Thyme Recipes
Pork Patties with Thyme & Mozzarella
Serves 3-4
Ingredients
- 4 spring onions
- 2 Cloves of Garlic, peeled
- 25g Butter
- 100g Cubed Pancetta
- 4 Bushy Sprigs of Thyme
- 350g Minced Pork
- The grated zest of half a lemon
- 1 Ball Mozzarella
Method
Chop the onions and peeled cloves of garlic finely. Soften and colour lightly in the butter over a moderate heat and add the cubed pancetta.
Strip the thyme leaves from their stalks, chop them finely then add them to onions, letting them cook for a few minutes until coloured. Let the mixture cool a little.
Mix the minced pork into the onion, add the grated lemon and season generously with black pepper and salt. Cut the mozzarella into cubes and stir it into the mixture. Shape the mixture into six little burgers each about the size of a digestive biscuit, and leave to settle for half an hour. Heat a non-stick frying pan. Brown the patties on both sides, then leave them to cook through to the middle for about eight to 10 minutes.
Chicken, Rosemary and Lemon Thyme Soup from Israel
Start with one and a half litres of lovely, hot chicken or turkey stock for the base.
Take two or three leeks, six sticks of celery (well chopped) and 2 garlic cloves (crushed) and sauté in 50 grams of butter. Now add two grated carrots and stir. Put the mixture into the chicken stock pot with two cups of rice and the juice of a lemon.
Add 4 sprigs of rosemary (stripped and well chopped) and about 6 sprigs of lemon thyme. Ordinary thyme will do but you will have to add some grated lemon peel or a stalk of lemon grass for the taste. Keep tasting this soup and adjust accordingly till you feel the flavour is right. You are aiming for a light broth so you may need to add some more stock. Consider whether you need to add seasoning and if salt and pepper is required.
Just before serving add some tinned sweetcorn or chickpeas. You can also add chopped fried omelette or stir in gradually, but firmly, some beaten egg. It will freeze well.
Beetroot - Hot or Cold
You can make beetroot in your oven wrapped in oiled foil with much less mess than using a pot and it is delicious warm, covered in thyme leaf and crème fraiche with a few more thyme leaves to decorate. A quick and easy way to serve beetroot cold is to buy pre-prepared beetroot, slice and serve with thyme again and yoghurt if you wish. In the summer, don’t forget to use the lovely pink thyme flowers to decorate. Herb flowers of all kinds usually have more intense flavours that the green leaves of the plants.
Parmesan & Thyme Straws
Perfect for all the New Year parties to serve with dips and salsa – or even take along as a thoughtful and personal addition for someone else’s soiree!
Ingredients
- 1 pack ready made puff pastry
- 110g/4oz of parmesan cheese
- Sprigs of Thyme
Rock Salt - Sugar
- Water
- 1 egg, beaten for egg wash
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
Roll out the puff pastry and form into a 25cm/10in square. Lightly coat the square with the egg wash. Sprinkle the lower half of the pastry with parmesan and picked thyme leaves and then fold the top of the pastry down to cover the lower half. Lightly roll over the top with a rolling pin to ensure the two halfs are now stuck together as one. Cut into 1cm/½in wide strips, glaze with a water and sugar solution (half water and half sugar).
Pick up each strip and twist twice. Lay the strips on a non stick baking sheet, lightly sprinkle them with rock salt and bake them in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool the strips on a baking rack before serving.
Thyme Facts
Ancient Egyptians used thyme in embalming.
The Ancient Greeks used thyme in their baths and burned it as incense in temples, believing that the herb was a source of courage.
