Chicken Stir Fry Vietnamese style

Cut into bite size pieces 500gm chicken thigh fillet
Place in a mixture of
3 crushed garlic cloves
2 diced green chillies
1 tsp sea salt
Lemon grass stalks cut finely (white part only)
1tsp turmeric
Place in a mortar and pestle and grind into a paste
Set aside for 10 minutes

Cook in a hot wok
Then add

2 celery stalks sliced thinly
3 stalks of spring onion sliced
1 red chilli sliced
Sliced spanish (red) onion
2tbs fish sauce
2 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs light soy
2 tsp suger

Serve with rice and garnish with coriander  and cashews

Vegetarian Enchilada

This one I made up to use some left overs, worked well. As you read you will see that lots of the ingredients will be in the pantry.

Start by sautéing a mixture of finely diced onion, pepper, and celery
Add to this some diced chilli and a can of refried beans

Spray and oven proof baking dish
Place a tortilla on the bottom
Fill the tortilla with the hot mixture and roll up
Cover with a can of diced tomatoes
Sprinkle with a little cheese
Oven bake

Remove from the oven and top with
Sour cream
Home made quacamole ( mash 1 ripe avocado with salt pepper and lemon/lime juice)
Top with a little more cheese, diced chilli and diced spring onion

Gumbo

Just loved this.

Vegetarian Lasagne

The secret of a good vegetarian lasagne is the quality of the filling, lentils, beans and patience are the key.

Saute
2 diced brown onions
4 diced celery stalks
3 finely diced carrots
100gms of thinly sliced mushrooms
400gm tin of tomatoes
400gm tin of red kidney beans (or brown lentils)
Take at least 40 minutes to gradually cook this down

Layer in a baking dish with fresh lasagne sheets adding grated cheese to each layer

Top with a white cheese sauce
Melt 25gms butter
Stir through 25gms of flour
Add 1/2 cup of milk
Add a handful of grated cheese
Stir until melted through

Pour a generous amount of pasata over the top
Cover with a mixture of grated cheese

Oven bake until golden

Cashew and Chicken Curry

Heat 20gms ghee
add
1 tbs oil
2 chopped red onions
1tsp salt
3 chopped garlic cloves
1tbs grated ginger
2 diced green chillies
150 gms cubed chicken (thigh fillets)
1 can diced tomatoes
3tbs curry powder

Simmer covered for 30 mins

Then add
250mls yogurt
155gms ground cashews
Stir through but do not allow to boil.

Dress with coriander

Bill Granger

Bills Everyday Asian
Bill Granger
Quadrille Publishing
September 2011

Bill Granger has had quite a remarkable background. Today he is a successful restauranteur and well recognised chef. His books have an international audience and he appears regularly on television in many countries. His smile and casual manner are seen in his cooking and in his approach to food.

"Born in Melbourne into a family of butchers and bakers, Bill moved to Sydney when he was nineteen. As an art student with a passion for food, he worked part-time as a waiter and gradually his focus shifted from
the easel to the kitchen. In 1993, at just 22 years old, he opened the original bills in the Sydney suburb of Darlinghurst..." (from www.bills.com.au)

The unique thing about this first venture was the only meal you could get at Bills was breakfast, seemed an odd thing to do in Sydney at that time but it was a runaway success. His approach to food has always been straight forward, simple food prepared with the very freshest ingredients. Let the quality of your ingredients create the flavours.

This book is for those who love the flavours of Asian food and want to cook those dishes at home. The recipes cover many cuisines and many countries and includes classic dishes such as pad Thai and Hainanese Chicken rice to street foods found all over Asia. In the introduction Granger lays out a simple philosophy to cooking these recipes, creating authentic flavours at home with the minimal number of ingredients. One thing he does say is that if you want to go hunting for those hard to find ingredients go for it but he also wisely he gives everyday western ingredients which can be used instead. The reason is that he doesn't want the difficulty of finding an ingredient keeping the home cook form diving in and trying the wonderful flavours.

The first recipe I tried was a wonderful prawn dish simple but packing in some real flavours, the second a cashew chicken curry that was just delightful. This is a great book and one I would recommend to anyone who loves Asian food or would like to start cooking Asian food is not not sure where or how to get started.

Chilli Prawns

This recipe is adapted from Bill Grangers Everyday Asian.

Place 500gms prawn meat
2tbs cornflour
2tsp sesame oil
In a bowl for 10 minutes

Heat oil in a wok and add
1 red onion cut into wedges
1 yellow pepper cut into strips
2 Red chillies thinly sliced
Thinly sliced ginger (3cm)
4 crushed garlic cloves

When cooked add the prawns

Whisk together
3tbs mirin
4tbs soy sauce
2tbs sugar
2 tsp sesame oil
3tbs ketchup

Add and stir through

Serve with rice and garnish with coriander leaf and nuts

Nepalese Vegetable Curry

This is a 70s vegetarian recipe. A little retro but fun.

Heat 4 tbs ghee
Add
2 chopped onions
2 green peppers diced
1 sliced red chilli
6 crushed garlic cloves
chopped ginger
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
2tbs coriander ground
1 tbs ground cumin
 2 diced potatoes

when the potatoes are browned
Add 1 cauliflower reduced to florets
6 chopped spring onions
1 tin diced tomatoes

400mls hot water

Simmer until all cooked then serve on rice

Stuffed Eggplant

I know I have posted similar recipes before, but Brenda loves eggplant so it appears on my menus often.

Thinly dice an onion, a clove of garlic and a red chilli
Saute in olive oil
Cut an eggplant in half and scoop out the flesh
Dice the flesh and add to the pan

Meanwhile cook some quinoa and add to the sauté pan

Finally I seasoned well with Tonkatsu sauce
Fill the eggplant shell
Top with cheese and oven bake

Chicken Cabbage Rolls

Take about 12 leaves of Chinese cabbage (wombock) and blanch for 2 minutes in boiling water or until it softens drain and set aside

In a mixing bowl combine the following

Finely dice 4 spring onions
Finely dice 2 red chillies ( leave or remove seeds depending on how hot you like it)
1 tsp grated ginger
2 tsp crushed garlic
1tbs black rice vinegar (any vinegar will do)
500gm of chicken mince

Roll the filling into the cabbage and steam for about 12 minutes

Serve with soy or sweet chilli dipping sauces

Chicken and Vegetables

To hasten the cooking I par boiled the potatoes
Grease a baking dish and add the following
Several pieces of chickenThe potatoes
A quartered red onion
1 sliced zucchini
Florets of cauliflower
A handful of asparagus spears
Sliced mushrooms
Several garlic cloves
A sprinkling of diced olives
Add a a cup of white wineSeason generously with salt and pepper and drizzle generously with olive oil
Oven bake until golden

Vegetable Roast

To hasten the cooking I par boiled the potatoes
Grease a baking dish and add the following
The potatoes
A quartered red onion
1 sliced zucchini
Florets of cauliflower
A handful of asparagus spears
Sliced mushrooms
Several garlic cloves
A scattering of baby tomatoes
Season generously with salt and pepper and drizzle generously with olive oil
Oven bake until golden

Potato and Eggplant Casserole

This is a simple layered dish, but tasty.
Butter a casserole dish and place layers of

Thinly sliced part cooked red potato
Thinly sliced Spanish onion
Sprinkle diced garlic
Thinly sliced and grilled eggplant
Top with thinly sliced tomato
Season well
Add generous amount of Spicy bean paste

Mix together
2 eggs
1 cup of milk
100gms grated parmesan
Pour over the vegetable layers

Cover with grated cheddar cheese
Dot with sliced boccini

Oven bake until golden

BUTTERNUT SQUASH RISOTTO

BUTTERNUT SQUASH RISOTTO
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
3 cups/ 650ml vegetable or chicken stock/broth.
1 1⁄4 cups/ 350g Arborio rice or similar good quality risotto rice
3 tbsp olive oil
2 large shallots, finely chopped
1 butternut squash
1 bunch of thyme sprigs
1⁄4 cup/ 30g butter
1 cup/ 230ml dry white wine
2 tbsp mascarpone cheese
4-5 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan
Freshly ground salt and pepper
12 sage leaves, finely sliced
Juice of 1 lemon
METHOD
To prepare the butternut squash. Pre heat the oven to 400oF/ 200oC. Cut the squash in half, lengthwise and remove the seeds. Lay on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange the thyme springs evenly on top and place in the oven. Roast for 45 minutes until they are fully cooked, soft so that a knife can easily go through the squash. If they start to colour too much, cover with silver foil/ aluminum foil and return to oven. Once the squash is cooked, remove the oven set aside and allow to cool. Scoop out the baked flesh, of the butternut squash, discarding the skins and puree.
To prepare the risotto. Pour 230ml/1 cup chicken or vegetable stock/broth in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Tip in the rice, return the stock to the boil and cook for 4 minutes, add more broth/ stock if need be so that the rice is covered. Drain well. If you are preparing ahead, spread it out on a tray to cool as quickly as possible. Cover and chill until required.
In a medium saucepan, gently sauté the shallots in the remaining oil until soft. Cook until the alcohol has

evaporated and the liquid has almost completely reduced. Heat the remaining stock to boiling point. Add the rice to the shallots, then begin to add the stock, a ladleful at a time, making sure that each addition has been absorbed before adding any more. Continue until the rice grains are tender.

Add the cold butter then quickly mix in the butternut squash puree and allow to heat through. Then turn off the heat and add the Parmesan, mascarpone, butter, chopped sage and lemon. Stir until all the dairy is incorporated, so that the risotto is creamy. If it becomes too dry, add a spoon or two of water, adjust the seasoning. Serve immediately finishing with fresh shaved Parmesan and drizzle of olive oil. 

Pork and Sweet Potato Casserole

This one also comes from James Villas book. However did not work out so well, needs a higher temperature and less beer. I have adjusted this recipe accordingly.

Crease a casserole dish.
Peel and slice 1 Sweet potato (Kumara)
Layer on the bottom with a dab of butter on each slice
Place a layer of pork chops fat removed
Cover with 2 sliced brown onions
Cover that with 1 sliced orange
Sprinkle with 2 table spoons of brown sugar
Now pour about 3/4 cup of beer around the edges

Oven bake for 90 mins at 200c with lid on
Brown for 15mins with lid off.

Spinach and Chickpeas

This is a nice and light supper dish.

Heat some olive oil in a pan
Add 1 sliced Spanish onion
Cut 2 cloves of garlic into matchsticks
Cut 1 red chilli into matchsticks

When softened add 1 can chick peas
1 handful of sliced mushrooms

Finally wilt several handfuls of English spinach
Add a dash of lemon juice and serve on white rice.

Potato, White Beans and Cabbage

This pleasant vegetarian main idea comes from Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson, Simple but tasty.

Heat a generous amount of olive oil in a non stick pan.

Cut 3 potatoes into small cubes and fry until golden
Add a finely diced cabbage
1 Can of broad beans
Sliced mushrooms

When serving grate parmesan generously over the dish.

Veal Saltimbocca

This is a delicious and easy to make main.
Take 2 escallopes of veal
Line with prosiutto
Place a couple of sage leaves on top
Roll and pin with a tooth pick
Pan fry in olive oil
When done allow to rest

Add to the olive oil some sliced mushroom
Deglaze the pan with Masala
Stir through a generous amount of sour cream to make your sauce

Serve with roast potato and asparagus

Nutty Rice and Raisin Casserole

Cook together 1 cup of brown rice and 1 cup of wild rice in the rice cooker
Wild rice takes exactly the same length of time to cook as brown rice.

Combine rice with
1 diced cooked onion
1 cup of raisins
1 cup of pecans
1/2 cup of parsley
1/2 cup of orange juice

Cover with cheese and bake until golden