Wonderfully Tender Pork Spare Ribs

I made this to go with some braised chicken wings the other night. I have been making my ribs this way for years ever since Spain when I learnt how our local Chinese restaurant made theirs. I had made ribs many times but it was pretty hit and miss with recipes, sometimes they were tender other times really tough. I was throwing a large party for about 30-40 people and decided to make ribs as one of the many dishes on the menu that day. I went and asked my chinese restaurant could I buy some meat from them as I assumed they must just get great cuts of ribs. Anyway the husband said yes but because of the quantity I was after could I come back in 15 min's while he prepared them. When I returned it was his wife that gave them to me so I decided to ask was it just your meat or is there some trick, that is when she told me she cooked them in seasoned water for 90 min's on a low heat in until you could pull the meat from the bone, drained them and fried quickly in a little oil. Well she never told me what she seasoned them with so I came up with a concotion and everytime they come out wonderfully tender, just serve with your favourite dipping.

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Ingredients

5 Large ribs, chopped in half to make 10 (I get my butcher to do this.)
11/2 Litres water
1 Generous teaspoon beef stock granules
1/2 Teaspoon five spice powder
2-3 Tablespoons peanut oil

Dipping Sauce

2 Tablespoons light soy sauce
50ml water
100ml hoisin sauce (I use blue dragon brand)
1 Teaspoon sugar
1 Teaspoon fresh ginger grated
2 Tablespoons dry sherry

Method

1. Bring water, stock and five spice to the boil, add ribs and turn heat down to low and cook for about 90 Min's until pork can be pulled from the bone.

2. Drain pork, heat oil in a fry pan and fry pork on all sides to brown, serve immediately.

Sauce

1. Combine all the ingredients in a pan and bring to the boil, serve ribs with sauce on the side.

I served my ribs with this sauce and sweet chili sauce so serve with whatever you enjoy.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Braised Chicken Wings

I made 2 dishes last night these and also tender ribs which I will be posting shortly they were both great. I just served them with a nice side salad as it had been such a hot day and it was nice and cooling to have these served with salad. I was only cooking for 3 so I did 10 wings cut in half and 5 large ribs chopped in half to make 10 and this perfect for us, so just adjust for how many you are serving. If you wanted to make these for 4 and were not making ribs as well I would allow for 3 wings per person, so a total of 12 chopped in half and I would make some stir fried rice to accompany. The sauce ingredients I have listed below would be plenty for the extra chicken. If serving with other asian dishes 12 wings would be about right for 6 people and this would also be the case if serving as a stater with no rice. It really just depends in appetites so adjust accordingly.

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Ingredients

12 Chicken wings, cut in half, tips removed if not already
5 Whole dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in water to soften
2 Tablespoons peanut oil
2 Green onions, finely chopped
2 Teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons dry sherry
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 Teaspoon five spice powder
1 Cup water
2 Teaspoons cornflour
250 Bean sprouts (optional to serve chicken over)

Method

1. Drain mushrooms, squeeze out excess water, discard stems and slice caps.

2. Heat oil in a wok until it just reaches smoking point, add chicken, onions and ginger. Stir fry until chicken just changes colour, add soy sauce, sherry, sugar, five spice powder and water.

3. Turn down the heat and cook gently about 15-20 min's until chicken is cooked through, add mushrooms, stir fry a few minutes more.

4. While chicken is cooking, if making bean sprouts heat a small amount of oil in another pan, cook, turning and stirring occasionally until sprouts are just soft.

5. Remove chicken from wok and keep warm, mix a little water with corn flour add to sauce and stir until mixture boils and thickens.

To Serve: Place sprouts on a serving platter top with chicken and pour sauce over, serve immediately. Garnish with extra green onions if so desired.

All photos taken by me unless otherwsie stated.

Mussels in Black Bean Sauce

Here is another quick and easy recipe that is reasonably priced to cook, as mussels are not expensive and it tastes wonderful as well as being nutritious. I cooked my mussels seperately in water then added them to the wok to toss in sauce and heat through. My mussels were very dirty with thick beards so I removed and cleaned them as best I could and cooked them seperately so I did not end up with any grit in my stir fry. That and there is not much liquid to cook them in the sauce, if using smaller mussels you could add these to the wok and cover with a lid and they will open. I had very large mussels from Spain as that was all that was available. but I have to say were delicious compaired with the usual ones I buy.

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Ingredients

1.4kg Mussels
1 Tablespoon peanut oil
2 Teaspoons fresh grated ginger
4 Cloves garlic, crushed
6 Green onions
2 Red chilies, chopped finely (add as many or few seeds as you like.)
50ml Black bean sauce
2 Tablespoons fish sauce
100ml Water
2 Teaspoons sugar
1/2 Cup fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

1. Scrub mussels under cold water, remove beards. Add to boiling pot of water cover and cook 5 Min's or until mussels open, drain, discrad any that don't open, cover and set to one side.

2. Heat oil in a wok, add ginger, garlic, onions and chilies, stir fry until fragrant, add sauces, water and sugar stir to combine, add mussels cover stir occasionaly to heat through, stir in coriander, serve immediately.

I served mine with a nice side salad.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Asian Style Snapper/Bream in Banana Leaves

You can make this with snapper or bream and it works equally as well, I have made with both, last night I made it with bream. Banana leaves a great way to cook fish especially if cooking the fish on the BBQ, I cooked it in the oven last night. I served this with Asian style vegetables and I cooked 2 fish,of about 750g a piece to serve 4 or if your fish are smaller you can cook 4 individual fillets. Cooking times are based on my oven temperature, not a BBQ and you will have to adjust if doing them on the BBQ, mine gets very hot and cooks about 5-10 Min's quicker on the BBQ, if cooking on the BBQ, cook with a covered BBQ, using indirect heat.

Banana leaves are available at most Asian grocery stores, I find they sell them in quite large packets, just as a note banana leaves can be frozen as long as intended use is for frying or cooking fish like this and not to use for display purposes. Please feel free to play with veg ingredients a lot of what I added was just what I had to use up. The weights are just a rough guess, taking total weight and judging what I thought was left I don't think they would be too far off, really just to let you know you can use whatever you have on hand or your favourite.

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Ingredients

2 Large banana leaves (big enough to completely enclose fish.)
2 Whole bream or Snapper (750g a piece.)
11/2-2 Teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1/2 Stick lemon grass, sliced thinly
2 Cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tablespoon lime juice
2 Tablespoons light soy sauce
60ml Sweet chili sauce
1 Teaspoon sesame oil

Vegetables

1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Cloves garlic, crushed
2 Teaspoons fresh grated ginger
1 Teaspoon sesame oil
1 Medium red pepper, sliced thinly
1 Carrot, cut into sticks
3-4 Tablespoons of reserved sauce
150g Asian cabbage
80g Snow peas
80g Red Cabbage
200g Bean sprouts
4 Green onions, sliced thinly

Optional extra sauce

2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
2 Teaspoons light soy sauce
2 Teaspoons lime juice

Method

1. Using tongs dip each banana leaf one by one into boiling water, remove immediately, rinse under cold water, dry thoroughly, leaves should be soft and pliable.

2. Cut each fish 3 times, place each fish on a leaf, top each fish with lemon grass and garlic.

3. Combine garlic, juice, sauces and oil, drizzle a little sauce over each fish reserving about 3-4 tablespoons for the vegeatbles.

4. Fold leaves over fish and secure with kitchen string. Place parcels in a pre-heated oven of 180 degress celsius and cook for 25-30 min's or until cooked through.

5. Alternativley which I love banana leaves for, cook on the BBQ, covered, using indirect heat for about 20-25 Min's. (I find it takes me 30 Min's in my oven and about 20 Min's on the BBQ, but I do have an extremely hot BBQ, I do not know how 4 smaller fish fillets affects the time as I have only cooked 2 larger fish.)

The banana leaves will get quite crispy and may even burn in places, they will stay quite moist underneath as the juices run from fish and sauce. For presentation purposes I keep 2 banana leaves to use as the base to serve fish on after.

Vegetables

1. Heat olive oil in a wok or large pan, add garlic and ginger and stir fry until fragrant.

2. Add pepper, carrot and sesame oil, stir fry 2-3 Minutes, add both cabbages, peas, sprouts and reserved sauce. Stir fry until vegetables are just tender serve immediately with fish.

Extra sauce

Just an optional extra if you prefer to have a little more sauce to drizzle over fish once served.

1. Combine the 3 ingredients in a small microwave safe bowl and microwave 30-45 seconds to just warm through.

To Serve: I place a banana leaf on a serving platter top with whole fish, I pour remaining juice and sauce from the bananan leaf fish was cooked in over fish, and arrange the vegetables around the fish, garnish with sliced onions.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Char Siu Pork Corn and Bok Choy Stir Fry

Here is another wok recipe I like stir fry's as they are quick, easy and reasonably priced to prepare and they are a great way to use up your left over vegetables in a nutritious meal. I served as is but it would go well with steamed rice, as I said yesterday we are watching our carb intake at the moment. This again would serve 3 good portions 4 smaller ones as is, or 4 good portions if served with rice.

Note: Char Siu Sauce also know as chinese BBQ sauce. It is a paste like ingredient that is dark-red-brown in colour and has a sweet and spicy flavour. Made from fermented soy beans, honey and various spices.

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Ingredients

2 Tablespoons peanut oil
600g Pork fillets, sliced thinly
2 Cloves garlic, crushed
2 Red chilis, chopped finely (add as many or as few seeds as you want.)
1 Onion, sliced thinly
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
2 Teaspoons lime juice
1 Carrot, cut into matchsticks
120g Baby corn, halved
300g Baby bok choy, chopped coarsley
50g Snow peas, trimmed
120g Bean sprouts
4 Tablespoons char siu sauce

Method

1. Heat 1 tabelspoon of oil in a wok and cook pork until browned all over, remove, set to one side.

2. Heat remaining oil in same wok add onion, garlic and chili stir fry a couple of Min's until onion softens, add soy, lime juice and carrot stir fry 1 minute.

3. Return pork to pan, stir fry 1 minute more, add bok choy, corn and char siu sauce, stir fry a couple of minutes, add peas and sprouts, stir fry until vegetables are just tender and heated through.

To Serve: Serve as is for a low carb meal or over rice.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Ginger Plum Chicken Stir Fry

As you will have seen from my previous post I am trying to throw in a few quick easy and budget friendly recipes into the mix. I cook a lot of Asian meals so I always have certain spices and sauces on hand if you are not big on that then these would not be cheaper for you to prepare as you would have to buy all the sauces.

I served this as is, it is enough for 3 generous portions or 4 smaller ones, if you want to make it a definite hearty meal for 4 just add about 300-400g noodles, my hubby and I are watching our carb intake at the moment so I do not serve a lot of meals with rice or noodles. It also makes it harder for me to cook super cheap as the most economical cooking is good old fashioned pasta's, not only are these quick and easy to preapre, but cost so much less and are very satisfying. I have to think of alternative ideas that still give you a satisfying, filling meal without loads of carbs and not very expensive.

Hence I cook a lot stir fry's as these are quick and easy to make and I have most of the ingredients on hand. This is a yummy stir fry of chicken with plum and chili sauces, if you want to make this even quicker you could just buy a big bag of mixed asain stir fry veg to add, I had vegetables I needed to use up, I think that is the beauty of a stir fry they are so versatile and you can add any veg you like.

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Ingredients

Olive oil
700g Chicken breasts, sliced thinly
1 Onion, sliced thinly
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
2 Teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
2 Red chilis, chopped finely or sliced thinly (add as many or few seeds as you want.)
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
200g Green cabbage, shredded (I used and asian cabbage.)
2 Small carrots, cut into matchsticks
5 Broccoli florets, chopped
50g Snow peas, trimmed
120g Bean sprouts
8 Dried whole shiitake mushrooms, soaked, sliced thinly
3 Tablespoons sweet chili sauce
3 Tablespoons plum sauce
2 Green onions, sliced thinly

Method

1. Heat some oil in a wok stir fry chicken in batches until browned all over, adding oil as needed, set to one side, wipe wok clean.

2. Add about 1 tablespoon more of oil add onion, garlic, ginger and chili to wok stir fry until onion softens, add soy sauce, stir fry 1 minute.

3. Add broccoli and return chicken to pan, stir fry 2 minutes, add both sauces, cabbage, carrots and mushrooms, stir fry a few minutes more.

4. Finally add snow peas and sprouts, stir fry until vegetables are tender and chicken is cooked through.

To Serve: Place in bowls or on plates and garnish with green onions.

Wok Tossed Honey Soy and Chili Chicken Wings

What with such huge increases in food prices it does become more difficult to cook something better than a prepared meal such as pizza or pasta. I do not know what it is like in other countries but here in Switzerland it seems like everytime I go to the store something else has gone up in price. Also due to so much rain in April, May and June here it has affected the farmers produce drastically, so where we would be enjoying lots of the seasonal fruits right now, they are far more expensive as crop yields have been much lower.

I have decided to post some recipes over the next few weeks, not everyday, but frequently that are not only quick and easy meals to prepare when you get in from work but are cost effective too. I am posting this chicken wing recipe as the first recipe, chicken wings tend to be cheap anyway but they are also on offer here at the moment adding to the appeal. Chicken at the moment here is still the cheapest meat on par with mince meat, but I do try to buy meats when they are on special, like lamb here at the moment is 10 francs off a kilo making for a good buy and it means my family don't turn into chickens with the amount of it I have cooked recently.

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Ingredients

12 Large chicken wings, cut in half at the joint (remove wing tips if still attatched.)
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
2 Teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
1 Tablespoon peanut oil
1 Tablespoon fish sauce
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
100ml Honey
50ml Sweet chili sauce
1 Teaspoon chili garlic sauce
2 Green onions, sliced thinly

Method


1. Combine chicken with garlic and ginger in a large bowl.

2. Heat oil in a wok, add chicken in batches and cook until browned all over, remove chicken, wipe wok clean, place wok on side, add sauces and honey, stir until well combined.

3. Return chicken to wok and place back on a medium low heat, cover wok and cook, 10-15 Min's, stirring occasionally or until chicken is cooked through.

To Serve: Place wings in a bowl and top with sliced green onion. I served mine with a nice big salad of greens, egg, avocado, cucumber, bacon, red onion, parmesan cheese and topped with alf alfa sprouts.

A yummy light summer meal that was budget friendly, well I suppose it is, if like me you do a lot of Asian cooking as I had everything in my cupboard except chicken and onions.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Braised Mustard Lamb with Celeriac and Braised Onions

Legs of lamb are on special at the store at the moment, with 10 CHF off a kilo, so well worth enjoying at that price. They were selling them on the bone and off, I bought a de-boned leg of about 900g of meat. I served this with buttery mushrooms, celeriac and carrot and braised onions. I do usually make this with baby onions, but I could not find any, and I went to 2 stores, so I gave up in the end and bought shallots instead, worked fine and tasted fine but it is better with baby onions. I made this for myself, hubby and son and thought there would be left overs, but they ate all the meat, I think they were just being a bit piggy as this should have served 4 easily. So serving size depends on what kind of appetites you are cooking for, if like my men they are quite big eaters, I would serve some potato with this, either mash or some nice roast ones, you could even make stuffing balls. If you have read any of my recent posts lately you will have read that my hubby and I are trying not to eat to many carbs in th evening, hence I didn't make any with ours.

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Ingredients

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Onion, sliced thinly
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
900g-1kg lamb leg, boned
1 Cup dry white wine
3 Sprigs fresh rosemary
10 Sprigs fresh thyme
1 Teaspoon mustard seeds
11/2 Cups water
2 Teaspoons beef stock
1kg celeriac, sliced
2 Medium carrots, cut into strips, 5mm approx
100ml Cream
2 Tablespoons cornflour
1/4 Cup seeded mustard
2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped finely

Braised Onions


2 Tablespoons olive oil
400g Baby Onions
1/2 Dry white wine
1/2 Cup beef stock
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 Teaspoon sugar

Buttery Mushrooms

400g Mixed mushrooms, chopped and sliced (Anything you like swiss brown, oyster, shitake, enoki, chantrelles etc...)
50-70g Herbed butter

Method

1. Add lamb to a heated pan and cook, until, browned all over, remove, set to one side. Heat olive oil in same pan add onion and garlic, cook, stirring, until onion is soft, return lamb.

2. Add wine, herbs, seeds, stock and water, simmer covered, 1 hour.

3. Add celeriac, simmer covered, for further 20-30 Min's until lamb and celeriac are tender, add carrots about 15 Min's before lamb is finished, carrots will just be cooked, add with celeriac if you prefer your carrots quite tender.

4. Remove lamb, celeriac and carrot cover and keep warm. Strain liquid into a smaller pan, add cream, simmer uncovered, 5 Min's. Blend a little water with the cornflour, add to sauce, stir until mixture boils and thickens.

Serve lamb sliced with celeriac, carrot, sauce, buttery mushrooms, braised onions and sprinkle with parsley.

Braised Onions

1. Heat oil in a pan, add onions, cook, stirring, about 10 Min's or until onions are browned.

2. Add wine, stock, vinegar and sugar, simmer covered, 30 Min's, remove lid simmer uncovered a further 10 Min's or until almost all the liquid has evapourated.

Buttery Mushrooms

1. Melt butter in a pan add mushrooms, cook, stirring occasionaly until mushrooms are tender and cooked as desired. (I say this as I like to brown mine a little.)

To Serve: Slice lamb and arrange on a serving platter plate with vegetables, onions and mushrooms. Pour a little sauce over the lamb sprinkle with parsley and serve the extra sauce in a gravy boat on the side.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Cod Patties with Two Dipping Sauces

I made these as I had some sweet potato to use up and some left over prawns that I needed to use in something, they turned out very good for so few ingredients. The sauces were both good we prefered the pickle relish sauce but the creamy boursin sauce was lovely too, I think that it was just becuase of the tang of the other one, that paired it that bit better with the cod patties. Anyway considering both were experimental I was pleased with both. I served this for 3 as I knew my men would eat 3 patties each and I only two and accompanied it with a green salad. I think this would easily serve 4, 2 patties perperson with a nice salad and some crusty bread perfect. If you want to make these for a BBQ I would make the patties much smaller to yield more, as if having accompanied with other meats you don't want them as main meal size portrions, I think you would probaly get 15-20 patties then.

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Ingredients

Cod Cakes

450g Cod fillets, chopped
200g Green prawns, chopped
1 Egg
1 Sweet potato (about 250g)
2 Green onions, chopped finely
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped finely
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 Cup panko flakes, Japanese breadcrums (I used just over a cup but not quite 3/4)

Tangy Relish Sauce
3 Tablespoons pickle relish
100ml Mayonnaise
2 Teaspoons mild creamy mustard
2 Teaspoons lemon juice

Creamy Boursin Sauce

75g Boursin garlic herb cheese
2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon milk
3 Teaspoons lemon juice
2 Teaspoons chopped chives
2 Teaspoons mild creamy mustard
1 Small green onion, chopped finely

Method

1. Peel and chop sweet potato, add to boiling water and boil until tender, drain, mash, allow to cool.

2. Blend or process cod, prawns and egg until well blended, little chunks of cod and prawns are fine, you don't want big whole bits of cod or prawn.

3. Add onions, parsley, garlic and potato, stir to combine, making sure all ingredients are well blended. Refrigerate mix while you make the sauces. (don't worry I have not forgot the panko!!)

Tangy Relish Sauce

1. Combine relish, mayo, mustard and juice in a small bowl, place in fridge until needed.

Creamy Boursin Sauce

1. Combine boursin, mayo and milk, mix, until smooth, add lemon juice, chives, mustard and green onion, stir to combine, again place in fridge until needed.

Back to the patties

1. Remove fish mix from fridge, pour your panko flakes onto a plate.

2. Heat some olive oil in a pan, takes spoonfuls of fish mix and shape into patties (it will be quite sticky don't worry) Coat the outside of each pattie with panko flakes. (I do this instead of mixing panko into mixture as it gives the patties a lovely crisp finish to the outside.

3. Add patties to the pan and cook until nicely browned on both sides and cooked through, serve with dipping sauces.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated

Apricot Brandy Chicken

This is a super simple quick recipe to make, it tastes wonderful and the sauce goes really well with the chicken. We all enjoyed it very much and both my son and husband thought it was moreish. I like cooking gourmet and exotic but sometimes simple is best, you do not want to be in the kitchen hours on end every night. If you are a regular reader you will notice that I have been posting some really good recipes that can be on the table in 30-35 Min's which are perfect for when you come in from work. Some of them would even be company worthy and impressive to guests without all the fuss and effort you would usually put into a dinner party.

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Ingredients

4 Chicken breasts
4 Tablespoons brandy
3 Tablespoons apricot jam
1 Cup water
1 Teaspoon chicken stock granules
1 Teaspoon grain mustard
1 Tablespoon fresh tarragon, finely chopped
1 Teaspoon cornflour
1/2 Cup sour cream

Method

1. In a large fry pan heat some oil, add chicken and brown well on both sides. Remove and set to one side.

2. In the same pan add water, brandy, jam, stock and mustard stir to combine, mix a little water with the cornflour and add to sauce, stir until mixture thickens.

3. Add sour cream, return chicken to pan cook for about 10-15 Min's over a low heat to cook chicken through, stir in tarragon. Remove chicken and slice thickly.

To Serve: I served mine over celeriac mash drizzled with sauce and garnished with half an apricot.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Broccoli Cheese Stuffed Chicken with Spinach Patties

I came up with this the other night as I had some left over broccoli and prosciutto to use up and they turned out really well. It is not a quick meal like the ones I have been posting lately as you have to stuff the chicken and make the mixture for the spinach so it has a lot more prep time in it. I would say about 30 Min's on the prep longer if you make it for more than 2 people I was only making it for my hubby and I. Cooking time is 30-35 Min's to cook chicken in the oven, the patties can be made while chicken is baking.

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Ingredients

Chicken

2 Chicken breasts
4 Small broccoli florets, heads only, chopped
4 Basil leaves, shredded
4 Sundried tomatoes, sliced thinly
6-8 Tablespoons of gruyere, grated (Depends on size of breasts, mine were of a good size so I used 8)
4-6 Slices prosciutto (again just depending on size of breast these are just use to secure and I needed 3 per breast.)

Sauce

1/2 Cup dry white wine
1/2 Cup water
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
11/2 Teaspoons chicken stock granules
2 Teaspoons mild creamy mustard
2 Teaspoons cornflour
1/2 Cup cream

Spinach

300g Baby spinch leaves
1 Small red onion, chopped finely
1 Clove garlic, crushed
3 Bacon rashers, chopped
3 Tablespoons cream
1/2 Teaspoon chicken stock granules
3 Tablespoons paramesan cheese
1 Egg, lightly beaten
3/4 Cup panko flakes (Japanese breadcrumbs, available at most supermarkets or specialty asain stores.)

Method

1. Pre heat oven to 180 degrees celsius

2. Open out chicken breasts, using a meat mallet pound each breast until of equal thickness.

3. Divide broccoli between breasts from top to bottom down the centre, top with basil leaves, then sundried tomato, finally press cheese firmly over tomato to form a small mound. Fold breasts over to enclose filling and wrap prosciutto around each breast to secure.

4. Place breasts in a lightly oiled oven proof dish and cook in pre-heated oven for 30-35 Min's or until chicken is cooked through.

Sauce

1. Combine wine, water, lemon juice, parsley, stock and mustard in a saucepan. Heat over med high heat, use a whisk if neccesary to combine mustard fully, you don't want lumps.

2. Mix a little water with the cornflour and add to sauce stir until mixture thickens, add cream and stir to heat through. Servd with chicken.

Spinach

1. Heat some water in a pan, plunge spinach leaves into water for only a minute, drain, squeeze out any excess water.

2. In a small fry pan cook bacon, drain on absorbent paper.

3. Combine spinach, onion, garlic, bacon, cream, stock and cheese, in a microwave safe bowl, stir well. Microwave for about 1 minute to melt cheese, stir again.

4. Make sure mixture is cool enough to add egg as you do not want it to cook. Add egg and panko flakes.

5 Heat some oil in a pan, using a tablespoon divide mixutre into roughly 4 equal parts. Take spoonful of mixture add to pan press down to form a pattie shape and cook until browned on both sides.

To Serve: Place chicken on a plate, spoon some sauce over, garnish with a basil leaf, place patties on plate and garnish with kumara curls if desired.

Kumara curls: If you wanted to do this just peel kumara, then using a vegetable peeler peel kumara into strips, heat some oil in a pan (about 1/4 inch deep) Add kumara and fry until it curls up and is crisp.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Steak Fillet with Mushrooms

This is a simple steak recipe that tastes great, I served mine over sweet potato rosti which went really well. You can use any mushrooms you like, what ever is in season or your favourite. I used swiss brown, enoki and oyster, so take your pick. I used herbed butter to cook the mushrooms which I strongly recommend as it adds so much flavour to the sauce.

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Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil
4 Steak fillet (you will see from the photo mine were very thick about 300g a piece So cooking time reflects this.)
500g Mixed mushrooms, sliced and chopped (see note above for what I used)
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
40g Herbed butter
1 Teaspoon beef stock granules
180ml Creme fraiche
70ml Cream
1 Teaspoon cornflour
3 Green onions, sliced thinly
2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped finely

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add steaks and sear 2 minutes each side, cook for a further 4-5 Min's a side.

3. Remove to an oven proof dish and cook for a further 15-20 Min's for Medium rare-Medium. Please adjust cooking times for thinner steaks as I said above mine were about 300g a piece and this cooking time gave us a tender steaks, nice and pink in the middle.

Sauce

1. Melt butter in a pan, add mushrooms, cook, until almost tender, add garlic and cook for a further 2 Min's, stirring, so garlic does not burn.

2. Add creme fraiche, cream and stock, bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, mix a little water with cornflour, add to sauce and stir until mixture thickens.

3. Stir in onions and parsley, serve sauce over steak.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Moroccan Chicken with Pistachio Couscous

This is another simple, easy and quick meal to put together, it is a good mid week, no fuss meal, that can be on the table in about 35 Min's. This recipe serves 4 but can be halved if just making for 2. I made this with chicken breasts coated them in the spice mixture, cooked them and then sliced thickly, but you could also use tenders or thigh fillets instead. Feel free to adjust spice quantaties to suit your personal tastes.

If you have been keeping up with the progress of my beautiful handcrafted camphor laurel chopping, cheese boards and Mezzaluna Boards. My official site is finally finished and live so to see my full collection please click here.

Ingredients

1 Teaspoon garlic powder
1 Teaspoon gound cumin
1 Teaspoon paprika
1/2 Teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 Teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 Teaspoons finely grated lemon rind
4 Chicken breasts
1 Red capsicum, sliced thinly
2 Sachet's quick cooking couscous, 100g each (I buy my couscous in a box of 4 quick cooking sachets each one serves 2, so make according to your brands directions.)
Water for boiling couscous
1-2 Teaspoons vegetable stock granules
2 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 Cup roasted pistachios, chopped coarsely
2 Tablespoons sultanas, chopped roughly
1/2 Cup fresh coriander, chopped coarsely

Method


1. Combine spices and rind in a bowl mix well, add chicken one breast at a time and rub spice mixture firmly into chicken. Cook chicken in a heated, oiled fry pan until browned on both sides and cooked through. Remove and set to one side.

2. In same cleaned pan add capsicum and cook for 1 minute, stirring.

3. While chicken is cooking, boil enough water to cover sachet's, with 1-2 teaspoons of chicken stock added, place sachet's in water and cook for 1-2 min's until couscous softens.

4. Cut bag open and pour into a large bowl fluff with fork, stir in juice and oil.

5. Stir in nuts, sultana's and coriander.

To Serve: Place couscous in a serving bowl, top with sliced chicken and capsicum.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Braised Lamb Shanks with Caramelized Vegetables

Here is another lamb shank recipe, I absolutely love lamb shanks, I just don't seem to be able to buy them often here in Switzerland. This one tastes wonderful and just falls off the bone, it does not have too many ingredients but they all come together so well. I served it over mash and with roasted honeyed vegetables. I will list the recipe for the vegetables below I usually make this with parsnips, turnips and carrots but I could not get a hold of any, so I just made it with carrots and sweet potatoes instead, so use whatever vegetables you like.

If you have been keeping up with the progress of my beautiful handcrafted camphor laurel chopping, cheese boards and Mezzaluna Boards. My official site is finally finished and live so to see my full collection please click here.

Ingredients

4 Lamb shanks
Olive oil
2 Red onions, sliced thinly
1 Stick celery, chopped finely
500ml Red wine
375ml Hearty beef stock
1 Whole garlic bulb
3 Rosemary sprigs
6 Thyme sprigs
1 Bay leaf
100ml Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tablespoons cornflour

Method

1. Brown lamb shanks all over in a fry pan, remove and set to one side.

2. In a large saucepan, heat some oil, add onion and celery, cook until onion softens.

3. Add wine, stock, garlic bulb, rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and vinegar. Return lamb and bring to the boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered over a very low heat, for 2-21/2 hours or until lamb is falling off the bone.

4. Remove lamb and keep warm, remove garlic bulb, strain the liquid through a sieve, return liquid to pan.

5. Squeeze garlic from bulb (either use a few sheets of kitchen roll to hold the back and squeeze or place in the fridge to cool quicker.) Either blend or process sauce until smooth.

6. Mix a little water with the cornflour and add to sauce, bring to the boil and stir until mixture thickens.

Serve over mash with caramelized vegetables

Caramelized Vegetables

Ingredients

You will notice if you read the intro above I usually make this with parsnips, turnips and carrots but I could get a hold of these so I made it with carrot and sweet poatoes instead.

2 Carrots (about200g)
500g Sweet potato
2 Tablespoon olive oil
3 Tablespoons honey
4 Thyme Sprigs

Method

1. Combine all the ingredients, except thyme, in a roasting pan, coat vegetables well, place thyme sprigs on top, and roast 30-40 Min's, covered, in a pre-heated oven 180 degrees celcius or until vegetables are cooked through.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.