Rice with Chicken, Farinheira and Chorizo / Arroz de Frango, Farinheira (e chouriço).

“Enchidos” is the Portuguese word for our (many) varieties of cured and/or, dried sausages.

Different kinds of Chorizos, Alheiras and (my favourite of them all), Farinheiras, they all belong to the very ancient and cultural Portuguese tradition of cured or dried sausages and they’re mostly the reason why I can’t, ever! be a pure vegetarian.

Farinheira is a Portuguese smoked sausage made mainly from wheat flour, pork fat and seasonings.

It has a yellow/brown colour and it was invented by Portuguese Jews, in order to have "something" hanging on their smokehouses (faking the consumption of pork), to save them from the Inquisition. It is made with flour, which gives it its name, red pepper paste, paprika, wine and, nowadays, pork fat!

If you never tried a "Farinheira" before, you should run to your nearest Portuguese delicatessen and buy one but, you have to try a very good quality one, like the one I used in this rice, or else, you’ll be disappointed...

One of the things we can't ever leave behind, is any kind of "enchido" and, almost all of our traditional Portuguese dishes include some kind of "enchido" or cured meat.

I'm not complaining. I'm a true lover of this kind of food and all kinds of chorizo, "enchidos", bacon, prosciutto and relatives, they're all on top of the list for my "desert Island food"...

We (Portuguese), we love our "enchidos" as much as we love our rice and, you think of any combination using rice, you name it, and I bet, we will have a traditional recipe for it. From duck rice, shellfish rice, razor clams rice, octopus rice, to salted cod rice, we have them all covered and in a very delicious and traditional way.

"Prato do Dia - Dish of the Day" is the debut cook book from our most beloved Portuguese celebrity cook Filipa Gomes.

Prato do Dia, the name given to the book, is also the name of one the most popular cooking shows in Portugal (24Kitchen - Fox TV) and Filipa Gomes is its hostess.

Her straightforward, flavourful and delicious recipes are a success and her unpretentious way of life and approach to food, are absolutely inspirational.

I’ve had the honour to receive an advanced and signed (by the author herself), copy of the book and honestly, I'm totally in love with it.

Simple, divided in chapters like, Starters and Snacks, Fish and Shellfish, Meat and Desserts, the book is a delight to flick through and full of mouthwatering, simple and easy recipes for every day of the week.

I’m so honored and delighted to have a signed copy of Filipa's book and so thrilled to cook from it!

The recipe I'm sharing today, is the first recipe, tried and totally approved from the book and, as it is so full of Portuguese references and so special and close to my heart, it got to be cooked in one of my beloved "black clay" dishes. A very ancient, manual and traditional, Portuguese pottery from Bisalhães, a village in the North of Portugal.

Salmorejo.

Salmorejo is a Spanish dish from the region of Cordoba.

Similar to Gazpacho but thicker, It is served as a starter or first meal and must be chilled before eating.

It's accompanied with "las guarniciones" and, although the most common garnishes are serrano ham and crumbled hard boiled egg, there are some versions that are served with flaked tuna, chopped onion and/or chopped green pepper.

I confess that I made and tasted my first Salmorejo last week and now I'm almost addicted to it.

I made it twice, in less than two weeks and this second time, I made it with organic tomatoes that I picked from my friend B. garden and green house. Here, on my instagram account, you can see all the lovely organic vegetables that I picked from his garden this week.

This recipe is from our beloved Portuguese "pin up girl", Filipa Gomes and it's featured in a series of 6 recipe booklets that Filipa wrote, Maria Midões styled and photographed and that were recently distributed in Portugal with a well known and popular magazine.

Kind and gentle as she is, I have the booklets because Filipa sent them to me, which of course, was an honour.

While I was making the Salmorejo and being the tomato the main ingredient of this soup, I thought that it would be a shame not to make an effort to publish the recipe in time for Marta and her "ingredient of the month", which is precisely, the tomato.

Saying that, here it is the most delicious, easy and quick, chilled tomato soup... The Salmorejo!

Vegetable curry and naan bread / Caril de legumes e pão naan.

Finally I got the time to write down this delicious recipe.

A fabulous and simple vegetable curry, that was published by the gorgeous and kind Filipa Gomes, here, on instagram and that I made the same week she posted it.

For some odd reason, it was not published here straightway, which is unforgibale as it was so tasty and delicious, but now, here it is.

The naan bread recipe is already here and I have to say that, until I find a better one, this one is my favourite recipe so far.

ingredients (serves 4):

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

250g white mushrooms, thickly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tbsp turmeric

1 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cauliflower, cut into florets (I used 1/2 cauliflower and 1/2 broccoli)

1 large carrot, cut into matchsticks

1 x can (240ml) coconut milk

roasted peanuts (Filipa used caju nuts)

1 handful of coriander, chopped + extra to garnish

toasted coconut flakes, to sprinkle

method:

Heat the oil in a saucepan.

Cook the onion for 10 minutes or until soft, then add the sliced mushrooms and cook until golden brown, stirring frequently.

Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.

Add all the spices, stir to combine and cook for 1 minute more.

Add the cauliflower, broccoli and carrot and stir to combine.

When the vegetables are cooked but still al dente, add the coconut milk.

Bring to the boil and allow the mixture to thicken slightly.

Add the chopped coriander and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve scattered with the extra chopped coriander, the peanuts, the coconut flakes and with your choice of Indian bread.

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Deixo-vos hoje com esta sugestão vegetariana que a nossa querida e muito, muito simpática Filipa Gomes, publicou há umas semanas atrás no instagram.

Embora tenha feito a receita, na mesma semana que a Filipa a publicou, por alguma razão estranha, ainda não a tinha aqui publicado. Facto inaceitável, pois é super deliciosa e foi muito apreciada cá em casa, mesmo pelos menos vegetarianos, como é o caso do meu filho.

Fiz algumas alterações à receita original e o resultado final ficou estupendo.

Têm o link do instagram onde está a receita, caso queiram seguir à risca a sugestão da Filipa.

Aqui, deixo-vo-la descrita da forma como a preparei.

Servi com pão naan, cuja receita já aqui publiquei e que, aqui em casa, enquanto não aparecer outra receita de pão naan que a supere, esta é a escolhida e a mais apreciada!

ingredientes (para 4 pessoas):

2 colheres sopa de azeite

1cebola, picada

250g cogumelos brancos, cortados em fatias grossas

2 dentes de alho, bem picados

1 colher sopa de pó de caril

1 colher sopa de curcuma em pó (açafrão das Índias)

1colher chá de cominhos em pó

1/4 colher chá de canela em pó

sal e pimenta preta moída na altura, a gosto

1 couve flor, separada em floretes (eu usei 1/2 cabeça de couve flor e 1/2 cabeça de brócolos)

1 cenoura grande, descascada e cortada em palitos

1 lata pequena de leite de coco (240ml)

amendoins torrados (a Filipa usou caju)

coentros picados + extra para polvilhar

flocos de coco tostados, para polvilhar

preparação:

Aquecer o azeite num tacho.

Adicionar a cebola e cozinhar por 10 minutos, ou até esta estar macia.

Adicionar os cogumelos e cozinhar até estes perderem toda a água e estarem douradinhos, mexendo com frequência.

Adicionar o alho picado e cozinhar até este estar aromático.

Adicionar as especiarias, mexer e cozinhar por mais 1 minuto.

Adicionar a couve flor, os brócolos e a cenoura e cozinhar, mexendo de vez em quando, até estes estarem macios, mas al dente.

Adicionar o leite de coco e envolver tudo muito bem. Deixar levantar fervura e cozinhar, mexendo de vez em quando, até o molho estar ligeiramente espesso.

Desligar o lume, adicionar os coentros picados e temperar de sal e pimenta preta a gosto.

Polvilhar o caril com os coentros extra picados, os amendoins e os flocos de coco.

Servir acompanhado do pão naan, ou outro pão indiano da sua preferência.

Recipe / Receita (adapted/adaptada): Filipa Gomes on/no instagram.