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This post is dedicated to a dear blogger whose every post reflects her sincerity and sweetness - Linda OutOfTheGarden(AndLatelyByTheLake). If it hadn't been for her timely rant, you wouldn't be reading this - because there wouldn't have been anything to read. Oh by the way, do read her rant - you'd be hard pressed to find a gentler, sweeter one! When I rant, I rant; when Linda rants... well, she's as likable as ever!
About this recipe, it was meant to be mild and mostly monochrome (white turnip, white pasta, white onion, white mushrooms) but I decided to greenify it a bit by adding spinach and rocket (love the stuff) and a tiny touch of red and heat by way of a fresh red chilli - and then some crunch in the form of pine nuts... and pretty soon it wasn't the original recipe any more. It was better (she said humbly).
Recipe for: Farfalline with turnip, mushrooms and greens
Ingredients:
1/2 cup farfalline or orzo pasta
1 medium turnip, peeled and sliced about 1/4 cm thick and each slice quartered
1 small onion or 2 banana shallots, chopped fine
1/3 cup chestnut mushrooms, sliced
Good handful of spinach leaves, torn
Good handful of rocket leaves
1 red chilli, minced very fine (optional)
1 fat clove garlic, sliced
1 tsp butter
2 tsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp basil and parsley, sliced
1 tbsp toasted pine nuts, for garnish
Method:
1. Cook the orzo/farfalline according to directions in plenty of boiling salted water. Drain, toss with a little olive oil and set aside.
2. Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan and add the garlic, chillies and shallots and stir. Cook over medium heat until the shallots are soft and light brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
3. In the same pan, heat the remaining oil and butter, add the sliced turnip and mushrooms. Fry until they're golden brown, about 7-8 minutes.
4. Add the cooked shallots to the pan and mix them in. Toss in the spinach and rocket, then stir in the cooked pasta. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the basil and parsley, scatter over the pine nuts, and serve hot or at room temperature.
So here I am with the first offering (luckily not burnt) of the year - roasted brussels sprouts, which I simply adore. The recipe is simpler than simple and I've been eating this for four days straight - although not JUST this, of course, otherwise I'd be my own jet-pack being propelled around by - er, you know, natural gas. (Not petroleum - respect for the earth's resources and all that).
I love the flavour of balsamic vinegar and it goes beautifully well with the sprouts. It doesn't hurt the mushrooms either, although you don't HAVE to use mushrooms at all if you don't want to.
Do try this, if you're a brussels sprouts fan like me.
Recipe for: Balsamic roasted brussels sprouts and mushrooms
Ingredients:
12-15 medium sized brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced vertically in half
10 baby chestnut mushrooms, wiped clean
1-2 tbsp good quality balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp olive oil or 2-3 sprays of Pam
1/2 tsp dried thyme or a few sprigs of fresh (I used lemon thyme)
Salt and freshly-milled pepper to taste
Method:
Toss all the ingredients together well, and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 200C (about 390F), until the sprouts are caramelised and cooked. Check on them after 20 minutes, and do not let them get mushy. Serve warm as a side dish. I like it as a snack too.
BALSAMIC ROASTED BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND MUSHROOMS
Ingredients:
12-15 medium sized brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced vertically in half
10 baby chestnut mushrooms, wiped clean
1 tbsp good quality balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp olive oil or 2-3 sprays of Pam
1/2 tsp dried thyme or a few sprigs of fresh (I used lemon thyme)
Salt and freshly-milled pepper to taste
Method:
Toss all the ingredients together well, and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 200C (about 390F), until the sprouts are caramelised and cooked. Check on them after 20 minutes, and do not let them get mushy. Serve warm as a side dish. I like it as a snack too.
