Mandarins are an ideal companion for new season's scallops, and when served with a parsnip mash make a perfect meal.
Minestrone is a soup that normally screams “winter”. Yet taking advantage of spring vegetables results in a lighter soup with a cleaner flavour. A friend says she is yet to meet a minestrone she actually likes; she considers it more a cup of despair than a bowl of the king of all soups.
Minestrone needs to be carefully crafted, and the key to this great soup is to set the flavour of the vegetables early on in the cooking. This is why they are cooked slowly in the butter and olive oil before adding the liquids. Too many recipes call for all the ingredients to be placed in a saucepan, covered with cold water and simmered for 30 minutes. This isn’t soup, it’s boiled vegetables. Various versions of the following recipe can be made according to the season. Substitute onions for the leeks, and in the height of summer, stir in some basil or pesto at the last minute.
Some people may dispute the use of both chopped fresh tomato and passata, so you make the choice. Canned white beans are a perfectly acceptable addition, and should be added 20 minutes before the end of the cooking.
Passata is the addictively smooth tomato purée that provides the base for many Italian recipes. It is usually made by ancient Italian matriarchs who bottle the ripest tomatoes in the deepest days of summer, but as there are none living in my street, I buy it at the supermarket.
Serve the soup as a main course with a green salad dressed with red wine vinegar and olive oil.
Spring Minestrone Soup
50g pancetta or a knuckle of ham
1 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp olive oil
2 leeks
2 carrots
2 potatoes
6 cloves garlic
3 tomatoes
1 litre water or vegetable stock
400g tin crushed tomato or tomato passata
½ cup broad beans, shelled and peeled
1 cup of peas
¼ small cabbage, cut into 1cm-wide strips
a handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves
grated parmesan
Cut the pancetta into small pieces and place in a deep saucepan with the butter and oil. Melt the butter over a medium heat. Rinse and slice the leeks into small chunks and stir into the melted butter and oil. Stir occasionally as they soften. Peel the carrots and potatoes and cut into large dice. Stir into the leeks and lower the heat. Slowly cook until the vegetables have softened but are without colour. Peel and crush the garlic and roughly chop the tomatoes. Stir them into the soup, then add the water and passata.
If you are using a ham bone, add it to the saucepan now. Bring the soup to a simmer, cover with a lid that’s slightly askew to allow steam to escape, and simmer for 40 minutes. Add the broad beans, peas and cabbage. Roughly chop the parsley, add to the saucepan and
cook for 15 minutes. Serve with grated parmesan.
Serves 4.
ThIS SEASON’S mandarins seem better than those of previous years. I have been using them frequently, and they are an ideal companion for scallops, whose own season has just started.
Scallops with Parsnip Mash and Mandarin Vinaigrette
4 large parsnips, peeled and diced
2 bay leaves
600ml milk
1 tbsp unsalted butter
salt and black pepper
24 scallops
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 clove garlic
juice of ½ lemon
In a saucepan place the parsnips, bay leaves and enough milk to cover them. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until the parsnips are tender. Strain, reserving the milk but discarding the bay leaves. Put the parsnips into a food processor and blend until smooth, adding the butter and just enough milk to make a velvety purée. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
To cook the scallops, pierce the white flesh with a sharp knife – this will help prevent them from spitting in the pan. Warm the butter in a frying pan. Peel and squash the garlic clove with a knife blade, then cook in the butter for a minute or two – just enough to flavour it. Remove the garlic and add the scallops. Fry quickly for 2-3 minutes until they plump up, then season with salt and lemon juice.
To serve, place the purée in the centre of 4 serving plates and top with scallops. Trickle the vinaigrette around the plate and serve immediately.
Mandarin Vinaigrette
2 mandarins
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
8 tbsp grapeseed oil
1 small red chilli
salt and black pepper
4 small dill sprigs
Cut the mandarins in half and squeeze the juice into a small saucepan and heat until it has reduced by half. Place the squeezed halves in another saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 3-5 minutes then drain. Repeat this step twice more.
Place the reduced juice and cooked halves into a food processor with the vinegar and blend until smooth. With the machine running, slowly pour in the oil. Seed and finely chop the chilli, add to the mixture and season with salt and pepper. Pour the vinaigrette into a small bowl and refrigerate until needed. Serve garnished with dill sprigs.
Serves 4.
Serve these DESSERTS with a plate of madeleines or sponge finger biscuits.
Mandarin Crème Brûlée, with Madeleines
4 mandarins
600ml cream
5 egg yolks
75g caster sugar
4 tbsp sugar for caramelising the tops of the custards
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grate the zest from the mandarins and set aside. Squeeze the juice into a small bowl. In a saucepan heat the cream with the zest, then simmer for 3 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse. Remove from the heat and set aside for 20 minutes. Combine the egg yolks and 75g of caster sugar and beat until pale and creamy. Add the mandarin juice. Strain the hot cream and stir it into the yolk mixture. Return the custard to a low heat and stir continuously with a wooden spoon until it starts to thicken, whisking quickly when it does. This should take about 10-15 minutes.
Once the custard is almost set, remove from the heat and pour it into the 4 ramekins. Stand the ramekins in a baking dish with enough water to come halfway up the sides. Put the dish into the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the oven, allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
Divide the second measure of sugar and sprinkle evenly over the top of each custard. Spray with a little water. Melt the sugar under a grill until it has caramelised to a rich golden brown. Alternatively, use a kitchen blowtorch to achieve the same effect.
Serves 4.