Elderflower take on a Venice's notorious Harry's Bar Bellini (non alcoholic)

Fresh white peach purée, elderflower cordial and fresh lemon juice topped up with
sparkling water

Pear purée, elderflower cordial and fresh ginger with a twist of lemon, topped up
with sparkling water

ENJOY!

Elderflower and Pink Grapefruit Cocktail Recipe (non alcoholic)

Ingredients:

50ml of elderflower cordial
50ml of Robinsons’ pink grapefruit cordial
800ml (approx to taste) of chilled, still water

Method:

Mix the cordials in a jug, add the water and finally add some ice.

Hearty hodge podge for cold summer days

1 tbsp cumin
2 handful lentils
1 can chick peas
1/2 onion
1 can chopped tomato
salt
1 c rice

A slow cooker is the best appliance to cook this recipe in - no fuss. But a sauce pan does just as well.

1. Add lentils, can of chickpeas, chopped onions, can of chopped tomatoes and cumin. Add two and half cans of water. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Put slowcooker on High. Cook for 1 hour.
3. Add rice and cook for another 1/2 hour. Make sure the mix does not dry out and add water as required.

Crunchy lemon cake for when life throws you lemons

115 g butter
150g sugar
2 tsp lemon zest
2 eggs
180g flour
1 tsp baking powder
110 ml milk

Lemon crunchy icing:
1/3 c castor sugar or granulated sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice (roughly juice of 2 lemons depending on size)

Pour into a 450g (1lb) loaf tin, greased and lined

1. Mix everything together except for the crunchy icing ingredients.
2. Bake in the preheated oven at 150 degrees for about 35 minutes, or until golden brown, shrinking away from the sides of the tin and springy to the touch.
3. While the cake is still warm, make the topping. Mix together the sugar and lemon juice, and pour over the warm cake.
4. Leave to cool a little and loosen the sides of the cake, then lift the cake out of the tin

Bang Bang Sesame Sauce

Sesame sauce for skewers or salads or freshly cooked veges

1 ½ tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
3 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp of sweet chilli sauce
11/2 tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp water

Ravioli biscuits for cookie monsters like me!

Adapted from Martha Stewart's recipe.

Filling
Juice of 4 oranges or use 400ml of cranberry juice for poaching
Cinnamon stick 1
Dried apricots 15
Sugar 2 Tbsp
Brandy 2 Tbsp

Put all ingredients in a sauce pan.Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Then pour into the poached fruit 2 tbsp of brandy. Burn the brandy off by lighting the poached fruit with a match. Take out the cinnamon stick and blend into a pulp.

Dough
Butter 1 c (at room temperature)
Sugar 1 c
Eggs 2 (large ones)
Vanilla 1/2 tsp
Flour 2 c
Baking powder 2 c
Salt 1/2 tsp

Add butter and sugar into a food processor, add a cup of sugar and eggs one at a time. Pour in vanilla essence. Then sift flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl and add one cup at the time to the dough while mixing.

From hereon in refer to photo.
Divide the dough in quarters and form rectangles, gladwrap each one and refrigerate for an hour.
Ensure to momentarily chill the pastry again in the fridge between handling to avoid it running away or cracking.The pastry is easier to handle when chilled.

After an hour heat the fan oven to 200 degrees. Add 20 degrees if you are baking the ravioli in a normal oven.

Take one quarter and roll out the dough on gladwrap with another sheet on the dough in between the roller and the dough. Repeat the process with another quarter until you have two sheet rolled out.(Perhaps keep the other sheet in the fridge while doing this.)

Take a small zip lock bag and fill it with puree. Cut one corner off and use it as a piping bag.
Now squirt five little amounts of apricot puree across and down three rows.
Peel back the gladwrap and fold the second sheet of dough over the bottom sheet.

Take a knife and cut between the little mounts like you would making ravioli. If you have a ravioli cutter, even better.

The oven should be at the right temperature now.Fill an oven tray full of ravioli and bake for 10 minutes. Watch the biscuits carefully so that they don't burn!

Dipping sauce
Greek yoghurt (Easiyo is great)
Honey

Mix yoghurt and honey until combined and pour into a dipping bowl.

Serve with yoghurt as deseert morning or afternoon treat.

Gnocchi Gnocchi who is there!

Adapted from River Cafe.

White floury potatoes 1 Kg
Plain flour 250g
Unsalted butter 100g

Wash the potatoes and keep them whole.Cook with their skins, in boiling salted water until soft, about 20 minutes depending on size.
Peel and whilst hot, immediately put through a mouli or potato ricer on to a clean surface. If you don't have a mouli or ricer then use a normal kitchen sieve and push the cooked potato in cubes through the wire with a spatula, so the potato comes out nice and satin-like.

Sift over the flour, season and combine rapidly, to form a smooth, soft and elastic dough.

Roll into sausage-like roles of about 1.5 cm in diameter, and cut into pieces about 2-3cm long. See photos for help.Press each piece against the prongs of a fork to form little ridges, or make tiny incisions with a sharp knife on each piece - these will help hold the sauce.

Cook the gnocchi in boiling salted water for 3 minutes but make sure the water is not furiously boiling but a very gentle simmer or your gnocchi will disintegrate. Cook them until they rise to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon to a warmed dish.

Melt the butter until just soft, and combine with gnocchi. Season and serve with cheese, or alternatively with either a mushroom, vege, or tomato sauce-recipes to follow below.

Tomato sauce
red onions 3
Basil leaves 3 tsp
Olive oil 2 tbs
Tin tomatoes 2 x 400g

Peel and slice the onions as thinly as possible into rounds. Peel and finely slice the garlic.

Heat the olive oil in a wide thick-bottomed pan, then add the onion and garlic. Cook over low heat until very soft, but not brown.
Add the tomatoes, and stir to break them up, then season. Cook slowly over a low to moderate heat, stirring occasionally, for at least an hour. remove from the heat and stir in basil.

Cook the gnocchi as before but omit the butter. Serve with the tomato sauce, sprinkled with parmesan or plain colby!

Mushroom sauce
Shallots 4
Mushrooms 400g
tbsp cream
Olive oil

Add olive oil to a pan.Peel and dice shallots. Add mushrooms and shallots together and on slow heat let mushrooms cook until their halved their size. If the pan gets a little dry add a dash of water to help the cooking process. Add a generous tbsp of cream and sir under and serve.

Silverbeet sauce

Shallots 3
Silverbeet 5,6 big leaves (or spinach, peas, beans etc)
Olive oil

Add olive oil to a pan.Peel shallots and add with thinly sliced silverbeet into pan. Let slowly cook untilt he leaves are wilted. Again if the pan gets too dry add a dash of water to help the cooking process.

Stir under the gnocchi

'Give yourself a break' prefab cheesecake - Costs a fraction of a real one to make...

Give yourself a break today and grant yourself the best of both worlds - prefab meets Mollie Katzen, vegetarian!

During a walking group meeting a friend confided she uses Edmonds Scone Mix.
As religious I am of what and what not to eat, I got home made scones the traditional way and found that they sucked, so the other day I bought Edmonds Smooth Continental Cheesecake and gave that a try - Fake, maybe. But no flake!

Straight out of the pack expect nothing, so add some flavour like vanilla essence, passionfruit sauce or ginger to give the mix aroma.Or, just glaze it!
Other than that it's all on the pack!

Serve with tinned fruit, peaches, mango. Serve with dessert sauces and cream, flowing or whipped.

If you want to glaze the cheese cake to ramp it up a bit and return to the converted new eco-worldliness of reusing food, glaze it with Moosewood's ginger brandy glaze, or Britta Lieven's Zabaglione glaze as given below:

Make sure OJ and cornstarch are mixed cold or it will create clumps.)

Combine 2 T cornstarch and 3/4 c orange juice, and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes, until smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in 2 T honey, T brandy, and 1/2 t zest.
Serve with a brandy...

Or,
Combine 2 T cornstarch and 3/4 c old gris, sauvignon or other, and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes, until smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in 2 T honey, and lemon 1/2 t zest.
Serve with a glass of dessert wine or Sauterne or lemon icecream/sorbet...


Spread glaze over cheesecake and chill for several hours before serving.The longer you let it chill (for days even) the better it becomes.

Crustless quiche for spineless days-so easy!

Whisk together:
4 eggs
1 cup milk (or cream)
1/2 cup self raising flour
S & P.
Then add*:
1/2 cup grated cheese
1 fried onion
Spinach or silverbeet

*You can add fried bacon or honey cured ham and any veges. Make sure to half cook veges first though before adding them to the overall mix.
Leftovers are the best to use for recycling in this recipe e.g. cold chicken, roast veges-Yum!

Pour into a medium sized flan dish and bake at 180 deg for approx 45 mins - till golden on top and puffed up.
Serve hot or cold with homemade chutney and potato chips/fries and salad.

A perfect fruitcake for a family of nutbars

Ingredients
1 l/2 cups mixed fruit or sultanas
3 beaten eggs
8 oz/225 grams butter
12 oz/1 1/2 cups caster sugar
12 ozs/1 1/2 cups flour
2 level tsp baking powder
1 tsp almond essence

Method
Cover fruit with water, like Bircher Muesli leave for two days to soak fruit. Drain and add the melted butter. Add this to beaten eggs, essence, sugar and beat until thick and creamy. Add fruit and flour and baking powder.

Mix well and pour into a 25cm cake tin or two old sized loaf tins.

Bake at 150C for one hour on fan. Add 20 degrees to oven without fan. Leave to cool in tin.

Little cakes for hungry stomachs!

Yum yum yum . I made these lovely cup cakes today-another budget snack! There are not anywhere the standard that Jaimie makes at Remarkable Markets but it's worth a try!!
I used soy milk instead of milk and super cheap ingredients which makes these even sweeter. I know soy isn't cheap but it's an incentive of the other ingredients. The soy adds extra spongy texture and eats like a ricotta cake.

125g butter
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 cup plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup soy milk

Cream butter, sugar and vanilla essence.
Add eggs one at a time beating well. Sift flour, baking powder together and fold into creamed mixture.
Use a small cup cake pan or whichever you prefer. Make sure you grease them well.
Use cup cake cases if you don't have a mini muffin pan if you like! You can get them at the supermarket or at Spotlight and are not expensive.Spoon mixture into individual cases.
Bake 190 degrees for 15 minutes or until cakes spring back.Transfer to wire rack.
When cold decorate as you wish. I used cream cheese icing and a trivial widget of lemon.

Silverbeet and broccoli tart

Everybody will love this tart. You don't have to use silverbeet and broccoli if cauliflower, peas, bacon, feta, spinach are the thing in your fridge put your own take on it.




Ingredients

Savoury shortcrust pastry (bought)
1 tbs olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped. Substitute onion with leek if you'd like.
Head of broccoli
500g silverbeet leaves, chopped
2 eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
1 cup (250ml) thin cream. I use long life and always have a supply at the ready for on a cook's whim.

Method

Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Roll out pastry on a floured board and use to line a shallow, 10cm x 34cm rectangular loose-bottomed tart pan. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Place a sheet of baking paper in the pastry shell, fill with raw rice or pastry weights and blind bake for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven, remove weights and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frypan over medium heat, add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened.Add a drip or two of water to stop the onion pieces from burning and allow to soften graciously.

Add the broccoli, cook for 3 minutes and then the silverbeet and cook for a further 1-2 minutes until just wilted. Remove from heat, drain off any excess liquid from pan and allow mixture to cool.

Sit tart pan on a baking tray and fill with cooled silverbeet mixture. Beat together the eggs and cream, season with salt and pepper and pour over the filling.

Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the filling is set. Serve warm in wedges.

Lamb shanks in tomato and rosemary w polenta

Ingredients
6 lamb shanks
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, chopped
3 large carrots, cut into 1/4 inch rounds
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 bottle red wine
1 can whole peeled tomatoes with juice
1 can chicken stock
1 can beef broth
5 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
Couple of sage and bay leaves

Directions
1.Sprinkle shanks with salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook shanks until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer shanks to plate.
2.Add onions, carrots and garlic to pot and saute until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine, tomatoes, chicken broth and beef broth. Season with rosemary and thyme. Return shanks to pot, pressing down to submerge. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover, and simmer until meat is tender, about 2 hours.
3.Remove cover from pot. Simmer about 20 minutes longer. Transfer shanks to platter, place in a warm oven. Boil juices in pot until thickened, about 15 minutes. Spoon over shanks.

How to cook polenta in a rice cooker

1 cup cornmeal (polenta)
3 cups water
1/4 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
3 green onions, finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1/4 teaspoon sage

Directions:
1 Place all ingredients in rice cooker.
2 Start cooking cycle.
3 After cycle is complete, wait an additional 10 minutes to allow the polenta to absorb all the liquid.
4 Stir well before serving.
5 If you like firmer polenta, let it stand for 5 minutes prior to serving.

Sushi made with leftovers-Easy-peasy, non-greasy dinz without dear finz

Forget salmon, fish eggs, sashimi de la la, WHY NOT grab the remains of last night’s chicken, beef or lamb roast for some delish sushi - a perfect recipe for economic,classy, guiltless digestion of RWC matches on tellie after a hard day in the office. Hai!

Ingredients
Cold meat
Cold roast veggies
Raw carrots or cucumber sticks
Home grown water cress for a bit of sting
Pickled ginger
Soy sauce
Wasabi
Sushi rice
Sushi sheets
Sushi vinegar
Sushi mat

Method
Cut lengthwise cold veggies (not the potatoes, fry them up with bacon for brekkie tomorrow).Cut one raw carrot ( or some cucumber, bamboo shoots, ... whatever is in your pantry or fridge. Avoid cauli, cabbage or broccoli).
Repeat the cutting process with the meat.
For sushi making technique see your local sushi outlet and, google, for example, click to view http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8Qpo4G42_A.
Usually it is easier having prepared all the individuals beforehand so all you need is to coordinate the different elements (filling, nori etc) to make the end product.
Cut the roll into decent bite size and put on Royal Dalton’s serving platter from Salvation Army!
Serve soy, Japanese pickled ginger and mayo on side

PS Rice cookers are cheap to pick up at Cash Converters and second hand stores and best way to make non-stick, stress-free rice quickly.

A rice cooker was my first ever dabble in kitchen appliances, and has paid good returns over the years cooking.

Sushi kits for an initial investment of $25 upwards , and which can be picked up from a supermarket near you, are also futures worth investing.

Wasabi, Japanese pickled ginger, soy are expensive at first but last for years,as they are used sparingly over time so worth the extra penny too.

Cheers

Tagine made by slow cooker

I wanted to make something special, easy and super convenient for a dinner party - tagine made by slow cooker is it!

I have always been intrigued about tagine crockery as I have been with slow cookers but until I tried marrying both of them I thought they;d be more trouble than what they are worth.

The cooking processes both seemed far fetched and to be more complicated and specialised (what's with the big Moroccan pizza-oven like crockery) so I thought, but watching a friend use the slow cooker recently, the lure of a cheap slow cooker at Mega (you can pick one up for $40 at Mega and Briscoes), and an easy online tagine recipe search, got my act together and I cooked a lamb tagine for our local winter quiz wind-up the recipe for which is to follow.

Ingredients

500 g lamb
1 tsp ginger
2 clove of garlic
1 onion
1 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp cumin
1 tbsp honey
2 tsp brown sugar
can of chopped tomatoes
1 c chicken stock
1 cinnamon stick
5 prunes
5 dried apricot
1/4 c of preserved lemons finely diced (see preserved lemon recipe to follow)
1/4 c ground almond meal (roast and grind almonds in blender)
1 tbsp parsley (in tube)
1 tbsp coriander (in tube)

Alternatives
Use whatever dried fruit (figs, dates, prunes, apricots, fat sultanas) you have. Substitute preserved lemon with lemon juice.
Add a can of chickpeas.
If there is too much juice for you, thicken it by adding a tsp or two of cornflour

Method

Chuck into Slow Cooker all but the last five ingredients. Stir them together.
Set cooker on slow and leave to cook for 10 hours. This means if you prep around 10AM, the tagine will be ready at 8PM.
Half an hour before serving add the last five ingredients
Serve with couscous

Method for couscous
Use one cup of slightly oily boiling water for one cup of couscous.
For four people add 2 cups of slightly oily boiling water to 2 cups of couscous.
Wait until all the water is absorbed by the couscous and fluff it with a fork adding some ground almonds for flavour before serving it hot with the tagine.

If you can afford it mezze like flat bread and mint yoghurt goes well with tagine.

M'mallow/Chocolate/Banana cake- the perfect pick me up for lambing farmers & RWC hangovers

Ingredients

125g butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 - 2 cups of mashed bananas ( about 3-4 bananas)
1 teaspoon of baking soda
2 tablespoons of hot milk
2 cups standard plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
5 marshmallows
1 cup of chocolate chips

Method

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add mashed banana and mix thoroughly.
Stir soda into hot milk and add to creamed mixture.
Add chocolate chips. Cut marshmallows in half and add those too.
Sift flour and baking powder. Fold into mixture.
Turn into a greased and lined 20 cm round cake tin or a standard loaf tin.
Bake at 180 degrees for 50 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Leave in tin for 10 minutes before turing out onto a rack.

Amended and taken from Edmonds Cookery Book

Waffles w. elderberry or maple syrups

Bought a Breville waffle maker. Seems to be the only waffle maker available in NZ but works fine.
Splurged a bit and spent $60 for it but as soon as I'd bitten into my waffle everything was right in the world.

6 Servings


Prep 5 min
Cook 20 min

3 large eggs
1-1/3 cups milk
1-3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons melted butter, cooled


1.Preheat the waffle iron.

2.In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs and then whisk in the milk. Add in and whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.

3.Don't worry about little lumps.

4.Pour in the butter and stir until combined. Do not overmix.

5. Ladle about 1/3 cup batter for every 4-inch square of the waffle iron, make sure every nook and cranny is filled and cook according to the manufacturer's directions.

6.Repeat with the remaining batter.

My 2011 Recipe of the Year: Over-ripe-bananas biscotti! ...

I buy bananas every week. And, every week there are quite a few dark brown ones that no-one wants and usually they go straight into the freezer, leaving me to have to do something with an oversupply of over-ripe frozen bananas.

Baking a banana cake is getting a bit old for me now I have done it so many times.I have a very, very good recipe adapted from blokeswhobake.co.nz for banana cake, and am now very good at baking one, but there are still too many bananas and baking cakes is becoming boring.

So, I found a perfect, different recipe which uses my oversupply of overripe bananas- banana biscotti

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup (really over-ripe) mashed banana (2 bananas)
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup chopped, toasted nuts eg walnuts or hazelnuts (optional)
1/4-1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Method
Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine banana, oil, egg and vanilla and mix until well blended. Add the flour mixture, toasted nuts and optional chocolate chips to the banana mixture and stir just until combined.

Divide the mixture in half and shape each half into an 8 inch log. Place the logs about 4 inches apart on a cookie sheet that has been greased or lined with parchment. Press the logs into two rectangles about 3 inches across.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until firm and cracked on top. Transfer the logs to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 135 degrees celsius.

Place logs on a cutting board, trim the ends and using a sharp, serrated knife, cut each diagonally into 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick slices. Place biscotti cut side down on the cookie sheet. Return them to the 275 degree oven and cook for 20 minutes. Flip them over and cook for another 20 minutes . Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

*Tip: I like these a little softer, so I reduce the final cooking time to 5-10 minutes per side. These are great dipped in chocolate, as well!

Makes 2 dozen

Winter chicken soup with cheddar

This soup is a brilliant way to get rid of leftovers after a roast dinner.And, except for chopping up the veggies, this soup really takes no time to cook up for a healthy, filling and warming cold winter's day lunch. If you have an extra bob or two, spruce it up by adding Parmesan but cheddar will do just fine too.





Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion
Thyme
Sage
tsp ginger
1 clove of garlic
1.5 l chicken stock
1 c orzo
1 potato
3 stalks of silverbeet (Swiss chard)
3 carrots
1/4 pumpkin
Small kumara (Sweet potato)
Salt & Pepper
Cheddar or parmesan

Method:
Pour a tablespoon of olive oil in the sauce pan. Soften the onion and garlic.Make sure they do not burn! The burned pieces float to the top of the soup and look rather unappetizing.
Add thyme, sage leaves*, ginger,salt and pepper, and freshly made chicken stock. Bring to the boil.
Add a cup of orzo, chopped potatoes, kumara, carrots and cook for ten minutes.
Try chopping all veggies about the same size cube.
Lastly, add pumpkin, silver beet as they take less time to cook.
And finally, add the shredded chicken left over from Sunday's roast!Cook for a few more minutes so the chicken has a chance to heat up.
Serve with grated cheddar or parmesan on top.

YUM!
Footnote
* I try and be ahead of seasons and pick fresh rosemary, coriander, thyme, sage leaves, basil and chives and freeze them in takeway containers, ready to be used in dishes when needed.

Carrot and cumin soup recipe - it's all about orange

Oops! I made a mistake! instead of carrot and coriander (to follow) here is a carrot and cumin soup recipe. And while you are cooking, why not explore the colour orange?

Orange means vitality with endurance. People who like orange are usually thoughtful and sincere. Lady luck's color is orange. It is also found that orange foods are asspciated with health and stimulate appetite.

There is a great book which writes about the history on many colours used over centuries.
It's called "Colour: Travels through the paintbox" by Victoria Finlay. A wonderful read over a hot bowel of homemade Carrot and cumin soup! Colour is available at Amazon UK (amazon.co.uk) for 2 quid and 44 pence.

Now back to the recipe, this is a quick and easy to make soup recipe that will add meaning to your life once you have tasted it!

Ingredients:

1 onion (orange)
quarter of a pumpkin (orange)
6-8 carrots (orange)
1l chicken stock or veggie stock (orangy)
2 tsp brown sugar (orangy)
2 tblso cumin
quarter cup of orange juice (orange)

Prepare the vegetable stock by mixing 4 Oxo vegetable stock cubes with 1 litre of water (Or fresh chicken stock). Then chop all the veggies, throw them into a good size sauce pan and cook them in the vegetable stock until they are soft.

Roast the cumin in a pan. Chuck the cumin in the sauce pan too.

When everything is cooked blend it all and add a quarter of a cup of orange juice while keeping on blending until the mixture is nice and smooth.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and fresh chopped coriander.

Now put the book down, pour yourself a nice glass of sauvignon blanc and toast to colours and the colour orange in particular. Should keep you nice and healthy.

Adapted from www.bbc.co.uk

Pirate's club sandwiches

Ingredients

Cooked chicken will do but smoked chicken offers a more decadent taste
Dried apricots
Spreadable cream cheese
Alfalfa spouts
Two loafs of Tip Tops Spiced Fruit Loaf
Toothpicks
Avery labels
Black ink pen

Spread bread (both top and bottom pieces of bread) with spreadable cream cheese. If the cheese is too tough, zap it in the microwave for ten seconds for easier spreading.

Spread a thin layer of alfalfa sprouts on both top and bottom pieces of bread.
Slice smoked chicken and sprinkle on top of sprout layer. The cut the apricots into halves and arrange on meat.

Finally glue together top and bottom and push down on individual sandwhiches so they stick good.

Now, choose a nice sharp knife to slice off the crusts on each side of each sandwich, so that the edges are nice and square. Then cut diagonally into triangles.

Grab the toothpicks and labels! Think of a message or motif to put on each side of the flag you are about to make. I chose a pirate theme as I was going to a pirate party.

Are you a localvore? Latest food trends around the world!

Eat your zip code

Remarkables Market in action











Are you a a)herbivore, b)carnivore or, c) localvore?
What is a localvore or locavore?
How can I start to get my food miles?
What would be in our pantry if our boat didn't come?

To answer the above and listen further to National Radio's feature, click on http://preview.tinyurl.com/3rptg46

More related links, click on
httwww.vermontlocalvore.org/learnmore/whatandwhy.html
p://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_food
www.bostonlocalvores.org/

London farmers market

Zuppa di castagne - Chestnut soup

In keeping with this blog's code this recipe is cheap and easy as to make and taps into the ever increasing trend of setting a low carbon footprint by using local and seasonal foods.

It's autumn and the onset of winter and there is an abundance of chestnuts in Arrowtown.

There are a heap of things one can make with them. Roasted chestnut make a great snack, Italian chestnut soup a great lunch and an Asian chestnut stirfry a great dinner.

It was all in good timing then, that I had collected a full basket of chestnuts at the time of watching David Rocco making a chestnut soup on his TV series on the food channel the other day!

Here is the recipe:


ZUPPA DI CASTAGNE - serves 4 people

25 chestnuts, roasted and peeled
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 shallot Onion), chopped
1/2 cup canned puríed peeled tomatoes or tomatoe puree for a more intense flavour (120ml)
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock (1.8l)
1 cup toasted croutons or bacon bits
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (60ml)
fresh parsley, finely chopped
Salt and fresh ground pepper to season


To start your Zuppa di Castagne:


Place olive oil, garlic and shallot in a deep pot. Cook for a few minutes or until garlic turns golden in colour.

Add tomato puríe and chestnuts and cook for a minute.

Add the vegetable stock and bring soup to a boil. Season with salt and pepper.

Reduce heat and let simmer for about 40 minutes.

Sprinkle parsley before serving in individual bowls. Add croutons or bacon bits to each bowl.

I did not have any parsley so I went without it.

Podcast "Empty Pleasures"

Driving on my usual weekly jaunt to Pine Bush, I am listening to National Radio's author interview for a recently released book on artificial and natural sweeteners (nutrasweet, stevia, saccharine) which makes for fascinating listening.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/national/twu/2011/04/30/artificial_sweeteners

Carolyn De La Pena has written 'Empty Pleasures'; it's a history of artifical sweeteners from aspartame to saccharin (a byproduct of the coal industry by the way!).

Behind the scenes at Lieven's

Seasonal winter soup ideas

Here are some great soup recipes that will keep you on budget, nourished and warm over winter.

You do need a blender or food processor though. I bought a blender at Countdown which still goes after four years, and you can perhaps pick up a blender or food processor cheaply at either Cash Converters or charity shops.

Here are broccoli and blue cheese, French onion and maple pumpkin.

Soup #1 Blue cheese and broccoli soup

Less than 30 minutes cooking time
Serves 4

350g broccoli, florets and stalks cut into small pieces
400ml vegetable stock
25g butter
1 onion, finely sliced
50g blue cheese, crumbled, or to taste
100ml double cream (I always keep long life cream in the pantry for occasions like this)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
pinch freshly grated nutmeg

Preparation method
For the soup, place the pieces of broccoli into a glass bowl. Pour over the vegetable stock.

Cover the bowl with cling film and place in the microwave.Cook on full power for four minutes, or until tender. Or, boil broccoli in a sauce pan until tender.

Meanwhile, heat a frying pan until hot then add the butter. When it starts to foam, add the diced onion and cook for one minute.

Transfer the cooked broccoli and stock to a food processor. Add the fried onion, blue cheese and cream and blend until smooth.

Transfer the blended mixture to a pan and bring gently to a simmer.

Season the soup with salt, freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.

Divide the soup equally among four warm bowls.Serve.

For more ompf! add some potatoes in the mix!
How? Boil three potatoes, chuck into the mix to blend with broccoli and onion.


Soup # 2 French onion soup

Clever little classy onion soup.Cheap, filling, easy to make, and heart warmingly good at any time of the year.

Less than 45-50 minutes cooking time
Serves 4


50g butter
1kg brown onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp thyme, picked leaves
3 tbsp dry sherry
beef stock fresh, cube or concentrate made up to 1.2 litres
1 baguette, sliced
1 garlic clove, halved
extra-virgin olive oil
100g tasty, grated

Preparation method
Heat the butter in a large pan and gently cook the onion and thyme until the onion is softened but not browned - about 20 minutes.

Increase the heat slightly and cook for 15 minutes, until the onion becomes dark golden, sticky and caramelised, stirring now and again to stop it catching.

Add the sherry and simmer for 2-3 minutes, then add the stock and bring to the boil. Season. Simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, toast the bread, rub each slice with garlic, then drizzle with a little oil.

Sprinkle with the cheese and grill until golden and bubbling. Serve the soup with the cheese croutons on top.

Makes a perfect entree to a meaty meal.

Soup #3 Pumpkin soup

Less than 45 minutes - 1 hour cooking time
Serves 10+

For all you pumpkins out there.

1 pumpkin
1 onion
knob of butter
1 can of coconut milk
1.5 litres of vegetable stock ( 6 Oxo cubes in 1.5 litres of water)
Curry powder (Mild, medium or hot)
Maple Syrup

Preparation method
Chop and peel pumpkin into manageable size.

Soften pumpkin by either cooking or baking it.

Chuck a knob of butter in a large sauce, dice onions and soften them over medium heat.

Add can of coconut milk, and a tablespoon of curry powder to the sauce pan.

Now start adding pieces of pumpkin and with a hand blender begin processing the pieces of the pumpkin as you put them in, adding vegetable stock as required until there are no lumps left and the soup is nice and smooth.

Constantly taste to see whether the soups need more seasoning.

Add a squirt of maple syrup when serving the pumpkin soup. A dollop of sour cream goes well too.

To add more ompf! fry up some bacon and sprinkle over the top.



Four others to be added over the next months. They are:

Mushroom with zucchini
Potato and leek
Pea and ham
Carrot and coriander

Once I have trial and error'ed these, tested them again myself and written down each individual recipe, I will immediately update this blog with these new recipes, so you can keep taking it easy because I find that making soup is child's play and a lot of fun.Watch this space!

Bad jelly the witch elderberry jelly jam

Elderberry jelly jam ...Spike Milligan would have liked Lieven's elderberry jelly-jam I think.Made from the plumbest organically grown elderberries in Gibbston Valley, this jelly jam is guaranteed to liven up your mealtimes and keep you flu-free over this coming winter.


Excellent in sponges, self saucing and rolly polly puds.

Smear some on your pancakes, French toast and waffles with a dollop of cream.

For avo tea serve your warm doughy scones with a side of jelly jam and cream.

Or, spread on toast, Ryvita or bagels with cottage or cream cheese!

Stir under a spoonful of hot rice pudding, custard and in the morning porridge with full cream milk.

Best yet to come, use as a condiment for hot and cold venison, lamb, pork and beef.

Makes a great reduction for sauces too.

Thank you to all who are interested in my preserves. These have been selling like hotcakes at the Remarkable Markets and the market continues to grow, grow as well as help us,the cottage industries, grow, grow and grow each week.

Kiwifruit and elderberry fool

This recipe is usually made with gooseberry but go, replace the gooseberry with kiwifruit or grapes since we are coming up to harvest in Gibbston Valley soon. Gooseberry are not really a New Zealand fruit, what I am really sayingis they are not as abundant as in Germany and they are more difficult to get and expensive.

Enough for 6
450g Kiwifruit
Caster sugar to taste
300ml Double cream
Lieven's elderflower cordial or elderberry syrup

Peel kiwifruit put them into a stainless steel pan with a very little water and cook over a low heat until they are soft and squashy-approx 10 minutes.
Drain off any extra liquid and crush with a fork. Stir in the sugar, the amount you will need but you may actually not have to. Leave to cool, then refrigerate.
Whip cream to soft folds. Gently fold kiwifruit, or grapes into the cream. Spoon the fool into glasses and leave to settle. Trickle a teaspoon of elderflower cordial or elderberry syrup over each as you serve.

Apple jelly

Apple Jelly*** (See bottom)
Six jars, 1 cup, 250 ml, each

The guidelines I used were from the National Center for Food Preservation, and said to cook the apple jelly to 220ºF (104ºC), which will be the setting point, but I ended up cooking mine further. So it’s best to test your jelly by dropping a dab on a chilled plate, putting it in the freezer for a few minutes, then checking to see if the mixture has jelled by nudging it with your finger and seeing if it mounds and wrinkles. If you don’t have a candy thermometer, you can use this method to test your jelly.

One pound (450 g) of apples cooked will yield about 1 cup (250 ml) strained juice from the cooked apples. So if you have less apples, or you get a different yield (since all apples are different), you can use that as a guideline and add 3/4 cup (150 g) sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon juice per cup of strained apple juice.

8 pounds (3.75 kg) apples
10 cups (2.25l) water
6 cups (1 kg, 200g) sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoon Calvados, brandy, or Cognac

1. Rinse the apples and cut them coarsely into chunks, then put them and the cores and seeds, into a very large stockpot.

2. Add the water, cover, and bring to a boil. When bubbling, reduce the heat a bit, leave the lid askew, and cook for 20 to 30 minutes, until the apples are tender and cooked through.

3. Line a mesh colander with a piece of muslin cloth or a few folds of cheesecloth (or use a jelly bag and stand) and set it over a deep bowl, then ladle the apples and the liquid into the colanders. (I used two lined colanders since it was quite a bit of apples.)

4. Let stand overnight (or at least three hours), and no matter how tempting, do not press down at any time on the apples to extract more juice or the jelly will get cloudy.

5. The next day, measure out the juice. (See Note below about the apples.) You should have 8 cups (2l). Pour it into a stockpot fitted with a candy thermometer, add the sugar and lemon juice, and bring to a boil. During cooking, if any white scum rises to the surface, skim it off.

6. Cook until the temperature reaches 220ºF (104ºC). At that point, turn off the heat and begin testing the jelly on a chilled plate in the freezer, using the method mentioned in the headnote. When it wrinkles and holds its shape, it’s done. If not, continue to cook and re-test it at intervals. This batch set at 230ºF (110ºC).

7. Remove from heat, stir in the liquor, and ladle into clean jars, then cap tightly.

*** I copied this verbatim in a hurry from David Lebovitz's website while making the perfect jelly using this recipe. To view, please go to www.davidlebovitz.com.

I accidentally pushed Publish (rather than Save as intended) and it went live before I had a chance to edit and reference appropriately and make my own comments.
Sorry didn't mean to mislead anyone.The label in the photo is my own and used for selling my apple jelly at the Remarkables Market 12 March.

Elderberry syrup as seen at Remarkable Markets

Lieven’s elderberry syrup is the latest mouth-watering delicacy to come out of Britta Lieven’s kitchen in Arrowtown. (Click on photos to enlarge!)
















The flowers of the elder tree are long gone and berries are ripening, almost ready for making an age old favourite - elderberry syrup.
Traditionally served with Swedish dessert, I served it with an English dessert sillebab served with kiwifruit and it was a hit the other night.

It's one of many natural healing herbs and this syrup guarantees not only to liven up your pantry but will help keep you flu-free over winter.

I am following David Lebovitz's recipe, author of The Sweet Life in Paris who sums this recipe up perfectly as Respect Your Elderberries.

Elderberry Syrup
Makes 1 quart (1l)
Make sure the cookware you’re using is non-reactive and your clothes are stain-friendly. If you use an aluminium pot, it’ll get stained and the next batch of mashed potatoes you make may come out pink. Ditto for spatulas and anything else to plan to use to stir the syrup while it’s cooking.

If you live somewhere where huckleberries are available, you could use them instead.

2-pounds (1kg) elderberries (see note below), woody stems removed and rinsed
4 cups (1l) water
2½ (500g) cups sugar
one nice-sized squirt of freshly-squeezed lemon juice

1. Take the elderberries off the stems using a fork or use a juicer.
Put the elderberries in a large, non-reactive pot with the water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a low boil and cook for 15-20 minutes, until tender and soft.

2. Pass through a food mill, then discard the skins.

3. Pour the juice back into the pot (I use a fine-mesh strainer again at this point, but I’m crazy…), add sugar, and cook at a low boil over moderate heat for 15 minutes, until the syrup has thickened. Add a spritz of lemon juice. Cool completely.

4. Pour into a bottle or jar and store in the refrigerator.

Note: Some varieties of elderberries are not meant for consumption and none should be eaten raw, especially the leaves. I remove all of the hard, woody stems as well before cooking. For more information, Cornell University’s Department of Horticulture has guidelines, noting the fruits are used in “…pies, jellies and jams.” If you’re unsure if your elderberries are edible, consult your local cooperative extension before consuming.

Splash over a bowl of fresh fruit salad and muesli.

Drizzle over waffles, pancakes, French toast, ice cream or custard.
Add as a condiment to hot or cold lamb for a tasty dinner.
As a winter warmer pour over steaming hot porridge with full cream milk.


Makes a perfect après ski soothing hot toddy or a cold Swedish Kir with a glass of white bubbly wine.

Sillebab-Best summer dessert yet. And it's gd for u!

It won't leave you poorer and only your soul richer!
This dessert is so easy to make, not to mention on the cheap, and that's not all. It's good for you.

Ingredients
2-3 tbsp red wine
1.5 tbsp honey
2 tsp lemon rind
1 cup hazelnut or plain yoghurt
Pinch cinnamon

Method

Pour wine, honey, rind and whisk together. Then add yoghurt and cinnamon.
Perfect!