Creamy Potato Bisque

Sunday, February 24, 2008

• 6 Tbl butter
• 1 large onion
• 1 cup chopped celery (including some leaves)
• 4 cups peeled, diced thin-skinned potatoes
• ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp freshly ground pepper
• 4 cups chicken stock or broth
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 cups nonfat milk
• 3 Tbl cornstarch
• ¼ cup water
• Finely chopped parsley

1. In a 5- to 6-quart pan, melt 4 Tbl of the butter over medium heat. Add onion and celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is very soft (about 15 minutes). Add potatoes, the ¼ cup parsley, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp of the pepper, and stock.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender (about 30 minutes).
3. Stir in heavy whipping cream and milk, and heat, covered, until steaming (do not boil).
4. Stir together cornstarch and water, and add to soup. Continue cooking and stirring until soup boils and thickens. Season to taste with more salt and freshly ground pepper, if desired.
5. Just before serving, pour soup into a tureen, float remaining 2 Tbl butter on top, and sprinkle with parsley.

Footnote: Serves 6 to 8.

flapjack

Monday, January 21, 2008

get your oats! this is a great snack that gives lots of energy!



ingredients
125 g butter
125 g demerara sugar
5 T golden syrup (maple as a substitute?)
225 g porrage oats
1 tsp ground ginger
raisins, cranberries



to do

1. oven 190 C, 375 F. grease 20 cm sandwich tin.
2. melt butter in pan and stir in sugar and syrup. add oats and ginger; mix well.
3. use back of metal spoon to press mixture evenly over the base of the tin and smooth over.
4. bake for 20 min. cool for 15 min then score into 8 wedges.
5. cool completely, turn out and break into wedges.

rhubarb fool

"what you looking at foo!?" fantastic healthy dessert!! (from sainsbury's magazine)

ingredients


350 g rhubarb, trimmed and chunked
few drops water
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 T golden caster sugar
2 cardamom pod
300 g fat free Greek yogurt

to do

oven 180 C. sprinkle rhubarb with water, vanilla and suar. bake 25 min, until soft. split open cardamom pods and crush with morar and pestle. let rhubarb cool and then (use slotted spoon) and but to blender until pureed. fold into yogurt. spoon into glasses and sprinkle with cardamom.

Plum Cake

Sunday, September 16, 2007

we had lots of plums from simon's nana so i made plum cake (who's heard of that before?!) today (adapted from bbc recipe)

ingredients

• 150 g butter softened
• 150 g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 75 g plain flour
• 1.5 t baking powder
• 75 g minced almonds
• 75 g chopped pecans
• 30-40 tiny plums or 15 normal sized plums; pitted and halved (or quarted if using big plums)
• powdered sugar for decorating top
• whip cream to serve

to do

1. heat oven 180 c / 355 f; line base of 20 cm deep (6 cm) cake tin (i used round) with baking paper
2. beat butter and sugar with mixer
3. break eggs and beat with fork then add slower to butter/sugar and continue using mixer
4. mix flour and baking powder and then fold into the butter/sugar/egg mix slowly
5. fold in nuts
6. spread into pan and add plums (you can be clumsy if you want) on top
7. cook for 45 min (until tooth pick comes out of center clean)
8. flip upside down onto plate, add powdered sugar
9. serve with whip cream on top or side

Italian White Beans (with sausage)

this is a great and healthy recipe! influenced by jamie oliver again, i think i'll have a lot of this italian beauty in the winter. a real tummy warmer and makes the house smell lovely! i can't believe how simple it is too. about 5 minutes actual work in total!

to make it healthier, omit the sausage and either have it on it's own or add some fish at the end.

serves a hungry 2

ingredients

• 2 cups white beans (not sure what kind i used)
• potato
• tomato
• celerey stick
• bundle of fresh herbs-- rosemary, thyme, parsley, anything goes!
• 2 cloves garlic
• optional-- 4 sausage links
• s & p
• 4 handfuls fresh spinach leaves
• parmasean

to do

1. soak beans night before
2. put beans in pot and add enough water so the beans come up half of water level
3. boil the following until beans are soft (about 1.5 hr): beans, potato (maybe cut in half), tomato, garlic (skinned and whole), herb bundle, celery, sausages cut into thick slices
4. discard herbs and celery; may need to remove some water, depending on how liquidy you want it (we ate it on plates, but would be lovely as stew in bowls)
5. remove tomato, garlic and potato and mash with fork; return puree to beans and boil down the remaining liquid until nice consistancy
6. add s & p and spinach leaves until slightly wilted, remove from heat and serve!
7. parmasean would be great on top!
   

Midwest Chili

Monday, September 03, 2007

• 3 lbs beef chuck, coarse chili grind
• 2 lbs beef chuck, hamburger grind
• 2 large onions, coarsely chopped
• 5 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 Tbl ground hot red chile
• 5 Tbl ground mild red chile
• 3 Tbl ground cumin
• 3 tsp salt
• 3 c water
• 2 15-oz cans tomato sauce
• 2 28-oz cans peeled whole tomatoes
• 4 c freshly cooked pinto beans, drained (or 2 16-oz cans)

1. Add the meat, onions, and garlic to a heavy 5-quart pot or Dutch oven. Break up any lumps with a fork and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the meat is evenly browned.
2. Stir in the ground chile, cumin, and salt, thoroughly blending the mixture. Add the water, tomato sauce, and tomatoes, mashing them with a fork.
3. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 1-1/2 hours. Stir occasionally.
4. Taste and adjust seasonings. Stir in the beans and simmer, uncovered, 1/2 hour longer.

Footnote: Easy to prepare, this chili recipe calls for a combination of coarsely ground and finely ground meat, giving the finished product a nice texture. You might like to substitute butter beans for the pinto beans as some Midwesterners do.

After trying this, I felt that less water should have been added--maybe 1 cup--since lots of liquid is liberated when cooking the onions. The result would be a heartier, less soupy, chili.

Being a chilihead, I also felt that the hot red chile could be increased by a factor of 4 - 8!

Enjoy with a hearty beer (ale, stout), and your favorite shredded cheese on top. Serves 10 to 12.

Chicken Braised in Balsamic Vinegar

• 1 (3- to 4-pound) frying chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 2 Tbl olive oil
• 2 slices bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 large shallots, cut into halves
• 4 carrots, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 - 2 Tbl flour
• 1/2 c chicken stock or broth
• 1/4 c balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 c Zinfandel
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 Tbl chopped Italian parsley for garnish

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Rinse the chicken and pat dry; season with salt and pepper. Brown in the heated olive oil in a 10- to 12-inch Dutch oven or oven-proof skillet. Remove the chicken to a dish and drain all but 2 Tbl of the drippings from the Dutch oven.
   
2. Add the bacon, onion, shallots, carrots, and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes or until the onion begins to become tender, stirring constanttly. Sprinkle with the flour and mix well. Stir in the chicken stock or broth, vinegar, wine, and bay leaf. Add all the chicken pieces but the breast pieces.
3. Braise, covered, in the oven for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, and add the chicken breast pieces. Braise, uncovered, for 20 minutes longer. Serve over egg noodles or rice, discarding the bay leaf; garnish with the parsley.

Footnote: This recipe goes well with a glass of Zinfandel. Balsamic vinegar is concentrated by aging it in various kinds of wood barrels. The resulting flavor is too sweet for many red wines, but Zinfandel has the fruitiness to handle it. Serves four.