My favourite slow cooked beef...

I have used my new slow cooker quite a few times this Winter cooking up all sorts of dishes from Spanish style Chicken to Chicken Curry, Beef Stroganoff to French Style Beef Casseroles and even a Lentil Dahl and Lamb Biryani.  The ultimate casserole to me would be Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon which I will try this Winter when I have the right ingredients in the house.

Here is a link to Julia's Beef Bourguignon Recipe, a timeless classic...
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/recipe?id=8222804

What I have enjoyed eating the most is the following recipe, loosely based on recipes I have followed previously combined with what ingredients I actually have in the house.


Slow Cooker Beef Casserole

Ingredients
1.2 - 1.5 kgs stewing steak (I cut the steaks into fairly large chunks probably 10cm square
a couple of tablespoons of flour to coat the steak prior to browning
olive oil (enough glugs to brown the meat and veg)
2 red onions sliced
2 yellow peppers sliced (or 4 small ones)
1 courgettes sliced (or 2 small ones)
2 sticks celery finely sliced
1 can tomatoes or half a bottle of passata (about 400g)
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 teaspoon mace
1 tablespoon tomato paste diluted in a cup of beef stock
a couple of sprigs of fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme) chopped
enough wine to cover all of the above when it's all placed in the slow cooker
salt and pepper to season

Method
Cut the meat into good sized chunk (2 inch square if you prefer smaller bits but in my case 4 inch square suits me better).  Coat the meat with flour and season with salt and pepper.  Put aside.  When I use my slow cooker I tend to brown the vegetables first and put them in the cooker before the meat.  Brown the vegetables in olive oil and place in slow cooker.  Brown the meat and put in slow cooker on top of the veg.  Add the canned tomatoes, garlic, stock, tomato paste, mace, wine and herbs to the slow cooker and grind over some black pepper and season with salt.  Switch on the slow cooker and leave until cooked.  This would usually take at least 6 hours on high or 8 hours on low. 

This dish is lovely served with mash, rice or buttered noodles (fettuccine).  I also tend to enjoy such dinners with a serving of cooked greens on the side such as green beans, asparagus, peas or spinach.  But tonight I am too tired, so it's simply being dished up over some mash.

Mucho Minestrone...

What a grotty week.  I am feeling like stink, my youngest is sick again for the 3rd time in 2 months, the weather sucks, it's all so truly uninspiring.  My body is begging for healthy food but I feel so wiped out that I am finding myself over-dosing on easy access carbs and am feeling like a true fatty baloomba.  Anyway today I forced myself to make some minestrone as this really is the best you can eat in a bowl as it's loaded with veg and a bit of protein and carbs.  Just what the doctor ordered!

Minestrone Soup

Ingredients
1.5 red onions diced
2 carrots diced
2 celery sticks diced
200g smoked back bacon diced with fat removed
3 cloves of garlic
2 courgettes diced
2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes
1 glass of wine
500g chicken stock
1/2 bag frozen free flow spinach (175g)
1 can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
60g soup pasta (I use Ditali Lisci as it's the perfect size for this soup)

Method
Put the onions, carrots, celery, bacon and garlic in a saucepan with some olive oil and sweat over a very low heat for about 30 minutes or until soft.  The key is that the veg must be soft.  Add the courgettes, wine and tomatoes and cook for a further 30 minutes on a very low heat.  Add the stock, spinach, beans and pasta and continue to simmer until the pasta is cooked.  Season to taste if necessary.  I find a good grind of black pepper and some parmesan shavings over the top equals soup perfection.

Roast Vegetables for Unwell Personas

I have been trying to shake a cold for the last week and it just ain't happening.  This is partially to do with having a non sleeping toddler and partner in the house.  My immunity is shot and I feel wrecked.  Am constantly reaching for quick carb comfort food but am trying to get some healthy veg in inbetween.  Last night I made a large tray of roast vegetables and my body just woofed it down.  Clearly this is what the doctor ordered, lots of colourful vegetables with all those lovely vitamins and minerals.  I am off to the food market shortly to get a stash of more vegetables to make a big pot of minestrone soup for dinner tonight.  But in the meantime here is my recipe for roast vegetables.

Ingredients
1 orange sweet potato cubed (4cm)
2 red skin potatoes cubed (2.5cm as they take longer to cook)
2 red onions sliced into chunks
half a garlic separated into cloves but leave the skin on
2 courgettes sliced into chunks
2 yellow peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic glaze
salt and pepper

Method
Prepare all the vegetables by washing them and cutting into chunks.  Place in a roasting pan and season with salt and pepper and drizzle over oil and balsamic glaze (or balsamic vinegar if you have some).  Massage the oil and glaze into the vegetables. 

Cook at 220 degrees for 45 minutes or until cooked, turning vegetables occasionally.  I served my vegetables with some pan fried rump steak with some more balsamic glaze drizzled over the steak.

Saturday morning pancakes...

It's been ages since we got up early on a Saturday morning and whipped up some pancakes.  One of the great things about weekends is that you have more time to spend on cooking things you wouldn't have time for during the week.  My kiddies love pancakes with a blueberries, a blob of greek yoghurt and a drizzle of maple syrup.  It's been so cold this week, it's just nice to have something warm in your tummy as you start your day.

Blueberry and Buttermilk pancakes

Ingredients
1 cup self-raising flour
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
grated rind of half a lemon
3 tablespoons butter melted
1 can blueberries drained

Method
Blend all ingredients except the blueberries to make a smooth batter.  Lightly grease a non-stick frying pan and ladle in enough batter to make a pancake the size that suits you.  I found you can either manage one giant pancake, or 3 medium sized ones.  I prefer mediums.  Once the batter is in the pan, scatter the blueberries over the batter before it starts to bubble.  When the bubbles appear it's time to flip the pancake over.  Once the pancakes are cooked, serve them with greek yoghurt and maple syrup.

 

Child Friendly Risotto

Bacon and Courgette Risotto with Parmesan Cheese

After a day at home feeling like poo (I have caught my son's virus) I picked up my children from school and kindergarden, and asked them what they'd like for dinner.  'Rice' was the response.  My youngest would live on boiled rice given the opportunity.  How boring but I can understand the appeal of steaming bowl of rice.  Then it dawned on me that I had not infact made a Risotto for a very long time.  And that my children should expand their eating horizons.  So a look through the cupboards found some arborio rice (a must for an authentic risotto), some bacon and courgettes.  As my children are allergic to all things green, I ended up peeling and grating the courgettes in an attempt to disguise them. 

Arborio Rice for making authentic Risotto

Bacon and Courgette Risotto

Ingredients
1 onion chopped
1 tablespoon garlic oil
2 courgettes peeled and grated
100g bacon pieces (fat removed)
200g arborio rice
4 cups warm chicken stock
knob butter
parmesan cheese

Method
Saute the bacon, onions and courgettes in the garlic oil until soft.  Add the rice and fry for a minute or so until the rice is coated.  Slowly start adding the stock a soup ladle at a time, stirring until the stock is absorbed before adding the next ladle full.  It should take 20 minutes for the rice to absorb all the stock.  Once the risotto is fully stocked, add a knob of butter and stir through until melted.  Check the flavour.  It may not need salt as the bacon and stock are quite salty.  It should require a grind or two of black pepper.  Serve in a bowl with grated parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top.

Risotto before adding the Cheese

As I felt the need for greens myself, I ended up adding some chopped baby spinach leaves to my bowl.

Risotto with baby spinach leaves added

French Tarts

When I lived in London they had this fab take-away called French Tarts who used to make the most delicious tarts with a light flaky pastry base.  They'd deliver these tarts along with the most delicious roasted vegetables, frites and dessert tarts (the tarte tatin was to die for) and even bottles of wine and cigarettes (we used to smoke back in the day).  This was my idea of deliverance heaven.

Here is the link to their menu.  I don't know whether they still exist, but they will forever be etched in my mind as good food that went with very good times.

http://www.yourbestlocal.com/restmenu.asp?rest_id=28-SW11-1EE&cat_id=page1&order=1

I woke up yesterday morning with a craving for French Tarts, as it was such a cold day, and this is the sort of food I like to eat.  I don't know how they make their tarts, but I will try different methods until I nail it.  I guess it's similar to a Galette as it appears to be sort of free form, but I'm guessing it's made in a tin.

But instead I tried just using a slab of reduced fat puff pastry, and topping it with a sour cream, egg and mustard mix, before topping it with toppings.  These tasted pretty damned good but not french tarts as I remember them.  Will keep working on it until I get it right.

Tart 1 for Adults

Caramelise 2 red onions by frying on low heat for about 30 minutes with a little water, butter, oil, sugar and balsamic vinegar.  When the onions were ready, I added 2 courgettes chopped into ribbons and a sliced chorizo sausage and warmed through before turning off the heat.  I then beat one egg and added about half a cup of light sour cream and a teaspoon of mustard.  This mix I then divided in two and spread over 2 pieces of pre-rolled pastry.   I then placed the onion/courgette/chorizo topping onto one pre-rolled square of pastry and topped with sliced brie.  This was baked in a 200 oven for about 20 minutes until golden.

Caramelised onion, courgette, chorizo and Brie Tart

Tart 2 for children

The second piece of pre-rolled pastry which has been brushed with half the sour cream mix, I topped with sliced in half cherry tomatoes and a grating of edam cheese.  Baked for 20 minutes or until golden in a 200 degree oven

Cheese and Tomato Tart for the children

Chicken Nuggets... another fat girl fat recipe

My kids have been begging me to buy them chicken nuggets but I refuse because I know they variety you find in the frozen section of the supermarket contain some ingredients that should just be illegal, plus they are not made out of chicken breast, but pulverised chicken bones, skin and all the bits you wouldn't ordinarily choose to eat. 

I read somewhere if you marinade strips of chicken in buttermilk for a couple of days it tenderises the chicken.  Well I did just that and it was delicious.   I then dipped the strips of chicken into some store bought crumbs for coating schnitzels or calamari, and then fried in about half a cup of oil.  Well these were a real hit.  My kids made chicken burgers out of them and are begging for the same again next weekend.  I will probably wait a month because of the fat content.

Fat Girl FAT... a weekend of warm puddings

This past weekend was rather chilly which put me in the unfortunate position where I felt the need to produce warm puddings all weekend.  Needless to say the scales are not my friend this morning, but I'm hoping that if I am very good for the next 48 hours I'll be able to reverse the damage.  Fingers crossed.

These puddings are not the prettiest puddings in the world, but they do taste good.  They all required very little effort and use ingredients that are generally found at home, so I was able to impress the family with ready steady cook.

Friday night : Lemon Pudding
Saturday night : Chocolate Pear Pudding
Sunday: Milk Tart



Friday night:  Lemon Pudding
A light lemony saucy sponge type pudding

Ingredients
55g butter
115g sugar
grated rind and juice of 1 lemon
2 eggs separated
55g self-raising flour
285ml milk

Method
Soften the butter slightly in the microwave.  Using a cake mixer, cream the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl before adding the lemon rind and juice, egg yolks, flour and milk and folding together until mixed.

In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff.  Fold into the pudding mixture gently before pouring into an ovenproof pudding type dish.  Place pudding dish into a roasting tin, and pour a kettle of boiled water into the roasting tin to surround the pudding dish.

Bake at 200 for 45 minutes.



Saturday night:  Chocolate Pear PuddingA chocolate sponged topped pear affair

Ingredients
1 can pears drained
60g flour
15g cocoa powder
60g castor sugar
75g butter
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place the pears in a small round oven proof dish.  The pears should fill the dish.  The one I use is the size of a side plate.

Mix the remaining ingredients together using a cake mixer.  Spread over the pears.

Bake at 200 for 30 minutes. 

I served this pudding with some chocolate sauce out of a bottle, but you could serve it with ice-cream or cream or all of the above.



Sunday night:  Milk Tart
A South African light custart tart topped with cinnamon

I am not going to share this milk tart recipe as I don't believe it tastes authentic.  Milk Tart is a traditional South African custard tart that is topped with a sprinkling of cinnamon.  This tasted good, but not as good as it could.  So I will redo the milk tart in the near future and share the best recipe I can find.

Sweet Smoked Paprika Stroganoff

I have a real penchant for beef casseroles.  Especially when they have been slow cooked and they just literally melt in the mouth.  On a shopping trip yesterday I indulged in some sweet smoked paprika from Spain.  I don't think this is the paprika traditionally used in stroganoff as you're supposed to use Hungarian paprika.  But what the hell, I tried the Spanish stuff, and it tasted pretty good.

Pimenton de la Vera - Sweet smoked Paprika

Ingredients
500g stewing steak
2 onions
2 cloves garlic
400g mushrooms
1 tablespoon paprika
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons flour
500ml beef stock
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup wine
1/2 cup light sour cream

Method
First things first, brown the diced onions and garlic in a little oil until soft and place in slow cooker.  Then brown the sliced mushrooms and add to the slow cooker.  Finally the meat.  First of all season the meat with salt and pepper.  Then sprinkle over the paprika and massage into the meat.  Finally dust the beef with flour before browning in a frying pan.  Add the meat to the slow cooker placing on top of all the vegetables.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the slow cooker and cook until tender (6 hours on high worked well for me)

Serve with rice and green beans.

The green beans I trimmed and blanched in boiling water for 3 minutes.  I then drained the beans and added a knob of butter, a squirt of fresh lemon before finally seasoning the greens with salt and pepper.

Slow cooker winner... a seriously good Dahl

On Sunday I spent the afternoon parked around a wood fire pizza oven eating pizza and discussing food with friends.  As I have recently purchased a slow cooker I am on the hunt for good recipes.  This recipe came highly recommended by the hostess.  I tried it for dinner last night and it was very good.  Quite spicy so I'd recommend halving the chilli if you can't handle your spice, or eliminating it altogether if children will be eating too.   I ended up cooling down my bowl with some greek yoghurt.


Tomato and Coconut Dahl

Ingredients
1 tablespoon oil
1 large onion chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 diced carrot
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
1 teaspoon minced ginger
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 teaspoon chilli for a medium curry (or 1/2 teaspoon for a mild curry or no chilli for children)
1 teaspoon garam masala
250g split red lentils
400ml stock
400ml light coconut milk
1 can chopped tomatoes

For serving
fresh limes for squeezing
chopped coriander
chopped toasted almonds
greek yoghurt
salt and pepper

Method
Fry the onion in the oil until soft.  Add the garlic, carrot, cumin, mustard seeds and ginger.  Fry for a few minutes.  Add the rest of the spices and fry for a further few minutes.  Transfer into the slow cooker.  Add the lentils, tomatoes, stock and coconut milk to the slow cooker.  Slow cook until the lentils are soft.

Serve in bowls topped with a squeeze of lime, toasted almonds, coriander and yoghurt

a lovely ladies lunch...

 

I enjoyed a fabulous lunch at my favourite cousin today.  It was so fresh and zingy, I just had to take a photo and get the recipe.  So here it is...


Lisa's Chicken Noodle Salad

Ingredients
2 cooked chicken breasts cut into bite size chunks
4 tablespoons Thai sweet chilli sauce
3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
1 broccoli cut into florets
100g green beans trimmed
1 red pepper sliced
2 packs udon noodles
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1cm piece fresh grated ginger
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
fresh limes cut into wedges to squeeze over the top

Method
Blanch the broccoli and beans for 3 minutes.
Fry the red peppers in a little oil in a non-stick frying pan for a couple of minutes.
Cook the noodles for a minute in boiling water.  Drain the noodles.
In a mixing bowl combine the noodles, vegetables, chicken, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger and sesame seeds.
Serve in noodle bowls with a wedge of lime for squeezing over.  Sprinkle coriander over the top.


After lunch we enjoyed a seriously good lemon tart which has for a long time been one of my favourites.

Swedish Gloop

This dessert is so disgusting I had to take a photo of it!  My son is at home ill at the moment and therefore gets the right to eat all sorts of disgusting what I call 'sick kid' foods.  Today's request was blue jelly topped with custard.  Reminds me of the Swedish flag or Ikea

Cottage Pie for weary people

Today I am making a comfort dinner for some very tired people in my family who have been nursing very sick babies.  I am working from home at the same time so hopefully it's not going to end up charred in the bin!

I am just going to scribble down the recipe as it's so easy, I don't really have the time today for layout precision!

You need 3 onions, 2 carrots, 2 celery sticks, 2 cloves of garlic, 50g butter, 1kg mince (beef or lamb), salt and pepper, worcestershire sauce, thyme, chicken stock (1 cup), sprig fresh thyme.  Peas(optional), 2 tablespoons of plum sauce/chutney, 1 kg frozen mash from the supermarket frozen section (or make your own mash if you have the time.

In the blender, blend the veges until slightly more chunky than mush.  Transfer in a saucepan with melted butter and cook slowly for about 30 minutes until soft.  Add the mince and brown, add a few dashes of worcestershire sauce, thyme, salt, pepper, stock and cook slowly for about an hour.  I usually also add a couple of tablespoons of plum sauce at this stage.  I don't know why, just like the taste it brings to the dish.  As I have no plum sauce in my pantry today, I have added some spicy mango chutney instead.  Add some peas if you wish before transferring into a baking dish.  Top with defrosted mash and bake at 180 for about 30 minutes

Spinach Ricotta Gnocchi

This started off with a healthy dinner in mind, but headed rapidly south when i started adding the cheeses!   Oh dear, not expecting miracles at my weigh in tomorrow, it's been a bit of a naughty week with the highlight being Sunday when I spent the afternoon parked on my bottom bits outside a wood fire pizza oven in satan's garden tasting a sample of every pizza making it's way out of the embers.  It was a true gastronomic apocalypse.

Anyway, back to tonight's dinner.  Spinach gnocchi made out of frozen spinach (thawed and drained) mixed with ricotta, parmesan, egg and flour.  Shaped into balls, simmered slowly in boiling water and then placed in a baking dish and smothered in tomato sauce and more parmesan.  Sounds good, tastes good too!

Ingredients for gnocchi
500g bag of frozen spinach
250g ricotta cheese
100g grated parmesan
2 eggs
150g flour
freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper

1 Bottle of your favourite tomato pasta sauce (I like the one with four cheeses as you don't have to add to much more cheese)
Grated parmesan to scatter over the top

Method
Thaw the spinach and squeeze out all the water.  Chop spinach finely before mixing it with the rest of the gnocchi ingredients in a mixing bowl.  Put in the fridge for a couple of hours.

Remove gnocchi mix from fridge and form into small balls.  Dust each ball with flour and place on a baking sheet.  Once you have shaped all the gnocchi, poach the balls for about 5 minutes in boiling water.

Once the gnocchi has been poached, remove from saucepan with slatted spoon and place in a baking dish. 

Cover the gnocchi with your favourite pasta tomato sauce and sprinkle over parmesan.

Bake at 180 for 30 minutes and serve with a green salad.

In my kitchen...

I recently renovated my 20 year old kitchen into a space I'm very happy in.  Just having such a pleasing surround has really made me fall in love with cooking all over again.  Here is a look at my kitchen and what's in it...

my pantry

wall oils, seasonings and wine racks

a place to dream...

too much coffee man, a gift for my coffee loving man

Banana Muffins - 2 Weight Watchers Pro Points each

Now muffins are a weakness of mine, but when looking up the pro points value on weight watchers, I realised some of them contained up to 15 pro points!  That's approximately half your daily allowance.  I was horrified and stopped eating muffins at once until I discovered this recipe where each muffin contains 2 pro points.   So you can enjoy a muffin with your cup of tea without having to worry about that moment on the lips.

Low Points Banana Muffins

Ingredients
30g butter
60g honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 ripe bananas
150g plain flour
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
12 cup muffin pan lined with muffin cases
Chocolate chips for sprinkling on top

Method
Melt the butter, honey and vanilla in the microwave. 
Mash the bananas in a bowl and pour over the honey butter vanilla mix and combine.
Mix the dry ingredients in another mixing bowl.
Mix the bananas mix into the dry ingredients until just combined(don't overmix)
Divide the muffin mix equally amongst the muffin cases.
Top with chocolate chips

Bake for 25 minutes on 190 degrees

Thai Style Beef Salad

On my travels around Thailand the highlight for me was the daily menu.  So many new taste sensations.  I so enjoy the fragrant and spicy notes that Thai food has to offer.  My particular favourites include thai fishcakes, tom yum soup, green papaya salad, pad thai and those beautiful banana pancakes the street vendors whip up in a flash.  I had a real penchant for crunchy salads in the sweltering heat and curries also seemed to hit the right spot.  Here is an easy Thai style salad that is so versatile.  You can eat it with chicken or thinly sliced beef.  As far as vegetables go, anything from carrot to mung sprouts, cabbage to spinach leaves.  And finishing off with finely chopped coriander, basil or mint would do the trick.  Here is the version I made this evening.

Crunchy Thai Beef Salad

Marinade Ingredients
1 teaspoon chiu chow chilli oil (with chilli bits) or minced chilli
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1.5 tablespoons lime juice (I use it out of a bottle)
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1.5 tablespoons oil

Salad Ingredients
1/2 red onion very finely sliced
salt and pepper
250g shaved roast beef
1/2 bag mung sprouts
1/2 bag baby spinach leaves
chopped coriander

Mix the marinade ingredients.  Add the thinly sliced onion and salt and pepper.  Leave in the fridge for a couple of hours to let onion absorb the marinade.

In a bowl mix sliced shave roast beef, sprouts and spinach leaves.  Add the onions and gently mix together until all ingredients coated with the onion and marinade.  Sprinkle over chopped coriander.  Allow a couple of minutes for all the flavours to combine before you grab a fork and get stuck in.

And two days later I used the rest of the sprouts, spinach and onion to make the same with cold roast chicken

Simply Sushi

Sushi rice is a big hit in this household.  Whether it's seasoned rice served up with some teriyaki chicken on a plate, or sushi, my children's favourite.  Sushi is so easy to make at home if you have all the right ingredients.  I used to use a sushi rolling mat, but find these days I don't really need one if I am careful about how I roll.

To make enough sushi for 3 rolls (ie 24 pieces) which should be a good sized snack for 4 person.

Either follow packet instructions to cook 1 cup of sushi rice OR
Put 1 cup sushi rice and 2.5 cups of water in a rice cooker and leave until cooked.

Once the rice is cooked and cooled down, I season it with a couple of tablespoons of sushi vinegar from my local Asian supermarket.  It's a mixture of vinegar, sugar and salt, and is a must if you want to get decent tasting sushi.  You can make your own sushi seasoning by following one of the many available recipes on the Internet.

At this stage it's worth getting your fillings together and then it's time to start sushi construction.  Favourites in this household include salmon with cucumber/avocado and teriyaki chicken.

To make sushi simply follow the photo steps below...

Nori Sheets

Place the nori on a board and add a handful of rice

Press the rice flat to cover 2/3rds of the nori

Add your filling to the middle of the rice

Fold the nori over and start rolling into a sausage shape

Keep rolling and use water to glue the paper together

Teriyaki Chicken  prepared school lunch box stylee

To make salmon sushi that is not child friendly (ie wasabi) - I follow the same process except I add a strip of wasabi and mayonnaise before I add the salmon and cucumber

Add a strip of mayonnaise and wasabi before adding other fillings