Engineers raised the Costa Concordia this week; can we send them to Twickenham, as Harlequin’s season appears to have run aground? I was however served my chips this week in under 30 seconds; it’s a shame AVIVA don’t give away cups for this.
Undaunted on Saturday I went to West Hampstead farmers market where tomatoes were in abundance from Adrian Izzard’s farm in Great Abington Cambridge; cavolo nero and squash from Brambletye Farm in Forest Row East Sussex, and Sand Shark from Gary Haggis, who fish’s off the cost of Walton-on-Naze, Essex.
Tomatoes were blanched in boiling water for 30 seconds, skinned halved and roasted at 120oC for 1 hour, the last 15 with garlic drenched in olive oil. Both were blitzed together and reduced to a thick jam. Meanwhile the squash was skinned, de-seeded and roasted in olive oil also at 120oC for 35 minutes each side. The cavolo nero was washed, par boiled, braised in beef stock and then fried in garlic and olive oil. The juices left over from the braising were poured into the tomato sauce. The sand shark was dusted with smoked paprika and then poached in the tomato sauce with the lid on for 8 minutes; below is the result once assempled.
I’ve more apples in my garden then in the Steve Job’s memorial orchard, so I’ll be getting my 5-year old daughter to do something with them, and have a recipe for the left over tomato sauce… find my sausage recipe here
Sand Shark with Cavolo Nero, Squash and Tomato
Ingredients: Serves 2
- 6 large tomatoes skinned and the halved
- 2 cloves of garlic halved and drenched in olive oil
- 1 small squash, skinned and de-seeded
- 6 Cavolo Nero leaves
- ½ pint of any fresh stock
- 2 cloves of garlic diced
- 250g Sand Shark fillets
- 1 tea-spoon of Smoked Paprika
- Seasoning
