Blue cheese and fig tart
Hi guys, its Zoe here and I have a tasty recipe by UKTS Patron, Tonia Buxton for you this week! The olive oil used in this recipe has many health benefits; for examples it is great for the heart as it can reduce risk of factors of heart disease such as high blood pressure. Swapping saturated fats e.g. butter to olive oilis a simple change you can make that is also a healthier alternative. Turmeric is an antioxidant that also has anti-inflammatory properties and is a great addition to meals as it is delicious too! Curcumin, which is the activepolyphenol in turmeric, has been found to reduce serum levels of non-transferrin bound iron (NTBI) . This form of iron is detected in the plasma of people who have transfusion related iron overload. NTBI may cause oxidative tissue damage in addition to increasing iron deposited into severalvital organs. One study that looked at desferrioxamine and deferiprone found that both chelators were unable to remove NTBI completely but interestingly found that curcumin increased therate of NTBI removal when added to deferiprone. Please note that no study investigating deferasirox and the effects of curcumin were foundat the time of writing this update. It is importantto note that curcumin supplements are not a treatment for iron overload, and it is vital to continue to use your iron chelation medicine as prescribed by yourhaematologist. Please discuss curcumin supplements with your haematology team before taking them. As always, I hope you enjoy this recipe, and any feedback or suggestions are welcomed. Please note that this is generic nutritional advice, and everyone has their own nutritional needs that is specific to them. For nutritional advice that is tailored to you,I would suggest seeing a registered dietician.
Ingredients
- 50 g butter
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 5 large red onions, sliced
- 1 tbsp brown sugar add sugar to the onions
- 200 g baby courgettes cut diagonally
- 1 red pepper sliced
- 1 yellow pepper sliced
- 1 aubergine sliced
- 2 tsp sumac
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 pack ready rolled puff pastry
- 8 figs, quartered & a drizzle of pomegranate molasses
- 2 cloves black garlic finely sliced
- 250 g blue cheese crumbled
- 1 bunch basil leaves
Notes
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas Mark 5.
Place half the butter and half the oil with the onions and sugar in a heavy-based pan and caramelise on a medium heat until the onions have darkened. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the remaining butter and oil to the pan, then add the courgettes, pepper and aubergine and sauté for 5–8 minutes until softened. Add the sumac, turmeric, pepper, salt and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes, until just starting to colour.
Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Roll out the puff pastry until it is over the edges and then fold it back in to make a border.
Evenly distribute the caramelised onions inside the border of the puff pastry, then do the same with the vegetable mixture. Scatter over the figs and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.