A mouthwatering stroll around Beaune

At the end of June I had the good fortune of visiting Burgundy – the first time for nearly 20 years – and was reminded how this region is a mecca for foodies, as well as wine lovers. (We were there as guests of the BIVB, the official body promoting Burgundy wines.) This time I travelled by train which made me realise what a good destination it is for a luxurious weekend away. We stayed in Beaune and late one afternoon I took some time out for a stroll, not only admiring its atmospheric beauty, but enjoying some mouthwatering window shopping (or, as it appropriately translates into French, lèche vitrines – 'window licking').

Foie de morue fumé

Among the goodies we brought home from our holiday in France last year was a tin of foie de morue fumé. This delicacy may not be for everyone – it is smoked cod's liver and often described as foie gras of the sea or poor man's foie gras. However, it is really worth seeking out in its own right: it has a rich, complex, slightly fishy flavour and a luxuriously creamy texture. Spread on some crackers for instant, distinctive canapés. We enjoyed it with some chilled Fino sherry, but other well structured, refreshing whites would be just as appetising, as long as they aren't too aromatic or oaky (Chablis, Savennières, Pinot Blanc, Graves, Albariño would be delicious). We'll certainly be replenishing stocks this summer, along with confit de canard and other favourites.

The friendly face of French wine

Having always dominated the international wine market, France has had a rocky time in recent years. Fierce competition has emerged from all corners of the globe, notably Australasia and the Americas, as well as from European neighbours such as Spain; and the domestic market is in decline.

Rather than risk becoming the preserve of devoted connoisseurs or holidaymakers snapping up bargains to take home, a growing number of French producers are freshening up the presentation and labelling of their wines to entice new consumers. Appellation Contrôlée labelling is about guaranteeing the geographical source of the product, with production methods enshrined in this and very little consumer-friendly information is presented. In most cases, only the name of the producer, vintage date (if there is one), alcohol content and volume; it generally doesn't tell you which grape varieties are used (if you're lucky this information will appear on the back label). You might find you like wines from a particular region or commune, such as Côtes du Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pâpe, Bordeaux and St Emilion. However, as the French wine industry is so fragmented, involving thousands of producers, you need to make a note of the producer of the wines you prefer. Otherwise, it can be a bit of a gamble and an expensive one at that.

With this in mind, I've been taking an interest in entry level French wines appearing on the shelves. Some contemporary French wines can be a bit gimmicky, but here are three examples I've particularly enjoyed this summer (all from Waitrose). All are sealed with screwcaps (perfect for picnics) and are blends from southern France. No mention of the grape varieties (unless you turn around the bottle), but distinctive labels to encourage repeat sales.

The punningly named Chat-en-Oeuf Blanc 2010 (see above), made by Boutinot from Grenache Blanc, Marsanne and Roussanne from the Pays d'Oc, has a citrussy freshness with subtle hints of apricot. It's quite light, but tasty enough as an aperitif or sipped with light summery food, such as simply grilled fish.
Waitrose Wine Direct £5.21 or £62.52 for a case of 12.

Another wine from the Pays d'Oc, Au Bord de la Mer 2010 is a blend of 75 percent Vermentino and 25 percent Chardonnay, with fresh, stylish results. I love the chic presentation of this wine as it conveys itself beautifully and remains respectfully French (particularly nice work by importer and co-producer Richard Speirs). Great for fish and seafood or sipping on its own while watching the sun descend over the horizon.
Waitrose Wine Direct £5.69 or £68.28 for a case of 12.

La Vieille Ferme Blanc 2010 costs about a pound more than the others and tastes more substantial, with some interesting complexity – toothsome citrus and white peach fruit, nutty and gently creamy. You're still getting a lot of a wine for the price. Bourboulenc, Grenache Blanc, Ugni Blanc and Roussanne from the Luberon go into this wine produced by the Perrin family, owners of Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pâpe. La Vieille Ferme Rouge is also well worth looking out for.
Waitrose Wine Direct £6.64 or £79.68 for a case of 12.

Glazed sticky ribs

Weather-wise we're currently on a roller-coaster this summer and this week we've had the barbecue out again – although our Weber kettle barbie works well no matter what the heavens grace us with. This recipe from Hugh Fearnely-Whittingstall's River Cottage Meat Bible for sticky ribs is our current barbecue favourite, but you can also cook them in the oven. We use packs of spare ribs and allow plenty – as many as half a dozen per person. For four servings, we use a triple quantity of the marinade. You could also use a whole rack of ribs, divided up. We just focus on the ribs as they are so tasty (and messy) and serve them simply with a mixed salad, crusty bread or new potatoes and big, gutsy fruity red such as Californian Zinfandel (which often has a suitably sweet/sour character). Reds from all round the Mediterranean are also likely to work well – plenty of ripe fruit, some warm alcohol and an easy-going personality is what you're after. Nothing too sleek or formal – those sticky fingers can make a mess of your glass!

Barbecued glazed spare ribs
(for the marinade)
2–3 large garlic cloves, peeled
1 level teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon English mustard
2 tablespoons soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
freshly ground black pepper (about 2 teaspoons)
2–3 tablespoons vinegar (Hugh F-W recommends brown rice vinegar, but red wine vinegar is fine)

Firstly crush the garlic and salt together to make a paste. You can use a fork, but my heavy pestle and mortar makes easy work of this (particularly for larger quantities). Add all the other ingredients, mixing together well, adding the vinegar at the end to make a thick emulsion.

Thoroughly coat the ribs with the marinade and leave in a non-metallic dish for several hours (eg mid afternoon for an evening barbecue).

To barbecue: allow the coals to become white hot and either place the ribs directly on the bars or cook them in a roasting tray. Cook, turning occasionally for about 20 minutes. We keep the lid on our Weber during cooking to boost the smoky aromas.

Moussaka: loving comfort for summer

We've had some crazy weather this year. Winter was one of the most wintery imaginable and spring was a scorcher. We even had a barbecue on Easter Monday when we spent a wonderful day in the garden. Summer, not surprisingly, has so far been a mixed bag. On some of the more dismal days I've yearned for classic comfort food and we've had casseroles and shepherds pie (and Simon Hopkinson's baked pasta with porcini), but this week I particularly fancied moussaka.

I have very close friends (including a godson) in Athens who I've been thinking about a lot lately and, over the years, they've treated me to some magnificent Greek home cooking. 

As well as amazing seafood and salads, memorable meals have included little pies filled with courgettes and dill and, of course, moussaka. It's the kind of dish the older mothers cook for the younger generation to enjoy after a day at work. As is customary in hot climates, dishes like this are served warmish (even tepid). I find moussaka a bit oily at this temperature and much prefer it hot. Until this week I hadn't realised quite how much work went into this dish – it took me about at two hours of hands-on cooking! In Greece, I'm sure they're much more nifty, but, even so, moussaka is a real labour of love.

I used a recipe from the Leith's Cookery Bible which tasted very similar to moussakas lovingly prepared by Xeni, my godson's grandmother. I doubled the amount of sauce and tweaked the recipe accordingly. 

Moussaka 

(serves 4)

olive oil

675g lean lamb, minced

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, crushed

3 tomatoes (I used 3 tablespoons of chopped tinned tomatoes)

150ml dry white wine

150ml pint water

salt and freshly ground black pepper

a handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped

a pinch of grated nutmeg

1 medium aubergine

2 large potatoes, peeled

15g dried breadcrumbs

30g butter

30g plain flour

1 bay leaf

600ml milk

2 egg yolks

2 tbsp double cream

110g Cheddar cheese, grated

Heat a little oil in a large saucepan and brown the meat in it. Tip off any excess fat. Put the meat in a bowl. Add the onions and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring for 5 minutes. Return the meat to the pan. If you're using fresh tomatoes, dip them in boiling water for 10 minutes, peel, chop and add to the meat. Or spoon in the tinned tomatoes. Add the wine, water, salt, pepper, parsley and nutmeg and cook over a low heat, stirring often, for 30 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Preheat the oven to 170°C/Gas Mark 3. Cut the aubergine into thin slices, salt lightly and leave for about 30 minutes for some of the juice to drain out. Rinse and dry well on a cloth. Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water until just tender. Cool and slice.

Heat a little more oil in a frying pan and fry each slice of aubergine on both sides until well browned, but not burnt. Put the aubergine slices in the bottom of a large casserole (or oven-proof dish). Sprinkle on the breadcrumbs. Now tip in half the meat mixture. Put half the sliced potato in next, seasoning with salt and pepper, then the remaining meat, and then the rest of the potato.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour, add the bay leaf and then the milk, and stir constantly until it comes to the boil. Season with salt and pepper and leave simmering while you mix the egg yolks and cream in a bowl. 

Pour the sauce on to the egg yolks and cream, stirring all the time. Add half the cheese. Pour the sauce over the casserole. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top.

Cook in the preheated oven for 1 hour, then test with a skewer; the whole mass should be soft. The top should be browned too, but if not, finish off under the grill.

Wine

While any number of Greek wines would have been ideal (notably juicy ripe reds from Nemea or their modern, elegant rosés), we didn't have any to hand. However, our bottle of Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Côtes du Rhône Villages 2010 (produced for them by Chapoutier, £6.79) hit the spot perfectly with its supple, ripe, peppery fruit and balanced acidity. 

Simon Hopkinson's baked pasta with porcini

Last Friday a new cookery series started on BBC1, without much fanfare and rather anonymously titled The Good Cook. On closer inspection, this was the TV debut of Simon Hopkinson. Although Hopkinson was a notable chef (at Hilaire in South Kensington, before working for Terence Conran at Bibendum), he is widely regarded as one of our greatest cookery writers with his books Roast Chicken and Other Stories and Second Helpings of Roast Chicken.

I was delighted to finally see Hopkinson on the box as, on a personal level, his understated manner has always appealed to me. It is filmed in his West London flat which I recognised from an interview by Lynn Barber that the Observer Food Monthly published a few years ago. Despite some slightly jarring slow-motion sequences, it is a delightful programme. It covers quite a lot of ground in 30 minutes, including five recipes and whistle-stop visits to Italy for porcini mushrooms and Collioure in France for anchovies; I'd have preferred 45 minutes or even an hour in his interesting and relaxing company. (As my husband had been putting our daughter to bed while I was watching it, I happily sat through it again with him as we'd recorded it.) He is open and personable, reminding me of another great natural cook, Nigel Slater. He could be his slightly more reserved uncle or older brother.

On Saturday evening I cooked one of the recipes from the programme, following the recipe on the BBC website for baked pappardelle with pancetta and porcini. I used penne instead of pappardelle and doubled the quantities as I (wrongly) thought there wouldn't be enough for us. It was a bit involved, using several pans and taking longer than we thought, but the results were delectable.

Baked pasta with porcini
(serves 3–4)
1 litre whole milk
40g dried porcini mushrooms
80g butter
50g plain flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g pasta (ideally pappardelle, but penne worked well)
100g pancetta (we used a pack of cubetti, rather than sliced rashers)
10 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

Pre-heat the oven to 190°C/Gas Mark 5.

Warm the milk in a large pan until it just starts to simmer. Add the dried porcini and remove from the heat. Allow infuse for 10 minutes while you wash the pan. Strain the milk through a sieve into a bowl, using the back of a ladle to extract all the liquid. Set the mushrooms aside.

Make the sauce by melting the butter in the large pan, then stir in the flour and continue stirring over a low heat for 3 minutes. Pour the porcini-infused milk onto roux in the pan and whisk vigorously until smooth. Continue cooking over a low heat for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens and starts to bubble. (This was quite tiring.) Lightly season with salt and pepper and set aside (I kept stirring it to stop a skin forming or you could cover the surface with clingfilm).

Meanwhile, cook the pasta and lightly fry the pancetta in a small pan (Hopkinson uses thinner slices pancetta which probably wouldn't require this step). Drain the pasta and combine well with the sauce, pancetta and porcini.

Butter an oven-proof dish and pour in the pasta mix. Sprinkle grated Parmesan over the top – plenty as we did, or reserve some for serving – and bake for 30–40 minutes until golden-brown and bubbling around the edges. Serve piping hot. We had ours with rocket, a deliciously tangy contrast to the rich pasta.

Wine
Earlier in the week I'd been to a fascinating tasting of Mediterranean wines at Theatre of Wine. I was tempted to buy a couple of the wines and I thought one of them, Volubilia Gris 2010 (Domaine de la Zouina, £8.50), a delicately coloured Moroccan rosé would be interesting with the rich, creamy, earthy pasta. This rather chic wine has a fresh, poised structure, aromatic red fruit with hints of exotic spices which, to be honest, would go with any number of dishes. It would also make a mouthwatering apéritif.