CHICKEN PIE WITH SOUR CREAM PASTRY
Pastry:
2 cups plain flour
223 g (8 oz) cold
butter, cut into small pieces
5 tbsp sour cream
Salt to taste
4 cups cooked chicken, cut into small bite-sized pieces
2 tbsp butter
223 g (8 oz) mushrooms,
trimmed and thinly sliced
2 carrots, scraped and thinly sliced
2 celery stalks, threaded and thinly sliced
1 cup baby artichokes hearts, chopped
Sauce:
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp plain flour
1 bay leaf
1 ¾ cups chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
1 egg
3 tsp cream
In a food processor place all the pastry ingredients and
pulse until a soft, pliable dough is formed. Cover with cling film and
refrigerate for 1 hour at least. Sauté the
sliced mushrooms in butter until cooked and dry.
In a small saucepan, bring 500 ml (2 cups) of water to the
boil, add the carrots and celery and cover and simmer for 12 minutes, or until
tender and drain well. Combine the
chicken with the mushrooms and vegetables and the artichokes and mix well.
Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F).
Place the butter and bay leaf in a saucepan and cook until
butter foams, sift in the four and stir for 2-3 minutes or more to prevent the
taste of raw flour. Slowly add the
chicken broth and continue cooking and stirring until the sauce bubbles and
thickens. Add the cream and parsley.
Taste and add salt if necessary and freshly ground pepper to taste. Discard the bay leaf and pour the sauce over
the chicken/vegetable mixture.
Roll out the pastry, lay over the dish and crimp the edges. With a sharp knife cut small slits all over
the pastry and bake for 40 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.
1 leg of lamb, boned
4 garlic cloves, peeled and cut into slivers
6 anchovy fillets, quartered
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
10-12 branches of rosemary
100 g (3 ½ oz) Kalamata olive paste
Juice of ½ a lemon
Wash and thoroughly dry the lamb. Discard any excess
fat. Make small incisions all over the meat
and fill them with garlic and anchovies and season the surface with
pepper.
Brown the lamb in olive oil, allow to cool and preheat oven to
200 C (400 F). Stretch long pieces of kitchen
string on a working surface and pace the branches of rosemary evenly over.
Smear the lamb with the olive paste and place on top of the
rosemary. Roll it up until it is completely
encased in the rosemary and tie securely with the pieces of kitchen string.
Roast for 15 minutes per 500 g (1 lb) and 15 minutes extra,
turning occasionally to cook evenly.
Remove from the oven and allow the meat to rest for 1/3 of
the time it took to cook.
Serve sliced, with small pieces of rosemary, roast potatoes
and a green salad.
DEVILLED CAULIFLOWER
The word devilled indicates that the dish is prepared mustard
or curry powder.
1 kg (2 lb) cauliflower, cut into florets and boiled for 8
minutes until almost tender/
1 slice whole-wheat bread, blended into crumbs
¼ tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup non-fat Greek yoghurt
¼ cup grated Parmesan
¼ cup Dijon mustard
1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
In a bowl combine breadcrumbs dried tarragon and olive oil
stir and set aside. In another bowl stir
together the yoghurt, mustard, grated Parmesan and fresh tarragon. Mix the two together and set aside. Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F).
Spread the cauliflower into a buttered Pyrex dish, cover
with bread mixture, even the surface and bake for 30 minutes until crisp and golden.
AUBERGINE WITH RICE
1 tbsp and 1 tsp olive oil
½ cup onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 large aubergine, peeled and cut into bite-sized cubes
1 tomato halved, deseeded, grated, skins discarded
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup long-grain rice
2 cups tasty chicken stock
Sauté the onion in olive oil until tender, then add the
garlic, aubergine, tomato puree and herbs cover the saucepan and simmer for 15
minutes or until the vegetables are cooked and the sauce thickens.
Meanwhile, cook the rice with the chicken stock for 15-20 or
minutes until tender and dot with butter.
Serve the rice accompanied by the aubergine stew and glass
of wine.
SPECIAL POTATO CHIPS
When I was a child I used to love chips with tomato ketchup.
1 kg (2 lb) potatoes boiled for 5 minutes
2 tbsp plain flour mixed with
1 tbsp cornflour
Salt to taste
Vegetable oil for deep frying
Peel and cut the potatoes into long strips, coat in the
flour mixture and fry until golden brown and place on kitchen paper to drain.
Serve hot sprinkled with salt.
ROAST LEG OF LAMB WITH SPINACH STUFFING
3 kg (6 lb) leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
500 g (1 lb) of chopped spinach
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 medium-sized eggs, whipped
6 cups of croutons
¾ cup of peeled onions, chopped
125 ml ( ½ cup) of water
½ cup of chopped celery
½ cup parsley,
snipped
½ cup of grated Parmesan
¼ cup of olive oil
3 tbsp of chopped fresh basil
1 tsp of dried rosemary, crushed
Pinch of dried marjoram, crushed
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Mint sprigs for garnish and
Simmer the onion, celery and garlic in olive oil until
tender. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F).
In a bowl stir together the spinach, whipped eggs, parsley,
basil, rosemary and marjoram. Add the
onion/celery mixture to the bowl and stir in the Parmesan and the herbs and
season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spread the filling over the butterflied lamb and roll it up, tie securely with kitchen string and roast for 2 hours, once cooked allow to
stand for 20 minutes before carving. Serve garnished with mint sprigs and orange slices.
MARINATED STEAK
This is a wonderful recipe for grilled steak.
1 kg (2 lb) steak, sliced
Marinade:
125 ml ( ½ cup) vegetable oil
62.5 ml ( ¼ cup) red wine vinegar
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 ½ tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Place the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Pace the meat in a shallow glass dish and pour
the marinade overturning the steaks to coat them thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for 6 hours.
Preheat grill to medium-high heat and oil the grill grate. Place the steaks on the grill and discard the
marinade. Grill meat for 5 minutes per
side, or to the desired doneness. Serve with
a zesty green salad.
ROASTED PORK, FENNEL AND ONIONS
A delicious dish for big celebrations.
1 kg (2 lb) boneless pork loin, trimmed, rolled and tied
2 tbsp butter
1 cup fresh sage
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tsp freshly ground cumin seeds
2 tbsp olive oil
3 fennel bulbs, trimmed, tops reserved
1 ½ cups orange juice
4 onions peeled, halved
125 ml ( ½ cup) chicken stock
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt to taste
Preheat oven to 200 C (400 F). Melt butter over medium-high heat and cook the
sage until the leaves are slightly crisp and transfer with a slotted spoon and
drain on kitchen paper. Cool wrap in paper towels and seal in a plastic bag and
set aside. Reserve the butter.
Mix pepper and cumin and rub the pork all over and tuck half
of the sage leaves under the strings of the fat side of the pork. And place it herb
side up on a rack in a roasting pan. Brush
a baking tin lavishly with olive oil and slice the fennel bulbs and place them
on the tin and toss to coat with oil and drizzle with ¾ cup of orange
juice. Also, place onions cut side down.
Place the meat on the centre rack and the vegetables at the lower rack and bake
for one hour until the pork and the
vegetables are tender, turning around once.
Prepare a gravy with the reserved butter, chicken stock, the
remaining chicken stock, orange juice and vinegar. Bring to the boil and scrape up any brown
bits in the pan, and cook until reduced by ½.
Remove the strings from the pork and slice thickly. Place in a dish with the fennel bulbs and onions
around it. Garnish with the fennel tops, sprinkle with the sage leaves and
serve with the gravy and creamy mashed potatoes.
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