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.

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.

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.

A Big Bowl of Sunshine...

Felt like a sunny something for lunch, and came up with this hearty bowl of uplifting goodness.  Found myself eating two big bowls full for lunch. 

Prepare two red peppers for roasting by slicing in half, removing all the white bits and seeds, and spraying with oil.  Prepare a sweet potato for roasting by peeling, cubing and spraying with oil.  Roast in a hot oven for half an hour.

Saute a diced onion with 100g of fat free bacon bits until soft.  The bacon is totally optional.  I just love the flavour a little of it adds to soups.  Add 500g of frozen sweetcorn and 1 litre of chicken stock.  Boil until sweetcorn cooked.

Add the roasted veges to the soup and then blend with your kitchen wizz or in a blender until smooth.

Season with salt and pepper if necessary (stock is salty) and enjoy.

Monday night stir-fry

Monday nights are always a bit frantic.  First day of the week, back at work, tired, grumpy children ...  needing a quick easy tasty dinner and here it is...

Ingredients
1 red onion chopped
4 teaspoons crushed garlic
4 teaspoons crushed ginger
handful chopped beans (blanched in boiling water 1 minute)
1 chopped red pepper
handful bean sprouts
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 roast chicken breast shredded

1 packet cooked udon noodles
chilli oil

coriander

Method
Stir fry onions, garlic, ginger in a litte oil for 4 minutes.  Add the remaining ingredients and stir fry for another 4 minutes.  Serve up steaming in your favourite noodle bar with some chilli oil and coriander.

Catalan style Chicken dishes....

I think there is something so appealing about Mediterranean cooking, especially Chicken catalan style.  My favourites include Delia's Chicken Basque(http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/main-ingredient/poultry-and-game/chicken/chicken-basque.html) which incorporates those ingredients that make this style delicious like olives, paprika and chorizo.  Also just doing a simple chicken casserole like the one I cooked last night ticks all the boxes.  As a friend commented 'it makes your house smell so welcoming'

Recipe

Ingredients
4 large skinless chicken thighs on the bone
olive oil for browning
1 red onion
2 red peppers
1 clove garlic
50g sliced chorizo sausage
600g pototoes suitable for casseroles cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 can chopped tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
1 glass wine
2 bayleaves
2 tablespoons tomato paste
handful olives
salt and pepper

Method
Brown the chicken in a pan and set aside.

Fry the onion, garlic, chorizo and red peppers until soft. 

Add the can of tomato, tomato paste and paprika and simmer for another minute.

In a casserole place the potatoes on the bottom, cover with the soft vegetables, top with chicken, and pour over the stock and wine.

Season with salt and pepper, scatter over the olives and add the bayleaves.

I then cooked this for 2-3 hours in a 170 degree oven until the potatoes were soft.  It would also work well in a slow cooker.