Tough negotiations with our partners and creditors are reaching a deadlock, due to unshakeable beliefs and convictions.
A new, morbid propaganda video, depicting the slaughter of 21 Ethiopian Christians on a Lybian beach, by cowardly ISIS murderers was recently released. Quite sickening.
The tragedy in the Mediterranean, where 800 migrants drowned in the
Faced with a massive exodus towards Europe , in the coming months, the E.U leaders meet for talks, today, on the Mediterranean human trafficking crisis. The migrants will be rescued and given refuge in the best possible way. Also, it is considered that Europe will dispatch a multi-national naval force that will arrest the traffickers and sink their ships.
An Algerian electronics student was arrested in France for planning terrorist attacks against churches in the French capital. An arsenal was discovered in his flat and a plethora of documents, in Arabic, with Al Qaeda and ISIS connotations.
"The threat has never been so high" said the French Prime Minister Mr. Manuel Valls. He also announced that police prevented five terrorist attacks, in recent months.
An Algerian electronics student was arrested in France for planning terrorist attacks against churches in the French capital. An arsenal was discovered in his flat and a plethora of documents, in Arabic, with Al Qaeda and ISIS connotations.
"The threat has never been so high" said the French Prime Minister Mr. Manuel Valls. He also announced that police prevented five terrorist attacks, in recent months.
Like in the last post, I shall continue giving you recipes with spring vegetables and fruit.
ARTICHOKE AND FENNEL BULB BAKE
This a delicious first dish, made with the spring vegetables of your choice.
1 kg (2 lb) fennel bulbs, about 4 pieces
6 medium-sized artichokes
2 carrots, scraped and cut into batons
1 lemon, halved
2 tbsp olive oil
3 spring onions, finely chopped
2 fennel sprigs
2 dill sprigs
Salt and pepper
Vegetable stock (please see below)
A good knob of butter to grease the dish
2-3 tbsp kasseri or Cheddar, thickly grated
2-3 tbsp San Mihalis or Parmesan
375 ml (1½ cups) cream, low fat if preferred
Salt and freshly grated pepper
Remove the hard leaves off the fennel bulbs, quarter them from stem to root, discarding the hard part of the core. Cut the stems off the artichokes, strip off the hard outer leaves, trim the hearts, remove the choke and quickly rub them with half a lemon and plunge them into water with lemon juice, to prevent them from discolouring.
In a large flat saucepan, sauté the spring onions in olive oil, add a little salt and simmer for 2 minutes. Then add the carrots, fennel bulbs and artichokes, sprinkle with a little more salt and sauté them very gently for about 10 minutes on all sides. Pour in enough hot stock to just cover the vegetables, add the herbs, cover the saucepan and simmer until the vegetables are tender but not falling apart.
Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F). Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon and arrange them in a well-buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and grated cheese, drizzle with cream and bake for 15-20 minutes. Serve piping hot sprinkled with chopped fennel leaves or chives.
ASPARAGUS AU GRATIN
This is a great treat for your family and friends and very easy to prepare.
500 g (1 lb) white or green asparagus, boiled until just tender
12-15 thin slices smoked or boiled ham
A knob of butter for the baking dish
White Sauce:
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp cornflour
1 bay leaf
500 ml (2 cups) warm milk
2 heaped tbsp of grated kasseri or Gruyere
4 eggs, separated, whites whipped to soft peaks with a pinch of salt
250 ml (1 cup) cream mixed with the egg yolks
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
2 tbsp grated San Mihalis or Parmesan
First prepare the sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the bay leaf and sift in the cornflour and stir for 3-4 minutes. Pour in the milk, in 3 portions, stirring very well after each addition, until well combined and bubbling. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the grated kasseri or Gruyere . Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the cream/egg yolk mixture. Sprinkle with pepper and nutmeg, taste and add some salt, if necessary.
Wrap each asparagus stalk with a slice of ham and arrange in a single row, in a buttered baking dish. Cover partly or lavishly with the sauce, sprinkle with San Mihalis or Parmesan and bake in an oven preheated to 180 C for 35 – 40 minutes. We prefer the asparagus completely covered with sauce.
CAULIFLOWER CELERY AND FENNEL-BULB SALAD
Equal amounts of cauliflower, celery and fennel bulbs, cut into slices or florets and boiled in salted water, until still slightly crunchy
Dressing:
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp milk
½ tbsp mild mustard
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
Garnish:
1 heaped tbsp fennel weed, finely chopped
2-3 mint leaves, finely chopped
Place the vegetables into a salad bowl, drizzle with the dressing, toss thoroughly and serve sprinkled with finely chopped fennel weed and mint leaves.
APRICOT TART
Here is a recipe for a crumbly tart that can be served hot with cream or ice cream.
10 apricots, stoned and halved
2 tbsp butter
6 tbsp sugar
Pastry:
120 g (4 oz) butter, very cold, cut in small pieces
200 g (almost 7 oz) plain flour
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 egg
Very little cold water
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 egg
Very little cold water
To make the pastry, rub butter, sugar and flour with your finger tips until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Stir in the egg, a little cold water, if necessary, and press the ingredients together to form a ball of soft dough; flatten it into a disk, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes at least.
Place a round baking tin over low heat, add the sugar and butter and simmer until they melt and form a caramel. Remove from the heat and push the apricots, cut side up, into the golden sauce. Allow to cool.
Roll out the dough into a circle larger than the top of the baking tin. Drape it over the fruit and tuck it, neatly, down the sides of the dish. Bake in an oven preheated to 180 C (350 F) for 35-40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the caramel is bubbling around the edge. Cool for five minutes and overturn on a serving dish.
STRAWBERRY PAVLOVA
This is a recipe for my favourite dessert.
6 egg whites of medium-sized eggs
A pinch of salt
300 g (10 oz) caster sugar
1 tsp vinegar to make the meringue more chewy (optional)
1 tsp vanilla essence
500 g (1 lb) whipped cream
500 g (1 lb) hulled strawberries, whole or sliced in half
60 g (2 oz) dark melted chocolate or milk chocolate if preferred
Whip the egg whites with a little salt to the soft peak stage, add the sugar by the spoonful, whipping continuously until the mixture is thick and glossy. Add the vinegar, if using, and the vanilla and beat for a minute more, until well combined.
Trace two circles, on baking parchment, about 26cm (10 in) in diameter each, brush with oil and place the parchment in a baking tin. Pipe the meringue to shape two equal disks. Bake in an oven preheated to 150 C (285 F) for about 1 hour. Then turn off the oven and remove the meringues the next day, when they are completely cold.
Place one meringue disk on a serving dish, spread with a third of the whipped cream and the sliced strawberries and cover with the second round. Garnish the Pavlova attractively with the remaining whipped cream and with strawberries, dipped in melted chocolate. One could alternately drizzle melted chocolate over the strawberries.
CHERRY VINEGAR
This is a recipe for wonderful, aromatic vinegar. You can use it for making salad dressings and also for preparing marinades and sauces, for meat, game and poultry.
Equal amounts of:
Cherries
Home made red wine vinegar (please see recipe below) *
Sugar (please see recipe)
In a glass bowl place the cherries and vinegar, cover with cling film and leave for 5 days, stirring the contents, twice a day. Then strain the liquid through a sieve lined with cheese cloth.
For each cup of vinegar use one cup sugar. Bring the boil and simmer for a minute or two, pour into prepared bottles, seal tightly and store in a dark cupboard. Don’t discard the cherries, as you can use them for cherry chutneys.
* HOME-MADE RED WINE VINEGAR
This recipe was given to me by my dear friend June Marinos, who has written several successful cookery books. I am using the exact wording.
"To make your own vinegar is very satisfying and a good way to use up any dregs of red wine. Of course the better the wine he better the vinegar will be.
First you will need a glass or china container. Just pour two or three glasses of vinegar into the container and then a bottle of dry red wine. Cover lightly with a piece of plywood, thin cloth or cardboard and leave for several months. From time to time add any other leftover dry red wines you have. Do not close the container tightly, as you must allow for a free passage of air. Also do not worry if a white veil forms on top of the vinegar, or if you see a jelly-like mass forming. This mass is the Vinegar Mother, about which there are many myths!
Taste the liquid from time to time to see whether it has turned to vinegar. When you have made enough, strain it and pour into dark bottles and keep in a dark place. Keep some of the vinegar to continue with the process."
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