Blog

Category: Dessert

Area: British

Ingredients:

• 350g Flour
• 1 tsp Salt
• 2 tbs Sugar
• 1 cup Butter
• 1/2 cup Water
• 450g Rhubarb
• 450g Strawberries
• 3 tbs Cornstarch
• 150g Sugar
• 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Lemon Juice
• 2 tbs Unsalted Butter
• 2 tbs Milk
• Spinkling Sugar

Instructions:

Pie Crust: In a food processor, place the flour, salt, and sugar and process until combined. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse

meal (about 15 seconds). Pour 1/4 cup (60 ml) water in a slow, steady stream, through the feed tube until the dough just holds together when pinched. If necessary, add more water. Do not process more than 30 seconds.
Turn the dough onto your work surface and gather into a ball. Divide the dough in half, flattening each half into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about one hour before using. This will chill the butter and relax the gluten in the flour.

After the dough has chilled sufficiently, remove one portion of the dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry into a 12 inch (30 cm) circle. (To prevent the pastry from sticking to the counter and to ensure uniform thickness, keep lifting up and turning the pastry a quarter turn as you roll (always roll from the center of the pastry outwards).) Fold the dough in half and gently transfer to a 9 inch (23 cm) pie pan. Brush off any excess flour and trim any overhanging pastry to an edge of 1/2 inch (1.5 cm). Refrigerate the pastry, covered with plastic wrap, while you make the filling.

Remove the second round of pastry and roll it into a 13 inch (30 cm) circle. Using a pastry wheel or pizza cutter, cut the pastry into about 3/4 inch (2 cm) strips. Place the strips of pastry on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes.

Make the Strawberry Rhubarb Filling: Place the cut strawberries and rhubarb in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix together the cornstarch, sugar, and ground cinnamon.

Remove the chilled pie crust from the fridge. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the sugar mixture over the bottom of the pastry crust. Add the remaining sugar mixture to the strawberries and rhubarb and gently toss to combine. Pour the fruit mixture into the prepared pie shell. Sprinkle the fruit with about 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and dot with 2 tablespoons of butter.

Remove the lattice pastry from the refrigerator and, starting at the center with the longest strips and working outwards, place half the strips, spacing about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, on top of the filling. (Use the shortest pastry strips at the outer edges.) Then, gently fold back, about halfway, every other strip of pastry. Take another strip of pastry and place it perpendicular on top of the first strips of pastry. Unfold the bottom strips of pastry and then fold back the strips that weren't folded back the first time. Lay another strip of pastry perpendicular on top of the filling and then continue with the remaining strips. Trim the edges of the pastry strips, leaving a 1 inch (2.5 cm) overhang. Seal the edges of the pastry strips by folding them under the bottom pastry crust and flute the edges of the pastry. Brush the lattice pastry with milk and sprinkle with a little sugar. Cover and place in the refrigerator while you preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Put a baking sheet, lined with aluminum foil, on the oven rack (to catch any spills.)

Place the pie plate on the hot baking sheet and bake the pie for about 35 minutes and then, if the edges of the pie are browning too much, cover with a foil ring. Continue to bake the pie for about another 10 minutes or until the crust is a golden brown color and the fruit juices begin to bubble.

Remove the pie from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for several hours. Serve at room temperature with softly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for about 3 days. Reheat before serving. This pie can be frozen.

Makes one 9 inch (23 cm) pie.

Category: Chicken

Area: French

Ingredients:

• 1.5kg Chicken
• 25g Butter
• 6 tblsp Olive Oil
• 2 sliced Red Onions
• 3 Large Red Pepper
• 130g Chorizo
• 8 Sun-Dried Tomatoes
• 6 cloves sliced Garlic
• 300g Basmati Rice
• drizzle Tomato Puree
• ½ tsp Paprika
• 4 Bay Leaves
• Handful Thyme
• 350ml Chicken Stock
• 180g Dry White Wine
• 2 Lemons
• 100g Black Olives
• to serve Salt
• to serve Pepper

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4. Have the chicken joints ready to cook. Heat the butter and 3 tbsp olive oil in a flameproof casserole or large frying pan. Brown the chicken pieces in batches on both sides, seasoning them with salt and pepper as you go. Don't crowd the pan – fry the chicken in small batches, removing the pieces to kitchen paper as they are done.

Add a little more olive oil to the casserole and fry the onions over a medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned. Add the rest of the oil, then the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the chorizo, sun-dried tomatoes and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the rice, stirring to ensure it is well coated in the oil. Stir in the tomato paste, paprika, bay leaves and chopped thyme. Pour in the stock and wine. When the liquid starts to bubble, turn the heat down to a gentle simmer. Press the rice down into the liquid if it isn't already submerged and place the chicken on top. Add the lemon wedges and olives around the chicken.

Cover and cook in the oven for 50 minutes. The rice should be cooked but still have some bite, and the chicken should have juices that run clear when pierced in the thickest part with a knife. If not, cook for another 5 minutes and check again.

Category: Dessert

Area: British

Ingredients:

• 225g Self-raising Flour
• 75g Caster Sugar
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 125g Butter
• 150g Dried Fruit
• 1 Eggs
• 1 tbs Milk
• 2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and line a baking tray with baking parchment.
Mix the flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl and rub in the cubed butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs, then mix in the dried fruit.
In a clean bowl, beat the egg and milk together with the vanilla extract.
Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until the mixture just comes together as a thick, lumpy dough. Add a teaspoon more milk if you really need it to make the mixture stick together.
Place golfball-sized spoons of the mixture onto the prepared baking tray. Leave space between them as they will flatten and spread out to double their size during baking.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden-brown. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for a couple of minutes then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool.

Category: Beef

Area: Croatian

Ingredients:

• 500g Minced Beef
• 250g Minced Pork
• 1 Onion
• 4 cloves Garlic
• 3 tblsp chopped Parsley
• 1 tbs Paprika
• 3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 2 tbs Breadcrumbs
• 3 tbs Water
• 1 Vegetable Stock Cube
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper

Instructions:

Place the ground meat in a bowl. Chop the onion very finely and grate the garlic cloves. Add to the bowl. Add the chopped parsley, all sorts of paprika, baking soda, dried breadcrumbs, water, Vegeta, salt, and pepper.
Mix well with the hand mixer fitted with the dough hooks. Cover the bowl with cling film/ plastic foil and leave to rest for 1 or 2 hours in the refrigerator.
Take portions of the meat mixture, about 50-55 g/ 1.7-1.9 oz/ ¼ cup portions, and form the cevapi. The rolls should be about as thick as your thumb and about 7-10 cm/ 3-4 inches long. I had 18 sausages. The recipe can be easily doubled.
Grill the cevapcici on the hot grill pan or on the barbecue for about 12-14 minutes, turning them several times in between, or until brown and cooked through. I checked by cutting one in the middle and then grilling the following batches for the same period of time.
Serve hot as suggested above. The cevapcici can be reheated in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius/ 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes or until heated through. Check one, if it is not hot enough, give the sausages a few more minutes.

Category: Beef

Area: French

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs Canola Oil
• 4 Beef Fillet
• 1 1/2 cup Beef Stock
• 2 tbs Butter
• 2 cloves minced Garlic
• 1 medium finely diced Challots
• 4 oz Mushrooms
• ¼ cup Brandy
• ¼ cup Heavy Cream
• 1 tbs Dijon Mustard
• 1 tbs Worcestershire Sauce
• Dash Tabasco Sauce
• 1 tbs minced Parsley
• 1 tbs minced Chives
• to taste Salt
• to taste Pepper

Instructions:

Heat oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Season steaks with salt and pepper, and add to skillet; cook, turning once, until browned on both sides and cooked to desired doneness, about 4 to 5 minutes for medium-rare. Transfer steaks to a plate, and set aside.
Return skillet to high heat, and add stock; cook until reduced until to 1⁄2 cup, about 10 minutes. Pour into a bowl, and set aside. Return skillet to heat, and add butter; add garlic and shallots, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms, and cook, stirring, until they release any liquid and it evaporates and mushrooms begin to brown, about 2 minutes. Add cognac, and light with a match to flambée; cook until flame dies down. Stir in reserved stock, cream, Dijon, Worcestershire, and hot sauce, and then return steaks to skillet; cook, turning in sauce, until warmed through and sauce is thickened, about 4 minutes. Transfer steak to serving plates and stir parsley and chives into sauce; pour sauce over steaks to serve.

Category: Chicken

Area: Polish

Ingredients:

• 4 Chopped Chicken Legs
• 2 large Onions
• 5 chopped Carrots
• 1 chopped Leek
• 1 small Celery
• 1/4 Cabbage
• 1 whole Cloves
• 1tsp Allspice
• 2 Bay Leaf
• 4 sprigs Parsley
• 4 sprigs Dill
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 1 tbs Salt

Instructions:

Add chicken to a large Dutch oven or stock pot
Cover with water
Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, skimming any impurities off the top to insure a clear broth
If your pot is big enough, add the vegetables and spices for the last hour of the cooking time
My Dutch oven wasn’t big enough to hold everything, just the chicken and other bones filled the pot, so I cooked the meat/bones for the full cooking time, then removed them, and cooked the vegetables and spices separately
Strain everything out of the broth
Bone the chicken, pulling the meat into large chunks
Slice the carrots
Return the chicken and carrots to the broth
Cook noodles according to package instructions if you’re using them
Add noodles to bowl and then top with hot soup

Category: Vegetarian

Area: American

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 6 small Egg Plants
• ½ tablespoon Harissa
• 1 can Chickpeas
• 2 cups halved Cherry Tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon Ground cumin
• ½ cup Parsley

Instructions:

Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat until shimmering. Add the eggplants and lower the heat to medium. Season with salt and pepper as you rotate the eggplants, browning them on all sides. Continue to cook, turning regularly, until a fork inserted into the eggplant meets no resistance (you may have to stand them up on their fat end to finish cooking the thickest parts), about 20 minutes, lowering the heat and sprinkling water into the pan as necessary if the eggplants threaten to burn or smoke excessively.

2.
Mix the harissa, chickpeas and tomatoes together, then add to the eggplants. Cook until the tomatoes have blistered and broken down, about 5 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper and add water as necessary to thin to a saucy consistency. Meanwhile, combine the yogurt and cumin in a serving bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

3.
Top the eggplant mixture with the parsley, drizzle with more extra virgin olive oil, and serve with the yogurt on the side.

Category: Beef

Area: Canadian

Ingredients:

• 4 cups Potatoes
• 60ml Butter
• ½ cup Milk
• 450g Minced Beef
• 1 finely chopped Onion
• 500ml Creamed Corn
• to taste Paprika
• to taste Parsley
• Dash Salt
• Dash Pepper

Instructions:

In a large pot of salted water, cook the potatoes until they are very tender. Drain.
With a masher, coarsely crush the potatoes with at least 30 ml (2 tablespoons) of butter. With an electric mixer, purée with the milk. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 190 °C (375 °F).
In a large skillet, brown the onion in the remaining butter. Add the meat and cook until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.
Lightly press the meat at the bottom of a 20-cm (8-inch) square baking dish. Cover with the corn and the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with paprika and parsley.
Bake for about 30 minutes. Finish cooking under the broiler. Let cool for 10 minutes.

Category: Beef

Area: British

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs Vegetable Oil
• 500g Minced Beef
• 1 chopped Onion
• 1 tbls Tomato Puree
• 1 ½ tbsp Plain Flour
• 75g Mushrooms
• 250ml Beef Stock
• Dash Worcestershire Sauce
• 400g Shortcrust Pastry
• 1 Egg Yolks

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan and fry the beef mince for 4-5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it browns.
Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, then stir in the tomato purée and cook for 2-3 more minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for a further minute, then add the chopped mushrooms, the stout or beef stock and a couple of dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid and leave to simmer for 20 minutes. Set aside and leave to cool, then turn the meat mixture into a one litre pie dish.
Roll out the pastry on a floured work surface until it is slightly larger than the pie dish. Gently drape the pastry over the dish, pressing firmly onto the edges. Trim, then shape the edges into a fluted shape.
Cut some leaf shapes out of the pastry trimmings and decorate the top of the pie, sticking them to the pastry with the beaten egg yolk.
Make three or four slits in the pastry to allow the steam to escape, then brush the pie with the rest of the beaten egg yolk and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden-brown.
To serve, slice into wedges.