Home Made: Good, honest food made easy. Tana Ramsay
as the onion
2 sticks of celery, diced to same size as the onion
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
400ml/14fl oz chicken stock
1 red chilli, left whole
2 bay leaves
400g tin of cannellini beans, drained through a sieve and then rinsed
20g pack each of fresh flat-leaf parsley and coriander, leaves roughly chopped
zest and juice of 1 lemon
salt and black pepper
Serves: 4
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: about 1 hour
10 minutes
1 Warm the oil in a large enamel casserole dish with a tight-fitting lid on a medium heat and gently brown the chicken pieces on all sides, skin side first. When they are a rich golden colour, remove and put to one side.
2 Add the onion, carrots and celery and fry in the oil until just beginning to soften. Add the garlic and stir for a further minute, then return the chicken pieces to the casserole.
3 Pour in the tomatoes and stock and bring to the boil. Pop the whole chilli and bay leaves into the casserole and, using a spoon, push them under the surface of the liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Put on the lid, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in the cannellini beans, replace the lid and cook for a further 20 minutes.
4 When the cooking time is up, stir in the chopped parsley and coriander, the lemon zest and lemon juice. Serve immediately in warm flat bowls.
WHY NOT TRY …
With any leftovers, take the chicken off the bone and serve the stew with a baked potato.
Stuffed chicken breasts with mozzarella and basil
This is a very easy but impressive dish, simple, tasty and fresh. I love chicken Kiev but find this a little more exciting and slightly less potent.
1 tsp olive oil plus extra for greasing and drizzling
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 baby vine tomatoes
40g/11/2oz mozzarella cheese
1 tsp chopped capers
sprig of fresh basil, torn
1 egg, beaten
75g/3oz dried breadcrumbs
salt and black pepper
Serves: 2
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
1 Preheat the oven to 190°/375°F/GM5. Lightly grease an oven tray.
2 Slit the chicken breasts open horizontally to make a pocket, being careful not to cut all the way through.
3 Place the tomatoes, mozzarella, capers and basil in a bowl, drizzle over the oil and add a grinding of black pepper and salt to taste.
4 Fill each chicken breast with the mixture, close the pocket and secure with a cocktail stick.
5 Pour the beaten egg into a large flattish bowl ready to dip the breasts into. Tip the breadcrumbs onto a large plate or tray. Coat the chicken breasts with the beaten egg, then turn them in the breadcrumbs, ensuring all sides are evenly coated (see Why Not Try …). Drizzle a little oil over both sides of the stuffed breasts.
6 Place the chicken breasts on the oven tray and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, turning over halfway through cooking, until golden brown. Ensure the chicken is cooked through. Remove the cocktail sticks and serve.
WHY NOT TRY …
This is a great dish to make in advance and leave in the fridge for a few hours once you have coated the chicken. The breadcrumbs tend to stick better if they are refrigerated at this stage.
Serve with a rocket salad simply dressed with balsamic vinaigrette for a delicious main course.
I’ve always liked eating outdoors, whether in the garden at home or out on a picnic, as there’s something really casual and laid back about this kind of food. So if the weather’s dry and not too cold, we’ll take our food outside. The children love having picnics – even if it’s just in the garden – and they’re much more relaxed, too, so it’s a good time to introduce them to new foods that they might not otherwise eat. I find children are more adventurous if they are eating with their fingers, and it’s a great excuse to ditch the cutlery.
I have to confess that I’m not a great fan of barbecues, though, because in my experience the food always seems to end up overcooked or burnt. There’s a definite knack to barbecuing, and it’s all to do with getting the heat at the right temperature, so I tend to leave it to the experts (like my South African brother-in-law, Jonty). What I mean by eating outdoors is having simple meat, chicken, or fish dishes with salads, or cold food that can be served without having to keep going in and out of the kitchen.
Chilled gazpacho soups, salads, quiches and pâtés can all be prepared ahead and served Mediterranean-style alongside platters of sliced meats, grilled vegetables, cheeses and fresh bread. It’s a brilliant, informal kind of lunch that can be slapped on a board and left on the table for friends or family to help themselves. This is what lazy, hazy summer days are all about – the kids running around in the sunshine while we sit back and watch, casually picking at the food in front of us with no need to rush.
Maybe there is a reason why a recipe becomes a cliché – it’s so delicious that it’s cooked far too often. For me, the combination of bacon, chicken, mushrooms and baby onions, slowly cooked in red wine, will always be a winner. That’s why I think recipes like this need to be dusted off and handed on to the next generation. This is how I’ve always made it.
1 medium chicken, weighing about 1.4kg/3lb, jointed into 6 pieces, then breasts cut in half (or 2 breasts, cut in half widthways, plus 2 thighs and 2 drumsticks)
25g/1oz butter
1 tbsp olive oil
300g/11oz shallots, peeled (see Why Not Try …)
150g/5oz rashers of unsmoked streaky bacon, cut into small slices
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 rounded tbsp plain flour
200ml/7fl oz red wine
300ml/10fl oz chicken stock (or 300ml/10fl oz water with a good-quality chicken stock cube)
250g/9oz button mushrooms, stalks trimmed
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