Wednesday 31 July 2013

Food Obsession?


Not that I am obsessed with food, but this quick lunch seemed worth taking a picture of. It is one of those days when you go to the fridge looking for some inspiration and find it waiting for you - last night's left over potatoes, some garlic butter I made for a barbecue the other night but made too much, some mizuna leaves from the garden and a few marinated anchovies. I simply sautéed the potatoes up with some of the garlic butter, salted them at the last minute and popped it all in a plate. A blob of mayonnaise later and lunch was ready to go. 

Enjoying a nice lunch also seems to be about serving it on a nice plate and taking time away from the computer. It is so easy to work through next to the laptop, but I'm sure if you make your lunch break a treat, you get more work done in the afternoon. 

Friday 19 July 2013

Lights, Camera, Action.

It is an exciting day at fig1 HQ today - we've just taken delivery of these new "film lights" from Nkuku. We choose them partially with the intention of having one for the kitchen here as the colour is a close match for the accent colour we choose for the kitchen. It has been over a year since I started a major renovation on the house here, and finding these finishing touches is really exciting. I'm loving having bits I've chosen for fig1.co.uk out on display and looking great. It is great to get the chance to choose bits of the collection I've curated for the shop to display at home. The combinations of materials - copper and mango wood - and the patterned surfaces of the House Doctor storage boxes is really beginning to work now in this corner of the kitchen.

When I started the renovation I really wanted everything to be planned with a place to live, so that things are easily accessible but also so that the objects I want to see around me are readily visible. Good storage and beautiful functional objects really make that achievable - what I definitely didn't want was a completely minimalist house where nothing at all was visible, but what is on display should look colourful and interesting. I'm really pleased with the way it has come together.

Thursday 18 July 2013

Making Pesto...



















I love keeping pesto made in the fridge at this time of year. Our local green grocers does large bunches of basil at a really good price at this time of the year. I make a big bunch of it up into pesto and then use it on tomatoes (which I like to keep out of the fridge so they are really tasty), fresh pasta with sautéed courgettes or with just to dress up shop bought hummus and lunchtime sandwiches.

If I have time I get the pestle and mortar out to make it as bruising the basil leaves in that gives it more flavour, but if not I simply chuck the basil in the blender with a couple of cloves of garlic and chop it find, then add about the same weight of grated Parmesan and toasted pine nuts, together with a good slug of olive oil. Blend again but leave a bit of texture, then jar it up with a layer of olive oil on top to preserve it.

Photo credits

Mango wood chair and chopping board by House Doctor. The chairs we only ordered for fig1 HQ but we can order them in. Copper lidded jars by House Doctor as well - we love the copper and mango wood combination - pretty much my inspiration for the fig1 kitchen at the moment. The bowl the tomatoes are in is a favourite from Rice - I keep going on about the retro two tone colour combination of these jars, but I've hidden the inside in these picture a little!


Wednesday 17 July 2013

Hot dressed salads


The quality of veg at this time of year always gets us inspired in the fig1.co.uk kitchen. I always keep a quantity of salad dressing made up in the fridge ready for going over whatever ingredients I can find. And peas and beans are some of my favourite ingredients - I've been dressing them hot with potatoes and some chopped tomato. You don't have to eat it hot even but if it is dressed while the beans or peas are still hot they really soak up the flavour.

The mint on the balcony seems to be in full flow today so I have chopped some mint and parsley up, shelled some peas (a fair few of which I ate whilst shelling them) and boiled a bag of Charlotte potatoes. Whilst they are on the go I've finely diced a couple of tomatoes and a shallot, added the herbs and some balsamic and olive oil dressing I already had made up. When the spuds are nearly cooked I'll add the peas in, then once they are finished I'll drain them add them hot into the bowl. I have to nip out later, but this will be ready to eat with some pan fried fish when I get back.

Sometimes I like to add some chopped olives, capers, piquant peppers or whatever else I have in jars in the fridge for extra flavour - a particularly good way of making this kind of thing nice and tasty in the winter when the tomatoes aren't so good and the peas are frozen. 

Hints and tips

  • Give the potatoes a good shake in the colander when draining them - I hate it when you find the potatoes are still full of water as you tip them into the dressing! 
  • Don't be tempted to rinse the spuds when you drain them - they will cool right down and won't absorb the flavour
  • To make a really good dressing, I always properly crush some garlic and add a good spoon of Dijon mustard. Then either some balsamic or wine vinegar. Depending on what you choose you may also need some sugar, but taste it as you go. Then as you whisk, little by little, add about 4 times as much olive oil as vinegar. If you do this slowly and whisk enough you get a thick, goopy emulsion rather than a layer of oil and a layer of vinegar. It might need some practice but I prefer dressing like that and I usually use an electric whisk and wear an apron if I'm doing it - hence I then make lots and keep it in a jar in the fridge so I don't have to do it all the time!

Pictures

Today we were using the two tone Portuguese tableware by Rice to cook with - it's the joy of having your own shop - you can own a lot of different crockery. This new range from Rice is really colourful and quirky, it gives a little extra pleasure to eating. Plus Rice are bringing out some new designs soon!