I had thyme in the garden)
3 eggs, lightly beaten
150ml skim milk

Method

 

Warm the butter in a small frying pan over a medium-low heat and sauté the onion until soft and translucent. Add the cumin, stir for a minute, then set aside to cool.

Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Butter a 1.5-litre loaf tin, or a loose-bottomed Victoria sandwich tin, and line with baking parchment. Butter the parchment, too (you can also make smaller ones in muffin tins or mini loaf tins, in which case simply butter the smaller moulds and dust with flour).

Sift together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and pepper. Stir in the cooled cooked onion, grated carrot, feta and thyme. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk, then mix into the flour mixture until just combined, and pour into the prepared tin (or tins).

Bake large cakes for 40 minutes, smaller ones for 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick or skewer comes out with no crumbs attached. Leave to cool in the tin for five minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with a nice salad on the side to make for a light meal.

The Riding House Cafe

43-51 Great Titchfield Street
London
W1W 7PQ

After hearing several raves about the Riding House Cafe, reservations were made to take advantage of their soft opening 50% off special. The cocktail list was so fun that I had to start with a Pony Club which was a nice way to ease into the evening. A chopped salad with avocado and palm hearts was ordered to share, and while it was certainly good, I think I might agree with A that it can be a bit disappointing to order something that would be easily replicated at home. Mains were much more successful - the chorizo hash browns were a nice breakfast-for-dinner dish, and the rack of pork was juicy and perfectly cooked. Usually we would skip dessert but the table next to us ordered the hot fudge sundae, complete with macaroons and honey comb, and it looked irresistable. Perfect for sharing, it would have been too sweet for just one person to consume. With the soft opening discount, dinner was very reasonable - too bad it's already over...

Benito's Hat - Wedding Special!

Benito's Hat is one of my favorites for burritos in London - I used to visit the Goodge Street location but now there's one in Covent Garden, quite close to where I work (hmm... dangerous). I was invited to try their chicken mole that they're doing as a wedding special until May 8th, so A and I headed over for lunch to check it out. We both had it in burrito form - Ben, the owner, recommended it with black beans and without salsa so that you don't lose the flavor of the mole sauce. The chicken was unbelievably tender and the spice and chocolate notes in the mole sauce were fantastic. It's nice to know that there are places willing to source authentic Mexican ingredients to make these dishes. The horchata (a rice based drink) and hibiscus flower drinks were refreshing - I have a soft spot for horchata and now I know another place to get it! Since it was my birthday, I also splurged on a dessert - the buñuelos which are crispy tortilla strips covered in cinnamon sugar, with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream. If you're at all interested in trying out mole, head over soon - it's terrifically difficult to make so well worth ordering out.

The Bull

2 High St
Ditchling
Hassocks
BN6 8TA

After an invigorating walk on Ditchling Beacon to build up an appetite, we headed down to The Bull for Sunday lunch. The pub is adorable and picture perfect for parents - sadly the food was not nearly as stunning as the decor. I had fish and chips - the fish was very soggy on the underside and the chips were disappointingly mushy as well. Everything was a tad underseasoned. My dad's Sunday roast rib of beef was ok, but the roast potatoes were nowhere near crispy and the Yorkshire pudding was burnt. Mom fared a little better with her fried calamari. Dessert was ok but didn't redeem the entire meal - a pain au chocolat bread pudding was good enough to finish, and the deconstructed Black Forest gateau was mostly eaten. Basically, I'd come back for a drink to soak up the charm of the place, but I think I'll give the food a miss in the future.

Bali Brasserie

Kingsway Court
First Avenue
Hove
BN3 2LR

We were looking for a restaurant that A's aunt and uncle and my parents would all enjoy, and since Bali Brasserie came with many good reviews, we headed off to try some Indonesian and Malaysian food. The restaurant is in a strange location, but once you make your way through what looks like the lobby of an apartment building, you come into a karaoke bar area and then through that is a surprisingly nicely decorated restaurant in the back. There was an option for a buffet dinner, but we decided to go a la carte as no one was hungry enough to do justice to a buffet. We ordered so many dishes it is hard to remember them all, but the beef rendang, sambal udang, ikan lemak and nasi goreng stood out. I'd definitely go back here - the atmosphere was buzzy but not too loud, and the food ranged from very good to absolutely amazing. A great way to introduce everyone to each other over a fabulous meal.

El Mexicano

7 New Road
Brighton
BN1 1UF

We were looking for a quick bite to eat next to the Royal Pavilion and El Mexicano fit the bill - a cheap lunch special of 4.95 for a panini and glass of wine caught our eye, and A and I tried the grilled chicken and meatball paninis. I always thought paninis were grilled, pressed sandwiches - what emerged was actually on a baguette and was decidedly not grilled. Nor was it Mexican. But for a fiver a head, I suppose it did the trick. My dad finished his grilled chicken panini without much commentary, and my mom had nachos, which at least were generous and came with proper tortilla chips, not the travesty that is Doritos that you occasionally find in Mexican restaurants in the UK. Wouldn't necessarily come back here, but nor was it the worst thing to eat in the vicinity.