All Seasons | Irma Green

All posts filed under “All Seasons”

11th February 2015

Fishcakes with chia & linseed crust

Another week has flown by, I have been working on an assignment and was ueber-happy to be spending some time in the kitchen rather than at my desk. This time was awarded with a real feeling of spring, the birds were singing, the light was… Read more

Fishcakes with linseed and chia crust -serves 2-3

Fishcakes
250g of leftover roast vegetables ( e.g. potatoes, carrots, parsnip, onions etc)
150g of mackerel ( tinned or fresh) – other fish works too
4-6 tbsp of ground linseeds
2-3 tbsp of ground chia seeds ( chia & linseeds can be ground together)
1 medium sized egg
1 tsp of Dijon mustard ( English mustard works fine too, but use slightly less as it is hotter)
2 shallots (finely chopped- only add if there are no onions in your roast vegetables)
Himalayan Salt & pepper to taste
honey&mustard sauce ( just mix one tbsp of mustard, 1 tsp of honey- done)
Capers to garnish ( you can add a table spoon to the fish mix if you like , its quite delicious)

Mushy peas with mint
200-300 g of frozen peas
1-2 handful of fresh mint
1-2 tbsp of ghee or butter
Himalayan salt & pepper

Kale Salad
350 g of green and red kale ( washed and torn into smaller pieces)

Lemon dressing
Juice of half a lemon
2 tbsp of cold pressed olive oil
2 tsp of balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp of Dijon or English mustard
1/2 tsp of honey
Himalayan salt&pepper to taste

Method:
Mash the left over roast vegetables, add shallots, salt, pepper, beaten egg and mix well. Then add the fish , this is best done in flaking it on top of the mashed ingredients and then carefully folding the fish into the mix, at this point fold in the capers if you are adding them .

Pre-heat the oven at 160c and lay out parchment paper on a roasting tray. Place the ground chia and linseed on a plate- season with salt and pepper. Use a large spoon to divide the mix and make equally sized balls , then one by one flatten with the palm of your hand and coat with the chia and linseed mix before placing them on the baking tray. Do this very carefully as the fishcakes are quite fragile at this point. Bake for 30-45 minutes.

Prepare the kale salad by just adding the dressing to the washed and dried leaves, best to mix in a glass bowl. Massaging the dressing in well and leave until the fishcakes are ready to be served.

A few minutes before the cakes are done, put the frozen peas in boiling water, simmer for 2-3 minutes and drain well. Add ghee or butter to the peas, salt & pepper and blend using a hand blender. You can also just mash them manually. Finely chop mint and fold under the mash and serve hot together with the fishcakes and kale salad. Garnish the fishcakes with honey & mustard sauce and capers –

Enjoy !!

4th February 2015

Root vegetable curry and a word on seasonal eating

It’s February and we had some snow this week – it was amazing to wake up to everything being covered in a big white blanket- so beautiful! The snow was a quick reminder to check out what is in season this month. Depending on weather… Read more

Root vegetable curry – serves 3-4

1- 2 cups of brown organic lentils ( soaked as instructed on package )
2 shallots ( finely chopped)
2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
2 carrots ( diced), 1/2 celeriac (cubed), 1 parsnip (diced)
2 pints of vegetable stock
Fresh ginger ( a medium sized knob – crushed )
2 dates finely chopped
1-2 tsp of turmeric
1-2 tsp of freshly ground coriander seeds
1-2 tsp of ground cumin
1/2 tsp of paprika, 1 whole medium sized dried chili (pierced)
2 tbsp of coconut oil , Himalayan salt & long pepper to taste ( you can cook a couple of snapped long peppers in the curry , it gives it some extra spiciness)

Raw kale & sprouts to garnish ( optional)

Heat up the oil in a medium sized pot, add the shallots and garlic and saute for 1 minute, lower the heat before adding all the spices, chili, dates & ginger and cook for half a minute, constantly stirring using a wooden spoon as to not burn the spices. If the pot is still very hot, take it of the hob whilst stirring. Then, add the soaked lentils continue stirring for another 1-2 minutes before adding enough vegetable stock to cover the lentils well.

Depending on the cooking time of your lentils, add the carrots, celeriac and parsnip only for the last 25minutes of the cooking process. That way they stay crunchy and keep a higher nutrient value. Towards the end, season with salt and pepper for taste. If like your curry quite spicy, tear the chili apart and stir well.

The curry is pretty delicious straight way but as most curries it will taste even better the next day, so it is the perfect packed lunch. If you like you can add some raw kale or sprouts after heating it up. Bon appetite !

8th December 2014

Beetroot, Carrot & Ginger Juice & Beetroot pulp brownies

Today is another gorgeous and sunny winter’s day in London. I just love the blue sky and low light of the winter sun. Last week was the start of the Christmas party season and I thought it would be good to send you a nice… Read more

Beetroot pulp brownies – makes 12

Juice pulp of 3 medium sized beets & 4 carrots ( ginger removed-optional)
100g unsalted butter (coconut oil for vegan recipe)
200g bar plain chocolate (70% cocoa- raw for vegan version)
1 tsp vanilla extract or 1 vanilla pod
75g dark caster sugar ( 50g of soaked dates 100ml maple sirup or agave syrup )
3 eggs ( vegan: 1 tbsp ground Flax seeds +3 tbsp Water =1 egg)
100g buckwheat flour mixed with 1 tsp of baking powder
75g cocoa powder ( raw if vegan) & 100g walnuts
Cocoa powder , icing sugar & cinnamon for topping the brownies

Method:
Heat up the beetroot and carrot pulp mix with 250ml of water, add vanilla extract and 2 tbsp of maple sirup to the mix. Once heated up set a side. Pre-heat the oven at 160c/180c fan/gas4 and layer the brownie tin with baking paper. Cut butter into small cubes, break the chocolate into small pieces and put together with hot beetroot pulp and soaked dates into a food processor or blender; blend until smooth. Next mix eggs and sugar in a large bowl for around 2 minutes until it gets a foam like consistency. Now add the beetroot chocolate mix and fold gently under the eggs using a wooden spoon, this process is not one for looks, it will turn out pretty in the end though. Add the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and fold under the batter until smooth. Make sure the flour and chocolate are sifted well as to not get a ‘bumpy’ mixture.

Finally add the walnuts ( cut into smaller pieces) and also carefully fold under. Now poor the batter into the brownie tin and bake for 25-30 minutes, check they are done using a knife, it needs to come out clean, so no batter sticking to the blade.

Leave to cool down before cutting into squares. You can sprinkle cinnamon, coco powder or some icing sugar to decorate. They are super delicious enjoyed with a chai tea or latte .

18th November 2014

Beetroot Soup

Beetroot is a not everyone’s cup of tea, either you love it or you hate it. I love them raw, juiced, pickled, cooked, baked or in form of crisps . Freshly available from July until October, they are a rich source of folic acid ,… Read more

Beetroot Soup

Beetroot Soup – serves 3-4

400g beetroot, peeled (organic if possible)
200g organic carrots, washed and sliced
1-2 tbsp coconut oil
1 small onion ( cut into small dice or rings), 3-4 small carrot (peeled and cut into slices)
1/2-1 cm of ginger ( peeled and crushed in garlic press)
1 small bay leaf , 1-2 cardamom seeds ( crushed) , 1 star anise (optional)
1-1.5l of stock ( chicken, beef or vegetable)
2-3 tbsp of turmeric, 1-2 tsp of cumin seeds , 1 whole dried chili (or 1tsp of chili powder) , 1-2 long pepper (snapped in half), as an alternative to long pepper use normal pepper corns ( 2-4)
1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
Ground black pepper & Himalayan salt to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a soup pot, add onions , ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and cardamom and saute for about a minute or 2 ( the oil gets really hot, so it’s best to take the pot off the hob for a couple of minutes, as to not burn the spices), then add carrots and beetroot, keep stirring for another minute, before adding the stock. Once the beetroot and carrot are well covered with stock , add the bay leave, the long pepper, star anise (optional), the whole dried chili (pierced) & crushed garlic.

Cook for about 25-30 minutes . You can check the cooking process sticking a knife into the beetroot and carrot, once cooked take off the hob and leave to cool down a bit.

Before blending take out the chili , star anise, bay leaf and half the pepper, as the soup will get mega spicy otherwise. You can always add more pepper and some of the chili during the blending process, keep checking for taste. I usually return bay leaf , chilli and star anise back into the blended soup, so they can keep doing their job adding flavor.

Tips for blending, if you have a glass jar blender, it ll be very easy just to blend the ingredients in that . I have a hand held blender, so I tend to cover the pot holding the lid in one hand and the blender in the other, that way you prevent beetroot splashing accidents. If the soup is quite thick, just add more stock.

Once blended, add salt and pepper for taste. The soup gets better over time, I usually like it most on day three, if there is still any left !!

To garnish add home made kale crisps and seed mix . For the seed mix : 2tbs of pumpkin seeds, 2 tbs of sunflower seeds, 4tbsp of ground flax seeds and just a dash of cinnamon – mix well. Best to use a small jar, easy to shake & mix well, plus you can keep the mix in the jar and store in the fridge to keep the oils in the flax seed fresh. If there is any left.

Other garnish ideas include goats yogurt or cheese , just a tbsp of goats yogurt or some crumbled goats cheese , topped with some seed mix. You can add rainbow trout with a little bit of horse radish on top or roast vegetables work very well too. The different garnishes make the soup a great dish for dinner parties as you can serve the soup and have the different garnishes on the table for people to help themselves to what they want as a topping- patch work soup as a starter or main course.

26th October 2014

Breggfast

Breggfast : Soft boiled egg on buttered wholemeal multi-seed toast topped with thyme and Himalayan salt ! Using all organic ingredients. On the Egg: Despite multiple reports on how bad eggs are for you, they are actually super healthy and a source of many important… Read more