Balsamic Green Beans With Red Onions and Shallots

When I find a recipe that looks "too yummy", it's normally too good to be true. It always seems to lack taste. But when I tried this one, I was so shocked to taste how good they were! I think this would make a really good snack.

- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot, sliced thin
- 3 cloves garlic minced (I used 3 teaspoons of the pre-minced garlic in a jar)
- 1/2 cup beef broth
- 2 cups green beans, trimmed
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper
- 1 teaspoon butter

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and shallots then cook for 6 minutes, stirring often until softened.

2. Add the garlic and saute stirring constantly for 1 minute. Add the broth, cook for 4 minutes or until the onions are really tender and the liquid almost evaporates.

3. Add the beans and vinegar, cover and cook for 4 minutes until the beans are crisp-fresh. (I didn't cover them, because like I said in a previous post, I tend to burn the pot). Remove from heat and stir in butter and season with salt and pepper.

Stuffed Potato

Every now and then, I find that i crave potato. It doesn't even matter if it's plain. As long as it's potato. I was craving potatoes this day, and I found a recipe for a stuffed potato. Thought I would give it go...

- 2 baked potatoes

- extra sharp cheddar cheese

- bacon

- 2 eggs
- salt and pepper
- shallots

1. Bake your potatoes for 1 hour. (this was to get the potato soft, so i just shoved them in the microwave for a little while. Saved some time) Remove the top third of the potato and scoop out most of the filling. Make sure you leave enough filling though so the potato won't collapse.

2. Sprinkle the inside with some cheese and bacon, then crack an egg and pour it inside. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Place the potatoes in a baking dish (I had trouble keeping them up right, so I put them in the corners of the baking dish) in the oven (around 180-200 degrees celcius). Cook until the egg is set but yolk is still soft, or to your liking.

4. Remove from oven and sprinkle with shallots.

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

I absolutely love this soup! I couldn't get enough of it. To me, it reminded me of the chicken stroganoff I make, which i will later post.

- 2 teaspoons olive oil                    
- 2 cups onion, diced
- 16 oz mushrooms
- 1 teaspoon dill
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup sour cream

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions then cook them for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, dill, paprika, soy sauce, and 1/2 cup of the stock, stir until well combined then cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes.
(DO NOT DO WHAT I DO AND BURN THE POT WHENEVER I HAVE TO COVER SOMETHING TO SIMMER IT)
Remove the mushroom mixture and the liquid to a bowl and set aside.

2. Heat the butter in the frying pan, add the flour once the butter has melted then whisk until creamy. (a few minutes). Slowly add the milk while whisking until combined. Cook, stirring frequently for 5-7 minutes or until thick.

3. Add the mushroom mixture and the juices along with the remaining stock to the flour mixture, stir until well combined. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

4. Just before serving, add the lemon juice, sour cream, and season with salt and pepper. (I found I didn't need to add any extra salt.)

Lemon Chicken Saltimbocca

Years ago my mum made some chicken that was wrapped in prosciutto with a sage leaf. I loved it. for ages I've been looking for a similar recipe, then I found this one. Only now, I don't like sage. But, after the chicken is cooked, if you don't like sage, just pull it off. It needs to be on there while it cooks for some extra taste.

- 3 boneless and skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin       
- salt and pepper to taste
- 9 fresh sage leaves
- 6 slices of prosciutto
- 3 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1. Bash the chicken breasts out until they are 1/2 an inch thick with a mallet. Season both sides with salt and pepper and place 3 sage leaves on each breast. Wrap 2 pieces of proscuitto on each.

2. Heat 3 teaspoons of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Once the pan and oil are hot, add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes until golden brown. Flip the chicken over and cook for another 3-4 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Set aside.

3. Combine the chicken stock, lemon juice, and cornstarch together in a small bowl and whisk until well combined. Place the frying pan over medium heat then add the mixture to to the pan and bring to the boil. Cook for 1 minute or until slightly thickened, stirring constantly.

4. Drizzle the sauce over the chicken breasts and serve immediately.

Chocolate Strawberry Charlotte Cake

I don't like this cake, only because it is very rich. There is custard in the middle, with strawberries through the whole cake. It says to soak the sponge fingers in strawberry liquor, but I couldn't find any, so instead i bought a can of strawberries in syrup and used the juice from that.

- 1 cup water                        
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
- 1/3 cup strawberry liquor
- 250g sponge fingers, halved crossways
- 250g punnet strawberries

FILLING:

- 4 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
- 300ml thickened cream
- 3 teaspoons gelatine
- 100g white chocolate melts, melted

1. Grease and line a 22cm spring-form cake tin. Line it with cling wrap, extending it 5cm above the edge.

2. Combine the water and sugar in a small pan and stir over low heat without boiling until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes. Stir in the liquor (or syrup in my case), and cool slightly.

3. Dip 21 sponge fingers into the syrup and arrange them flat side down along the edge and base of the tin.

4. Slice half the strawberries and lay then across the base.

5. FILLING:
Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until they are creamy. Pour 1/2 cup cream and the milk into a pan and bring it to the boil. Remove from heat.

6. Gradually whisk the hot milk into the mixture and return it to the heat, without boiling, for 10 minutes, or until it coats the back of the spoon. Remove it from the heat

7. Sprinkle the gelatine over the water in a cup. Stand the cup in simmering water and stir until dissolved. Stir the gelatine into the custard with the warm melted chocolate. Cover the surface with cling wrap and cool it to room temperature.

8. Whip the remaining cream until soft peaks form. Fold it into the custard mixture.

9. Pour 1/3 of the custard mixture over the strawberries on the base. Add more strawberries on top of that, then pour the rest of the custard on top of them.

10. Leave the cake to set in the fridge over night or until the custard has set.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

I was flicking through a new recipe book my cousin gave me a few years ago and I saw this recipe for chocolate zucchini cake. My dad said that he would taste anything, so I decided to give this a go. It is actually quite nice. You can't taste the zucchini, and the whole cake tastes a little like jaffa. The zucchini makes the cake nice and moist.

- 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda             
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 cup cocoa
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup oil
- 3/4 cup sugar
- rind of one orange
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
- 1 egg
- 1 cup grated zucchini
- 1/4 cup milk


1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius. Sift soda, flour, salt, cinnamon and cocoa and set aside.


2. Place butter, oil, sugar, rind and vanilla together and mix well.


3. Add egg, then zucchini until combined.


4. Add dry ingredients and milk. Pour into a greased cake tin and cook for 30 minutes until cooked.

Gnocchi with Beef Ragu

I'm not a big fan of meat that is really tender. So I didn't really like this so much, but others in my home did. I think I wouldn't mind making this with a pasta and leaving the meat out, just to see what it would be like.

- 500g chuck steak cubes
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed
- 500ml tomato passata
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1/4 cup red wine
- 1/2 cup basil

1. Prepare gnocchi according to packet instructions.

2. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius. Coat the steak with the spices, salt, and pepper.

3. Heat oil in a frying pan, and cook meat. Transfer to a plate.

4. Halve the capsicums lengthways and rub them with a little oil. Grill them skin side up, until black and charred. Place in a bowl and cover with cling wrap until cool enough to handle. Peel off the skin and trim all the pith and seeds out. chop roughly and place in a food processor. Process into a rough puree.

5. Sute onion and garlic for about 2-3 minutes in the fry pan. Add the tomato pasatta, pureed capsicums, stock, and wine and bring to the boil.

6. Transfer to a casserole dish and place in the oven. Cook covered for 2 hours.  

Yellow Rice

I was quite excited to try this recipe. It was the first time I have used the proper saffron threads. I did think they wouldv'e had a stronger taste though.

- 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads

- 1 1/4 tablespoons boiling water

- 175g uncooked basmati rice, washed and drained

-  pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons ghee
- 200g finely chopped onions (I got this from 2 large onions)
- pinch of cumin seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 250g lamb mince
- 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 150 ml chicken stock

1. Preheat your oven to 175 degrees celcius. Drop the saffron threads into a small bowl and soak in boiling water for 10 minutes.

2. Cook rice in a saucepan with salted water briskly, stirring constantly for 10 minutes. Strain and set aside.

3. Heat 1/2 the ghee over high heat in a fry pan. Add onion and cumin seeds and the rest of the salt. Fry 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add ground cumin and tumeric, stir for 1 more minute.

4. Add the lamb and fry for about 10 minutes, until brown. 

5. Heat the rest of the ghee in a casserole dish with a tight lid. Add the fennel seeds, rice, and lamb mixture. Mix all together. Pour the saffron threads and liquid over the mixture, and then pour over the chicken stock.

6. Bring to the boil, then cover with cover it with foil, crimping the edges to hold it firmly in place. Set the lid securely on top of the foil and bake in the middle of the oven for about 25 minutes until the rice is tender and has absorbed all the liquid.