I don’t really review products that much on my blog anymore. I get offered a lot of junk that I would never actually use myself. As much as I like a free goodie, I don’t need free stuff that badly… I have Mr P, after all 
, and plus I wouldn’t subject you guys to that sort of thing. When the nice people at Find Me A Gift asked me if I wanted to try out their Joseph Joseph Index Chopping Boards, however, I accepted, because I already own a few Joseph Joseph products, and I really like them. I like them because they are colorful and fun to look at, they are clever, and they are the master of the space saving device (which is something that is important when you have a small kitchen like I do). I have seen these cutting boards before, and considered buying them, but didn’t because, well quite frankly I don’t use a cutting board, I just do my cutting on a plate (yeah, I know, bad housewife!!!). The colour coded boards are labeled with little symbols to let you know which one is for raw meat, fish, veggies, or cooked food in order to help prevent any nasty cross contamination. They all fit into a sleek and stylish holder that would look great in any contemporary style kitchen. I really enjoyed using them and would totally recommend these to any of you foodies out there for yourself or as a gift because they look cool and they provide an extremely functional and hygienic solution. If I could change one thing about the set, however, it would be to increase the surface area of the boards. More cutting room would definitely be appreciated.
So, what did I make with my new kitchen toy? I thought I’d prepare you two more salads from the Ottelenghi class I took. The first is a green bean and fennel salad with a basil olive oil dressing. What I really like about this salad is it’s super fresh taste and the bursts of intense tomato flavour.
French Bean Salad with Fennel, Roast Cherry Tomato and Basil Oil
Ingredients:
- 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 250g French beans
- 1/2 fennel bulb, trimmed and thinnly sliced
- coarse sea salt and black pepper
For the basil oil:
- 75 ml olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
- 25g basil leaves
- salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 160c. Mix the tomatoes in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread them cut side up on to a baking tray lined with grease proof paper and roast in the oven for 50 minutes or until semi-dry. Remove from the oven to cool.
While the tomatoes are in the oven, prepare the beans. Use a sharp knife or scissors to trim the stalk ends. Boil plenty of water in a large saucepan with no salt. Make sure there is lots of space for the beans. Blanch the French beans in water for 4 minutes. Drain into a colander and run them under plenty of cool water. Leave to drain and dry. Transfer into a large mixing bowl.
To make the basil oil, blitz all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. You might need to double the quantity for some food processor blades to be effective. Keep the extra oil for future salads.
To put the dish together, add the fennel and basil oil to the French beans. Toss gently, taste and adjust the seasonings. When the tomatoes are ready, gently mix them in and serve.
This second recipe is not really a salad exactly, but this rice and herb pilaf was my favorite of all the things we prepared in our class (even more than the dessert!). What makes it so special are the super slow cooked onions. They add a delicious sweetness and depth of flavour. It verges on the painful having to fry the onions for a good twenty minutes, but the effect is worth it. This sweet and nutty tasting pilaf is scandalously good.
Bulgar and Herb Pilaf
Ingredients:
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp of butter
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for finishing
- 80g bulgar
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 140 ml good quality vegetable stock
- 50g Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley, plus extra to garnish
- 1 tbsp finely chopped mint
- 1 tbsp finely chopped coriander (cilantro)
- 1 tbsp toasted pine nuts, roughly broken
- salt and black pepper
Place the onion, butter and olive oil inside a heavy based saucepan. Saute on medium heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and brown.
Add the bulgar and spices to the onion; then add the stock and some salt and pepper. Stir well. Bring to a boil and cover. REduce the heat to a bare minimum and leave to simmer another 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave it covered for another 10 minutes.
Finally, remove the lid and leave pilaf to cool down a little, about another 5 minutes.
While you wait, mix the yogurt with lemon juice, garlic, and some salt. Stir the herbs into the warm (but not hot) pilaf. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Spoon onto serving dishes and top with a generous dollop of yogurt. Sprinkle with pine nuts and parsley and finish with a trickle of olive oil.
I want those cutting boards in a bad way! SO cool!
Looove those cutting boards – so cute and functional! Love that:) Those dishes look delicious too – perfect for Summer! Can’t wait to try them – hope you’re having a fabulous weeked:)
OMG! I’ve never heard of Joseph Joseph products. Those cutting boards are soo darn cool. They must be European? And your salads look nothing less than deliciously lovely.
Those chopping boards are so clever, I’ve seen them around! And you can’t go wrongs with these dishes, both sound so tasty!
I want those chopping boards, they are SO COOL! My friends got one, but one of those ones that fold and can be used as a funnel to go into the wok, but I want a chopping board binder like you have
Awesome.
I’m going to try grilled pizza this week! Wish me luck!
Your new toy looks like fun but I am more intrigued by these two lovely salads!! They look awesome for summer
Those cutting boards are SO cute. Can’t blame you for wanting to use them.
And the salads look delicious and really pretty…
The cutting board set looks so cool! I am using a bamboo chopping board for vegetables, and a flexible plastic board for meat/seafood.
Do you have any good pasta recipes?
I bought these same cutting boards, but they did not come in that nifty case! Darn! The salads sound wonderful and the inspiration for the second one straight from the near east
The salad look DeLISH!
what the heck is “bulgar??”
xxxx
Wow, both salad look delicious, perfect for the warm weather. The set of cutting board is really cute, very practical.
Hope you are having a great week HH
I think those cutting boards look fabulous. I have never heard of them, so thanks for the introduction. Now, I need to see if they are sold in the US. The salad looks like the perfect summer dish. I will be trying this one soon!
Happy Wednesday!
LOVE the cutting boards..in fact, I just put a stack of mine away and they are all willy nilly and ugly in my pantry. Also, look at those yummy healthy dishes you are making…go YOU!!!
I want that new toy..want..want
Love the colorful salad. Lucky you HH!
Both salads are fantastic! And those cutting boards are a must have…so fun
Nobody could showcase a product like you… bet they were disappointed their name was not in the title… you are such a tease!
LOVE the salad recipes. It is such a pleasure to eat familiar ingredients in a new way.
Valerie
Both Bean salad, and Bulgar and Herb Pilaf looks delicious and I know that it is healthy. That’s good for our body and it is good to prepare this coming weekend to my family. It is kinda weird and new to our eyes but I hope that they will like it. Thank you for posting this. Keep up the good work!