Lobster in the pantry? Dinner for three? Assuming you have some booze left from the quarantine and some vegetables I recommend you take another step into uncertainty with this freestyle lobster soup. The recipe came to me by way of a seven line Whatsapp message with absolutely no quantities. We will pass on the instructions to you as we received them. The result was marvelous!
Boil the lobster, remove the meat from the claws and the tail, put it aside and fry the rest of the lobster (yes, the shell!) in olive oil along with diced carrots, shallots, tomato and celery. Drench in Cognac and flame. Extinguish the flames with Pernod (or if you don’t have with Pastis). Add white wine and seafood stock, letting it boil for a while to absorb all flavours. Strain through a musselin cloth and add Sherry or Cognac to taste. To finish, add cream, salt, pepper and the lobster meat. Let it come to a boil one last time and that’s it!
Garnish with dill, serve with the rest of the white wine and enjoy! Works well with bread, if you haven’t traded it for toilet roll already.
A hearty dose of herbal remedies that you can conjure with ingredients found on your walks or even in your garden. They are easy enough to recognize but for beginners I recommend buying a book highlighting the similar but toxic friends.
Chickweed (Vogelmiere) Stellaria Media
Chickweed
Edible parts: leaves, stems, buds and blossoms
Contents: calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, B-vitamins, phosphorus, zinc, copper, silicic acid, vitamins A and C, essential oils, tannins and plant-based proteins
Effects : cooling, anti-inflammatory, blood-cleansing, hemostatic, diuretic, digestive and analgesic
Use: pure in salads, dips or crostini juiced with apple blended in smoothies dried as a metabolism-enhancing tea
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Nettle (Brennnessel) Urtica Dioica
Nettle
Edible parts: leaves, seeds, buds
Contents: flavonoids, magnesium, potassium, iron, silicic acid, vitamin A, C and E, plant-based proteins In the seeds: 30% oils, especially linoleic acid and vitamin E
Effects: diuretic, blood-cleansing and detoxing, anti-inflammatory, digestive, anti-rheumatic, anti-diabetic, tonic
Use: leaves: fresh or dried for tea blanched similar to spinach, raw in salads, juices and smoothies seeds: dried or roasted as a condiment
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Dandelion (Löwenzahn) Taraxacum Officinale
Dandelion
Edible parts: leaves, stems (the milk is not toxic), blossoms and roots
Contents: bitter substances, potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamins A, C, B2 and flavonoids.
Effects: diuretic, detoxing, blood-building, anti-inflammatory, wound healing The bitter substances have a beneficial effect on the stomach, intestines, pancreas, liver, gall bladder and kidneys.
Use: juiced or blended in a smoothie in salads and dips dried (leaves and roots) for tea flowers: in salads, or fried in batter
1 cup green mung beans, soaked over night 1 tablespoon lemon juice 2 tablespoons plain yoghurt 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 2 tablespoons coriander, chopped 2 cups spinach, chopped 1 teaspoon sattvic spice mix (recipe below) 1/2 teaspoon salt
Ghee or coconut oil and 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds for frying.
Drain and rinse the mung beans. Using a high-speed blender pulse to purée the beans, lemon juice and yoghurt. Transfer the mung bean mixture to a bowl. Combine all other ingredients with the ground mung beans. the mixture should be the consistency of a thick pancake batter. If it’s too thick you may add some water.
In a frying pan warm some ghee or coconut oil on medium heat. Sauté the mustard seeds until they pop. Pour the mung bean mixture over the ghee and spread evenly. Cover and cook over medium heat until the sides begin to brown, 3-6 minutes. Flip the frittata by using a plate (transfer to the plate, let it glide back into the pan) or two large spoons or spatulas. Cover and cook 10 minutes more until golden brown.
Transfer to a serving platter and cut into bite-size pieces. Serve with yoghurt or a fresh salad.
sattvic spice mix
This mix is especially nice in dals and soups. In Ayurveda SATTVA feels like : content, restful, peaceful, steady, satisfied, fulfilled.
Roast the coriander, cumin and fennel seeds in a frying pan over medium heat. Stir constantly until you can smell them. Cool and then grind these spices together with the salt, ginger, turmeric and asafoetida to a uniform powder.
1/2 cup basmati rice 1/2 cup yellow split mung beans, soaked overnight or at least a few hours 4 cups water 2 teaspoons sweet spice mix (recipe below) 2 apples, cored and chopped 4 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Rinse the rice and mung beans well. In a saucepan bring the water, rice and mung beans to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer, uncovered for 15-20 minutes. Add the spice mix, apples and dates. Cover and simmer 15-20 minutes more, adding more water if needed. The consistency should be of thick oatmeal. Turn off the heat and stir in the salt and coconut oil. Let stand for 5 minutes before eating. You can store the kichari in the fridge for 4 days at least.
Top with some fresh chopped apple and date.
Spin offs: Dates can be replaced by raisins. Apples can be replaced by pears.
sweet spice mix
This mixture aids in the digestion of sweet foods. Use this mix in hot cereal, spiced milks, baked goods, and anywhere you want a warm touch.
Mix sugar, butter and egg yolks until creamy. With your hands fold in the flour to create a firm dough. Put the finished dough into the fridge to cool and to harden.
Roll out the dough onto a floured surface and cut out the forms.
Buddha’s Hand, aka fingered citron, has a sweet lemon blossom aroma, no juice, no pulp and no seeds. It looks bizarre, smells heavenly and in Asia it symbolizes happiness, wealth and longevity.
Here’s some examples what to do with this crazy lemon:
cut off a “finger” and slice it thinly over a piece of grilled white fish
add some grated peel to your vinaigrette
add a slice of peel to your vodka or gin cocktail
Finally I decided to use up the whole fruit by making a “good luck” marmelade.
Buddha’s Hand marmelade
1 Buddha’s Hand citron water, 3 x the weight of the citron 1 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 package of “2:1 preserving sugar” from the whole food store (usually they have raw cane sugar with apple pectine)
Rinse and dry the citron, then slice and cut it thinly. In a pan bring to a boil the citron and the water. Simmer until the fruit turns slightly glassy. Add the freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Add “2:1 preserving sugar” in the correct ratio and cook following the instructions on the package. Fill in glass jars while hot.
4 eggs at room temperature 200g sugar 180g butter, melted 100ml extra-virgin olive oil 150ml milk 400g flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder a generous pinch of sea salt the grated zest of a an organic orange the grated zest of an organic lemon 300-600g sweet little grapes (or blueberries)
Preheat oven to 175°C. Butter the bottom and the sides of a 25 cm baking dish. In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and the sugar until creamy. Add the butter, the oil and the milk. Add the grated citrus zest. Finally whisk in the flour, the baking powder and the salt. Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
With a wooden spoon or with a spatula mix in 200g of the grapes, then pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and spread the remaining grapes onto the batter. They will slightly sink in. Bake for another 30 minutes until golden brown.
Enjoy with a good glass of Pinotage Bon Courage Estate 2014.
1 generous tablespoon oatmeal 1 cup of milk ( any nut or rice milk is fine) a pinch of salt 1 generous piece of fresh ginger, grated 1 -2 teaspoons almond butter
500g wild mirabelles (or any stone fruit), stoned
150g butter at room temperature
3 tablespoons muscovado sugar
sea salt
100g sugar
2 eggs
120ml milk
2 teaspoons baking powder
200g flour
vanilla ice cream, whipped cream or crème fraîche for serving
Preheat oven to 180°C.
In a large bowl, use your hands to combine 3 tablespoons of the butter, the muscovado sugar and the pinch of salt. Spread the mixture on the bottom and the sides of your pan.
Distribute the mirabelles on top of the butter layer.
In the same bowl whisk the remaining butter (ca. 110g) with the sugar until smooth. Whisk in the eggs, then the milk.
Add the flour, the baking powder and a pinch of salt. Whisk in until just combined.
With a rubber spatula gently scrape the batter over the mirabelles. Be cautious not to mix them into the batter.
Bake for ca. 45 minutes until the cake is golden brown. Let it cool for 30 minutes. With a knife loosen the cake from the pan. Put a serving dish on top and carefully turn the pan over. If there are mirabelles sticking to the pan, use a spoon to put them back on top of the cake.
Enjoy with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream or crème fraîche.
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