SCRAPPLE

You will need to order 1 and 1/2 kg of pork neck bones from your butcher .
Then simmer the neck bones in in boiling water , salted water till the the meat can be easily removed from the bones .
Remove the meat and the bones and strain the broth .
Shred the meat finely and add to strained stock .
Bring the strained stock to the boil.
In a separate bowl mix 1 and 1/2 cups of polenta in 2 cups of cold water .
Now stir the polenta into the boiling stock and meat .
Cook until thickened
Add salt to taste , 1 tsp of  ground sage and 1 tsp of ground thyme
Pour the thoroughly thickened scrapple into loaf pans which have been sprayed with cooking spray .
Cover with cling film directly on the surface of the scrapple .
Place in refrigerator to chill for a minimum of 4 hours .
Then  thickly slice and shallow fry the slices in a pan over a medium heat until golden brown .
I prefer to spray the slices with cooking oil spray and place the slices on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven on 180 deg C.....turning once during the cook .
Serve with butter  and maple syrup .

FRIED POLENTA SLICE

Add 1 and 1/2 cups of polenta to 4 cups of boiling water with 1 and 1/2 tsp of salt .
Stir and cook till thickened and pulling away from the sides of the saucepan .
Then add 1 cup of  chopped bacon and a handful of chopped parsley .
Pour into a well greased loaf pan , cover with cling film , pressing down lightly on the surface of the polenta .
Place in refrigerator to cool , allow 4 hours .
Cut into 1/2inch  thick slices
Dip the slices into a beaten egg and then press into panko crumbs .
Shallow fry in a pan over a medium heat with rice bran oil until golden brown .
I prefer to spray the coated slices with cooking spray and place the slices on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven on 180 deg C , turning once during the cook .
Top with  mashed avocado ,crispy fried bacon strips and maple syrup ...
Beautiful ..

MATJES HERRING ON HALOUMI

Soak a 200gm packet of matjes herrings in a bowl of milk for 2 hours , refresh the milk after 1 hour .
Then slice the herrings into small cubes .
Chop 1 onion finely
Combine onion and herrings in a bowl .
Season with cracked pepper and add finely chopped fresh parsley .
Drizzle with balsamic glaze .
Cover and chill in refrigerator , while you prepare the haloumi .
Slice haloumi and cut rounds , place them on a hot griddle pan and heat through , turning once .
Place on warmed serving plates and then top with the matjes herring tartare .
It was lovely and I would call it a haloumi bruschetta ...just amazing ...
Dale was making the guttural mmm sounds and Amelia was agreeing ..
Matjes herrings are available in Marino 's deli ...Church St Morwell.

TUESDAY 29TH AUGUST ......COOKING CLASS

Today we are meeting at the Morwell P.O. @ 10am and we are doing a walk through of Church St, Morwell.
We will visit the Kitchen shop ,
Marino`s Deli
Continental bakery ,
There will be coffee on offer at Conti café and at the Vault ...
Later we will walk through the subway to Manny`s market and spend time in the fruit and vegie market , viewing the cuts of fresh fish and seafood at the seafood shop , looking at all the chicken and fowl options available at the chicken shop and then finish our time wandering through the Delicatessen and smallgoods store .
Everyone welcome , see you there .

ORANGE POLENTA TART

This is the best tart I have made .......and I know I have made some good tarts.
What makes this the best ?.....The simplicity of the ingredients and its construction .
Best of all the flavour and texture  is a knockout .

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C .
Measure out 250 gm of polenta and add it to a saucepan of water , the ratio is 4.5 :1, keep stirring till it comes to a boil and thickens at which point add 2 tbs of soft brown sugar  and continue to stir to mix well .
Remove the pot from the heat and prepare your tart pan
Spray a 23 cm loose bottom tart pan
Pour 1/2 the mixture into the prepared pan , using the back of a wooden spoon gently push the mixture to the fit snuggly all around .
Place in the preheated oven for 20 minutes .

Then remove and prepare the filling .
First you need to slice 1 or 2 oranges , removing pips and slice off the skin with pith .
Peel the remaining zest from the oranges and chop finely or process .

Then in the bowl of your electric mixer beat 4 eggs till well beaten and then gradually add 150 gm of castor sugar , 150ml of orange juice , the juice of 1 lemon , 125ml of almond milk and the chopped zest .
Now pour this mix evenly over the polenta base .
Now continue to bake in  the preheated oven till the filling is partially set , then remove and top the filling with the orange slices .
Return the tart to the oven and continue to bake for 10 minutes ...
Then remove the tin  from the oven and place on a cooling rack to cool .

 

A WEEKEND AT THE MANOR

Time has been well spent in the garden , Ziggy ( my daughter`s dog ) and I welcomed and placed 1000 worms into the vegie and fruit gardens ....and then it rained through the night , it would have been magical for the freed boxed worms , I imagined them wriggling and giggling in the wet soil .
I got to harvest my healthy parsley and  Thai basil plants to use in my passato .
All my herbs are thriving in their new environment ....sage , mint , Vietnamese mint , chives , flat and curly parsley , Thai basil , garlic , stevia , oregano , coriander and rosemary ....I only grow what I are staples in my recipes .

 

Against all my training in horticulture......I planted out 2 pots of fresh seeds in pots ...let`s see what happens ...hey I don`t have a hothouse anymore ...and I`m up to the challenge .
I made passato ......and a chicken stock ,vegetable and pasta soup ...my friend Laufa has the flu , seriously soup cures all ailments , well this one will .
My cymbidium orchids are in bud ..they are loving the move

.
My daphne is housed in a huge pot and has always been placed near the entrance to the  front door , and it has the same position in my new place ....... it started flowering in April when it was relocated and it is still in flower and fragrant at the end of August .

PASSATO

I bought 6 bags of over ripe tomatoes at Manny's Market in Morwell .

At home I peeled the tomatoes and simmered them with chopped onions , garlic , fresh basil , parsley , coriander until the mixture was reduced by half .
I then repeated the process with the remaining tomatoes , the pot is now full and cooling .
When cool enough I will puree the tomato mix in batches and season with a little chilli, salt and pepper .

I will then pour into freezer friendly containers and place in the freezer for future use .

 

SATURDAY NIGHT TEA

Balsamic glaze on a fresh pizza base .........

                                     topped with sliced avocado.....

     pulled apart chicken.......

                          crumbled feta cheese .........

 halved cherry tomatoes and grated cheese .....

 Baked golden and pizza perfect .....mmmm

PASTA AND VEGETABLE SOUP

The remedy is pasta soup .....

I had a pot of chicken stock on the stove, which I strained ...

 and  then added diced carrot , cauliflower rice , zucchini spaghetti , onion , celery , parsley , chopped fennel , 1/2 tsp of chilli paste  ( optional ) and sliced mushrooms .

Heated to a simmer and allowed to cook till vegetables were tender , about 30 minutes with the pot partially covered .

Then I added the tortellini and angolotti to the simmering stock , stirred gently to combine and then added finely grated parmesan .

Switch off heat after 8 minutes and serve .
Keep the pot covered and leave on the stove top , offer a bowl to everyone who enters your kitchen .
The longer it stands it will thicken ,  a little water or stock can be added .

 

PANETTONE

Panettone or otherwise known as Christmas Loaf, I don`t care if it is the 25th August ....you need to get organised ...it`s nearly Christmas Day .
Prepare an 18 cm round cake pan with cooking spray and baking paper .
Place 300gm of strong plain flour into a large bowl add 2 tbs of castor sugar , 1/2 tsp of dried yeast , 1 tsp of salt and 1 dsp of dried cardamom , stir to combine .
Now add the grated rind of 1 lemon , 1 tsp of vanilla extract , 150 ml of milk  ( your choice ..soy , almond , coconut , rice ) , 2 lightly beaten egg yolks.
Mix all the above together to make a soft dough .
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured bench and knead for 10 minutes ...
Put the dough back into the bowl and cover with cling film and leave to prove in a warm place for 2 hours .....or until doubled in size .
At this point return the dough to a lightly floured bench and knock back the dough  ( knead the dough )
Knead in 55 gm of mixed peel with 115 gm of sultanas .
It is now time to preheat your oven to 150 deg C
Now place the dough into the prepared pan and cover with cling wrap for 2 hours or until doubled in size .
Remove the cling wrap and place in your preheated oven and bake until golden .
Allow to cool for 20 minutes in the pan , then remove to a wire cooling rack to cool completely .So much cheaper than the commercially made Panettone on offer over the Christmas period .

TUSCAN CHRISTMAS CAKE

Tuscan Christmas cake otherwise know as Panforte di Siena .
Today in 16 weeks time we will awake on Christmas Day 2017 .
It is time to begin preparing the menu .
Tuscan Christmas cake is served as a dessert from Sienna in Tuscany, versions of the following recipe date back to the 13th century .

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C
Prepare a 20cm round cake pan with cooking spray and baking paper .
In the bowl of your processor place 115gm of hazelnuts , 115gm of almonds and process till roughly chopped .
Once your oven has reached 180 deg , reduce to 150deg C.
Place the chopped nuts into a large bowl .
Add 55gm of chopped dried apricots
85 gm of mixed peel
55gm of candied pineapple chopped .
The grated rind of 1 orange .
Mix all ingredients together to combine .
Sift together 55gm of plain flour , 2 tbs of cocoa powder , 1 tsp of ground cinnamon , 1/2 tsp of ground coriander , 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg , 1/2 tsp of ground cloves and mix with the fruit and nuts .
Now place 115gm of castor sugar in a small saucepan with 175gm of clear honey and heat over a low heat , stirring until the sugar has dissolved .
Allow the mixture to boil and continue to cook for 5 minutes until the mixture begins to thicken and darken .
Stir into the dry mixture .
Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the surface .
Bake for 1 hour  .
Transfer to a wire rack to cool in the pan .
Remove the cake from the pan , when it has completely cooled .
Sprinkle with icing sugar to serve and slice in thin wedges .

 

CHICKEN FEET STOCK

Boil 1 kg of chicken feet for 5 minutes .
Drain
Cool.
When cool enough to handle , clip off tips of the claws
Place chicken feet in a large stock pot .
Fill with cold water and cover by an inch .
Add 2 large carrots halved .
1 onion cut in wedges .
4 stalks of celery cut in half
Bunch of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
10 peppercorns .

Bring to a simmer , then reduce heat , partially cover placing lid on an angle .
Keep stock cooking for 4 hours
Then remove lid and continue cooking for an hour for stock to reduce .
Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a clean pot or large bowl .

Allow to cool and then pour into plastic containers with lids that are easy to store in refrigerator or freezer .
the stock will turn into a gel on cooling .
Best stock ever and well worth the effort .

SUNDAY NIGHT AT THE MANOR

preparing the pig`s head

After 4 .5 hours of oven baking the cheeks are ready to be served

Amelia's willingness to try something new  is so refreshing ..

The pork cheek was served with roasted whole apple.

The cheek was falling off the bone , so soft and full of juice .

The next course was a duo of fowl , butterflied and stuffed quail with crumbed kiev rounds on a cauliflower  mash .

We finished tea with a slice of almond tart and mascarpone

Over 4 hours we shared great conversation , ideas , wine and food .

BAKED VEGETABLE RISOTTO

I sliced up a fennel bulb, 2 heads of broccoli , 3 carrots, 2 onions , a small bulb of garlic , 2 handfuls of spinach leaves , 1/4 celery , placed them on an oven tray with a drizzle of oil and baked them on a low heat till tender .
Then placed the vegies in a soup pot with a litre of vegetable stock and 500 ml of fish stock .

Bought it back to the boil and simmered for 40 minutes .

Turn off the heat , cover and allow to cool.

Once cooled process to a puree .

I then placed a drizzle of oil into a pan over a low heat and added 4 cups of medium brown rice , 1/4 cup of black rice , 1/4 cup of red rice and 1/2 cup of red quinoa ....

 

stirring continuously to heat through , then I added 5cups of vegetable stock and slowly

added the roast vegetable puree .

Stir continuously over a low heat , until the rice absorbs the stock and is well incorporated through the puree .

 

Then turn off the heat and cover the pan  to allow the flavours to infuse .

The last thing to do is to stir through  4 tbs of mascarpone and 4 tbs of  cream .

A very warm and filling meal on a cold winter's night .

 

ALMOND TART

Preheat your oven to 160`deg C.
This recipe can be found on the 350gm package of 'sunbeam ' almond meal .
The best thing about this recipe ..is it really works .
Prepare a loose bottomed tart flan with cooking spray .
In your electric mixer beat together 250gm of butter /margarine , 2 /3`rds of a cup of castor sugar with the rind of 1 lemon ....this process takes time .....beat  until light and fluffy .
Beat together 4 eggs ( at room temp ).....now add them a little at a time to the batter .
Stir in 220gm of almond meal and 1/cup of rice flour ....
Pour the prepared batter into the prepared flan pan and top with fresh berries of your choic , I used thawed frozen cherries ....
Bake for 55 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean...
Stand in pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack for another 10 minutes prior to serving .

FRENCH JELLIES

Soak 28gm of gelatine in 4 tbs of water .
Place 4 tbs of water in a medium saucepan with 455gm of castor sugar and slowly bring to the boil .
Add the gelatine and simmer for 20 minutes .
Add flavouring and colourings ..( I used rose water essence with an orange colouring ).
Pour into a wetted slice tray .
Allow to set , then cut into squares and dredge through icing sugar .
These are delicious ....!

RUSSIAN CARAMELS

Melt 110 gm of butter \ margarine in a medium saucepan over a low heat
Add 1 tin of condensed milk , 225 gm of soft brown sugar and 2 tbs of golden syrup.
Stir over a low heat till dark brown and the mixture leaves side of saucepan .
Pour into a greased slice tray or square cake pan
Leave to cool.
When cool mark into squares and cut .

MOIST VANILLA BUNDT AND MUFFINS

Preheat your oven to 160 deg C

I beat together 6 eggs and then poured them into the bowl of the kitchen aid and slowly added 1/2 cup of castor sugar ,
Keep the mixer running and pour in 2/3rds cup of extra virgin olive oil , followed by 2 cups of tepid water ( lukewarm ) , and 1 dsp of vanilla extract .
Slowly add 4 cups of a good quality self raising flour .
Prepare muffin cases with cooking spray and pour batter 1/2  filling  the muffin holes .
I like using the bundt pan for cakes .......the finished cake looks very inviting , it is easy slice ...
A bundt cake can be easily sliced in half  horizontally , making the offered slices smaller thus making the cake go further ...
Bundt cakes are so easy to ice or for  pouring syrup over .
Prepare your cake pan with cooking spray and I like to lightly coat the pan with a sprinkling of flour , tapping out the excess .
Pour in the batter to half filling the pan , then allow the pan to sit on the bench for 20 minutes .
Then place in the oven and allow to rise and cook through ..
45-50 minutes for the cake , 20-25 minutes for the muffins or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake /muffins comes out clean .
Remove the cake from the oven when cooked through and leave stand in the pan till cool and then invert onto a cooling rack and liberally coat with lemon curd ........
Delicious ..

.
 

LEMON AND CAULIFLOWER SOUP

This is a very special soup ...
Peel and halve 1 medium sized onion along with 2 large garlic cloves .
Heat a tbs of oil in a soup pot over a medium heat .
Stir in the onion , garlic , a generous pinch of chilli flakes and 1/2 tsp of salt .
Stir to combine and cover the pot , reduce heat allowing the onion and garlic to sweat and soften , do not allow them to brown .
I add one zucchini unpeeled and sliced  ( optional )
Trim the green leaves  from the cauliflower .
Quarter  the cauliflower and then chop each quarter into smaller pieces .
Now carefully remove the zest from 1 lemon.
Add 1 litre of chicken stock to the soup pot  along with the cauliflower and the lemon zest .
Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer , partially cover the pot with a lid and simmer till tender .
Puree the soup with a stick blender and then stir in 2 tbs of mascarpone and 4 tbs of finely grated Parmesan cheese .
Season to taste with lemon juice ...
 If you want a complete meal in a pot add a precooked chicken ,discard the skin ,bones and stuffing and shred the meat into cauliflower and lemon soup .
Serve with crusty bread .
Enjoy .

PRUNE MUFFINS

Soak 1 cup of seeded prunes or dates in 1 cup of cold water with 1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda overnight .
The above process can be overlooked if using date or prune paste .
Preheat your oven to 160deg C
Prepare your baking pans , (I used muffin trays ) with cooking spray and or baking paper if using a flat pan .
In a separate bowl beat together2 eggs .
In the bowl of an electric mixer beat  110 gm / 4 ozs of castor sugar together with 165 gm / 6 ozs of butter /marg to a cream .
Gradually add well beaten eggs ,1 cup of chopped nuts and the date /prune mixture , mix well .
Lightly stir in 225gm of  self raising flour .
Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes .
These are delicious .

 

EYE OF THE DOG

As an only child to a single mother back in  the 60 's ,I was often farmed out between aunts .My holiday  aunt was Jessie , she lived in Northcote  ,Victoria in a long skinny house that was joined to an exact replica of her own ....it was a different world from my aunt Ruby`s whom I lived with for many years ....My aunt Ruby taught me my prayers , my love of cooking and the greatest gift of routine .
Life was so different with aunt Jessie , no routine just fun ....but I also learnt from watching her daughter my cousin Ruth to make aunt Jessie`s morning tonic .
Put one whole cracked egg into a shaker (she  used a glass and a fork ) a shake of pepper  and salt , a pour of tomato sauce , Worcestershire sauce , a drop of vinegar ,  a squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of cayenne pepper ...
Aunt Jessie told me it was an egg flip for adults !

OYSTER COCKTAIL

Purchase 2 dozen fresh oysters and place them in chilled pewter goblets ,  ( if using glass make sure they are chilled )
Divide the oysters between the containers ......

Now using a small bowl mix together 2 teaspoons of store bought horseradish , 2 tbs of tomato sauce , 1 tsp of salt , 2 tbs of malt vinegar , 4 tbs of lemon juice and 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce , a couple drops of tabasco ...the chill and the heat engage at the first swallow ...
Chill the dressing .....and when ready to serve ....
Pour the chilled dressing over the oysters in the chilled vessels ..
This is so now , but one pulled out of the 60 early 70's archive .

BUSH LAMB

You need to buy a leg of lamb ...2kg
Halve 6 garlic cloves and dip them in some rice bran oil .
Now make 12 slits in the lamb and insert the garlic halves .
Rub the lamb the lamb with dukkah and sprinkle the juice of 1 lemon over the lamb .
Pick a cup full of fresh mint leaves and chop them finely ...then mix them in a bowl with 500ml of natural yoghurt .
Spread this over the dukkah covered lamb and allow to marinate in the fridge overnight .
Next day preheat your oven to  200deg C
Wrap the leg of lamb in foil and place in a baking dish .
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes .
Reduce the heat of the oven to 180 deg C and continue to cook for another hour .
Remove the foil and cook uncovered for a further 30 minutes ....cook for a little longer if you like it medium to well done .
Serve with lemon wedges , alongside  vegetables , salad or grains .

CHRISTMAS WHITE FRUIT CAKE

August 2017 , it's time to think about Christmas cake .
Place the following ingredients into a large bowl .
250 gm of well drained pineapple pieces
400 gm of sun dried ,diced apricots
250 gm of pine nuts
200 gm of mixed peel ..
Sir to mix and set aside .
Turn on your oven , preheating it to 125 deg C.
In a separate bowl measure out
225 gm of shredded coconut  and add 1 dsp of orange blossom water , set aside for 30 minutes to allow flavour to infuse .
Next step is to set up your mixer and place 1 cup of butter or margarine into the mixing bowl with 1 and 1/2 cups of castor sugar and beat till it is light and creamy .
In a small bowl beat 6 egg yolks really well and gradually beat them into the creamy batter .
Now add the shredded coconut .
Beat in 3 cups of sifted self raising flour alternating with 1/2 cup of pineapple and coconut water .
Using a clean , dry bowl beat the 6 egg whites till they are stiff and then fold through the batter .
Add the fruits .
Pour into a well greased pan which has been lined with baking paper  ( shape is optional ).
Place the pan on the lower shelf of your oven and bake for 5 hours , the cake is cooked when an inserted skewer comes out clean  (check after 4 hours )

BELGIAN CAKE

Prepare a slice tray   (20 X 30 cm ) with spray and baking paper .
Preheat your oven to 160 deg C .
Cream 125 gm of butter with 84 gm of castor sugar , don't rush this process .
In a separate bowl beat an egg really well and slowly add it to the mixer with the creamed sugar and butter .
Stir in 250 gm of self raising flour it will turn into a dry consistency .
Then turn out onto a lightly floured bench and divide the mixture into 2 .
Lightly roll out 1/2 the mixture and place in slice tray ,
Spread with jam ( traditionally raspberry )
Roll out the other half of pastry and place on top .
Glaze with the white of an egg and sprinkle with chopped walnuts .
Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes , allow to cool in pan .
When cool , cut into fingers .
Keeps well in an airtight container .

GRAMMA TART (Aussie pumpkin pie )

First prepare a short crust pastry .
Sift 250gm of flour with 1/4 tsp,of baking powder and a pinch of salt .
In a separate bowl beat 1 egg yolk with 1 tbs of water and a squeeze of lemon juice ( 1 dsp ).
Now rub in 125 gm of butter /marg into the flour.
Add the water , lemon and egg yolk mixture , to form a very dry dough .
Turn out onto a lightly floured bench and work it into a smooth round shape .
Roll out lightly and evenly to size and shape .....wrap in cling wrap and set aside while you prepare the gramma filling .
For this sweet tart you will need  500 gm of steamed gramma that has been peeled and puréed or beaten well with a fork .
Now beat in 1 dsp of butter / marg, 1 egg yolk , 125 gm of castor sugar , the juice and rind of 1 lemon, 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and stir in1 tbs of raisins or sultanas .
Set aside  to line your prepared loose bottomed tart pan with half the pastry .
Pour the prepared mixture in and cover with the other half of the pastry .
Glaze with water and sugar .
Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes on 180 deg C
Sprinkle with icing sugar to serve .