Ralph's Roast Tomato and Garlic Soup

Roast Tomato & Garlic Soup

There’s no real set recipe for this as you can play about with it until you find your own best method…I wing it every time (sometimes stick in a sliced carrot or two when roasting) depending on what type of tomatoes I can get for the best price, but it always tastes great!

1kg of Ripe tomatoes cut in half

*Plum Vine Tomatoes are best however always check your supermarket for the ones that are reduced in price as the riper the better and it saves money!

1 large Red Onion sliced

1 large Garlic bulb

500ml of Chicken Stock (or vegetable if your vegetarian)

*If you make your own fine…but any good quality ready made stock is fine, I use Knorr Stock Pots if I’m in a hurry.

4 large sprigs of Fresh Thyme

*Dried Herbs De Provence or Italian Mix is fine too if you don’t have fresh herbs.

Fresh Basil to serve (optional)

Orodeal Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Black Pepper

1 tsp Tomato Puree

2 tbsp Orodeal Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Lay the tomatoes cut-side up in a large roasting tin and place the sliced onion and unpeeled garlic cloves in whole with them. Drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle over the thyme leaves (or dried herbs) and season with sea salt and ground black pepper. 

Place in the oven and roast for 30-45 minutes or until the tomatoes have shrunk and are slightly caramelised on the outside, the onions are browned and the garlic is soft and mushy.

Once it’s cooled a little remove the tomato skins and squeeze the softened garlic out the skins. Put into a large pot with the onions and all the juices from roasting, add the stock, a teaspoon of tomato puree and simmer for 15 minutes.

Blitz (preferably in the pan with a stick blender) and simmer for another 10 minutes.

Orodeal Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Drizzle with Orodeal Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Serve with fresh Basil and crusty bread!

Orodeal

Orodeal great tasting, unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil is from the farmers co-operative in the town of Algarinejo. Grown, harvested, extracted and bottled by the farmers. Buying great tasting Orodeal supports the farmers, their families and the town of Algarinejo.
These oils have Designation of Origin - Poniente De Granada 

Click here to buy Orodeal Oil & Olives

One-Pot Mexican Chilli Beef.....

This delicious one-pot Spicy Mexican braised beef recipe is a real crowd pleaser.  Not only is it easy to make, delicious, spicy and filling.....it's stress free!  This recipe is enough to feed 14 - 15 so it's perfect for a party or to feed the family and freeze the rest or needless to say just reduce the amounts by half. 

Ingredients:

• 
  
• up to 6 tbsp sunflower oil
• 4kg stewing beef
• 4 white onions , sliced
• 4 tbsp chipotle paste
• 8 garlic cloves , crushed
• 50g ginger , grated
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 2l beef stock
• 3 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 5 x 400g cans pinto or kidney beans , drained
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Method:

Heat a small drizzle of the oil in an extra-large flameproof dish. Brown the meat in batches, adding a drop more oil, remove from the dish and set aside. Add 1 tbsp oil to the dish, then the onions, and cook for 7-10 mins or until caramelised.

Stir the chipotle paste, garlic, ginger, cumin, cinnamon and flour in with the onions and cook for a couple of mins. Gradually add the stock, stirring all the time, so it's fully mixed in with the other ingredients. Add the tomatoes and oregano, season and simmer for 10 mins.

Now tip in the beef, cover and simmer very gently for about 1 hr 45 mins until tender, removing the lid and adding the beans for the final 15 mins. If the sauce is thin, let it boil down for a further 5-10 mins with the lid off. Before serving, adjust the seasoning. Serve with the garlic bread and salsa.

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Vicars Cafe Bistro.....Social Enterprise at it's best.....

Having looked at the Saltaire Festival last year one of the local eateries took my eye.  Vicars Cafe Bistro is a busy cafe in the very heart of the famous Saltaire World Heritage site which is run with a Christian outlook and a vision to serve the community, aiming to encourage people to look at Christianity in a different light and recently it achieved Social Enterprise status (businesses whose prime purpose is social, who operate ethically and are democratically owned and governed).





Alongside the busy Café they run an evening Bistro on Fridays and Saturdays. A selection of seasoned dishes (including meat, fish, and vegetarian options) are available, with a menu which changes on a monthly basis. From a table for one to a group of 24, they can cater to your needs so if you’re planning a celebratory meal out, why not choose Vicars?

If you're looking for a recommendation for any eatery then what more could you ask for than a visit from a Michelin Star chef.....Alan Murchison visited the cafe back in May and cooked up a storm.

He's executive chef of L'Ortolan, a restaurant in Shinfield near Reading with a Michelin star, three AA rosettes and 8/10 in The Good Food Guide.

As Managing Director of 10 in 8 Fine Dining Group, he's set himself a goal to open 10 Michelin star restaurants by 2018.  






They host several group events in the Red Room Lounge, such as the popular weekday Mum and Baby Groups, ‘Knitterati’ knitting sessions, and weekend Storytelling group 'Tell Me Another' . The Red Room is also available for local artists to exhibit their work, and the space is available to hire for events. They proudly continue to support the efforts of local events and groups such as the Arts Trail and Saltaire Festival.



They support the Red Fund a charity working to aid HIV and Aids in Zimbabwe.  As much as possible their goods are sourced locally or Fair Trade with cakes baked on site and food prepared fresh for each customer.  They are always keen to hear new ideas of how to create community within the area.

As a Cafe they are open Monday, Wednesday - Saturday between 10-5pm. And as a 5 course meal Bistro on Friday and Saturday nights from 7:30pm ..... (booking is essential for the evenings).  

So if you're local or just visiting, nip in for a cuppa and a chat, find out what they're about or even join in, they'll be more than pleased to see you.

Indian Potato Pie

So I was watching The Great British Bake Off and thinking to myself.....that's a lot of work and hassle to make a pie, so as is Ralph's way here's a vegetarian pie recipe that's easy, relatively quick to make and is delicious hot, warm or cold so it can be made well in advance too.....


Ingredients:

• 
  
• 700g potatoes , sliced
• 400g sweet potatoes , sliced
• 1 onion , chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 garlic cloves , crushed
• 
  
• 
• 1 red chilli , finely chopped
• 1 thumb-size piece ginger , grated
• 1 tsp each ground cumin, coriander and garam masala
• pinch dried chilli flakes
• 200g frozen peas
• juice 1 lemon , plus extra wedges to serve
• 
• small bunch coriander , chopped
• 25g butter , melted
• 275g pack filo pastry
• ½ tsp poppy seeds

Method:

Put the potatoes in a large saucepan of cold, salted water, then bring to the boil. Turn down and simmer for 5 mins, add the sweet potatoes and continue to cook for 8 mins until just tender. Drain really well.



Fry the onion in the oil until soft, add the cumin seeds for 1 min, then stir in the garlic, chilli and ginger with the remaining spices. Cook for a further 2-3 mins, then turn off the heat and stir into the potatoes with the peas, lemon juice and coriander.




Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Halve the filo sheets, and use two-thirds of them, overlapping, to line a 22cm loose-bottomed cake tin with a little overhang. As you lay in each sheet, brush with melted butter and keep the rest covered with a clean tea towel. Spoon in filling and press down lightly. Cover with remaining filo, then fold up overhanging sides and scrunch up pastry near the edges.



Poke several slits in the top of the pastry and brush with more butter. Sprinkle with the poppy seeds. Bake for 40-45 mins until golden brown. Serve either hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges.




Recipe from Good Food magazine  January 2011