Epigram article: 4 recipes, 1 key ingredient... This time we're talking Pumpkin

My first article featured in Bristol University's Epigram Newspaper (http://epigram.org.uk/living/2014/10/4-for-1-a-passion-for-pumpkins/)

Welcome to Living’s new foodie series! 4 for 1 is here to provide self-catered students with reliable recipes. The whole idea is to take one ingredient and create four dishes that makes sure that nothing goes to waste. Here to kick it all off is Pippa Cole, a first year who featured in our ‘8 Student food bloggers you should be following right now’. She’s full of wonderful ideas and her recipes are guaranteed to lift your spirits as the autumn weather starts to close in.

With Halloween coming up, I thought I’d get in the spirit and start off with the humble pumpkin. All these recipes serve two people, but you can always keep the second portion for lunch the next day. That’s what it’s all about really, making ingredients go further. Leftovers for lunch, savvy ingredient swaps and plan-ahead tactics to get the best from your shop. I love the amount of budget student recipes flying around these day, but that tuna pasta bake suddenly seems less value for money when you end up throwing away gone off onion halves and opened tins of sweetcorn. I want to throw a solution your way: I’ll take one perishable ingredient and offer up four recipes in which to use it. Hopefully leaving you with no irritating leftovers and all round giving you better value for money.

Back to pumpkin. Currently at only £1/kg, this spooky veggie is only fractionally more expensive than the cheapest potatoes available in Sainsbury’s (£0.80/kg for 2.5kg of white potatoes). It’s also rich in something fancy called Beta-Carotene, a lovely little antioxidant which aids glowing skin and a healthy immune system. As if that’s not enough, its high potassium content helps to keep our hearts and muscles ticking along nicely, perfect for you gym bunnies, or for anyone worn out by the daily hill climbs of Bristol! What’s not to like?

Here’s a list of all the ingredients you’ll need for the following 4 recipes:

1 medium pumpkin
Olive oil for frying
4 garlic cloves
Salt
Pot of natural yoghurt
Pinch of cinnamon
1 tin of chickpeas
Bunch/pot of coriander
1-2 tsp. garam masala
About 1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tin of tomatoes
Handful of frozen spinach
½ a lime
4 slices of brown bread
Veg stock cube
1 tin of butterbeans
Handful of rosemary leaves (I found some growing in Stoke Bishop so thought I’d make the make the most of free food!)

 

And as for equipment:

1 medium saucepan
1 small frying pan
Microwave safe jug/large bowl
Ovensafe dish/bowl
Chopping board
Large sharp knife
Stick blender*

*this is the one and only bit of fancy kit, you can find handheld blenders for about £10 and they’re seriously useful for speedy soups and smoothies, just don’t use it too early in the morning unless you want to be the enemy of all your flatmates!

So first up, an autumn favourite, Pumpkin and cinnamon soup:

Skin and de-seed about 1/4 medium pumpkin (or about 1/6 of a large carving one) – chop into large chunks – microwave for approx. 5mins until slightly softened – fry 1 chopped garlic clove in 1tbsp. olive oil in a medium saucepan on a low heat – add chopped pumpkin and a pinch of salt for 2-3mins before adding ½ tin of butterbeans and 1 cup of water – bring to a simmer and cook for 15-20mins (adding more water if needed) – remove from heat and blitz with a hand blender until smooth – add 2-3 large tbsp. of yoghurt and a pinch of cinnamon – adjust seasoning and thickness to your preference and blitz again – serve with a little extra yoghurt.

Next, turn up the heat with my Pumpkin and chickpea curry

Skin and de-seed about 1/4 medium pumpkin – chop into large chunks – microwave for approx. 5-10mins until softened but still holding its shape – in a medium saucepan on a low heat fry 1 chopped garlic clove and about 4 chopped coriander stalks (reserve the leaves for later) with 2 tbsp. olive oil, 1tsp. garam masala and ½ tbsp. cumin seeds and ½ tin of chickpeas until fragrant and the garlic is softened but not at all browned– roughly chop the pumpkin into smaller chunks and add to the pan for about 5mins (reduce the heat if the garlic is cooking too quickly) – add ½ tin of tomatoes and a handful of frozen spinach and simmer for 5-10 mins with a pinch of salt (and add more spices if necessary) – serve with yoghurt and a few coriander leaves.

End of festival blues? Cheer yourself up with my pumpkin spin on the festival classic, falafel:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees c – Skin and de-seed about ¼ medium pumpkin – chop into large chunks – microwave for approx. 5-10mins until softened but still just holding its shape – add ½ handful of coriander stalks (add the leaves too), 1 chopped garlic clove, ½ tsp. cumin seeds, pinch of salt, juice of half a lime, ½ tin of chickpeas and 3 slices of roughly torn brown bread – blitz to a thick, rough paste – place heaped tbsps. of the mixture onto a lined baking tray and flatten slightly (to about 1-2cm thick) – cook for about 20 mins until golden – heat 1-2tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan on a high heat – add the cooked falafel and fry for a couple of minutes on each side to crisp them up – serve with extra coriander leaves – you can use any leftover bread to stuff them into sandwiches with salad and houmous if you fancy.

Something warm and hearty? Try this herby Pumpkin and butter bean bake:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees c – skin and de-seed about 1/4 medium pumpkin – chop into large chunks – microwave for approx. 5-10mins until slightly softened – fry 1 chopped garlic clove and about 1 tsp. of finely chopped rosemary leaves in 1tbsp. olive oil in a medium saucepan on a low heat – add chopped pumpkin and a pinch of salt for 2-3mins before adding ½ tin of tomatoes, ½ tin of butterbeans and a pinch of crumbled veg stock cube – simmer for about 5 mins – transfer to any oven-safe dish/bowl – crumble up a piece of brown bread and combine with about half a handful of roughly chopped rosemary leaves, pinch of salt and 1-2tbsp. olive oil – scatter this rough crumb on top of the bean mix – cook for about 15-20 mins until the topping is crisp – serve just as it is, or add extra spinach (if there’s some leftover from the curry) if you’re feeling super healthy.

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If you give any of these recipes a go, tweet @e2living and @pippacolecooks with a pic and hashtag it #4for1 #Passionforpumpkin

Bringing the bare minimum

On moving in day, it is not unusual to see countless cars groaning down the motorway under the pressure of teaming boxes of possessions. I myself equated it to packing my entire life into suitcases. There is however a lot to be said for packing light where you can.

Some things you can't budge on, don't pitch up without a duvet just to save space, but in other areas there's room to be economical. Kitchen equipment is always a big one, but you really don't need six pans, two sieves and a large casserole dish to enable you to cook a healthy meal.

I'm a huge advocate of double usage and it's surprising how much you can do on a bare minimum. Here's my list of culinary essentials (assuming kettle and oven are already provided!)

Two plates
Two bowls (spare is good for fridge storage)
1-2 mugs and cups
Knife, fork and spoon
Sharp knife and chopping board
Medium sized saucepan (with lid to use instead of a colander)
Medium sized frying pan
Scissors
Peeler
Grater
Hand blender and jug (endless soups and smoothies)
Wooden spatula (can be used as a makeshift fish slice and wooden spoon too)
Tin opener

... And I really think that's it, there's so much more you can bring, but it's quite satisfying to be creative with what you have (and it saves space and money for actual food!)

A food lover at Freshers

I am, by admission, a near obsessive food lover. It will then come as no surprise to you that the concept of freshers loomed a little dauntingly beyond my many cookbooks. Baked bean diets, carb only meal plans, 4am burger binges... the list goes on. I do not proclaim to be entirely virginal in all of the above, but I would like to still fit into at least some of my clothes by the end, so a few 'freshers fifteen' avoidance tactics are in order.

Note. For those not aware, 'freshers fifteen' refers to the stomach clenching rumour that uni newbies are destined to gain 15 pounds in these sociable first months.

Last Saturday, 20th September 2014 to be precise, I seemingly packed my entire life into boxes and journeyed off, parents in tow, to Bristol University.

Self catered hall ('poverty hall' by nickname, needless to say I went budget), course in French & Italian, musings for joining yoga and surf societies... There's your bare bones. Over the next weeks, months and, hopefully, years, I hope to fill you in on life as a food loving fresher on a budget: what I packed, how I budgeted, life as a student, foodie finds in Bristol and beyond and, of course, what I cooked.

I'm now off in search of face paint for yet another freshers event, but I will most certainly be back soon (if only to assure my parents I'm still eating!)

My pesto food dem at Womad festival

Some days just leave you with a rather large smile on your face. Last Sunday was one of them. I swapped my family roast for a rather special occasion: my first food dem at the Taste the World stage at WOMAD festival.

Mid show photo: Courtesy of the marvellous @dannymccubbin

The long trek through the endless rows of tents gave me my first heads up that this was a fairly big event... somewhat bigger than I'd anticipated. The idea I had in my head of a few benches of onlookers swiftly morphed into the reality of an actual stage, in a tent complete with lights, head mics and a fairly sizeable audience. I'm sure plenty of hosts would be cooly unfazed by this, but I was undeniably thrilled and excited to be there. I will however admit that there was a slight variance between the calm words I uttered and the 'kid in a sweet shop' euphoric monologue going on inside my head: Replying "Yes certainly I'll just pop the head mic on" when really I was thinking "me, a head mic, are you sure? I'm not Madonna or anything, but oh go on then. Hold on, how do I put this thing on? Come on Pippa, look like you've done this before".

First arrivals to the tent: Photo from my instagram pippacolecooks

So, lights up and off we went. We'd decided on a home made pesto dem, making two different versions, all dolled up with cous cous and wholewheat pasta salads, dressed with lovely little tomberries, courgette ribbons and plenty of extra leaves. With a food blender, pesto is just such a breeze to make and we wanted to show the families watching that it's fresher, cheaper and, crucially, tastier made fresh - miles better than buying expensive jars which sit in your cupboards for weeks on end.

One of the finished pesto pasta salads: photo courtesy of the marvellous @dannymccubbin

It was a complete joy to see the kids getting involved: picking herbs, grating lemon zest, chopping garlic and grating parmesan... a little pesto production line! Our hour slot nearly up, queues of eager faces lined up for a taste. Truly wonderful to see this enthusiasm but, for me, the highlight was being approached by inspired parents and children afterwards asking for extra tips, advice about working in food, or merely just to say thank you. I really dislike talking myself up like this, but sometimes I have to write things down to actually believe them, the literary version of pinching myself. One lovely audience member, Mel, came up to the front just to comment on how much she loved my complete passion and evident love for what I do. She also kindly admired my humorous honesty in admitting that even I was a little surprised to be there, given I'm a mere 19 year old on her gap year before Bristol uni. Mel's comments really stuck with me, they summed up the essence of why I love giving demos. It's their ability to give you a platform to share what you love, impart ideas, inspire confidence, get people running back into the kitchen with smiles on their faces. But most importantly, in this instance, it was showing people that, with enough hard work and patience, you really can live out your wildest hopes and dreams (yes, please feel free to gag at this sickly statement). Two years ago I was an entirely anonymous audience member at Jamie Oliver's feastival, watching the demos thinking "wow, they really do have the best jobs in the world... wouldn't it be amazing if I could do that one day..." Well, two years later, after my 'polite ambush' of one of Jamie's food team, multiple emails, one work experience and one week's real work... there I was, on stage.

Right, gushy outpouring over, I think it's about time I tell you about the food (thank you for bearing with me!). One thing I really stressed in the dem, and it's something Jamie O really advocates, is not being put off by not having the exact ingredients. Recipes are your base, be creative, tailor them to your budget, your preferences, your store cupboard. Sticking by this, I am incredibly unscripted with pesto: a couple of raw garlic cloves, about two large handfuls of fresh herbs, a pinch of sea salt, perhaps a little lemon zest, a few glugs of quality olive oil and a handful or two of grated parmesan and/or nuts... all blitzed up together and tweaked for taste and texture.

We played around with basil, flat leaf parsley, rocket, parmesan, ground almonds, lemon zest, extra virgin olive oil and garlic. Have an experiment, try different combinations. We loved our basil, rocket and almond version, as well as our gremolata style parsley, lemon and garlic-heavy concoction. If you're a little nervous, I'm sure you'll find endless wonderful pesto recipes elsewhere on the net: this pistachio pesto is a particular favourite of mine from the ever-inspiring Sprouted Kitchen. But if you're willing to be brave, just collect your favourite ingredients and see what works for you, there are so many options that I have no doubt you'll soon find a family favourite of your own. Please let me know if you have a go, I'd love to hear how you get on.

A few Q&As from the dem:

Q: How do I get a similarly flavourful pesto if I can't eat cheese as I'm vegan/lactose intolerant?
A: It's the real salty depth of flavour that you get from the parmesan, so to get a comparable depth I'd suggest toasting whichever nuts you use before you grind them, as well as perhaps adding an extra pinch of salt. Toasting the nuts really amplifies their flavour so it really helps to fill the gap.

Q: I'm allergic to nuts, what can I do?
A: If you want an equally thick pesto, I'd limit your use of oil and up the cheese and herb quantities. However, you can just omit the nuts and make yourself a much lighter pesto, I often make it like this if I want to use it more as a dressing to drizzle over salads or roasted veg.

Q: Does it matter what nuts you use?
A: Definitely not, be creative! Italians typically use pine nuts but these are often quite pricey here in the UK. Almonds are probably the best value alternative (a great tip by the wonderful @dannymccubbin), but I also love pesto made with pistachios or walnuts - the latter are particularly good with a bit of lemon zest.

Smoked mackerel salad with avocado and mango

I can rival any man when it comes to my love of hearty, lard filled winter food. But when the sun comes out, even I get entirely converted to the land of light and healthy salads. Bikini bodies aside, steak and kidney pie just doesn’t taste the same when your nostrils are filled with the heady scent of sun cream and pimms.

Inspired by a Gordon Ramsay recipe for a smoked chicken, avocado and mango salad in ‘Healthy Appetite’ I decided to swap in smoked mackerel (often easier to find in supermarkets, and great to get a hit of your omega-3) and have a play with a lighter dressing.

It’s filling enough to eat on its own for lunch, or you could use it to serve four as a starter.

Serves 2

2 fillets of smoked mackerel

½ mango peeled and finely sliced

1 avocado (only just ripe, not too soft), skin removed and flesh finely sliced

1 baby gem lettuce, leaves separated

Freshly ground salt and pepper

Juice of ½ a large lemon, plus optional extra to serve

2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve

Flake the mackerel and combine with the mango and avocado slices.

Briefly combine the lemon juice, olive oil, season with salt and pepper and pour over the mackerel, mango and avocado.

Drop the lettuce leaves into a serving bowl and top with the dressed mackerel salad.

Drizzle with a little extra oil and a little extra lemon juice for those who like it a little sharper.

Beetroot falafel with a kind-of-tzatziki

I need to stop making falafel. I can only apologise for my unhealthy obsession with this chickpea sensation. Every time I think it’s time to move on, I come across a new and exciting vegetable to throw into the mix. Sweet potato falafels were my most recent favourite, but they have taken a temporary break to make way for this new and eye-poppingly purple beetroot version. I know they’re old news, the popularity wave has broken, but they’re still a healthy and interesting way to get both veggies and pulses into your lunch. So ignore the trend-setting doubters, just tuck in and enjoy… with all the critics, there’ll be more for you anyway.

As for the tzatziki, I had every intention to use an entirely traditional recipe. A few minutes of flicking through cookery books and I had more contradictions than correlations. So it only seemed logical to just take the key ingredients (yoghurt, cucumber, garlic) and follow my nose.

Serves 4

Falafel

400g can of chickpeas, drained – but reserve 1 tbsp. of the can liquid

Roughly 300g raw beetroot, peeled and roughly grated.

1 small tbsp. light tahini paste

½ tsp. ground cumin (or more to taste)

Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Pinch of salt

1 garlic clove, crushed

Handful of raisins

A little wholemeal flour, optional

Tzatziki

6-8 tbsp. natural yoghurt

¼ cucumber, peeled, deseeded and grated then squeezed free of excess water

1 tbsp. lemon juice

½ a garlic clove

A couple of sprigs of mint, leaves finely chopped

½ tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus a little extra to drizzle on top

Wholemeal pitta breads, to serve

•   Preheat the oven to 200 degrees c.

•   Blitz the chickpeas in a food processor to a rough paste.

•   Add the remaining falafel ingredients (except the raisin) and blitz again until it forms a thick paste that you can form into little patties… if the mixture just seems too wet, add a little plain wholemeal flour. Equally, add a little more lemon or tahini if it’s too dry. Stir in the raisins.

•   Cook on a lined baking sheet for about 30 minutes, or until crispy on the outside and with only a little give in the middle.

•   While they’re cooking, just stir together the tzatziki ingredients and toast the pitta when you’re about to serve.

Sicilian Strawberry Granita

Dragging myself away from the endless holiday photos, I have finally sat myself down to write up one of my Sicily inspired recipes. You can read about said experience here. Getting back into the kitchen is the one sure-fire way to pull me out of post-holiday blues, add a sweet and icy treat and I’ll be sure to see the grey clouds subsiding in no time – both metaphorical and literal. Note: I’m afraid I can’t guarantee the latter, but hey, what’s wrong with a little optimistic self-delusion?

This recipe is a gorgeously light palette cleanser, one of the few healthy (-ish) dishes we came across in this isle of indulgence. Perfect for rounding off a button busting Italian feast. Unlike our British habit of complicating dishes, Sicilian purists would serve this completely as you see it, but feel free to make your own serving additions… I won’t tell if you don’t.

The quantities here are taken from www.deliaonline.com but I had a little play with the method.

450g fresh strawberries

175g golden caster sugar

Juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tbsp.)

•   Stir together the sugar, hot water and lemon juice until the sugar is fully dissolved.

•   Hull and rinse the strawberries then blitz until smooth.

•   Add the sugar syrup and blend again until fully combined.

•   Pour into a freezable container (or even a high sided baking tray if needed) about 20 cm by 20 cm and at least 6 cm deep.

•   Freeze for about half an hour, then use a fork to mix the frozen crystals (the edges should have started to freeze by now) with the liquid middle.

•   Repeat this every half hour or so until the entire mix has become frozen icy crystals – this should take about 1-2 hours in total.

•    If not serving immediately, make sure you transfer the granita to the fridge about half an hour before serving, otherwise it will be rather tricky to scoop.

•   Serve as it is or, if like me you want to deliciously adulterate the Italian simplicity, you can top with a few baby mint leaves… or even a dollop of natural yoghurt if you want to go completely off piste.