Cock-a-Leekie with Barley

This ancient Scottish soup is normally made with Beef and Chicken to flavour the broth but here, I'm using only Chicken ....the unusual combination of Leeks and Prunes is surprisingly delicious and the addition of Barley makes it a wholesome meal for a light supper!

RECIPE

Ingredients :

2 medium sized Leeks, sliced into 1/2 in rounds

1/4 cup pear barley

1 bouquet garni

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

3 – 4 cups quality home-made Chicken/Beef Stock

8 – 10 ready-to-eat prunes

salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Method :

• Pour the chicken/beef stock in a saucepan and add in the chicken breasts and bouquet garni, bring to a slow bowl and simmer for 20 – 30 minutes, skim off any scum when the stock comes to initial boil and occasionaly when simmering….when done, strain the stock and keep the chicken breasts aside
• Meanwhile, rinse te pearl barley and cook it in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes, drain and add to the stock, bring it to the boil and lower heat and simmer gently for 15 – 20 minutes until the barley is just cooked and tender
• Season with salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
• Add the prunes and leeks to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes or until the leeks are just cooked
• Slice up the chicken breast, add to the soup and reheat if necessary and ladle into deep soup plates and garnish with sprinkle of chopped parsley, served up with some crusty bread if desired.

Smoked Haddock with Leeks/Spinach and Poached Egg

Our special Sunday Brunch treat ...there is something about the combination of eggs, leeks/spinach and "smoke" that really perks you up in the morning!

RECIPE

Ingredients:

2 undyed Smoked Haddock fillets

the green parts of Leeks (to the amount you wish to have) OR fresh spinach

2 eggs

milk

1/4 cup double (heavy) cream

white wine vinegar

1 Tbsp butter

Salt and Pepper, to taste

 Method:

• Over a low heat, poach the haddock fillets in just enough milk to come halfway up the fish, shaking the pan gently to keep the fish moist, for  about 5 minutes.  When cooked, remove and keep warm
• Increase the heat under the milk and allow to reduce by about half, stirring occasionally.  Add the cream and allow to bubble up.  Season to taste with salt and pepper …the sauce should be thickened but should pour easily
• Heat a frying pan then add butter and the leeks, stirring for a few minutes and allow leeks to sweat for a few minutes.  Season lightly then set aside and keep warm …if using spinach, stir fry in the butter for a few minutes & season lightly
• To poach the eggs, bring 1.5″ water to a simmer and add a few drops of vinegar.  Gently crack 2 eggs into the water and cook for 3 minutes.  Remove the first egg using the slotted spoon and rest in the spoon on some kitchen paper to remove any water.  Repeat with the 2nd egg.
• Plate up by laying a Haddock fillet on each place, topped with the leeks/spinach followed by a poached egg
• Pour over the cream sauce and serve immediately (note: we didn’t serve up with any cream sauce due to personal preferences).

Goa Pork Vindaloo

Home-Made Vindaloo Curry Paste

Cubed Pork marinated with some of the Curry Paste

Jaggery … an ingredient used in most Indian Curries … may be substituted with Gula Melaka or Brown Sugar

Goa Pork Vindaloo … ready to be served up!

Gourmet Blend of Wild & Whole Grain Brown Rice, served up with the Pork Vindaloo

RECIPE

Ingredients:

15 – 20 Whole Red Chillies (preferably Kashmiri type)

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

6 Cloves

 5cm (2in) Cinnamon Stick

10 Peppercorns

1/4 Star Anise

1 tsp Poppy Seeds

2.5cm (1/2in) piece of Ginger

6 plump Garlic Cloves

1 Tbsp Tamarind Pulp

4 tsp Cider Vinegar

65ml (2.5fl oz) oil

3 med Onions, finely chopped

700g (1.5lb) stewing Pork, cubed

800ml (1.3 pints) water

Salt

1/2 tsp Jaggery, to taste

15 curry leaves

Method:

• Deseed and soak the dried chillies in hot water to soften
• Grind the first 7 ingredients finely
• Tip ground spices into a blender, add ginger, garlic, tamarind pulp and cider vinegar and blend into a smooth paste
• Rub a little of the paste onto the cubed pork and marinate for minimum 15 minutes
• Heat the oil in a pan/pot and fry the onions for about 15 minutes until brown
• Add the spice/curry paste and fry a further 5 minutes, stirring constantly and add 2 tablespoons of water,  if necessary
• Add the pork and saute in the spice mixture for 5 minute
• Add 800ml (1.3 pints) of water, salt and jaggery to taste and cook over a low heat until tender
• Stir in the curry leaves and simmer for 3 – 5 minutes
• Your Goa Pork Vindaloo is now ready to be served.

 

Roast Pumpkin & Coriander Soup

Roast Pumpkin & Coriander Soup

Pumpkins chopped into chunks …here, you will see I’ve peeled, seeded & removed the ‘beared’ fibres but it is not necessary to peel the pumpkin

Lay pumpkin chunks in a large roasting pan and drizzle generously with olive oil, season well with salt & pepper

Roast in pre-heated oven until nicely browned

Tasty bowl of Roast Pumpkin Soup served with a garnish of Chopped Coriander & Crème Fraîche

RECIPE

Ingredients :

2 small Golden Nugget Sqaush / 1 medium Pumpkin

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3 – 4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp Coriander Powder

1L Chicken/Vegetable Stock 

Salt and Pepper to taste

Chopped Fresh Coriander for garnish

Crème fraîche for garnish (optional)

Method :

• Preheat oven to 200°C
• You can either not peel or peel the pumpkin/squash…chop them into chunks and scrape away the seeds and surrounding ‘beard’ fibres
• Lay the chunks of pumpkin/squash in a large roasting pan, drizzle generously with EVO
• Roast in pre-heated oven, turning once or twice if you like so that pumpkin/squash pieces are well roasted and nicely browned around the edges
• Heat up 1 Tbsp EOO, add in garlic and coriander powder, pour in 3/4 of the Chicken/Vegetable Stock
• If pumpkin/squash is unpeeled, scrape the soft flesh of the roasted pumpkin pieces away from the skin or if peeled, tip the flesh into the stock…stir and bring to a low boil
•  Liquidize in batches, until completely smooth
• Return the blended soup to a clean pot, taste soup and adjust the seasoning according to liking
• Add extra stock, if necessary, to get a thick and creamy consistency
• Heat the soup through without re-boiling and serve each bowl of hot soup garnished with some chopped fresh coriander and a Tbsp of Crème Fraîche

Tandoori Jumbo Parawns

Was too busy baking away yesterday (Sunday) so Hubby dearest fixed our dinner …. TANDOORI JUMBO PRAWNS …it was finger-lickinglicious <3<3<3RECIPE Ingredients: Jumbo Size Prawns Jar Tandoori Paste Plain Yoghurt Lemon/Lime Method: Clean & devein jumbo prawns ….leave head & tail in tact Marinate prawns with Tandoori Paste mixed with Yoghurt Grill prawns on your BBQ grill  Served up with lime/lemon wedges + Salad of your choice

Breakfast à la Hubby

Breakfast à la Hubby

Breakfast Served up by Hubby ❤

Anti-Pasti Platter

Anti-Pasti Platter

Anti-Pasti Platter I served up one Christmas

Salt-Baked Jumbo Prawns

SALT-BAKED JUMBO PRAWNS

Clean and devein some Jumbo Prawns.. to devein, .use a scissors to snip shell on back of prawns and slit the flesh with a sharp small knife and devein ….keep shell all intact and then bury prawns in a casserole with course sea salt

Bake for half an hour in a pre-heated oven of 180°C and then ‘dig’ through the salt to reveal the prawns!

Yummilicious Salt Baked Prawns ready to be plated & devoured ;-p

Soya Milk & Its Many Uses

SOYA MILK & ITS MANY USES

Soya Beans soaked overnight and drained (1kg here)

Blend Soya Beans with Water .. 1:3 proportion = 1 cup Soya Bean is to 3 cups Water …add more water if you prefer more diluted milk or lesser water if you prefer more concentrated (I like thick Soya Milk so I add lesser water to blend)

Blended Soya Beans + Water

Sieve the blended Soya Beans with a muslin cloth laid over a fine sieve

Gather up the muslin cloth and squeeze out as much milk as you can

The pulp of the ground Soya Bean after the milk has been squeezed out

The silky smooth Soya Milk

Gently boil the Soya Milk …add a few leave of Pandan Leaves ….Stir frequently to avoid it being burnt

Meanwhile, boil some Gula Melaka with Pandan Leaves for Gula Melaka Syrup to go with the ready Soya Milk …I normally drink my Soya Milk without Sugar but is nice with Gula Melaka Syrup … best!!!

I get like about almost 5L worth of Soya Milk from 1kg Soya Beans and this is lesser than normal because I prefer my Soya Milk to be slightly thicker than normal …

Egg Tofu (Bean Curd) ….. made from my home-made Soya Milk … I will post the recipe for this later on so watch out for it!RECIPE Ingredients : 400g Soya Milk 8 Egg White 3 Egg Yolk 1/4 tsp salt Method : Mix egg white, egg yolk and soya milk evenly …mix in salt and sieve to remove any bubbles Pour mixture into a square pan lined with plastic wrap Bring water in steamer to boil and then switch to low heat and place pan with mixture to steam for 15 – 20 minutes …set aside to cool and keep in refrigerator overnight Remove and cut desired size pieces.

Our lunch of Steamed Egg Tofu with Shallots Oil/Sauce …. healthy & yummy!!RECIPE Ingredients : 2 3’x3′ pieces of Egg Tofu 2 Tbsp oil handful of shallots, sliced 1 Tbsp Prawn Sambal a sprig or 2 of spring onions, chopped Seasoning : 1 Tbsp Oyster Sauce 1 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce 1/2 tsp Dark Soy Sauce 100 ml water Method : Steam bean curd at high heat for 5 minutes …remove & pour away any excess water Heat up oil, saute sliced shallots until brown & fragrant then add Prawn Sambal …pour shallots oil mixture over bean curd Pour seasoning into a wok and bring to a boil…pour over bean curd and sprinkle chopped spring onions, fried dried prawns on top and serve.

Dessert made from my home-made Soya Milk …Longan Tau Fu Fa …. the next time I’m going to try and make the regular Tau Fu Fa so watch this space for it!!RECIPE Ingredients A: 600g cold water 10g agar-agar powder 220g sugar Ingredients B: 1200g soya milk 150g evaporated milk 1 can longan in syrup Method : Combine soya milk with evaporated milk Mix cold water with agar-agar powder over low heat to melt the agar-agar powder…add sugar and bring to a low boil till sugar dissolves …pour mixture into soya milk Pour longan syrup (without the longans) into the mixture, stir evenly  Pour the mixture into few cups filled with longan flesh.  Chill in the refrigerator till set.  Serve cold.