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With a view to tomorrow (thanks for the invite, btw) I thought I'd slap up a sneak peak of my next column... very pertinent I think....
With the longer summer evenings, I've found myself enjoying more and more evenings outside, enjoying a nice cold lager or glass of wine whilst putting the world to rights with a few friends. I have to say that I enjoy nothing more than some simple food, cooked quickly and simply, served in big dishes so people can just tuck in and help themselves and I can get on enjoying their company rather than playing the host all the time. To this end I've found that a little work in advance helps ten times over at dinner time or if you're like me, choose something simple and quick to prepare so you don't need to do any work before hand!
Last weekend the Other Half had invited her workmates over for a spot of dinner, having pre-warned me and checked I was happy to cook. Well, I say she pre-warned me, it was one of those conversations I can't remember having but she can recite verbatim as if she had taped the whole thing. Anyway, duly reminded that her friends were coming for dinner I set off looking for the easiest way to satisfy a load of hungry mouths with the minimum effort from me, after all, it was a Sunday.
Now whenever I've been to a barbeque and not been roped into cooking, I've noticed that the pork spare ribs always seem to be the one thing no-one will touch. I've come to the conclusion that this is because they actually take an age to cook until the meat falls off of them (very tasty!) and a barbeque is too dry and hot to cook them without drying them out (very nasty!). So a few packs of those went into the basket. Next up was some minute steaks, ready cut nice and thin and finally some mince to make my own burgers.
With the barbeque food sorted, all I had to do now was sort out some salads to go with it, but bearing in mind the Other Half's workmates were expecting dinner I opted for some fabulously juicy beefsteak tomatoes, a selection of foccacia and ciabatta breads, a few varieties of olives and some good qaulity olive oil. After that I grabbed a couple of heads of different lettuces, a few other minor bits and had my salads pretty much ready too. For the dessert I opted for a quick and easy 'tiramisu'.
The idea here was to spend as little time in the kitchen as possible ans as much time getting to try the different wines the Other Half's workmates were sure to bring and then when the time came to clear up I'd protest at the effort I had already put in to dinner... which would only mean I'd be able to avoid it 'till morning anyway....
Basil, Tomato and Mozerella Salad with Italian breads and olives
Serves 6
Ingredients
6 ripe beefsteak tomatoes
1 large spanish onion
1 bunch basil
300g mozerella
1 foccacia
1 ciabatta
100 ml olive oil
2 tsp parmesan cheese, grated
100g selection of olives, pitted
Method
Slice the tomatoes, onion and mozerella into rounds, then arrange attractively in a shallow dish.
Cut the breads in half horizontally and drizzle with e little of the olive oil. Sprinkle the parmesan over the ciabatta, then bake both in a medium oven for 5 minutes.
To serve, sprinkle a little sea salt over the salad, then rip the basil leaves and scatter them over the top.
Very roughly chop the olives, so they are still in big chunks and sprinkle over the top of the basil.
Cut the bread into wedges and serve with the remaining olive oil in a dish.
Slow roasted barbeque Pork Ribs
Serves 6
Ingredients
1kg pork spare ribs
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
100ml light chicken stock
1/4 tsp chinese five spice powder
1/4 ground coriander
Method
Set the oven to 120 deg C.
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl then place in a deep baking tray or roasting tin.
Add the pork ribs and mix well to coat then cover very tightly with foil.
Place in the oven and cook for 1 hour, then remove and trun and baste the ribs.
Place back in the oven for another hour, then remove and turn and baste, then return to the oven for one last hour.
If at any time all the liquid has evaporated, just top up with a little water until it becomes a thick paste again.
To serve, either cool then chill and barbeque as needed, or serve hot straight from the oven.
'Ten minute Tiramisu'
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
3 heaped teaspoons instant coffee
150 ml boiling water
3 heaped tsp sugar
15ml brandy or cointreau
1 pack trifle sponges
300ml whipping cream
100g mascapone
50g dark chocolate
Method
Mix the coffee with the boiling water then add the sugar and brandy or cointreau
Cut the trifle sponges in half horizontally, then dip them in the coffee mix, squeezing them out a little so they aren't too wet.
Lay the sponges into a casserole or deep flan dish.
Whip half the cream until almost at stiff peaks with a little sugar, then whip in the mascapone and any remaining coffee mix.
Smooth this over the sponges.
Whip the remaining cream with a little of the liqueur of your choice, smooth that on top and sprinkle with grated chocolate, cocoa powder or whatever you fancy.
Allow to chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
Originally Posted by Dareos
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