♥︎Fregola Sarda with shimeji in lemon & tarragon sauce

For ➋ 

150 g fregola Sarda

2 garlic cloves

200-300 g shimeiji (or torn oyster mushroom)*

½ lemon, grated zest & juice

handful tarragon, chopped

1 spring onion, sliced ​​

handful sunflower seeds

olive oil

mushrooms* (optional)

feta** (optional)

Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and cook the fregola sarda until al dente in 8 m. Drain and cool under cold running water. Crush the garlic. Tear the oyster mushrooms into strips and slice the mushrooms. Wash the lemon well and grate the zest. Squeeze the juice from the lemon. Finely chop the tarragon. Cut the spring onions into rings. Roast the sunflower seeds in a non-stick pan without fat on a medium heat. Remove from the pan when they start to colour.

Heat the olive oil in the pan and fry the mushrooms and oyster mushrooms until golden brown and crispy in 5-7 m. Then add the garlic and fry for 2 m. Deglaze the pan with the lemon juice and stir in the lemon zest and half of the tarragon.

Put the fregola sarda in a bowl and stir in the rest of the finely chopped tarragon and the extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. [

Spoon the fried mushrooms on top*]. Sprinkle the roasted sunflower seeds on top. [Crumble the feta over it**]. Finish with the spring onions.

*If wanted, replace some with sliced ​​mushrooms

**If wanted.

Fennel salad with feta, pomegranate seeds & sumac

For ➍
½ pomegranate
2 medium fennel bulbs
1½ tbs olive oil
2 ts sumac, plus extra to garnish
juice 1 lemon
4 tbs tarragon leaves
2 tbs coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
70 g Greek feta, sliced
salt & black pepper

First remove the seeds from the pomegranate.*
Cut the stems with the leaves of the fennel bulbs, keep some green behind to garnish. Cut the root disc from the tuber but leave enough to hold the slices together. Cut the tuber lengthwise into very thin slices**
In a bowl, stir together the olive oil, sumac, lemon juice, herbs and some salt and pepper. Add the fennel slices. Taste whether salt and pepper need to be added, but keep in mind that the feta is already salty.
Arrange the fennel slices with the feta and the pomegranate seeds on the plate.

*It is best to halve it along the bellly. Take it firmly in your hand with the cut side facing your hand. Beat on the skin with a wooden spoon over a bowl. Do not hit too hard, otherwise you will bruise the kernels and tear the skin. Magically only the seeds fall out. Remove any white film that comes with it.
**A mandolin is super handy for this.

Great green goddess salad

For ➍
1 clove garlic
1 small anchovy*
½ handful lightly packed fresh parsley
2 medium scallions, white & green parts separated
½ ts dried tarragon
6 cl plain Greek yogurt
2 tbs mayonnaise
1 tbs white wine vinegar
½ ts salt
2 tbs olive oil
125 g baby spinach, washed & dried
1 medium cucumber, peeled & sliced
1 medium avocado, sliced

In the food processor, combine the garlic, anchovy (if using), parsley and the white parts of the scallions. Process to mince very finely. Scrape down and process again. Add the tarragon, yogurt, mayonnaise, vinegar and salt and process until smooth. With the machine running, drizzle in the olive oil until well mixed. Transfer to a pouring cup or jar; keeps for 4 days, tightly covered, in the refrigerator.
Spread the spinach on a platter or 4 small dinner plates. Cover with cucumber and avocado, and drizzle with dressing, then chop and sprinkle the scallion greens over the salads. Serve immediately. Top with cooked chicken or ham for a main course salad, or serve alongside grilled shrimp.

*The classic green goddess dressing has a hint of anchovy for umami, but if you want to leave it out, you can. Double the amounts in the dressing ingredients to make extra for salads throughout the week.

Japanese style poached salmon

For ➍
600 g skinless salmon filets
150 g portobello mushrooms, finely chopped
3 tbs finely chopped yellow onions
20 cl mirin, sake or dry white wine (or add some water)
15 cl heavy cream*
2 tbs butter*
1 tsp fresh (or ¼ tsp dried) tarragon, finely chopped
¾ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper

Rinse salmon and pat dry with a paper towel. Cut filet into 4 equal portions.
In large skillet, arrange mushrooms and onions covering bottom of pan. Place salmon pieces on top.
Pour sake and water over salmon and bring to a boil over medium-high. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and gently simmer 3-5 m or only until salmon is slightly undercooked. Remove salmon from pan, transfer to a plate, cover with tin foil, and set aside.
Increase heat to medium-high and continue to boil mushrooms and onions until the liquid has reduced to 40 cl.
Add any extra juices from salmon plate, stir in heavy cream*, butter*, tarragon, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook 10-15 m until liquid has reduced to 10 cl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove sauce from heat and set aside.
Transfer salmon to individual serving plates, spoon mushroom reduction sauce on top of salmon. Serve immediately.

*Omit cream and butter.

Pumpkin risotto

For ➍
250 g risotto rice
600 g pumpkin, skinned & cubed
250 g smoked bacon
200 g black olives (canned), sliced into rings
150 g fresh goat cheese
Provençal herbs (marjoram, basil, tarragon, thyme, parsley)
olive oil
vegetable or chicken stock

Fry the bacon in a little oil. Add the pumpkin cubes. Bake until just not done.
Add some olive oil and fry the risotto rice in the panPour the remaining oil in the pan and pour the risotto rice. Let the rice on the oil fry until it turns translucent. Stir occasionally. Add hot stock and a pinch of the herbs.
Simmer the rice in the pan until soft. Add water if necessary.
Cut the olives into rings and add them.
Let it simmer until all the water is gone. Then stir in the goat cheese into the risotto just before removing it from the fire.
Serve with Parmigiano cheese.

Read the tip on making a quick risotto.

English chicken casserole

For ➍
2 tbs vegetable oil
8 chicken thigh fillets
6 shallots, peeled & quartered
2 carrots, peeled & sliced thickly
110 g white mushrooms, cleaned & thinly sliced
8 new potatoes, scrubbed & quartered
1 l chicken stock
1 tbs roughly chopped flat parsley leaves, plus leaves for garnish
12 black olives, stoned
2 tbs crème fraîche
bread

Heat a large oven-proof casserole over a medium heat being careful not to make it too hot or the oil will smoke. Add the oil to the casserole and raise the heat slightly until hot but again, not smoking.  Add 4 of the chicken thighs and turn the thighs constantly in the hot oil until browned all over. Remove from the pan, place on kitchen towel to drain and keep to one side. Repeat this with the remaining 4 thighs.
Once the thighs are browned, to the hot pan add the quartered shallots,  sliced carrots, sliced mushrooms and the quartered potatoes . Stir thoroughly to make sure all the vegetables are covered with the oil.
Return the browned chicken thighs to the casserole,  pour the chicken stock over. Cover the casserole with a tight-fitting lid and cook for 20 m on a medium heat, the casserole should be bubbling but not boiling fiercely.
Add the parsley and olives, cover again with the lid and cook for a further 15 m or until the potatoes are tender, when pierced with a sharp knife.
Remove from the heat the casserole from the heat, stir in the cream, garnish with the parsley leaves.
Serve with crusty bread, a must for mopping up the lovely juices.

*Change the herbs to tarragon which is a classic herb for chicken.
Remove the olives and crème fraîche, adding canned borlotti or haricot blanc beans instead.
Keep the olives but remove the crème fraîche and add a can of drained chopped tomatoes.

Fennel & beet salad

For ➍ 

6 medium-sized beets
2 fennel bulbs
1 large grapefruit
walnut oil
lemon juice
salt & pepper
100-120 log goat cheese
coriander or tarragon (optional)

Preheat the oven to 220°C.
Wash the beets and cut off the root. Place beets root-side-down in a glass baking dish filled with 2 cm water. Cover with foil and roast for 30-40 m or until the beets are tender. Remove beets from the oven and allow them to cool.
Bring a pot of water to boil. Cut the fennel into thin strips and blanch for 2-3 m. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
Once the beets have cooled, discard the skins and cut them into matchstick sized pieces.
Mix 1 part grapefruit juice with two parts walnut oil. Add lemon juice depending on the acidity of the grapefruit. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Toss the beets and fennel together in a large bowl and drizzle with the grapefruit vinaigrette*. Serve on top of slices of goat cheese.

*If using dark-colored beets, slice them into rounds and serve them under a pile of the fennel and light-colored beets. If tossed together, the dark beets will color the whole salad an unappealing shade of pink.
**Eventually, add some coriander or tarragon.

Beets and goat cheese are natural allies.

Chilled pea soup with tarragon & radishes

For ➍
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 large shallot, finely chopped
30 cl (chicken) stock
salt & freshly ground black pepper
600 g shelled peas [unfrozen]
5 cl crème fraiche
1 ts finely grated lemon zest
fresh tarragon
sliced radishes

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté until translucent without browning, 3-4 m. Add the broth, ½ ts salt and ½ ts black pepper and simmer 2 m. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
While the stock is cooling, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the peas and cook until peas are tender, 2 to 3 m. Drain and rinse under cold water or shock in ice water to prevent further cooking.
Combine the half of the cooled stock and peas in the bowl of a food processor. Process until very smooth. Add additional stock a little at a time and process to achieve desired consistency. (The soup should be a little thick and not too runny).
Transfer to a bowl, and taste for salt and pepper. Whisk the crème fraiche and lemon zest together in a small bowl. Gently stir into the peas, leaving light traces of the cream visible. 
Carefully divide among 4 serving bowls. Garnish with snipped or whole tarragon leaves and sliced radishes.

Pearl barley risotto with pheasant & beer

For ➍
200 g pearl barley (hata mugi)
1 shallot , chopped
70 cl chicken stock
1 dash of white wine
100 g dried wild mushrooms, soaked in water
½ lemon, zest
4 pheasant fillets
20 cl Double Postel beer
250 g oyster mushrooms, cut into strips
2 handfuls of fresh herbs (parsley , tarragon , chervil , ... ), chopped
butter
olive oil
pepper & salt

The pearl barley is cooked like a risotto, named orzotto. Stew a minced shallot in a little olive oil. Add the pearl barley. Deglaze with the white wine and a splash of chicken stock. Cook on a low heat for 20 m. Check if there is still enough liquid. Add stock if necessary.
Pour in the liquid from the soaked mushrooms for extra flavour. Chop the mushrooms finely and add at the very end. Add grated lemon zest for freshness. Season with salt and pepper. Keep the risotto warm.
Fry the pheasant fillets in a little butter on both sides. The meat should still be pink. Season with salt and pepper. Further, let yarn in a preheated oven at 160°C for 15 m.
Make the sauce. Drain excess fat from the pan and deglaze with the Double Postel. Get the bakings loose and pour the rest of the chicken stock over it. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring the sauce to a boil.
Remove the meat from the oven, cover and leave to rest for a while.
Fry the sliced mushrooms in oil. Season with salt and pepper and add the spring onions. Let yarn on a low heat for a few m.
Serve the risotto with fresh herbs.

Double Postel beer is a Belgian brown abbey beer with a hint of Eastern spices. A good brown or red beer will do.
Read the tip on cooking risotto.

Lemon & mustard vinaigrette

For ➍
1 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs white wine vinegar
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1½ ts fresh lemon zest
1¼ ts fresh tarragon, chopped
1¼ ts salt
⅛ ts black pepper
1 small garlic clove, crushed and finely chopped
4 tbs olive oil, half light and half extra virgin

Put all ingredients in a glass jar, seal with a lid, and shake until ingredients are well incorporated.
Refrigerate leftovers.

This twist on classic vinaigrette tastes perfect tossed with mixed greens, risoni or drizzled over tuna niçoise.

Chicken drumsticks with fennel & apricots

For ➍
12 chicken drumsticks or 4 chicken thighs*
2 fennel bulbs
200 g dried apricots
1.5 dl dry white wine
1 tbs apple vinegar
2 tbs butter
1 tbs bouquet garni
1 tbs dragon
salt & pepper

Cut the fennel into small cubes.
Heat 2 tbs of butter in a saucepan. Brown the drumsticks. Season with salt and pepper and 1 tbs of bouquet garni. Add the diced fennel and white wine, cover and let simmer for 20 to 25 m*.
Add the dried apricots and let simmer for another 10 m.
Remove the chicken and thicken the sauce slightly. Season with 1 tbs of tarragon and 1 tbs of cider vinegar.
Pour the sauce over the drumsticks and serve with croquettes or fresh pasta. Serve with a dry white wine like Gewurztraminer or a red wine like Côtes du Rhône.

*Cook for 50-60 m with chicken thighs.