How to make sauerkraut at home?

cabbage after one week of fermenting - crunchy yet with distinctive sauerkraut flavour already, more photos to follow soon

Homemade sauerkraut is a world apart from the stuff that comes from the shop in jars or plastic bags. The real thing that you can buy in Poland (I am sure Czech, Slovakia, Russian, Germany and more too) from a butt (barrel?) tastes so much better than the jar stuff I buy in UK. So I decided (finally!) to make my own following my Mum's and Granny's advice. My partner and I both agreed that this was one of the best ones we ever ate. Come on winter! We no longer should have an immune problems, good bye colds (hopefully!), but to be honest for me what is the best is the flavour of sauerkraut - you cannot beat it. Have you tried and liked kimchi? Then you should try sauerkraut. 

What is sauerkraut? 

Directly translated it is indeed "sour cabbage". To be more precise finely cut cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria therefore very good for your health. It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid that forms when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage.

Autumn cabbage is the best for making sauerkraut

Why it is good for you?

It is extremely high in vitamins C, B, and K; the fermentation process increases the bioavailability of nutrients rendering sauerkraut even more nutritious than the original cabbage. It is also low in calories and high in calcium and magnesium, and it is a very good source of dietary fiber, folate, iron, potassium, copper and manganese.

If unpasteurized and uncooked, sauerkraut also contains live lactobacilli and beneficial microbes and is rich in enzymes. The fiber and supply of probiotics improve digestion and promote the growth of healthy bowel flora, protecting against many diseases of the digestive tract.

Sauerkraut is high in the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin, both associated with preserving ocular health.

Can you prepare sauerkraut at home? 

YES! 

This is what you need:

- white cabbage, preferably during Autumn time (this is what Gran told me - earlier cabbages don't taste as good)

- good quality natural salt (with no additives such as anti-caking agents) - about 10-20 grams for every kilogram of fresh cabbage

- carrots, firm sour apples, caraway (seeds or ground) - OPTIONAL, for extra flavour 

- possibly a stoneware but glass jar will be good too for small batches (my Great grandmother use to make it in a wooden butt, but she had one and a special space for it, also a much bigger family to feed than we nowadays)

- mandoline or a food processor with shredding attachment (unless you want to cut it with a knife)

How?

Work in fairly clean environment - you want good bacteria to do their job, so clean the worktops and the container you will be making sauerkraut in. 

First remove outer leaves from the cabbage and discard any wilted, limp outer leaves. Cut in half and in quarters then trim out the core. Some people use it, but it has to be very finely shredded - so it is up to you, you may as well leave it just to make sure it is shredded finely than the leaves.

Using a mandoline or a food processor shred the cabbage into fine ribbons. At this stage you can place them in a container that will be used for fermenting or in something else for a time being (and mixing with salt). I place it in a large clean plastic bowl.

Sprinkle the salt over the top of the shredded cabbage. If you making a lot of it (like me - 8kg of cabbage in one lot) it would be beneficial to sprinkle salt over few layers of cabbage as you shred it. 

Next begin working the salt into the cabbage by massaging and squeezing the cabbage with your hands, wooden rolling pin or... clean feet. Yes, this is fun! :) The main purpose for this is to get some juices out of the cabbage. Gradually, the cabbage will become watery and limp. It is time to add whatever you want to add for extra flavour, or you can leave it as it is. 

shredded cabbage

For 8kg of cabbage I used 2 large carrots (peeled and grated), 3 firm sour apples and about 3 tsp of ground caraway. I placed some carrots in between layers of cabbage when I was transporting it to a stoneware container. Also I sprinkled few layers with ground caraway and just before the last layer I added apples and covered them with last layer of cabbage. 

You have to make sure all the juices go to the container. You must press the cabbage down again, quite firmly, then cover with clean cloth and place something heavy on the top to weight it down - I used plate with big jar of water. Cabbage must be weighed down, and eventually, submerged beneath its liquid.  If after 24 hours in room temperature, the liquid has not risen above the cabbage, dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in 1 cup of water and add just enough to submerge the cabbage.

bashing the cabbage with a rolling pin

Ferment the cabbage for 3 to 14 days. Time will depend on the quantity you are making and the temperature. At the beginning keep it at the room temperature, but then after about 1-3 days place in a cool place, preferably about 12-15 C. As it's fermenting, keep the sauerkraut away from direct sunlight, check it daily and press it down if the cabbage appears above the liquid. After about 1-3 days (again depending on the quantity) get a wooden spoon and using it's bottom pierce the cabbage in few places to remove the natural gas that may occur during the fermentation and sometimes can make the cabbage taste a bit bitter.

Small batch of sauerkraut will ferment more quickly than larger one. Start tasting it after 3 days — when the sauerkraut tastes good to you, remove the weight, place cabbage in the jars, screw on the cap, and refrigerate (I keep in the cool garage during Autumn/Winter). You can also allow the sauerkraut to continue fermenting for 10 days or longer. There are no hard rules for when the sauerkraut is ready— go by how it looks and tastes.

Gas, bubbles, noises are all happy signs of fermentation so do not worry. :) And please note the released juices are extremely tasty, refreshing and healthy.

Refrigerated in jars sauerkraut should keep for 2-3 months. 

chopped cabbage in stoneware dish

I hope you have enjoyed my first English post in months and I would love to hear from you if you make your own sauerkraut. 

our traditional stoneware dish we brought from Poland

Apple & Old Peculier ale winter chutney - Christmas gifts vol. 8

Yes, it is this time of the year already. If you are keen on making your own Xmas gifts for foodies please fell free to see all my posts from my culinary gifts section, as there are some more chutneys (unfortunately seasonal) and different types of shortbread etc.

This year I made my first chutney using one of my favourite ales from local brewery. You can use different ale, preferably strong, dark and with fruity notes like the Old Peculier.

This is an ideal gift for cheese lovers, I can't wait to try it when it will be matured but even hot and straight from a pan it wasn't too vinegary in flavour.

Please have a piece of gauze and string ready - this is needed if you want to infuse the chutney with spices and remove them before putting in the jars - eating whole peppercorns could be rather unpleasant, so please prevent it if you can. 

makes 5 jars, each about 200ml 

1½ kg apples

3 medium white onions

100g  currants

50g sultanas
1 pint of Old Peculier Ale

1½ cup of dark, soft sugar

1 cup of cider vinegar

1 tsp of whole coriander seeds

½ tsp of whole black peppercorns

½ tsp of ground cinnamon 

half star anise

¼ tsp chilli flakes

Place sultanas and currants in a bowl and cover with ale. Leave it to soak for at least 1 hour.

Place coriander seeds, peppercorns in a mortar and crush them slightly. They don't want to be very fine. Place onto a piece of gauze and add chilli flakes, star anise and tie with a piece of string. Set aside.

Peel the core the apples and then dice into about 0.5 cm pieces. Place in a large pan, preferably heavy bottom one. 

Peel the onions and dice into small pieces. Add to the pan with the apples. 

To the pan add the sugar, ground cinnamon, vinegar, remaining ale and soaked currants and sultanas. Add the bag with spices and bring to the boil. Then lower the heat and simmer for about 2½ - 3 hours, stirring occasionally. 

Most of the liquid should evaporate and apples should be very soft. If you wish to have less chunkier chutney use potato masher and roughly mash the chutney after removing the spices in the bag. Or you can leave it as chunky - texture really depends on the variety of apples you are using. 

Place hot chutney in the sterilised jars, seal and turn up side down and leave them to cool down. You can pasteurise it of you wish to keep it for longer than 6 months. To do so place clean kitchen cloth in a pan together with the jars - up side down and cover half way with water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 30 minutes. Leave it to cool down, remove from a pan, dry and store in dark, cool place.

Spiced apricot preserve with rose

It is my first homemade apricot preserve. I never made my own as I had favourite brand since for the very first time I tried it in late eighties. My parents came back from France and brought a jar with them. For me, kid that was familiar with very basic and poorly made preserves available in the shops during the communism, it was like a pure heaven, very exotic too.

I have been buying this brand for a long time but recently I didn't enjoy it so much. Is it producer's fault, or my taste has changed? I don't know. All I know is that I finally decided to make my own apricot preserve. I had a tip from one of Polish mates - he said apricots go well with rose water and spices. It sounded rather unusual to me, but when I got home and checked "The Flavour Thesaurus" by Niki Segnit (where apricots were recommended with rose, cinnamon and cloves) I was totally convinced I should try this.

After I made my first batch I came back to the shop to get some more ripe apricots - luckily they were at the reduced price so I made some more apricot preserve and I will never buy anymore ready made.

Makes 3 jars (each approx. 200ml) 

1 kg ripe apricots, stoned and halved

½ kg caster sugar

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

1 whole green cardamom, black seeds crushed in the mortar

1 tsp rose water (for culinary use)  

Place the apricot halves in a pan together with a sugar, cover and leave overnight.

Next day add the spices and place on the lowest possible heat. Simmer uncovered for about 2 hours. Turn the heat off and leave it to coll down then cover and leave it overnight.

Next day again simmer on the low heat for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Then turn the heat of and leave overnight covered.

On the third day again simmer for about 2 hours but at this stage you have to be careful and watch it - it catches easily and you don't want to burn it.  Add rose water for last 30 minutes.

When still hot place in sterilized (preferably still hot) jars, seal, turn up side down and place on a baking tray lined with tea towel. Place in the oven at 120 C and turn it off after about 20 minutes. Leave it to cool down completely in closed oven. 

Store in cool, dark place. Not sure how long you can store it, my preserves usually disappear within 3-6 months. 

Spiced plum chutney

I trusted Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his recipe published in The Guardian , but I forgot to buy the apples. I hope you can trust me and mine slightly changed recipe for spiced plum chutney. It tasted good when still hot, but I like quite sour, vinegar taste. It will fully develop it's flavour after 2-3 months maturing.

Due to the lack of apples that contain a lot of pectin, I used liquid pectin (Certo) and changed some quantities.   I am not sure which variety of plums I used, as there was not information on the market and I forgot to ask. I am going to make some more of this chutney later on this summer, with August ad September varieties, such as damsons or similar. 

Makes 6 jars, about 200ml each 

1.1 kg plums, quartered and stoned
300g onions, peeled and diced
180g stoned prunes, roughly chopped
fresh root ginger thumb size, peeled and finely chopped
400g soft dark brown sugar
400ml vinegar (I used some malt and some red wine vinegar)
2 tsp dried chilli flakes
salt
2 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp black peppercorns, roughly crushed
about 70g of liquid pectin

Place all the above except the pectin in heave based pan. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally, especially be careful with last 30 minutes, when chutney gets sticky and tends to burn. Then remove from the heat and stir in the pectin.

Place hot chutney in the sterilised jars, seal and turn up side down and leave them to cool down. You can pasteurise it of you wish to keep it for longer than 6-9 months. Our chutney will disappear before end of this year. Allow to mature for about 2-3 months.  

Gooseberry chutney

I always show you recipes for dishes that I cooked myself and tasted so I can without shadow of a doubt recommend to you. Today it will be different, I am taking a bit of risk. I have made this chutney based on ingredients of Waitrose gooseberry chutney and various recipes I have found on-line, but I have improvised little bit.

I liked this chutney even when hot, even with this strong vinegar taste, which I am sure will disappear and develop into something else within a time. However I cannot be sure of the final outcome because it was the first time I have made gooseberry chutney. I did not want to wait until next year, so today here it is! Perhaps you will trust my senses and decide to make this or similar chutney this season. I hope it will be worth waiting, I cannot wait to have it with chunk o cheese.

Makes 2½ jars, 190ml each

400g gooseberry, topped and tailed

1 large onion, peeled and diced

handful of sultanas

150g soft brown sugar

180ml malt vinegar

tsp salt

½ tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

tsp mustard seeds

Place all of the above in heavy based pan and bring to boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for about 1.5 hrs. Occasionally stir, gently so you do not break up gooseberries too much. Keep an eye on it on last 15 minutes, stirring more often, so it prevents the chutney to catch and burn.

Place hot chutney in sterilised jars, seal and turn up side down. Leave it to cool down and store in cool, dark place. Allow to mature for about 2 months.

Tasting about September time. Keep you fingers crossed!

EDIT: It tastes great! I definitely will prepare more next year. 

Rosemary & mint salt - Christmas gifts vol. 5

I have gone crazy. I have made another flavoured salt. I simply could not resist especially when I smelled fresh rosemary the other day. Also because I knew there is some leftover fresh mint in my fridge, which I bought for a dinner (this pasta). Therefore next day I prepared another flavoured salt which in my opinion will go very well with lamb. I had the opportunity to taste it last weekend and it is perfect with roast potatoes. It smells lovely and look at this colour!


about 8 tbsp rock sea salt (or flaky)
about 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, leaves picked
about 2 tbsp fresh mint, leaves picked

Place all of the ingredients in the food processor and grind until herbs are finely grinded but salt still remains bit coarse. You can make a fine salt if you like.

It happens that I had oven reheated to 175C because I just finished to bake a cake, so I turned the oven off and placed salt sprinkled over a baking tray lined with paper inside. Shake it every 10 minutes , two or three times so the salt dries out evenly. Leave it to cool down in the oven. Then place in clean, sterilised jar.

It might be my last flavoured salt, but perhaps something will inspire me again... Who knows?

Cranberry & orange jam with vanilla and cardamom - Christmas gifts vol. 4

I have just finished my lazy Sunday breakfast and still in my mouth I have this lovely taste of the best jam I have ever made. It is not too sweet, but kind sour-bitter with this lovely hint of cardamom. I think the orange marmalade lovers would like this jam because it has this nice bitterness coming from the orange peel.

When fresh cranberries still in season I will have to make more of this lovely jam because those jars I prepared yesterday will have to be a part of my Christmas hampers for my colleagues. Cranberries again? I simply cannot resist them in the winter season and they are so Christmassy, aren't they? Besides I am so proud of this jam that I have to share it my some other people!





Makes 5 x 190ml jars

500g fresh cranberries
1 large orange
500g sugar
beans of one vanilla pod (or tsp of natural vanilla extract)
3 cardamoms
juice of half lemon
125ml pectin (optional - if you do not use it the jam will be more runny, I preferred it more jelly like; alternatively you can use jam sugar with added pectin)


Pell the orange with veg peeler, thinly and then cut into thin strips.

Remove the cardamom seeds from their skins and smash into a powder using pestle and mortar,

Place cranberries, sugar, orange peel and whole orange juice, lemon juice, cardamom and vanilla in a big pan. Bring to the boiling point, turn the heat down and simmer until most of the cranberries burst. (I love the sound they make!).

Remove form the oven and stir in the pectin (if using) and place hot jam in warm, sterilised jars. Seal, turn up side down and let them to cool down completely.

To be quite honest I don't know how long it will last in a dark cool place, but I think at least 3 months. However I do not think it will last that long - it is so delicious that it disappears quickly ...

Szechuan pepper, lemon, chilli & fennel salt - Christmas gifts vol. 3

My first Christmas gifts post turned out to be quite popular, so I decided to make another flavoured salt. I did not realise how easy is it and it is only your own imagination that limits you, and obviously the herbs and spices in your cupboard.

So if you liked my thyme and lemon salt I hope you will like this one, which perhaps is more interesting for people who like more intense flavours and aroma of spices rather than herbs. Also it makes nice set together with a previous salt. This one should go nicely with pork, fish and vegetable dishes. It has a bit of a kick.

I hope you will enjoy making your own salts. Certainly his is not my last one, but I am not sure if I will manage to show another one before Christmas, so use your imagination and create your own and have fun at the same time.


about 10 tbsp of rock sea salt (or flaky)
rind of one lemon (try to peel it quite thin, the white bit could e bitter)
1 whole dried chilli
2 tbsp Szechuan (or Sichuan) pepper
2 tbsp fennel seeds

Preheat the oven to about 100 C.

Cut the lemon peel into small squares and place onto a baking tray. Place in the oven, set the temperature to about 100 C and bake for about 15 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave the lemon rind closed in the oven until completely cold.

Roughly chop the lemon rind and all the spices in mini chopper or using pestle and mortar. Next add salt and grind - again roughly or finely. I decided to make fine salt so all the flavours mix together and the salt is ready to use.

Place in dry, clean ,airtight jars.

Cranberry & apple chutney - Christmas gifts vol. 2

Today another Christmas gift idea as the time is running like mad and there is less than three weeks left now! I have seen similar recipe in "Good Food" magazine, December 2010 issue, but I have made something similar in the past which I did not place in the jars but used immediately with some roast meat. Inspired by magazine I decided to place this chutney in a jars and leave it to matire for few weeks before Christmas.

Click here for lemon & thyme salt - another exciting Christmas gift idea.





Makes about 4 x 200ml jars

3 large, cooking apples
1 firm pear
1 large, white onion
350g fresh cranberries
piece of fresh ginger, walnut size
about 150g sugar
about 100ml cider of white wine vinegar
few whole black peppercorns

Peel and core the apples and pear, then dice it into small pieces. Peel the onion, cut in half and into slices. Peel and finely chop the ginger.

Place all ingredients except cranberries in a heavy-based pan, then gently heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring regularly until the apples and onions are tender and there is no watery juice remains.

Then add the cranberries and stir gently. Keep on the heat for another 10 minutes until cranberries are softened but not all of them are burst.

Spoon the hot chutney into sterilised jars, seal and store in a cool dark place. It will keep up to 6 months. It taste the best after 2-3 weeks of maturing.

Lemon & thyme salt - Christmas gifts vol. 1

Few weeks ago I was bit concerned with the fact that I probably will not be able to show you some exciting Christmas recipes this year. First of all I do not have much spare time to cook complicated and time consuming dishes and in addition I probably would not be able to buy some of the ingredients required to cook some Polish festive recipes. Also, when I am away from home and dishes that my Mum cooks the best, I am not bothered about cooking any special dishes for Christmas, especially there will only be two of us, so there is no point going crazy with the amount of food.

However I didn't want to disappoint you, My Dear Readers so I managed to prepare two things so far, that can be lovely Christmas presents for food lovers. In my opinion most people appreciate handmade gifts. What better could you wish for foodie?

Bad weather certainly helped me - since Tuesday I finish work earlier and fitness centre cancelled classes and closes much earlier, so I spend more time and home.

Do you wonder where I have found an inspiration for this? Few weeks ago I have found a salt grinder by Jamie Oliver on a sale. It was thyme and lemon salt and I went absolutely crazy about it. I add it almost to everything - meat, fish soups, vegetables. I am not sure if I can manage to get some more so I decided to make my own. This is how it turned out:





Nice, isn't it? And so tasty! So place this lovely salt in a fancy jar and you have pretty Christmas gif. Perhaps you will manage to buy nice grinder and make a lovely set? I think somebody will appreciate your work and hand made gift. This is all you need:



about 10 tbsp of rock sea salt (or flaky)
about 30g fresh thyme (or lemon thyme)
1 bay leaf
rind of one lemon (try to peel it quite thin, the white bit could e bitter)

Preheat the oven to about 100 C.

Cut the lemon peel into small squares and place onto a baking tray lined with baking paper together with bay leaf and thyme. Place in the oven and bake until the thyme is completely dry, turning once or twice.

Remove thyme and bay leaf from the tray, return the lemon to the oven and turn the oven off. Leave it closed in the oven until completely cold.

Shake the leaves off the thyme springs. Crush bay leaf into a salt and mix with thyme.

Remove the lemon peel from the oven and mix with the rest of ingredients.

You can obviously grind your salt in a grinder or food processor and you will end up with fine flavoured salt.

Harissa

Few years back when I use to read about standards required in Michelin stars restaurants I was bit shocked. But then after few years I totally understand why all of those standards are so high. I use to think that chopping vegetables into equal pieces or spending time on making your own pastry is a bit of a waste of time and called it quite obsessive.

Professional Michelin inspectors anonymously visit restaurants evaluate them on a range of criteria. If they are impressed by a restaurant, they visit the establishment again. And again. Quite an obsessive research, isn’t it? This actually makes the Michelin stars restaurants such a reliable place to eat. No matter what the occasion, time of the year you will always find the best food in those places. Also, I believe that you will remember this meal for long…

It is not only the prestige of the place that comes with Michelin stars but also a big money – the restaurants can be fully booked months in advance.

Now after few years of cooking at home, learning new skills, tasting menus from different chefs I know exactly that those small things make a huge difference. These things are taking dishes to the new exciting level.

I know that sometimes it is difficult to find time to make your own puff pastry, pesto or real stock and we use some bought, ready – made. It is OK, but it certainly brings the taste down. No matter how expensive the stuff from the shops is, the homemade one is always better.

Call me snob, or obsessed but I prefer to make my own pesto, pastry or stock. This is what makes my guests think “WOW” when they try my dishes. Perhaps this is something that you cannot name, you are not sure what it is, but you can tell that it makes big difference to the taste. It is important for me, because I eat not only to satisfy a hunger…

Taking all the above into a consideration I stopped buying ready made harissa and made my own, that was much better than any from a jar that I tried before. This hot chilli sauce is commonly eaten in North Africa and Middle East. It is great with any meat dish, if you like hot dishes, excellent with veg too – especially with lentils or beans dishes.




From “Good Food”, September 2010 issue

Makes about 5 tablespoons

10 fresh red finger length chillies
1 ½tsp coriander seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp caraway seeds
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
½ sea salt, preferably flaked
2 tsp tomato puree
2½ tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil (mild, not extra virgin, as it will overpower the taste of other ingredients)
7 drops rose water (optional, but highly recommended!)

Place frying pan over a medium heat and char the chillies turning them now and then until fairly blackened and covered in “blisters”. Remove from a pan, place in a plastic bad, seal it and leave it to cool down slightly, for about 10 minutes.

In the same frying pan over a low heat gently toast the cumin, caraway and coriander seeds, for about 2 minutes, tossing them, until fragrant. Place in a mortar and smash with pestle.

Peel away the skins from chillies and deseed them. I recommend you use a latex gloves or wash your hands with oil and then with water and soap to avoid any nasty consequences (especially man – do not be tempted to do this job and go to the toilet without washing your hands carefully). Capsaicin from chillies is hydrophobic, so you cannot wash it away using water, but you can do so using alcohol or oils. This is why you should rub some oil into your hands before washing them with water and soap.

With a pestle and mortar pound the chillies, spices, garlic and salt together until as fine as possible. Stir in tomato puree, lemon juice and rose water and allow flavours to combine for at least one hour before using.

Unfortunately the magazine did not tell us how long we can keep this refrigerated. I am keeping mine for 2 weeks now and everything looks and tastes OK. I would think it will last long if covered with layer of oil. I would try to freeze it in ice container, to make small cubes – each for single use.

If harissa is to hot for you make it milder by adding more olive.

Review & I fight my demons vol. 2

Recently I mentioned I am going to test my new kitchen equipment that was kindly offered by CSN Stores. Also at the same time I fought my next culinary demon - homemade pasta.

Honestly, before I made my own pasta I thought it was extremely difficult, time consuming and the outcome would not be good enough to waste my time and money to buy a pasta maker. Also I was told it is not worth buying £20-30 makers, as they do not last long and are difficult to manage.

So when I had the opportunity to shop at CSN Stores my first thought was - pasta machine! I have decided to go for Imperia pasta maker, which costs around £50-60 and seems to be in the middle range of manual pasta makers. I have decided to buy this one, without any attachments to make short pasta or ravioli, because I did not know if making homemade pasta will be fun. Now I know t certainly is!

Right... Perhaps I will introduce you to the machine first. Imperia Double Cutter Pasta Machine came in the box and it was quite heavy, yet not to heavy to handle. It has detachable handle, tabletop screw clamp fitting and full care and use instructions.

The machine consists of two rollers that can be gradually adjusted (6 positions), rolling the pasta into thinner sheets as the handle is turned. Also it comes with tagliatelle and spaghetti attachment. Once the correct thickness has been achieved you can either cut you pasta sheets into your favourite shape or feed it through the cutter.

The rollers and the cutter run smoothly, the maker is solid and once secured to the top it can be one hand operated without sliding. The extra attachment to make short pasta is available and it is matter of time until I buy it, because I already love to make my own pasta. Also, I will use it to roll out the dough for lasagne sheets, handmade ravioli or Polish dumplings. I do not have the attachment to make ravioli, but these are so easy to achieve when you have a perfectly rolled dough. I just make them by hand and pastry cutter.

I am very happy with my new equipment and would recommend making your own pasta to everybody who loves simple Italian food. Homemade pasta does not need fancy ingredients - good quality olive oil, garlic, basil and parmesan are more than enough. Let pasta speak for itself.



Now, I tell you how to make your own pasta. I used recipe from fabulous book "Made in Italy. Food and the stories" by Giorgio Locatelli for fresh egg pasta using Italian "00" type flour. You can use one egg for every 100g of flour, however it is good to add some extra egg yolks. The more egg yolks you add the more brittle the pasta becomes.


Homemade tagliatelle

Makes about 600g

500g Italian "00" (doppio zero) flour
3 large eggs in room temperature
2 egg yolks (optional, you can use whole extra eggs)
pinch of salt

Preferably make pasta by hand, especially when you make small amount as it can be difficult to mix well by food processor.

Sieve the flour into a bowl, then turn into a mound onto a clean surface and make a well in the middle. Sprinkle the salt into a well and then crack in the eggs.

You can have a bowl of water on the side, so you can wet your hands to help bring the dough together if it getting too difficult towards the end of kneading.

To begin brake the egg yolks with your fingertips and then begin to move your fingers in a circular motion, gradually incorporating the flour until you have worked in enough to start bringing in together in a ball. The you start to work the ball of dough by pushing it with the heel of your hand, then folding the top back to itself, repeating again and again.

To make the dough you have to spend a good 10minutes on kneading, the dough should come together and feel quite stiff. However it is no good to overdo the dough. You need to leave it in damp cloth for about 1 hour to rest and it will become softer.

Next roll the pasta using a rolling pin first so it is not too thick when rolling in the machine, about 1 cm thick is enough. Put the machine of the thickest setting and start rolling. You have to support the rolled dough with you hand so it will not fold or stick. Change to next setting and roll again. Repeat another 2-3 times taking the setting down every time.




Next fold the pasta onto itself, put the machine into first setting and put the pasta through. Repeat 2-3 times, changing the setting to thinner. If you feel the dough is too sticky dust with very little flour. The final dough should be about 1.5mm thick, shiny and with no lines in it. You can use it to make long pasta using cutting attachment, or cut it by hand. Also you can cut it into lasagne dish or use t to make filled pasta such as tortellini or ravioli. You can dried it and keep in the paper bag, or in the jar or you can use it straight away.

Fresh egg pasta needs only about 3-4 minutes of cooking.



Also today I will show the recipe from the same book for a classic pesto that is delicious with homemade pasta. Homemade pesto is much better than a shop bought one, as the shop bought one can be too garlicky and has chemical smell and taste.




Classic pesto
Makes small jar

2 garlic cloves
2 tbsp of pine nuts, slightly toasted
250g basil leaves
2 tbsp pecorino or parmesan cheese, grated
around 300ml extra virgin olive oil
tiny pinch of salt

Either in the food processor with a sharp blade or using pestle and mortar start with the garlic and salt. Smash the garlic, then add the nuts and crush them, but try not to overwork them. Drop in the basil leaves a few at time and work them in as quickly as possible. Then add you cheese and oil until you have bright, green paste. The quicker you bring it together the brighter the colour will be as you will not generate too much heat.

Place in the jar, cover with layer of oil keep refrigerated. It will keep for 6 months, especially if you used young basil that did not start to flower.

See also:
I fight my demons, vol. 1

Caramelised red onion

All my life I was a proper city girl. Never had any family or friends living in the countryside so I have never made a physical contact with some animals, in particular farm ones.

I have made my first physical contact with goats one day when… working with my company. When I first started I was a part-timer doing small jobs – printing postage, paying in, and once I was asked to go and take the picture of the barn for conversion that we had for sale.

So I went into a middle of the field, trying not to cave in too much in my high heels (did not have wellies in the car that day and the ground was quite soft) and I was trying to take the best shot possible. Suddenly I realised one of the goats was chewing my trousers and the other was trying to scar me by stamping aggressively.

I was trying to scar the one that enjoyed my trousers but she seemed to have more fun. I was chased by both until I got into the car and came back to the office in my trousers with goats’ saliva on.

So I do not trust goats anymore but I love goats’ cheese. And there is something really tasty that goes very well with goats’ cheese and other cheese. It is homemade caramelised onion. It is tastier when matured for 4-6 weeks so do not be tempted to open the jar earlier as you may be disappointed.

I am not quite sure how many 190ml jar I had from the ingredients below, but at least 5. I am just about to finish the last one and will have to make some more – I will double the quantities this time.

Recipe is a pure improvisation.



1kg red onion
approx. 50g butter (I used ghee)
approx. 150ml red wine vinegar
approx. 100ml dry red wine
approx. 300g dark muscovado
to handfuls of dried cranberries
half tsp chilli powder
pinch of salt

Peel, half and slice the onions and add to the heavy bottom pan with melted butter. Fry over a low heat for about 15 minutes – it should be soft but not browned.

Next add the sugar, stir gently and fry for about 10 minutes. Next add the remaining ingredients and stir. Simmer over a low heat for about 15 minutes. Most of the liquids should evaporate, so you can turn the heat up for last few minutes, but be careful and do not burn the whole thing.

Also you can add some herbs such as thyme, but I prefer plain onion and adding some fresh herbs just before serving.

Place hot onions in sterilised jars, close and place up side down a big pan lined with kitchen towel. Fill with the hot water till about half of the jars height and boil (not rapidly) for about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan, set aside to cool down and store in a dark, cool place.

I think these should keep at least 1 year, but in my house do not last more than 3 months. I also use it for sausage or beef sandwiches.

Rhubarb, orange peel & ginger jam

Makes 6x 200ml jars

1.3kg rhubarb
750g sugar (granulated or preserving)
2 oranges
about 2.5cm piece of fresh ginger

Wash the rhubarb, dry and cut into about 1 inch pieces and place in the heavy bottom pan.

Peel the ginger, slice finely, cut into thin strips. Place in the pan together with the rhubarb.

Peel the oranges and cut the peel to thin strips, next place them in the pan. Squeeze the juice from both oranges into the pan, add the sugar and simmer over a low heat for about 60 minutes stirring gently. Most of the rhubarb pieces will disintegrate. This jam is quite runny.

Place hot jam into 6 x 200ml sterilised warmed jars, then place them upside down in an ovenproof dish and keep in the preheated oven (100C) for about 15 minutes.

Leave it to cool down in the open oven overnight and store in the dry, cool place.

It tastes good with homemade challah (chałka, plecionka in Polish), which I am going to show soon.