After a further hour, check that everything is cooked; drain the cooking liquor into a saucepan, season with gravy granules and thicken with cornflour. Return the gravy to the dish and serve. Yum!
Friday, 14 October 2011
Braised Beef Casserole
I had some button mushrooms in the fridge which had seen better days; I also had some (pickling) onions - picked up at a reduced price on the first day of trading at the new Morrisons - plus some cauliflower, broccoli and some carrots given to me by Hannah's ma. Real stew (or casserole) fare...... What did suprise me, when I popped the 200 yards to the supermarket, was that silverside was a £1 cheaper per kilo than skirt. I cut the meat into 2cm-thick slices, sealed the steaks in a hot pan, deglazed with some lightly salted water, and into a closed casserole on a bed of mushrooms. Cook in a medium oven (Mark 5) for about an hour, add the peeled onions and top with sliced potatoes.
After a further hour, check that everything is cooked; drain the cooking liquor into a saucepan, season with gravy granules and thicken with cornflour. Return the gravy to the dish and serve. Yum!
After a further hour, check that everything is cooked; drain the cooking liquor into a saucepan, season with gravy granules and thicken with cornflour. Return the gravy to the dish and serve. Yum!
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Garlic Mushroom & Carrot Salad
I bought the mushrooms thinking that October was going to be stews and casserole weather......
The recipe itself was devised after being served something very similar recently by my old friend (and chef extraordinaire) Pete Horsley.
2 handfuls of button mushrooms, wiped clean, in a marinade of 1 dstsp of olive oil, 1 dstsp of sesame oil, 1 tsp crushed garlic, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp balsamic vinegar and a pinch of S+P.
Marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours and add 2 heaped dstsp of grated carrot about 15 minutes before service. Enough for 2 people.
The recipe itself was devised after being served something very similar recently by my old friend (and chef extraordinaire) Pete Horsley.
2 handfuls of button mushrooms, wiped clean, in a marinade of 1 dstsp of olive oil, 1 dstsp of sesame oil, 1 tsp crushed garlic, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp balsamic vinegar and a pinch of S+P.
Marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours and add 2 heaped dstsp of grated carrot about 15 minutes before service. Enough for 2 people.
Friday, 26 August 2011
Basket Case
The-girl-who-came-to-dinner was back on the unposh side of the Mersey tonight - scrounging tea off some old friends - so I was able to indulge myself with shellfish and carrots: one she's allergic to, and the other she simply has a phobia about! This was really just scampi and chips with coleslaw - but everything with a twist.
I can't take any credit for the breaded prawns with coconut - Hannah introduced me to this wonderful cut-price emporium in Old Swan, which I now find irrestible. I mean, 50p for a bag of scampi!
Instead of chips I went for home-made crisps, served hot. In one of those "do as I say, not as I do" commands, if you're not as impatient as me you will lightly-salt the cut potatoes about an hour before eating.
Drain and pat dry before deep-frying on about 130 for 3 minutes, shaking well to separate the crisps. Drain again, whack the heat up to 180-190 and fry until golden-brown and crispy. Mine were a little too starchy and some of them stuck together.
The coleslaw used red cabbage as the base and was nicely spicy: one handful of shredded cabbage with one medium carrot grated or shredded - I use a potato peeler - and half a red onion, thinly sliced. For the dressing mix 2 dessertspoons of mayonnaise with 1 dessertspoon of Tommy K, 1 dessertspoon of sesame oil, 2 shakes of Worcestershire sauce and 2 shakes of Tabasco.
The dip for the prawns/scampi was created from 1 dessertspoon of sour cream blended with a few drops of coconut essence.
There you have it: bachelor's dinner for one!
I can't take any credit for the breaded prawns with coconut - Hannah introduced me to this wonderful cut-price emporium in Old Swan, which I now find irrestible. I mean, 50p for a bag of scampi!
Instead of chips I went for home-made crisps, served hot. In one of those "do as I say, not as I do" commands, if you're not as impatient as me you will lightly-salt the cut potatoes about an hour before eating.
Drain and pat dry before deep-frying on about 130 for 3 minutes, shaking well to separate the crisps. Drain again, whack the heat up to 180-190 and fry until golden-brown and crispy. Mine were a little too starchy and some of them stuck together.
The coleslaw used red cabbage as the base and was nicely spicy: one handful of shredded cabbage with one medium carrot grated or shredded - I use a potato peeler - and half a red onion, thinly sliced. For the dressing mix 2 dessertspoons of mayonnaise with 1 dessertspoon of Tommy K, 1 dessertspoon of sesame oil, 2 shakes of Worcestershire sauce and 2 shakes of Tabasco.
The dip for the prawns/scampi was created from 1 dessertspoon of sour cream blended with a few drops of coconut essence.
There you have it: bachelor's dinner for one!
Wednesday, 24 August 2011
Pot-roast rump steak & fake-fondant potatoes
Rump steak is one of those cuts that I don't think is usually good enough to grill or fry so I only tend to buy it when it's reduced - this batch from the Co-ey was £2.29 for about a pound; the potatoes and the green beans were heavily marked-down too!
The simplest dishes are often the best - I'd pot-roasted the meat two days earlier, kept it in the casserole dish in the fridge, and then cooked for a further half hour before serving with sort of fondant potatoes, braised celery and sliced runner beans.
The simplest dishes are often the best - I'd pot-roasted the meat two days earlier, kept it in the casserole dish in the fridge, and then cooked for a further half hour before serving with sort of fondant potatoes, braised celery and sliced runner beans.
Seal the meat in a hot wok, lightly oiled
Put on top of some sliced onion and deglaze the pan with a little salted water.
Cover and bake for about one-and-a-half hours
On the day of eating I set the meat on one side, fried some mushrooms in a little oil, added the cooked onions and stock before topping up with some thick gravy. Return the meat to the casserole dish, cover with gravy and with the lid on bake for half an hour in a hot oven.
The potatoes were scrubbed, topped and tailed and cut into thick slices. They were baked (uncovered) in some fatty chicken stock, enough to just cover, for about an hour in a hot oven. I had to top the liquid up a couple of times. The celery was braised in a little water with added veg bouillon, covered, in a hot oven for about 45 minutes. The beans were just cooked to al dente in hot water.
Another success!
Monday, 22 August 2011
Shepherd's Moussaka Delight
I've rather neglected this blog recently - too busy cooking and eating the results with my unpaid dessert-chefess, I guess. I do have the gastroporn pictures, however!
Dinner last night was constructed from leftovers - "the-girl-who-came-to-dinner" was back on her own side of the Mersey, with other fish to fry (metaphorically-speaking) - though I knew it was a dish she would have loved too. On Saturday night we'd had a duo of lamb - braised Barnsley chop and minty mince - with roasted new potatoes and a selection of fresh veg, but there was some mince left.
I fried up some more onions with a small handful of diced aubergine and sweet red peppers, and a good dollop of minced garlic.
When the veg were softened I added added the mince, a pinch more dried mint, some tomato puree and a little water to moisten. In the meanwhile I had boiled up some sweet potatoes in a little salted water, and when soft had drained and mashed them.
With the mince on the bottom, a layer of sweet potato above, I topped the whole lot off with some grated cheddar (as in Shepherd's Delight) and baked in a hot oven for 30 minutes.
Salad was built around olives and chick peas with a simple lemon, olive oil, garlic and sea-salt dressing.
Dinner last night was constructed from leftovers - "the-girl-who-came-to-dinner" was back on her own side of the Mersey, with other fish to fry (metaphorically-speaking) - though I knew it was a dish she would have loved too. On Saturday night we'd had a duo of lamb - braised Barnsley chop and minty mince - with roasted new potatoes and a selection of fresh veg, but there was some mince left.
I fried up some more onions with a small handful of diced aubergine and sweet red peppers, and a good dollop of minced garlic.
When the veg were softened I added added the mince, a pinch more dried mint, some tomato puree and a little water to moisten. In the meanwhile I had boiled up some sweet potatoes in a little salted water, and when soft had drained and mashed them.
With the mince on the bottom, a layer of sweet potato above, I topped the whole lot off with some grated cheddar (as in Shepherd's Delight) and baked in a hot oven for 30 minutes.
Salad was built around olives and chick peas with a simple lemon, olive oil, garlic and sea-salt dressing.
Monday, 4 July 2011
Seared garlic sausage & a trio of salads
With the sausage de nos jours being "pan-fried chorizo", to be contrary I went back to the exotic wurst of childhood delicatessen shops. For a contemporary twist, however, I seared the thickish slices in a smoking hot wok.
The white beetroot and horseradish salad was, again, a response to my childhood: on my yiddisher grandmother's table at every meal was a condiment called "Chrain", made from a coarse puree of beetroot and horseradish. The taste has remained with me, one of my favourite vegetable dishes being beetroot and horseradish dauphinoise. The salad is simplicity - skin the beetroot with a potato peeler or a knife, cut into small dice and nuke for 3 minutes in a closed casserole dish. Refresh under cold water and mix with equal parts of mayo and creamed horseradish sauce.
To pep up a simple potato salad - Jersey Royals scraped after boiling and refreshing - I added to the mayonnaise a spoonful chives preserved in olive oil that I keep as a staple in the larder.
The final salad was a sort of kitchen sink one: lettuce, tomato, cucumber, celery, onion, mixed peppers and baby sweetcorn with a bog-standard French dressing (home-made, of course!).
Full now!
The white beetroot and horseradish salad was, again, a response to my childhood: on my yiddisher grandmother's table at every meal was a condiment called "Chrain", made from a coarse puree of beetroot and horseradish. The taste has remained with me, one of my favourite vegetable dishes being beetroot and horseradish dauphinoise. The salad is simplicity - skin the beetroot with a potato peeler or a knife, cut into small dice and nuke for 3 minutes in a closed casserole dish. Refresh under cold water and mix with equal parts of mayo and creamed horseradish sauce.
To pep up a simple potato salad - Jersey Royals scraped after boiling and refreshing - I added to the mayonnaise a spoonful chives preserved in olive oil that I keep as a staple in the larder.
The final salad was a sort of kitchen sink one: lettuce, tomato, cucumber, celery, onion, mixed peppers and baby sweetcorn with a bog-standard French dressing (home-made, of course!).
Full now!
Friday, 1 July 2011
Pork & Beef Arrabbiata with Cannellini Beans
What was going to be a quick and simple "High Tea" before going out to the theatre to see the new musical "Life" by Brian McCann turned into a full-on three course dinner.
Hannah said she'd been put off avocado by her mother's method of using it in salads - but she was willing to try mine; as she has a shellfish allergy, the staple with Prawns Marie Rose was out. However as my guest had (pleasant) dreams about my tarragon and lemon mayonnaise I decided to do another variation - with tomato ketchup - and diced crispy bacon. I think I went a bit overboard on the salad garnish!
The options for the main course were a chilli, a bolognese or a curry. In the end - to surprise - I went for a cross between the first two: pork and beef mince hotted-up with arrabbiata spices, rounded with bolognese herbs, and finished with cannellini beans.
For enough to serve 4: Soften 4 handfuls of chopped onion with 1 big handful of mixed peppers. Add 500g of beef and pork mince (Asda), a handful of diced courgette, 2 handfuls of chopped mushrooms and 2 dstsp of crushed garlic. Stir-fry until the meat begins to colour and add 1 dstsp of Arrabbiata spice mix (salt, tomato powder, garlic, pepper, pimento, sugar, cayenne, paprika, oregano, basol and cloves) and half a tsp of cayenne pepper. Stir in 250 ml of tomato juice and add 1 dstsp of tomato purée, 1 dstsp oregano, 1 dstsp basil, 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp sweet chilli sauce, 1 scant tsp sugar and a little salt to taste. Simmer on low for about 10-15 minutes.
Add 2 big handfuls of cooked cannellini beans, heat through and serve. We had ours with plain rice, though in retrospect I think tagliatelle might have worked even better.
My unpaid patisserie chef/baker had arrived with some meringues made overnight, a big tub of double cream and some amaretti biscuits. Plus a loaf of her home-made wholemeal bread, which we ate throughtout the meal. She turned a couple of fresh peaches of mine - on their last legs - together with some of the crushed biscuits and stiffly whipped cream into a stunning pavlova each.
The play was absolutely brillliant!
Hannah said she'd been put off avocado by her mother's method of using it in salads - but she was willing to try mine; as she has a shellfish allergy, the staple with Prawns Marie Rose was out. However as my guest had (pleasant) dreams about my tarragon and lemon mayonnaise I decided to do another variation - with tomato ketchup - and diced crispy bacon. I think I went a bit overboard on the salad garnish!
The options for the main course were a chilli, a bolognese or a curry. In the end - to surprise - I went for a cross between the first two: pork and beef mince hotted-up with arrabbiata spices, rounded with bolognese herbs, and finished with cannellini beans.
For enough to serve 4: Soften 4 handfuls of chopped onion with 1 big handful of mixed peppers. Add 500g of beef and pork mince (Asda), a handful of diced courgette, 2 handfuls of chopped mushrooms and 2 dstsp of crushed garlic. Stir-fry until the meat begins to colour and add 1 dstsp of Arrabbiata spice mix (salt, tomato powder, garlic, pepper, pimento, sugar, cayenne, paprika, oregano, basol and cloves) and half a tsp of cayenne pepper. Stir in 250 ml of tomato juice and add 1 dstsp of tomato purée, 1 dstsp oregano, 1 dstsp basil, 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp sweet chilli sauce, 1 scant tsp sugar and a little salt to taste. Simmer on low for about 10-15 minutes.
Add 2 big handfuls of cooked cannellini beans, heat through and serve. We had ours with plain rice, though in retrospect I think tagliatelle might have worked even better.
My unpaid patisserie chef/baker had arrived with some meringues made overnight, a big tub of double cream and some amaretti biscuits. Plus a loaf of her home-made wholemeal bread, which we ate throughtout the meal. She turned a couple of fresh peaches of mine - on their last legs - together with some of the crushed biscuits and stiffly whipped cream into a stunning pavlova each.
The play was absolutely brillliant!
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