Polenta with tomato sauce

This recipe comes from the River Cottage Veg Book, my favourite (only) vegetarian cookery book. You can find the original recipe here.

However I used my own Magic Number tomato sauce recipe rather than the one in the book. As a rule, I never add even a pinch of sugar to tomato sauce.

Polenta. Meh

I hate any recipe that requires frying (other than onions etc) - I can't stand oil spluttering all over the place, hate things getting stuck to the pan and seem to have real problems flipping food over. So maybe this wasn't the best choice of recipe for me, but I wanted to give it a go.

As I anticipated I found the whole frying thing pretty stressful. I had to use way more oil than I'd like and the polenta slices still broke up. I found the results a bit 'meh', but was surprised that Ollie really liked it.

Having bought a pack of quick cook polenta especially to make this recipe, I now have an almost full packet left. So expect some more culinary polenta adventures soon.

Smoked mackerel and potato cakes

Smoked mackerel with potato cakes

Not for lunch, but a lovely supper that uses up any leftover mashed potatoes you might have. (Being from the North, I hate waste.)

I used the following quantities for 2 people, and ate far too much - I could have happily done with half the amount. Admittedly I served this with a corn on the cob, which was wholly unnecessary. The potato cakes need a lot of oil too, so this is more of a mid-week indulgence than a healthy supper. I don't think you should add any flour to potato cakes - this may help keep them in one piece but their taste will be spoiled.

Ingredients for the potato cakes

• Approx 250g cooked mashed potato
• About 30g goat's cheese
• About 2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

To serve with potato cakes

• 1 pack smoked mackerel fillets (ie 4 fillets)
• 4 cornichon (small gherkins), chopped
• 10 baby plum tomatoes

 

Optional vegetables to serve with potato cakes if you're greedy (like me)

• Greens
• Corn on the cob

Method for making potato cakes with smoked mackerel

1. Add enough rapeseed oil to cover the bottom of a large frying pan then heat till hot.
2. Heat the grill to medium, ie about 230 degrees C.
3. Add the finely diced goat's cheese to the mashed potato.
4. Stir in the parsley.
5. Season well with tons of salt and black pepper.
6. Shape the potato mixture into 4 equal sized balls, then flatten ball to give flatish cakes.
7. Lower each cake into the hot oil in the frying pan.
8. While the cakes are cooking, line a baking tin with tin foil, pour in a small drop of rapeseed oil and spread this all over the tin either with your fingers or a pastry brush. 
9. Add the smoked mackerel to the lined tin along with the baby tomatoes and scatter over the chopped cornichon.
10. Place under the grill for about 5 minutes till the fish is warmed through and the tomatoes are bursting. 
11. Once the underside of the potato cakes are crispy, carefully turn them over to brown the other side.
12. Boil the kettle, then fill a large pan with the boiling water, and place on hob.
13. Remove the thick vein from the centre of the greens' leaves, cut into even sized pieces and place in a bamboo steamer. 
14. Put 2 plates in the oven below the grill to warm.
15. Lower the corn cobs into the boiling water and add a little salt.
16. Boil for about 4 minutes before placing the bamboo steamer over the pan and steam the greens for another 2 minutes. 
17. Remove everything from the pans/grill and transfer to the warm plates to serve.
18. Add a small drizzle of rapeseed oil to the corn on the cob, plus plenty of salt and pepper. 

 

Potato cakes cooking