Awen's Post Holi Paella + Middle Eastern Aubergine Salad

POST HOLI PAELLA
Redondo/Arborio Rice
Rainbow-coloured cauliflower
Artichokes
Frozen pea
Rocket+Spinach leftovers (mine were almost expired)
Veggie broth
Lemon juice
Salt
Rosemary+black cardadamom (these were cheating, real, Levante-style paella has no flavouring ingredients or spices, but after earning a reputation for my vegan paella in my Madrilenian years, I decided I can cheat)

Stir-fry the cauliflower and artichokes. Stir-fry the rice for a minute or until the grain is white (that isn't the traditional way, in Levante they don't stir-fry the rice--they just add it later on to the boiling broth, but I'm Veneto-Brazilian and as I said, because of I passed the paella test in Spain, I am entitled to cheat). Pour water to cover stir-fry, add broth, juice, the leaves and the pea. Add the rest to taste. Bring to a boil, then simmer until rice has soaked almost all of the liquid. Serve with oven-roasted onion rings.

MIDDLE EASTERN AUBERGINE SALAD
(my own invention inspired by something Arpad ordered at the Kebap place next to the gay sauna in Budapest last weekend)

Yellow peas from the can, or chickpea
Diced aubergines
Salt
Olive oil (Don't overdo! Aubergines absorb a lot of oil, they won't get greasy).

Dressing:
1/2 cup HONEST Tahini
2/3 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, chopped
Cilantro leaves, fresh and in abundance

Mix aubergines with salt and oil. Roast them in the oven at 175C/350F (I had the oven fan on) until aubergine is soft and golden-brown. Leave outside the window so the Beast from the East cools it down (but bring it back in before it freezes!). Mix the dressing ingredients. Mix them together with the yellow peas, and store. Pour the dressing over the base the next day, preferably just before eating.

Awen's Ploughman's

I discovered this during my adventure in London last weekend. The English are (unfairly) famous for having a boring cuisine, but this pate-like salad (adapted from the "original" by me) was a sensation last night at the "1001 Nights" theme potluck. I told two H. C. Andersen tales with it (Twelve Wild Swans and Little Match Girl). Legend has it that this recipe was invented sometime betwixt the 50s and the 60s to boost cheese sales, so you're basically free to change, substitute, fix and mess up with all ingredients, but I do encourage you to use cheese and pickled onions every time--they're the traditional part of the recipe.

Ingredients:

250g Gouda cheese (the traditionals are mature Cheddar and Red Leicester)
~ 200g pickled onions
~ 200g pickled cucumber
1 cucumber or gherkin
1 iceberg lettuce
100g Cream (I used soy-based vegan cream, but you can use even mayo)
A handful mustard seeds
Salt and white pepper
Sliced wholemeal bread

Mince or cut in very small pieces half of the lettuce and the rest of the ingredients. I used a food processor. Then season and mix with the cream. Leave the other half of the lettuce to serve on the bread. Serve cool-cold.

Awen's Pilaf

1 cebolla picada
Oil
375g de arroz grano largo (Basmati, etc.)
Azafrán o cúrcuma
50g de maíz dulce
1 pimiento rojo, sin semillas y picado pequeño
1 cucharadita garam massala en polvo (llamado "curry" en España)
2 gotitas de salsa de chile habanero verde
Ramitas de un brécol
Medio litro de caldo vegetal (quizá un poco más)
Nueces picadas
90-100g de pasas
Sal
...pero en realidad todo eso es sostituible por lo que haya en la nevera!

Para la salsa: tres vasitos de yogur natural de soja, 2 cucharadas de hierbabuena fresca picada, una cucharada de pimienta cayena molida (o un pelín más--el yogur suaviza la cayena)

Calentar el aceite en una sartén y agregar la cebolla y el arroz. Rehogar de 3 a 4 minutos removiendo. Añadir el resto de los ingredientes y llevar a ebulición. Bajar el fuego y hervir 30 minutos más, removiendo de vez en cuando y hasta que el arroz esté tierno y el líquido se haya consumido.

Mezclar todos los ingredientes de la salsa el dia anterior, servir con el pilaf y una ensalada.

Awen's Birthday Paella!

Empiezando aqui, seguir pinchando en la siguiente foto. Las instrucciones están en los captions.

Hoy día, las paellas que yo hago llevan de verdura sólo alcachofas, champiñones, pimiento rojo y muchísima coliflor. A veces echo judías verdes, garrafó y alubias blancas, de este paquete congelado del Mercadona.

Buen provecho!

Awen's Simple Rösti

1. Cook about 8 potatoes in steam the previous night and fridge them overnight. I like to fridge them for 24 hours, but you might be happy with only 8. I steam the potatoes for about 12-15 minutes, as I don't really like them overcooked--it makes it difficult to grate them the following day and the final product is less visually appealing. The quantity of potatoes really depends on the hunger, number of guests you're going to feed and the size of your frying pan for the following day.

2. The next day, when they're already stiff and cold, grate them thick.

3. Melt butter or warm a lot of oil in a frying pan (say, 1/4 cup). If you're doing a simple rösti without filling, you may use a large pan, otherwise, it's better to use a small frying pan. Put the grated potato in the pan and let it fry.

4. When you see the bottom is fried/cooked/hard/glued together, flip the rösti. You may do it tortilla-style, with a plate. Or, if it's small enough, just flip it like a crêpe, with a spoon or spatula.

5. When it's fried on what is now the bottom, just flip it again and put away from the fire. It's done.

Serve it with a sauce, salad and/or sunny-side-up (fried eggs). You may fill it with almost anything you want if on Step 2 you put just half of the potatoes, then the filling, then the other half of potatoes, much like a sandwich.