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Caramelised and Braised Cabbage Wedges

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Think cabbage is boring…think again! Transform a savoy cabbage, sometimes called hispi, sweetheart or pointy cabbage, into a super healthy, nutritious and tasty accompaniment to any meal any time of year.

What You’ll need:

1 medium to large savoy or sweetheart cabbage
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp good quality olive oil
350ml of vegetable or chicken stock, consider chicken bone broth for higher protein
2 cloves of garlic (optional)
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 tsp of paprika
Half tsp cinnamon
Sea salt and ground pepper to taste

What to do:

1. Set the oven to 180 degrees C.

2. Slice your cabbage of choice into 6-8 wedges, leaving the core intact.

3. Heat the oil and butter plus the salt and pepper in a pan and sear the cabbage on both sides until deeply golden brown, almost charred.

4. Reduce the heat to medium and add the stock, garlic and spices.

5. Cover the pan tightly with foil or a lid and cook for 30 minutes until the cabbage is tender.

6. Remove the foil or lid for the last 5-10 minutes to reduce the stock and further caramelise the sauce.

7. Serve from the pan with a slotted spoon, drizzling the sauce across each wedge.

8. Serve with BBQ, roasts, fish or steak.





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Aaron Craze’s chinese cabbage and chicken noodle soup

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

Splash of olive oil
Chinese cabbage, shredded
10 spring onions, roughly sliced diagonally
1 onion, diced
2cm knob of ginger, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 red chilli, deseeded and julienned
1 pak choi, white and green parts separated and shredded
2 chicken thighs, skin and bone removed, flesh chopped into strips
1 pinches ground allspice
1 dashes of soy sauce
1 litre hot chicken stock
1 stick lemongrass, bruised
150g egg noodles
2 tbsp coriander, chopped

What to do:

1. Put the spring onion into a pan with a little oil. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, chilli, Chinese cabbage; the white parts of the pak choi and a pinch of salt and cook over a medium heat until everything begins to soften slightly.

2. Add the chicken and allspice. Stir around and continue to cook for a minute or two then pour in the soy sauce and hot chicken stock. Bring to the boil, then toss in the green tops of the pak choi, the lemongrass and noodles and give the pan a good stir.

3. Leave to cook for 5 minutes or until the noodles are softened. Once ready check the seasoning, add 2 tablespoons of chopped coriander, stir and serve.





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ChineseCabbageChickenNoodleSoup

Aaron Craze’s roasted kohlrabi crostini

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

1 large kohlrabi trimmed and peeled
1 pear, peeled, deseeded and cubed
1 clove of garlic
160ml water
1 tsp honey
1 ball of burrata
100g rocket
1 packet honey roasted peanuts
4 thin slices of ciabatta bread
Sprig of fresh thyme

What to do:

1. Slice the kohlrabi in to 4 disks, drizzle with olive oil and honey, salt and pepper and roast on baking paper at 165°C for 25 minutes.

2. Toast or grill the bread then rub with the clove of garlic.

3. Whilst the kohlrabi is roasting, put the pear, thyme and water in to a small pot and bring to the boil, then blend in a juicer to make a puree.

4. Now to assemble. Spoon the pear puree over the toasted bread and place the roasted kohlrabi on top followed by simply tearing the burrata over the crostini.

5. Garnish with some crisp peppery rocket and sprinkle with the crushed peanuts, drizzle with good olive oil.






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RoastedKohlrabiCrostini

Aaron Craze’s kale and banana shake

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 2

What You’ll need:

250g kale
1 large or 2 medium bananas
500ml water
40g raw cashews
3 tbsp honey
1 cup of ice
1 tsp vanilla extract

What to do:

1. Add the kale, cashews, ice and water in to a juice blender and blend well.

2. Pass liquid through a sieve then pour back in to the juicer (clean any pulse out first)

3. Now add the banana, vanilla and the honey blend till smooth then pour into a large glass.






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KaleBananaShake

Kale tabouli salad

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes, approx (for quinoa)
Serves: 4

What you’ll need:

(Makes approx 500g of salad)

60g dry quinoa
125ml boiling water
Bunch of kale, sliced
1 small onion, diced finely
Juice of one lemon
Tablespoon olive oil
Handful chopped flat parsley
100g sundried tomatoes, chopped
Pinch of salt

What to do:

1. Cook quinoa according to the packet instructions

2. Heat some of the oil in a pan on a medium heat. Add the kale and salt, and sauté until the kale changes colour to a brighter shade of green

3. Transfer to a large bowl and leave to cool

4. Pour the lemon juice into a small bowl and tip in the onion. Leave to marinade a little

5. Combine the quinoa, parsley and tomatoes with the kale, mixing thoroughly

6. Add olive oil to the lemon juice and onion, then whisk up and pour into the kale and quinoa mix

7. Toss all of the ingredients together and serve immediately

Tip: If you want to prepare the tabouli ahead of time, don’t add the dressing until just before you’re ready to serve






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KaleTabbouleh

Cabbage and fennel ‘slaw

Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus chilling time
Serves: 4

What you’ll need:

Small head of red cabbage, shredded into thin strips

1 large fennel bulb, trimmed, halved and sliced thinly

2 large carrots, grated (squeeze out excess moisture using clean tea towel or kitchen towel)

4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

50ml fresh orange juice

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

Salt and pepper, to season

What to do:

1. In a large bowl, mix together the cabbage, fennel, spring onions and carrots

2. Now whisk the ginger, orange juice, oil and vinegar in a separate bowl, adding the salt and pepper once combined

3. Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss to ensure the whole mix has been coated thoroughly

4. Cover with cling film and put in the fridge to chill for 20/30 minutes

5. Mix again before serving






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CabbageFennelSlaw

Savoy cabbage with chorizo, shallots and rice

Savoy cabbage

The combination of savoy cabbage and chorizo is a famous one, and used in the cooking of both Spain and Portugal. The deep, red oils that ooze out of the chorizo sausage imparts a beautiful colour to the cabbage, as well as the deep, smoky flavour of paprika. A great way to serve this dish is with plain boiled rice, either mixed in or on the side.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

400g long grain rice
1 Savoy cabbage
2 shallots
2 cloves of garlic
1 medium chorizo sausage
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper
2 bay leaves

What to do:

1. Place the rice in a pan of boiling water and cook for 10-12 minutes, depending on the instructions on the packet. When the rice is soft, drain and set aside.

2. Wash and trim the savoy cabbage, and slice the leaves very thinly. Discard the tough stalks. Peel and finely chop the shallots and the garlic. Slice the chorizo into thin slices.

3. In a heavy sauté pan, heat some olive oil. Sweat the onions and the garlic with some sea salt and pepper until soft. Then add the bay leaves, the thin cabbage slices, the chorizo slices and a small amount of water. Stir well, and continue to cook, over medium heat for about 3 minutes.

4. Add the boiled rice, and mix well. Taste for seasoning, and add more sea salt and grated black pepper if necessary.

5. Just before serving, remove the bay leaves from the pan. Serve hot.






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SavoyCabChorizo

Sweetheart soup with shallots, streaky bacon and sage

Sweetheart Soup with shallots

This is a wonderful, healthy soup to make with a wide range of year round vegetables. It’s perfect for lunch, served piping hot with garlic bread or cheesy croutons. As a dinner party starter you could add some rice to the soup as it boils, and serve it in small cups with breadsticks and pass round a bowl with freshly grated Parmiggiano Reggiano.

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

Extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot, trimmed and finely chopped
1 stick of celery, trimmed and finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
3 slices of streaky bacon or pancetta, sliced into small cubes
1 Sweetheart cabbage, trimmed and finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
1 litre of vegetable stock
Sea salt and pepper
Fresh shavings of Parmiggiano Reggiano

What to do:

1. Heat some olive oil in a heavy soup pot, and add the finely chopped shallots, carrot, celery, garlic and bacon.

2. Mix the vegetables well, and season with salt and pepper.

3. Sweat the vegetables until soft, adding a little water to help create steam.

4. Make sure the vegetables do not crisp and burn by adding a little additional water, and stirring.

5. When the vegetables are soft, add the cabbage slices and the sage.

6. Mix well.

7. Add the stock, bring the soup to the boil and then lower the heat.

8. Within five minutes the soup will be ready.

9. Pour the soup into warm serving bowls and then sprinkle fresh Parmiggiano Reggiano shavings on top.






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SweetheartSoup

Cabbage braised with shallots and Pancetta

Cabbage braised with shallots and Pancetta
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

Knob of butter
8 slices pancetta roughly chopped
4 shallots finely sliced
1 cabbage core & outer leaves removed and cut into 8-10 wedges
Half pint vegetable stock (fresh or from a cube)
Salt and pepper

What to do:

1. In a large frying pan heat the butter until sizzling then cook the pancetta till brown and crisp. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and allow to drain on some kitchen paper.

2. Add the shallots to the pan and cook gently for 6-8 minutes until they are caramelised and soft, remove from the pan to the kitchen paper.

3. Arrange the cabbage wedges in the pan (add a little more butter if necessary) and cook on each side till brown and caramelised, turn them gently so they don’t break up. Pour in the vegetable stock to half way up the cabbage. Return the shallots to the pan and season to taste.

4. Cook the cabbage for 10-12 minutes gently turning half way through. The cabbage should be tender and the stock reduced, serve 2 wedges per person drizzled with the braising liquid and scattered with pancetta.

Why not try:

This recipe is delicious with roast chicken and mashed potato. It also works well with White Cabbage. Add finely shredded raw white cabbage or sweetheart cabbage to salads to add a lovely crunch.






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CabbageBraised

Thai cabbage and chicken noodles

Thai cabbage and chicken noodles
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4

What You’ll need:

1pt chicken stock (fresh or cube is fine)
1 thumb sized piece of ginger peeled and cut in half
1 star anise
2tbsp fish sauce
2 chicken breasts
400g white cabbage core removed and shredded very finely
200g rice noodles
2 spring onions sliced
1 small bunch fresh coriander
1 small bunch fresh mint
1 lime cut into wedges

What to do:

1. Place the stock, ginger, star anise, fish sauce and chicken breasts into a sauce pan and slowly bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and leave to poach for 5-8 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts and leave to rest for 5 minutes, then shred.

2. While the chicken is resting add the cabbage to the stock and simmer for 5-8 minutes until the cabbage is tender. Place the rice noodles in a bowl then cover with boiling water. Leave to soak for 5-10 minutes depending on the packs instructions then drain.

3. Remove the star anise and ginger from the stock, divide the noodles and cabbage between four bowls and add a ladle of stock to each. Top each bowl with the shredded chicken, spring onions, coriander and mint and serve with a wedge or 2 of lime.

Why not try:

This recipe also works well with sweetheart cabbage.






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ThaiCabbage