My greengrocer sells aubergines of assorted sizes in precarious piles, every one as shiny as moist paint. Eradicating the one you need is like taking part in vegetable Jenga.
I like my aubergines baked till on the verge of being overcooked. So silky, so plump, so melting, they’re virtually extra olive oil than aubergine. And let’s face it, with out olive oil there's little or no level to this vegetable (fruit to the pedantic). Baked or grilled, I cook dinner them with their skins on – and eat them too. I solely sometimes take the peeler to them, however they give the impression of being elegant with out their skins, scattered with lemon zest and parsley or in a pool of their very own bronze baking juices.
You possibly can brown them in oil, then braise them with ginger, garlic, cumin and turmeric, including slightly water or vegetable inventory and basting them with their very own skinny, fragrant juices. Sweetened with honey and sultanas, they're good eaten with yoghurt. Thicken it with shredded cucumber and chopped pistachios, if you want. This fashion of cooking them, with spices, water and lined with a lid, encourages a silky texture with out emptying your olive oil bottle.
I additionally acquired out the cake tins this week. I may have used particular person bun tins or paper cake instances, however as an alternative selected particular person bundt tins. These are the one fancy cake tins I've, however I like them for his or her swirling strains, deep ridges and hollows that maintain frosty swimming pools of citrus-scented icing. I lined them with skinny, virtually clear icing sharpened with lemon juice lending simply the correct amount of sweetness to a plain, moist cake.
Gradual-cooked aubergine with yoghurt and cucumber
Begin the recipe with 100ml of oil, including an extra quantity, as much as 50ml, if the aubergines grow to be dry.
Serves 4 as major dish with rice
aubergines 750g (3, medium to small)
olive oil 100-150ml, plus slightly extra
ginger 50g, recent
garlic 2 cloves
salt flakes ½ tsp
black peppercorns ½ tsp, floor
floor turmeric 1 tsp
floor cinnamon 1 tsp
To complete:
honey 2 tbsp
golden sultanas 50g
mint leaves 2 tbsp
dried rose petals 2 tsp
For the yoghurt sauce:
yoghurt 100g
cucumber 200g
mint leaves 6, plus 2 tbsp to garnish
pink chilli 1
pistachios 2 tbsp
Peel the aubergines and slice them in half, prime to backside. Minimize every half into 3 thick items.
Heat 100ml of olive oil in a large, shallow pan over a reasonable warmth. I exploit one with a 24cm base. Place as many aubergine items, cut-side down, as you'll be able to comfortably match within the pan and allow them to cook dinner till golden on the underside, about 4-5 minutes. Conserving the warmth pretty excessive, flip each bit with kitchen tongs and depart to color the opposite aspect. Loosen them with a palette knife as they cook dinner, in order that they don’t stick. You could must prime up the oil on occasion. Aubergines are heavy drinkers. Take away them as they grow to be prepared and exchange with the remainder of the aubergines.
Peel the ginger, slice thinly, then lower into matchstick-size items. Peel and crush the garlic. When all of the aubergines are golden and faraway from the pan, decrease the warmth slightly, add the ginger and garlic adopted by the salt, pepper, turmeric and cinnamon. Let the spices sizzle for a minute or so, stirring repeatedly – they mustn’t burn – then pour in 600ml of water, flip up the warmth and produce to the boil.
Return the aubergines to the pan, decrease the warmth to a simmer, partially cowl with a lid – you simply need a crack for the steam to flee – and cook dinner till really silky and tender. Test and switch them on occasion, however they need to take about 25-Half-hour. They need to be so gentle you would crush them between finger and thumb. Keep watch over the liquid degree.
For the sauce, put the yoghurt right into a bowl, peel and lower the cucumber in half lengthways, scrape out and discard the seeds, then coarsely grate the flesh and stir into the yoghurt. Shred the mint leaves, finely chop the chilli and roughly chop the pistachios and fold all into the yoghurt.
Take away the aubergines to a serving dish, then stir the honey and sultanas into the cooking juices. Flip the warmth up, let the sauce scale back slightly, then style including slightly salt, pepper or honey as you want (keep in mind you can be consuming it with the yoghurt (keep in mind you can be consuming it with the yoghurt sauce). Scatter with the mint leaves and rose petals. Serve with the yoghurt and rice.
Orange and almond bundt desserts
You will want six particular person tins, however, for those who want, use deep paper cake instances. Makes 6
butter 200g, plus slightly for the tins
caster sugar 200g
lemon 1
orange 1, small
skinned almonds 100g
self-raising flour 100g, plus some for the tins
eggs 3
For the icing:
icing sugar 85g
lemon juice 2 tbsp
poppy seeds 2 tsp
Set the oven at 180C/fuel mark 4. Put together the cake tins by melting a littleextra butter, brushing it over the within of the tins, then dusting them flippantly with flour. Flip the tins the wrong way up and shake flippantly to take away any extra flour.
Cream the butter and sugar collectively in a meals mixer till pale and fluffy. Finely grate and add the orange and lemon zest. Grind the almonds to a rough powder in a meals processor then stir within the flour. Break the eggs right into a small bowl and beat completely with a fork.
When the butter and sugar are effectively creamed, add the flour-almond combination and the crushed eggs, alternately and slightly at a time, beating repeatedly. Combine flippantly however completely then spoon into the cake tins, smoothing the floor as you go.
Bake for 20-25 minutes till the desserts have risen. Take a look at with a skewer. Take away from the oven and depart to accept 5 minutes. Prove on to a cooling rack.
For the icing, sieve the icing sugar right into a small bowl, squeeze within the lemon juice and blend to a easy icing concerning the consistency of double cream. It ought to fall from the spoon fairly slowly – too skinny and it'll slip off the desserts.
Trickle the icing over the desserts, sprinkle the poppy seeds on prime and depart in a cool place to set.
Observe Nigel on Twitter @NigelSlater
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