happy new year! should old acquaintance be forgot? yes, if the acquaintance you’re referring to is 2010. most people i’ve spoken to were all too ready to kiss the past year goodbye. floods, fires, budget crises… and that was just within my kitchen.

nonetheless, a new year cannot dawn without some acknowledgement, so i decided to host a small get together for some wonderful, lovely friends. delighted that they agreed to come to me, i decided to thank them in the best way i know how: with food.

anyone who knows me is aware of my love of a theme. in fact, it’s more of a compulsion. yeah, i’m that control freak who is stressed when sushi is served alongside sausage rolls at a party. i just feel that a consistent theme is the easiest thing you can do to impress your guests. of course, if that’s too much of a hassle, or sushi & sausage roll is your favourite food combo, simply set a “foods of the world” theme, crack out some toothpick flags and bob’s your uncle. 

anyway, my theme this year was my old faithful, rustic italian. how does this differ from other kinds of italian, you might ask? it’s about much more than an imperfectly shaped pizza. rustic, for me, means simple, unfussy food which highlights classic flavour combinations & the seasonality of ingredients. 

that being said, here’s what i came up with:

the spread

our “bar”

amongst other things, crudités with homemade dips, parmesan, grapes, marinated mushrooms, artichokes & olives

oven baked ricotta, salami, roast tomatoes, asparagus & cauliflower

pizza #1: potato, rosemary, parmesan & white truffle oil

pizza #2: old favourite, rocket & proscuitto (with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar)

pizza #3: pepperoni & zucchini

the best of all the italian desserts: tiramisu

despite this being the most low-key new years in recent memory, it was, for me, one of the best. celebrating with the people you love, and eating some good food at the same time: pretty fab if you ask me. hope yours was enjoyable too.

now, to get cracking on my nicaraguan fiesta for 2012. 

:)

note: individual recipes for these dishes will be posted soon. feel free to contact me in the meantime if you have any questions.

vegan bolognese- grain of salt

this holiday period i have been delighted to have a dear friend home, back from california. this friend happens to be a vegan coeliac. just one of these dietary requirements is hard enough to live with, let alone both. i, however really enjoy the challenge of creating wholesome meals for her that fit her dietary needs, particularly when she is so incredibly grateful & likes everything (winning qualities in a guest, most cooks will agree).

this bolognese is one of my favourite of the aforementioned dairy-free, wheat-free, gluten-free recipes, which i made again the other day. now, i know a vegan bolognese will sound like a travesty for most italians/chefs/meat-lovers/bolognese aficionados but after several experiments, i can safely say this tastes as good as any bolognese out there. 

here’s how it’s done:

take one small tub of dried porcini mushrooms and place in a small bowl. cover well with boiling water and set aside. a dark liquid will form in the bowl. meanwhile, heat a generous amount of olive oil in a large saucepan. add one large chopped onion, four chopped garlic cloves, the leaves of one bunch of thyme, and two teaspoons of chilli flakes. cook until onions are translucent. add a grated carrot, grated zucchini and two cups of chopped button mushrooms and cook for five minutes. toss in the two tins of drained black lentils and stir. season generously with salt and pepper.

next, pour in the ‘stock’ made from the porcini mushrooms. remove the mushrooms from the bowl and chop roughly, before adding them to the bolognese. stir. add two cans of diced tomatoes and three tablespoons of tomato paste, then pour in a cup or two (or three) of red wine. cover all of the ingredients now added with vegetable stock, bring to the boil and stir. lower the heat (quite low) and simmer, with the pot covered.

the longer this cooks the better it will be. i recommend at least four hours. it doesn’t need as long as a meat lasagne but still, the flavours will benefit from a good, long cooking period. once the tomatoes & the stock have come together to form a nice, rich tomato-ey (not a word) sauce, it is ready. season to taste, toss in a large handful of fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley and serve with your favourite pasta. if you are on a gluten free diet i recommend rice or quinoa pasta. if you’re not a vegan, top with lashings of fresh parmesan.

this recipe will make a generous amount. it will serve four with considerable leftovers.i love it the next day on top of a crusty piece of toasted sourdough.  

note: no animals or gluten were harmed in the making of this recipe.