There has been much rummaging in cupboards recently and, whilst I have come across a small cornucopia of seeds, nuts and dried fruit in tightly lidded storage jars, few have contained more than the end of a packet. I could have used them up in a seeded fruit cake, but what felt more useful right now was a recipe within reach of anyone, maybe someone who has never cooked before. A recipe that won’t mind if you mix and match the ingredients according to what’s left in the cupboard. Which is why I dug out Mum’s flapjack recipe, the first thing I ever cooked with her; a recipe that in addition to being up for a few additions from the store cupboard, carries with it the warm scent of butter and golden syrup and baking oats and tells you, almost more than any other, that everything is going to be all right.
I am currently rather grateful for these sort of recipes, the ones that are happy with a bit of give and take. The type of cooking that is cool with a cook’s “more or less” attitude to weights and measures. In particular, I appreciate recipes that allow you to make substitutions when ingredients won’t come to hand.
Another straightforward dish, this time of the spring dinner kind, is one of baked chicken cooked with stock and then any vegetables you have around. My first was a rather seasonal mix of peas and lettuce, yet I could have used tender-leaved early chard or broad beans. I used stock that I had around, but I could have embellished it with ease – upending the dregs of a bottle of white vermouth into the stock would have added interest without overwhelming the green spring flavours. The green olives I dropped in at the last minute brought a welcome salty, slightly bitter quality, but I could have easily used a few capers or tiny cornichons. If none had been available I may have resorted to a splash of tarragon vinegar and an even more generous pinch of salt.
Chicken, leeks and lettuce
The lettuce leaves take on a silky texture in the oven, with the stems retaining something of their crispness. Cos and little gem are the most suitable, the exceptionally fragile leaves of the round butterhead variety probably less so. Serves 2
olive or vegetable oil 3 tbsp
chicken thighs 4, large
leeks 200g
chicken or vegetable stock 1 litre
lettuce 2, little gem or similar
green olives 12
peas 300g (shelled or frozen weight)
parsley or chervil a small handful
Warm the oil in a deep, ovenproof pan, then add the chicken pieces, skin side down and lightly seasoned, and cook until the skin is a rich golden colour. Turn them and colour the underside similarly, then remove from the pan and set aside.
Set the oven at 200C/gas mark 6. Trim the leeks, discarding any tough, dark leaves. Cut them into short pieces about the length of a wine cork, then wash thoroughly, removing every grain of grit trapped between their layers.
Pat the leeks dry, then fry them in the chicken pan over a moderate heat, so they soften without browning. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil, stirring as you go, then return the chicken to the pan. Place in the oven and bake for 25 minutes.
Wash the lettuce and cut each head in half from root end to leaf tip. Remove the chicken from the oven and tuck the lettuce around it, then add the olives. Tip in the peas and return to the oven for another 20 minutes.
Check the seasoning, then add any small herb leaves and serve in bowls, with spoons for the broth.
Fruit and oat flapjacks
Use whatever appropriate seeds you have to hand, but in the interests of texture I try to use a mixture of sizes. For this batch I used an equal weight of large pumpkin and sunflower seeds, with just 10g each of diminutive linseed and sesame. If you use only large seeds the flapjacks may well fall apart. The mixture of dried fruits I used was roughly equal amounts of golden sultanas, dried cherries, mulberries and candied orange peel, but I could have used apricots, raisins or dried cranberries.
You will also need a shallow baking tin – a roasting tin will do – about 22cm x 24cm, lined with baking parchment. Makes 12
butter 150g
golden syrup 4 tbsp
soft brown sugar 70g
porridge oats 150g
jumbo oats 100g
mixed seeds 65g (see above)
pistachios 25g (shelled weight)
dried fruits 90g (see above)
Melt the butter in a deep saucepan. Set the oven at 170C/gas mark 3. Add the golden syrup to the melted butter then stir in the sugar and let it melt.
Stir both sizes of oats into the melted butter and sugar together with a generous pinch of salt. Remove the pan from the heat, then stir in dried fruits, nuts and seeds.
Tip the mixture into the baking tin and gently smooth the surface level, but do not compress or compact the mixture. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. The flapjack is done when it starts to turn a darker gold around the edges. The centre should be firm and springy to the touch.
Remove the tin from the oven and, if you wish, score, without cutting right through, into 12 rectangular pieces. I prefer to break mine into rough pieces of assorted sizes as they cool.
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