Baked Apples, with Dates and Walnuts

BAKED APPLES with DATES AND WALNUTS

One of my favourite desserts!

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 40–50 minutes

Ingredients:
3 x large dessert Apples – Granny Smith, or preferably, Golden Delicious
25gms (1oz) x light soft Brown Sugar
6 – 8 x Dates – preferably Medjool, or a thick, fleshy date, with plenty of taste
10 x Walnut halves – scraped clean, and roughly chopped
Pinch x ground Cinnamon
25gms (1oz) x Butter


Optional extras:

2 tbspns x Crème Fraîche or Double Cream
1 x Egg yolk
Nip, or two x Calvados Liqueur – to taste (if desired),


Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6

Split two of the Apples horizontally through the middle. These can now be cored. Place the four pieces in a buttered ovenproof dish, sprinkle with a little of the Sugar and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

While they are baking, the remaining Apple can be peeled, cored and coarsely grated. The Dates can now be split and de-seeded before being cut into strips, or julienned.

Mix together, the grated Apple, Dates and the chopped Walnuts, adding the pinch of Cinnamon. The optional extras can now be added, if using. A good splash of Calvados will be plenty for this dish.

Spoon the mixture into and on the par-baked Apples. Sprinkle with the remaining Sugar and top each with a knob of the measured Butter. Lower the oven temperature to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.

Finish baking for a further 25–30 minutes. During the baking, Apple juices mingling with the Sugar, can be used to baste the Apples – adding to the flavour.

Once cooked, remove from the oven, trickle each one with the natural sweetened juices. Extra-thick cream will be all the Apples need to complete the dish.


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Peppered Mushrooms

PEPPERED MUSHROOMS

QUANTITY: - Serves 4


PREPARATION TIME: - 15 minutes


INGREDIENTS:

• 2 – 3 x medium Cup Mushrooms per portion
• 50gms (2ozs) x Butter
• 4 x toast slices – crusts removed (Onion Bread works well)
• Salt and Black Pepper
• 1 tspn x chopped fresh Chives – to garnish

METHOD:


Wipe and de-stalk the Mushrooms. Skin, if desired.
Season with salt, and a good twist of black pepper, being as generous as your taste buds will allow.
Melt three-quarters of the butter in a large frying-pan.
Add the mushrooms and cook for 7–8 minutes - until tender.

Sit the mushrooms on the toasts, pouring over any excess butter.
Sprinkle with chives.



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Fruit, and Yoghurt - in Pastry Case

Fruit and Yoghurt - In Pastry Case

One way to make a delicious, yet simple, dessert, (without a lot of fuss), is to use your imagination - and 'pre-made' pastry cases, or tartlet cases.

This recipe, for stewed fruit pieces, with sweetened Greek yoghurt, is a perennial favourite of mine.

I used tartlet cases, not the flan case, which appears in the photo...

Ingredients:

Fruit - eg: Nectarine, Banana, Peach, Pear, Apple, Mango
3 dspns x rich Greek Yoghurt - depending on quantity required
2 dspns x Icing Sugar
Tartlet cases
Jam - your choice - Strawberry, Raspberry, Plum, etc


Method:

Prepare the fruit. Slice it and dice it, then microwave it all together, for about one (1) minute, to soften it. (You can also use prepared stewed fruit). Allow to cool.

Mix Icing Sugar into the Yoghurt, and set aside.

Prepare cases with a teaspoonful of the jam. Add a teaspoonful of the Yoghurt, spreading it out. Add some of the Fruit mix to each case (not too much), then, finish off with another spoonful of the Yoghurt - or ice cream (Vanilla).

Serve immediately. Mmm !

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Relish - Tomato, Roasted Capsicum and Chili

Relish - Tomato, Roasted Capsicum and Chili

This very tasty relish, is made in just under an hour and a half, from start to finish. Similar to various recipes, it can be varied to suit your taste - hot, or mild.

Quantity: 500 gms - although variable

Ingredients:

4 x Med. Tomatoes - peeled and diced
1 x Med. Red Onion - finely diced
1 x Red (or Green) Chili - diced * Note: De-seed for milder taste
2 tspn x crushed Garlic
2 x Roasted Capsicums - diced
¼ cup x Brown Sugar
¼ cup x Brown Vinegar
Salt and Pepper - to taste
2 tbsp x Olive Oil


Method:

Each tomatoes should be scored with a cross-cut. Place tomatoes in a bowl and cover with boiling water for ten seconds. Then carefully peel the skins off. Dice them and store in a separate bowl, until needed.

The diced onion and chili can now be cooked in a saucepan until the onion is soft - about 8-10 minutes. Now, introduce the Garlic and saute for another minute.

All other ingredients can now be introduced, stirring well. Simmer the relish for around 2 hrs, until thick, and allow to cool, just a bit.

If bottling, now is the time to do it. Make sure your bottles/jars are well sterilised.

If not, place the relish in a canister, allow to cool completely, and refrigerate.


The flavours will develop overnight.


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Soft-Boiled Egg, with Toast Fingers

Soft-boiled Egg, with Toast Fingers

One simple pleasure in life, is a soft-boiled egg. In this case, I have included toast fingers.

The cooking of the eggs has to be done correctly. Soft-boiled eggs take only 3 - 5 minutes.

Season with a little white pepper, and some salt, if desired.


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Mushrooms - Crumbed and Fried, with Aioli

Mushrooms - Crumbed and Fried, with Aioli

The Mushrooms:

Ingredients:

6 x medium Mushrooms - skinned
1 x Egg beaten
Breadcrumbs
Oil for frying

Method:

Peel the mushrooms. Dip in the Egg-wash and coat in the breadcrumbs. Fry until golden brown on both sides.
Drain on paper towel.


For the Aioli Mayonnaise: (ex Taste.com.au)

Ingredients:

2 x Garlic Cloves, chopped
1 tspn x Sea or rock salt
2 x Egg yolks
1 cup x Extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsns x Water
2 tbsps x Lemon juice
2 tpns x Wholegrain mustard

Method:

Process garlic, salt and egg yolks in a food processor until well combined.
With motor running, slowly add oil through feed tube, processing to form a thick mayonnaise. Transfer to a bowl.
Stir in water, lemon juice and mustard. Cover surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate until required.

Serve with baby spinach leaves/salad.


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Sang Choi Bao - Jessie's recipe

Sang Choi Bao

My darling daughter, Jessie, had a break from her University studies, to cook dear old Dad, her version of the delightful Chinese-style finger-food, called Sang Choi Bao

It really is a simple meal to prepare, and delicious to eat. (Make sure you have plenty of napkins available!)

Preparation time: - ¾ of an hour

Ingredients:

500gms x quality Pork Mince
1 x clove Garlic - diced finely
1 x Iceberg Lettuce - wash and separate the leaves
1 x Carrot - grated
1 x med. Zucchini - grated
1 - 2 handfuls x Bean Sprouts - washed. The quantity to suit personal choice.
1 x med. Onion - diced
2 x Spring Onions - diced
2 tbspns x Sesame Seeds - toasted
2 tbspns x Oil - Canola is OK
3 tbspns x Oyster Sauce
3 tbspns x light Soy Sauce

Optional:
1 x red Chili - diced
Water Chestnuts - chopped
1 tspn x Sesame Oil - (do not over-use, as it is a very strong flavour)
1 tspn x piece (3 cms) Ginger - grated
2 tbspns x Cornflour - optional (mixed in a little cold water, to thicken the sauce)

Method:

In a fry-pan, toast the Sesame Seeds carefully, until the aromas are released and a slight colour change occurs.

In a separate large fry-pan, add the Canola Oil, the Garlic and Onions, and saute. Then add the Mince, and brown it. After about four to five minutes, add the Carrot, Zucchini, Spring Onions, and Ginger (if using) until cooked. Stir in the Oyster Sauce, and Soy Sauce. After it is cooked, stir in Sesame Seeds and Bean Sprouts.

Serve in the Lettuce Leaves, perhaps with a nice glass of wine.


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Hearty Vegetables, with Rice and Coriander

Hearty Vegetables, with Rice and Coriander

Naturally, when cooking for one person, there are often left-overs to be enjoyed another time. There's nothing wrong with this practice, as long as you refrigerate the left-overs properly. To use the left-overs, you can be as creative as you like. You can add rice, or pasta, spices, more vegetables - the imagination runs wild. In my case, I as I had already added a little Thai-flavouring with the curry paste, I decided to just add Coriander - one of my absolute favourite herbs, and serve it on a bed of Coriander-flavoured Jasmine Rice. I also drained a little fluid from the soup, a little Ground Coriander Seeds, and a little Fish Sauce, for flavouring.

Ingredients: The 'left-overs'

1 x 400 gms can chopped Tomatoes
150 gms x Red Lentils - rinsed
1 tbspn x Canola Oil
1 x med. Onion - chopped
1 x Carrot - diced
1 x med. Potato - diced
½ tspn x Ground Coriander Seeds
1 tbspn x Thai Fish Sauce
2 sticks x Celery - thinly sliced
1 x Zucchini (Courgette) - chopped
1 x tbspn 750 mls x Vegetable Stock
1 cup x Jasmine Rice
1½ cups x Water/ or Stock
Fresh Coriander Leaves
pinch of Salt


Method:

In your Rice Cooker, add one cup of washed Jasmine Rice, 1½ cups of Chicken Stock, or water, a pinch of Salt, and one tablespoon of chopped Coriander Leaves. Set to Cooking.

Warm up the left-overs, after adding the Ground Coriander Seeds, Fish Sauce and some more of the Coriander Leaves. Save some leaves for garnish.

Once the rice is cooked, and the left-overs are heated through, serve them with some Coriander Leaves, as a garnish.


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