On the road again
Packing, including lunch. We’re going to Lisbon this weekend, and along with my clothes, I’m planning our essential car picnic.
We’re going to Lisbon this weekend to visit our dearest friends. Everything about this fills me with joy, apart from the prospect of eating on the road. You know I love French gastronomy, but often French service stations are the land gastronomy forgot. Sad little salads of greying eggs and gloopy dressing, sandwiches made from bread which puts the pain in pain, revolting wraps with the perplexing texture of dentists’ amalgam, clammy industrial baguettes… it makes me nostalgic for Prêt and M&S Simply Food.   So along with my clothes (V to me, ‘Bring good shoes! It’s hilly!’), I’m packing lunch, for the car and the plane, because even if it looks tempting from a distance, when I get to the counter or the chiller cabinet, there’s often nothing I really want to eat, and I end up spending a fortune on food I don’t really like. It’s also usually bread and pastry or pastry and bread, and while I love both those things, if I’m going to eat them I want them to be the best I can get. Also, sometimes I want a vegetable for health. This is what I’m packing: a couple of properly boiled eggs, a few squares of cheese, a robust salad and some fruit, and a couple of bags of crisps to banish any delusion I might ever be a wellness influencer. Next stop, Lisbon and all the seafood and wine and walking.
Because I’m away, I won’t be publishing a post this weekend, but I’ll extend all subscriptions by a week, free of charge, naturally.
Quinoa, chickpea and herb salad
I know, I know quinoa isn’t for everyone, but I love those crunchy little seeds. If it’s not for you, simply swap it for bulghur, couscous or another grain you enjoy. The most important part of this recipe – and many recipes – is to use the herbs in abundance, in handfuls, as an ingredient in their own right, not simply as a seasoning or, heaven forbid, a garnish.
I’m making this salad for our car picnic, but it’s the sort of thing you can make and keep in the fridge for a couple of days for packed lunches or quick suppers. I have it on its own or with some leftover roast chicken, lamb, pork or beef, an avocado, a boiled egg, some tinned sardines…you know the drill.
Serves about 6
For the dressing
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, and the juice of a second lemon
3tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, halved, any green germ removed and minced
1 tbsp tahini
2 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp sumac
½ tsp runny honey
For the salad
350g quinoa, I used the three coloured one
1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained and quickly rinsed
1 large carrot, about 150g, grated
100g black olives, stoned and roughly chopped
60g sundried tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
1 shallot, about 50g, halved and cut thinly
4 tbsp pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp sesame seeds
A big bunch of parsley, about 40g, leaves and fine stems only, chopped
A big bunch of coriander, about 40g, leaves and fine stems only, chopped
Some mint leaves, about 10g, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
First make the dressing by whisking together all of the ingredients until well combined, or by putting them in a clean jam jar, sealing with a lid and giving it a good shake.
Cook the quinoa, or whatever grain you are using, according to the package instructions. While it’s still warm, mix it with the chickpeas and pour over the dressing. Stir everything together, season with salt and pepper, and leave it to cool.
Toast the seed by putting the pumpkin seeds in a small dry frying pan over a medium heat and cooking for a minute or two, rattling the pan frequently. As soon as the pumpkin seeds start to make a popping noise, add the sesame seeds and cook for 30 seconds to a minute, just until everything is fragrant. Tip onto a plate to stop them cooking further.
Stir the seeds, carrot, olives, tomatoes, shallot and herbs into the quinoa mixture. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Taste and add more salt and pepper, olive oil, lemon juice, herbs, and chilli flakes if necessary, according to your taste.
Market haul February 20, 2024
This week’s market haul is a small one, perhaps the smallest, because we’re leaving for our weekend in Lisbon. It comprises: tangerines, shallots, mint, coriander and parsley, a tin of chickpeas and a jar of olives from the Spar, an avocado, some sand carrots.
New subscriber here! Just to say on sandwiches on the move in France, that the Patapain chain is much better than the indifferent service station fare. They also have decently designed interiors including armchair seating and different partitioned areas, so that you don't feel you're in a canteen. We've had some really good, freshly made sandwiches there. Unfortunately no use for your trip, as they're concentrated in the west /centre of France in a sort of triangle from Bordeaux across to Moulins and then back to Cholet. Handy if you're passing through the Cognac/Loire areas especially.
You are so like me .