London lunch box: Charred baby gem with parmesan bacon gremolata and buttermilk dressing

Laoise Casey puts basic ingredients to good use in this week's London lunch box
Laoise Casey
Laoise Casey14 June 2017

When looking for lunch box inspiration it can be easy to think that you need to use exotic ingredients. I often spend time researching new recipes then realise my local shop won’t stock the basics needed for them, such as gilded unicorn horns or whatever the flavour of the month happens to be.

Instead I tend to have a stock shopping list and a number of essentials I buy every week. Then the fun part is creating little garnishes to add pops of flavour and dressings to finish off the whole dish. This week our base ingredient is the baby gem. Baby gems are forgiving vegetables that won’t shun you if you forget about them for a little while at the back of the fridge. They also take wonderfully to being grilled as their outer leaves wilt and the inside stays crunchy.

Our garnish is a gremolata of finely chopped parsley and lemon zest. Chop the parsley as finely as you can then mix through crispy bacon and Parmesan. You could also add breadcrumbs to bulk it out. I love this sprinkled on butternut squash soup, or a roast chicken salad or stirred through pasta with mascarpone. Baby gem can stand up to an acidic buttermilk dressing. As an alternative to heavier mayonnaise ones, buttermilk is an excellent choice. I’ll usually make extra dressing then use it up drizzled on roast radishes and baby baked potatoes, or make a quick coleslaw with grated apple, red cabbage and celery.

Ingredients (serves 2)

50ml buttermilk

Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon, juice of ¼

1 tbsp olive oil

4 slices streaky smoked bacon

30g Parmesan, finely grated

Small handful flat leaf parsley, leaves and stalks finely chopped

2 baby gem, sliced in half lengthways

Sea salt flakes, cracked black pepper

Method

The dressing

In a bowl, combine the buttermilk with the lemon juice and 1 tsp olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and add more lemon juice depending on how tangy you like it.

To make the gremolata

Heat a wide-based pan on a medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until crispy, around 5 minutes. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Once cool, roughly chop it and mix together with the Parmesan, parsley and lemon zest in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

Brush the baby gem with the remaining 2 tsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper, on the cut-side. Heat a grill pan on a high heat. Once very hot, cook the baby gem for 4 minutes cut-side down, until lightly charred. Transfer from the pan, drizzle the dressing and sprinkle the gremolata on top.

Taking it to work?

Avoid the perils of soggy lettuce! Keep the dressing and gremolata separate and add just before eating.

Laoise (Lee-sha) is a chef, food stylist and writer, living in London. Follow her on Twitter @laoisecooks and Instagram @laoisecooks. She studied at Leiths School of Food and Wine, where she now teaches. She has worked in a number of top London restaurants including The Dairy in Clapham and Paradise Garage in Bethnal Green.

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