Woman_and_Home_Feel_Good_Food_-_October_2019

FEEDING A CROWDwith James Ramsden

EXTRACTED

FROM:

LET’S

DO

DINNER:

PERFECT

DO-AHEAD

MEALS FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

BY JAMES RAMSDEN

(£12.99, PAVILION BOOKS). PHOTOGRAPHY: YUKI SUGIURA

Serves 4–6

500g/1lb2oz beetroot

oliveoil

1 onion,peeledandfinelychopped

2 sticksofcelery,finelychopped

1 garlicclove, peeled and finely

chopped

saltandpepper

500ml/18floz/generous2 cups

chickenorvegetablestock

1 tbspwhitewinevinegar or

tarragonvinegar

Toserve

a smallbunchof chives or dill

sour cream

Uptoa dayahead:

Putthebeetrootin a panofsalted

waterandbringtoa boil.Gently

simmeruntileasilypiercedwitha

skewer– thiscantakeanythingfrom

20 minutesto1 hour,dependingon

theirsizeandage.Drainandcool

fora fewminutes,thenrubwith

yourthumbtoremovetheskin.Chop

into2cm/¾indiceandsetaside.

Meanwhile, heat a little oil in a

largesaucepanovera lowheat

andgentlysweattheonion,celery

andgarlicuntilsoftened.

Seasonwithsaltandpepper,and

addthestock,vinegarandcooked

beetroot.Bringtoa boilandsimmer

for5 minutes.Tastefor seasoning,

thencoolandchill.

30 minutesahead:

Gentlyreheatthesoupif serving

hot.Chopthechives or dill.

Dinnertime:

Spoontheborschtintobowlsand

garnishwithsourcream and

chopped herbs.

Tart:

Afewflakesofsmokedmackerel

wouldcertainlygowell,aswould

shreddedcabbageorappleadded

withthebeetroot,thoughI enjoy

thesimplicity of the dish.

Tweak:

Oncethesoupis cooked,blend

witha splashofcreamfora more

refined,if lessauthentic, borscht.

Tomorrow:

Storeinthe fridge for a couple

of days.

LET’SDO

DINNER:

PERFECT

DO-AHEAD

MEALSFOR

FAMILYAND

FRIENDS

(£12.99,PavilionBooks)

Wecan’tdoLet’s

DoDinnerjustice

bysharinga single

recipe,butwethink

thisbookisthesecret

ingredientthatyou

needtocreatea truly

fabulousrestaurant-

qualitydinnerfor

friendswithoutfuss.

Fromaperitifnibbles

andcocktailsto

delectablemains,

Jameshasyou

coveredwithlotsto

prepinadvanceso

youcanbewithyour

gueststohearthe

compliments!

Whetheryoucookup

anentiremenufora

dinnerparty,orjusta

singledishfora week-

nightdinner,James

willinspireyour

foodiecreativityand

you’llsoonbelooking

forreasonstoinvite

guests to dinner.

Serveborscht– a Ukrainiandish,originally– hotorchilledwitha glassoficed

vodka. If serving chilled, allow at least 6 hours for it to get thoroughly cold.

106 woman&home PASSIONATE ABOUT FOOD

James RamsdenÕs

Borscht