These are meant to be a kids dessert but they are great for adults too. They are very easy and look very impressive...
125g Unsalted butter
125G dark Chocolate
2 eggs
150g caster sugar
3 tbsp plain flour
You will need four 150ml ramekins. Perheat oven to gas mark 6 (200C). Butter four ramekins. Melt the butter and the dark chocolate, then set aside to cool. In another bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar and flour. Then beat in the cooled butter/chocolate mix. Pour into four buttered ramekins. Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and place in the oven, and bake for about 20 minutes. The tops should be cooked (and cracked) like a macaroon and the cent gurengy and gooey. Serve while hot. This is very quick. You can make them up ahead of time and set aside. Just pop them in as you sit down to your main meal (or just after).
Showing posts with label impressive. Show all posts
Showing posts with label impressive. Show all posts
Monday, April 16, 2007
Friday, February 16, 2007
Chicken in Saffron sauce - Gallina en Pepitoria
This recipe is from "The complete spanish cookbook" by Jacki Passmore. It is good to cook for 4-8 people, and could be served with rice.
to serve 4:
1.5kg chicken
salt and pepper
90g plain flour
90ml olive oil
2 large onions
4 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
250ml dry white wine
450ml chicken stock
80g ground almonds
10 threads saffron
chopped parsley
1. Cut chicken into serving portions ( or get your butcher to), season with salt and pepper and coat lightly with flour.
2. Fry in the oil for about 10 mins until well coloured, then remove and pour off most of the oil.
3. Fry the onions until golden and soft;add garlic and bay leaves and fry briefly.
4. Add wine, stock, ground almonds and chicken, cover and cook over low heat for about 20 mins, stirring occasionally to keep the sauce from sticking to the pan.
5. Wrap saffron in a small square of aluminum foil and tast for 2 mins in a dry pan.
6. Grind in a mortar then add 2-3 tablespoons boiling water, stir well and pour over the dish.
7. Cook a further 15 minutes
8. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with parsley.
to serve 4:
1.5kg chicken
salt and pepper
90g plain flour
90ml olive oil
2 large onions
4 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
250ml dry white wine
450ml chicken stock
80g ground almonds
10 threads saffron
chopped parsley
1. Cut chicken into serving portions ( or get your butcher to), season with salt and pepper and coat lightly with flour.
2. Fry in the oil for about 10 mins until well coloured, then remove and pour off most of the oil.
3. Fry the onions until golden and soft;add garlic and bay leaves and fry briefly.
4. Add wine, stock, ground almonds and chicken, cover and cook over low heat for about 20 mins, stirring occasionally to keep the sauce from sticking to the pan.
5. Wrap saffron in a small square of aluminum foil and tast for 2 mins in a dry pan.
6. Grind in a mortar then add 2-3 tablespoons boiling water, stir well and pour over the dish.
7. Cook a further 15 minutes
8. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with parsley.
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Andalusian Pork
This has some great flavours and the meat is kept really moist from the dried fruit. It would be really nice with a saffron rice, but the people I made it for wouldn't have gone for that, so we had it with potatoes and veg...I got the recipe from the bbc website, its one by James Martin
Serves 6
Ingredients
3 medium to large pork fillet (800g)
4oz prunes, chopped
40z soft dried apricots,
handful chopped parsley,
3 tbsp paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried or fresh chopped thyme
2 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve
Method
1. Cut the pork open with a sharp knife and open the fillet out along its length, being careful not to cut all the way through the fillet.
2. In a bowl, mix together the prunes, apricots and parsley and insert along the length of the fillet. Season well.
3. Roll the fillet up and securely fasten with string.4. Mix up the paprika, the remaining herbs, the garlic, the salt and the oil to make a thick paste. Spread over the surface of the meat, and leave it in the fridge, ideally overnight, but don't worry if you don't have time, 1/2 hour was delicious too
5. Preheat the oven to 200C/400C/Gas
6. Season the meat and sear on all sides in a heavy pan. Place in the oven for 25 minutes.
6. Rest the meat before serving with lemon wedges.
Serves 6
Ingredients
3 medium to large pork fillet (800g)
4oz prunes, chopped
40z soft dried apricots,
handful chopped parsley,
3 tbsp paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried or fresh chopped thyme
2 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve
Method
1. Cut the pork open with a sharp knife and open the fillet out along its length, being careful not to cut all the way through the fillet.
2. In a bowl, mix together the prunes, apricots and parsley and insert along the length of the fillet. Season well.
3. Roll the fillet up and securely fasten with string.4. Mix up the paprika, the remaining herbs, the garlic, the salt and the oil to make a thick paste. Spread over the surface of the meat, and leave it in the fridge, ideally overnight, but don't worry if you don't have time, 1/2 hour was delicious too
5. Preheat the oven to 200C/400C/Gas
6. Season the meat and sear on all sides in a heavy pan. Place in the oven for 25 minutes.
6. Rest the meat before serving with lemon wedges.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Beef Wellington, prepare in advance method..
I found this method by Luiska on the BBC forum website, it worked a treat and led to a lot less stressful Christmas day! I had served it with chunky ovenbaked chips, which I guess some people would see a travesty, but it was yum! I used onions instead of mushrooms as I'm allergic to mushrooms...
Fillet or sirloin beef
2 chopped onions
200g pate
2 packets ready made puff pastry..
Fry up the onions until caramelised, and when cold ( this is really important for food hygiene)., mix with the pate. then follow the method below...
Sear the outside of the beef & then put it on a rack to cool and drain. Roll puff pastry, cut a piece somewhat bigger than fillet, prick with fork and bake until crisp & golden. Cool. Spread cooked pastry with half paté-onion mix, top with fillet spread with remainder, cut off excess cooked pastry corners & cover with raw pastry sheet, tucking edges underneath, making sure that the tuck-in is fairly minimal or it gets stodgy. Decorate with pastry strips or leaves or whatever, but don't glaze. Refrigerate overnight. Bring to room temp somewhere dry, make a couple of steam holes, then glaze with egg wash and bake.
Fillet or sirloin beef
2 chopped onions
200g pate
2 packets ready made puff pastry..
Fry up the onions until caramelised, and when cold ( this is really important for food hygiene)., mix with the pate. then follow the method below...
Sear the outside of the beef & then put it on a rack to cool and drain. Roll puff pastry, cut a piece somewhat bigger than fillet, prick with fork and bake until crisp & golden. Cool. Spread cooked pastry with half paté-onion mix, top with fillet spread with remainder, cut off excess cooked pastry corners & cover with raw pastry sheet, tucking edges underneath, making sure that the tuck-in is fairly minimal or it gets stodgy. Decorate with pastry strips or leaves or whatever, but don't glaze. Refrigerate overnight. Bring to room temp somewhere dry, make a couple of steam holes, then glaze with egg wash and bake.
Christmas baked ham
I used this recipe for our baked ham for Christmas Eve, which I found on the bbc website, but which I modified a little. It was delicious. I got all our Christmas meat from Harveys, the organic butcher in Norwich...http://www.puremeat.org.uk/. It was just as good, hot as cold..
Ingredients
4.5-5.5kg/10-12lb gammon joint - unsmoked
1 pint of dry cider
2 carrots, chopped into chunky pieces
2 onions, peeled and studded with cloves
4 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp brown sugar
12 peppercorns
1 orange, cut in half
For the glaze:
cloves for spiking
8 tbsp shredless orange marmalade
juice of half a lemon
Method
1. Soak the gammon joint overnight.
2. Drain and discard the water and pat the gammon dry. Place the gammon in a large pan and then pour over the cider and enough water to cover the joint.
3. Add all the other ingredients to the pan. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and gently simmer for 3 - 3 ½ hours. Skim off any scum during the cooking.
4. When cooked, remove the ham from the pan and place in a roasting tin. Let it cool slightly and then peel away the skin.
5. Preheat the oven 190C/375 F / Gas 5.
6. Score diamond shapes on the fat and stud each diamond with a clove.
7. Heat the marmalade and lemon juice in a pan for a few minutes until it thickens to a sticky glaze. Brush the marmalade glaze over the surface of the ham.
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until the glaze has set.
Ingredients
4.5-5.5kg/10-12lb gammon joint - unsmoked
1 pint of dry cider
2 carrots, chopped into chunky pieces
2 onions, peeled and studded with cloves
4 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp brown sugar
12 peppercorns
1 orange, cut in half
For the glaze:
cloves for spiking
8 tbsp shredless orange marmalade
juice of half a lemon
Method
1. Soak the gammon joint overnight.
2. Drain and discard the water and pat the gammon dry. Place the gammon in a large pan and then pour over the cider and enough water to cover the joint.
3. Add all the other ingredients to the pan. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and gently simmer for 3 - 3 ½ hours. Skim off any scum during the cooking.
4. When cooked, remove the ham from the pan and place in a roasting tin. Let it cool slightly and then peel away the skin.
5. Preheat the oven 190C/375 F / Gas 5.
6. Score diamond shapes on the fat and stud each diamond with a clove.
7. Heat the marmalade and lemon juice in a pan for a few minutes until it thickens to a sticky glaze. Brush the marmalade glaze over the surface of the ham.
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until the glaze has set.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Pear Tarte Tatin
I made this for the inlaws on Saturday night... It was fantastic. You will need a dish you can move from hob to oven. I have a le creuset tatin 10" dish...
Sweet shortcrust pastry
200g (7oz) plain flour
Pinch salt
125g (4 1/2oz) butter
50g (2oz) caster sugar
1 egg yolk
Tablespoon cold water
3 large pears
about 2oz Butter
3 heaped tbsp soft brown sugar
cinnamon
Make the pastry by sifting the flour and salt into a bowl. Add the butter, cut into small pieces and rub in with fingertips til it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, mix in and add the egg yolk and enough cold water to make a stiff dough.
Melt the butter in the bottom of the pan and add the sugar. Heat gently and allow the sugar to melt. Peel, core and cut the pears into quarters and lay across the bottom of the pan and sprinkle the cinnamon over. The pears don't need to cook at this point as they are soft enough to cook in the oven, and you don't want them too mushy. Roll the pastry out into a circle that is slightly bigger than the pan, to cover the pears. Lay it over the top and allow the edges to turn up the side of the pan. Be careful, the pan will still be hot. Put into a hot oven 200°C/390°F/gas 6 for about half an hour, or until the pastry is golden. Serve warm with crean or ice cream. Even better the next day for breakfast ;-)
Sweet shortcrust pastry
200g (7oz) plain flour
Pinch salt
125g (4 1/2oz) butter
50g (2oz) caster sugar
1 egg yolk
Tablespoon cold water
3 large pears
about 2oz Butter
3 heaped tbsp soft brown sugar
cinnamon
Make the pastry by sifting the flour and salt into a bowl. Add the butter, cut into small pieces and rub in with fingertips til it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, mix in and add the egg yolk and enough cold water to make a stiff dough.
Melt the butter in the bottom of the pan and add the sugar. Heat gently and allow the sugar to melt. Peel, core and cut the pears into quarters and lay across the bottom of the pan and sprinkle the cinnamon over. The pears don't need to cook at this point as they are soft enough to cook in the oven, and you don't want them too mushy. Roll the pastry out into a circle that is slightly bigger than the pan, to cover the pears. Lay it over the top and allow the edges to turn up the side of the pan. Be careful, the pan will still be hot. Put into a hot oven 200°C/390°F/gas 6 for about half an hour, or until the pastry is golden. Serve warm with crean or ice cream. Even better the next day for breakfast ;-)
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