Comfort Food

Right now, my two sons are immersed in their final school exams.......and yes, despite all efforts and the wonderful study habits they have maintained all year, it remains a huge stress for all involved.

My role in all of this has been to feed and nurture, smile and nod, and not complain about the vast quantities of paper left all over the house.
The mantra of recent meals has been 'Comfort Food'.
I've pulled out a few old favourites to sooth furrowed brows, and fill growling stomachs.

Chicken Cobbler

This is an old recipe, I think originally by Maureen Simpson.
I used to cook this when my children were very young, making the scones which top the casserole into stars, which I still do, inspiring all to tuck in and eat.

To serve 4 people, you will need:

750g chicken thigh fillets, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces.
splash of olive oil, knob of butter
1 large brown onion, peeled and chopped
150g button mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
1 tsp dried tarragon
pinch of dried thyme
thin strip of lemon peel
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 cups chicken stock
2 to 3 sticks celery diced
2 to 3 large carrots, peeled & diced
1 cup frozen peas
2 level tbsp plain (or cornflour for gluten-free option)
3/4 cup milk

Herbed Cobbler Scones

2 cups SR flour (GF if desired)
1/2 level tsp salt
40g (2 level tbsp) soft butter
1 level tsp dry mustard
pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
2 level tsp dried mixed herbs
1 level tbsp brown sugar
2 level tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup milk

Sift the flour and salt into mixing bowl.
Rub in butter, add mustard, cayenne pepper, herbs, sugar and Parmesan.
Make a well in the middle then add milk.
Mix quickly into a scone dough.
Place dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently into a round shape.
roll out to 1 cm thickness, and cut out with a large floured star shape cutter.


Make the Herbed Scones, cover with a clean tea-towel and put aside until needed.
Heat oil and butter in a deep pan, (one you can put in the oven) and cook the chopped onion over low heat for 5 minutes, or until soft and glossy.
Add chicken pieces and cook briefly until sealed, then add mushrooms and cook for a few minutes longer.
Add herbs and lemon peel, stir a couple of times, then add the stock and the wine.
Bring to the boil, lower heat and add celery and carrots.
Season with salt and pepper.
Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, then add the peas.

Mix the flour or cornflour with enough of the milk to make a smooth paste, then add the remaining milk, and add to the mixture.
Stir until thickened.
Arrange the scones on top of the chicken mixture. (The mixture must be bubbling hot, so the scones cook underneath)
Cover the casserole with a greased lid (this makes the topping light and fluffy), and bake in a very hot oven (220C) for 10 minutes.
Remove lid and cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes or until well risen, golden and cooked through.

I tend to serve this with a green vegetable, such as steamed broccoli or asparagus.

These are always winners too!

JAMIE OLIVER’S MEATBALLS

Serves 4—6

900g meat for mincing, or bought minced meat
2 slices of bread, (I sometimes use a couple of tbsp of cooked brown or white rice if I have some at hand)
2 level tablespoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, pounded
1/2 small dried red chilli

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 egg yolk
salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tomato sauce recipe (see below)
2 handfuls fresh basil, torn
60g mozzarella cheese
60g Parmesan

I onion, grated finely
1 clove garlic, chopped finely
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 level tablespoon Dijon mustard

If your meat is not already minced, whizz it up in a food processor to the required consistency and place it in a bowl. Use the food processor to turn the slices of bread into breadcrumbs.
Add the breadcrumbs, dried oregano, cumin, chilli, rosemary and egg yolk to the minced meat and season with two level teaspoons salt and a good twist of black pepper.
At this stage you could add your optional ingredients (cooked together gently until tender and allowed to cool). Mix well, and, with wet or gloved hands, roll and pat into meatballs the size and shape you want.
(These can be put on greaseproof paper, covered with plastic film and refrigerated for up to a day).
Preheat a thick-bottomed casserole to a very hot temperature,
add 3 or 4 tablespoons of olive oil, swirl around the bottom of the pan and add your meatballs. Fry them until they are brown all over, being careful not to break them up but just moving the pan around so that all sides of the meatballs get nicely covered.
Turn the heat down and cover with the tomato, loads of ripped up fresh basil and a little broken up mozzarella and grated Parmesan.
Cook in the oven at 200°C for about 15—20 minutes, until the cheese is golden.

BASIC TOMATO SAUCE
Serves 6 — 8
Cooking time 1 hour 10 minutes

1 large clove of garlic, chopped finely
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small dried red chilli
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 x 400g tins Italian plum tomatoes
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 handful of basil or marjoram (or both), roughly chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2—3 tablespoons extra virgin
olive oil

In a thick-bottomed pan gently fry the garlic with the olive oil, and then add the chilli, oregano and tomatoes.
Mix gently, but do not break up the tomatoes as this will release the pips, which will make the sauce slightly bitter
— by leaving the tomatoes whole and letting the mixture cook slowly you’ll get a nice, sweet sauce. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for an hour.
Add the vinegar, then stir and chop up the tomatoes in the sauce. Now add fresh basil or marjoram (or both), season well to taste, and add 2 — 3 tablespoons of your best extra virgin olive oil.


One last dish I have cooked this week, both for the boys benefit, and to celebrate my Mother's 70th birthday was a delicious roast.....there's nothing like it sitting outside in the garden listening to the birds as they roost in the tree's overhead.

FENNEL, CHILLI AND GARLIC PORK WITH POTATOES AND PARSNIPS

For 6 people, you will need

8 cloves garlic, halved
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
2 1/2 tsps fennel seeds
2 tbsp coarsely chopped thyme, plus 8 sprigs
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
60mls (1/4 cup) olive oil
1.75kg boneless eye of pork loin *
2 tsp flaked sea salt
250ml (1 cup) verjuice, dry white wine or water
1kg desiree potatoes, quartered
4 parsnips, peeled, halved lengthwise and widthwise
250ml (1 cup) chicken stock’ 1/4 cup quince paste
cavolo nero, spinach or other wilted greens to serve, or green salad

METHOD:
Pound garlic, chilli flakes, fennel seeds, chopped thyme, parsley and 1 1/2 tbsp oil in a large mortar and pestle or food processor until a paste forms. (Not too fine, as it’s also nice quite chunky)
Preheat oven to 180 C.
Rub fennel mixture between the rind and meat, then over the meat.*
Roll up and secure with kitchen string at 3cm intervals.
Place in roasting pan and rub with 2 tsp oil and sea salt.
Pour in verjuice or wine and roast for 1 hour.
Meanwhile cook potatoes and parsnips in boiling salted water for 5 minutes.
Drain, then spread over a wire rack to cool and dry.
Incease oven to 220 C.
Add the potatoes, parsnips and thyme sprigs to pan, drizzle with remaining oil and turn to coat in pan juices. Roast for 30 minutes or until pork is cooked through and skin blistered.
Remove pork and rest while vegetables cook for a further 15 minutes.
Remove vegetables, place roasting pan over medium heat , add stock and quince paste, and stir to remove cooked pieces from the base of the pan.
Serve slices of pork with potatoes, parsnips, greens and gravy.

Notes:
An easier way to cook this I find is to buy a large rack of pork (ie the ribs still attached) get the butcher to take the meat from the bone. (Keep the bones), and to almost cut the ‘crackling’ from the meat leaving a ‘hinge’ along one of the long sides, which you can flip back to put the herbs under. Ask him also to score the skin. Roast, with the meat sitting on a whole large fresh fennel (washed and cut into quarters, leaving all the leaves) the bones, this stops the need to roll and secure with string.....the fennel keeps the meat moist, and tastes beautiful too!