PEAR AND FRANGIPANE TARTS

We used corella pears with a very pale flesh and delicate flavour .
Preheat your oven 180 deg C
Peel 2 pears , slice them lengthways and carefully remove the core .( set aside )
Combine 1 tbs of maple syrup with 2 tbs of melted marg / butter .
Place the pear halves on a baking tray , cut side down , drizzle the maple syrup /butter mix over .
Bake , uncovered for 15  minutes ...until just tender ...test with a skewer .
In the meantime make your frangipane paste ......Place 2 tbs of butter / marg in a in a small bowl with 1 tsp of vanilla extract , 2 tbs of icing sugar ,  1 egg yolk , 1 dsp of plain flour and 1/2cup of almond meal /flour (same thing....now mix all the ingredients  together with a wooden spoon..
Cut 1 sheet of commercial puff pastry into 4 equal squares .......and place these on a ( lightly sprayed and  lined with baking paper .)
Spread equal proportions frangipane paste onto the puff pastry slices ..place 1 pear half on each slice .
Fold the pastry inwards .
Bake uncovered for 20 -25 minutes .
You can serve these warm with sour cream for dessert or eat cold anytime with a good coffee or cup of tea .....and let your mind drift to France  ...

MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA THE END OF AN ERA

I clearly remember Matt Preston in an interview on ABC 774 with Jon Faine  that everything has an expiry date .
The on air conversation was after my time on Masterchef .
I believe that the end of the judges reign is about refreshing /renewal
I owe a great thank you to Masterchef ... I was able to give up my occupation as an optical dispenser and manager of an optical outlet .
I now run cooking classes and  in home catering .
.
I applied to go on to Masterchef at the end of 2012 ... I made  it through  for the 2013 series ....and made it to the top 10 ....my life in cooking terms has been amazing as a result .
I owe it to Masterchef Australia
I wish every success to the new edition of Masterchef
Noelene Marchwicki

ROASTED CHICKEN WITH PROSCUITTO AND SWEET PAPRIKA

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C
Finely grate the zest of 1 orange into a small bowl .
Stir in 1 tbs of ground paprika , 1 tsp of cracked black pepper , 1 tbs of course salt with the grated orange zest .
Massage 1 dsp of rice bran oil all over the skin of the uncooked chicken .
Rub some of the paprika mixture into the cavity of the chicken ,massage the remaining mixture all over the chicken .
Slice the orange into quarters and place in the cavity of the chicken .
Place the chicken on a wire rack over a roasting dish .
Roast for 45 minutes , basting occasionally with pan juices .
Criss cross about 7-8 long slices of proscuitto over the breasts , continue cooking for about 20 minutes until the proscuitto is crisp and the chicken cooked through .
Let rest for 10 minutes before serving .

 

SHCHEE........CABBAGE SOUP

Please allow me to let 'Manilow' , a character from Gogol's Dead Souls introduce you to Shchee........
" I humbly beg you to partake.......and you must forgive us if our dinner is not up to the standards you are accustomed to in the capital .We have simple Russian cooking here ...plain cabbage soup ...but it is offered from the bottom of our hearts .
I use a boneless piece of brisket 1 and 1/2 - 2kg.
Boil the meat in enough water to cover the meat ,( about 8 cups .) for 1 and 1/2 hours .
Then remove the meat and allow to cool .
Meanwhile ,in a large saucepan ..... saute 1/2 head of  finely shredded cabbage  ( I use Savoy cabbage ), 1 onion peeled and sliced in 3 tbs of ghee / butter .
Add 1 large grated carrot , 1 finely chopped parsnip and 1 turnip peeled and chopped .
Now add 1x 400gm of diced tomatoes... and continue to coo the cabbage until it is limp .
Once the meat has cooled enough slice and cut into cubes , then add to the cabbage mix in the pot .
Add another 3 cans of diced tomatoes , 1/4 cup of raisins or 10 pitted prunes finely chopped .
1 tbs of salt , 3 tbs of lemon juice and 3 tbs of honey ( I use bush honey  ) and 3 tbs of brown sugar .
Stir to incorporate all ingredients and slowly bring to the boil and then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 2 hours or until the meat is fall apart tender .
Season with cracked black pepper .
Shchee tastes better at least a day old , so refrigerate in the pot and leave it for 24 hours .
To serve , bring the soup to a gentle boil and ladle it piping hot  into warmed soup bowls , with a dollop of sour cream in each bowl and a sprinkle of dried dill.
This is a complete meal in itself .

CREAM OF APPLES ....SAMBOOKA EEZ YABLOK

Peel and slice 6 Granny Smith apples .
Place them in a saucepan with 2 tbs of butter / marg , 2 tbs of lemon juice ,1 cinnamon stick and 125 gm of castor sugar .
Cook them over a low flame until the apples have softened .
Continue to cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes , by this time the apples should be a mush .
Remove the cinnamon stick and discard .
Place the apples in a bowl and mash or process to a smooth puree ....set aside
Beat 2 egg whites with a drop of lemon juice and a pinch of salt until stiff , they should hold firm peaks .
Combine the egg whites with the apple puree and beat them together with 1 tsp of vanilla extract .
Dissolve 2 envelopes of unflavoured gelatine in 1 cup of hot water .
While the dissolved gelatine is cooling , whip 1 cup of cream till  soft peaks hold firm .
Beat together the apples , gelatine and whip until the mixture is light and fluffy ( this can take a little time ).
Now fold in whipped cream .
Pour the mixture into a chilled pan .
Chill for at least 4 hours .
To serve , unmould by dipping the pan in hot water for 10 seconds,.then invert onto a serving plate .
Top the dish with a caramel sauce .

FRUIT MARINADE

Marinated fruit kept in sealed jars can be kept for months .
Since I don't now much about sealing preserves or marinades in jars , I simply refrigerate the fruit in
( cleaned  , reused glass jars with lids )  jars I've saved , and the preserves and marinades last a long time .
The fruits you want to marinate can be almost  any kind of fruit except for melons.
The marinated fruit is excellent  served in the piece as an accompaniment to roasts meats or as a dessert with sour cream .
I peeled and thickly sliced 8 buerre bosc pears and 7 green apples ( Granny Smith ) , I placed these in a large saucepan with 6 cups of water .
Allow this to come to the boil and simmer for 3 minutes .
Remove from the heat .
Now add 1/2 tsp of ground cloves
1 tsp of whole peppercorns
1 tsp of ground tarragon or 2 bay leaves
1 and 1/2 cups of raw sugar
2 sticks of cinnamon
3 tbs of white wine vinegar .
Bring the mix gently to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes .....remove and cool .
Chill and put into jars .
 

BLINCHATY PIROG S EEZYOOMOM EE ORYEKHAMY

PANCAKE PIE WITH RAISINS AND WALNUTS
Alternating layers of pancakes with a honey , nut and raisin filling .
This dessert tastes like baklava , although it is entirely different .
Make a pancake batter , let us use the traditional Georgian preparation .
Place 2 cups of plain flour and a pinch of salt in a bowl .
In a separate bowl beat 4 eggs.
Gradually add the eggs to the flour mix , you can use a wooden spoon but I use an electric mixer on low .
Now slowly add 2 cups of  skimmed milk and 4 tbs of melted ghee .
Continue to mix until the batter is smooth .
Now the most important step to any light pancake ......
Refrigerate the batter for 2 hours , this allows the flour particles to soften , producing lighter pancakes .
While the pancake batter is chilling , prepare the filling .
Place 2 cups of raisins in a bowl with 170 gm of coarsely chopped walnuts .
Melt the 330gm of ghee with 1 cup of castor sugar , let the mix bubble gently until the sugar is dissolved ....( about 10 minutes . )
Now add 1/4 cup of honey , the dissolved sugar in the bowl with the raisins and chopped walnuts .
Make the pancakes by dropping spoonfuls of the batter  into a heated and oiled pan .
Layer the prepared pancakes  on a serving  plate and generously  dot the filling over the pancakes between the layers .
Finish with a topping of the filling .
Refrigerate with till you are to serve .
Sprinkle with  icing sugar prior to serving .
Cut into wedges to serve .