Bruschetta Bam-Bam

Tomato and basil vs augergine. Bam-Bam.

Bruschetta or ‘brus-ketta’ is an antipasto from Italy. Its origins date back to the 15th century in Tuscany. The toasted bread can be eaten in a variety of ways and can be topped with tomatoes, peppers, cured meats, cheese, and smoked salmon. The bread you choose can be entirely up to your taste. Sour dough or freshly baked baguette work absolutely fine. Pop into your local bakery and discover the wide array of breads they have on offer. The bread is sliced about 1cm thick and is toasted on a char-grilled barbecue ( a griddle pan or oven also work just fine). You want to achieve a crispy toasted texture that will pack a crunch when you sink your teeth into it. As for the toppings, you can be as creative as you like. The driving force of this dish is using fresh ingredients and good quality olive oil. My favourite is with ripe pomodorino (cherry) tomatoes and fresh basil. You will be amazed at how simple this is to make.

READY TO COOK?

1. Slice your aubergines and season with a pinch of sea salt, black pepper and olive oil.
2. Place them on a sizzling griddle pan and cook for about 2 minutes on each side.
3. Once beautifully charred, pop them into a medium sized bowl. Add 3 table spoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 table spoon of chopped basil, 1 small clove of crushed garlic clove and season with sea salt and black pepper. Mix the aubergines with your hands, then put aside.
4. Chop your tomatoes roughly and place them in a medium sized bowl and add 2 table spoons of extra virgin olive oil. Add 2 table spoons of chopped up basil, 1 small clove of crushed garlic, and season with sea salt and black pepper. Mix the tomatoes with a spoon, then put aside.
5. On the same griddle pan, barbecue the bread until nicely toasted on both sides, serve straight away.

Don’t move them around too much to achieve the beautiful grill marks.

INGREDIENTS

• 400g pomodorino tomatoes (or any tomatoes you desire)
• 1 aubergine – sliced into 1cm thick pieces
• 1 handfull of basil leaves – roughly chopped
• 1 large baguette (or any fresh bread you desire)
• extra virgin olive oil (the best you can get)
• 2 cloves of garlic – crushed
• sea salt and black pepper

Tomato and basil vs augergine. Bam-Bam.

Magpie’s Surf & Turf

Happy Friday lunch. Magpie’s Surf & Turf: Scottish prime sirloin topped with marinated tiger prawns and a side of Mediterranean roast vegetables.

 

It’s finally Friday and you are in need of some serious grub. Fancy a juicy steak and a glass of deep red?

You’re in for a treat – this is my grilled sirloin steak topped with marinated tiger prawns and a side of Mediterranean roast vegetables.

Sizzling beef and sweetness from the prawns work together in harmony. The trick to good steak is sourcing good cuts of beef. Cheap steak usually means you get what you pay for. I highly recommend rib-eye for maximum fat marbling and flavour. Sirloin is perfect for tenderness and taste whereas fillet steak is the creme de la creme of all beef and is recommended if you can afford it: it will just melt in your mouth. If you are going all out, why not get a porterhouse or T-bone instead for more juiciness and flavour? This will be your ticket to heaven!

You can buy tiger prawns fresh or frozen, I personally prefer the fresh ones for the best texture and juiciness. If you can,  try to get some decent sized ones. Tiny prawns are simply not satisfying, especially when they shrink after you peel and cook them. Most supermarkets sell them peeled and frozen already at a reasonable price.

READY TO COOK?

1. Pre-heat your oven to 220°C/425ºF/Gas mark 7 and get your cooking space organised. A tidy kitchen will make your life  much easier.
2. Firstly, lightly marinade your prawns. Take the juice of half a lemon, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley, a pinch of sea salt and black pepper, and a pinch of smoked paprika into a small bowl. Massage your prawns into the mixture and set aside.
3. Start chopping your vegetables into nice bite size portions. I slice my courgette slightly slanted and peppers into random shapes to make them look  interesting. With the asparagus, chop the pail ends off with a knife. You should be left with lushious green spears ready for eating. You can use any vegetable you desire, even mushrooms and aubergines. As long as you don’t over cook them, they will come out tasting beautiful.
4. Dress all your vegetables with a table-spoon of good olive oil and season them lightly with sea salt and black pepper. Do exactly the same with your steak.
5. Turn your griddle pan or charcoal grill on full whack until it is lightly smoking. Place your vegetables on the grill and cook for one minute on each side. All you want is beautiful grill marks on your veggies. Once they are lightly cooked, place them on a roasting pan and stick them straight into the oven. You want to lightly roast them for about 10 minutes.
6. Return your griddle pan back to the hob and put it on a medium-high heat. Once it is nice and hot, slap your steak on the grill. I like mine medium rare,  about 2 minutes on each side is enough. Do not move the steak about too much, just flip once for the beautiful grill marks on each side. Rare takes 1.5 minutes, medium rare 2 minutes, medium 2.5 minutes and medium well takes 3 minutes.
7. Once your steaks are cooked, allow them to rest on a plate, cover them with foil for a couple of minutes. This will make them extremely tender and succulent.
8. While your steaks are resting, place your prawns onto the grill. Cook the prawns until they turn pink on both sides (this will take about a minute and a half on each side).
9. Place your steaks onto a warm plate or wooden platter. Add the vegetables on the side, then cover the steaks with the prawns.
10. Garnish with some parsley and lemon wedge.

INGREDIENTS serves 2

For the prawns

• 250g (9 ounces) tiger prawns (or any prawns you desire)
• 1 lemon
• olive oil
• sea salt
• black pepper
• smoked paprika
• 1 handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley

For the beef

• 2x big sirloin steaks (or any steak you desire)

For the Veggies

• 1 courgette (zucchini)
• 1 handful of asparagus
• 1 handful of cherry tomatoes
• 1 bell pepper