Tempura - Way to make vegetables dirty

If you thought that vegetables are the healthiest food choice you can make, we tell you: not if you dunk them in the batter and then deep fry them in lots of oil, you don't!

To cover 2 carrots, 2 celery sticks, 6-7 baby corns and 1 bell pepper:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar

1) Mix with cup of water thoroughly and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes.

2) Carrots and baby corn will need to be boiled first for about 10 minutes. Cool them off by running cold water over them in a colander, shake off excess water, then tip all the veggies into your batter, coating them evenly.

3) Deep-fry in batches. It only takes few mere minutes per batch.

Don't forget your dipping sauces. And how about adding herbs or/and spices to the batter ;)

Upside Down Deep Dish Pizza

 Another dish from American Deep South

This will greatly resemble yorkshire pudding, just softer. If you ever cooked your own pizza, this is much less trouble in my opinion, and will make easy one-pot family dinner.

200g of shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 tablespoon of oil, fair enough we used olive
1 chopped red onion
1 chopped green bell pepper
2-3 ounces of chorizo, roughly chopped
250g of minced beef
1 x 400g can of chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon of basil and oregano each

for the "pizza base" which goes on top:
1 cup of milk
1 tablespoon of oil
2 eggs
1 cup of all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

1) Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celcius. Spray a 9 x 13 inch glass baking pan with non-stick cooking spray or drizzle a litte oil. Arrange mozzarella cheese evenly on the bottom of the baking pan.

2) Heat the 1/2 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and cook the onion and bell pepper until soft, but not browned. Add the beef and cook until browned. Stir in the chorizo and cook another 4 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes from the tin and herbsg and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, watching so it wouldn't dry out. Remove from heat and set aside.

3) Whisk together milk, oil and eggs. Add the flour and the salt to the milk mixture and whisk until well blended and smooth. Sieve if too lumpy.

4) Carefully transfer the meat mixture evenly over the layer of mozzarella in the prepared pan. Pour the batter on top of the meat mixture, making sure to cover completely. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese evenly on top.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. Once you have taken it out of the oven it will deflate. Don't worry, it's normal :)

Bon appetite! 

Recipe adapted from deepsouthdish.com

Szechuan Pork Stir-Fry

1) Marinate 500 g of cubed pork fillet, for at least an hour or preferably longer, in: 2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon cornflour

1 tablespoon water

2) Combine and set aside: juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons vinegar (rice or white wine)

1 teaspoon cornflour

3 teaspoons dark sesame oil 3) Heat 1 tablespoon of oil, stir in: 3 teaspoons crushed ginger 2 chopped green chillies Fry for 1 minute, then add the pork and continue stir-frying for about 5 minutes. Then add 1 julienned carrot and 100g julienned sugar-snap peas and continue to stir-fry for another 5 minutes or so, until pork is tender. 4) Pour in lime mixture and continue to stir almost constantly for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in 2-3 chopped spring onions and handful of finely chopped roasted peanuts. Serve with rice as a side. It could be cooked just plain in slightly salted water, as it is designed to extinguish and cushion chillies in the stir-fry. Enjoy!

Greek Honey Orange And Walnut Cake

150g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup sugar
 4 large eggs
 8 heaped tablespoons flour
1 cup walnuts, lightly toasted and finely chopped
2 level teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk, warmed
zest of one orange
juice of two oranges
1/2 cup honey

1) Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Grease the tin (mine measures 20x28cm) and line the base with baking paper. Place butter and sugar in mixer bowl, beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Combine flour, nuts, baking powder and salt in another bowl. Stir flour and milk alternately into batter, then stir in orange zest.

2) Pour batter into prepared tin. Bake until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cool in pan 10 minutes. Otiginal recipes calls for inverting cake onto a wire rack before soaking it, but I left mine in the tin. Stir orange juice and honey together until smooth, then pour over warm cake.

3. Allow cake to sit while orange honey mixture soaks in.

Sourced with alterations from http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/808161/greek-easter-recipes.

Neapolitan Ragu With Beef Rolls

Ragu Alla Napoletana Con Braciole

topside of beef sliced or 4 thin slices of sirloin steak
1/2 cup pecorino or parmesan cheese, grated
2 garlic cloves, crushed
5 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
2/3 cup passata or tomato sauce
1/3 cup red wine
2 bay leaves
2/3 cup beef or vegetable stock
salt and pepper
few black peppercorns and teaspoonful of thyme

1) Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsuis. Beat the steaks with a mallet until slices are quite thin - not thicker than 0.5cm. You can cover meat with plastic wrap to prevent spray. Place few slices of garlic on each steak, season with salt and pepper. Top with parmesan and parsley. 

2) Fold two opposite sides over the stuffing as neatly as you can and roll. Secure with toothpicks.  

3) Heat the oil in a pan, saute parcels on all sides to brown. Transfer to overproof dish. 

4) Add the onion to the pan and saute for 3 minutes. Stir in wine and let it simmer briefly, scraping the sides of the pan. Then stir in passata, bay leaves, peppercorns and stock. Season. Bring to boil, then pour over beef rolls.
5) Cover with a lid or foil and bake for an hour.

On the picture, served with quickly thrown together green salad, with anchovies and sun-kissed tomatoes.

Sachertorte Muffins

This is an individual servings recipe of German Sachertorte. Proportions are set for two jumbo-size muffin tins, just enough for one evening treat for two people.

2 eggs, separated
50g dark chocolate, broken into to cubes
25g butter
teaspoon of vanilla extract2 tablespoons plain flour
2-3 tablespoons sieved apricot jam or preserves

For the frosting:
40g dark chocolate
tablespoon butter
tablespoon double cream

1) Melt chocolate over low heat watching closely that it wouldn't burn. When cubes just melted off their shape, add butter and stir briskly. Take off the heat and let cool for few minutes before adding the yolks. Stir in yolks when it's colled down, add vanilla and set aside.

2) Beat egg whites until soft peaks. Add sugar, tablespoon at a time, beating continuously until stiff peaks. Fold egg whites into chocolate mixture gradually, taking care not to mix too much.

3) Sift flour, tablespoon at a time, folding it gently into the egg chocolate mixture. Divide between two jumbo muffin tins or use one relatively small in diameter tin (15cm) if you prefer, to allow it to raise well enough to be cut in two layers later.

4) Bake in pre-heated to 170 degrees Celcius oven for about 20-30 minutes, until toothpik comes out clean. Once baked, cool in the tin. Remove and cut horizontally.
I also cut off the muffin tops, to allow for flat placing of the cakes as I turn them upside down, and I use those next day in whipped cream dessert.

5) Spread apricot jam between two layers, assemble and spread some more on the top and sides if you have any left. Finally, cover all over with chocolate frosting and let settle for about an hour. Do not recommend to put in in the fridge, it will not benefit from being cooled.

For the frosting, melt chocolate as before, add butter and then cream, and stir. Level the surface of frosted cakes with a flat thin knife dipped in water.

Gumbo & Corn Bread

Taste of American South

Cooked following these recipes:

http://www.greenchronicle.com/recipes/shrimp_gumbo.htm 

and

http://uktv.co.uk/food/recipe/aid/514368

Pogaca - Turkish Pastries With Feta Cheese

For a taster of Turkey, here is pastries with feta cheese and parsley

150g unsalted butter or baking margarine, left at room temperature for at least an hour to soften
70ml extra virgin olive oil
2 cups flour
1 egg
2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1) For the filling, mix:
3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

2) Mix all the ingredients for the dough in a deep bowl. Using your hands would be best. Take a tablespoonful of dough and roll between your palms, then press to form a circle about 5mm thick. Put 1 teaspoon of the filling inside. Close it up carefully pinching together the ends.

3) Put the pastries seam down on a dry tray. To achieve golden coloour, brush each pastry with egg yolk mixed with little milk.

4) Bake at 190 degrees Celcuis until lightly blowned/golden, which is about 20-30 minutes. 

Outcome is about 20 pieces. Dough will benefit greatly from being prepared the night before and chilled in the fridge.

Day Of The Mollusc

Scallops Tagliatelle

For two people,
250g scallops
50g butter
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup double whipping (but not whipped) cream
2 shallots, chopped
tagliatelle for two servings
green peas, frozen or fresh
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
salt and pepper

1) While pasta is cooking, melt half the butter in a small saucepan and cook shallots until lightly golden. Add wine and cook until about third of liquid evaporates, - about 10 minutes. Take off the heat, wait about 5 minutes and stir in cream, and season.
2) In a larger pan, melt remaining butter and sear scallops tossing them around for about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat, add cream sauce and heat up for couple of minutes. Then add garlic and peas and cook stirring for further 2-4 minutes depending on which peas you are using. Frozen will take about 4 minutes.
3) Drain cooked pasta when it's done. Set aside if waiting on scallops. When scallops are done, combine all together, add parmesan, toss and serve!

What do you put into Your Shepherd's Pie?

How about Black Beans with usual meat'n'tomatoes, and Goat's Cheese into the mash. Otherwise, just a usual pie recipe known to anybody.

Turkey Delight!!

Christmas Variation

turkey breast joint, 1kg
German smoked ham
slices of mozarella cheese
seasoning of your choice
goose fat

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius
1) Cut turkey joint length-wise in a near-circular motion, as if you were unrolling the roulade. Don't worry about perfection, this recipe is about layering turkey with ham and cheese, so though it would help to keep meat evenly spreaded, it won't alter the taste even if it is roughly stacked as long as ham and cheese go all the way along the joint.
2) Tie your roulade with a string, not too tight, just to keep it together and compact. Smother on all sides with goose fat.
3) Put roulade skin down and bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Turn skin up and bake for 40 minutes, basting occasionally. Test the meat for readiness. Please note that ham will still be pink, so do not be fooled thinking turkey is not yet ready. If in doubt, keep in the oven for further 10-15 minutes, but be aware that prolonged baking will dry it out.

Finally, let it stand for about 10 minutes before carving. If keeping for later, cover in foil tighly while still warm and keep in the fridge after it has cooled down. 

Casablanca Dreaming - On Such A Winter's Day

Verging on thickness, this broth came from Morocco. Add this to your winter soup recipes binder.

Moroccan Harira

400g ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or a can of ready ones
250g lamb, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons fresh chopped coriander
2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
1 chopped onion
1/4 cup red split lentils
1/2 can chickpeas
4 baby onions or shallots, peeled
1/4 cup noodles or vermicelli
salt and pepper

1) Put lamb, turmeric, cinnamon, butter, coriander, parsley and chopped onion into a large saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and continue to cook for 10 minutes.
2) Rinse lentils under running water and add to the saucepan with 2 1/2 cups water. Season, bring to a boil, cover and simmer until lamb is nearly done, - about an hour.
3) Add shallots and drained chickpeas, and continue cooking until lamb is soft and onions are cooked but not falling apart, - about 20 minutes. Add noodles or vermicelli 5 minutes before end.

Craving for Chocolate Cake - can happen to anyone..

When winter nights are chilly and windy, and it's dark early, no wonder we had a sudden craving for a Chocolate cake. Not just any one, but rich and moist. This recipe has proven to be the very best, especially that it only takes 35-40 minutes of your time, half of which is baking.
You can also cover it with icing, or whipped cream. Us, we just wanted The Cake in its cocoa purity!

100g cooking dark chocolate (block)
150g butter, room temperature
200g flour
3 eggs
1 generous teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons milk or buttermilk
150g sugar

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
1) Break chocolate into cubes and put into a small saucepan. Put the saucepan onto a cooker on a very low setting. Electric cooker would be setting 1. Watch it at all times and help it melt by stirring very gently, to keep from burning. Gradually add butter by tablespoon portions. In the end, it must not be very loose and runny, so it's ok if butter does not dissolve completely and perfectly.
2) Beat in eggs one by one. Then add sugar, milk and stir.
3) Seive flour into a mixing bowl and add baking powder. Pour chocolate mixture into the flour, mixing al the time, until it's smooth.
4) Bake until cake is risen and toothpick comes out dry.

Azeri Way Of Home-Cooking

Proudly presenting this simple yet emblematic authentic recipe from Azerbaijan. Provided you have all the ingredients, it will only take you about an hour to cook. In return, you will be repayed with aromatic and flavoursome soup that is enough for both first and second course due to its composition.

Kufte-Bozbash

 

 

 250g lamb mince

1 medium onion, grated

2 tablespoons rice (arborio worked best), cooked

3-6 new potatoes

can of chickpeas or about a cup of dry chickpeas soaked overnight in cold water

1 small tomato, peeled and chopped finely

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon dry mint

salt and ground black pepper

fresh chopped parsley and or mint, to serve

1) Mix lamb mince with onion and rice, add dry mint and half of turmeric. Season, and mix well. Form three large meatballs out of the mixture. Boil 1 litre of water and put the meatballs (Kufte) in, one by one.

2) Peel the potatoes and leave whole. Usually it is designed to be served one Kufte and one large potato per serving, but as we are using smaller ones for the sake of time, use 2 or however you serve it. Introduce potatoes into the soup about 10 minutes after you have put the Kufte in. Let it cook for about 30 minutes, or until potatoes have become soft but not falling apart when tested with a toothpick.

3) Add chickpeas, tomato, tomato paste and turmeric to the soup and season. Let cook for another 5-10 minutes.

Serve sprinkled with fresh parsley and/or mint, if you like.

Rest Your Tastebuds On This Phyllo..

Do not cut on yoghurt, to make the filling moist. Watch out as it crumbles. Tastes absolutely delicious and not quite like anything you have ever tasted before.

Chicken And Apricot Phyllo Pie

 

1/2 cup bulgur
6 tablespoons butter
1 0nion, chopped
400g chopped chicken, raw or cooked
1/4 cup dried apricots
1/4 cup chopped blanched or roasted almonds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 cup plain yoghurt
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
6 large sheets phyllo (filo) pastry
salt and pepper

1) Put the bulgur in a bowl and cover with1/2 cup boiling water. Let stand for 5-10 minutes.
2) Gently saute onion and chicken in butter until golden. We used cooked chicken extracted from the stock.
3) Stir in apricots, almonds and bulgur and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cinnamon, allspice, yoghurt and herbs. Season.
4) Melt the remaining butter. Unroll pastry and cut into circles to cover 25cm oven dish with removable bottom. Brush bottom with butter and place 3 filo sheets brushing each with butter. Keep remaining filo covered with damp clean cloth to prevent from drying out. Ideally, you will be really quick to assemble the pie.
5) Spoon the filling and cover with 3 remaining filo sheets brushing each with butter. Crumple filo leftovers on top and brush with butter again.
6) Bake at 200 degrees Celcius for 30 minutes, until pie is brown and crisp.

Can be served hot or cold!

Happiness is a dish called Afelia..

A nice variation of stewed meat, here served with mashed potatoes.

Afelia

500g pork fillet, cut into cubes

1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds

1/2 teaspoon sugar

olive oil

2 large onions, sliced

1 1/4 cups red wine

salt and ground black pepper

1) Mix coriander with sugaar, salt and pepper and rub all over the meat. Leave to marinate for at least 4 hours, or in our case, overnight.

2) Brown the meat quickly in olive oil over high heat. Set aside.

3) Cook the onion in olive oil until beginning to colour. Stir in wine, little salt and pepper, bring just to a boil and add meat.

4) Cover and simmer until meat is tender. It took us just half-hour.

Moussaka Massacre

It will certainly massacre your time, so be prepared to sacrifice about 2 hours of your continuous labour. Don't be like me and think that you can manage it in no time. Now thinking of it, it is one rather complex dish, but it is definitely worth it! The combination of flavours are delicious, and you won't find them anywhere else in ready-made moussakas.
Some remarks: we have used peeled and thinly (5mm) sliced raw potatoes as a first layer, which is not featured in the recipe. Allspice was substituted by Pilau Rice spice. Breadcrumbs form lovely crust on top!

 800g aubergines, sliced
olive oil
2 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 large onions, sliced
400g lamb mince
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/2 cup dry white wine
salt and ground black pepper
For the sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup flour
2 1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup grates Parmesan
3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs

1) First you will need to get rid of bitterness in the aubergines. For that, layer slices in a colander with lots of salt and leave for 30 mins. Then you will need to wash them thoroughly in cold water and pat dry. After that, fry slices in batches in olive or vegetable oil. Aubergines usually take in large quantities of oil. Drain fried aubergine slices on paper towels.
2) While you wait on aubergines to soak in salt, you can cook onions and lamb mince for about 5 minutes. Then add tomatoes, cinnamon, allspice, tomato paste, parsley, wine, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
Tip: to peel tomatoes, cover them with boiling water for 30 seconds or more. 
3) Layer meat and aubergines in a shallow ovenproof dish, finishing with layer of aubergines.
4) To make the sauce, melt the butter over low heat, then add flour and cook, stirring, for about a minute or two. Take off the heat ad gradually blend in hot milk, stirring constantly to break lumps. Return to heat and cook, stirring, until thickened, for about 2-3 minutes. Add the nutmeg, pepper, cheese, and season.
Useful tips for the sauce: heat the milk, pour it in small amounts and stir all the time, best of all with the whisk. Strain through a sieve.
 5) Pour the sauce over eggplants and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Bake at 175 dergees Celcius for 45 minutes.

Seafood Workout - Build up your Mussels

Relatively fast, and gives you freedom on what kind of seefood to choose. We used mussels, small prawns and garlic seasoned king prawns, and crab sticks. Four cups of stock is just fine, maybe even a little less, to make it creamy and well done. Don't forget to stir now and then!
And grilled prawns are just one perfect starter with your choice of wine!

Seafood Risotto With Prawn Skewers 

 

1/4 cup cunflower oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup arborio rice
7 tablespoons white wine
4 cups fish stock
300g mixed seafood of your choice
grated zest of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon shopped fresh parsley
salt and ground black pepper, if needed

1) Fry onion and garlic in oil until soft. Add the rice and stir to coat grains with oil. Add wine and cook over medium heat, stirring, until absorbed.
2) Add a ladleful of hot stock, and cook stirring until absorbed. You will need to repeat this until half stock is used up. Then add seafood and remaining stock, and cook covered until creamy and you are happy with rice condition.
3) Stir in lemon zest, tomato paste and parsley 2-5 minutes before the end of cooking time.

To cook prawns, first you will need to marinate them (raw) in olive+vegetable oil 50/50, dry breadcrumbs to cover, crushed garlic and chopped parsley, for about half an hour. Then thread prawns onto skewers and put under the grill or broiler, turning once or twice, until golden. Takes very little time.

Don't Chicken Out On This Dish - You'll Be Nuts About It!

Potato cakes made entirely by John ;) ..In terms of compatibility of these two dishes, if you ask me, they might be too individual tastes, which do not necessarily benefit each other. This would make me think of Circassian Chicken as a cold starter dish, although it is very good hot as well, just what do you garnish it with.. 

Circassian Chicken With Potato Cakes

400g chicken pieces - thighs best of all
2 onions, quartered
1 carrot, sliced
6 peppercorns
3 slices bread, crusts removed
2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 cups chopped walnuts
salt, ground black pepper and paprika

1) Place the chicken into a large pan with onions, carrot and peppercorns, add water to cover, bring to a boil and simmer uncovered until chicken is tender. Let it cool in the stock to keep it succulent. Remove any bones.
2) Tear up the bread and soak in 6 tablespoons stock. Transfer to blender with garlic and walnuts. Add 1 cup of stock and blend until smooth.
3) Over low heat, gradually add more stock stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over chicken pieces placed into oven dish. Sprinkle paprika and bake at 200 degrees Celcius just to warm through.

This is equally good cold as it is hot.

For Potato Cakes, you will need to mix 2 large baking potatoes with 50g feta cheese, some spring onion, chopped fresh dill, teaspoon lemon juice and some beaten egg (1 will be little too much). Season and form slightly flattened balls, pat with flour. Fry them over high heat in little olive oil, then drain on paper towels and serve!

Silence of the Lamb Meatballs

Greek name is Soudzoukakia. Here on this picture served with warm pitta bread and cacik which is almost identical to greek tzatziki. Really doesn't call for any side dish, but I would imagine, rice or mashed potatoes would go well. 

Greek Lamb Meatballs

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (fresh bread processed into small pieces)
2/3 cup milk
300g lamb mince
2 tablespoons grated onion
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
flour for dusting
olive oil
2 1/2 cups passata
1 teaspoon sugar
2 bay leaves
1 small omion, peeled
salt and ground black pepper

1) combine bread and milk, add lamb, grated onion, garlic, cumin and parsley. Season, and then form prolonged meatballs, like little fat sausages, about 2 inches long. Roll them in flour, and then fry in batches in olive oil, for about 8 minutes until evenly browned. Remove and place on paper towels to drain.
2) Put the passata, sugar, bay leaves and whole onion in a pan and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the sausages and cook for 10 more minutes. Serve garnished with chopped parsley.

For Cacik, finely chop small cucumber, generously layer it with salt in a colander and leave for about 20 minutes. Then wash in plenty of water and pat with paper towels. Combine 1 1/4 cups plain thick yoghurt with 3 crushed garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons fresh chopped mint and 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley or dill. Season with salt and pepper, and then stir in the cucumber. It wouldn't hurt to drizzle it with olive oil.

In the oven, warm up pitta bread brushed lightly with olive oil. Taste of Greece right there!

Lemony Chicken's - A series of delicious events!

Provided that this recipe calls for 20 cloves of garlic, I expected a very garlicky dish. However, the most standing out aroma and taste here is coming from lemon. Sauce is just perfect for mopping up with some fluffy bread.

Chicken with lemon and garlic (French version)

2 1/2 cups chicken stock
20 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 chicken thighs
1 lemon, peeled and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons flour
2/3 cups dry white wine
salt and ground black pepper

1) Simmer stock with garlic cloves for about 30-40 minutes. Cook chicken in oil and butter on all sides until golden, then transfer to overproof dish. Scatter garlic from the stock and lemon slices over the chicken. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius
2) Add flour to the fat in the pan and cook for about a minute. Gently stir in wine and then stock, and cook, stirring, until thickened and smooth. You can use potato masher to break any lumps. Season.
3) Pour sauce over chicken and bake for about 40-45 minutes. Check that chicken is not pink on the inside before you take it out of the oven.

Serve with rice or boiled new potatoes.

..But of Corsican, it's delicious ;)

Combination of spices makes it a rich hearty dish, suitable for cold evenings like these. Have a good red Cabernet Sauvignon by the side, it goes well despite white wine being used in the recipe, because of its fruitiness.

Corsican Beef Stew

30g canned porcini mushrooms
6 garlic cloves, cut into thin strips
400g stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
lardons or thick bacon, cut into thin strips
olive oil
1 large sliced onion
1 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste or passata
pinch of ground cinnamon
sprig of rosemary
1 bay leaf
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
pasta for 2 people
salt and ground black pepper

1) First you will need to insert lardons with garlic into each piece of meat by making little slits with a sharp knife. One strip of garlic, one strip of bacon per piece, push it into the meat.
2) Brown meat from both sides in batches, in heated oil, and set aside. Fry the onions until lightly brown, then crush remaining garlic into it and return meat to the pan.
3) Stir in white wine, tomato paste, cinnamon, mushrooms, bay leaf and rosemary, and season.
4) Bring to boil, cover and simmer, adding a little water if necessary (to cover meat and to stop it from burning), until tender. Took me about 40 minutes to an hour.
5) Serve with cooked pasta, either on the side, layered with Parmesan and gravy from meat, or mixed together.

Underrated Spinach

It's more to these pastries than just boring spinach. There's all kinds of odd ingredients that together make them what was described as "exquisite" by John. Figure out for yourselves.. Also, in the background, there is freshly baked bread and Pistou sauce dor dipping, coming originally from southern France.

Spinach Empanadillas 

 2 tablespoons raisins

olive oil

1 pack of spinach, makes about 120gr, chopped roughly

6 drained canned anchovies, chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/3 cup pine nutes, chopped as good as you can, but don't exhaust yourself

300gr puff pastry

1) Soak raisins in warm water for 10 minutes, then chop ans set aside. Also chop pine nutes.

2) In a large pan with little oil, simmer spinach, covered with lid, for about 2 minutes. Then turn up the heat and wait for any water to evaporate.

3) Add anchovies, garlic and season with salt and ground black pepper, if you like, but please bear in mind, that anchovies will bring salt anyway.

4) Remove from the heat, add raisins and nuts and cool.

5) To make the parcels, roll out the pastry 3mm thick, cut out circles about 7-10cm in diameter, and fill each with the spinach filling. Make sure you seal the edges, wetting your fingers with water if necessary.

6) Bake at 180 degrees Celcius on lightly greased baking sheet for about 15-20 minutes, until golden. Pastries can be brushed with egg yolk before baking, to give them that lovely golden shade. I, personally, use mixture of plain yoghurt (1 part) and water (2 parts) to brush with.

Now, for the Pistou.. You will need to finely chop, or better still, crush with mortar and pestle, 30gr basil leaves and 4 garlic cloves. Add 1/2 cup grated Parmesan to it, as well as grated zest of half a lemon. You will then need to gradually introduce about half a cup of olive oil, to mix it well together. Do not overdo oil, or it will float separately from your pistou.

Enjoy!!

Bean There, Done That..

This is a lamb casserole with flageolet beans. Served with saffron infused long-grain rice.

Lamb Casserole

olive oil

lamb fillet, about 400gr, cut into cubes

1 large onion, chopped

6 large garlic cloves

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 cup red wine or dry sherry

120gr flageolet or fava beans

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

salt and ground black pepper

1) Brown meat in olive oil and set aside

2) Cook onion until soft, then return meat into the pan

3) Add garlic cloves, bay leaf, paprika and wine. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until meat is tender, which will take depending on the cubes' size, between 1 and 2 hours.

4) Add beans 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Stir in the parsley just before serving.

Aubergine Parcels - the kind that RoyalMail wouldn't handle..

It is tricky to make those parcels "neat" as recipe requires, but if you are up for this vegetarian challenge, I can tell you, it only took 30 minutes at most for everything, starting with slicing aubergines to actually enjoying the cooked dish.
I am really glad we didn't cut on pine nuts. I imagine it would be entirely different dish without them. They only need short time in the oven to roast, and bring that sweetish taste and aroma that cannot be substituted.

2 large aubergines
8 ounces mozzarella
2 plum tomatoes
basil leaves
salt and ground plack pepper
2 tablespoons pine nuts (roasted in the oven, to top)
Dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sun-dried tomato paste
1 tablespoon lemon juice

1) Remove the stems off the aubergines, and cut the aubergines lengthwise, each aubergine into 8 thin slices, discarding the sides.
2) Bring a large pan of salted water to boil and cook aubergines for about 2 minutes. Drain and dry on paper towels.
3) Cut mozzarella and tomatoes to get 8 slices of each.
4) To assemble, place aubergine slices in a cross, putting tomato in the centre. Season with salt and pepper. Add mozzarella and basil leaf, and fold the ends of aubergines to make a neat parcel. Chill the parcels for 20 minutes.
5) Brush parcels with olive oil. Bake at 220 degrees centigrade or broil for about 5-7 minutes, then spoon over the dressing (all ingredients whisked together), and allow 5 more minutes in the oven.

Serve with pine nuts and torn basil leaves sprinkled over.

Adapted from 150 Mediterranean recipes by Jacqueline Clark and Joanna Farrow

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

What are you thinking when you read "Pumpkin Soup". I wasn't impressed either. But, apparently, it gives you boost of energy. Or, maybe, it was ginger in the recipe. Anyhow, it is one fragrant and spicy winter soup..

Ingredients:
2 pounds pumpkin, peeled and seeds removed
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, trimmed and sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 3/4 cups chicken stock
salt and ground black pepper
coriander leaves and plain greek youghurt, to garnish

1) Pumpkin needs to be peeled and cut into chunks. We used "munchkin" variety. Difficulty of peeling it was well rewarded by its rich nutty wintery taste.
2) Heat the oil in a large pan, add the leeks and garlic and cook until softened
3) Add the ginger and cumin and cook for another minute
4) Add pumpkin and chicken stock, season with salt and pepper. Bring to boil and simmer for 30 minutes or until pumpkin is tender.
5) Cool down and blend.

To serve, you want to heat it up and garnish with spoonful of yoghurt and coriander leaves.
Enjoy on a winter evening with a bread roll of you choice!

From the book "150 Mediterranean Recipes" by Jacqueline Clark & Joanna Farrow