Food

Summertime Summertime Sizzlers Sizzlers

By Belinda Prince

Belinda, the ‘Accidental Chatelaine’ loves to cook at any opportunity and is delighted to be able to share that love with you

GREAT BBQ RECIPES DON’T NEED TO BE COMPLICATED - THE SIMPLEST ARE OFTEN THE BEST! ENJOY THESE EASY-TO-PREPARE RECIPES

Spiced Chicken Kebabs

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Ingredients (Serves 4)

1 small onion, halved 1 green chilli, deseeded * 30g fresh coriander, leaves and stalks 1 tbsp ground coriander 75g ready-to-eat dried apricots 2.5 tbsp Thai fish sauce 3 tbsp lime juice 4 large, free-range skinless chicken breasts, each cut into 4 long strips 4 tbsp low-fat natural yogurt 1 garlic clove, finely grated Green salad, to serve

Method

1. First of all, whizz the onion, chilli* (you can use a 1tsp of dried red chilli flakes if you don’t have fresh chilli), fresh coriander, ground coriander, the apricots, fish sauce and lime juice in a food processor and blend together to make a marinade. 2. Put the chicken in a bowl and stir in three-quarters of the marinade. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour. 3. Preheat the grill/barbecue to medium-high. Thread the chicken onto 8 skewers and put on a non-stick baking sheet. Grill/barbecue for 10 minutes, turning halfway. 4. Meanwhile, stir the remaining marinade into the yogurt with the garlic. Serve 2 skewers each with the garlic yogurt and a green salad.

Honeyed Barbecue Pork

Ingredients (Serves 4)

4 pork chops or cutlets 4 tbsp honey 4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce or Maggi 4 tbsp tomato ketchup 2 tbsp soy sauce 2 tsp Dijon mustard ½ tsp dried red chillies (optional)

Method

1. Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a small pan, simmer for a minute or two until itbegins to thicken. 2. Place the pork chops in a shallow dish and pour over the sauce. Cover and leave to marinade in the fridge for 1 hour (if you haven’t got an hour leave them as long as possible while you heat up the barbecue). 3. Cook the chops on a hot barbecue, turning regularly, for 30 minutes. 4. Or roast in the oven at 200°C/180°C fan/gas mark 6 for 25 - 30 minutes. 5. Throughout cooking, spoon over any remaining marinade to baste. 6. Once cooked, the chops should be sticky and browned.

Tandoori Salmon

Ingredients (Serves 2)

2 salmon fillets 1 lemon, sliced 1 clove garlic mashed into a paste 200g natural yogurt 1 tbsp ground cumin 1 tbsp garam masala 1 tsp turmeric 1 tsp paprika 1 tbsp olive oil Pinch salt

Method

1. Prepare the salmon. Remove the skin, then cut into bite-size pieces. 2. In a medium bowl, mix all of the marinade ingredients until well combined. 3. Add the fish to the marinade and let the marinade coat the fish well. 4. Cover with a cling film and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours. 5. Thread the salmon and lemon slices onto skewers. 6. BBQ or grill for 5-7 minutes on each side.

Barbecued Bananas with Dark Chocolate

Cook this delicious dessert either in the oven or on the barbecue to make a splendid sweet finale to your summer barbecue. Don’t be put off by the look of the blackened banana skins, this dessert is absolutely delicious!

Ingredients (Serves 4)

4 bananas 60g dark chocolate (good quality) Ice cream to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200ºC/180ºC fan/gas 6 (or use a BBQ). 2. Make a slit through the skin of the bananas along one side – making sure you don’t cut all the way through to the other side. 3. Push in the chopped chocolate along the cut. 4. Put each banana onto a sheet of foil and crimp the edges together to seal into a parcel. 5. Transfer to a baking sheet and cook for 25 mins until the bananas have turned black (or pop straight into the BBQ embers for 15 mins). Serve with ice cream of your choice and grated chocolate. Enjoy!

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S o u r d o u g h T h e B e s t T h i n g S i n c e S l i c e d B r e a d

By Amanda King

Amanda lives near Ruffec and is in the final year of an Advanced Diploma in Naturopathic Nutrition with the College of Naturopathic Medicine in London. She holds a BSc in Human Biology and Counselling/Psychol ogy. Amanda is passionate about living in harmony with nature and innate wellness.

www.amandakingnutrition.com

SOURDOUGH BREAD HAS A DELICIOUS TANGY FLAVOUR AND IT COMES WITH A HOST OF HEALTH BENEFITS TOO.

This article will show you how to make your own sourdough and tell you about how swapping regular, processed bread for sourdough bread can improve your digestion. What is it? Sourdough bread is an easy, slow way to create your own artisanal bread. It is made with the same kinds of flours as other breads. It requires nothing different except that instead of using bought yeast to raise the dough, you use a sourdough culture. A sourdough culture looks a bit like floury water and has a sour smell. Sourdough is simply a combination of natural yeasts and bacteria which ferment the starch in the flour to produce bubbles of carbon dioxide which raise the dough. So you don’t have to knead it as you do with other breads. This is one of the traditional ways that bread was made before commercially available baking yeast was available. What is the problem with commercial bread? Many grains and beans contain a chemical called phytic acid (phytates). Phytates cause indigestion (think blazing saddles) and it is thought that Mother Nature cleverly uses phytates to stop her seeds from being eaten by animals. After all, the wheat plants want their seeds to become other baby wheat plants, not to be eaten by us. When we make regular bread, the phytates remain in the bread and can disrupt our digestion causing many symptoms like bloating, constipation and tummy aches. Phytates also use up essential minerals in the body like calcium and magnesium, so even when you are eating a healthy diet, some of the minerals you are eating are not being used for your body but are instead passing through with the phytates. So how do we stop this from happening? When we leave the sourdough bread to ferment, the process that takes place actually removes the phytates from the bread. One study showed almost complete removal of all phytic acid (phytates) within 24 hours of fermenting the dough. This helps your body to digest properly. What’s in it for you? When the sourdough culture is slowly fermenting (the bit where you just leave it alone for 8-14 hours and carry on with your day or sleep while it works overnight) the yeasts and bacteria are working hard in there actually making B vitamins for you. Yes, fermentation actually INCREASES the vitamins in your food. B vitamins are essential for good energy levels. Sourdough bread also has iron and other minerals which are essential for health. There are many places to find a sourdough culture; sometimes a generous friend will give you a little from their batch, or there are places online where the cultures are for sale. The culture must be kept alive with regular feedings of flour and water. Instructions can be found from the person or place you get your culture. Easy Sourdough Boule

Equipment

Dutch oven or bread tin High temperature parchment paper Large mixing bowl Measuring cup Kitchen towel Sharp knife Kitchen scales

Ingredients

300ml filtered water 100g sourdough culture 100g organic wholemeal flour 400g strong organic white flour 10g fine sea salt mixed with 15g cold water

When we leave the sourdough bread to ferment, the process that takes place actually removes the phytates from the bread

Method

1. In a large bowl whisk your water and sourdough culture together well, gradually add all the flour and mix until you have an even ball of dough. 2. Leave in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth for 2.5 hours 3. Use your fingers to make holes in the outside of the dough and sprinkle over the salty water, fold the dough over itself and repeat this three times 4. Shape the dough into a ball, place on parchment paper in the dutch oven (you can dust with semolina if you like) and dust the top of the ball with flour and put the lid on. 5. Leave the dough for 8-14 hours, the longer you leave it the stronger the flavour and the more the sourdough culture will work for you. 6. Preheat your oven at 220 C for 30 minutes, slash the top of the boule with a knife and replace the lid, bake for an hour. (If you like a crustier bread then take off the lid after 1 hour and bake for a further 10 minutes). Let it cool and enjoy!