With the summer rolling on and on and cherry tomatoes still so plentiful in the garden, I thought I’d share one of my favourites. My take on this is classic. It makes enough for the photo. Ingredients 500 g cherry tomatoes ½ onion (thinly sliced) Handful basil leaves (larger ones torn)...
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One of the joys of expat life in Istria are fresh figs. Fig trees are everywhere, so growing one should be a doddle – or so I thought. I fell in love with fresh figs at a hill-top monastery in Crete, many years ago. Back in the late 80s, they were an unusual, exotic...
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When Nicky returned from fig picking with over four kilos of fresh Istrian figs I knew they wouldn’t keep and I would have to come up with some fig recipes quickly. Using basically the same ingredients, the first – a simple fig sauce – is great to spice up left-over meat; the second –...
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Serves 2 (or more depending on the size of the courgette) There’s a lot of courgettes in my Istrian garden. Unfortunately, Phil’s none too fond of them, so I developed this courgette dish to go with BBQs and grills. Ingredients 1 large courgette 1 red pepper, chopped 200 ml passata 1 onion, chopped...
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Juha od šparoga Serves 4-6 This is a very economical asparagus recipe, as nothing is wasted – ideal for hand-picked wild Istrian asparagus. The goodness from any woody stems goes into the stock, the middle makes the soup and the tips form the garnish. Ingredients Handful of asparagus 50 g butter 250 g...
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Šparoge s umakom od špinata Serves 4 Ingredients Handful of asparagus (tips and softest part) 2 tbsp milk 1 tsp lemon juice 250 g spinach 2 tbsp parsley, chopped 1 small onion, chopped 2 tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped 2 tbsp fresh chives, chopped 1 hard-boiled egg, finely sliced 250 ml mayonnaise 1 tbsp sour...
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Gusta juha od šparoga Serves 4-6 Ingredients Handful of asparagus 2 small potatoes (diced) 2 medium onions (chopped) 50 g butter 1 l chicken stock Salt & freshly ground black pepper 200 ml cream Method Trim the asparagus, cutting off and discarding the tough stalk-ends. Reserve a few asparagus tips to garnish the...
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Fritaja sa šparogama This is just the spring version of Istrian fritaja. At other times of the year fritaja may be made with smoked or dried sausage, or wild mushrooms – for another day. Serves 4 Ingredients 2 handfuls of asparagus 100 g onion (thinly sliced) 50 ml olive oil 8 eggs Salt &...
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Juha od šparoga I šampinjona Serves 4 Ingredients 1 handful asparagus 750 ml water 200g button mushrooms 20g butter 20g flour Salt & pepper 1 tbsp parsley, chopped Method Wash the asparagus. Separate the soft from the hard part, by bending it over a finger so the stem snaps. Cut the soft asparagus tops...
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Before attempting this recipe, if you haven’t seen it I suggest looking at the (short) article wrestling with risottos, which has some general advice and tips on making a perfect baked risotto. This is a rather fiddly dish (although well worth the effort), so do also look at the notes at the end on...
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Before attempting this recipe, if you haven’t seen it, I suggest looking at the (short) article wrestling with risottos, which has some general advice and tips on making a perfect baked risotto. Serves 2 Ingredients 2 tblsps olive oil 1 large salmon steak, skinned & cut into chunks 150 g cooked prawns 1...
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