cookbook – Scandelights

Recipe: Nigella’s slow roasted lemon and garlic chicken

Published on September 12, 2018 by HannaLeave a comment

I’m a planner. Not all the time, but I like to plan ahead in several areas of my life. Especially when entertaining. So I had decided on a menu for the lunch I was hosting for a few friends in Sweden long before I even got to Sweden.

But the draught threw a spanner in the works. Three days before I was leaving for Sweden the government issued a BBQ ban in most areas and it was forbidden to barbecue even on your own property. All to prevent any more wild fires. Totally logical and something we all had to accept. But since my original lunch plan involved lighting the barbecue I had to think of something else to cook. I thought this would magically come to me as ideas so often do, but no.

So, in this moment of crisis (well not really, but I was starting to panic a little as my days were packed full of activities) I turned to my trusted cook book collection in the beach house and as usual they helped me out. This time it was a recipe in Nigella’s book Summer that saved me! This slow-roasted lemon and garlic chicken is summery (and delicious) enough to make you forget all about your beloved barbecue and appreciate a dish that basically cooks itself in the oven.

And if you don’t find butchering chickens as therapeutic as I do, I would suggest you either ask your butcher for help or buy a mixture of skin-on chicken breasts and chicken thighs.

Nigella’s slow roasted garlic and lemon chicken, serves 4

Adapted from Nigella’s recipe.

1 chicken cut into 10 pieces

1 bulb of garlic, separated into unpeeled cloves

1 lemon, cut into chunky eighths

1 bunch fresh thyme

3 tbsp olive oil

75-100 ml white wine

salt and black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 160°C.

Put the chicken pieces in a roasting tin, season and add the oil. Toss the chicken pieces in the oil so they’re coated all over. Place skin side up. Add garlic cloves, lemon chunks and thyme. Sprinkle over the white wine and put in the oven to cook for 2 hours.

Turn up the oven to 200°C and cook the chicken for another 30-45 minutes, by which time the skin on the meat will have turned golden brown and the lemons will have begun to scorch and caramelise at the edges.

Recipe: lamb ribs with nigella seeds

Published on June 16, 2017June 16, 2017 by HannaLeave a comment

I tend to bookmark recipes to try all the time, but sometimes it takes me quite a while to actually try them out. This one, is definitely one of those as I first made a mental note while watching the series Simply Nigella, and then literally bookmarking the page in the cookbook, then leaving it for a year or so. But this recipe is worth the wait. It’s incredibly easy to “make” (the oven takes care of it really) and it’s really yummy and packed full of flavour.

If you’re not a fan of lamb meat this may not be for you as the meat flavour is really strong because of the cut and the fat that melts over the meat in the oven. But if you, like me – like lamb – they’re heavenly!

Lamb ribs with nigella and cumin seeds, serves 6-10

Adapted from Nigella’s recipe.

4 teaspoons nigella seeds

4 teaspoons cumin seeds

4 teaspoons regular olive oil

4 tablespoons soy sauce

4 cloves garlic (peeled and finely grated, or minced)

24 lamb ribs (cut from 3 lamb breasts, bones in)

Preheat the oven to 150ºC. Line a large roasting tin with foil and sit a rack on top.

Get out a dish and add the nigella and cumin seeds, pour in the oil and soy and add the garlic. Stir to combine.

Dip the ribs, one by one, in this mixture, so that they are lightly coated on both sides; you may think this scant amount won’t be enough for all the ribs, but it is.

Arrange them on the rack above the lined baking tin and cook in the oven for 1½–2 hours (they can differ in size), or until the fat on the ribs is crisp and the meat tender. Serve.

Breakfast at The Wolseley

Published on June 21, 2016June 21, 2016 by Hanna2 Comments

Despite having lived in London for 8 years now (yep, time flies) I haven’t had the pleasure to eat breakfast at The Wolseley until this year. Bad planning on my part, obviously. But at least I’ve been there for several lunches, dinners and afternoon tea. But there is something special about breakfast in this fabulous art deco space with perfect eggs and perfect service. If you fancy reading up on the subject (and get the recipes), I highly recommend A.A. Gill’s book Breakfast at The Wolseley, it’s very good.

For me, this is the ultimate breakfast experience because it’s so different from having breakfast in your own kitchen. There are lots of waiters and they’re there to pour water, take your order, serve the food and fetch you whatever you want. Their attentive and efficient and together with the perfectly executed food it makes it such a special experience.

I had breakfast here with two of my best friends from Sweden when they were visiting. We needed some morning luxury and thoroughly enjoyed our breakfast here with Eggs Florentine (spinach, poached egg and hollandaise sauce on a toasted English muffin) and an excellent bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon.

We also enjoyed cappuccinos and freshly squeezed orange juice, and to finish this lovely basket of pastries. My favourite was the plain croissant, wonderfully buttery and flaky. If you also need this breakfast experience in your live (you do), I urge you to book a table well in advance as it’s a very popular weekend treat.

The Wolseley, 160 Piccadilly, London W1J 9EB

Pecan pie

Published on January 18, 2016 by Hanna1 Comment

I made this Thanksgiving pie the year before last and lots of times before then, but haven’t found the time (in the busy period between Thanksgiving and Christmas) to blog about it. So here it is, in January, but it’s still worth making it – apart from being a Thanksgiving staple dessert it’s also a wonderful winter pie.

The recipe is courtesy of The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook (the bakery’s first, and in my opinion also the best, cookbook).

Pecan pie, serves 10-12

Adapted from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook.

Pie crust:

260 g plain flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

110g (unsalted) butter

Grease a 23cm pie dish. Put the flour, salt and butter in an electric mixer with a paddle attachment and beat on slow speed until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined. )

Add 1 tbsp water and beat until well-mixed. Add a second tbsp water and beat until you have a smooth dough. Wrap in clingfilm and leave to rest for an hour.

Roll out on a floured surface and line the pie dish, trimming the edges. No need to blind bake.

Filling:

200 g caster sugar

250 ml dark corn syrup (golden syrup works well)

1/2 tsp salt

3 eggs

60 unsalted butter, cubed

1/4 tsp vanilla

100 g shelled pecans + extra for decoration

Save the 10-12 nicest pecans for decoration. Chop the rest.

Preheat the oven to 170C.

Add sugar, syrup and salt in a large saucepan and place on medium heat. Bring to the boil, then remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Beat the eggs in a bowl. Add the warm (not hot) sugar mixture and stir it in swiftly (to avoid scrambling the eggs). Add butter and vanilla and stir until the butter has melted and been incorporated.

Place the chopped pecans in the pie case and pour in the sugar mixture. Arrange the saved pecans carefully on top. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a dark golden colour and slightly crunchy on top. Leave to cool and serve while it’s slightly warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.