Sorrel, asparagus, radishes: strong colours and flavours. After I’ve doused asparagus spears with melted butter at least once I’m up for something new, so we’ve been eating asparagus with lemon-spiked gnocchi. The mellow of the cream and soft white fish underwrites the pepper of the seared radish in a quick and sustaining dinner. Sorrel adds its vivid splash of green to a fresh and bolstering soup.
New potato gnocchi with asparagus
This is a gnocchi that is best made with new potatoes.
Serves 4 as a starter, ready in 75 minutes, including cooling time
Ingredients
250g peeled new potatoes
500ml milk
1 finely zested lemon
40g rice flour
40g plain flour
30g grated parmesan, plus extra for sprinkling
2 Tbsp roughly chopped parsley
400g asparagus
1 Tbsp thyme leaves
Olive oil
Method
Peel the potatoes and cut into small, roughly 5mm dice. In a saucepan over a moderate heat, bring 400ml of the milk to the boil with the diced potatoes, most of the lemon zest and a good pinch of salt.
Whisk the remaining milk into the two types of flour and then incorporate this paste into the hot milk. Turn the heat down and stir frequently for 15 minutes.
Off the heat, stir in the cheese and parsley. Turn out this mixture on to a lightly oiled plate and smooth with a spatula to about 2cm thick. Set aside until cool and set — at least 35 minutes.
Heat the oven to 200°C fan.
Wash and cut the asparagus in two lengthways, then roast with a sprinkle of salt, thyme leaves and olive oil on a baking sheet for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut the gnocchi into pieces very roughly 5cm by 5cm and place on a piece of greaseproof paper, set on another baking sheet. Dot with olive oil, a little more cheese and the remaining zest.
Turn the oven setting to grill. It should reach the required temperature pretty much straight away. Place the gnocchi in the oven and grill for 10 minutes until golden in places. (If you don’t have an oven grill, you can do this in a hot oven.)
Use a spatula to lift the gnocchi from the paper on to warm plates, along with the asparagus, freshly ground black pepper and even more grated cheese.
Vivid sorrel soup
Choose large fresh red chillies for this. They are often milder and their heat will increase once cooked whole with their seeds. If you don’t have sorrel, try a mix of tender spinach and basil leaves.
Serves 4, ready in 75 minutes
Ingredients
200g dried white beans (or a tin of pre-cooked beans)
3 garlic cloves
2 fresh large red chillies
Olive oil
150g new onions
300g smaller courgettes
150g green beans or flat beans
1 bunch sorrel (150g)
50g cream
Fresh soft herbs — chervil, tarragon and dill would be my choice
Method
Soak the dried beans overnight in cold water. Drain, cover with fresh water and bring to the boil in a pot with the garlic. Simmer until cooked, adding water when necessary but aiming for beans barely covered with liquid by the end. This usually takes 45 minutes to an hour. Once cooked, season with salt and pepper.
If you have a gas hob, you can blister the chillies directly over the flames, turning them with tongs. I use a dry, heavy pan on my electric cooker. Once the skin is blistered all over, set aside to cool before cutting in half, removing the seeds with a teaspoon and peeling the flesh from the skins. Be cautious as this can burn your hands if your chillies are hot. Season with a little salt and dress with oil.
While the beans are cooking, begin on the rest. Chop the onions and slice the courgettes into thin rounds not even 5mm thick. Do similar with the green beans.
Run your knife through the sorrel several times before blitzing it in a food processor with the cream and 30ml of olive oil. Leave running until it turns to a green paste.
In a wider pan, sweat the onions in 2 Tbsp of olive oil for 3 minutes with a pinch of salt over a moderate heat. Add the courgettes and continue to cook, stirring frequently. After 5 minutes, turn the heat up and add the hot beans with their liquid. If you’re using tinned beans, now is the time to add them with their liquid. Boil for 1 minute then add the green beans, adjusting the level of water if necessary. Cook for 5 minutes until the green beans are just tender. Remove from the heat and stir in the green sorrel paste. Adjust seasoning and serve warm, garnished with the mixed herbs picked over the top, red chilli torn into strips and extra olive oil. Add shavings of cheese if you wish.
Hake and radish
Best to get the fishmonger to cut the steaks, as hake is very flaky, delicate and mashes easily. I love simple cooking like this; it requires your full attention but only for a short time.
Serves 2, ready in 25 minutes
Ingredients
2 thinly cut hake steaks (3cm thick)
6 radishes, with leaves
Olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
A splash of white wine0
2 Tbsp cream
Method
Ten minutes ahead of cooking, salt the fish on all sides. Trim the leaves from the radishes and wash, cut the radishes in two.
Pat the fish dry with kitchen paper. Heat a large pan over a medium heat with 2 Tbsp of oil and add the radishes cut-side down. After 2 minutes, add the butter then the fish and turn the radishes over. Keep the heat moderate but not so low it will stick. Cook for 5 minutes before turning the fish over. Wait 1 minute more then add the leaves followed by the wine.
Cook for 3 minutes more, add the cream and turn the heat down slightly. It will quickly boil. Turn the heat off, baste and allow to sit in the pan for a couple of minutes before serving. — The Observer
