MiamMiam Cookery: Radio Recipes - 3rd December, 2018

As promised here are the recipes and the bits and pieces mentioned during my chat with Bernie Keith, on his Radio Show, The Bernie Keith Show, BBC Radio Northampton on Monday 3^rd December, 2018 at 10.10am

Here's what I mean by resourceful and creative – a canapé that can turn into a lunch or a supper.

Spiced Salmon Frittata

For the spiced salmon marinade :

Marinade

2 x 4oz Salmon fillets

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp powdered star anise or one star anise

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

Mix together the marinade, pour over the salmon fillets, turning to coat thoroughly, cover and leave in fridge for an hour or so – preferably in a foil tray – much easier to transfer straight to the oven later.

Pre-heat your oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6. If you've used a foil tray to marinade the salmon then wrap it in foil and bake it for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool. When the salmon has cooled flake it into small pieces, ready to add to the frittata.

For the frittata :

5 spring onions, finely chopped

tiny drop of rapeseed oil

100g/4oz mature cheddar cheese, grated

4 large eggs

salt and black pepper

Whisk four eggs in a large mixing bowl, add the cheese and whisk again. Add a touch of salt and plenty of black pepper.

Using a non-stick frying pan – as a guide 28cms/11” in diameter. Heat a tiny drop of rapeseed oil and add the spring onions. Sauté until softened, sprinkle in your salmon pieces including any residual marinade, then pour in the egg and cheese mixture. Cook on your hob for 2/3 minutes to set the bottom. Transfer the pan to the grill - cook for 2/3 minutes REMOVE USING OVEN GLOVES – SEE WARNING!

Words of Warning!

Pre-heat your grill – BEFORE YOU TURN IT ON ENSURE THAT THE FRYING PAN YOU'RE USING WILL SLIDE EASILY INTO THE SPACE LEAVING AT LEAST TWO INCHES GAP BETWEEN THE PAN AND THE GRILL ITSELF, OTHERWISE YOU'LL BURN THE TOP AND THE MIDDLE WON'T BE COOKED.

Using a fish slice gently flatten down the frittata so that you break the top – you may find that the

mixture is still not quite cooked. Place back under the grill for another 2/3

minutes and check – it should be golden brown but if your preference is for a darker colour

carry on to your desired taste.

For a canapé I used a straight sided cutter measuring 6cms/2½” in diameter and you should get 12-14 canapés depending on how careful you are cutting out.

Minimum effort – maximum taste. Can definitely be made ahead as a canapé. A frittata is excellent served cold in whatever guise!

Don't forget to salmon fillets to your freezer shopping list. There are good deals out there – usually individually packaged – in bags of six. You can pull out whatever you need. The bonus is that they don't take up too much space in the freezer.

What to serve with the canapé, the lunch or the supper? Easy – beetroot – salmon and beetroot is a marriage made in heaven.

Bazzin' beetroot relish

300g vac pack of organic cooked beetroot

drained and cut into small cubes

1 sharp eating apple, peeled, cored and cut

into small cubes

1 medium onion, finely chopped

75g soft dark brown sugar

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and black pepper

Don't forget to use gloves when prepping your beetroot!

Mix well and place all the ingredients in a medium saucepan – 16cms in diameter. Simmer on a low heat, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until all the liquid has been absorbed.

Take the pan off the heat and allow to cool. Box up and fridge until ready to use.

This relish is “your flexible culinary friend”, to coin a phrase – a topping for a canapé, as a cold side for a lunch or warmed to serve with a supper.

Frittata fotos

Stating the obvious, the onions and the spiced salmon :

Ditto for the relish :

Here's the canapé – serve cold and add relish just before serving

Finally here's the supper with the frittata sat on sautéed veggies and topped with the bazzin' beetroot relish.

So easy … so tasty.

Resourceful and creative desserts

I promised the same treatment with a pud.

I hate trifle! For me it's up there with sago and semolina – horrid! I appreciate that trifle has “grown up” since the 1950s – back then it was tinned fruit immersed in jelly from a box, the inevitable Birds Custard topped off with synthetic cream – and decorated with hundreds and thousands – sprinkles I think they are called these days.

If you're like me then this could be the answer :

Sticky Toffee Orange

Make a cake – a cake that will freeze well – a sticky toffee loaf cake

Use as a cake or slice (1.5cm) and cut into small cubes –

place in a sundae dish – warm the cake if you wish

Make a toffee sauce – one that will freeze

Use the sauce warmed to drizzle over the cake or over ice cream

Chop walnuts, add a knob of butter to a frying

pan, sprinkle with sea salt flakes

Use to sprinkle over the cake and toffee sauce or

add to the sauce poured over ice cream

Segment a large navel orange and reserve the juice too

Stand by for the recipes and the photos!

Sticky Toffee Orange - the recipes :

The cake

200g pitted dates, roughly chopped

1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda

200ml boiling water

80g unsalted butter, softened

150g soft brown sugar

2 large eggs

180g self-raising flour

Pre-heat your oven 160fan/180c/Gas 4. You'll need a loaf tin – 24x10cms/9½x5¼” approximately - you can grease the tin or use a loaf liner – much more convenient!

Place the chopped dates in a mixing bowl, sprinkle over the bicarb and then the boiling water. Leave to stand for 10 minutes then blitz in a food processor to a rough purée.

Using a hand mixer or elbow grease if you prefer, cream the butter and sugar until thick and smooth. Add the eggs one at a time and then follow gradually with the flour, finally add the date mixture. Pour into the loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes or until firm. Allow to cool.

Toffee Sauce

100g soft brown sugar

200ml double cream

½ tsp vanilla bean paste

40g unsalted butter

Mix the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring over a medium heat until thickened – 2 minutes.

Both the cake and the sauce can be frozen.

The Walnuts

100g walnuts, chopped roughly

pinch of sea salt flakes

knob of unsalted butter

Melt the butter in a medium frying pan until it foams. Tip in the walnuts and add the sea salt flakes. Stir them for 3-4 minutes until toasted. Tip the nuts into a bowl and leave to cool.

Orange segments and photos next!

How to segment an orange

I really do need to get out more!

In my defence I love oranges – what I don't love is the pith and tough outer membrane around each segment.

There is only one way I can describe this method and that is by photo :

You'll need a serrated knife – I use a bread knife. Top and tail your orange and then follow the shape of the orange with the knife and peel away a section at a time. Take your time – you should finish up with this :

Hold the orange in your left hand and using the serrated knife – very carefully – cut along the inside of the white membrane of the segment - I start on the left hand side – you can see the white in the photo - repeat on the right hand side. Repeat until you finish with perfect segments and the discarded membranes, like this :