Feta accompli

Feta cheese adds salty, savoury notes to a different take on baked beans, dressed up with chorizo and eggs, writes DOMINI KEMP

WE WERE LUCKY enough to get away to Cyprus for a week during the summer, but I hadn’t factored in the joys of taking a ride in a plane full of giddy post-Leaving-Cert students. The three-hour delay to our flight did nothing to enhance the mood of the small minority of adults with young children on the plane, but it did provide further socialising opportunities for the students. By the time we arrived in Cyprus, very few adults were on speaking terms. Children had tear-stained cheeks and silently, I wondered why we hadn’t gone to Brittas Bay instead of catching the flight to hell.

But whoever said that revenge is best eaten cold, was most certainly right. On the flight out to Cyprus, the teenagers ruled the skies. But on the return journey, our one-year-old baby got vengeance on a bunch of hung-over, barely talking to each other, sleep deprived, broken teens. She shouted and hollered at them the whole way home, kicking seats, grabbing headrests and basically driving them all bonkers. Needless to say, we subtly encouraged her antics rather than curb her enthusiasm. Ah, sweet revenge.

Cypriot/Greek food is mighty tasty, full of some of my favourite ingredients, especially olives, chickpeas, feta, grilled meats and halloumi. But after a week of gorging on Greek salads, hummus, tarasmalata and roast lamb, I was worried in case my love affair with Cypriot food was over.

A few weeks later, I came across this tasty recipe – baked beans with chorizo, egg and feta - from Australian chef, Karen Martini. After making it a few times, it’s safe to say that feta has since reappeared in my shopping trolley.

This is a convenient supper dish that would also be perfect for brunch. Ingredients such as feta and chorizo make everything taste good, as they are so tasty themselves. Combining them with the plainer flavour of the beans and eggs works really well. All in all, a lip-smacking plate of savoury tastiness, not unlike the second recipe below, a nice vegetarian one-pot wonder. At this time of year, when the evenings still have a little length to them, comforting food that doesn’t take forever is what’s required.

Baked beans with chorizo, egg and feta

Serves 4

Splash of olive oil

1 chorizo sausage, diced

2 onions, peeled and finely chopped

4 garlic cloves peeled and finely chopped

Few sprigs of thyme or rosemary

80ml red wine vinegar

4 tbsp tomato puree

2 tins cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Salt and pepper

4 large eggs

200g pack of feta (approximately)

Heat an oven to 180 degrees/gas mark four. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan or saucepan and saute the chorizo in a little olive oil until it is starting to caramelise. It releases lots of fat, which you can drain out if you’re being good, or leave in for extra unctuousness. Add the onions and continue to sauté until they too are just starting to colour. Add the garlic, herbs, red wine vinegar, tomato purée and three tablespoons of water. Mix well, season, and cook for another few minutes.

When everything feels well blended, take it off the heat, mix in the cannellini beans and then transfer to a gratin dish of some sort. Make four wells or holes in the beans and crack an egg into each well. Drizzle with more olive oil, crumble the feta on top, season with lots of black pepper and bake for 15 minutes or so, until the eggs are just cooked. Serve with bread and a salad, if you insist on some greens.

Warm chickpeas with mushrooms, yoghurt and tahini

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

Olive oil

6 large mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 onions, peeled and finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 tbsp tahini paste

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

1-2 tbsp yoghurt

Bunch coriander, roughly chopped

In a large frying pan, dry roast the coriander and cumin until you start to get a strong smell. Add the olive oil then saute the mushrooms and onions over a high heat. The mushrooms may exude a lot of water, but don’t fret, turn the heat up and the water will eventually evaporate. The onions should cook down and become nice and soft. Chuck in a knob of butter if you want it richer. Add the garlic, then the chickpeas, tahini and lemon zest and juice. Mix very well and let it cook out for a few minutes. Taste and season well. When ready to serve, add the yoghurt and give it a quick stir and then pile it on some coriander and serve straight away.

See also itsa.ie

Last taste of summer?

The summer truffle and green bean salad, served as a starter in La Maison in Castlemarket Street, Dublin 2, is a steal at €11, and pretty delicious to boot. This has to be the best people-watching restaurant in Dublin city centre