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Toast the panko crumbs in a dry pan till golden, then toss with the chopped parsley and togarashi. Slide the squash back into the sauce for a couple of minutes, sprinkle with the parsley crumbs, then serve.
• The sauce is based on a classic katsu, which flatters the sweetness of the butternut. You can turn up the heat if you wish with a little more togarashi seasoning or even a splash of chilli sauce.
• The warmly spiced sauce is also worth trying with baked aubergine or roasted parsnips.
• Togarashi, the Japanese spice mix, can be found in major supermarkets, Japanese food shops and online.
BUTTERNUT, FETA, EGGS (#ulink_ba9d999e-438e-5737-af56-2e5ab2d9909d)
Crisp, light, sweet, salty.
Makes 9 fritters. Serves 3
butternut squash 300g
garlic 2 cloves
groundnut oil
eggs 2
feta cheese 200g
plain flour 4 tablespoons
thyme leaves, chopped 1 tablespoon
parsley, chopped 3 heaped tablespoons
groundnut or vegetable oil, for deep frying
Peel and remove the seeds from the butternut squash. Push the squash through a spiraliser to give long, thin strings.
Peel the garlic and thinly slice it. Warm a little groundnut oil in a large, shallow pan, then add the garlic, let it sizzle for a couple of minutes then, as it starts to colour, drop in the squash and fry for five or six minutes till the colours are bright and the squash is tender but far from falling apart.
Separate the eggs. Make a batter by mixing together the egg yolks, crumbled feta cheese, plain flour, a grinding of black pepper and the chopped thyme leaves and parsley. Beat the egg whites till frothy, then fold into the batter. Toss the threads of butternut with the batter.
Warm enough groundnut oil in a deep, heavy pan to fry the fritters. When the oil is at 180°C, take a large spoonful of the batter-coated butternut and lower into the hot oil. Repeat with a further three or four, frying for three or four minutes till crisp and golden in colour. As each fritter is ready, remove with a draining spoon and rest on kitchen paper. Continue with spoonfuls of the batter until you have nine fritters. Serve hot.
• So good are these little fritters that I have tried them with other vegetables too, including shredded courgette (a success) and beetroot (less so). It is worth having something to dip them into, such as a cucumber, mint and yoghurt dip or a bowl of especially creamy hummus.
EGGS, EDAMAME, BEAN SPROUTS (#ulink_8d08a72c-d5a1-5ad2-85b3-df4c8add85ee)
A soft pillow of egg. A tangle of vegetables.
Serves 2
edamame beans, podded 200g
spring onions 8
pak choi 200g
garlic 3 cloves
large green chillies 2
groundnut oil 4 tablespoons
bean sprouts 200g
eggs 6
nigella seeds 2 teaspoons
coriander a handful
Bring a pan of water to the boil, add the edamame and boil till tender – about eight minutes. Drain and refresh in a bowl of iced water.
Finely chop the spring onions, discarding the roots and any tough dark green leaves. Shred the pak choi. Peel and thinly slice the garlic. Finely slice the chillies.
Warm half the groundnut oil in a large, shallow pan, fry the spring onions, garlic and chillies till soft, then add the shredded pak choi and lastly the bean sprouts, tossing them in the hot oil and cooking for three or four minutes till softened.
Break the eggs into a bowl and beat them lightly with a fork. Add the cooked and drained edamame, the fried vegetables and aromatics. Season with a little sea salt and black pepper and fold in the nigella seeds and coriander.
Warm the remaining oil in a large metal-handled frying pan, pour in the omelette mixture and fry over a moderate heat for about eight minutes, until the edges have set and the middle is still almost liquid. Heat the oven grill. Place the frying pan under the grill and continue cooking for two or three minutes until the centre of the omelette is lightly set. (Ideally, it should be a little baveuse, verging on the point of setting.) Cut in half and serve.
• To the basic mixture you can add pretty much any vegetable you have to hand, from fried mushrooms to steamed shredded cabbage. The cooking time is brief, so most vegetables will have to be lightly cooked first. Brassicas such as long-stemmed sprouting broccoli work very well, as do any late autumn beans. I especially like steamed mustard greens.
FENNEL, PEAS, HALLOUMI (#ulink_2ddeadb4-3114-5d5f-b4e7-ae723afaf294)
Fresh green flavours for a golden autumn day.
Serves 2
fennel 300g
olive oil 3 tablespoons
halloumi 250g
For the dressing:
frozen peas 250g
basil leaves 30g
mint leaves 20g
olive oil 150ml
Trim and thinly slice the fennel, no thicker than a pound coin. Warm the 3 tablespoons of oil in your largest frying pan, place the fennel in the pan in a single layer, then season lightly and cook until the fennel is light gold on the underside. Turn each piece over and continue cooking until soft and translucent.
Slice the halloumi into pieces slightly thicker than the fennel and place them in the pan, tucking them in wherever there is a gap, overlapping where there isn’t. Let the cheese toast and turn patchily gold.
Put the frozen peas in a colander and run them under the cold tap for a few minutes till they have defrosted. Let them drain. Whizz the peas, basil and mint leaves and the oil in a food processor till almost smooth – a slightly rough texture is good – then spoon over the cheese and fennel and serve. If you have a few fennel fronds, add them at the very end.
JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES, PISTACHIOS, GRAPES (#ulink_c7013c27-cfa2-5a8b-a008-c53c5315a306)
Golden carbs. Black grapes.
Serves 2–3
a lemon
Jerusalem artichokes 200g
shallots, small 6
black grapes 150g
olive oil 3 tablespoons
golden sultanas 4 tablespoons
shelled pistachios 4 tablespoons
parsley leaves a handful
Halve the lemon and squeeze the juice into a bowl. Peel the Jerusalem artichokes, then cut into rounds approximately 0.5cm thick. Put the artichokes into the bowl with the lemon juice and toss together. This will prevent them going brown.
Peel the shallots and cut them in half from stem to root. Halve and deseed the grapes. Warm the olive oil in your largest shallow pan. Add the artichokes and shallots to the hot oil, turning them over when their underside is golden and they are starting to soften.
As the artichokes become tender, add the grapes and sultanas and lastly, the pistachios and parsley.
• Small potatoes can successfully replace the artichokes. You could also use parsnips. I find it best to use parsnips that have been steamed for ten minutes before frying. They are more tender that way.
• Should you find it easier, you can roast the artichokes instead of frying them, adding the remaining ingredients to the pan once the artichokes are golden.
MUSHROOMS, HUMMUS, HERBS (#ulink_e42b82ea-3979-5b0c-a9fc-218680978e2c)
Creamed chickpeas. Sizzling mushrooms.
Serves 2
double cream 250ml
chickpeas 1 × 400g can
coriander leaves and stems 10g
dill 15g
parsley 10g
king oyster mushrooms 400g
olive oil 4 tablespoons
butter 30g
garlic 4 cloves
Warm the cream and drained chickpeas in a medium-sized saucepan for five minutes over a moderate heat. Tip them into a blender or food processor with the coriander, dill and parsley and process to a thick cream. Transfer back to the saucepan and season.
Slice the mushrooms into 1cm-thick pieces. Warm the olive oil and butter in a shallow pan, add the slices of mushroom and cook till golden on both sides. You may need to add a little more oil. As each mushroom browns, remove to a plate or piece of kitchen paper.
Peel and thinly slice the garlic, cook briefly in the pan until it turns gold, then return all the mushrooms to the pan. Warm the hummus, spoon onto plates, then add the sizzling mushrooms and garlic.
• Mushrooms, fried with butter and garlic, are just one possibility here; the soft, herb-speckled purée lends itself to sitting under deep-fried artichokes or roast parsnips, baked tomatoes or wedges of baked cabbage.
• Such purées can be made and kept in a small bowl overnight in the fridge, their surface splashed with olive oil and tightly covered. Stored like this, their texture will thicken and they can be spread on slices of hot toast for a quick bite to eat when you arrive home, hungry.
PARSLEY, PARMESAN, EGGS (#ulink_db648b77-9716-5640-ad78-0b669c6fbcf6)
Warm, soft, parsley-freckled drop scones. (Picture overleaf.)
Makes 6
parsley leaves 15g
self-raising flour 180g
baking powder 1 teaspoon
a large egg
milk 220ml
Parmesan, grated 5 heaped tablespoons
butter a little
Roughly chop the parsley leaves. Put the flour in a large mixing bowl, add the baking powder and combine. (You can sieve the two together if you wish.) Break the egg into a bowl and beat lightly with a fork to combine white and yolk, mix in the milk, then stir into the flour.
Add the grated Parmesan and chopped parsley to the batter. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, then remove from the heat. In a medium, non-stick or well-used frying pan, pour a couple of tablespoons of the melted butter and let it warm over a moderate heat. Pour in a sixth of the batter, making a round approximately the size of a digestive biscuit. Repeat with two more, then let them cook for four or five minutes, checking the underside regularly for colour.
When they are puffed and golden, use a palette knife to carefully turn each one over. Leave for a further three or four minutes, then lift out and keep warm. A sound test for doneness is to touch the centre of each scone with your finger. It should feel lightly springy. Continue with the remaining batter. Serve with the pumpkin hash overleaf.
