The Family Cook Book

Joe is in exam lockdown, revising every day at the library and therefore surviving on a diet of sandwiches. I decided to make a few of the relishes and chutneys from ' what katie ate ' to give him some rather more interesting alternatives to the usual mayo and chilli sauce combo. Aubergine and pepper chutney Ingredients  1 large aubergine Olive oil, for cooking Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 3 red peppers 3  shallots, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, finely minced 250ml apple cider vinegar 110g caster sugar 1 teaspoon smoked paprika Method Preheat a barbecue or chargrill pan to hot. Cut the aubergine length-ways into 1 cm thick slices, then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill on each side until the flesh is sort of browned. Set aside to cool, then remove the skin, cut each slice into large pieces and place in a medium-sized saucepan. Preheat the oven to 160˚C fan-forced. Cut the peppers in half lengthways and re...

I served these the other night as a pre dinner snack the other night .... they went pretty quick. They are best eaten whilst they are piping hot. Heres Lucy Boyd's recipe from the lovely book ' Kitchen Memories' Serves 4 When I lived in Florence I sometimes used to go and sit and chat to Leo, who was the head barman at Harry’s Bar. He would make me a very sour whiskey sour and then produce a little plate of hot fried sandwiches, made with some sort of melting cheese and ham cut into fingers. This is very quick and easy and a delicious hot bite to have with a cocktail. 1 cup milk 6 slices of white bread such as Pugliese or San Francisco (a bread that is not too crumbly and has some elasticity to its texture), crusts removed 1 medium-size ball of good-quality mozzarella, drained and cut into slices ½cm thick 3-4 slices of prosciutto or speck (ask the deli to slice from near the end of the prosciutto, if possible, where the flavour is more intens...

This is a very easy recipe from Polpo that makes a really delicious italian style panino. Perfect for lunch. Ingredients for one panino 1/2 red onion thinly sliced 1/2 garlic clove thinly sliced 1 tbs olive oil 4 tbs peperonata from a jar (or just roast peppers from a jar if you cant get peperonata) 5 stoned black olives sliced 1 small handful capers 2 cherry tomatoes halved 1 small handful flat leaf parsley leaves chopped 1 ciabatta cut in half lengthways mayonnaise a couple of slices of coppa or salami rocket leaves method sweat the sliced red onion and garlic in the olive oil. Then add the peperonata, sliced olives, capers, tomato halves and parsley. Gently saute for 5 minutes and then remove from the heat. The mixture should be glossy, thick and beautifully coloured. Spread the insides of the ciabatta with mayonnaise. Now layer on the soft juicy pepper mixture, followed by your slices of salami. Heat up your griddle or panini press. Drizzle the top and bo...

We had this with the barbecued beef and it was delicious. I have left it art directed by Katie Quinn Davies to show just how beautiful her book and blog looks

I first tried this whilst staying with the venerable Peter Price. I did it again recently and thought it worked really well. The trick is to not hold back on any of the ingredients even though it seems like a huge amount of peppercorns and salt ... it works really well. By all means dial down the chilli factor a bit to your personal taste but dont leave them out all together. Ingredients 2 tbs pink peppercorns 2 tbs black peppercorns 2 tbs sea salt olive oil 1 x 1.5 kg piece of beef fillet 2 - 3 limes Chilli and herb gremolata large handful mint leaves finely chopped large handful flat leaf parsley finely chopped 1-2 green chillis de-seeded and finely chopped 1/4 habenero chilli finely chopped finely grated zest of a lemon method grind the peppercorns coarsely using a pestle and mortar. Add the salt and lightly crush, then tip out onto a large dinner plate or board and spread evenly. pour a little olive oil onto your hand and rub all over the beef fillet. Now...

This is the second time we have made this recipe from 'What Katie Ate'. In the book it suggests using green papaya ... even Waitrose dont sell that, so I have amended the salad to be a kind of Asian slaw affair. i think it works pretty well. We sat and ate it in the garden ... no builders and a bit of sun ... lovely. Ingredients, serves 4  1kg pork belly Sea salt (I use Maldon) Pepper Olive Oil 5 spring onions 1 long, red chilli 1 large cucumber 1 bulb fennel 3 sticks celery 1 pink lady apple large handful of shredded chinese leaf lettuce large handful coriander leaves large handful mint leaves 75gms roasted, unsalted peanuts 4 tbs rice wine vinegar 6 tsp fish sauce 4 tsp soy sauce 4 tbs lime juice 1 tbs finely grated palm sugar 1 Bird's Eye Chilli (small and strong) Sesame seeds, to garnish method the pork Pre-heat the oven to 240 degree celsius, on a fan oven. It sounds ...

Roasted fennel, red onions and sweet potatoes with couscous Treat this recipe as a blueprint for an infinite number of roast vegetable dishes. The point here is to balance slow-cooked veggies with something crisp and fresh. Ingredients 2 fennel 2 medium red onions 150ml olive oil 4 thyme sprigs 2 rosemary sprigs 1 head garlic, halved horizontally 2 medium sweet potatoes (600g in total) 20 cherry tomatoes, halved 2 tbsp lemon juice 4 tbsp small capers (roughly chopped if large) ½ tbsp maple syrup ½ tsp Dijon mustard 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (optional) Salt and black pepper Method 1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 5/190°C/375°F. cut the fennel in half and each half into 3 wedges (or four if they are particularly big) Peel the onions and cut each into six wedges. 2. Place the fennel and onions in a large mixing bowl and add 120ml of the olive oil, the thyme, rosemary, garlic, 1 tsp of salt and some pepper. Mix well and spread out in a large roasting tin. Roas...