Saturday, April 28, 2012

Beware of Icebergs



Got this off the net, hope it amuses.

Eggplant with Lentils


Grill two eggplants for 1 hour in a warm oven till they deflate
Scoop out the soft flesh

Take 2 sticks of celery, 1 carrot and 1 tomato and finely dice
Cook until softened
Mix with cooked puy lentils and parsley

Serve on a bed of rice
Top with lentils and vegetable mix
Top with the cooked eggplant and a dollop of greek yogurt

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Vegetarian Pie


  • 2½tbs olive or vegetable oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ onion, minced
  • 1 large tomato, chopped
  •  mixed vegetables, finely chopped
  • 1 cup vegetable stock 
  • 1 tbs soy sauce
  • pepper
  • 2 to 3 mashed potatoes
Heat  oil add garlic, and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add onion and continue sautéing until soft, add tomato and cook for two more minutes, stirring frequently.Add stock and vegetables, bring to simmer, cover, lower heat, Cook vegetables or heat if pre cooked
Add soy sauce and pepper, taste, and adjust seasonings as necessary.
Grease pie plate. Arrange vegetables in it, then cover with a layer of mashed potatoes. Garnish with paprika.
Bake until bubbly, about 30 minutes. 

An American Classic - Spoon Bread

This is an old variation on cornbread, this time using it as a desert.


Ingredients:

3/4 cup cornmeal, stone or water ground, if possible
1 cup boiling water
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons baking powder
add fruit such as strawberries, blueberries etc macerated in sugar if desired
Preparation:

Place cornmeal  in a mixing bowl. Stirring constantly, gradually add boiling water, keeping smooth; stir in the melted butter. In a small mixing bowl, beat eggs until pale in color and thick. Add milk and beat to combine. Add milk and egg mixture to the cornmeal mixture with baking powder. Beat with an electric hand-held mixer or whisk to blend thoroughly. Then stir through fruitTurn into a generously greased 8-inch square glass baking dish or 3ltr casserole. Bake at 200c for about 30 to 35 minutes, until set and lightly browned. Serve the spoon bread hot, with freshly whipped cream and whole or sliced fruit.
Serves 4 to 6.

Chermoula Flavoured Eggplant


2tbs olive oil
1 eggplant sliced into 1cm sections
Cook in the oil placing the chermoula seasoning on the eggplant
serve on a bed of beans
1 400gm can of beans
1 diced onion 2 crushed garlic cloves
roasted capsicum
Blend half in a blender
Heat in a fry pan

Serve over a bed of rice, garnish with coriander

Eggplant with Buttermilk Dressing
















This recipe is derived from Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi

Take one eggplant divide in half length ways, cut diagonal sliced dress with olive oil and thyme
Oven bake until soft and well cooked

For the dressing mix equal amounts of buttermilk and Greek style yogurt with 1 tsp crushed garlic and salt

Sprinkle the baked eggplant with Zaatar
Dress well with the dressing
Garnish with pomegranate seeds

We found this a little too sweet and would leave out the pomegranate in future

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Yorkshire pudding bubble and squeak by Mark Sargent

Saturday Kitchen is a new program I have picked up on and am enjoying; this recipe comes from the first episode. Source at bottom, please check out the show its good fun.


Ingredients

For the Yorkshire pudding batter:


Use a standard size cup you'd normally have your tea in for the pudding batter measurements.
  • 1 cup plain flour
  • 1 cup beaten eggs
  • 1 cup 1/2 milk and 1/2 water
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp malt vinegar

For the fillings:

  • A couple sprigs of rosemary, chopped
  • 6-8 cooked roast potatoes
  • 2 roasted carrots, kept whole
  • 2 roasted parsnips, kept whole
  • ½ Savoy cabbage, cooked and cut into large squares, rather than shredded
  • 6 thick slices of leftover roast beef, or you could buy sliced roast beef for this
  • Olive oil

For the gravy:

  • 1 heaped tbsp plain flour
  • 1 glass of white wine
  • 1 L vegetable or chicken stock (bought or home-made)
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
  • 1 tbsp brown sauce
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Print recipe
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Method: How to make Yorkshire pudding bubble and squeak

1
Preheat the oven to 220C/Gas 7.
2
Mix together the Yorkshire pudding batter - you can do this the day before and leave in the fridge, covered until needed or make extra when making your Sunday roast and use that. You will need about a pint to a pint and half of Yorkshire pudding batter for this.
3
Add the chopped rosemary to the batter, mix and stir.
4
Chope the veggies and beef chunks then add to an oven-proof pan with some olive oil, of it you have left over beef drippings, that would work as well. Cook over a moderate heat to warm through and brown all over.
5
Pour the Yorkshire pudding batter over the veggies to just cover, then put it into the preheated oven for around 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
6
Serve with the gravy (method below) over the top.

For the gravy:

7
This gravy is best when using pan drippings left from a beef roast. Place your roasting tray on the hob over a medium heat and let it sizzle a bit, then sprinkle in the flour. Stir well, making sure that it gets nice and brown and soaks up all of the fat and juices. Add the wine, then stir vigorously to stop any lumps forming. Let this bubble a bit before adding the stock.
8
Turn up the heat to achieve a rapid boil, ten when the stock is bubbling away, add the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup and HP sauce. Whisk them in, season and once you have glossy gravy, strain it through a sieve into a jug. Stir any resting juices into the gravy and serve immediately.
9
Disclaimer: All costs per serving are based on the average cost of the main ingredients from 4 major supermarkets and have been costed according to the amount of the ingredient used in the recipe not the full cost of buying a whole jar or bag of that ingredient.  Where applicable we’ve costed using the best value ranges and buying bulk bags of certain produce which often works out cheaper than buying things individually per recipe such as bags of onions or large bags of flour and spices.   All costs were correct at time of filming and store-cupboard ingredients (clearly marked) have been excluded from approximate costs.
http://www.itv.com/food/recipes/yorkshire-pudding-bubble-and-squeak

Coq au Vin

Either a jointed chicken or a selection of chicken pieces
150g chopped bacon 
30g butter 

2tbs vegetable oil
2 medium shallots 
a large carrot 
2 ribs of celery 
2 cloves of garlic 
2 tbsps flour 
1.25 ltrs  of red or white wine 
4 or 5 small sprigs of thyme 
3 bay leaves 
200g sliced mushrooms 


Cook the bacon and brown the chicken pieces in the oil and buttersetting aside


Slice the onion, carrot and celery sauté 
Add the herbs and seasonings deglaze with the white wine
Return the meat to the pan and cook until chicken is completely cooked
Remove and reduce the sauce until it thickens
Serve on white rice

Spinach and Chickpea Curry


In oil dice and fry and onion
Add Curry leaves
2 crushed garlic cloves
1 tbs curry powder
1 can chickpeas
1 can coconut milk

Simmer for 10 minutes then stir through
100gms of baby spinach leaves
150gms cherry tomatoes halved

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Sausage Rolls Middle Eastern Style











Begin with two sheets of frozen puff pastry thawed
Combine in a bowl
2 diced garlic cloves
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp cinnamon
1 tsp chilli flakes
1tsp paprika
1tsp dried sage
1tps coriander
1tsp sumac
Diced parsley
Diced vietnamese mint
500 gms lamb mince
Mix together wrap in pastry spray with olive oil
Oven bake until golden at 180c

Friday, April 20, 2012

Vietnamese Beef Stew (Bo' Kho)


  • boneless beef , cut into 1.5 inch cube
  • stalk lemongrass , cut into pieces and bruised
  • tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Chinese five spice powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons minced ginger
  • bay leaf
  • tablespoons vegetable oil
  • medium onion , chopped
  • 1 can crushed tomatoes
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • kilo carrot , peeled,cut into 1cm chunks
  • star anise
  • cups water
  • Thai basil (optional)
  • cilantro (optional)

Directions:


  1. 1
    Mix lemongrass, fish sauce, 5-spice powder, ginger, brown sugar and bay leaf, marinate the beef for 30 minutes.
  2. 2
    Over high heat, heat oil in a heavy-bottemed 5-quart pot, sear the beef quickly then remove, reserve lemongrass and bay leaf for later use.
  3. 3
    Reduce heat to medium, cook onions till translucent (5 minutes), then add tomato and cook with lid on for another 12-15 minutes.
  4. 4
    If sauce is too thick, add a bit of water.
  5. 5
    Add back the beef, lemongrass, bay leaf and star anise, cook uncovered for 5 minutes then add water.
  6. 6
    Bring pot to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
  7. 7
    Add carrots and simmer for another 45 minutes until beef and carrots are tender.
  8. 8
    Remove bay leaf, lemongrass and star anise before serving with cilantro and Thai basil.
  9. 9
    Serve with Jasmine rice