The last few months have been a bit frenzied to say the least. Mynext book, Plenty More, which is due out in September, has very much passed its deadline, and all the extra writing and photoshoots, on top of my ordinary routine, mean I've turned into a bit of a middle-aged male stereotype: I'm forever forgetting this, dropping that and generally neglecting to keep tabs onmy responsibilities. So when my editor at the Guardian nudged me last week to say my next column was more than reasonably late, I had to delve into the recipe file kept for just such emergencies and came up with today's three dishes that are only loosely related, if at all.
Not usually one to panic, I began to fret about how I could thread them together without anyone noticing the obvious flaw. Then Iremembered what tomorrowis (see what I mean about forgetting?): Mother's Day to the rescue! After all, you'd be hard pressed to find any dish that isn't suitable for Mother's Day. (Stuffed tripe, maybe, or veg in aspic, but I'm not sure even those two could be completely ruled out.)
So, I will use today's recipes to pay tribute to all mothers. The work involved in making the gondi is in recognition of all the time mothers spend planning, shopping and preparing endless meals for endless appetites; it's a true labour of love toget the family around a table. The sprout salad stands for all their efforts to keep everyone healthy and hearty, as well as well fed. And the roast carrots point, albeit cryptically, to the undeniable fact that mothers are gifted in ways that fathers can only dream of: being able to itemise what's in the fridge without even opening the door; knowing when meltdowns can be pre-empted by the appearance of a snack; being able to have a lucid conversation while unloading the dishwasher. Mothers, I salute you.
Tarragon gondi
These rice-spiked dumplings look rather extraordinary, but you'll be smitten after the first bite. The dried lime makes this dish, so do try to get hold of some. Sun-dried black limes have a complex, distinct taste – sour-citrus, aromatic, slightly fermented – that's well worth getting to know. Either buy the lime powder, or make your own by halving a few whole dried limes, blitzing them in aspice grinder and passing through a fine sieve. This recipe is adapted from Gideon Kalimian's The Persian Kitchen. Serves six.
100g basmati rice, washed anddrained
500g minced beef
2 medium onions, peeled and finelygrated
30g fresh tarragon, picked andchopped
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp dried Iranian lime powder
6-8 Medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
Salt and black pepper
2½ litres chicken stock
2 whole dried Iranian limes, pierced with a knife
4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm x 0.5cm batons
400g tin chickpeas, drained
¾ tsp turmeric
10 cardamon pods, lightly crushed
20g basil leaves, roughly shredded
20g mint leaves, roughly shredded
Bring a small pan of water to aboil, add the rice and cook for four minutes. Drain, refresh with cold water and drain again, shaking the sieve to get rid of all the excess water. Tip into a large bowl and add the beef, onion, tarragon, cumin, lime powder and dates, as well as two teaspoons of salt and a good grind of black pepper. Mix, then shape into small balls weighing about 40g each (you should have 26 or so in all). Cover and put in the fridge for half an hour, to firm up.
In a large pan, put the stock, limes, carrots, chickpeas, turmeric, cardamom and a teaspoon of salt. Put on a high heat, bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low. Carefully lower the gondi into the liquid and simmer gently for 30 minutes, until the meat and rice are cooked and the stock has reduced by about half; cover the pan if it reduces too much, but make sure the soup doesn't boil rapidly, otherwise the gondi will break up (if they do begin to disintegrate, carefully lift them from the soup and set aside until ready to serve). Towards the end, press the limes with the back of a spoon, to help them release their juices.
Divide the gondi and veg between six bowls, spoon the soup on top, sprinkle on the herbs and serve.
Sprout salad (part two)
I'm not sure sequels are expected by recipe collectors, but in case you're wondering what happened in part one, it was devised one cold January three years ago, after the excesses of the previous month. The salty-sour umeboshi puree, made from pickled plums, can be found in the Japanese section of some larger supermarkets or in specialist shops. Make more of the dressing, if you want: it's so tangy and good that you'll be tempted to douse this salad; failing that, it'll keep in the fridge for other dishes inthe days ahead. Serves four.
20g sunflower seeds
20g flaked almonds
150g frozen edamame beans
15 medium radishes, sliced into 2mm-thick rounds
1 small kohlrabi, peeled and julienned
1 medium carrot, peeled and julienned
120g mung bean sprouts
2 large ripe avocados, peeled and cut into 1.5cm dice
20g coriander leaves, chopped
Salt, to taste
For the dressing
1½ tsp umeboshi puree
1 tbsp rice-wine vinegar
1½ tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp sesame oil
2 tsp caster sugar
1 small shallot, peeled and very finely chopped
3 tbsp sunflower oil
⅓ tsp salt
Heat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the sunflower seeds and almonds on a small baking tray and roast for 15-20 minutes, until golden. Set aside to cool.
Put all the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl, along witha third of a teaspoon of salt. Whisk to combine, then set aside.
Bring a medium pan of water to aboil, add the edamame beans, bring back to a boil, then drain at once and refresh in cold water. Shake well to dry, then transfer to alarge bowl with all the remaining ingredients. Pour on the dressing, mix to combine and serve.
Orange-roasted carrots with rocket and ricotta
This refreshing salad uses the unusual technique of roasting citrus with veg and then squeezing out the juice to make a dressing. Ifirst came across the idea at the brilliant ABC Kitchen in New York. Serves two to four.
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1½ tsp cumin seeds, roasted
1½ tsp picked thyme leaves
¼ tsp red chilli flakes
1 tbsp red-wine vinegar
90ml olive oil
Salt and black pepper
1kg carrots, peeled and sliced into long batons about 8cm x 2cm
½ large orange
1 tsp lemon juice
½ tsp runny honey
150g ricotta
½ tsp grated orange zest
20g rocket
10g fresh basil leaves, torn
Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas mark 6. Put the garlic, cumin, thyme, chilli, vinegar and 60ml of olive oil in the small bowl of a food processor, with a teaspoon and a half each of salt and ground black pepper. Blendfor a minute, until smooth.
Spread out the carrots on amedium baking tray (about 22cm x 32cm) and pour on the marinade. Put the orange half cut side down on top of the carrots, then roast for 40 minutes, until the carrots are cooked through and starting to caramelise. Set aside to cool.
For the dressing, squeeze the juice from the roast orange half into a small bowl. Add the lemon juice, honey, remaining olive oil and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt, whisk to combine, then set aside.
Put the ricotta and orange zest in asmall bowl with an eighth of ateaspoon of salt. Mix well, then tip into the centre of a clean J-Cloth. Draw up the sides of the cloth and squeeze out some of the moisture. Return the cheese to the bowl (discard the cloth) and put in the fridge until needed.
To serve, spread half the rocket ona large serving plate, top with half the carrots and half the basil, then repeat. Dot spoonfuls of ricotta all over the salad, pour the dressing on top and tuck in.
Yotam Ottolenghi is chef/patron of Ottolenghi and Nopi in London.
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