Hm, after an almost 6-months silence on this blog, I don't think a lengthy explanation of why there hasn't been any post is particularly helpful. Let's just keep it short: I moved to Iraq in the meantime and have been busy with other things. This has however not kept me in the least from continuing to cook and discovering new cuisines (to be frank, there is not much to discover here). Hence it was just the action of transcribing my activities into posts that was missing.
This first recipe came along rather on its own. I was surfing through recipes on the internet and came across the idea to roast carrots in the oven. Somehow, I had never even thought of doing that. And since that discovery, I have been subjecting all kinds of vegetables to the oven-tanning treatment. Today it's zucchini and cauliflower. Two days ago it was capsicum and tomatoes. You can pretty much use any vegetable you like. In this recipe, I have added polenta and halloumi cheese in order to give the dish more substance. For those of you who do not know about polenta and/or halloumi, let me explain.
As Wikipedia describes it, polenta is "cornmeal boiled into porridge". Depending on the type , polenta can have a creamy texture (a bit like mashed potato) or be rather grainy (called "bramata" and looks like bulgur). Personally, I prefer the grainy, rougher texture. Polenta is frequently eaten in the Italian part of Switzerland (I actually assumed that this was its geographical origin but have discovered that it is also part of the Italian cuisine). Polenta can either be eaten right after preparing it (when it is still creamy) or it is baked, fried or grilled after a night in the fridge. Again, personally, I prefer to eat it fried crunchy in a deep layer of butter.
Ingredients (for 2 hungry persons; if you have polenta leftovers, use them the next day):
125g polenta bramata
60cl water
1 beef-cube (can be chicken or vegetarian of course)
200-250g Halloumi
Vegetables of your choice (2 zucchini or 8 small carrots or 1 capsicum or 2 tomatoes or a handful of cherry tomatoes or half a cauliflower...)
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs (such as basil, oregane or rosemary; include mint, if you prepare zucchini)
Preparation:
Bring the water to the boil and add the polenta and the beef-cube. Let it simmer (with the lid on, but stirring regularly) for about 40 minutes. The polenta should still be slightly grainy, but no longer "al dente".
While the polenta is cooking, cut the vegetables into thin slices (cut the carrots in half lengthwise for example). Then place them in a pyrex tray (try not to "crowd" them) and season with olive oil (be generous), garlic (cut thinly) and the herbs. Then put the tray in the oven (pre-heated at 200°C) and roast the vegetables for about 20-30 minutes (check regularly). When the vegetables are already quite tanned, cut the halloumi in slices roughly 7mm thick and place them in a non-sticky frying pan. The cheese will start sweating at first, then will turn brown. Flip it to grill both sides. If the cheese is too salty, soak it in water for a couple of hours before using it.
Serve the polenta with the vegetables and halloumi. If you have decided to wait another day to fry the polenta (this is best done by storing the polenta in a tupperware so that it is formed into a block), cut the polenta in slices of about 1cm thickness. Place a significant amount of butter (20g) in a frying pan and fry the polenta for at least 10 minutes on each side (careful, the hot butter will make the corn grains jump so cover with a lid) until golden brown and crunchy.
Sahtein!
Many people here have actually encouraged me to continue the efforts and thus I start with renewed motivation (and resolution).
As Wikipedia describes it, polenta is "cornmeal boiled into porridge". Depending on the type , polenta can have a creamy texture (a bit like mashed potato) or be rather grainy (called "bramata" and looks like bulgur). Personally, I prefer the grainy, rougher texture. Polenta is frequently eaten in the Italian part of Switzerland (I actually assumed that this was its geographical origin but have discovered that it is also part of the Italian cuisine). Polenta can either be eaten right after preparing it (when it is still creamy) or it is baked, fried or grilled after a night in the fridge. Again, personally, I prefer to eat it fried crunchy in a deep layer of butter.
Halloumi (or Halloum) is, as my grandmother calls it, "the cheese that doesn't melt". Originally from Cyprus (I would claim it is Lebanese, but don't shoot me), halloumi is a very salty (because brined), unripened cheese made of a mixture of goat, sheep and cow milk. Because of its high melting point, it can be fried or grilled without losing its form.
So, after this introduction to the ingredients, let's start with the recipe!
125g polenta bramata
60cl water
1 beef-cube (can be chicken or vegetarian of course)
200-250g Halloumi
Vegetables of your choice (2 zucchini or 8 small carrots or 1 capsicum or 2 tomatoes or a handful of cherry tomatoes or half a cauliflower...)
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs (such as basil, oregane or rosemary; include mint, if you prepare zucchini)
Preparation:
Bring the water to the boil and add the polenta and the beef-cube. Let it simmer (with the lid on, but stirring regularly) for about 40 minutes. The polenta should still be slightly grainy, but no longer "al dente".
While the polenta is cooking, cut the vegetables into thin slices (cut the carrots in half lengthwise for example). Then place them in a pyrex tray (try not to "crowd" them) and season with olive oil (be generous), garlic (cut thinly) and the herbs. Then put the tray in the oven (pre-heated at 200°C) and roast the vegetables for about 20-30 minutes (check regularly). When the vegetables are already quite tanned, cut the halloumi in slices roughly 7mm thick and place them in a non-sticky frying pan. The cheese will start sweating at first, then will turn brown. Flip it to grill both sides. If the cheese is too salty, soak it in water for a couple of hours before using it.
Serve the polenta with the vegetables and halloumi. If you have decided to wait another day to fry the polenta (this is best done by storing the polenta in a tupperware so that it is formed into a block), cut the polenta in slices of about 1cm thickness. Place a significant amount of butter (20g) in a frying pan and fry the polenta for at least 10 minutes on each side (careful, the hot butter will make the corn grains jump so cover with a lid) until golden brown and crunchy.
Sahtein!