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Warm Spiced Sweet Potato Soup

Whenever I’m in London (where my daughter and her family live), I try to get to one of Yotam Ottolenghi’s restaurants, which are scattered throughout the city. On my most recent visit a few weeks ago, we ate lunch at his Marylebone location — a fun neighborhood not just for eating, but for good shopping too and home to the fabulous Wallace Collection. It was a cold March day and this soup, with warm spices and topped with feta cheese, was the perfect antidote to the chill outside. I tried recreating it at home, but couldn’t find the exact recipe in any of his cookbooks. So I searched a bunch of different ones online and came up with this recipe, which was every bit as delicious as the one I ate in London. It may even have usurped my favorite cold weather soup till now of butternut squash. The two vegetables are very similar in flavor when used in soups, especially after infusing the soup with all the spices. I used about three and a half pounds of potatoes, which made enough soup to serve at least 8-10 people. You can cut it in half if you prefer, or just freeze the leftovers for another day.

I served the soup to company a couple of weeks ago, and included a tray of accompaniments on the table — a small pitcher of warmed cream, some feta cheese, olive oil, and pepitas (pumpkin seeds). The soup is delicious all by itself without any cream or other toppings, but it’s nice to give guests the options, if you have them.

The version at Ottolenghi (photo below) was served with feta, a drizzle of olive oil and chopped chives and it was perfect.

Check out Ciao Chow Linda on Instagram here to find out what’s cooking in my kitchen each day (and more).

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Spiced Sweet Potato Soup
Serves: makes at least 8-10 servings
 
Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion, cut into ½ inch pieces
  • 2 large stalks of celery, diced
  • 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into slices
  • 4 large sweet potatoes (about 3½-4 pounds), peeled and cut into chunks
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 2 T. zatar
  • 1½ teaspoons cumin
  • 2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 4 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth if you want to keep it vegetarian)
  • 2 cups water
  • optional accompaniments:
  • heavy cream, warmed to drizzle on top
  • crumbled feta cheese
  • pepita or sunflower seeds
  • olive oil to drizzle
Instructions
  1. Saute the onions in the olive oil until golden brown.
  2. Add the celery and saute until softened.
  3. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until vegetables are tender, about ½ hour to 45 minutes.
  4. Use a stick blender or a regular blender to homogenize everything and eliminate any lumps.
  5. Add more water if the soup is too thick.
  6. If you have leftover, it will thicken more overnight in the refrigerator, so add more water then too.
  7. Top with optional ingredients
 

 

 

Ottolenghi’s Blueberry, Almond and Lemon Cake

  • July 28, 2020

There are infinite cake recipes and infinite GOOD cake recipes. Then there are GREAT cake recipes. This one, from Yotam Ottolenghi, is one of those. It may not be the biggest cake out there — it doesn’t serve a ton of people. But it’s one you’ll want to make again and again. It has a really tender and moist texture, a lively lemon flavor and blueberries too. I love this cake so much I’ll be making this without the fruit when blueberry season is long gone. Many of the blueberries will sink to the bottom (sorry, even if you coat them first in flour, which I did) but if you follow the directions and reserve some to place on the top after the cake’s been baking for 15 minutes, they won’t sink. Scout’s honor.

Make sure to leave the cake in the oven for the entire time mentioned in the recipe to allow it to rise properly and not sink in the middle. Just cover with a tented piece of aluminum foil if it starts to get too browned. Let it cool and drizzle with a lemon glaze. You’ll find it hard to stop eating slice after slice, I promise.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what Ciao Chow Linda is up to in the kitchen (and other places too) each day.

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Blueberry, Almond and Lemon Cake
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup (1 stick) plus 3 tablespoons/150 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing the pan
  • 1 scant cup/190 grams granulated or superfine sugar (caster sugar)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest, plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or more juice as needed)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (vanilla essence)
  • 3 large eggs, beaten
  • ⅔ cup/90 grams all-purpose flour (plain flour), sifted
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup/110 grams almond flour (ground almonds)
  • 1 ½ cups/200 grams fresh blueberries
  • ⅔ cup/70 grams confectioners’ sugar (icing sugar)
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit/200 degrees Celsius.
  2. Grease a 9- or 8-inch/21-centimeter loaf pan with butter, line it with a parchment paper sling and butter the paper. (I didn't use the parchment paper but just buttered and floured the pan.)
  3. Set the pan aside.
  4. Place butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
  5. Beat on high speed for 3 to 4 minutes, until light, then lower speed to medium.
  6. Add eggs in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times as necessary.
  7. The mix may split a little but don’t worry: It’ll come back together once you add the dry ingredients.
  8. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and almond flour.
  9. With the stand mixer on low, add the dry ingredients in three additions, mixing just until no white specks remain.
  10. Fold in about ¾ of the blueberries by hand, then scoop batter into the prepared loaf pan.
  11. Bake for 15 minutes, then sprinkle the remaining blueberries over the top of the cake.
  12. Return to the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes, until cake is golden brown but still uncooked.
  13. Cover loosely with foil and continue to cook for another 25 to 30 minutes (less for a 9-inch pan, more for an 8-inch pan), or until risen and cooked, and a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
  14. Remove from oven and set aside in its pan to cool for 10 minutes before removing cake from pan and placing on a wire rack to cool completely.
  15. When cake is cool, make the icing: Add lemon juice and icing sugar to a bowl and whisk together until smooth, adding a bit more juice if necessary, just until the icing moves when you tilt the bowl. Pour over the cake and gently spread out.
  16. The blueberries on the top of the cake may bleed into the icing a little, but this will add to the look. Let icing set (about 30 minutes), slice and serve.
 

 

 

Barley, Pomegranate and Orange Salad

  • February 10, 2020

While searching for a recipe to serve at my recent book group dinner, where the book was set in Israel, I naturally thought of  Yotam Ottolenghi, the pre-eminent Israeli chef whose cookbooks (and restaurants in London) are a treasure trove of Middle Eastern cooking.  I was surprised to find a salad using bulgur, since I associated the grain mostly with soups. Since pomegranates are a favorite of mine, the recipe was calling my name. Although not included in Ottolenghi’s recipe, I felt the urge to add the oranges — both blood oranges and cara cara oranges — since they were in season and added more color and flavor. The celery leaves are crucial in this recipe, and unfortunately most celery in supermarkets has scant leaves. If you’re lucky enough to find a locally grown bunch of celery, you’ll more likely to find leaves on the ends of the stalks. But even with the supermarket celery, I managed to pluck enough leaves to add to the recipe. This salad is delicious even several days after making it, so keep it in mind for a do-ahead recipe to take to a party.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what Ciao Chow Linda is up to in the kitchen (and other places too.)

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Barley Salad
Author: 
 
Recipe adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi's book "Plenty"
Ingredients
  • 1 cup pearl barley
  • 6 celery stalks (leaves picked and reserved), cut into dice
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
  • 2 small garlic cloves, crushed
  • ⅔ teaspoon ground allspice
  • salt, black pepper
  • 3 tablespoons chopped dill
  • 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • ½ cup pomegranate seeds
  • sections from 2 oranges (I used one cara cara and one blood orange)
Instructions
  1. Cook the barley according to package directions.
  2. Usually, it is simply placed in a pot and covered with water, then boiled for about 30 minutes.
  3. Drain the barley and transfer to a mixing bowl.
  4. Add the celery, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, allspice and salt and pepper.
  5. Stir, then leave to cool completely.
  6. When it's cool, add the herbs, celery leaves, pomegranate seeds and orange sections.
  7. Squeeze the juice from the remaining pulpy part of the orange that's left into the bowl and mix.
  8. Serve.
 

Chicken with fennel and clementines

  • April 5, 2018

Before clementines and fennel bulbs disappear for the season, you’ve got to make this dish – if you haven’t already done so. It’s been around for a few years, and is one of my favorites from Yotam Ottolenghi, the Israeli chef whose recipes I go to when I have a yen for Middle Eastern food.

The combination of fennel and clementines, roasted at high temperature, along with the mustard and other ingredients, deliver an intense flavor to the chicken. I’ve taken a few liberties with the original recipe, replacing the Arak in favor of Sambuca, another anise flavored liqueur, and one that most Italian-Americans have in their pantry.

I also changed the quantities of some of the ingredients, adding more orange and lemon juice, for instance, to allow for more sauce to spoon over the chicken at the end, and to drizzle over rice or noodles you might like to serve on the side.

You’ll also notice I used chicken breasts in this recipe. Feel free to use legs or thighs, but always with the bone intact and the skin on. You could even use an entire small chicken, as Ottolenghi does, but if you do, make sure you increase the quantities of the other ingredients.

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Chicken with fennel and clementines
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • For Two People:
  • 1 large chicken breast, with bones and skin, cut into four pieces
  • ¼ cup Sambuca, or any anise flavored liqueur
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup orange juice
  • ⅛ cup lemon juice
  • 2 T. grainy mustard
  • 2 T. light brown sugar
  • 1 medium fennel bulb, cut into about eight pieces
  • 2 clementines, sliced, with the skin on
  • 1 T. fennel seeds, lightly crushed
  • salt, pepper, to taste
  • fennel fronds to garnish
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
  2. Mix the Sambuca, olive oil, orange and lemon juice, mustard and brown sugar and fennel seeds.
  3. Season the chicken pieces and fennel with salt and pepper and place in a lightly greased casserole. Scatter the clementine slices around, making sure that everything is in one layer. Pour half of the marinade over the chicken and fennel. If you have time, do this step ahead of time and let it sit at room temperature for an hour.
  4. Cook for about 35 to 45 minutes, until the chicken is cooked and the skin is slightly charred. About ten minutes before the chicken is fully cooked, pour the rest of the marinade over everything and finish cooking. If it doesn't look "browned" enough, crank up the temperature to 500 degrees.
 

 

 

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Cauliflower Cake

  • October 23, 2014

 A couple of years ago, I was visiting a friend in London and rummaging through her cookbooks when I found this recipe by Yotam Ottolenghi. I wanted to make it as soon as I saw it, especially after eating at one of his restaurants there. But it’s like the book that’s sitting on the shelf you never read; or the bolt of fabric in the closet you never get around to sewing into a dress. I forgot about it. The recipe didn’t appear in any of his cookbooks published for the U.S. market. Until now, that is, when I saw it in “Plenty More” – his latest cookbook and one that was gifted to me this week by my niece Keri.  My interest in making this delightful recipe was renewed.

Aside from the visual appeal, it tastes terrific, somewhat like a frittata, but with a little more heft from the cup of flour and baking powder in the recipe. It’s got tons of flavor from the turmeric, rosemary and basil too, so don’t leave those out. I would however, add another egg or two next time I make it, (or use less of the vegetable). As you can see from the photo below, I didn’t use cauliflower, but instead used broccoli romano, or broccoli romanesco – my favorite vegetable,  another gift I received this week – this time from my son.. It tastes very similar to cauliflower, but you can’t top it for distinct appearance. I’ve posted recipes using it before, so if you’re interested, go to the white search box at the top of the blog and type in the words “broccoli romano.” I can see making this with lots of other vegetables too, including with artichoke hearts – which I’m planning to try next week.  Stay tuned.
The first step is to carefully separate the florets and bring them to a boil for about five minutes, then drain.
 Line a springform pan with parchment paper, then smear with butter and sesame seeds. The recipe calls for nigella seeds, but I couldn’t find them and used black and white sesame seeds instead.
 The batter is on the thick side, so be careful not to break up the florets when mixing everything together. Next time, I plan to use eight or nine eggs instead of the seven called for. I think it will make a little lighter “cake” and give more space between the vegetables.
 Still, I loved the way it looked and tasted – not quite a quiche, not quite a frittata, not quite an omelet – but a savory “cake” instead. Ottolenghi says to serve warm, rather than hot. I think it would be good either way (first hand knowledge from having reheated in the microwave). It would also be delicious at room temperature, making it ideal for taking to a picnic or dinner at someone’s house. Serve in medium slices as a side dish, or in large slices with a salad as a main course. Try baking it in a square pan and slice in squares for an hors d’oeuvre.
 Either way, it won’t last long and it’ll be one of those recipes you’ll make over and over again and adapt to your liking.

CAULIFLOWER CAKE

From “Plenty More” by Yotam Ottolenghi
Serves 4 to 6 (I think it serves 8 or more, even as a main course, with a salad on the side- CCL)
• 1 small cauliflower, outer leaves removed, broken into 1¼-inch florets (1 lb/450 g)
• 1 medium red onion, peeled (6 oz/170 g)
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
• 7 eggs (scant 1 lb/440 g)
• 1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 teaspoons round turmeric
• 5 ounces coarsely grated Parmesan or another mature cheese
• Melted unsalted butter, for brushing
• 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon nigella seeds
• Salt
• Black pepper
Preheat the oven to 400ºF/200ºC.
Place the cauliflower florets in a saucepan and add 1 teaspoon salt. Cover with water and simmer for 15 minutes, until the florets are quite soft. They should break when pressed with a spoon. Drain and set aside in a colander to dry.
Cut 4 round slices, each 1/4-inch thick, off one end of the onion and set aside. Coarsely chop the rest of the onion and place in a small pan with the oil and rosemary. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring from time to time, until soft. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Transfer the onion to a large bowl, add the eggs and basil, whisk well, and then add the flour, baking powder, turmeric, Parmesan, 1 teaspoon salt, and plenty of pepper. Whisk until smooth before adding the cauliflower and stirring gently, trying not to break up the florets.
Line the base and sides of a 9 1/2-inch springform cake pan with parchment paper. Brush the sides with melted butter, then mix together the sesame and nigella seeds and toss them around the inside of the pan so that they stick to the sides. Pour the cauliflower mixture into the pan, spreading it evenly, and arrange the reserved onion rings on top. Place in the center of the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown and set; a knife inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean. Remove from the oven and leave for at least 20 minutes before serving. It needs to be served just warm, rather than hot, or at room temperature.

Easy Acorn Squash and Thanksgiving Side Dishes

  • November 25, 2013

Still looking for Thanksgiving side dish ideas? Here’s one that won’t take more than five minutes to prepare and tastes great. No peeling involved – you can eat the skin on acorn squash.

The recipe is so embarrassingly simple, it’s hardly a recipe. Just wash the squash, cut in half lengthwise, remove the seeds and cut into slices about 1/2 inch think. Smear with a little melted butter on both sides, then sprinkle each side with salt and pepper, and a mixture of equal parts bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until you can easily pierce the flesh with a fork.Here are a few more ideas if you still are undecided about side dishes for your Thanksgiving table:

Fennel Gratinée or Roasted Fennel 

Insalata di Rinforza

Stuffed onions

Squash and Couscous casserole

And as a relief for the digestive system: Citrus salad 

If you’re looking for a primer on how to brine and cook a turkey, click here to see how I do it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 
Acorn Squash with Parmesan Coating
Wash the squash, cut in half lengthwise, then remove the seeds and cut into slices about 1/2 inch thick. Smear with a little melted butter on both sides, then sprinkle each side with salt and pepper, and a mixture of equal parts bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until you can easily pierce the flesh with a fork.

Squash and The Columbian Exchange

  • October 8, 2012

OK, you may be wondering “What’s The Columbian Exchange?” And what’s it got to do with this recipe of couscous and butternut squash? Well, for those of you in the U.S., it’s Columbus Day today. Now I know there’s a huge controversy surrounding the Italian explorer’s trips to the Western hemisphere and the “discovery” of America. But this is a blog about food and travel, so I steer clear of geopolitics here. What I will tell you though, is that his travels to the New World starting in 1492 opened the gateway to exchange between Europe and the Americas — some good, like foods, crops and livestock — and some not so good, like communicable diseases and slavery.

We’ll stick to the food exchange on this post.
Can you imagine Italy without tomatoes; Ireland without potatoes or Switzerland without chocolate? No, me either. But the Columbian Exchange, as it has come to be known, introduced those foods to other lands that hundreds of years later have nearly become icons of those nations’ cuisine. In addition to the above examples, for instance, you can thank the Columbian exchange for oranges in Florida and bananas in Ecuador.
Squash made its way from the New World to Europe, which is why I thought this recipe would be perfect to present for Columbus Day. It combines flavors from the west (squash) with spices from the East (cinnamon, saffron). It’s also a recipe from Yotam Ottolenghi, an Israeli-born chef whose recipes are enjoyed around the world. Columbus might have missed his goal of finding a sea route to Asia, but his travels kicked off an international exchange that was to alter world cuisine forever.
For those of you living anywhere near New York City, the statue in Columbus Circle pays tribute to the sailor from Genoa. It has stood on a granite column about 70 feet off the ground since 1892, visible to cars and passersby in this busy neighborhood of Manhattan next to the Time-Warner Center.
But if you travel to Columbus Circle now, you won’t see the statue from the street. Instead, climb six stories of stairs, amid scaffolding, and witness Columbus close up in a conceptual art installation by the Japanese artist, Tatzu Nishi. Until Nov. 18, he’s the centerpiece of what looks like a living room in a New York City apartment.
Here’s the big guy himself – all 13 feet of marble. Until now, only the birds had such an intimate view.

 

His feet appear to be resting on a coffee table, surrounded by magazines and newspapers.

 

Have a seat and catch up with the news while Christopher surveys the living room.
The apartment’s wallpaper is designed with iconic American scenes.

 

Want to watch a little TV or read a book? No problem.

 

You’ll have a great view of the Trump Tower apartment building across the street.
While you’re there, savor the view of Central Park from your perch in the sky with Columbus.
Then come home and make this vegetarian dish of couscous with butternut squash and apricots from Ottolenghi – a legacy, if you will, from Columbus.
If you’re in New York and want to visit, you’ll need a ticket. It’s free. Click here to find out more about the artist and the art installation.

Couscous with dried apricots and butternut squash
From “Ottolenghi, The Cookbook”
Printable recipe here
Serves four
(I increased the ingredients by half and made 1 1/2 times the recipe and it served way more than six as a side dish. I would count on at least six servings or more from the base recipe.

1 large (red) onion, thinly sliced
6 tbs olive oil
50g dried apricots – (1/2 cup)
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 2 cm dice
250g couscous (1 1/2 cups)
400ml chicken or vegetable stock (1 1/2 cups)
a pinch of saffron strands
3 tbs roughly chopped tarragon
3 tbs roughly chopped mint
3 tbs roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (go easy on the cinnamon – it’s very assertive – I made 1 1/2 times this recipe and used this amount, but next time I’d use only 1 tsp.)
grated zest of 1 lemon
coarse sea salt and black pepper(I also added 1/2 cup toasted pecans.)

Preheat the oven to 180d Celsius. (I set it at 400 degrees F.)
Place onion in a large frying pan with 2 tbs oil and a pinch of salt. Sauté over high heat, stirring constantly for about 10 mins (I used less time), until golden brown. Set aside.
Pour hot water from the tap over the apricots just to cover them. Soak for 5 mins then drain and cut them into 5mm dice.
Mix the diced squash in 1 tbs olive oil and spread out on a baking tray to roast. Place in oven for 25 mins, until lightly colored and quite soft. (I cooked it for closer to 45 minutes)
While waiting for the butternut squash to cook, cook the couscous. Bring the stock to the boil with the saffron. Place the couscous in a large heatproof bowl and pour the boiling stock over it, plus the remaining olive oil (3 tbs). Cover with clingfilm and leave for about 10 mins for all of the liquid to be absorbed. When done, fluff with up with a fork. Then add the onions, squash, apricots, herbs, cinnamon and lemon zest. Mix well with hands, trying not to mash the squash to bits.
Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve warmish or cold.

Ottolenghi

  • November 22, 2011
 If there’s one chef in England whose name keeps springing up on food blogs, it’s Yoram Ottolenghi. A Jew who was born and raised in Jerusalem to a German mother and an Italian father, his food bears a decidedly middle Eastern influence, and a broader Mediterranean one as well.  He moved to London in 1997, ostensibly to study for a doctorate degree, but got sidelined along the way to study at Le Cordon Bleu instead.  A business partnership with Sami Tamini, a Palestinian also raised in Jerusalem,  led to the opening of four shops in London, one of which I had to check out on my recent visit. My friend Mariana and I went to the Islington location, the only one of the Ottolenghi shops that has an area where diners can actually be seated.

 

Still, we decided to choose take-out from the bountiful offerings available and transport our booty home to eat in the comfort of Mariana and Carlo’s living room  — much easier than keeping four little ones happy in hard plastic chairs in a cramped seating area.

 

 

We got something to please all appetites – the children’s less adventuresome palates were happy with the tender beef filet and potatoes, while the adults marveled at the range of flavors in the vegetarian dishes – winter slaw, eggplants with turmeric yogurt, cauliflower and lentil salads, and a melange of snow peas, asparagus and water cress — oh and foccaccia too, plus a delicious selection of desserts I forgot to photograph in the frenzy of eating.

Having flipped through his two cookbooks, Ottolenghi and Plenty, and now eaten his food, it’s apparent that Ottolenghi loves to give herbs and spices a starring role, including ones that may be unfamiliar to most Americans, like zatar and sumac. Back at home, I knew I had to try to cook some of the bold and flavorful dishes I had eaten. Italian food is my first love, but I do step out to other cuisines too. I chose to recreate a hybrid version between the eggplant dish I had eaten from the restaurant, and an eggplant recipe in one of his cookbooks. Although I tucked a small jar of that sumac in my suitcase, you won’t need any esoteric spices for this recipe, but what you’ll still achieve is a new and fresh flavor sensation that’s a far cry (at least for me) from the food I’ve been eating all my life.
 
Ottolenghi-inspired Eggplant 
2 medium to large eggplants
olive oil to brush on the eggplant
1 small container (6 oz) Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. mustard seeds
1/4 tsp. coriander seeds
salt, pepper to taste
toasted pine nuts
pomegranate seeds
cilantro leaves
I peel eggplant “stripes” leaving on some of the skin. Cut into 1/4 inch slices and grill, brushing each slice of eggplant with some olive oil. If you don’t have a grill, place the eggplant slices on a cookie sheet that’s been greased with olive oil. Brush the top side of the eggplant slices with oil. Roast in a 400 degree oven until cooked through and golden, flipping once.
Let the eggplant slices cool, and arrange on a platter. To make the sauce, grind the seeds in a mortar and pestle – or if you have a small electric coffee grinder, use that. Mix all ingredients together except the last three. Spread the sauce over the eggplant, then sprinkle on pine nuts that you’ve toasted a little to give some color, and some pomegranate seeds. Top with some cilantro leaves. Serve at room temperature.