Chicken Cacciatore

 

This recipe came originally from Gary Rhodes across Italy.  Sadly Gary Rhodes died just after he completed the series, where he was able to get Italian chefs to show him the 'root' recipes of classic dishes.  

The recipe has no tomatoes in it, and it is important to use chicken on the bone.  I usually make this with chicken legs.  I keep an herb jar with the mixture of dried herbs, with salt and chilli added and use it for lots of recipes.  I also usually add some black kalamata olives to the dish before the end as well as at the end.  Use a dry white wine, not a sweet one.

A Healthy Fruit Cake

 My friend Rea gave me this recipe and made it for morning tea at aqua.  It's delicious and one of the moistest fruit cakes I have ever tasted.  I think you could add in extra nuts to your liking, and substitute sherry for any alcohol you enjoy.  It's essentially a boiled fruitcake, cooked in a traditional low oven but with a very untraditional ingredient!

Ingredients

1 kilo mixed fruit
1 cup apricot nectar

1 teaspooon honey

1 cup cooked, mashed pumpkin (400 grams) - I use butternut pumpkin as its sweeter.

1-1/2 cups self raising flour

1 teaspoon mixed spice

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

walnuts to decorate

1 tablespoon sherry

Method

Preheat oven to 150C.  (a slow oven)

Place fruit, nectar and honey in a saucepan, bring to the boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Allow to cool.

Stir in pumpkin.

Fold in sifted flour, spice and bi-carb.

Pour into a greased and lined 18cm square or round cake tin.

Bake for 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours, or until cooked when tested with a skewer - it should come out clean and dry.

Pour sherry over the cake while hot, and allow to stand at least 10 minutes before turning out to cool.

Store in an airtight container.

 This cake is a combination of a recipe I had plus some additions of my own.  I usually only make marmalade once a year, give lots to my friends and keep some for us.  I make it out of blood oranges which have a lovely sweet and tart taste.  The secret is to boil it for a lot longer that you think it needs.  This year I made 3 kilos worth of oranges into marmalade and it took a total of 4 hours!  As a result I made this cake without the orange rind or essence as it did not need any more than the marmalade.  (Which was delicious, as was the cake!)

Marmalade Cake

Ingredients

125 g butter

2 teasp grated orange rind

1/4 teasp orange blossom essence

2 eggs

1/2 cup orange marmalade  + extra

1/2 cup desiccated coconut

1-1/2 cup SR flour

1/2 cup milk

Method

Pre heat oven 160C fan forced.  Grease and line a loaf pan.

Beat butter, rind and sugar until light and fluffy.  

Beat in eggs.

Fold in marmalade, pean then coconut, flour and milk.   Spread in loaf pan and bake for aprox 45 mins.

Spread with a little marmalade while hot. Cool on a rack.

W.W. Sweet Chilli Sauce

 I have finally been able to get my chilli bush to grow and produce an abundance of chillis! so what to do with them? Make Sweet Chilli Sauce of course.  After testing and searching through a whole lot of recipes I found this one from the Australian Women' Weekly.  I have only tweaked it a bit but have made several batches and it works every time.

Keep it in the fridge once it is made, or if you want to keep it longer out of the fridge just us a canning/preserving system.

Ingredients

250g fresh long chillies

3 cups white vinegar

2 cups water

2 cups white granulated sugar

2 teaspoon salt

2inch piece of fresh ginger

6 cloves garlic

Method

Remove stems off chillies, peel ginger.  Chop into pieces and place in food processor with 1 cup of water.

Process until chillies and ginger are very fine.

Place remaining water, vinegar, salt and sugar into a saucepan and simmer to dissolve the sugar fully.

Add the chilli and ginger mixture to the saucepan and cook uncovered
on rolling simmer for 20 minutes.

Peel garlic and process to a fine chop, then add to the saucepan and cook for another 20-40 minute.  It should be reduced to about half. 

Take the saucepan off the stove and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Pour into sterilised jars and allow to cool on the bench before refridgerating.

Christmas Biscotti - Cranberry and Pistachio

 Whoa be it for me to upgrade an Aust. Women's Weekly recipe because they have been a standby for me and many others (including my mum) for many years.  Why?  Because they work, EVERY TIME.  But....

Hmm, (embarrassing pause) however I recently misread this recipe and used baking powder instead of bi carb and used coconut sugar instead of castor sugar because I had none.  -  The result was better than the original, so if you want to substitute castor instead of coconut, and bi carb instead of baking powder go ahead!

You can also substitute any nut or fruit combination you enjoy, and instead of vanilla use any delicious essence (e.g. almond) you like.

One tip - chilling is a MUST. You could even chill overnight if that suits you better.

My emergency Christmas dessert.

 Have you been asked to provide dessert at the last minute or simply having people over unexpectedly?  Well do not panic!  Here is the easiest dessert I know that can be whipped up in minutes (plus a trip to the store).  I guarantee it will impress your guests.

Step 1 - Shop

From the store buy an unfilled sponge (don't worry a filled one will still work), a jar of lemon curd, a lemon, and about 600 mls of whipping cream.  I assume you have a couple of eggs at home.

Step 2 - Assemble

Cut up the sponge into large (about 2inch) pieces and put at the bottom of a trifle dish.  Sprinkle (ie. pour on) some limoncello (or grand Marnier, or rum, or whatever booze you like), that has been mixed with a little sugar and water.  Taste to see if you need to add some lemon juice as well.

Whip the cream and add some sugar and the zest of 1-2 lemons to taste.

Put 1/2 on top of the sponge.

Spread the lemon curd on top, then the rest of the cream. 

Put into the fridge.   Serve when you need to.

Options :

1. If you had time you could put a layer of raspberry jelly on the bottom, that would take about an hour to set before you can put the sponge on.  Looks like you spent hours though.
2. Put some raspberries (could use frozen) on top of the lemon curd.
3. If you have frozen raspberries, you could make a coulis and pour that onto the sponge too.
4. You could top with raspberries or grated chocolate, or strawberries.
5. Make Lemon Meringue trifle - If you are feeling fancy you could whip up 2 egg whites with some sugar to form a meringue and then pile on top.  Torch with a blow torch to brown the edges.  This is what I did and it is very impressive.

If you just don't have time for any of this cut up some fruit and cheese, add a slice of fruit cake and away you go!  Merry Christmas.

QUICK AND EASY LEMON IMPOSSIBLE PIES

 This is a quick recipe that uses ingredients you will probably have in the cupboard. They are little morsels of lemon and vanilla loveliness.

Pre-heat overn to 160C fan forced
Grease a muffin tin (12)
In a bowl mix together 
2 eggs
can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup lemon juice 
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup self-raising flour
1 tpn vanilla 
zest of 1 lemon.
When smooth, evenly pour into muffin tins.
Bake for 18-20 mins, or until golden on top and set .
Dust with icing sugar

Christmas Cosmopolitan.

 I love this because I can make a huge bottle full (minus the lemon and ice) and keep it in the fridge ready for anytime over xmas.  It is from the Barefoot Contessa herself!  We have it every Xmas but I always forget the recipe, so I am saving it for posterity.  i have converted it from ounces.

• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
• 1/2 cup Cointreau liqueur
• 1 cup cranberry juice cocktail, such as Ocean Spray
• 1 cup good vodka, such as Grey Goose
• 
  
• Ice

In a pitcher, stir together the lemon juice, Cointreau, cranberry juice cocktail, vodka. Fill a cocktail shaker half full with ice and pour enough of the drink mixture into the shaker to almost fill it. Shake the cocktail for a full 30 seconds (it’s longer than you think!) and strain into martini glasses. Serve ice cold.

Gribiche Sauce

Is this a sauce or is this a mayonnaise?  Both actually! 

My first encounter with this sauce was my mother making a tartare sauce this way, and actually this sauce is very close to tartare but different in that it has more herbs in it.  I serve it the way I saw on Adam Liaw's show, as a bed for a chicken snitzel, but you could use the oil, mustard, lemon and egg yolks and just make mayonnaise with those.

When you make the mayonnaise, you do not have to drizzle it in like a normal mayonnaise, but if you just dump it all in it will split.  So, just add it slowly mixing all the time.

I use chives and parsley but you can vary the herbs to whatever you like, try basil, thyme, tarragon or even celery or carrot tops.

This is really a very versatile sauce and goes really well with fish, chicken, or vegetables (think asparagus with sauce gribiche!)  Once you have made it you will want to keep making it.

Gribiche Sauce

Ingredients

20 g capers, finely chopped
15 g pickled jalapeños, finely chopped
½ red onion, finely chopped
½ bunch chives, thinly sliced
½ small bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Salt and black pepper

4 boiled eggs
1 lemon, halved
150 ml olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard

Method

I use two bowls, in one bowl put the yolks of the eggs.

Chop the egg whites, capers, onions, jalapenos, chives, parsley and add salt and pepper.  Add this to the other bowl.

Mash the egg yolks, add about 1/2 the juice of the lemon and all the mustard, mix until it is smooth.

Add the oil in slowly until it is a mayonnaise, just keep whisking or mixing.

Now just check the seasoning and add more lemon if required.

Mix the chopped herbs etc into the mayonnaise and refrigerate. 

Healthy Raspberry Cups

Going somewhere and need to "take a plate" but want to take something a bit healthy and that tastes great.  This is your recipe!

You can substitute any nut butter for the peanut butter, and if you don't have enough add a little real butter. I left out the coconut oil in the topping as I had run out and it worked perfectly, but you could use a bit of butter instead.  You can make these the day before, just store them in the fridge.

Healthy Raspberry Cups

Ingrediants

For the cups: 
1¾ cups (157g) Rolled/quick oats 
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (140g) Natural peanut butter 
3 tablespoons Maple syrup 

For the filling: 
1½ cups (150g) Raspberries, fresh or frozen 
2 tablespoons Chia seeds 1-2 tablespoons Maple syrup (optional) 

For the topping: 100g Dark chocolate 1 tablespoon Coconut oil 

Method

1. Make the cups: Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Line muffins tip with paper liners. 
2. In a bowl, mix oats, peanut butter and maple syrup. 
3. Take about 1-2 tablespoons of the mixture, transfer to the muffin cups. Then, using the handle of a rolling pin press create a well as shown in the video. 
4. Bake for 10-12 minutes. 
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. 
6. Meanwhile make the filling: mash the raspberries, add chia seeds, maple syrup (optional) and mix. Set aside for 15 minutes. 
7. Fill each cup with the raspberry filling. 
8. Make the topping: chop dark chocolate and place in a heat proof bowl, add coconut oil and melt in the microwave in 20 second pulses. 
9. Spread a layer of melted chocolate over the filling. 
10. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving

Frangipane

 Frangipane:

Posting this so I can find it again! Frangipane is a handy recipe for the filling of any fruit tart, particularly where you do not have enough fruit for fruit only. I make a rectangle tart with frangipane and pears sliced on top. Delish.

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup almond flour (measured then sifted)

Cream, the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. At the egg and vanilla and mix well. Sift the almond flour into the mixture and whip for another 30 to 60 seconds.

Salmon and Pasta

 This is based on a Mary Berry recipe for Salmon Linguine, but you can use any pasta you like.  It is also versatile with the salmon, I have used smoked salmon, hot smoked salmon, poached salmon fillets and a combination of them.  All with success.  It's a light meal but a satisfying one full of flavour.

This recipe is for 2 serves, but you can easily double or triple it.

Ingredients

125 grams pasta

40 grams pine nuts

small knob of butter

2 green onions

juice & grated peel of 1 lemon

60g capers, drained

3 tblspns olive oil

125 g salmon (cooked)

small bunch each of chives and parsley, chopped.

Method

Put pasta on to boil in lots of salted water

Use a hot frypan to brown the pine nuts and then set aside.

Fry the green onions off in the butter, add the oil, lemon and capers and heat for a few minutes.

Add the salmon and cook until just heated through.  (Turn off if the pasta is not cooked.)

Drain the pasta when cooked, keep about 1/2 cup of pasta water.

Add the pasta to the salmon mix, combine with the pasta water & pine nuts until you have the consistency of sauce you like.  Sprinkle with the chives and parsley.

Basic Muffins

Basic Muffins

2 cups self raising flour

1-1/2 cups natural yoghurt

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

Sweet - add 1/2 - 1 cup of sugar 

           - add fruit, nuts, choc chips - go wild!

Savoury - add corn, ham, cheese, olives, sundried tomatoes, herbs

Mix - mix together all the ingredients until just combined, do not over mix.

Bake - bake at 180C for 20 minutes until golden brown and spring back when pressed in the middle.

Mary Berry's easiest ginger biscuits

 Like all Mary Berry recipes this one is easy and perfect every time and it freezes well.  

Make sure you use only a level tablespoon of golden syrup or the biscuits will spread out too much.  There are two types of sugar, but if all you have is one, just use that.  I usually use dark brown sugar and raw sugar and it works with no problems.  Chopp the ginger a little bigger than you think you should, that way you get little nuggets of ginger in the biscuits.  Delish.

Easy Ginger Biscuits

Ingredients 

• 50 g butter
• 1 level tablespoon golden syrup  (NO MORE)
• 175g self raising flour
• 1 tsp bi carb soda
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 75g crystalised ginger chopped
• 50 g demerara sugar
• 50g light brown sugar
• 1 egg beaten

Method

Preheat the oven to 160°C/140°C fan. Line two baking sheets with non-stick baking paper.

Measure the butter and golden syrup into a saucepan. Heat gently, stirring, until melted.  Set aside.

Place the flour, ground ginger, chopped ginger, bicarb and demerara and muscovado sugars in a mixing bowl. Mix well, then stir in the melted ingredients. Add the egg and bring the mixture together to form a dough.

Divide into 16 equal pieces and roll with your hands into small balls. Place on the baking sheets and slightly flatten to about 1cm (½in) thick. Bake for about 25 minutes, until golden and firm around the edges.

Leave to firm up on the baking sheets for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Keeps well for up to 5 days in an airtight container.

You can freeze them and refresh them in a low oven once defrosted.

Sauces for fruit dips

 It was New Years Eve and I was asked to bring dessert.  We were all over sweets and cakes so I decided to take fruit, but that can also be a bit boring.  So to jazz it up I decided to also take some dips.

The obvious one was chocolate, but I had no cream, I found this recipe and it's a winner.  I did have sour cream, and found one for a simple dip, but a friend also gave me another one for sour cream, so here are the three dips that go well with fruit.

Garlic Prawns

 I love Curtis Stone's recipes and as Woollies had greens prawns on sale, I looked through YouTube and came across Curtis's BBQ garlic prawns.  Now I do not usually like garlic prawns because they are often lots of butter or oil, raw garlic and no taste of prawns as they are overpowered.  This recipe did not sound like others I have seen.  

The only hard bit is peeling the prawns.  Here is how to do it, first put on some thin rubber gloves.  Twist off the head and discard, then go down the middle of the prawn between the two sets of legs and pull each segment of leg and shell off.  Done!

I made this in a frypan, on low-medium heat to start, then when the prawns go in crank it up to full bore.  Of course, they are perfect for a BBQ.  I served it with plain white rice instead of sourdough.  Also, this recipe says it is for 8 people, that would be a starter course, for a main I would say 1kg of prawns feeds 4 people unless you are having lots of added veggies.

 Do not leave out any ingredients, this recipe has been developed to perfection and is delicious.  To view the video of Curtis Stone just click here. 

30 Minute Easy-Peasy Chocolate Cake.

Imagine this: your husband casually mentions that someone is coming over for coffee at the last minute. Panic sets in as you realize you don't have any dessert prepared. Don't fret! I have just the recipe for you—the 30-Minute Easy-Peasy Chocolate Cake. As the name suggests, this delightful cake can be whipped up in just 10 minutes of mixing and takes a mere 30 minutes to bake. It's the perfect solution for those unexpected guests, and the best part? The ingredients are likely already in your pantry!

Choc Banana Bundt Cake

 So, what do you do when you have 3 bananas that have gone all black and a packet chocolate cake that you did not use at Xmas in the cupboard?  You make Chocolate Banana Bundt Cake.

I'm not the biggest fan of banana cake, although I do like my Perfect banana cake but mostly I find them too dense and rich.  Last Xmas I was going to make a chocolate cake to take to a friends house but eventually decided on something else, so I had a packet in the cupboard, and I had a function coming up and wanted to make a big cake.  I had not used my bundt pan for a while, so I also wanted to use that, and it will feed 12 easily.  Now one choc cakemix will not fill a bundt pan, but two cake mixes will, so I made this Chocolate Banana Bundt cake and it was a real hit.  I think because the chocolate cake just adds a nice lightness when added to the banana cake.  

Try to use a good quality chocolate cake mix, one that uses oil not butter as the crumb will be better.  This banana cake was a slight adaptation from Jamie Olivers banana cake, adding almond meal to  both cakes it ties the two together.  If you like spice, you can add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and mixed spice to the banana cake, walnuts chopped would also work as an extra in the banana cake.

About icing/ topping the cake - you can make up your own favourite chocolate icing and drizzle over the cake, or simply top with some melted butter and chopped nuts.  This is also very nice served warm with a caramel sauce.  I leave it plain.

Easter Hot Cross Buns - in a breadmaker.

I bought some hot cross buns from a specialty shop - they were terrible, what I discovered is if you have about 3-4 hours, you can make hot cross buns at home that are delicious.  This is an adaptation of a recipe I found on Panasonic.  (Panasonic make a great bread maker by the by).  You obviously cannot make buns from beginning to end in a breadmaker, but you can get it to do the kneading and 1st proove.  The result is a light fluffy, perfectly kneaded bun mix.

Christmas Rocky Road.

 This is Christmas rocky road because I never make it any other time.  Its great as a small gift to friends at this time of year.