Apple Crumble

Ingredients

For the crumble

• 300g/10½oz plain flour, sieved pinch of salt 
• 175g/6oz unrefined brown sugar
• 200g/7oz unsalted butter, cubed at room temperature 
• Knob of butter for greasing 

For the filling

• 450g/1lb apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1cm/½in pieces 
• 50g/2oz unrefined brown sugar
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 1 pinch of ground cinnamon

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Place the flour and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 
   Technique: Rubbing in
   Watch technique0:46 mins
3. Place the fruit in a large bowl and sprinkle over the sugar, flour and cinnamon. Stir well being careful not to break up the fruit. 
4. Butter a 24cm/9in ovenproof dish. Spoon the fruit mixture into the bottom, then sprinkle the crumble mixture on top. 
5. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the crumble is browned and the fruit mixture bubbling. 
6. Serve with thick cream or custard.
   

Loaded Cauliflower

Ingredients:
1 large head of Cauliflower cut into bite size pieces (approx 6 cups)
6-8 strips of bacon cooked and crumbled (Cooked in oven at 400° for 20 mins)
6 Tbs chopped Chives
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/2 cup Sour Cream
2 cups Colby Jack Cheese ( may use cheddar)
8 oz container sliced mushrooms (I don't use mushrooms in mine)(optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425°
In a large pot boil water and cook Cauliflower for 8 - 10 minutes, drain and let cool.
In a large bowl combine sour cream, mayo, 1/2 of crumbled bacon, 3 tbs chives, 1 cups of cheese,mushrooms and cauliflower and mix well... place in baking dish and cover with remaining 1 cup of cheese and rest of bacon crumbles. Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted. top with remaining 3 T chives and serve.

Spicy rice-filled eggplants

Ingredients (serves 4)

150g ( 3/4 cup) basmati rice
2 large eggplants
1 tbs olive oil
1 large brown onion, halved, finely chopped
1 red capsicum, halved, deseeded, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
1/5 tsp finely chopped fresh red chilli
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/5 cup coarsely chopped fresh continental parsley
2 tsp finely grated lemon rind
2 tbs fresh lemon juice
130g (1/2 cup) reduced-fat yoghurt
2 tbs coarsely chopped fresh mint

Method

Preheat oven to 200°C. Cook the rice in a large saucepan of boiling water for 15 minutes or until tender. Rinse under cold running water. Drain well.

Meanwhile, cut the eggplants in half lengthways. Use a small sharp knife to cut a 1cm border around the edge of each eggplant half. Scoop out the flesh within the border, leaving about 1.5cm of flesh on the base of each eggplant half. Finely chop the flesh.

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and capsicum and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the garlic, coriander, ginger, chilli and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds or until aromatic. Add the chopped eggplant and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes or until eggplant is soft. Remove from heat.

Add the rice, parsley, lemon rind and lemon juice to eggplant mixture, and stir to combine. Place eggplant shells in a large baking dish. Spoon rice mixture evenly among eggplant shells. Bake in oven for 30 minutes or until eggplant shells are soft and filling is golden.

Place the yoghurt and mint in a small serving bowl and stir to combine. Serve with spicy rice-filled eggplant.

Curried Cauliflower and Carrots

Ingredients
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup olive oil, plus more for topping
1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 red onion, cut into eighths
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Whisk together the curry powder, cumin, salt, pepper and olive oil in a medium bowl.

Spread the cauliflower, carrots, and onion in a single layer on a large baking sheet-lined with tin foil. Drizzle with the dressing and toss so it is thoroughly coated.

Roast the vegetables in the oven until tender and browned, about 40 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking. Remove to a serving bowl and sprinkle with parsley and a drizzle of olive oil on top. Serve hot or at room temperature.



Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/patrick-and-gina-neely/curried-cauliflower-and-carrots-recipe.html?oc=linkback

Jamie Oliver's tomato soup

• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks celery
• 2 medium onions
• 2 cloves garlic
• olive oil
• 2 organic chicken or vegetable stock cubes
• 2 x 400 g tinned plum tomatoes
• 6 large ripe tomatoes
• 1 small bunch fresh basil
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
  
  
  To make your soup:
  Peel and roughly slice the carrots. Slice the celery. Peel and roughly chop the onions. Peel and slice the garlic. Put a large pan on a medium heat and add a couple of lugs of olive oil. Add all your chopped and sliced ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon.
  
  Cook for around 10 to 15 minutes with the lid askew, until the carrots have softened but are still holding their shape, and the onion is lightly golden.
  
  Put the stock cubes into a jug or pan and pour in 1.5 litres of boiling water from the kettle. Stir until the stock cubes are dissolved, then add to the pan with your tinned and fresh whole tomatoes, including the green stalks that may still be attached to some of them (these give an amazing flavour – trust me!) Give it a good stir and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on. Meanwhile, pick your basil leaves.
  
  To serve your soup:
  Remove the pan from the heat. Season with salt and pepper and add the basil leaves. Using a hand blender or liquidizer, pulse the soup until smooth. Season again before dividing between your serving bowls.

Couscous with pine nuts

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

3/4 cup chopped shallots (3 to 4 shallots)

3 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups couscous

1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (pignolis)

1/4 cup dried currants

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the shallots and cook them over medium-low heat for 3 minutes, until translucent. Add the chicken stock, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat. Stir in the couscous, cover the pan, and set aside for 10 minutes. Add the pine nuts, currants, and parsley and fluff with a fork to combine. Serve hot.

Crusty parmesan herb zuchinni bites

RECIPE: Crusty Parmesan Herb Zucchini Bites

Ingredients

4 medium, fresh zucchini, sliced in half
1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
1-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary & thyme, minced
smidge of olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350F, lightly brush both sizes of the zucchini with olive oil and place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Mix cheese and herbs together in a small bowl and sprinkle over the zucchini along with salt and pepper to taste. Bake for 15 minutes and place under the broiler for the last 3-5 minutes until cheese is crispy and browned

Egg & Curry Beans

Ingredients:

6 – 8 jumbo Nulaid eggs
60 ml canola oil
15 – 30 ml mild curry powder
6 curry leaves (optional)
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
65 ml flour
400 ml prepared chicken or vegetable stock
15 ml cider vinegar
30 ml tomato paste
45 – 65 ml brown sugar
generous pinch of dried red chilli flakes
salt and freshly ground black pepper
250 g sliced green beans
1 x 425 g can butter beans in brine, drained
lemon zest and whole coriander leaves

Method

Boil the Nulaid canola-fed eggs to your liking. Plunge them in cold water and when cool enough to handle, remove the shells. Cut in halves, season to taste, cover and set aside.

Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the curry powder. Fry briefly until aromatic. Add the curry leaves (if using) and onion and sauté until onions are translucent. Sprinkle in the flour and stir until smooth. Add the stock, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar and chilli flakes. Season to taste and reduce heat. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce is thick and the onions are soft.

Add the green beans and cook a further 3 minutes or until the beans are cooked al dente. Add the butter beans and stir until heated through.

Pour the sauce in a serving dish, top with the eggs, garnish and serve with Basmati or brown rice and tomato-and-cucumber sambal.

Serves 6

Chef's hint:

Naturally, you can add more spice if you like or less, if you don't.

Garlic and Rosemary Green Beans

Ingredients

1 pound Frozen Green Beans; thawed

1/4 cup olive oil

1 clove Garlic; crushed

1/2 teaspoon Rosemary; dried

1/2 teaspoon Salt

Preparation

Thaw green beans in a collander. Put olive oil, garlic, rosemary and salt in a skillet or stir-fry pan and mix. Add green beans. Stir-fry until beans are just softened. Serve immediately.

Cheese and chutney mini muffins

Ingredients
2 cups self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup olive oil
2 lightly beaten eggs
2/3 cup finely grated parmesan
salt and cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons tomato chutney

Method
Preheat oven to 190°C. Spray a 12 x 1 1/2 tablespoon-capacity mini muffin pan with a little oil spray. Set aside.
Sift flour and baking powder into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine milk, olive oil and eggs and add to the flour mixture. Add parmesan and salt and cracked black pepper, folding gently until just combined.
Place a spoonful of mixture in each muffin hole, coming about 3/4 of the way up the side of each hole. Make a little well in the centre of each muffin hole and divide tomato chutney between each hole. Using a skewer, gently swirl the chutney into the muffin mixture.
Bake for 10 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool and repeat with remaining muffin mixture.

Corn mini quiches

Ingredients
3 sheets frozen ready-rolled shortcrust pastry
4 eggs
1/4 cup pure cream
3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 x 125g cans creamed corn
1/3 cup grated tasty cheese

Method
Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Grease two 12-hole, round-based patty pans. Using a 7cm-round cutter, cut 24 rounds from pastry. Press into prepared pans.
Whisk eggs, cream, onion and corn in a jug. Pour mixture into pastry cases. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until golden and set. Serve.
Notes
Frozen pastry should be partially thawed before using.

Poached pears and spiced red wine

Ingredients

Ingredients
1 vanilla pod
1 bottle red wine
225g caster sugar
1 cinnamon stick , halved
fresh thyme sprig , plus sprigs to seve
6 pears , peeled, but kept whole with stalk intact

Halve the vanilla pod lengthways, scrape out the black seeds and put in a large saucepan with the wine, sugar, cinnamon and thyme. Cut each piece of pod into three long thin strips, add to pan, then lower in the pears.
Poach the pears, covered, for 20-30 mins, making sure they are covered in the wine. The cooking time will very much depend on the ripeness of your pears - they should be tender all the way through when pierced with a cocktail stick. You can make these up to 2 days ahead and chill.

Take the pears from the pan, then boil the liquid to reduce it by half so that it's syrupy. Serve each pear with the cooled syrup, a strip of vanilla, a piece of cinnamon and a small thyme sprig

BOSVELD WARM PATAT IN FOELIE

Bestanddele
Een medium tot groot patat per persoon
Tinfoil (Foelie)
Botter
Growwe peper / peperkorrels
Growwe sout / soutkorrels
Extra Virgin Olyfolie
Een suurlemoen
‘n Paar takkies vars tiemie

Voorbereiding

Was die patats skoon en droog af (hou die vel aan)
Plaas die patats elkeen op ‘n stuk foelie (blink kant na binne)
Drup so klein bietjie olyfolie op elke patat
Smeer so bietjie botter op elke patat as jy wil hê die patat moet sag wees – die skil is ook dan sag
Jy kan natuurlik verkies om die botter op die patat te smeer nadat die patat gaar is en uit die foelie gehaal is – dis jou keuse
Sny die suurlemoen in die helfte en druk ‘n klein bietjie sap op elke patat
Meng die sout en peperkorrels en maal dit fyn – strooi op die patats
Plaas een takkie vars tiemie saam met die patat op die foelie
Draai nou die patats goed toe in die foelie – moenie dat die tiemie uitval nie, want dit bring so ‘n lekker geurtjie en smakie daarby.

Fresh tomato salsa

Ingredients

3 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup finely diced onion
5 serrano chiles, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lime juice

In a medium bowl, stir together tomatoes, onion, chili peppers, cilantro, salt, and lime juice. Chill for one hour in the refrigerator before serving.

Griekse rysslaai

In plaas van ‘n normale Griekse slaai, sny jy hiervoor al die gewone bestanddele effens kleiner en gooi dit by rys vir ‘n heerlike koue rysslaai.

Vir 4 persone.
1 koppie rou rys
4 sprietuie, gekap
1 koppie gerasperde komkommer
ongeveer 300 g kersietamaties, gehalveer
75 g fetakaas, in klein blokkies gesny
6 swart olywe, ontpit en in kwarte gesny
sout en varsgemaalde swartpeper
paar handevol varsgekapte basiliekruid

Kook die rys met ‘n knippie sout tot gaar. Gooi dit uit in ‘n mengbak om af te koel.
Voeg die res van die bestanddele en sout en swartpeper na smaak by.

Mieliebrood

1 k koekmeel 1 k mieliemeel
3 t bakpoeier 1 t sout
125 ml olie 125 ml suiker
3 eiers 1 blik geroomde suikermielies

Klits die volgende saam: olie, suiker en eiers. Sif droë bestanddele saam en voeg by eiermengsel. Roer mielies by. Giet in broodpannetjie en bedek liggies met foelie. Bak by 180ºC vir ongeveer 1 uur.

Aartappel en cheddar rolletjies

4 groot aartappels, geskil
300 g sterk cheddarkaas, gerasper
2 eiers, geklits
60 ml gekapte pietersielie
knippie rooipeper, of na smaak
sout en varsgemaalde swartpeper na smaak
6 velle filodeeg
sowat 50 ml gesmelte botter
sowat 150 ml olyfolie
30 ml gekapte pietersielie

Kook aartappels tot sag. Druk fyn met 'n vurk. Daar kan nog stukke in wees. Voeg kaas, eiers en pietersielie by. Geur met rooipeper, sout en peper. Plaas een vel filodeeg op jou werkoppervlak. Smeer met gesmelte botter. Plaas 'n tweede vel deeg bo-op. Smeer weer met gesmelte botter. Herhaal met 'n derde vel. Skep van die aartappelvulsel sowat 5 cm van
onderkant van deeg in 'n lang wors. Vou deeg oor vulsel. Vou kante weerskante oor vulsel en rol op. Herhaal met die res. Maak toe met kleefplastiek en laat koud word in yskas. Sny koue rol
in skywe van sowat 3 cm. Verhit olyfolie in pan en braai sirkels weerskante vir sowat 3minute. Dreineer op kombuispapier. Sprinkel gekapte pietersielie oor en sit warm voor.

Pineapple tarts

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE PASTY FILLING

2 1/2 cups (350g) all-purpose flour
2 sticks butter/8 oz./1 cup/225 grams butter (I use Challenge brand)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks
4 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar/icing sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch (corn flour)
1 egg yolk (lightly beaten for egg wash)

FOR THE PINEAPPLE FILLING

2 cans (20 oz can) sliced pineapples
10 tablespoons sugar (more or less to taste)
1 teaspoon cornstarch or corn flour (mixed with 1 teaspoon water)

METHOD:

Drain the pineapple slices and then squeeze the extra water/juice with your hands. Blend the canned pineapples until it’s mushy, about 10 seconds.

Using medium heat, cook the pineapple and sugar until most liquid has evaporated, and the filling turned golden. Stirring constantly using a wooden spoon to avoid burning. Taste, and add more sugar when needed. Add in the cornstarch (corn flour) to thicken the filling. Let it cool in the fridge.

Sieve the flour, cornstarch, salt and sugar into a medium bowl. Soften the butter to room temperature. Add in the egg yolks and the flour. Knead to form the dough.

Divide the dough and pineapple filling each into 24 equal rounds. Flatten the pastry dough with the palms and put the pineapple filling in the middle and use the dough to cover the filling. Use your palms to round it up and then shape it into a roll about 1.5 inch long. Use a fork to make criss-cross patterns on the tart and then brush it with the egg wash.

You can also use a pineapple tarts mould to make the pattern above.

Preheat the oven for 350F and bake for 20-25 minutes or until light brown.

Bengali Egg Curry

Ingredients

4 hard boiled eggs-shelled.
1 medium sized potato, peeled and cut into cubes
3 green chillies slit
3 tbsp of mustard oil
1 tsp of turmeric,
3 tsp of Kashmiri Chili powder
1 large onion sliced
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
2 dry red chilies
1 tsp of ginger garlic paste
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp of tomato ketchup
2 tbsp of whisked yoghurt
1 tsp of Dhania-jeera powder
½ tsp of garam masala
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves to garnish


Directions
Take the hard boiled eggs and make slits on them.
Coat them in a mixture of turmeric, salt and red chili powder.
Fry them in 1 tsp of oil. Take out, when nicely fried.
Next add the turmeric, chilli, salt mixture to the cubed potatoes and fry them in this oil. Take out, when 3/4th fried.
In a deep bottomed vessel, take 2 tbsps of mustard oil. Heat it, then add a bay leaf, 2dried red chilies and a tsp of cumin seeds.
Once the cumin seeds splutter, add the sliced garlic and fry for a min. Take care not to burn the garlic.
Add a tsp of sugar in the oil.
Next add the sliced onions and keep on frying till they change color and become light brownish. Next add the slit chilies.
Add a pinch of turmeric powder, ginger-garlic paste and the tomato ketchup
Next add 2 tsps of Kashmiri chilly powder and the yoghurt.
Add 1 tsp of Dhania-jeera powder and fry well, adding a little water and fry till oil starts to separate.
Once oil starts to separate, put in the fried eggs and potatoes and mix.
Add little Water for gravy, and salt to taste.
Once it comes to boil and potatoes are cooked, add ½ a tsp of garam masala.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Mieliegereg

Hierdie is 'n maklike gereg wat heerlik saam met enige iets afgaan.

90 ml Koekmeelblom
5 ml Bakpoeier
90 ml Suiker
2 Geklitste eiers
3 Blikkies suikermielies
90 ml Botter

Meng alles saam. Bak tot gaar by 180 grade C.