Pickled Fennel With Orange

I had great success with growing fennel this year. I used a lot in a simple fennel salad but also wanted to try pickling some after a very memorable meal that had pickled fennel.
I found a few recipes but really liked the look of this one because of the addition of orange.

Pickled Fennel with Orange
makes 1 500ml Jar.

Ingredients:
4 Medium Sized Bulbs of fennel, very thinly sliced (a mandoline is useful here).

1 Tsp Fine Sea Salt.

1 Orange for zest cut into thin strips.

6 Tbsp white wine vinegar.

6 Tbsp orange juice.

2 Tbsp sugar.

4 Whole black peppercorns, cracked.
A Couple Sprigs of Fennel Tops (optional).

What to Do:

Toss the sliced fennel in a shallow bowl with the salt. Let them stand for one hour.

Meanwhile, sterilize your jar(s), lid(s), and ring(s). You can do this in a water bath canner if you have one or if you don't just use a very deep wide stock pot with one of those old fashioned metal steamers laid out in the bottom. This will keep the jars off the bottom of the pot so they don't break. Fill the pot with water and bring to a rolling boil. Using a pair of tongs with rubber bands wrapped around the ends to prevent slippage, carefully place the jars, lids and rings in the water in batches so they fit comfortably with 1 to 2" of water above the jars and boil/sterilize for about 15 minutes. Carefully lift jars, lids and rings out of the water and set aside on a clean, dry surface. Sterilized!

If any brine exists in the bowl after this time, drain and toss the slices with the orange zest. Pack them into a sterilized pint jar, placing a fennel sprig or two against the side of the jar is using.

In a saucepan, heat the vinegar, orange juice, sugar and peppercorns over medium high heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar. Pour the hot liquid over the fennel, leaving 3/4" of head space at the top of the jar. 

Secure rims and lids on the jars and place back in the boiling water to ensure seal for 15 minutes. Carefully remove from the water and allow to set and cool to room temperature. You may hear a "ping" noise coming from the jars - this is an excellent sign. Once cool, check to make sure the rings have in fact sealed and refrigerate any that don't.

Those that are sealed can be stored for many weeks while any open jars should be used within a week or two.

Breakfast - A very pleasant surprise

We buy our coffee freshly ground from the Atomic coffee rosters just up the hill from our home.
We have another cafe we usually go to for breakfast but as a change we will sometimes go to Atomic. Since they did did major renovations earlier this year they have increased their range of counter food and now have a daily menu as well with several more unusual options - not your standard cafe menu.
Yesterday I ordered Salmon Garvalax with Potato Salad, Fennel and toasted sour dough...perhaps not so 'breakfasty' but wow was I impressed!
Every part of it was amazing. I especially love the pickled fennel - something I'm going to have to try when the fennel in my garden grows big enough.
Yes, it was too big for me to finish!

Poached chicken, Israeli couscous, fennel and grape salad

It's starting to cool down and signs of autumn are beginning to show but still easily warm enough for lazy Sunday lunches with friends out on the deck. When looking for ideas for today's lunch my criteria were low(ish) fat and reasonably light and for some reason I wanted poached chicken. I went as usual straight to the Cuisine Magazine website and came across this one from Ray McVinnie. I like the way his recipes have ingredients that are reasonably simple and don't complicate the flavours too much.

This salad was really popular. It had a great combination of textures and the dressing which I thought wasn't going to be enough mixed well throughout the salad.

We then finished the meal with a Free Form Fruit Galette and yummy Rush Munro Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Not so low fat but really nice.

Oh and the wine and cocktails were pretty good too...and not so healthy.

Poached chicken, Israeli couscous, fennel & grape salad

BY RAY MCVINNIE | CUISINE ISSUE #151

SERVES: 4-6This combination of crunchy fennel, sweet grapes and creamy chicken with couscous and a herb dressing enlivened with toasted cumin is delicious.
1 small carrot, peeled, sliced
1 stick celery, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
1 bay leaf
8 black peppercorns
4 single free-range chicken breasts
300g Israeli couscous
100ml extra virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons extra
1 fennel bulb, coarse outer leaves and stalks removed, bulb halved, cored and very thinly sliced
1 cup halved white grapes
1⁄2 cup green olives
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon toasted cumin seeds
small handful each basil leaves, dill and parsley sprigs, plus extra to serve
1 clove garlic, chopped
Put the carrot, celery, onion, bay leaf and peppercorns in a saucepan and cover well with water. Bring to the boil then add the chicken. Simmer for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate and discard the cooking liquid. Cool the chicken in the fridge.
Bring a large saucepan of well-salted water to the boil then add the couscous. Boil until al dente then remove from the heat and drain. Transfer the couscous to a large bowl and toss with the 2 tablespoons of oil.
Slice the chicken and place on top of the couscous. Place the fennel, grapes and olives in another bowl.
Blitz the 100ml oil, vinegar, cumin seeds and herbs with a wand blender or in a food processor until smooth. Taste and season then add to the fennel mix. Spoon the fennel mixture over the chicken and couscous then sprinkle with the extra herbs and serve.

Chicken, Fennel and Olive Tagine

Another night and another recipe from Annabel Langbein's 'Free Range In The City'.
This was another very successful dish. While it seems like a lot of ingredients, there are not too many steps.

I don't have a tagine so just used a large heavy pot. The chicken was close together and well covered by the sauce, which I suspect was not the idea.

This meal is enough for 2 nights for us so I froze half for use on another night.



Chicken, Fennel and Olive Tagine
10-12 skinless chicken thighs, bone in
1/2 cup flour
salt and ground black pepper
1 tsp paprika
about 5 tbsp olive oil
2 onions finely diced
4 cloves of garlic finely diced
2 bulbs of fennel finely sliced
400g can cherry tomatoes
3 cups of chicken stock
1 strip each lemon and orange peel
1/4 cup currants, mixed with 2 tbsp sherry
1 cinnamon quill
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground ginger
16 saffron threads
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
1-2 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 tbsp honey
1/2 gren olives

If cooking in oven preheat to 200 degrees C. Place thighs a few pies at a time in a bag with flour, salt and pepper and paprika. Shake until well coated. Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a large heavy based pan and brown the chicken in batches, adding more oil as needed. Place chicken in a single layer in a tagine dish, baking dish or pot and set aside.

To make the sauce, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil you have used to brown the chicken in. Add onions and cook over a medium heat, stirring often until the onions have softened but not browned (about 5 minutes).
Add garlic and fennel and cook for a further 2 minutes to lightly soften without browning. Add tomatoes, stock, lemon and orange peel, currants in sherry, cinnamon, cumin, ginger, saffron, chilli flakes, fresh chillies and honey. Bring to a simmer and stir well to lift brownings. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Pour sauce over chicken. Add olives and bake, covered in oven for 1 hour or simmer for 45 mins on stovetop. Remove cinnamon quill and lemon and orange peel before serving.

tis dish can be stored in fridge for up to 48 hours or frozen. To serve, bring back to room temp and then reheat at 180 degrees C in oven until fully heated through (20-30 mins).

Lemon and Fennel Chicken Recipe

I often take cuttings from magazines and newspapers and make them within the week. The problem is that once I have made a dish once the attraction goes...unless it is really amazing and preferably easy too.

This one was in the weekend paper and since it had lemon it it...which seems to be my flavour of choice at the moment, it seemed like a good idea.

The dish was remarkably simple and really effective. I used fennel that I have growing (slightly out of season but I live in hope that I will harvest some fennel bulb in month or so), so used some of the leaves fresh.

The fennel seeds on top were fantastic. I'm not a big fan of them but in this dish they were almost like a bust of nutty flavour when you bit in to them. The lemon infused through the chicken but the fennel flavour was dominant - hence my addition to the recipe of juice or zest.

Lemon and Fennel Chicken

Cut the chicken down the breast bone and flatten out (butterflied)

Oil the bottom of a dish that will fit the flattened chicken.

Slice about 3 lemons and lay them on the oiled bottom.

Slice 6 cloves of garlic and lay one the lemons.

Lay fresh fennel over the lemons and garlic.

Lay the chicken on top of the fennel and lemons.

Spread oil over it.

Squeeze lemon (or zest over the chicken) - my addition to lift the lemon flavour

Sprinkle whole fennel seeds over and lots of sea salt and pepper.

Bake for approximately 1 hour in moderate oven. It really does only need an hour!

Simply Fennel - Recipe

I'm a real fan of simple good quality ingredients and simple recipes...

Last night our Oooby box had fennel in it. While I love it, my attempts at cooking it in the past have made it a vegetable that does not rank in the most popular in our house.

We were recently served a really simple fennel salad when we had dinner at a friend's home...simply marinated in a lemon oil.

I gave it a try (well I made my interpretation of it) last night and it tastes great.

Fennel with Lime Infused Avocado Oil

Fresh Fennel (washed and with any dirty or blemished parts removed)

Lime Infused Avocado Oil

Maldon Sea Salt

Use a vegetable peeler to slice all of the white fleshy part of the fennel.

Dress with oil and add a little salt to taste.

Leave overnight for the flavours to infuse.

(I wondered if a squeeze of fresh lime might add a wee bit of zing to it too)

Simply Fennel - Simply Delicious!