I WILL PREPARE IT ONE DAY ...mmmm !

Reading about food is endlessly reassuring . There is always a predictable outcome , a vicarious pleasure and no one is ever threatened . It's early hours of the 7 th October 2023 , i have just read the last page of my favourite storyteller and my mind is remembering today would have been my youngest brother Michael Grunberg's 60 th birthday and am lying here in bed making plans to visit his memorial plaque that he shares with his dad Jackiw Grunberg . Happy birthday Michael . Sleep doesn't come , so I reach for a story book that covers chef and food writer Stephanie Alexander's odyssey into south west of France . So at the unlikely time of 3.20 am , I'm reading her mouth watering preparation of making a traditional peasant dish called POULE AVEC SA MIQUE ( chicken with dumpling )and it is really inspiring . First you bone a chicken and make a rich stock from the bones . The flesh is then stuffed with tarragn , chopped ham , pork mince and bread crumbs . The boned and stuffed chicken is then wrapped in muslin and poached , along with a large tasy , juicy dumpling , in the stock heavily laden with vegetables . I'm fascinated by the difficulty , the boning , the stock ,the dumpling and the finished dish when it all comes together in a slow simmer until it is ready to be served sliced in the broth along with the juicy dumpling and vegetables . I read and reread the recipe .... I will prepare this dish one day .

ONION BHAJIS

Place 2 red onions that have been peeled and finely sliced in a mixing bowl . Add 1 small red chilli ( do not deseed ) finely sliced , 1 tsp of ground turmeric , ! tsp of minced ginger , 1 dsp of minced garlic and 1/2 tsp of salt . Use one hand to massage the onion mixture , until the onion starts to soften and the onion juices start to run from the onion . Now stir in 1 tsp of cumin seeds and 1 tbs of lemon juice . In a separate bowl mix together 70gm( 1/2 cup) of besan / chickpea flour with 50gm ( 1/4 cup) of rice flour and 1 and 1/2 tsp of baking powder . Add 60 ml ( 1/4 cup ) of water to the flour mix to make a smooth batter . You can add a little water as the batter should not be thick . Next pour enough peanut oil into a wide medium saucepan ( no more than 1/3 rd full ) and heat till a cube of bread dropped in , turns golden in 15 seconds . Add teaspoonfuls of the onion mixture to the oil and cook until the batter is deep golden and cooked through and the balls have spidery legs . Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel , while cooking the remaining bhajis . Serve warm with natural yoghurt , sprinkled with ground turmeric and chopped unseeded chilli. These are addictive , enjoy .

SWEET POATATO GNOCCHI with BURNT BUTTER SAGE .

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C . Line a baking tray with baking paper . Leaving the skins on cut 2 cleaned sweet potatoes and 2 cleaned 'all rounder 'potatoes in half lengthways . Drizzle the 'potato' halves with canola / rice bran oil and season with 1 dsp of salt . Place the cut side down on the baking tray and bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer passes through the potatoes easily . Remove from the oven and leave to cool . Using a spoon , scoop out the potato and sweet potato flesh , discarding the skins . Use a fork to mash and combine the two potatoes . Stir in 1 dsp of salt , along with 35 gm ( 1/3 cup ) of finely grated parmesan cheese , 1 beaten egg and 1 tbs of honey . Working slowly add 300gm ( 2 cups of plain flour )in batches , mixing thoroughly until a dough forms that doesn't stick to your hands ( you may not need all the flour ). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a small log shape . Using a sharpe knife , cut the log into 8 equal pieces . Roll each piece into 1 cm ( 1/2 ")thick rope , then cut each one into 1 cm (1/2") pillows . If you like , you can roll the gnocchi pillows with a fork to create the classic indents . Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil . Working in batches , cook the gnocchi for 30 seconds or until they float to the surface . Remove with a slotted sppon onto a sheet of baking paper and set aside . For the sage burnt butter ,melt 140 gm of butter / marg in a large frypan over a medium heat until it begins to foam . Add 20 sage leaves and cook until crisp . Remove the leaves and set aside on paper towel . Continue to cook the butter / marg until brown . Remove from heat and add the gnocchi , 1 tsp of ground nutmeg, 1 dsp of minced garlic and 60ml (1/4 cup)of warm water . Place the pan back over medium heat , tossing to coat the gnocchi and warm them through . Serve immediately , dressed with the fried sage leaves and a sprinkling of cracked black pepper and a scatter of thinly sliced parmesan .

PANZANELLA (V)

You will need 4 large tomatoes ( about 1 kg ), cut into 1 cm ( 1/2")slices . 100gm of assorted cherry tomatoes cut in half . 4 mini bell capsicums , cut into quarters lengthways . 8 baby cucumbers , sliced in half lengthways . 1 small red onion , thinly sliced . 3 slices of sourdough (200gm), toasted and cut into chunks . 40gm of pitted kalamata olives , sliced in half . Arrange all the above salad vegetables on a platter . Now place 1 tbs of minced garlic in a processor with a large handful of torn basil leaves and 1/3 cup of virgin olive oil and pulse until you have a smooth sauce . Drizzle the sauce over the salad . Finally sprinkle with 2 tbs of balsamic vinegar and season to taste with cracked black pepper .

BANGERS AND MASH

Wednesday night In The Manor. Sausages with mashed potato , kumara and dressed with sliced spring onions and fried spring onion roots .

SPRING ONIONS

The spring onion is the most under rated vegetable . Yes the green leaves are used as dressing or additives to dishes where colour and subtle flavour is needed. The white stem is used as a flavour in hot and cold dishes . Unfortunately the spring onion roots are discarded .. The spring onion roots are full of flavour . I trim the spring onions along with a short amount of white stem in place along with the roots . Without cooking you can trim off the base of the spring onion and add the roots to any leafy salad , they are gently delicious . Today , I heated a little oil in a saucepan and deep fried the attached roots that are attached to a small amount of the the base of the spring onion . I just fried them till they changed colour . Drain and let them cool . You can now enjoy a light and crunchy snack with a delicate sweet flavour . The fried onion roots are a great addition to a cheese , cracker and olive platter .

LEMON PUDDING

Preheat your oven to 180deg C . Mix together ina large bowl 75gm of plain flour with 20gm of castor sugar and a pinch of salt . Rub in 45 gm of margarine , until mixture resembles bread crumbs . In a separate bowl separate 3 eggs . Beat 3 egg yolks together and add 1 dsp of grated lemon rind , 4 tbs of lemon juice and finally 1 cup of milk . Now using a wooden spoon , beat the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and set aside . Finally using your electric beaters , beat the 3 whites together until stiff peaks form . Fold the stiff egg whites through the batter . Pour the combined batter into a greased oven proof dish and place the dish in a larger baking tray , half filled with water . Place in the oven and bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes .

We made this in 'Country ' cooking class on Tuesday . This recipe is the original lemon delicious ...