For the stuffing:
Chopped chives
8 garlic cloves, peeled and whole (I usually use pink garlic but it is not always readily available. The white garlic is less aromatic but does just as well)
1 large tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
2 onions, peeled and quartered Chopped parsley
6–10 olives according to taste
2 bay leaves
1 sprig of rosemary
1 lemon or bitter orange
4 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
Preparation:
– Heat the oven to 220°C.
– Boil the rice in salted water and drain.
– Mix all the stuffing ingredients with the rice, and season with salt and pepper.
– Wash and pat dry the chicken.
– Stuff the rice mixture into the chicken until the cavity is full, then press in the two bay leaves and a sprig of rosemary. Squeeze half of the lemon/orange juice over the outside of the bird, and use the other half to seal the cavity, cut side down and skin facing outwards.
– Cover the chicken with a small handful of mixed Provençal herbs.
– Pour the olive oil over the chicken. Add salt and pepper.
– Place in the oven. After ten minutes, lower the heat to 195–200°C and leave to cook until crisp. This usually takes about one and a half hours. When the bird begins to turn brown, turn it over and then turn it back again for the last ten minutes.
I serve this with a green vegetable such as steamed broccoli and usually with a bottle of St-Emilion red wine.
PROVENÇAL TOMATOES
In the south of France tomatoes are nicknamed ‘potatoes of love’!
Ingredients:
2 large tomatoes per person
4 garlic cloves
Lashings of olive oil
Sea salt, black pepper, fresh parsley and chives
Preparation:
– Cut the tomatoes in two and spoon out the seeds.
– Pour olive oil in the pan and place the tomatoes, cut side down, in the oil. When the watery liquid has drained, turn them, season them, and leave them to cook on a very low heat for about 45 minutes.
– If they begin to dry add a small amount of water and a spoonful of oil.
– Ten minutes before they are done, add a garlic clove, chopped parsley and chives to each half.
We eat this very simple dish with whole grain, wild rice from the Carmargue or as an accompaniment to grilled lamb chops.
Serve in summer with a Bandol rosé or a chilled Côte de Rhone red.
(If you adore rice and travel to southern France in September, you may want to visit the rice festival at Arles.)
AUBERGINES WITH MINT AND CHILLI
Provence is famous for its vegetables and fruit. This dish is very simple but that is a part of its beauty. Easy to prepare and not too heavy to digest on a hot day.
Ingredients:
2 large aubergines
Olive oil
2 large lemons, using the juice and zest of both
1 chilli, finely chopped. Choose a mild one and chop it finely after seeding it
Several handfuls of fresh mint leaves, chopped. If possible pick directly from the garden
A palm of dried Mediterranean herbs
A few chopped chives
Preparation:
– Preheat the oven to 190°C.
– Cut the aubergines into thickish slices and lay them flat on an oven dish (preferably terracotta).
– Pour olive oil over the aubergines and the juice from one of the lemons and sprinkle over half the dried herbs.
– Turn the aubergines over and do the same on the other side.
– Add a little salt and ground black pepper.
– Bake until the flesh of the vegetables is soft, almost melting.
– Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle over the remaining lemon juice and the fine skin, followed by the chilli and finally the chopped mint, the rest of the dried herbs and the chopped chives. Serve while hot.
Serve this with a chilled glass of rosé or dry white wine on a hot day beneath the shade of the trees in the garden – perfect!
ROAST PARTRIDGE STUFFED WITH APRICOTS, PINE NUTS AND WILD RICE FROM THE CARMARGUE
Ingredients:
1 white onion, peeled and finely chopped
4–6 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
Provençal dried mixed herbs
2 tbsp peppercorns (green peppercorns if you can find them, otherwise, black will be fine), lightly crushed
1 red pepper, seeded, cored and diced
¼ cup Spanish Xerex wine vinegar
1 cup dry white wine (a Muscadet or Côte de Rhone white works well)
1 tsp coarsely grained sea salt
1 tbsp runny honey (when I was taught this recipe, two tablespoons of sugar were used but I prefer honey, stirred in slowly, dripping a little at a time)
4 cups fresh apricots, peeled, pitted and chopped
½ cup pine nuts
6 whole partridges
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper for seasoning
5 cups cooked wild rice (any wild rice will do but I prefer to use rice from the Carmargue region)
Preparation:
– Preheat the oven to 230°C.
– Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy skillet on a medium setting, and add the onions. Stir the onions with a wooden spoon for about 1 minute and add the garlic, stirring for another 1 to 2 minutes until the onions are soft and tender. Add the peppercorns, red pepper, vinegar, wine, salt and sugar/honey. Simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring the mixture occasionally. When the liquid has reduced to the consistency of syrup, stir in the apricots and let it all simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat.
– Add extra salt and pepper if necessary according to taste.
– Transfer 1½ cups of the mixture to a large bowl (reserve the remaining mixture for later use).
– Add the pine nuts and wild rice to the bowl and mix the ingredients well to create the stuffing.
– Rub the inside cavities of the partridges with salt and pepper. Then fill each partridge with the stuffing and then truss the birds to avoid the stuffing spilling out during cooking.
– Season the outside of the partridge with salt, pepper and a small fistful of dried Provençal herbs.
– In the same skillet, heat the remaining olive oil and brown the partridges, turning them on all sides. Then place the partridges in a roasting pan (I always use terracotta dishes rather than metal) and transfer to the preheated oven for about 10 minutes, or until the juices run clear when pierced with a knife.
– Serve on a pre-warmed plate along with the wild rice and the remaining stuffing mixture. I frequently serve a lightly steamed green vegetable with this dish: broccoli or spinach, for example.
MONKFISH MEDALLIONS
Ingredients:
½ lb monkfish medallions
2 lbs vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 Spanish onions, chopped
3 shallots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
1 tbsp of chopped fresh lemon thyme (or substitute fresh thyme)
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Coarsely ground sea salt and black pepper
A sprinkling of Provençal dried mixed herbs
The sauce:
1 small/medium Spanish onion
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ lb pitted black olives
1 cup fish stock
4 oz cream
Freshly ground sea salt and black pepper
Garnish:
3 lemons cut into quarters
Fresh parsley
Preparation:
– Sauté the chopped onions and shallots in some olive oil for 3–4 minutes over a low to medium heat. Do not allow the oil to burn.
– Add the tomatoes,
garlic and thyme and mix thoroughly. Continue cooking gently until the water evaporates. Adjust the seasoning of salt, pepper and dried herbs according to taste. Remove from the heat and set aside.
– For the sauce: sauté the onion very gently in olive oil over a low to medium heat. Add the olives and fish stock, and bring the liquid to a simmer. Allow to simmer until the liquid is reduced by two thirds. Add the cream, stir and combine thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste, remove from the heat and set aside to cool off. Put this mixture through a strainer and pour the strained liquid into a blender or a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Begin to blend and slowly add the olive oil in a stream to make an emulsion.
– Sauté the monkfish medallions in olive oil.
– On a serving platter, pour the tomato and onion sauce, add the medallions on top and pour the olive cream sauce over the monkfish. Garnish with fresh parsley and quartered lemons before serving.
BLACK RISOTTO
I discovered this when it was served by our Maltese friends, Nat and Julia. It is fabulous. If you are looking for an unusual recipe to impress seafood-loving guests, this is definitely one to try.
Ingredients:
⅓ cup olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
17 (½ oz each) cuttlefish, cleaned and cut into strips. Save their ink sacks!
Coarse sea salt and pepper
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups fish stock
1½ cups of good Italian risotto rice (one that ideally absorbs liquid and returns a lovely creamy consistency)
2–3 tbsp water
Preparation:
– Clean the cuttlefish, setting aside 2 or 3 of the ink sacks, then cut them into thin strips. You can remove the ink sacks from the cuttlefish when you clean them or you can purchase the ink already removed from your local fishmonger.
– Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add the onion and garlic and sauté over a medium heat. When the garlic has lightly browned, add the strips of cuttlefish.
– Season with salt and pepper and cook for a few minutes. Add a glass of white wine, raise the heat and leave until the wine evaporates. Squeeze the black ink sacks into the casserole with 2 to 3 tablespoons of water.
– Cook for 20 minutes. Add the rice, stirring constantly. Add the stock gradually, so that it just covers the rice, mixing continuously until the rice is cooked.
– When the rice is fully cooked serve hot. It shouldn’t be soupy – the rice should be firm.
If this seems a little difficult, a delicious alternative is cuttlefish-ink flavoured pasta (nero sepia pasta in Italian). You can cook this as with any pasta in salted, boiling water. When cooked, serve it dressed with olive oil and a few prawns.
WARM CARROT AND CUMIN SALAD
This is a dish to begin a meal. It is light, delicious and commonly served in summer around the Mediterranean.
Ingredients:
1 kg carrots
3 garlic cloves, crushed
½ cup olive oil
½ tsp powdered cumin
1/5 cup white wine vinegar
Preparation:
– Skin and wash the carrots. Boil them gently for twenty minutes in salted water. Chop them into rounds and place them on a large dish.
– Crush the garlic and put it in a pan with the oil and cumin, heat and stir, turning regularly. At the last moment add the vinegar and pour the mixture over the carrots. Serve warm with olive bread and a glass of chilled white wine. A delicious summer dish eaten in the garden.
We often enjoy this as an entrée followed by fresh, grilled sardines (marinated for two hours in olive oil, black pepper, sea salt, half a glass of white wine, one freshly picked and chopped mint leaf, and sprinkled with Provençal herbs) and a green salad.
The Olive Tree (The Olive Series Book 2) Page 42