Monday 19 May 2008
Soozy's Steak Guinness and Maple Syrup Stew
I had some steak pieces I needed to use. Now what to make. I remembered I saw this recipe from SoozyB getting rave reviews on Vi's Pantry Foodie forum. It is wonderful. So simple. I have made stews with Guinness before and have sometimes found them just a tad bitter. Not so this one. The maple syrup adds another dimension. Not too sweet just simply mouthwatering. Perfect with home made hearth breads to mop up the gravy.
This is Soozy's recipe
You need a casserole or pot with a lid that goes in the oven.
Amounts are approximate
Stewing or casserole beef, trimmed of excess fat - about 750g
1 1/2 large onions chopped into largish pieces
6 large carrots, peeled, halved and each half cut into quarters lengthways - you want thick batons
A handful of mushrooms, halved
2 tblsp plain flour
olive oil
salt and pepper
a handful of dried mushrooms, soaked and chopped very finely (keep the soaking liquid)
2 good beef stock cubes
2 small tomatoes peeled and finely chopped
1 can Guinness
3 tblsp maple syrup
Here's what I did:
Cut the beef into cubes and toss in a bag with the flour and salt and pepper.
Fry in batches over a high heat in the oil until browned.
Keep to one side in a bowl.
Add a bit more oil and fry the onion until slightly coloured then add the carrots and mushrooms.
Toss about a bit in the oil and then add the beef and all it's juices back to the pan.
Add the strained mushroom liquid and the stock cubes, and stir well to scrape all the lovely bits off the bottom of the pan.
Pour in the Guinness, and add the maple syrup, chopped tomatoes and soaked and chopped mushrooms. Bring to a simmer and put the lid on. Put in the oven for at 160C for two hours or until the gravy has reduced and thickened and the meat is meltingly tender.
About 15 minutes before serving, add some halved and boiled new potatoes.
Serve in large warm bowls, with crusty bread to mop up the gravy.
Good filling stuff.
Thursday 15 May 2008
Home Made Beef Burgers
I love a beef burger. A decent home made beef burger that is. I'm afraid I wouldn't give the mass produced ones house room. I prefer to know what is in my food. These are delicious and very easy. Much tastier than the junk you buy in supermarkets. Really thick and juicy. Lovely grub.
The history of hamburgers is somewhat hazy and debatable since there is no clear documentation to chronicle its origin. However, many claim that the first hamburger 'patty' was born in medieval times when the Tartars (a band of Mongolian and Turkish warriors) placed pieces of beef under their saddles [This also happens to be the origin for the modern dish, beef tartare. ] . The meat, tenderised when the warriors rode, would then be eaten raw, oblivious of the dangers of food poisoning. The ancestor of the modern hamburger arrived at American shores in the 19th Century when German immigrants brought with them a dish called Hamburg style beef, which, in turn, had been brought to Hamburg from Russia some time around the 14th Century. It was in America that this raw, chopped piece of beef would evolve over time to become the succulent patty sandwiched in a bun that we call a hamburger.
This Recipe comes from Jamie's Dinners (Jamie Oliver). The only adjustment I made was to add a little chilli sauce to the mixture which gives a lovely flavour.
- 1kg/2lb 3oz chuck steak, or good minced steak
- 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
- olive oil
- a pinch of cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- sea salt and freshly ground
- black pepper
- a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 heaped tablespoon
- English mustard
- 1 large free-range egg
- 115g/4oz breadcrumbs
If you're using chuck steak to make your burgers, slice it up and pulse it in a food processor. Transfer the meat to a bowl. In a big frying pan, slowly cook the onion in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes until softened but not coloured. Add the onion to the meat - it will give sweetness to the burger. Using a pestle and mortar, bash up the cumin and coriander seeds with a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper until fine and add to the meat. Then add the Parmesan, mustard, egg and half the breadcrumbs and mix well. If the mixture is too sticky, add a few more breadcrumbs.
Lay some greaseproof paper on a tray or large plate and sprinkle over some of the remaining breadcrumbs. Shape the meat into 8 fat burgers and place these on top of the crumbs on the tray. Sprinkle more crumbs on top and press down gently. The burgers are better if they are chilled before cooking, so put them in the fridge for an hour or so. Take your burgers out of the fridge and fry them in a little oil on a medium to high heat for about 8 to 10 minutes.
Wednesday 14 May 2008
The Softest Bread
600gms/1lb 6oz white bread flour
400mls/14fl.oz tepid water
50gms/2oz lard melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teasps salt
One envelope or a teasp of fast action yeast.
Mix all the ingredients together and knead for ten minutes by hand/ five mins with a dough hook in the mixer/approx 1 minute in the food processor.
Form into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl covered with cling film and leave in a warm place until doubled in size-about an hour.
Flatten the dough on a lightly floured work surface to expel the air bubbles.
Roll out to form a rectangle approx 9"x15"/23cmsx40cms.
Fold in thirds like a business letter then roll out and fold again.
Flatten the dough to fit into the buttered floured pan.
The strong and compact dough should fill the pan about half way
Place another pan of the same size, well buttered, on top.
Leave to rise in a warm place for approx 1/2 -1 hour covered with the other tin. It should rise to nearly the top of the tin.
Bake in a pre-heated oven 200.C/400.F/Gas 6 for an hour.
Gently unmould onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
A wonderfully soft flavoursome loaf
Notes The pans I used measured 23.5x19.3x6.99cms/9.25x5.25x2.75 inches
You can substitute oil instead of lard but this will make a difference to the texture.
Remember lard has half the saturated fat of butter.
Sunday 11 May 2008
Cucumber,Ginger and Vanilla Jam
500gms Cucumber
80gms Ginger
1 Vanilla Pod
350gms jam Sugar
Weigh the sugar and put into a large saucepan
Cut the vanilla pod in two, de-seed and put pod and seeds into the sugar
Chop the cucumber into tiny cubes
Peel and cut the ginger into tiny pieces
Add both cucumber and ginger to the sugar and vanilla and mix well.
Leave for two hours
Bring to the boil stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Keep at a rolling boil for 7 minutes.
Pour into sterilised warm jars.
Note: If using granulated sugar it will take 15-20 minutes to reach a set.
Thursday 8 May 2008
Jamie's Fish with Leeks and Bacon
I like fish but I hate the bones. Any recipe for cod loins or salmon fillets I will go straight for as there are no problems with bones. This from Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie at Home' is right up my street. It is so quick and easy. I love the smoked bacon with the fish. It was only recently I discovered that it really is a very tasty combination. Any white fish can be used in this.
Roasted White Fish and Leeks
Serves 4
16 baby leeks washed and trimmed
4x200gm fillets of white fish
1 large lemon cut into 8 thin wedges
4 sprigs of rosemary
8 rashers of smoked streaky bacon
for the marinade
a couple of sprigs each of rosemary thyme and bay leaves.
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
juice of 1/2 a lemon
Preheat the oven to 200.c/400.f/gas6 and place a baking tray in the oven to warm up
To make the marinade bash up the thyme rosemary and bay leaves with the salt in a pestle and mortar until the salt has turned green. Pour in two glugs of olive oil, a pinch of pepper and the lemon juice and give it a stir.
Parboil the leeks in salted water for about three minutes. Drain in a colander and let them steam dry.
Put the fish, lemon, rosemary sprigs and leeks into a bowl. Pour in the marinade and toss to cover everything.
Place the fish into the preheated tray.
Scoop the lemon rosemary leeks and marinade out of the bowl and place over and around the fish and roast in the oven for approx. 15 -20mins until the fish is just cooked and the bacon is crisp.
Pile up on a plate and serve.
Sometimes I add a few prawns or scallops. Delicious
Wednesday 7 May 2008
Left Over Jewels
Mushroom Tomato and Feta Quiche
The original ‘quiche Lorraine’ was an open pie with a filling consisting of an egg and cream custard with smoked bacon. It was only later that cheese was added to the quiche Lorraine. Add onions and you have quiche Alsacienne. The bottom crust was originally made from bread dough, but that has long since evolved into a short-crust or puff pastry crust.
I have long looked for what to me is the perfect quiche or, savoury tart, and in this recipe I think I have found it. I used Angela Nilsen's The Ultimate Recipe Book for some tips and tricks. For instance milk should not be used in the custard as it makes it heavy. A mix of cream and and creme fraiche or sour cream gives it a wonderful silky softness. Grated cheese should not be incorporated into the custard as it makes it heavy and dense. Cubes or thin slices of cheese are the thing to use. A little grated parmesan or cheddar on the top while baking will turn it golden brown without over cooking the custard.
I have tried various mixes for the pastries but have found the plain half fat to flour basic shortcrust mix does just as well if not better than the richer varieties. It is easier to crisp up.
This recipe will make a 23cm/9inch quiche and give you about 8 slices.
Plain Shortcrust Pastry
225 gms/8oz flour
100gms/4oz butter very cold cut into cubes
Iced water to bind
Rich Shortcrust pastry
250gm/9oz flour
145gm /-5oz butter very cold cut into cubes
1 egg + 80ml v cold water
Filling
5-6 largeish mushrooms chopped (more if you like)
100gms/4 oz Feta Cheese chopped
6-8 sun dried tomatoes chopped
200mls double cream
200mls sour cream/creme fraiche
3 eggs well beaten
Grating of nutmeg
Good grind black pepper
1 Tblsp Tarragon vinegar
A little butter
Handful of grated parmesan
Pastry
Blend flour and butter to crumbs in processor
Add 1 egg(if using) + 80ml v cold water and pulse until dough forms into a ball.
Roll out to fit the tin, leave a little extra depth above the edge of the quiche pan to allow for shrinkage.
Prick the bottom with a fork, then chill the tart case in the freezer.
Heat Oven to 200.C/Fan180.C/Gas 6 and slip a baking sheet in
After about 30 minutes, cover the pastry in a layer of greaseproof paper or foil and put either baking stones, or dried beans on the top to keep the pastry down.
Bake in the oven on the baking sheet for 15 minutes or so.
Remove the beans and paper an pop the tart case back in the oven for 4-5mins
Filling
Prepare while tart case is baking
Melt the butter in a pan add the mushrooms and tarragon vinegar and allow to just cook. Remove from heat and set aside
Beat the sour cream/creme fraiche and cream together and beat in the eggs adding a good grind of pepper and grated nutmeg.
Place the mushrooms chopped feta cheese and tomatoes in the base of the tart case
Pull the oven shelf out a wee bit and place the tart back on the baking sheet. (This method makes it easier to fill the case)
Gently pour the egg mix into the case until full to the top.
Scatter Parmesan over the surface.
Lower oven temp to 190.C/Fan170.C/Gas5
Bake for about 25 mins or until golden and softly set. The centre should not feel too firm
Allow to settle for 5 mins before removing from the tin.
I do find the semi-dried tomatoes that I make myself work really well in this but shop bought sun dried tomatoes will do. If you use fresh tomatoes remove some of the seeds and core
Tuesday 6 May 2008
Perfect Spring Day
The cherry blossom is just at it's best. It lasts such a short time but it is oh so pretty. In another few days it will blow across the lawn like pink confetti. Come Autumn it's leaves will turn scarlet and gold a final show of beauty before the winter settles in
Monday 5 May 2008
Simply Salmon
The lemon and parsley butter is really just a nob of butter with a couple of sprigs of parsley and the zest of a lemon popped on top.
Vanilla Shorties
The recipe was the same basic recipe I use for shortbread. It called for vanilla flavoured confectioner's sugar. I was unsure if this was our icing sugar or caster sugar although I have a feeling it is the former. I did not have vanilla flavoured icing sugar so I used the vanilla flavoured caster sugar I had. This is my version of the recipe.
Vanilla Shorties
225gms/8oz soft butter
100gms/4oz vanilla bean infused caster sugar
1 vanilla pod
225gms/8oz plain flour
100gms/4oz cornflour
Preheat oven to 150.C/300°F/Gas 2
Cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and the seeds from one vanilla pod and beat until smooth.
Add the flour and cornflour and mix to a dough. Using your hands at the end to combine is the easiest option as it is quite crumby
Roll out until about 1/2 cm thick
Cut into shapes of your choice
Bake at for about 25 minutes (better to under bake then over bake), or until bottoms just begin to brown.
Cool for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
When biscuits have cooled spread them with a thin layer of vanilla icing.
Vanilla Icing
225gms/8oz icing sugar sugar
2 tsp cream and 2 teasps milk combined
¼ teaspoon vanilla paste
Combine in a small bowl, adding more milk to reach desired consistency.
Makes about 24 biscuits
The oven temperature was a lot cooler than I would normally bake shortbread but LisaRene advised this to keep the shortbread pale. It worked very well and the biscuits were still lovely and crisp.
Thursday 1 May 2008
Spring Beauty
Winter heathers fade, April gives way to May and this wonderful rhododendron turns from a mass of dull green leaves into a profusion of gorgeous pink flowers. It is the first burst of colour in my garden and it never fails to thrill me. It heralds the arrival of summer along with the swallows who have finally finished their long journey north.