Allotment love.....

Last time I spoke about by allotment it looked like this.....




That was back in October. Now it's been transformed...




A good friend came around with his rotavator and dug it up for me...and now it's ready to go. Although I need to put up a fence as soon as possible to stop rabbits making the most of my produce.


I can't wait until this is filled with goodies. My allotment plan so far goes like this...

* Several different types of potatoes
* Parsnips
* Brussels Sprouts
* Broccoli
* Onions
* Spinach and Chard
* Beetroot
* Leeks
* Courgettes
* Cauliflowers
* Cabbages
* Raspberries
* Blackcurrants
* Strawberries
* Melons

Then my veggie patch (in a different location) will provide me with...

* Various lettuces
* Peas
* Broad Beans
* Runner Beans
* Rhubarb
* More strawberries
* Herbs (rosemary, basil, oregano, chives, thyme, mint)
* Tomatoes
* Cucumbers

I can't wait until summer!




After visiting Cotele yesterday I popped into Waitrose at Saltash (It's the only one in Cornwall so whenever I head up east I always make a visit!) There was some amazing garofalo mozzarella which was half price so I snapped it up. (It's buffalo mozzarella and, being dairy intolerant, its the only mozzarella I can eat)

So we made pizzas. Thin, crispy pizzas with charred edges. Crunchy, salty chorizo with a gooey egg right in the middle. I have always struggled with pizza bases as they always ended up huge, stodgy and puffy. So I watched Jamie Oliver (PS does anyone wish they had a pizza oven in their garden?) and decided to follow his dough recipe....and it was flawless...

Egg, Chorizo and Pinenut Pizza......

1 kg OO flour
2x 7g sachets dried yeast
1 tbsp Cornish sea salt
1 tbsp caster sugar
650ml warm water
4 tbsp olive oil

Before we start, this dough makes enough for six pizzas. The rest of the recipe is for three pizzas...I used the last of the dough to make three loaves of bread and froze them. Otherwise half the recipe for the dough.

In a bowl sieve the flour and add the salt. In a jug put the water, sugar and oil. Leave it to stand for a couple of minutes. Stir the water mix into the flour and bring together with a fork. When it looks like a rough dough drop it on to a floured surface and knead for 10 to 15 minutes. Be careful with it. Knead it gently and kindly. I hate it when people through bread around and give it a bit of bash. Just be careful with it.

Pop it back in a bowl with a damp tea towel over the top and leave it somewhere warm for one hour. After that pop it back onto the floured surface and carefully knock out the air. So give it a careful knead for no more than 20 seconds. Cut into six to eight pieces and you are ready to go!



Pizza Toppings.....(This is plenty for 3 pizzas)

1 tin tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1 sprig rosemary (taken off the stalk)
1 pinch oregano

Chop the onion roughly and fry in the oil over a low heat. Increase the heat and add all the other ingredients. Leave to bubble away happily, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon remove the bay leaves. Use a handheld blender and whizz it up until you have a smooth sauce. This sauce freezes brilliantly so if there is too much just pop it in the freezer until next time.

Assembling the pizzas...... (3 pizzas)

3 egg

12 large slices chorizo

3 handful pine nuts

300g garofalo mozzarella

plenty of black pepper
Spray oil

Semolina

Fresh basil

Preheat the oven to 200'c.

On a floured surface roll out your dough into three circles. If they are not perfect circles don't worry. The dough should be stretchy enough to pull gently into the right shape. Unless you have a huge oven you will need to cook the pizzas one at a time. Spray a baking tray with a little oil and a small scattering of semolina. Place the dough on top.

Add a few tbsp of the sauce and spread over the pizza with the back of the spoon. Place 4 slices of the chorizo and a handful of the nuts on the sauce. Rip the mozzarella apart and put a third of that on each pizza leaving a space in the middle. Carefully break the egg into the middle of the pizza.

Sprinkle some basil over the top and pop in the oven for about 10 minutes but keep an eye on it!

Grind pepper all over it. Repeat all of this with the next two pizzas. We had friends over and we ate the pizzas on our laps with a glass of wine and a DVD.

We did make a couple of other pizzas as well....this one has mushrooms and sun dried tomatoes.

Another had chorizo and jalapenos. A perfect Saturday night.