Tuesday 30 November 2010

Beef and horseradish casserole with caraway dumplings


You will need
2 tablespoons oil
1kg diced braising steak
2 garlic cloves, crushed
300g pack shallots, peeled
250g smoked bacon, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1cm slices
15g pack fresh thyme, removed from the stem and chopped
2 beef stock cubes, made up with 750ml boiling water
350ml red wine



Method
1.Preheat the oven to 190°C, 170°C, fan gas 5. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in an ovenproof casserole and cook the steak for 8-10 minutes in batches until browned, then remove and put to one side.
2.Add the remaining oil, garlic, shallots, bacon, carrots and thyme and brown over a medium heat.
3.Stir in the stock and wine, return the beef to the dish then bring to the boil, cover and place in the preheated oven for 1½ hours.
4.For the caraway dumplings: Mix together the flour, suet and caraway seeds, add in the water to form a soft dough. Divide the mixture into 8 pieces and roll into balls.
5.Remove the casserole from the oven, add in the mushrooms, horseradish and dumplings then cook for a further 30 minutes.
Serve immediately sprinkled with freshly chopped parsley.

Friday 26 November 2010

Sage and onion stuffing


You will need
50g free from vegetable spread
1 tablespoon oil
1 large chopped onion


Method
Heat the vegetable spread and oil, and cook the onion until softened. Stir in the breadcrumbs, sage and seasoning.
Put in a baking dish and cook in a preheated oven at 180°C, fan 160ºC, gas 4 for around 40 minutes

Amazing roast potatoes

i get a lot of request for my perfect roast pots so here you are you lucky people enjoy

Peel and halve your spuds – for best results use varieties like Wilja, Maris Pieper or Kerr's Pink. Preheat some fat, either goose fat or vegetable oil in a large sturdy roasting pan to 220ºC, fan 200ºC, gas 7. Meanwhile, boil your spuds for 5 minutes. Strain and shake them about in the pan to roughen up the edges – not too vigorously or they’ll fall apart. Sprinkle over a tablespoon of dry semolina and shake again to coat the spuds really well. Then add the potatoes to the pan and cook for about an hour, check and toss them around in the oil occasionally.
you will need

Goose fat, (or vegetable oil)
Potatoes
Semolina

Thursday 4 November 2010

Lemon chicken with lime and coconut noodles


You will need
4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on
Juice and zest of 4 lemons
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
15g pack coriander
2 long red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
2 stalks lemon grass, finely chopped
2 teaspoons fish or soy sauce
25g fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and finely shredded
200ml coconut milk
4 spring onions, shredded
Zest and juice of 2 limes
100g beansprouts
250g rice or wheat noodles, cooked and drained
Chopped coriander to serve
Lime wedges to serve


Method
Cut slashes in each chicken breasts diagonally with a knife and place in a bowl. Add the lemon zest and juice and 2 tablespoons of the oil.
Chop the stems of the coriander finely and add to the chicken, save the leaves for garnish. Marinate for 20 minutes or overnight in the fridge.
For the noodles: Mix the chilli, lemon grass, fish sauce, ginger and garlic together. Add the remaining oil to form a paste.
Heat a frying pan and add the paste. Cook for one minute until softened, then add the coconut milk and cook for 10 minutes until thickened. Add the lime juice and zest to the coconut mix and heat slowly.
Preheat a barbecue or grill and cook the chicken for 15-20 minutes or until cooked, basting occasionally with the marinade. (Ensure the marinade is also cooked thoroughly). Once the chicken has cooked, remove from the heat and cut into strips. To serve, add the noodles to the sauce with the carrots, spring onions and beansprouts. Arrange the noodles on plates and top with the chicken.

Sausage & veg hot pot


You will need

1 x pack 8 large pork sausages
1 x 500g bunch of carrots
1 x 390g carton chopped tomatoes with basil & oregano
1 x 28g pack flat leaf parsley
1 x 500g pack pearl barley
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
1 vegetable stock cube


Method
Heat 1⁄2 tablespoon olive oil in a heatproof medium casserole dish and add the onion and the garlic. Fry for 2 minutes until softened, then add 200g pearl barley. Make up 1.2 litres hot vegetable stock using 1 stock cube and add 800ml to the pan. Reduce to a low heat and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan and fry the large pork sausages for 12–15 minutes until brown and cooked through.
Trim the carrots, removing the green tops, scrub clean and chop each one into 3 segments. Add to the pearl barley mixture along with the chopped tomatoes with basil & oregano and the remaining 400ml stock. Cook for 20 minutes or until the carrots and pearl barley are tender.
Cut the sausages in half and add to the pot with 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley. Stir to combine, garnish with a little extra parsley, then serve.