Recipes By Yotam Ottolenghi
117 recipes found
Lime, Mint and Rum Tarts
These small tarts, inspired by a mojito, are the perfect celebratory end to a meal: refreshing, light and boozy. If you don’t have a spice grinder, finely chop the mint for the final step of the curd and then crush it in a pestle and mortar with the rum before adding to the curd. The aim is for the mixture to be as fine as possible, almost like a paste or like pesto, so that it’s fine enough to turn the curd slightly greener, rather than just fleck it with mint. A touch of parsley makes the green even more vibrant. If you want to work ahead, you can make the pastry dough a day in advance. The curd will keep in the fridge for up to a week; the vibrancy of the mint will fade a little, but it will still be fine. Bake the pastry on the day you are serving, though, and serve as soon as possible after the rum is poured over the tart.
Poached Apricots With Pistachio and Amaretto Mascarpone
This dessert, which manages to be both rich and wonderfully refreshing, requires very little effort. Make sure, though, that you use apricots that are at their very best. Other light dessert wines can be used instead of Sauternes.
Sesame, Date and Banana Cake
Even though this cake is packed full of dates, bananas and tahini (also known as tahini paste in Britain), it’s surprisingly soft and light. You can serve it warm, if you like, with the tahini cream cheese and bananas alongside, although it’s worth the wait, if you can, for it to cool so that it can be assembled as a cake. A note on tahini: We always use tahini from one of the Arabic brands, which tend to be creamy and nutty (as opposed to a Greek or Cypriot tahini, which can be bitter and sticky). But it's also worth seeking out local or artisanal brands closer to home. Always be sure your tahini is well stirred before measuring.
Kumquat and Chocolate Yule Log
This festive dessert is an absolute showstopper — and its striking results outweigh the effort. We've updated the traditional bûche de Noël with more adventurous flavors, taking a coffee-scented chocolate cake base, layering it with a date-studded mascarpone cream and a bright kumquat marmalade, and crowning it with dramatic caramel shards, meringue spikes and candied citrus. If you can’t find kumquats, you can use tangerines — and if you're short on time, you can even use a good quality store-bought marmalade instead. The cake can be assembled up to 8 hours ahead, but hold off on trimming it with the toppings until you're ready to serve. You’ll also have extra meringue mixture because that is what is needed in the bowl to be able to whip to stiff peaks. Don’t waste the remaining mixture: Pipe it into small kisses and bake at 200 degrees Fahrenheit/95 degrees Celsius until dry on the outside and slightly chewy inside, about 1 hour.
Apricot Tart With Pistachio Frangipane
This tart requires a time commitment: There are several elements, and while each is simple, they need to be prepared and cooled before the tart is assembled. But it pays back in complexity of flavor and by looking particularly impressive. It will make a remarkable dessert at the end of a lavish summer feast. You can start the day before, making all the elements and baking the frangipane and apricots in the tart. Once it has cooled completely, wrap it in plastic wrap overnight. The next day, fill with the crème pâtissière and top with the remaining ingredients. Other light dessert wines can be used instead of Sauternes.
Roasted Asparagus With Buttered Almonds, Capers and Dill
Cooking asparagus is one of the easiest kitchen tasks around. There is almost no preparation, the asparagus is roasted plain in the oven, and all that's left to do is fry some almonds and capers to spoon on top. This can be served as part of a festive spread of salads and seasonal dips. It also works well as a side for meat, fish or grain dishes.
Rice Fritters With Orange Blossom Custard
This is my take on the Tuscan dessert frittelle di riso. The custard makes these a very special dessert, but you can also just make the fritters, if you like, which makes them more of a snack. They go really well with coffee, either served as they are or with whipped cream.
One-Pan Pasta With Harissa Bolognese
This Bolognese is made from start to finish in one roasting pan — including the pasta, which cooks directly in the sauce. It may seem counterintuitive to chop apart dried manicotti or cannelloni, but there is a method to the madness: It’s nearly impossible to break the dried pasta in half exactly, so you end up with some shards, which become lovely and crisp, and some tubes, which hold the sauce very nicely. The kick and thick consistency of the Tunisian harissa brand Le Phare du Cap Bon is especially nice, but any kind will work — just note that the spice level and texture of the final dish will reflect the harissa you choose. Sprinkle this dish with additional cheese before serving, if you’d like.
Pistachio and Raspberry Tart
Green pistachio filling and tangy raspberries make a great flavor combination in this delicious tart. Consider serving it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a spoonful of crème fraîche.
Oat and Tahini Cookies
The oats, hazelnuts and tahini (called tahini paste in Britain) make these cookies seem quite healthy, but don’t be fooled. They are as naughty and delicious as any cookie. Toasting the hazelnuts and sesame seeds really helps with the nutty flavor, so don’t skip that bit. These cookies will keep for up to a week in a sealed container.
Pistachio and Rose Water Semolina Cake
Making this cake, which is adapted from "Sweet," by Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh, is a labor of love, but that’s only appropriate, for a cake adorned with rose petals. If you want to save time, however, you can do without the petals or use store-bought dried rose petals — the cake and cream are both special enough for those you feed to know you love them. If you are going all out with the roses, red or pink petals are a matter of preference; the red petals will turn a deep purple once candied. The cake keeps well for up to five days, but the petals should be sprinkled over just before serving. And don't confuse rose water and rose essence: the difference is huge. You want to use rose water here, and in brazen amounts, but it’s what makes the cake both distinct and delicious.
Baked ‘Paella’ With Shrimp, Chorizo and Salsa Verde
This nontraditional recipe features the ultimate paella cheat: The dish cooks in the oven, as opposed to being actively monitored on the stovetop over a flame. Cooking it this way won’t get you the familiar socarrat on the bottom of the skillet, but the wonderfully crispy bits that develop at the edges of the roasting pan are delightful in their own way.
Spiced Halibut With Spinach and Chickpea Stew
This highly aromatic dish is inspired by pkaila, a Tunisian condiment made by frying spinach in plenty of oil for a long time (traditionally hours) until it becomes almost black in color. This slow-frying transforms the spinach into a rich and flavorful version of itself. Here, the spinach isn't fried in so much oil, or for as long, but it still delivers a uniquely rich and wholly unexpected depth to the dish. The spinach stew can be made ahead of time but, if you do so, season the fish and chickpeas close to the time when you are going to cook them. The Persian lime powder is optional. You can buy it, or start with a whole dried Persian lime: Roughly crush it with the side of a knife and then grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder.
Centerpiece Salmon With Thai Basil and Browned Butter
This side of salmon is a festive centerpiece dish for when you don't want to serve meat. You can add plain or fried rice, steamed greens and roasted carrots or pumpkin to the sunchoke and potato salad, which is served alongside, to create a generous holiday spread. You can substitute extra potatoes for the sunchokes (also known as Jerusalem artichokes), if you'd like. You may need to ask someone for help when you're transferring the salmon to a long platter, as it’s large and delicate.
Creamy Potato Gratin With Smoked and Fresh Salmon
Swedish laxpudding, the basis for this brunch-friendly bake, is a dish that lives in the same neighborhood as frittata, potato gratin and quiche. The original is much more restrained than this version, comprised only of potatoes, smoked salmon and dill, held together with an egg custard. My additions include saffron and capers, which I borrowed from Sicily and work surprisingly well here. This can be served for any meal but is an especially impressive brunch dish.
Pan-Fried Halibut With Spiced Chickpea and Herb Salad
Fresh spinach, herbs and spring onions come together here in a salad with crispy chickpeas, which is served with halibut and a punchy yogurt sauce for a quick and delicious supper. The Persian lime powder is optional; it can be purchased ground, or you can start with a whole dried Persian lime, roughly crush it with the side of a knife and then grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder. This recipe doesn’t really need anything alongside, but some good bread could easily bulk it up. Turn it into a great vegetarian salad by eliminating the fish and adding some extra chickpeas.
Maple-Cardamom Saffron Sticky Buns
I love to sprinkle nigella seeds over the tops of these fragrant buns — they look great and the savory nigella contrasts well with the sweet dough. (Sesame seeds would work, too.) Clotted cream is the perfect accompaniment, but if you can’t find it, crème fraîche or mascarpone would also be lovely — whether at breakfast or teatime.
Shrimp Bolognese
This fishy take on the classic pasta sauce does everything the original does but with much less cooking. Tagliatelle is great, but you can use most other pasta shapes.
Mackerel With Pistachio and Cardamom Salsa
This is a summer starter that works just as well as a main course, served with some herb-filled rice or fried potato slices. Both the cream and the cardamom salsa can be made in advance so you can have this dish on the table in as long as it takes to cook the fish, no longer than five minutes. If you choose to do this, just make sure to add the lime juice to the salsa at the very last minute to prevent the herbs from discoloring.
Pearl Couscous With Shrimp and Clams
Pearl couscous, also known as Israeli or giant couscous, is cooked here in a stock made from the heads and shells of the shrimp, making it wonderfully rich yet equally soothing. Put the pan in the center of your dining table, alongside something green (steamed French beans or sautéed chard or spinach), and you’ve got a real celebration.
Salmon Cakes With Thai Basil Yogurt
Ginger and Thai basil yogurt is a wonderful accompaniment for these fish cakes, but they are also great with just a squeeze of lime if you want to save time. The cakes are best cooked as soon as they are shaped and served as a starter or a snack. However, if you wish to make them ahead of time, or if it's just a matter of preference, swap out the sunchokes (also known as Jerusalem artichokes) for more potato and chill them once they are formed. They should keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator, ready to be fried. If you cook them from cold, pop them into a hot oven after frying to make sure they are properly heated through.