Savoury Turmeric Nasturtium Fluffy Pancakes

I wanted pancakes as a change from our normal weekend Veggie fry up for breakfast, but it was just a thought, nothing concrete.  Then I saw Johanna who blogs over at Green Gourmet Giraffe had made some sweet Nutella pancakes a couple of weeks back and it was decided.  

Pancakes it was, but not sweet -  I ended up making savoury fluffy pancakes enhanced with ground turmeric and lily pad shaped nasturtium leaves.  Whoever said 'Nasturtium flowers have bite', were spot on.   I did not sow any nasturtium , they self seeded from last year.  I don't mind I like them and it brings in the bumbling bees, though I have not seen many of them.   But I don't let them self-seed for altruistic reasons, I actually like growing and eating them, especially the more colourful variety, though I seem to have no fiery red ones this year.  I also like the mustard like peppery tang of the edible flower and often just use the to garnish salads.  For those of you who have never tried nasturtium leaves the closest thing I can compare them to is rocket salad leaves. 

Anyway, I have to admit  though these Turmeric Nasturtium Pancakes were not served for brekkie.  I ended up having a bowl of cereal that morning.  No we ended up eating these golden discs as a light bite after a bit of weeding in the front of the house and lawn mowing.  It was such a bother, that it made me think I am a vegetable grower, I am not a green lawn or  pretty flower rose garden kind of person, though I do appreciate them.  I am more happier if I know I can eat the flowers, leaves and seed pods.

These Turmeric Nasturtium Pancakes are based on my Cherry, Raspberry and Strawberry Pancakes.  Its actually the same recipe, I just omitted the sugar, added some ground turmeric and in place of the berries are the peppery leaves.  I appreciate that not everyone may have nasturtium flowers and leaves growing int heir garden, so I am offering a substitute here and these are soft herbs, they will be just as pretty.  Take a look at these Tattoo Herb Potatoes.  

 I  served these Turmeric Nasturtium Pancakes with a good dollop of spicy tomato chutney.  

Roasted Balsamic Beetroot Carpaccio with Capers and Rocket

This is a vegan take on 'Beef' Carpaccio.  The beef is replaced with floppy slithers of roasted balsamic beetroot.

I know this plate looks sparse, but this is a starter - a light teaser before you are served your main meal.

As well as the sharp tangy velvet slices of beetroot, on the plate you will also find fronds of green pickings from the greenhouse.  Gosh, I do wonder why I don't make more of an effort to grow salad greens, they are just so much more tastier and punchier than those you pick up from the supermarket. And capers, roughly chopped for piquancy.  Enjoy.

Vegan Strawberry, Lettuce and Black Pepper Risotto

I've had a recipe bookmarked from Nadine Abensur's Secrets From A Vegetarian Kitchen (1996) ever since I have had the cookbook, but I never seemed to get the courage to actually make it.  I mean strawberries in a risotto, and this is not even a sweet dish - its savoury too, even Nadine the author of the cookbook writes she was 'curious if a little sceptical, but the slightly sweet, gently tangy taste was surprisingly good'.  

I have raved about Nadine Abensur on my blog loads of times.  She is perhaps the most influential vegetarian food writer on my initial development as a creative and experimental cook, so if I was not going to trust her culinary experience, then I wasn't going to trust anyone else.  

So at the weekend, I had a go at making it, only that I did not follow the recipe instructions fully and used it more as a a guideline, something I know Nadine will forgive me for.  I also added some homegrown garden lettuce to it and a little balsamic vinegar towards the end, as if the tangy taste from the strawberries wasn't enough.  It really was unusual, yet nice. The red onions and the strawberries bleed a little into the risotto giving the dish a faint pink hue. 

I know it is not risotto weather,  the weather here has been extremely hot and the air still. So why on earth would I want to make risotto, well the other reason was to make the most of my home-grown strawberries.  I don't just want to use them for sweet dishes, cakes and baked, but savoury ones too. 

The last savoury dish I made with strawberries was actually last year and it was a Caramelised Red Onion, Thyme, Strawberry and Brie Tart. It was lovely too. I am sharing this risotto with Honest Mum for Tasty Tuesdays. 

Lettuce Eat Soup

I have taken the day of work today and decided to take my mother and nephew into Glasgow city centre. We weren't there that long, my mother was exhausted just walking Sauchiehall Street. So homeward bound it was. On the way back, my nephew goes 'what we doing to have for lunch Aunty?' I think he was angling for some chips and pizza, but my thinking was different. I remembered we had some green lettuce in the garden plot bolting, so as soon as we got home I decided to make a quick lettuce soup.
My nephew was not enamoured by the idea, to be honest nor was my mother, but as soon as they swallowed a spoonful - they were immediate converts and well impressed that such a humble ingredient was transformed into a tasty dish.

Lettuce soup
Serves 4
Ingredients

1 onion, finely sliced

200g potatoes, peeled and cubed

Outer leaves of 2 – 3 lettuces, washed and shredded

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 pint of vegetable stock made with 1 tablespoon of bouillon powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional 150ml single cream

Method

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, and fry the onion and potatoes gently for 10 minutes, but don’t brown them. Then add the lettuce leaves and stir them for a couple of minutes so that they are covered with the butter. Add the stock and let the soup simmer gently for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked. Liquidize the soup and stir in the cream (if using). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Reheat it, but don’t let it boil if you have added cream.

Lettuce all be Thankful

I originally made this lettuce tart back in 2005 when we moved into this flat and our then new neighbour Nessie gave us a good handful of lettuce. This year I find myself with lettuce that is starting to bolt, so I decided to make it again.

I am very fortunate this time as I have an allotment now and all the vegetables in this tart are my own. Hence the reason I am entering this into the Grow Your Own (GYO). Grow your own which was started by Andrea's Recipes. I think it is a great food blogger event as it also supports the principle behind my blog that celebrates the foods we grow or raise ourselves and the dishes we make using our homegrown produce, plus it is a good opportunity for me to raise A2Ks profile in the blogging world too. GYO#39 is being hosted by the lovely Amy of Playing House. I really like Amy's blog she frequently showcases the work of other bloggers not just in relation to food, but crafts of all kinds, which I think is a fantastic way to share ideas and inspire others.
I know, I know looking at it there is something very 1970s about the tart, I think it may be the wholemeal crust, but this is supposed to be a rustic and homely tart, that uses frugal and thrifty ingredients, but that is not to say it is not tasty. It is very tasty, light and fresh and I really liked it! I hope you do too.

Lettuce, Pea and Spring onion tart
Serves 4 – 6
Ingredients
For the shortcrust pastry
225g wholemeal flour
Pinch of salt
125g butter or margarine
3 tablespoons of cold water
Method
Sift flour and salt into bowl, then add the residue of the bran from the sieve back into the bowl. Add the butter or margarine then rub it into the flour with your fingertips, continue until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs, then add the water a little at a trim and use your fingers to press the mixture together to form a dough, then knead lightly for a couple of minutes until smooth. Then roll out onto floured surface and line an 8 inch tin and trim the edges. Bake at gas mark 6 for 15- 20 minutes until the pastry is set.
For the filling
4 spring onions, chopped
1 green lettuce, shredded
125g shelled fresh or frozen peas
25g butter
2 sprigs of mint
150ml single cream
1 egg yolk
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
While tart pastry is cooking, fry the onions, lettuce and peas gently in the butter for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, mix in the mint, cream, egg and seasoning, pour into the tart tin. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes until the egg mixture is cooked and firm to the touch.