Granted, the so-called “Portuguese Green Soup” in the photo here looks more red than green. But you get the idea.
Ingredients
- chorizo, 150g-200g, sliced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 sticks celery, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 400g can chopped tomatoes
- 1 litre hot chicken or vegetable stock
- 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 head savoy cabbage, finely shredded
Method
- Fry the chorizo in a little oil until it starts to brown.
- Add the onion, celery & garlic and fry until the onions have coloured.
- Fry the chilli flakes and the paprika for a minute more.
- Add the stock, tomatoes, chickpeas and cabbage and simmer for about 8 minutes or until the cabbage is tender. Season with salt, freshly ground black pepper and a handful of chopped parsley.
Serves 2-3.
This is serious comfort food. Passata works best here, but 2 cans of tomatoes and some tomato purée would work just as well. You can also substitute the harissa with 1/2 tsp chilli flakes or a fresh red chilli, finely chopped. You can also use whatever beans you like, as long as they’re robust.
Ingredients
- 8-10 good quality butchers sausages
- 1 medium courgette, diced
- 2 sticks celery, finely chopped
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 400g cans flageolet beans
- 1 400g can butter beans
- 800g jar tomato passata
- 2 tbsp grain mustard
- 1 tsp English mustard powder
- ½ tsp fennel seeds, crushed
- dash of worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp harissa (or 1 tsp chilli flakes)
- 4 tomatoes, halved
- flat-leaf parsley
Method
- Preheat the oven to 230°C.
- Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a fry pan. Gently fry the sausages until golden, but not too dark.
- In the residual oil, fry the courgette, celery onion and garlic. You need to get plenty of colour on the vegetables.
- Rinse and drain the beans and add to a large casserole. Add the fried vegetables, sausages and the rest of the ingredients, apart from the parsley. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Mix gently and tuck the sausages into the casserole. I like to cut the sausages in half before adding, especially if they’re large.
- Cook in the oven for 35 minutes until the top is browned. Stir through a handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley and serve with some crusty bread for mopping up sauce.
Serves 4.
The basil on my windowsill is flying, and the rocket is going positively mental with all this heat and rain. Blimey, if I had a garden… I’d be dangerous.
It’s pasta time again. I’m hopelessly addicted to Italian Foodies’ sun-dried tomato pesto recipe. I’ve been making it pretty regularly of late, and for the first time today I found I had some left over. Shocking, I know. Happily, I also had some leftover mascarpone in the fridge, so I came up with this. You probably don’t need the can of tomatoes, just mix the pesto with the mascarpone, but I think it works rather well. Give it a try.
Ingredients
- fresh tagliatelle, enough for 2 people
- 400g can tomatoes
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp balsamic vinegar
- pinch of sugar
- salt & pepper
- 2 tbsp sun-dried tomato pesto
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
- 3 tbsp mascarpone cheese
Method
- Heat a little olive oil in a saucepan and add the minced garlic. Fry for a minute and add the tomatoes, oregano, sugar and vinegar. Season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a bubble and simmer gently for 20 minutes.
- Cook your pasta according to the instructions on the packet.
- Add the pesto, parmesan and mascarpone and stir to melt the cheese into the sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
- Add the hot pasta to the sauce and make sure the pasta is coated well. Serve with some grated parmesan and a twist of black pepper.
Serves 2.
