FOOD: All recipes serve 4
FENNEL, POTATO AND ORANGE SALAD
This recipe comes from the excellent and just-released Casa Moro by Sam and Sam Clark (Ebury Press). It is packed with recipes influenced by southern Spain and north Africa, but all with a modern interpretation.
750g firm waxy potatoes, peeled
3 oranges
2 fennel bulbs
half a red onion, finely chopped
handful flat-leaf parsley
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
half tsp caster sugar
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed with a little salt
To make the dressing, whisk the olive oil, vinegar, sugar and garlic together and season with salt and pepper.
Place the potatoes in cold salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10-20 minutes, depending on size, until tender. While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the rest of the salad. With a small, sharp knife, preferably serrated, cut the rind and pith off the oranges, keeping the fruit whole. Now slice into rounds and place in a large mixing bowl. Remove any damaged outer leaves from the fennel, then cut in half lengthways and cut each half into thin slices no more than 5mm thick. Place in the mixing bowl along with the onion and parsley leaves.
When the drained potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice into rounds no more than 1cm thick. Place on top of the the other ingredients in the bowl. Pour over the dressing, season with salt and pepper, mix well and taste.
BRAISED CHICKEN WITH WALNUTS, SPINACH AND CARDAMOM
15 cardamom pods
1 chicken
olive oil
2 lemons
400g spinach, roughly chopped
120g shelled new season walnuts, roughly chopped
Crush 12 of the cardamom pods in a pestle and mortar or blitz in a coffee grinder and rub through a sieve to catch any of the larger pieces. Rub the chicken with four tablespoons of olive oil for a good five minutes, gently massaging in the oil.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper and two-thirds of the ground cardamom, dusting the inside cavity with the remaining third. Quarter one of the lemons and squeeze the juice into the cavity and then insert the squeezed lemon pieces. Braise, upside down in a preheated oven, 170 degrees/gas three for 1.5 hours, basting at least four times and turning the bird right side up for the last 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow it to rest for 15 minutes in a warm place. Remove the chicken from the tin and place on a serving dish. Boil up the juices and add the remaining cardamom pods, the juice of the remaining lemon, along with 150ml of chicken stock and the walnuts. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the spinach, toss well in the hot juices so it wilts.
Check seasoning, carve the chicken and serve with the spinach and walnuts. The cardamom pods are not meant to be eaten.
SLICED ORANGE SALAD AND VIN SANTO CREAM
3 oranges
200ml whipping cream
small glass vin santo
1 tbsp pine nuts
Drop the oranges gently into a saucepan of boiling water. Leave for one minute, drain and allow them to cool. Remove the peel, which should now be a great deal easier to do. Slice thinly, but not too thinly, about 5mm, and arrange on a shallow plate.
Whip the cream, fold in the Vin Santo and transfer to a bowl. Toast the pine nuts in a hot dry frying pan and scatter them over the oranges. Serve with the cream.