Shakshuka

Shakshuka is an Israeli breakfast dish consisting of eggs poached in a sauce of peppers and tomato. In recent years it has become more famous and found it's way into many new restaurants and cafes around the world. Here's how to make it yourself.

Serves 2

Ingredients
olive oil
1 teaspoon harissa paste
1 onion
1 red pepper
1 yellow red pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 tin tomatoes
4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
salt
pepper
4 tablespoons Greek yoghurt, to serve
coriander or parsley leaves to serve, optional
crispy bread or pita's, to serve

Method
Slice the onion and peppers into thin strips and finely chop the garlic.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Fry the peppers and onions for about 10 minutes, adding the garlic for the last minute. Add the harissa, cumin and smoked paprika powder to the pan and fry for a further 3 minutes.

Add the tin of tomatoes, salt, pepper and 100 ml water to the pan. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Make 4 ‘wells’ in the sauce. Gently crack the eggs into the wells. Place a lid over the pan and cook over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes until the egg whites have set and the yolks are still soft. Swirl the egg white through the sauce using a fork so that it sets quicker, if you wish. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the Greek yoghurt in small bowl and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Divide the sauce and eggs between 2 plates. Serve with the Greek yoghurt. Delicious served with fresh bread or pita.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours


Preserved Spicy Lemons

This is a recipe we've adapted slightly from the beautiful cookbook Honey & Co. by Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich.

Ingredients
5 small lemons, unwaxed
3 Tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon smoked chilli flakes
olive oil to cover

Method
Slice the lemons as thinly as you can, removing any pips. Place the lemon slices in a bowl and sprinkle with the salt and smoked chilli flakes. Allow to sit for about 30 minutes and room temperature.

Push the lemon slices into a sterilised jar so that they re tightly packed with all the liquid that has formed in the bowl. Add enough olive oil so that they are covered  and seal the jar. They can be used the next day, but improve over time. Once the jar has been opened, store in the fridge and use within a month.

When you use them for cooking, take as much as you need out of the jar. Chop and use the entire lemon slice - you don't need to discard the flesh. They can be used as a relish with fish or chicken , chopped through a flavoured butter or try mixing through some mayonnaise to serve with our Roast duck salad.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours

 


The Perfect Cheese Omelette

A prefect omelette is easy to achieve and makes for a perfect lunch or light meal. Here's our way to do it.

Serves 2

Ingredients
6 free range or organic eggs
salt and pepper
about 50 g goats or truffle cheese, grated
butter
bread, to serve
salad, to serve

Method

Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a good non-stick frying pan over medium heat with a knob of butter.

Once the butter begins to foam, pour in the beaten eggs. As the egg begins to set on the base, pull it from the outer part to the center with a spatula. That way you ensure that the omelette will be light, blonde in colour and still be soft (or baveuse) in the centre. Now is the time to add the grated cheese, leaving some back to sprinkle over at the end. Reduce the heat at this point if you feel it's cooking too fast.

With the spatula, fold over a small section of the omelette, tilting the pan as you do, so that the omelette folds over itself, becoming neat and folded in the corner of the pan. Grab your serving plate in one hand and the frying pan in the other and carefully, but with confidence, turn the omelette on to the plate. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve with salad of your choice dressed with a little olive oil and some delicious bread.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours

 


Plenty More - Yotam Ottolenghi

As most of you know by now, we are HUGE Ottolenghi fans. We love his creative use of simple ingredients, especially vegetables and is combinations of Middle Eastern spices.

Plenty More has been out for a while now. It's the sequel to Ottolenghi's immensely popular Plenty. The book has been categorised into cooking methods, again with the most tantalising and beautifully photographed recipes.

The best way to review a book, in our opinion, is to cook out of it. And that's just what we did! We made the Fig Salad for lunch and it was just delicious. Here is the recipe:

Yotam Ottolenghi's Fig Salad

Ingredients
2 small red onions (200g in total)
3 Tablespoons olive oil
50g hazelnuts, skin on
60g radicchio leaves, roughly torn
40g basil
6 large ripe figs (300g in total)
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
salt and black pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 220 C.

Peel and halve the onions, lengthways and cut each half into 3cm-wide wedges. Mix together with 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil, a pinch of salt and some black pepper and spread out on a baking tray. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, stirring once or twice during cooking, until the onions are soft and golden and turning crispy in parts. Remove and set aside to cool before pulling the onions apart with your hands into bite-sized chunks.

Reduce the oven temperature to 160 C. Scatter the hazelnuts on a small roasting tray and toast for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and, when cool enough to handle, roughly crush with the flat side of a large knife.

Assemble the salad on four individual plates. Mix the three leaves together and place a few on the bottom of each plate. Cut the figs lengthways into four or six pieces. Place a dew fig pieces and some roasted onion on the leaves. Top with more leaves and continue with the remaining fig and onion. You want to build up the salad into a small pyramid.

In a small cup, whisk together the remaining olive oil, vinegar and cinnamon with a pinch of salt and some black pepper. Drizzle this over the salad, finish with the hazelnuts and serve.

Chefs Notes
We loved the salad, fresh, sweet and full of flavour. We think it can do with a little mor roasted onion, but that's a personal preference.

Publisher: Fontaine Uitgevers

Author: Yotam Ottolenghi

Price: 29,95 euro

 


Spicy Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi is an unsual vegetable which isn't well known. You've probably seen at at the green grocers but have never know what to do with it. Well, here's an easy and flavour vegetarian recipe with kohlrabi as the star.

Serves 4

Ingredients
1,3 kg kohlrabi
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 heaped teaspoon turmeric
3 cloves garlic
1 red chilli pepper
6-8 tomatoes
small bunch coriander
300 g basmati rice
4 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Method
Bring a small pot of salted water to the boil for the rice. Slice the ends off the kohlrabi and peel. Cut each into 8 pieces. Finely slice the chilli into rings and finely chop the garlic. Cube the tomatoes.

Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 4 tablespoons olive oil to the pan, followed by the chilli pepper and garlic. Fry briefly and then add the kohlrabi. Fry for 1 minute. Add the cubed tomatoes.

Add the cumin seeds and turmeric, a pinch of salt and 150 ml water to the pan. Cover with a lid and cook gently for 20-30 minutes until the kohlrabi is tender (the point of a knife should pierce through easily).

Add the rice to the small pan and boil for 8-10 minutes. Drain off the water and keep the rice warm.

Finely chop the coriander and stir half through the rice. Place the rice in a serving bowl.

Divide the spicy kohlrabi between 4 plates. Scatter with the remaining coriander and serve the rice on the side.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours


Roasted heritage beetroot

Get your beet on! As a side for dinner tonight, try roasting some heritage beetroot. Line an oven tray with a long piece of foil. Lay on the beet, add some whole, unpeeled garlic cloves, thyme, bay, olive oil, salt and pepper. Wrap up loosely with the foil and bake in the oven at 200C for about an hour or until the beets are tender. Peel and serve with a protein of your choice or turn into a salad with a vinaigrette, some herbs and goats cheese.


Weekend Lunch

Before you go to the market this weekend and restock your fridge with fresh produce, use up the vegetables you have left in the fridge for lunch. Here are 2 easy ways:

Roasted Vegetables
Heat the oven to 200 C. Roughly chop and aubergine, red pepper, courgette and a couple of red onions. Toss them in a roasting dish with some fresh thyme and a couple of whole, unpeeled garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for about 20-30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and tinged with a golden hue. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Aubergine Spread
Take 2 aubergines, and chop them into 1 cm cubes. Heat a griddle pan over medium-high heat. Toss the aubergine cubes in olive oil and grill until tender and coloured. Season with salt and pepper. Place half in a food processor with a couple of tablespoons good mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Pulse to a chunky puree. Transfer to a bowl and fold the remaining aubergine pieces through. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

 


Parsnip Chips

Parsnips are in season at the moment. Instead of roasting, mashing or making soup out of them, why not turn them into chips.

It couldn't be simpler. Take a bunch of parsnips and wash off any dirt. Peel them with a vegetable peeler and top and tail them. Using the vegetable peeler, take long, thin strips, the entire length of the parsnip. You could also slice them into rounds on a mandolin if you have one, but please watch out for your fingers!

Heat a pan with sunflower oil to deep fry, or use a deep fryer set at 170 C. When the oil is hot, deep fry the parsnips. Don't over load the pan, but rather do it in batches. Also, make sure the oil is not too hot - parsnips contain a lot of natural sugars and therefore can brown very quickly. Once they're a lovely light golden colour, remove with a slotted spoon onto some kitchen paper to drain. Repeat until all the parsnips have been used up. Season with salt. They can be stored for a day or two in an airtight container.

Parsnip chips make a great textural garnish, adding some crunch, to any meat main dish from beef, chicken to game. They also make a great snack with drinks.  So much better than supermarket chips and a great way to impress your friends!

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours


Pumpkin Salad

This recipe is inspired by one of our favourite chefs of the moment, Yotam Ottolenghi.

Serves 4

Ingredients
2 medium butternut, halved, seeds removed and each half cut into thirds (peel the skin off if you like, but we tend not to)
3 red onions, cut into wedges
50 ml olive oil, plus extra to drizzle over the salad
4 Tablespoons white tahini (available from health food shops)
lemon juice, to taste
1 garlic cloves, crushed
50 g pine nuts
2 Tablespoons za'atar (a Middle Eastern spice mix of dried thyme, sumac and sesame seeds)
small bunch flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
50 g rocket leaves
50 g baby spinach

Method
Preheat the oven to 220C.

Place the butternut and onion on an oven tray, add 40 ml olive oil, salt, pepper and the za'atar. Spread out evenly and roast for about 30-40 minutes until the vegetables have coloured and are cooked through. Keep an eye on the onions that they don't burn. Set aside to cool.

Make the dressing by mixing the tahini with lemon juice to taste, 2-3 tablespoons water, garlic and salt. Whisk until the sauce is the consistency of cream.

Heat a frying pan with the remaining 10 ml olive oil over medium heat and fry the pine nuts until golden. Transfer to a bowl to cool.

To serve, place the roasted pumpkin and onions on a serving dish. Drizzle over the tahini dressing and sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley. Top with the rocket and spinach leaves, drizzle with olive oil and serve.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours


Pear and Saffron Chutney

Autumn is the prefect time to use pears, which are fully in season. Other than poaching or roasting them, why not turn them into a chutney. This also makes a great gift to give to others.

This recipe has been adapted from renowned British chef, Jason Atherton.

Makes about 1 kg

Ingredients
160 g onions, diced (about 2 onions, depending on their size)
200 g apples, peeled, cored and diced (about 2 apples)
200 g sultanas or golden raisins
1 Tablespoon orange zest
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
40 g finely chopped fresh ginger
200 ml white wine vinegar
1 kg pears, peeled, cored and diced
350 g caster sugar
¼ teaspoon saffron threads, infused in 1 Tablespoon warm water

Method
Place all the ingredients except for the pears, sugar and saffron in a large pot. Bring to the boil, stirring often and cook until the liquid has reduced by two-thirds. Add the sugar and the saffron and cook for further 5 minutes.

Add the pears and cook gently, uncovered for about 1-2 hours or until the chutney is thick and syrupy. The chutney is ready when you can draw a line across the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.

Spoon the chutney into sterilized jars and seal while still hot. Store in a cool place.

We also make the pear chutney ourselves. Please contact us if you like to order. Subject to availability.

We, the Amsterdam Flavours chefs, hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you have any questions on how to prepare it or just want to send us your feedback, you can reach us here Contact Amsterdam Flavours