Lights Out!
From feeding Cardiff to eating wibbly wobbly offaly bits, this blogger is never one to shy away from a challenge. So when I was contacted by the lovely ladies at Cake Communications and asked if I wanted to get involved in Earth Hour, well how could I say no?!
Not heard of Earth Hour? WWF (the animal kind, not the wrestlers) have a really simple idea and one that anyone can do. On 31st March at 8.30pm they want you to switch off your lights for one hour. That's it. One little hour. They say not only will it save electricity but it'll show a solidarity for how brilliant our planet is and get us thinking about how we can protect it.
"That's great Nicki but we're here to read about food!" Well I'm just getting to the fun part. Instead of just sitting around in the dark doing nothing, WWF have suggested holding a candlelit dinner party with your friends, family or that special someone in your life and have enlisted celebrity chefs, including Wales' own Bryn Williams, to come up with some delicious sounding dishes for us all to try.
Here's the challenge part!
In preparation and to get your taste buds tingling I thought I'd show you how easy, and delicious, these recipes are by having a go at one of Bryn's recipes.
Grilled Mackerel with Broad Beans and Chorizo
This is a fab little recipe combining the flavours of the Med with a wonderfully sustainable but vastly underused fish, mackerel. The portions might seem small but all you need to add are a few potatoes (I used boiled new potatoes) and plenty of bread to mop up the delicious sauce.
Serves 4
If you haven’t got an overhead grill, you can pan-fry the fish instead. Heat the pan over a medium flame and then add the oil.
When it’s hot, add the mackerel fillets, skin side down, and season the flesh with salt and pepper. Cook for 3–4 minutes, then turn over for another minute to finish.
Now place the diced chorizo into a frying pan over a medium heat. Cook for 4–5 minutes, or until the lovely reddish oils have been released from the chorizo. Add the shallot and cook until soft.
Pour on the chicken stock, bring to the boil and simmer for another 3–4 minutes. Add the broad beans and bring back to the boil. Add the chopped parsley and finally season to taste adding salt and pepper.
Chef's Notes: Remember when you’re preparing your candlelit meal this Earth Hour there are several certification schemes out there that help the consumer to know the food they buy is making a positive difference. For fish such as the mackerel in Bryn’s recipe, make sure you look for the MSC label.
Blogger's Notes: I searched high and low for fresh broad beans but you can't get them out of season - I used canned but you can also get them in the freezer section.
Fancy having a go yourself? You can find Bryn's recipes along with tasty dishes from other chefs including Rick Stein, Valentine Warner and Ching-He Huang here. So why not sign up to Earth Hour, download your Dinner Party Planner and do something good for the planet whilst feeding your face?
Not heard of Earth Hour? WWF (the animal kind, not the wrestlers) have a really simple idea and one that anyone can do. On 31st March at 8.30pm they want you to switch off your lights for one hour. That's it. One little hour. They say not only will it save electricity but it'll show a solidarity for how brilliant our planet is and get us thinking about how we can protect it.
"That's great Nicki but we're here to read about food!" Well I'm just getting to the fun part. Instead of just sitting around in the dark doing nothing, WWF have suggested holding a candlelit dinner party with your friends, family or that special someone in your life and have enlisted celebrity chefs, including Wales' own Bryn Williams, to come up with some delicious sounding dishes for us all to try.
Here's the challenge part!
In preparation and to get your taste buds tingling I thought I'd show you how easy, and delicious, these recipes are by having a go at one of Bryn's recipes.
Grilled Mackerel with Broad Beans and Chorizo
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| Not sure I'm ready for Masterchef but it sure was tasty! [Photo: Cardiff Bites] |
This is a fab little recipe combining the flavours of the Med with a wonderfully sustainable but vastly underused fish, mackerel. The portions might seem small but all you need to add are a few potatoes (I used boiled new potatoes) and plenty of bread to mop up the delicious sauce.
Serves 4
- 4 fillets of mackerel, cut in half
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 50g cooking chorizo, diced
- 1 shallot, peeled and very finely chopped
- 60g broad beans (if your using frozen, make sure they’re thawed out first)
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- olive oil
- 200ml chicken stock
If you haven’t got an overhead grill, you can pan-fry the fish instead. Heat the pan over a medium flame and then add the oil.
When it’s hot, add the mackerel fillets, skin side down, and season the flesh with salt and pepper. Cook for 3–4 minutes, then turn over for another minute to finish.
Now place the diced chorizo into a frying pan over a medium heat. Cook for 4–5 minutes, or until the lovely reddish oils have been released from the chorizo. Add the shallot and cook until soft.
Pour on the chicken stock, bring to the boil and simmer for another 3–4 minutes. Add the broad beans and bring back to the boil. Add the chopped parsley and finally season to taste adding salt and pepper.
Chef's Notes: Remember when you’re preparing your candlelit meal this Earth Hour there are several certification schemes out there that help the consumer to know the food they buy is making a positive difference. For fish such as the mackerel in Bryn’s recipe, make sure you look for the MSC label.
Blogger's Notes: I searched high and low for fresh broad beans but you can't get them out of season - I used canned but you can also get them in the freezer section.
Fancy having a go yourself? You can find Bryn's recipes along with tasty dishes from other chefs including Rick Stein, Valentine Warner and Ching-He Huang here. So why not sign up to Earth Hour, download your Dinner Party Planner and do something good for the planet whilst feeding your face?
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