CHICKEN AND GUACAMOLE ON TOAST
A lovely South American snack.
6 slices of hot toast
1 leftover chicken breast, cut into 6 slices
Guacamole sauce:
2 very ripe Guacamole pears, peeled, stoned, cubed and
drenched with the juice of
1 lime
1 onion, peeled and very finely chopped
1 tomato, halved, deseeded, grated, skin discarded
200 g (1 tub) Greek yoghurt
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
½ cup chopped fresh coriander or
½ cup chopped parsley
(Mix everything well together, taste for seasoning and
adjust)
Place a slice of chicken on top of each toast, cover lavishly with guacamole sauce, and serve sprinkled with parsley.
CALDIERADA
A tasty seafood stew from Spain which can be prepared with any kind of seafood.
120 g (4 oz) onions, peeled and finely chopped
75 g (2 ½ oz) green peppers, seeded the white pith removed
and finely chopped
3 medium-sized tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1 tsp finely chopped garlic
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
8 tbsp olive oil
500 g (1 lb) clams, scrubbed, string removed and cooked in a
white wine until they open, strain and
reserve the cooking liquid
500 g (1 lb) squid, cleaned and cut into strips
500 ml (2 cups) dry white wine
8 slices of bread cut into triangles
3 tbsp finely chopped parsley
Place the onions, peppers, tomatoes, chopped garlic, salt
and pepper in a bowl and mix well together.
Place half the vegetables in a large heavy casserole, pour 4
tbsp olive oil over. Scatter the squid.
Spread the remaining vegetable mixture on top and pour in the wine. Bring to the boil over high heat and then
reduce the heat, cover the saucepan and simmer gently for about 20 minutes
until the squid is cooked. Add the
reserved clams with their juices and cook for 2 minutes more.
Meanwhile, fry the bread in the remaining olive oil and
brown well on both sides. Then transfer
of kitchen paper to drain.
Place the fried bread on a serving dish, arrange the clams
and squid attractively over and ladle the sauce over. Serve sprinkled with parsley.
SHRIMP RUSSIAN SALAD
An old-fashioned but delicious salad wich
is a must for any buffet dinner.
1 ¼ kg (2 ½ lb) shrimp shelled, deveined, washed
and boiled * (Please see first recipe below)
1 kg (2 lb) potatoes, boiled in salted
water, peeled and diced
500 g (1 lb) carrots, peeled, boiled and
diced
500 g (1 lb) peas, cooked in salted water
and strained
2 sweet gherkins, finely sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup fresh parsley leaves, roughly
chopped, separated
2 cups mayonnaise *(Please see recipe
below)
Recipe for Boiled Shrimp
Shrimp shells
1
tbsp salt
1 peeled garlic clove
1 bay leaf
2 litres (8 cups) water
Bring the shrimp shells and the other
ingredients to the boil, simmer gently until the garlic softens and
strain. Add the shrimp and boil for 2-3
minutes or until they turn pink. Remove
and cool immediately to prevent the shrimp from hardening.
Recipe for Mayonnaise
2 egg yolks, at room temperature
1 heaped tsp Dijon mustard
½ cup sunflower oil mixed with
¼ cup mild olive oil
1 tsp tarragon vinegar
Lemon juice to taste
A little salt, if necessary
Place the egg yolks in a bowl with the
mustard, vinegar and a little salt and stir until well combined. Then very, very slowly add the oil, drop by
drop whipping constantly until ¼ of the oil has been added and the egg yolk
mixture thickens and emulsifies.
Continue adding the oil in a thin stream and beating until all the oil
has been used.
Place all the diced vegetables and the
boiled shrimp in a large bowl with the sliced gherkins and ½ the chopped
parsley, drizzle with a little olive oil and very gently fold in the
mayonnaise, until well combined.
Arrange the shrimp Russian salad in a
pretty bowl and garnish with extra parsley
SPANISH OMELETTE
6-8 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil
100 g (3 ½ oz) ham chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
A green bell pepper, stemmed, de-seeded and diced
1 aubergine, peeled and diced
A small courgette, diced
2 ripe tomatoes, peeled, deseeded and chopped
Gently sauté the ham, onion and pepper in olive oil for
about 10 minutes, add the aubergine and courgette and continue cooking gently,
stirring occasionally, until all the vegetables are tender. Add the tomatoes and cook until the cooking
liquid evaporates. Season with freshly
ground black pepper, but be sparing with the salt, due to the ham.
Beat the eggs with a little salt and pour over the
vegetables. Cook over medium heat for
about 2 minutes. When the bottom side is
lightly brown, flip the omelette over to brown on the other side. Serve in
wedges.
TOMATO SAUCE WITH FETA AND EGGS
A very interesting breakfast or supper dish.
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and grated
1 red pepper, seeded and finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 tbsp tomato paste
500 g (1 lb), ripe tomatoes, halved, seeded, grated, skins
discarded
1 tsp cumin powder
½ tsp coriander powder
½ tsp red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tsp sugar or more
according to the acidity of the tomatoes
10 eggs
1 cup grated feta, if salty soaked in water before grating
½ cup chopped parsley
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F). In a large saucepan, over medium heat, sauté
the onions in olive oil, stirring occasionally until caramelised. Add the
tomato paste and the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes more, stirring constantly. Then add all the other ingredients and simmer gently for 20 minutes, until a thick
sauce is formed.
Transfer the sauce into a pyrex dish and with the help of a
spoon make 10 small wells. Crack an
egg into each well and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Sprinkle, evenly, with grated feta, cover
with tin foil, and bake until the egg whites are just set, for 12 -15 minutes.
Garnish with chopped parsley and serve with warm, crusty
brown bread.
BEAN SOUP WITH MEAT
A delicious winter soup which is a full meal in its own.
500 g (1 lb) white beans soaked overnight in lightly salted
water
500 g (1 lb) lean beef slice
1 large onion, peeled and grated
2 carrots, scraped and finely chopped
2 celery stalks and the leaves, threaded and finely sliced
4 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp minced garlic
Freshly ground black pepper to taste, salt to be used when
the beans are almost done
250 ml (1 cup) thick tomato juice
A bay leaf
1 litre (4 cups) hot water or more
½ a small chilli pepper or
¼ tsp Cayenne pepper (both optional)
Sauté the meat in
olive oil on both sides, add the
chopped vegetables and continue cooking.
Meanwhile, drain and rinse the beans and place them in the
saucepan with the tomato juice, minced garlic, the bay leaf, chilli pepper or
Cayenne pepper and enough hot water to cover the beans entirely. Cover the saucepan and simmer gently for
about one hour or until the beans are tender.
Cut the meat into small pieces and place them into this delightful
soup. Serve with warm crusty bread.
Another traditional Greek dish.
1.250 kg (2 lb 8oz) lamb chops, boned, all
visible fat removed, reserve the bones*
2 tbsp butter
1 onion, peeled and grated
6 cos lettuces, trimmed, washed, cut into
small pieces, blanched and well strained
1.250 kg (2 lb 8oz) endives, washed,
thickly chopped, blanched and well strained
Salt and freshly grated black pepper to
taste
Stock prepared with the *reserved bones + 1
carrot + 1 celery stalk with leaves + ½ an onion
Avgolemono Sauce:
3 eggs
1 tbsp plain flour
1 cup lamb stock
Lemon juice to taste
Cut the lamb into bite-sized pieces,
sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Brown all over in butter with the grated
onion. Pour the lemon juice and enough
water to cover. Lower the heat, and
simmer, covered for about 30 minutes or until tender.
When the lamb is cooked add the blanched
vegetables and cook for 5 minutes more.
Taste for seasoning and add salt, pepper and lemon juice, if necessary.
Then prepare the avgolemono sauce (egg and
lemon sauce). Whip the eggs, sift the
flour over and stir until well combined.
Pour in the lemon juice over sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black
pepper and cook until the sauce thickens.
Then add 500 ml (2 cups) lamb stock and mix very well together until
smooth. Pour evenly over the meat and
vegetables and swirl the saucepan to incorporate the sauce. Taste
once more and season accordingly. Serve
with chips.
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