A tribute to Keith Floyd

If you're from the UK and perhaps even if you're not then you'll probably have heard the sad news that Keith Floyd, TV chef, one of my food heroes and all round great guy died on September 14th. He was one of the first people to make cooking shows entertaining rather than just educational, his passion for food, his flamboyance and his willingness to visit unusual places and put himself in strange situations made his programmes unmissable TV. He will be sadly missed.

If you've never seen Keith Floyd then here's a classic Floyd moment.

As a tribute to Keith Floyd I made this Andalucian paella using his recipe. The recipe is quite basic, it's what I would consider to be a traditional recipe.I browned some chicken pieces in a paella pan, added rice which is cooked with onions and peppers in chicken stock for flavour. Then saffron and turmeric were added for both flavour and to give the rice a fantastic golden yellow colour. Just before the rice was cooked I added prawns, mussels, tomatoes and a handful of chopped parsley.Paella is undoubtedly one of my favourite dishes, it's brilliant for sharing if you have friends over. Just put the pan in the middle of the table with lemon quarters for squeezing over and let everyone dig in!

You can find the recipe for Keith Floyd' paella here.

Crema Catalana

A lot of countries lay claim to the invention of crème brûlée, the French claim it as their own while the English say they got there first with the Cambridge burnt cream, and the Spanish? well they say it was their creation in the form of crema catalana.

Although I perhaps should have been patriotic and made the English version I just couldn't resist the charms of the Spanish crema catalana which is delicately flavoured with orange, lemon and cinnamon. Unlike it's French and English counterparts which are baked in a bain marie, crema catalana is cooked on the stove and set in the fridge.
The caramel topping is made using a blow torch, if you don't have a blow torch you can use a very hot grill, it just won't be as fun! It is crucial here that you don't do this more than half an hour before you serve if you want the caramel to stay hard and crack satisfyingly as you break in.

I used a recipe by Rick Stein, taken from his book, Mediterranean Escapes. I've recommended this book before and I'll do it again, it's one of my favourite cookbooks, if your at all interested in Mediterranean cookery this book is a must.

Crema catalana recipe

Serves 4

• 10fl oz/300ml single cream
• 10fl oz/300ml full-cream milk
• Finely grated zest 1/2 orange
• Finely grated zest 1/2 large lemon
• 3in/7.5cm cinnamon stick, broken in half
• 4 large egg yolks
• 24oz/75g caster sugar, plus 4 tbsp 2 tbsp cornflour

Bring the cream, milk, orange zest, lemon zest and the cinnamon stick halves to the boil in a non-stick pan. Set aside for one hour for the milk to become infused with the flavourings.

Put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the 2½oz/75g sugar and beat with a hand-held electric mixer until pale and creamy. Beat in the cornflour. Bring the milk back to the boil and strain into a jug. Mix a few tablespoons into the egg yolk mixture to loosen it slightly, then stir in the remainder.

Pour the mixture back into the pan and cook over a low heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring all the time, until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of the wooden spoon. But don't let the mixture boil.

Pour the mixture into four wide shallow dishes (terracotta if possible), measuring about 5in/12cm across. Leave to cool, then chill for 4-6 hours, or overnight. Shortly before serving, sprinkle the surface of each custard with 1 tablespoon of the remaining sugar and caramelise under a hot grill. Serve immediately - the sugar will stay hard for only about 30 minutes.

Tortilla Española

Last year I set out on a cycling trip across Spain following the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago De Compostela, a journey of 550 miles crossing two mountain ranges along the way. The journey completely changed the way I view Spain, for one thing, I discovered (the hard way) that Spain is not always hot and sunny! I also found that the culture of the people changed significantly as I moved around, and that each region is fiercely proud of it's identity.

Food of plays a major part in Spanish culture and each region has it's own specialities, from the fantastic fish dishes in the north to the world famous paella in the south. Of course each region claims their food is the best and most authentic! It was all very confusing for me as I don't speak a word of Spanish, choosing what to eat at restaurants usually meant pointing at the menu and hoping for the best!

If there was one dish that could be found anywhere, was always the same and always delicious it would have to be Tortilla Española. It's strange how the simplest of dishes can taste so good and Tortilla is certainly simple. Onions and potatoes are fried in olive oil to which beaten eggs are added and cooked into a thick omelet which can be cut into wedges. It is very good hot but is more commonly served cold either in cubes as tapas or in bigger slices as a meal on it's own.
I think the trick to making a good Tortilla is to cook everything slowly, I cooked the onions over a very gentle heat for a whole 4 hours until they were deliciously sweet and soft, it's not necessary to cook them that long but you definitely want to take it slow. Cooking the eggs gently is also important to ensure that they don't burn but become wonderfully golden.
Tortilla Española recipe (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 2 Large onions chopped.
• A large handful of New Potatoes. (you could use any other potatoes chopped)
• 8 Medium eggs whisked.
• Olive oil.
• Optional extras such as peppers, mushrooms, Chorizo or ham could be added if you wish, I added a red pepper.

Method:

1. First boil the potatoes until fully cooked, drain and chop into disks.
   
2. In a large frying pan fry the onions gently until they are fully cooked and soft but not coloured, Add any extras now as well such as peppers.
3. In a large bowl mix the onions and potatoes with the beaten eggs, season with salt and pepper.
4. Wipe out the frying pan, add a splash more olive oil (make sure there's enough to stop the eggs sticking) and pour in the egg mixture.
5. Fry very gently for about 10-15 minutes until it's cooked at least half way through.
6. To finish your Tortilla you can attempt to flip it like the Spanish do or play it safe and cut the pan under the grill for 5 minutes to cook the top.
7. You could eat you Tortilla now or leave until it's cold, either way it's delicious!
   

Easy as... Paella

Paella is perhaps one of the most controversial of foods, almost every Spaniard has the perfect, original and absolutely authentic recipe. Yet every one is different! the subject can spark heated debates in homes across Spain. Should a paella contain seafood? rabbit? chicken? there are plenty of recipes around containing these ingredients, I've even seen a recipe that contained snails!After a bit of research it seems that there is no original recipe, Paella started out as a labourers dish originating in the province of Valencia in southern Spain, this is where the rice was grown, a special short grain variety called Calasparra or Bomba which is similar to the Italian Arborio risotto rice.
As the labourers were poor it would have contained whatever was to hand, usually cheaper meats such as rabbit or snails from the fields, as well as a selection of vegetables. It is cooked in a similar way to Risotto although the stock is added all at once rather than gradually. One thing the Spanish do agree on is that it should never be stirred as this prevents a crust forming on the bottom of the pan. This is called a socarrat and is considered a delicacy.
Paella is in fact the name of the large round pan in which the meal is cooked, the meal is named after the pan in much the same way as a casserole is actually named after the pot In which it is cooked.
This meal was ideal for labourers working in the fields as large amounts could be cooked over an open fire and be shared, eaten from the same pan with spoons.
It is unlikely that the first paellas would bear much resemblance to those eaten today as the ingredients would have been to expensive. A typical paella now would usually contain a mixture of seafood, some kind of meat often chicken, and the essential ingredient of Spanish Saffron, this is what makes it really special as it is the most expensive spice in the world.
Last year we had a continental market come to town, there were stalls from all over Europe selling specialities from their different countries, such as German sausages, French crépes and delicious waffles with chocolate I think from Austria. One of the stalls was selling kitchen equipment and they had Paella pans, needless to say I bought one! I've used it a couple of times and last night I gave it another try. My version of paella included mixed seafood (mussels, squid and prawns), pork and some Chorizo sausage. I also added tomatoes onions, lots of garlic, red bell peppers and a pinch of saffron.Contrary to what you may have thought Paella is extremely easy first I fried the sausage and meat, then added the vegetables, then the rice and saffron and finally chicken stock and a splash of white wine. A Paella pan is not essential and there are plenty of recipes around, this is one of my favourite meals and I urge you to try it. One of the good things about it is you can make it extravagant with lots of expensive ingredients for a special occasion, or like the original labourers, make it with whatever you have...

Catalan chicken with picada

This is an amazing chicken dish which you really should try. The recipe came from Diana Henry on Market Kitchen which is a daily program on UKTVFood.
This recipe in it's simplest form is just a chicken stew but it has a twist and that is the "Picada". A Picada is a Catalan method of thickening stews and soups by using ground bread, nuts and sometimes biscuits. Herbs and garlic can also be added, this is then mixed with olive oil and a little wine to form a not very appetising (think gruel) but fantastic tasting paste. when added to soups or stews it thickens them as well as adding wonderful flavour and texture.
This is a revelation to me and one that I will definitely be experimenting with, I'm thinking lamb tagine...

Diana Henry's Picada recipe

• 1 sweet biscuit, (such as Rich Tea)
• 25g country bread
• 25g pine nuts
• 75ml dry white wine
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

For the picada: grind the biscuit, bread and pine nuts in a mortar and pestle, or in a food processor, gradually adding the white wine and olive oil until well combined.

I really urge you to try this it is amazing and is very adaptable, change the ingredients to suit whatever you're cooking.

The following picture is the chicken I made based on the Market Kitchen recipe (link at the bottom of the page). It is a beautiful tomato based dish with onions garlic and thyme. But what makes it special and gives it a Catalan feel is the addition of pine nuts and raisins, not forgetting the Picada...

I served mine with roast squash and fresh Ciabatta.
The recipe can be found here: Catalan chicken with Picada