Xmas lunch no 1 - Roast rib of beef grandma style

On Sunday we had our first Xmas lunch with both grandmas and one great Aunt .... unfortunately we won't see them on the day itself.
We cooked a rib of beef for the first time (amazing I know) ... or at least we think its the first time.... anyway we used a Jamie Oliver recipe from his second book.
A very hung-over Gus cooked the Yorkshires (Jamie's thirty minute recipe) and we also did green beans and glazed carrots (Jamie's 30 minute recipes)
It was pretty damn delicious!


Happy Xmas!


Ingredients

Serves 8 - 10

* 1 (5 1/2 lb/ 2.5 kgs) rib of beef, French trimmed
* sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
* olive oil
* 3 red onions, halved
* 2 heads garlic, plus
* 4 garlic cloves, peeled
* 3 kgs roasting potatoes, peeled and cut into golf ball size pieces
* half a bottle of robust red wine


method

1. Preheat oven to 230 degrees, and heat a large thick-bottomed roasting tray on the hob.
2. Rub the beef generously with salt, then add a little olive oil to the tray and lightly color the meat for a couple of minutes on all sides.
3. Lay the onions and bulbs of garlic in the tray with the beef on top of them, then cook in the pre-heated oven for a total of 1 1/2 hours.
4. While the beef is roasting, parboil your potatoes in salted boiling water for around 10 minutes and drain in a colander. Toss about to chuff them up, this will make them really crispy.
5. After 30 minutes, take the tray out and toss in your potatoes and rosemary. With a garlic press or grater, squeeze or grate the cloves of garlic over everything in the tray.
6. Shake the tray and whack it back in the oven for the final hour. Remove the potatoes to a dish to keep warm, place the beef on a plate, covered with foil, to rest, and get your greens and Yorkshire puddings on.
7. Remove most of the fat from your roasting tray and you should be left with caramelized onions and sticky beef goodness.
8. Add 1 teaspoon of flour to the tray and mash everything together. Heat the tray on the hob and when hot, add the red wine. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until your gravy is really tasty and coats back of a spoon. Add any juice from the beef and add some stock and veg juice to thin the gravy.
9. Pour through a coarse sieve, pushing it through with a spoon, and serve in a warmed gravy jug.

Piquillo peppers ... cheats Tapas

One of the other Tapas style starters that we 'cooked' on Saturday was this very simple recipe for marinading a jar of piquillo peppers .... this is a great thing to do when you are in a rush


Ingredients

1 jar of piquillo peppers
1 clove garlic ... very finely sliced ... I use a small mandoline
Extra virgin olive oil
Sherry vinegar
Ciabatta, sourdough bread or home made flatbread

method

A really quick recipe that tastes great … whip them out of the jar,drain, tear into three, then mix with the garlic, a few tablespoons of olive oil and a dash of sherry vinegar.. leave to marinate for at least an hour.

fab

Hummus with ground lamb and pine nuts. Sounds strange tastes sublime

We had eight for dinner on Saturday night and yet again turned to the excellent Moro cookbooks for a bit of middle eastern/Spanish/ Moorish inspiration.

This recipe received pretty good reviews from all diners (and the kids when we re-made it the following day!)

Ingredients

200 g (7 oz) chickpeas, soaked overnight with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda (I used canned chickpeas instead.)
6 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 large Spanish onion, diced finely
1/3 tsp ground cinnamon
juice of 1 lemon
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed to a paste with salt
3-4 tbsp tahini paste
170g (6 oz) lamb, minced
2 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted
1 medium bunch flat leaf parsley
a sprinkling of paprika
salt & pepper

Method

Rinse the chickpeas under cold water, then place in a large saucepan. Fill with 2L of cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, skimming off any scum as it builds up. Cook for 1.5-2 hours, or until the skins are tender. Remove from heat, pour off excess liquid until level with the chickpeas, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat half the olive oil over low to medium heat and fry the onion, stirring occasionally, until golden and sweet. Remove from heat and add the cinnamon.

To make the hummus, drain the chickpeas, keeping aside the cooking liquid. Blend in a food processor with a little of the cooking liquid. When smooth, add the lemon juice, garlic, tahini, and the rest of the olive oil. Add salt and pepper, and some more liquid if necessary. Taste for seasoning and spread the hummus on a plate.

Place a frying pan over high heat. When hot, add the caramelised onion and its oil, and then the lamb. Break up the lamb as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper. When the lamb begins to crisp, add the pinenuts and transfer immediately to the hummus. Serve with parsley leaves and paprika sprinkled on top, and plenty of flatbread or pita.