Posts Tagged ‘Datterini’

12 courgettes flowers
250g ricotta
2 tbsp mint leaves
1 lemon
pepper
30g Parmesan

100g plain flour (plus a little extra for dusting)
120ml sparkling water
vegetable oil (for frying)

4 tbsp. black olives (halved)
250g datterini vine tomatoes (halved)
handful or fresh wild rocket
2 long shallots
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
squeeze of lemon juice

First make the salad so that it absorbs all the lovely flavours. Halve the black olives and datterini tomatoes and place in a bowl with the finely chopped shallots. Add the balsamic and olive oil with a good squeeze of lemon and leave to sit in the juices.

Shred the mint leaves, then mix together the ricotta, and squeeze of lemon juice. Grate the parmesan and add to the mix with a good amount of freshly ground pepper.

Carefully open those lovely courgette flowers. Using a teaspoon, fill them with the mixture and twist the flower shut leaving no gaps for the ricotta to escape from.

To make the batter, pour the fizzy water in a bowl and gradually add the flour through a sieve. Whisk as you do this to add air and leave no lumps. The batter should have a consistency of pouring cream.

Heat enough oil in a high-sided frying pan to come to about 3 cm. Make sure the oil is hot but not smoking.

Quickly dip each flower in the batter, swirl them around so they are completely covered, and then pop in the pan (carefully!). Deep fry for around 1 or 2 minutes until the batter has crispened and is golden. Remove with tongs and drain on a paper towel.

Serve with the side salad of rocket and the marinated olives and tomatoes.

2 round aubergines
350g mascarpone
500g datterini confit
oregano
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

First prepare the datterini confit.

Slice the aubergines in half and bake at 180C or 30 minutes on greaseproof paper.

Once softened, scoop out the pulp and discard the skin. Mash the flesh in a bowl with salt, pepper and extra virgin olive oil.

Season the mascarpone with oregano and extra virgin olive oil, adding some of the water left when cooking the tomatoes, until you have a creamy consistency.

Transfer the creamy mascarpone in a piping bag and divide into 4 martini glasses. Top with a few of the confit tomatoes, the aubergine puree, more datterini, a final touch of mascarpone for decoration and a few basil leaves.

Keep refrigerated until serving. Serve with crispy bread.

To celebrate the launch of Theo Randall’s “Pasta”, we are giving you the chance to win one of 10 exclusive signed copies! Click here for more information and to enter.

“This is one of my favourite books of the year, and a must-have for any pasta lover. Theo’s cooking is sublime” – Jamie Oliver.

“This restaurant served me the best meal I have eaten all year” – Jay Rayner, The Observer

We also have another exclusive recipe preview, from the ‘Tomato’ section of the book. It uses our deliciously sweet Datterini tomatoes. You can make this recipe with the very same tomatoes that Theo uses by ordering online with Natoora!

Pappardelle with Roasted Datterini Tomatoes, Taggiasche Olives and Basil

500g Datterini tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
75g Taggiasche olives, stoned
a small bunch of basil
3 tablespoons olive oil
250g fresh papparedelle (or dried egg pappardelle)
75g young pecorino cheese, grated
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the tomatoes in half widthways and squeeze out the seeds. Put the tomatoes in a bowl and toss with the garlic, olives, half the basil, torn into small pieces, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Transfer to a roasting tin or an ovenproof dish and place in an oven preheated to 190C/Gas Mark 5. Roast for 20 minutes; the tomatoes will break up slightly but this is a good thing. Most importantly, their flavour will be concentrated. Remove from the oven and leave to stand for a few minutes.

Cook the pappardelle in a large pan of boiling salted water for 3-4 minutes, until al dente (or cook according to the packet instructions for dried pappardelle). Drain and add to the tomato mixture. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, then rip up the remaining basil and add that too. Toss together until the pasta is coated in the tomato juices. Serve immediately, with the grated pecorino and some black pepper.

(Taken from Theo Randall, “Pasta“.)

Love Pasta?

You can buy fresh pasta online from the best pasta maker in London at Natoora. VIMA makes their pasta by hand, especially for your order and it is the same fresh pasta supplied to top London restaurants.

Or try making your own fresh pasta with our pasta dough kit.

Find more amazing pasta recipes in Theo’s new cookbook – you can win a signed copy if you enter our competition!

Our datterini tomatoes are perfectly sweet. Bring out their intense flavours with this fantastic confit…

Datterini Tomatoes
Salt
Pepper
Thyme
Garlic Cloves, unpeeled and lightly crushed
Zest of Lemon or Orange, grated
Sugar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Wash the tomatoes thoroughly and dry them.  Cut in half lengthways, leave to drain in a pasta drainer for them to lose any excess water.

Lay them on a baking tray covered in baking paper, season with salt and a little pepper, very little sugar and your favourite herbs. We like this recipe with thyme, garlic and a little lemon or orange zest.

Cook for about 2 hours on a very low heat (80*C).

Remove from the tray, dress with more extra virgin olive oil if liked. Enjoy on your favourite pasta, hot or cold, on bruschetta, salads or as a side in a charcuterie platter. At this time of the year, we would also pair them with goat’s cheese.

Our datterini tomatoes are truly one of a kind! They taste simply amazing – no supermarket alternative can possibly compare. What’s more, they’re cheaper than the supermarket alternative. Read on to find out more…

Taste: Deliciously sweet, these small tomatoes on the vine are a real treat and a favourite among top chefs. They are featured in the menus of Theo Randall’s, Hibiscus and Petersham Nurseries to name a few!

Region: They are grown in Southern Italy, and benefit from the sunshine and the rich soil in which they are harvested. This tomato is nothing like the greenhouse ones you buy in the supermarkets!

Quality: We only source the finest grade available on the market. Our buyers select what is looking and tasting best! All tomatoes are now reaching the peak of the season, and will taste amazing throughout all summer.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. You will struggle to find this variety anywhere else!

Natoora “Datterini Tomatoes “ £8.07/kg
Ocado “Organic Sultan Jewels Tomatoes ” £10.90/kg
(Prices checked on 28/05/2010)

For more information and to buy, click here.

Last month the good people at Eat in Magazine got their mitts on some of our delicious datterini tomatoes. These are small, sweet and have a lovely inviting aroma that makes you want to eat the whole bag in one sitting! But don’t take my word for it, see what the foodies thought…

Eat In Magazine (September 2009)

“We’d never heard of Datterini tomatoes until recently, but they are the sweetest and most delicious baby tomatoes we’ve ever eaten. They’re available from natoora.co.uk which is a dedicated one-stop shop for athe finest ingredients sourced from Britain, France and Italy. It’s a whole online gourmet store, you can order top quality meat, fish , cheese, bread, patissereie, wine and beer as well as fruit and veg. Visit wwww.natoora.co.uk to get your taste buds exited.”

And if you’re a real tomato enthusiast, we not only have the lovely datterini, but there’s also bull’s heart, camone, cherry, vine, San Marzano…….