So, madam, sir, how happy were you yesterday? You read that right, Friday 20th March, how happy were you yesterday? I am not being nosy but apparently the United Nations branded the penultimate Friday of March the International Day of Happiness.
Happy now?
I have no idea how this celebration came about but I have the sneaky suspicion that there is someone at this august organisation with too much time on their hands. I mean, what are you supposed to do on the International Day of Happiness? Laugh on your own at the bus stop? Make faces out of your kitchen window at passers-by? Knock on doors and leg it after? (actually I quite fancy doing that again. It brings back childhood memories).
Since this is my last column before my customary Easter break I’ll leave the space below for you to answer this question: what makes you happy and do we need a day to celebrate happiness? My own reply? Give me a chocolate Jesus anytime and you will immediately see a smile on my face.
Last time out this section got a bit of a grilling (pun intended!) from my fellow veggie blog-friends. Fret not, mis amigos, this time, I've got a beautiful, lovely, delicious veggie recipe for you. This first appeared in the January issue of The Observer Food Supplement under the theme of how to feed four for a tenner. The total of the recipe below amounts to just over four quid. Photograph by Jean Cazals and text by Sam Harris, chef patron of Zucca.
Tiella
large white onion 1, thinly sliced into rings olive oil 4 tbsp garlic 2 cloves, crushed fresh mussels 200g medium-sized waxy potatoes 4, thinly sliced red pepper 1, cut into thin strips large courgette 1, cut into thin discs risotto rice 100g tin of whole tomatoes 1, drained of juice and cut into quarters
Sweat the onion with a pinch of salt in olive oil for 10 mins, then add the garlic and cook for a minute.
Add the mussels and 100ml water, put the lid on and allow the mussels to open up. Remove from the heat, reserve the liquid and take the meat from the shells.
Take a baking dish and in layers place a little of the potatoes at the bottom, then the onions, pepper and courgette. Sprinkle some rice over, add a few pieces of tomatoes, then the mussel meat. Continue doing so until everything is used up.
Pour over the juice the mussels were cooked in, and add 150ml cold water. Cover as tightly as possible and place in an oven heated to 180C/gas mark 4 for 40 mins, until everything is cooked. Rest for 15 minutes and serve.
The mussels opening up in the pan bring to mind slow-burning music (remember Killer Opening Songs last week? Same pattern but non-jazzy). That's why I have enlisted the help of two of the more famous Brazilian singers in the history of that country's rich musical history: Simone and Roberto Carlos. Have you ever met someone after 20 years of not seeing each other? 20 Years. That's the name of this track. Enjoy.
If we talk about layers in cooking, then, I have to mention Beth Hart, because she is a "layered" singer. I love the way this song just keeps building up until around the three-minute mark she hits a high note with her trademark husky growl and then, the way she keeps that high note and just carries on... damn, she's just the "baddest" girl in town. Love me some Beth Hart and her Baddest Blues.
We're going out tonight with a bang. Why did I choose this recipe? Mainly because of the risotto rice. I love the way the rice sucks up the water and cooks ever so slowly. This is what this track does to me. Even though it's a few decades old, it leaves me feeling tender like that risotto rice. Mel Torme's Comin' Home. I defy you to stay quiet.
Next Post: "Sunday Mornings: Coffee, Reflections and Music", to be published on Sunday 22nd February at 10am (GMT)
The chestnut and chorizo soup from Sam and Sam Clarke's Moro The Cookbook. Photograph: Yuki Sugiura for the Guardian
At the moment of writing this post the weather forecast is announcing
snow for London. Unsurprisingly, I’m thinking of soup and meat, preferable the
latter in the former. So, excuse me my veggies and vegan fellow bloggers, but
tonight we’re going for Spanish sausage. I have made a similar dish before but
bearing in mind that my youngest is allergic to dairy products and sometimes chorizo has either milk or traces of it,
it’s not fair to cook this recipe veru often at home. Chestnut and chorizo
4 tbsp olive oil 1 large onion, diced 1 medium carrot, diced 1 celery stick, diced 120g mild cooking chorizo, cut into 1cm cubes 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1 tsp ground cumin 1½ tsp fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped 2 small dried red chillies, crushed 2 tomatoes, fresh or tinned, roughly chopped 500g cooked peeled chestnuts (fresh or vacuum-packed), roughly chopped 20 saffron threads, infused in 3-4 tbsp boiling water 1 litre water Salt and black pepper
In a large saucepan heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the onion,
carrot, celery, chorizo and a pinch of salt and fry for about 20 minutes,
stirring occasionally, until everything caramelises and turns brown.Now
add the garlic, cumin, thyme and chilli and cook for 1 more minute, followed by
the tomatoes and, after about 2 minutes, the chestnuts.Give everything
a good stir, then add the saffron-infused liquid, and the water, and simmer for
about 10 minutes.Remove from the heat and mash until almost smooth but
still with a bit of texture. Season with salt and pepper.
Any recipe with chorizo in it is a badass recipe in my book. That’s why I
need to open the set tonight with a badass song by a badass singer. I first saw
Beth Hart on Jools Holland some months ago and was won over by her passion. Plus she’s an
excellent pianist. Great melody and as spicy as my dish tonight. Enjoy.
From Mexico comes a groovy and funky band making a timely political
statement. I love the powerful lyrics and the video. Mexican
Institute of Sound's Mexico reminds
me of those 2 small dried red chillies. They give a bit of a kick to my musical choices
tonight. Fresh.
Just
like cooking is all about beginnings (the smell of onions, chorizo, carrot and celery is mesmerising) Gomez's How We Operate is all about those first
guitar chords. They stay with you long after the song is finished. Just like
chestnut and chorizo soup. Magnetic.
Poland gave us the great Chopin and now it gives us Warsaw Village Band's. I
love the clip In the Forest and the
zany creativity behind it. It’s just like the saffron threads releasing that
wonderful aroma once they’re in water. It’s the extra ingredient with the oomph
factor. Terrific.
Next Post: "Sunday Mornings: Coffee, Reflections and Music", to be published on Sunday 27th January at 10am (GMT)
