I had intended making one of the two Chinese-style recipes today, as part of my quest to expand my repetoire, but alas, I have been thwarted in my efforts. As I mentioned in the original 'planning' post, making those two Chinese dishes depended on being able to track down the necessary ingredients in Newcastle's Chinatown. Well, I found Chinatown, and the big Chinese supermarket which I'd hoped would have everything I needed (actually I got a little lost finding said supermarket which is really quite sad because central Newcastle just isn't that big. But I found it in the end, so that's really all that matters, isn't it?!) The supermarket itself was brilliant...I had such a moment of homesickness as I walked in (weird, perhaps, but there was this gigantic Asian supermarket in Christchurch at which I was a regular shopper, so that very distinct smell of Asian grocers - a combination of star anise, cinnamon, chilli and assorted undefined but generally pleasant food aromas - reminds me strongly of home). Despite the joy of finally finding somewhere to buy proper egg noodles, miso paste and kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), I wasn't able to get black rice vinegar or schzechuan peppercorns, both of which are key in the recipes I wanted to make. These seem fairly standard Chinese ingredients to me, so it's possible that the shop was just out. I will definitely try again.
Today isn't a total loss though. Since my free-range chicken was no longer going to be portioned and stir-fried, I thought I'd maybe just roast it. Instead, though, I am being brave and have attempted a slight variation...pot-roasted chicken with wine and bacon (British out-door reared and dry-smoked, of course) and I'm serving it with pommes boulangere and a salad of watercress, rocket, spinach and grana pandano cheese. Rather posh sounding, no?! I'm feeling very gastro-pub tonight! It's not precisely a departure from roast chicken, but it feels different enough to be fun and novel enough to count as a new recipe. Not sure yet how it will turn out (oh how I hope it's better than the chocolate pork!), but it smells damn good bubbling away in the oven.
Tomorrow I will be making the spiced parnsip soup (of which I have high hopes) and I'll let you know how the chook went. Hope your Saturdays have been delicious and restful!
Saturday 30 January 2010
Thursday 28 January 2010
New recipe #1
So today was 'Mole' Day in down-town Darlington. The first of my new recipe attempts for the week was the Pulled Pork with Mexican Almond Mole served with homemade corn tortillas and avocado and radish salsa. Sounds like something off a fancy Mexican restaurant menu, and rather delish, right?
Basically you slow cook pork shoulder (outdoor reared and Freedom Foods endorsed, naturally!) in (homemade) stock, orange juice and cinnamon, then add to the shredded pork and cooking juices this mole sauce (which, by the way, will smell more like mulled wine at Christmas than it will a meaty Mexican casserole). The mole sauce is made by dry frying onion and garlic, then blistering some cherry tomatoes, frying some flaked almonds, coriander and cumin and sultanas and throwing in a fried corn tortilla. Then you blitz that with some chipotle chillis and that's it. You warm it all together and serve. Oh, and you add some chopped dark chocolate before you blitz the mole sauce.
Result? Well..,it was a bit weird. Not at all inedible, but ever-so slightly weird. It smelt more like nutty chocolate cake than a meat-based chilli mixture, which was a bit off-putting but it was fine. I added a small can of red kidney beans to the mole too - I liked the added texture and I'm all in favour of using more pulses...makes meat go further and adds protein and fibre, so that's a win win. Um, I don't know really. It was an awful lot more faffing about than I'd usually bother with, and I'm not convinced the results were worth it. Perhaps it'll be fantastic tomorrow after the flavours develop a bit more? I think it'll be much nicer on rice with a big blob of sour cream on top, rather than served buritto style. Good to have tried though. And, as suspected, I got a look of unwavering horror from the boy when he was told there was chocolate in the dish (horror followed by a minute or so of muttering under his breath about the sanity of people who put chocolate in meat dishes. Hehe!)
The homemade corn tortillas, on the other hand, are very easy. The hardest part will be getting hold of masa harina (corn flour) to make them. This is proper ground maize designed for Mexican cooking - don't use polenta or cornmeal or the white powdered stuff they sell as corn flour. You need masa harina. I can get this in my local supermarket in the "ethnic" food section (honestly, 'ethnic'?? I loathe that term in almost every usage, but that's another rant for another day). If I can get it in the Darlington supermarket, I'm confident you'll have no trouble elsewhere.
Basically you just mix 250g masa harina with 330ml of warm water. You leave it to rest 15 mins and then knead into a ball before breaking bits off, rolling out and frying. I also added a healthy tsp of salt this time. I've made them once before without salt (since no recipe I've found calls for it) and they were sooo bland and in desperate need of a salty kick in the pants! The dough is funny feeling...really springy and hollow (that sounds odd, but if you make them, I'm sure you'll agree!) The rolling out process is the trickiest part and if you're a regular maker, you can apparently buy a tortilla press to quickly do this for you. Clearly that's not something most people will have, and nor do I. After a bit of experimentation, I've decided this is the best way to do it, sans tortilla press: cut open a large freezer bag, roll a lychee-sized piece of dough into a ball then press flat and place in between the plastic and roll with a rolling pin. Turn a 1/4 turn after each roll and you'll get a much more circular shape. You want them about 1-2mm thick. Then you very carefully peel the plastic back and dry-fry in a hot pan on both sides until sealed. Warm slightly to eat and you're away laughing.
If you prefer a crispy taco (which, according to my web-research is something unheard of in Mexico, but hey - I like 'em!) then you can shallow fry them in a couple of tbsp hot oil once you've cooked them. You can chop them into wedges and make chips the same way. I suspect that you could bake them in the oven to achieve a crispy tortilla too, but I haven't yet verified this suspicion...
So. Not a failure, but not a resounding victory either. Plus I have loads of mole leftover so I suspect we'll be eating this uninspired dish for quite a few days yet...score! :-P
Basically you slow cook pork shoulder (outdoor reared and Freedom Foods endorsed, naturally!) in (homemade) stock, orange juice and cinnamon, then add to the shredded pork and cooking juices this mole sauce (which, by the way, will smell more like mulled wine at Christmas than it will a meaty Mexican casserole). The mole sauce is made by dry frying onion and garlic, then blistering some cherry tomatoes, frying some flaked almonds, coriander and cumin and sultanas and throwing in a fried corn tortilla. Then you blitz that with some chipotle chillis and that's it. You warm it all together and serve. Oh, and you add some chopped dark chocolate before you blitz the mole sauce.
Result? Well..,it was a bit weird. Not at all inedible, but ever-so slightly weird. It smelt more like nutty chocolate cake than a meat-based chilli mixture, which was a bit off-putting but it was fine. I added a small can of red kidney beans to the mole too - I liked the added texture and I'm all in favour of using more pulses...makes meat go further and adds protein and fibre, so that's a win win. Um, I don't know really. It was an awful lot more faffing about than I'd usually bother with, and I'm not convinced the results were worth it. Perhaps it'll be fantastic tomorrow after the flavours develop a bit more? I think it'll be much nicer on rice with a big blob of sour cream on top, rather than served buritto style. Good to have tried though. And, as suspected, I got a look of unwavering horror from the boy when he was told there was chocolate in the dish (horror followed by a minute or so of muttering under his breath about the sanity of people who put chocolate in meat dishes. Hehe!)
The homemade corn tortillas, on the other hand, are very easy. The hardest part will be getting hold of masa harina (corn flour) to make them. This is proper ground maize designed for Mexican cooking - don't use polenta or cornmeal or the white powdered stuff they sell as corn flour. You need masa harina. I can get this in my local supermarket in the "ethnic" food section (honestly, 'ethnic'?? I loathe that term in almost every usage, but that's another rant for another day). If I can get it in the Darlington supermarket, I'm confident you'll have no trouble elsewhere.
Basically you just mix 250g masa harina with 330ml of warm water. You leave it to rest 15 mins and then knead into a ball before breaking bits off, rolling out and frying. I also added a healthy tsp of salt this time. I've made them once before without salt (since no recipe I've found calls for it) and they were sooo bland and in desperate need of a salty kick in the pants! The dough is funny feeling...really springy and hollow (that sounds odd, but if you make them, I'm sure you'll agree!) The rolling out process is the trickiest part and if you're a regular maker, you can apparently buy a tortilla press to quickly do this for you. Clearly that's not something most people will have, and nor do I. After a bit of experimentation, I've decided this is the best way to do it, sans tortilla press: cut open a large freezer bag, roll a lychee-sized piece of dough into a ball then press flat and place in between the plastic and roll with a rolling pin. Turn a 1/4 turn after each roll and you'll get a much more circular shape. You want them about 1-2mm thick. Then you very carefully peel the plastic back and dry-fry in a hot pan on both sides until sealed. Warm slightly to eat and you're away laughing.
If you prefer a crispy taco (which, according to my web-research is something unheard of in Mexico, but hey - I like 'em!) then you can shallow fry them in a couple of tbsp hot oil once you've cooked them. You can chop them into wedges and make chips the same way. I suspect that you could bake them in the oven to achieve a crispy tortilla too, but I haven't yet verified this suspicion...
So. Not a failure, but not a resounding victory either. Plus I have loads of mole leftover so I suspect we'll be eating this uninspired dish for quite a few days yet...score! :-P
Wednesday 27 January 2010
Food magazine overload
I'm doing a wee bit of tidying today (a very wee bit, and under duress) and I've come across my stash of food magazines. I'm not regular buyer of mags, but I do indulge now and then - lured by their shine and glitz and pretty pictures of mouthwatering creations. However, much like I'm sure many others, I seldom actually make anything from the magazines. So, since it is grocery day and I can actually get the ingredients required for some of these dishes, I have resolved that this week I will make 3 recipes from a bunch of mags and report here on the results. I'm very easily found in a food funk...it's so easy to rely on the dinner standards which you know will taste good and you know how long they will take to prepare. But I really need to be braver and risk the odd failure - maybe I'll find a new favourite to add to the repetoire, right?! (and if they are all awful, well, at the very least they will make for some amusing anecdotes!)
So, the contenders this week are:
From 'Good Food', Jan 2010
Pulled pork with Mexican almond mole sauce (I love Mexican flavours and often make basics like fajitas, tacos, burittos etc, but have never made something as elaborate as a mole. I will also be making home made corn tortillas to go with said pork mole. Andrew will flip when he finds out there is chocolate in a savoury sauce! hehe)
From 'Good Food', Nov 2009
Spiced parsnip soup (because I need to make soup for my lunches in London, and although I'm a big fan of sweet potato and pumpkin soups, I've never actually made parnsip soup. Should be good, no?)
From 'delicious.', Feb 2010
Two options, both from a 'learn Chinese' section...the making of these will depend on me finding the Chinese supermarket in Chinatown in Newcastle on Friday as I need certain spices and ingredients that I know for a fact will not be stocked in my local Sainsburys!
Winter brocolli and mixed mushrooms in garlic black bean sauce
Sweet spiced chicken and cashew nuts
Stay tuned...I'll post after the making and let you know how it goes...dum, dum, duuum....
So, the contenders this week are:
From 'Good Food', Jan 2010
Pulled pork with Mexican almond mole sauce (I love Mexican flavours and often make basics like fajitas, tacos, burittos etc, but have never made something as elaborate as a mole. I will also be making home made corn tortillas to go with said pork mole. Andrew will flip when he finds out there is chocolate in a savoury sauce! hehe)
From 'Good Food', Nov 2009
Spiced parsnip soup (because I need to make soup for my lunches in London, and although I'm a big fan of sweet potato and pumpkin soups, I've never actually made parnsip soup. Should be good, no?)
From 'delicious.', Feb 2010
Two options, both from a 'learn Chinese' section...the making of these will depend on me finding the Chinese supermarket in Chinatown in Newcastle on Friday as I need certain spices and ingredients that I know for a fact will not be stocked in my local Sainsburys!
Winter brocolli and mixed mushrooms in garlic black bean sauce
Sweet spiced chicken and cashew nuts
Stay tuned...I'll post after the making and let you know how it goes...dum, dum, duuum....
Monday 25 January 2010
Sunday pottering
I haven't done anything particularly interesting in the kitchen lately. It seems like all my posts start with something like that...I really must become more inventive...
Anyway, the reason for it this time has been a crazy work week and then a weekend of exhaustion which culminated in the getting of a bloody cold. Grr. I hate feeling poorly - unless it's a full-blown flu or properly debilitating chest infection or something, it just feels like such a waste of energy to feel less than great.
So, anyway, I finally finished all my immediate work requirements on Saturday night and yesterday (feeling that I had earned the right to be a sloth) I lay about the house in my track-pants, watching many episodes of Gilmore Girls, reading trashy novels (Charlaine Harris) and occasionally getting up to do a few things in the kitchen. Though nothing I made was terribly exciting, it did all turn out quite well. I made cream of chicken and corn soup with the stock I'd made on Friday night with the free-range chook which needed to be used (making stock was just what I felt like doing after teaching 6 hours in Newcastle and then doing several hours of annoying admin which meant I didn't get home until 7pm...I'd left home at 7am. This might be normal commuter practice, but I'm not used to it, so I don't enjoy!) I'd also made a batch of fresh white bread to go with the soup for lunch - I used the microwave to speed up the rising process so we had fresh bread in 2 hours from start to finish...not bad! Then I decided to bake. You remember a while back I made earl grey tea biscuits? That had been during the whole oven-saga, so the first attempt were nice but rather singed. I knew they had potential though, so I wanted to give them another shot. This time I went for a more shortbread styled approach and this is what I did:
Creamed 1/2 c butter with 1/4 c sugar and 1/4 c icing sugar. Then I added 2 teabags worth of earl grey, pinch of salt and some flour. Now, the recipe I'd found used 1 c of normal flour. I decided to try 3/4 c flour and 1/4 c cornflour...somewhere in the back of my mind I had a feeling that cornflour is often used in shortbread to give that characteristic crunch. Anyway, blended together, rolled into log, chilled and then sliced and baked at 175degC for about 13 mins. They've come out very nicely too, I think! Different to the last lot - sort of crumbly and crispy like shortbread but with a slight chew thing going on. Definitely a keeper.
After that I made chocolate chip cookies (which are ok, but for some reason the mixture was a lot softer than usual...they haven't held their shape very well. Doesn't matter - the lad will gobble them up I'm sure!) and a pie for dinner. The pie was a thing of beauty, and I have a feeling it tasted good, but by that point in the day my nose had become entirely blocked, so it tasted like very little to me. Sad.
So that was my Sunday. Nothing revolutionary, but quite a bit of time spent in the kitchen. Nice to have a chance to just potter about...I forget how much I enjoy doing that! And the upside is that, as I head off down to London this morning, I have leftover soup with fresh bread for my lunch and a baggie full of yummy biscuits to snack on.
Cough, cough, hack, splutter, sniff.
Anyway, the reason for it this time has been a crazy work week and then a weekend of exhaustion which culminated in the getting of a bloody cold. Grr. I hate feeling poorly - unless it's a full-blown flu or properly debilitating chest infection or something, it just feels like such a waste of energy to feel less than great.
So, anyway, I finally finished all my immediate work requirements on Saturday night and yesterday (feeling that I had earned the right to be a sloth) I lay about the house in my track-pants, watching many episodes of Gilmore Girls, reading trashy novels (Charlaine Harris) and occasionally getting up to do a few things in the kitchen. Though nothing I made was terribly exciting, it did all turn out quite well. I made cream of chicken and corn soup with the stock I'd made on Friday night with the free-range chook which needed to be used (making stock was just what I felt like doing after teaching 6 hours in Newcastle and then doing several hours of annoying admin which meant I didn't get home until 7pm...I'd left home at 7am. This might be normal commuter practice, but I'm not used to it, so I don't enjoy!) I'd also made a batch of fresh white bread to go with the soup for lunch - I used the microwave to speed up the rising process so we had fresh bread in 2 hours from start to finish...not bad! Then I decided to bake. You remember a while back I made earl grey tea biscuits? That had been during the whole oven-saga, so the first attempt were nice but rather singed. I knew they had potential though, so I wanted to give them another shot. This time I went for a more shortbread styled approach and this is what I did:
Creamed 1/2 c butter with 1/4 c sugar and 1/4 c icing sugar. Then I added 2 teabags worth of earl grey, pinch of salt and some flour. Now, the recipe I'd found used 1 c of normal flour. I decided to try 3/4 c flour and 1/4 c cornflour...somewhere in the back of my mind I had a feeling that cornflour is often used in shortbread to give that characteristic crunch. Anyway, blended together, rolled into log, chilled and then sliced and baked at 175degC for about 13 mins. They've come out very nicely too, I think! Different to the last lot - sort of crumbly and crispy like shortbread but with a slight chew thing going on. Definitely a keeper.
After that I made chocolate chip cookies (which are ok, but for some reason the mixture was a lot softer than usual...they haven't held their shape very well. Doesn't matter - the lad will gobble them up I'm sure!) and a pie for dinner. The pie was a thing of beauty, and I have a feeling it tasted good, but by that point in the day my nose had become entirely blocked, so it tasted like very little to me. Sad.
So that was my Sunday. Nothing revolutionary, but quite a bit of time spent in the kitchen. Nice to have a chance to just potter about...I forget how much I enjoy doing that! And the upside is that, as I head off down to London this morning, I have leftover soup with fresh bread for my lunch and a baggie full of yummy biscuits to snack on.
Cough, cough, hack, splutter, sniff.
Saturday 16 January 2010
Behold! In all their gorgeous glory...
I promised a pic, so here 'tis...the new objects of kitchen glory! Aren't they pretty?
As much as I'd love to have spent the day playing in the kitchen today (it was the perfect day for it - sleet, snow, rain, hail, howling winds and now fog. Truly a remarkable winter weather selection), sadly I have been prevented from doing so because of the seemingly endless pile of essays I'm meant to be marking at the moment. I'm already late getting them back (gee, how unlike me to be running behind on my work) and they really do need to be finished, so I'm attempting to be strong and have a proper work ethic. Unfortunately every time I sit down to mark, determination renewed, I feel an overwhelming sadness and frustration settle over me. God these papers are awful. I mean truly, deeply, painfully awful. I'd rather drive rusty nails into my eyes than continue marking them (and actually, it would bring a similar overall effect). They make me want to yell and scream and throw things (if I'm honest, I have done all three on many occasions over the past week or so!) and there are just so damn many of them. UGH. In addition to the mental frustration, the essays are also making me crave - nay, need - an excessive number of caffeinated beverages, candy and chocolate, icecream (yes, it's mad to want icecream when it's zero outside, but I've recently rediscovered the joy of the icecream sandwich and to hell with the weather!) and crisps. Bye bye New Year's resolution of eating less crap. Damn you 2nd year media studies students...your complete inability to construct proper sentences and apply yourself with some modicum of critical awareness has thrown me off the junk food wagon and prevented me from playing in the kitchen!!!
Ok. Rant over.
For now.
Actually, I have sort-of cooked, although it was pretty half-hearted. Andrew is currently nursing a touch of the man-flu, so I made chicken soup in the big Le Creuset. I did read somewhere that there are actually healing properties in chicken soup...not sure if that's true or not, but it is lovely and soothing when you're poorly. Personally I like chicken noodle soup with plenty of garlic, ginger and chilli - clears your head like nothing else! What's your sick-food of choice?
Thursday 14 January 2010
Beans, beans, they're good for your heart. The more you eat, the more you...
It's cold. Really cold. Week 4 of the ice and snow continues and the instinct to hibernate is a strong one in such conditions! Eating warming delicious food is really all I feel like doing at the moment (great for the waist-line, I know) so it's been 'stew-city' here lately. Last night I wanted to do something with beans - homemade baked beans. The humble baked bean in its bright bluey-green tin (you know which brand I'm talking about here) is such a ubiquitous part of contemporary life (especially here. There's a whole section of the supermarket dedicated to tinned baked beans...beans in more varieties and brands than you can imagine. You even get baked beans as a side dish at KFC - if you are the sort of person who goes to KFC. I'm not, but I live across the street from one, so I just know this), that we tend to forget that baked beans are actually a proper, hearty, delicious meal.
What I did...
Sauted some chopped onion and garlic in my gorgeous new casserole dish. Threw in a chopped cooking apple (and half a red and yellow pepper...purely because they were looking sad in my empty fridge, but actually they worked well!) and then a sprinkling of ground cumin. Added a tin of tomatoes, a can of haricot beans and then my special sauce: 1 heaped tsp of cornflour, 4 heaped tsp of brown sugar (I'm guessing here at quantities...it was about that much I think), about a tablespoon of soy and the same of red wine vinegar. This thickened the sauce and made it wonderfully tart and spicy. Then I brought it up to a simmer and bunged it in the oven at 170ish for about 2 and a half hours (it would have been ready sooner, but I left it cooking while we went to do the groceries. Lovely to come home to dinner already cooked!). Oh, I also threw in a packet of free-range pork sausages, but you could add bacon if you wanted, or pork belly. Or you could leave it vege. Before serving I stirred through half a packet of baby spinach (my nod to green vege) and then served it on rice. Yum.
Tonight the leftover rice will become Jess's special chicken and brown rice (which is actually just chicken fried rice, but I marinate the chicken in soy, ginger, brown sugar, sherry, garlic and sesame oil and then add the leftover marinade to the rice when cooking...hence, 'chicken and brown rice'. It's what my lad has always called it...).
What I did...
Sauted some chopped onion and garlic in my gorgeous new casserole dish. Threw in a chopped cooking apple (and half a red and yellow pepper...purely because they were looking sad in my empty fridge, but actually they worked well!) and then a sprinkling of ground cumin. Added a tin of tomatoes, a can of haricot beans and then my special sauce: 1 heaped tsp of cornflour, 4 heaped tsp of brown sugar (I'm guessing here at quantities...it was about that much I think), about a tablespoon of soy and the same of red wine vinegar. This thickened the sauce and made it wonderfully tart and spicy. Then I brought it up to a simmer and bunged it in the oven at 170ish for about 2 and a half hours (it would have been ready sooner, but I left it cooking while we went to do the groceries. Lovely to come home to dinner already cooked!). Oh, I also threw in a packet of free-range pork sausages, but you could add bacon if you wanted, or pork belly. Or you could leave it vege. Before serving I stirred through half a packet of baby spinach (my nod to green vege) and then served it on rice. Yum.
Tonight the leftover rice will become Jess's special chicken and brown rice (which is actually just chicken fried rice, but I marinate the chicken in soy, ginger, brown sugar, sherry, garlic and sesame oil and then add the leftover marinade to the rice when cooking...hence, 'chicken and brown rice'. It's what my lad has always called it...).
Monday 11 January 2010
Snowballs and Meatballs
Happy New Year! One of my many vague resolutions was to become a better blogger...it's now day 11 of the new year and this is my first post, so I think we can safely say that has been broken! Good intentions and all that...
I have been meaning to post because I wanted to rave about my fabulous Christmas present from my lovely man...he got me Le Creuset stuff!!! I'm SO excited - I am now the (very) proud owner of a gorgeous medium sized turquoise blue cast-iron Le Creuset casserole dish, a similarly blue large pot and a matching ceramic utensil holder. It's all so beautiful and fancy - I get all enthused just talking about it! They look so stunning in the kitchen too...the kitchen being black, silver and wood - a splash of teal blue has brightened things up no end! I've never really had a lot of fancy kitchen stuff - I don't have bad things, but I've only ever lusted after cookware like Le Creuset. Best Christmas present ever!
Anyway, the combination of my gorgeous gift and the horrendous weather (seriously, it's now week 3 of snow. The novelty has well and truly worn off, let me tell you! Although it was our first ever White Christmas, so that was exciting. But again, that was week 1 of the snow...) has really meant that the food on our menu has been warming, stodgy stews, casseroles, soups and similar creations. Nothing I've made has been particularly revolutionary, but I have just finished writing up a couple of recipes for a friend who requested them, so I thought I'd share them with the wider web world too. So, on the menu this week - Jess's Meatballs and Beef Casserole.
Jess’s Meatballs
(as much as she can remember what she put into the last lot, that is!)
Ingredients:
Equal quantities pork and beef mince (I use about 250g of each – that will make enough for 4 generous servings. You need the pork - it makes them much more tender)
Handful of fresh breadcrumbs (about 2 slices of toast bread or equivalent amount…stale white bread really is best, but you can use grainy stuff if you like)
Squirt of tomato sauce and Worcester sauce if you have them (if not, tom puree/paste and soy would also work)
1 egg
Finely chopped onion or spring onion and a clove of garlic (if I’m feeling organised or energetic, I will sometimes sauté the onion and garlic and then add it. It is better this way because the onion isn’t as harsh, but it’s by no means essential)
Herbs to taste (fresh, finely chopped rosemary and thyme are my favourites, although basil is also nice…if I’m using basil I finely chop the stems and a few of the leaves and put that into the meatballs, and then use the leaves in the sauce at the end. Parsley is also good, and dried herbs are fine too)
Salt and pepper (don’t be cautious with the salt. I’d add a full teaspoon of salt or garlic salt – they seem to be able to take a fair bit of seasoning)
You can also add a couple of tablespoons of grated parmesan to the meatballs if you have it.
To make:
Put breadcrumbs in large bowl. Add enough of the sauces to soften/moisten, and mix. You want a sort of gloopy, bready paste (sounds delish, doesn’t it?!). Add the onion/garlic, herbs, seasonings, parmesan if using and meat, crack in the egg and then get your hands stuck in to mix it up. You need to really mix it well – you’re almost trying to change the consistency of the meat, so mix it and then almost start to knead it in the bowl. This should take about 3 mins of mixing.
With wet hands, roll into little balls. I like mine quite small – about teaspoon size, although you’ll find that as you go on, your meatballs get bigger because you get sick of rolling them!
For cooking there are two approaches. You can either brown them off in batches, and then add them to a tomato sauce, or you can just plop them straight into the simmering sauce as they are. I suppose browning them gives them an added dimension of flavour which is nice, but to be honest I like them both ways and the latter is certainly less work! :-P
For the sauce:
I usually finely chop an onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic (since you will most likely have used the food processor to make your breadcrumbs, I’d advise slinging the onion and garlic in the blitzer and chopping them that way. Saves you the effort and I prefer the finer texture in the sauce anyway). Very gently cook in olive oil in a big pot or pan at a medium temperature. Once they are soft but before they brown, add an entire jar of passata (if you're in the UK, the jars of passata are standard size - about 700g. That's tomato puree if you're in NZ...you want about 2 cans I'd guess), a good tsp of sugar (brown or white, whatever you have closest!), half a tsp of salt and a splash of red wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer, add the meatballs (browned or otherwise), put the lid on and let them simmer gently for about an hour. I find they are better if they are sort of slow cooked – sometimes they can toughen otherwise. Taste the sauce before serving – you might want to add a bit more sugar or salt. Stir in basil leaves if you have them, serve over pasta and top with loads of parmesan cheese.
NB: If you don’t have any eggs, you can successfully make these using milk to soften the breadcrumbs instead. Just add it to the bread when you add the sauces – about 2-3 tbsp milk? I’ve done this many times and it’s fine. I can never decide if I like the egg or milk version best – both are good so use what you have.
If you fancy an arrabiata-type sauce, add a finely chopped red chilli to the onion and garlic in the sauce before you add the passata. Gives a nice background warmth without being too hot.
You could throw chopped olives into the sauce at the end if you wanted, or a handful of rocket or baby-spinach leaves (I often do the latter if I’m feeling like I ought to have green vege as well as a giant bowl of carbs! Easier than a salad…). Actually you could go Greek with this by adding a bit of lemon zest to the meatballs, using parsley instead of basil and adding the olives at the end. Then I guess you could serve it with warmed pita breads, or over potatoes or rice – also very yummy!
The uncooked meatballs freeze well. I put them on a baking tray to freeze and then transfer to a bag so they are free-flow…that way one of you can have a quick meal without having to defrost a giant block of ‘balls. If you’re feeling very energetic and want to be uber-organised, you can double the mixture and make a whole extra batch to free-flow freeze. Handy to have on hand for a standby meal. The sauce and cooked meatballs also freeze well if you prefer ready-cooked meals in the freezer.
The Casserole
1 leek
2 cloves garlic
1 carrot
2 rashers of bacon
Handful of button mushrooms
However much casserole beef was in that packet (400g?)
2 tbsp flour
Salt/pepper
Herbs – dried or rosemary/thyme fresh
About a glass of red wine
2 tbsp (ish) tomato paste
Splash of red wine vinegar
Water to cover
Toss the meat in flour that you have seasoned with salt, pepper and some dried or finely chopped fresh herbs. Brown the floured meat in batches (when I say brown – I really just vaguely sealed each side, more than browned. This step just ensures the sauce goes nice and thick later on) in your fancy new Le Creuset casserole (or similar stove to oven cookware). Remove meat from dish as it is browned. Add a bit more oil to the casserole. Sweat the vege in oil in a casserole dish, adding the bacon and mushrooms as you chop them. Add the meat back in, and add the red wine to deglaze the casserole (scrape all the sticky bits from the bottom into the winey sauce). Add the rest of the ingredients, mixing to combine. Bring to a simmer then put the lid on and put in a 160-170degC oven for about 2 hours. Season with sugar and salt to taste.
The cobblerish topping of an earlier post goes wonderfully on the above casserole (I know this isn't a revolutionary casserole recipe, but it turned out sooo well last night that I felt it worth posting).
Oh, in other foodie 'news', I used one of my Christmas book vouchers to buy the Julia Child 'My Life in France' book, which is the other half of the story that Julie/Julia is based on. I'm loving it so far - Julia is just so charming and vivacious, even in print - but I've had to stop reading it in bed at night...it makes me much too hungry! All those wonderful descriptions of French cooking, pastry, fish, soups, breads...nothing worse than going to sleep with your stomach grumbling!
I shall post pics of my new kitchen acquirements (of which Julia would be proud, I'm sure!) when I'm home from London and I've tidied up the kitchen...
I have been meaning to post because I wanted to rave about my fabulous Christmas present from my lovely man...he got me Le Creuset stuff!!! I'm SO excited - I am now the (very) proud owner of a gorgeous medium sized turquoise blue cast-iron Le Creuset casserole dish, a similarly blue large pot and a matching ceramic utensil holder. It's all so beautiful and fancy - I get all enthused just talking about it! They look so stunning in the kitchen too...the kitchen being black, silver and wood - a splash of teal blue has brightened things up no end! I've never really had a lot of fancy kitchen stuff - I don't have bad things, but I've only ever lusted after cookware like Le Creuset. Best Christmas present ever!
Anyway, the combination of my gorgeous gift and the horrendous weather (seriously, it's now week 3 of snow. The novelty has well and truly worn off, let me tell you! Although it was our first ever White Christmas, so that was exciting. But again, that was week 1 of the snow...) has really meant that the food on our menu has been warming, stodgy stews, casseroles, soups and similar creations. Nothing I've made has been particularly revolutionary, but I have just finished writing up a couple of recipes for a friend who requested them, so I thought I'd share them with the wider web world too. So, on the menu this week - Jess's Meatballs and Beef Casserole.
Jess’s Meatballs
(as much as she can remember what she put into the last lot, that is!)
Ingredients:
Equal quantities pork and beef mince (I use about 250g of each – that will make enough for 4 generous servings. You need the pork - it makes them much more tender)
Handful of fresh breadcrumbs (about 2 slices of toast bread or equivalent amount…stale white bread really is best, but you can use grainy stuff if you like)
Squirt of tomato sauce and Worcester sauce if you have them (if not, tom puree/paste and soy would also work)
1 egg
Finely chopped onion or spring onion and a clove of garlic (if I’m feeling organised or energetic, I will sometimes sauté the onion and garlic and then add it. It is better this way because the onion isn’t as harsh, but it’s by no means essential)
Herbs to taste (fresh, finely chopped rosemary and thyme are my favourites, although basil is also nice…if I’m using basil I finely chop the stems and a few of the leaves and put that into the meatballs, and then use the leaves in the sauce at the end. Parsley is also good, and dried herbs are fine too)
Salt and pepper (don’t be cautious with the salt. I’d add a full teaspoon of salt or garlic salt – they seem to be able to take a fair bit of seasoning)
You can also add a couple of tablespoons of grated parmesan to the meatballs if you have it.
To make:
Put breadcrumbs in large bowl. Add enough of the sauces to soften/moisten, and mix. You want a sort of gloopy, bready paste (sounds delish, doesn’t it?!). Add the onion/garlic, herbs, seasonings, parmesan if using and meat, crack in the egg and then get your hands stuck in to mix it up. You need to really mix it well – you’re almost trying to change the consistency of the meat, so mix it and then almost start to knead it in the bowl. This should take about 3 mins of mixing.
With wet hands, roll into little balls. I like mine quite small – about teaspoon size, although you’ll find that as you go on, your meatballs get bigger because you get sick of rolling them!
For cooking there are two approaches. You can either brown them off in batches, and then add them to a tomato sauce, or you can just plop them straight into the simmering sauce as they are. I suppose browning them gives them an added dimension of flavour which is nice, but to be honest I like them both ways and the latter is certainly less work! :-P
For the sauce:
I usually finely chop an onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic (since you will most likely have used the food processor to make your breadcrumbs, I’d advise slinging the onion and garlic in the blitzer and chopping them that way. Saves you the effort and I prefer the finer texture in the sauce anyway). Very gently cook in olive oil in a big pot or pan at a medium temperature. Once they are soft but before they brown, add an entire jar of passata (if you're in the UK, the jars of passata are standard size - about 700g. That's tomato puree if you're in NZ...you want about 2 cans I'd guess), a good tsp of sugar (brown or white, whatever you have closest!), half a tsp of salt and a splash of red wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer, add the meatballs (browned or otherwise), put the lid on and let them simmer gently for about an hour. I find they are better if they are sort of slow cooked – sometimes they can toughen otherwise. Taste the sauce before serving – you might want to add a bit more sugar or salt. Stir in basil leaves if you have them, serve over pasta and top with loads of parmesan cheese.
NB: If you don’t have any eggs, you can successfully make these using milk to soften the breadcrumbs instead. Just add it to the bread when you add the sauces – about 2-3 tbsp milk? I’ve done this many times and it’s fine. I can never decide if I like the egg or milk version best – both are good so use what you have.
If you fancy an arrabiata-type sauce, add a finely chopped red chilli to the onion and garlic in the sauce before you add the passata. Gives a nice background warmth without being too hot.
You could throw chopped olives into the sauce at the end if you wanted, or a handful of rocket or baby-spinach leaves (I often do the latter if I’m feeling like I ought to have green vege as well as a giant bowl of carbs! Easier than a salad…). Actually you could go Greek with this by adding a bit of lemon zest to the meatballs, using parsley instead of basil and adding the olives at the end. Then I guess you could serve it with warmed pita breads, or over potatoes or rice – also very yummy!
The uncooked meatballs freeze well. I put them on a baking tray to freeze and then transfer to a bag so they are free-flow…that way one of you can have a quick meal without having to defrost a giant block of ‘balls. If you’re feeling very energetic and want to be uber-organised, you can double the mixture and make a whole extra batch to free-flow freeze. Handy to have on hand for a standby meal. The sauce and cooked meatballs also freeze well if you prefer ready-cooked meals in the freezer.
The Casserole
1 leek
2 cloves garlic
1 carrot
2 rashers of bacon
Handful of button mushrooms
However much casserole beef was in that packet (400g?)
2 tbsp flour
Salt/pepper
Herbs – dried or rosemary/thyme fresh
About a glass of red wine
2 tbsp (ish) tomato paste
Splash of red wine vinegar
Water to cover
Toss the meat in flour that you have seasoned with salt, pepper and some dried or finely chopped fresh herbs. Brown the floured meat in batches (when I say brown – I really just vaguely sealed each side, more than browned. This step just ensures the sauce goes nice and thick later on) in your fancy new Le Creuset casserole (or similar stove to oven cookware). Remove meat from dish as it is browned. Add a bit more oil to the casserole. Sweat the vege in oil in a casserole dish, adding the bacon and mushrooms as you chop them. Add the meat back in, and add the red wine to deglaze the casserole (scrape all the sticky bits from the bottom into the winey sauce). Add the rest of the ingredients, mixing to combine. Bring to a simmer then put the lid on and put in a 160-170degC oven for about 2 hours. Season with sugar and salt to taste.
The cobblerish topping of an earlier post goes wonderfully on the above casserole (I know this isn't a revolutionary casserole recipe, but it turned out sooo well last night that I felt it worth posting).
Oh, in other foodie 'news', I used one of my Christmas book vouchers to buy the Julia Child 'My Life in France' book, which is the other half of the story that Julie/Julia is based on. I'm loving it so far - Julia is just so charming and vivacious, even in print - but I've had to stop reading it in bed at night...it makes me much too hungry! All those wonderful descriptions of French cooking, pastry, fish, soups, breads...nothing worse than going to sleep with your stomach grumbling!
I shall post pics of my new kitchen acquirements (of which Julia would be proud, I'm sure!) when I'm home from London and I've tidied up the kitchen...
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