The Recipes

Bran Loaf

bran loaf

 

1 cup All Bran (original)
1cup Sultanas
1 cup sugar half brown half white
1 cup dried apricots, the recipe only says half but I use more and I use the Woolies select not the ones from the shop as they are too sweet
1 cup milk I use skim with no problem
Place all ingredients in a bowl and leave to soak, the recipe says overnight but I often only allow a couple of hours and it doesnt matter
Add 1 heaped cup S.R. flour and cook at 150 for 3/4 hour

Filet de porc en crôute

  • pork fillet
    Trim and add sage

Serves two

Ingredients

The pork

1 pork fillet (about 250 g)
salt
freshly ground black pepper
teaspoon dried sage
3 long, wide pieces of prosciutto
1 tablespoon oil
1-2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
beaten egg
parsley sprigs to garnish

Mushroom sauce:

30 g (1 oz) butter or margarine 60 g (2 oz) mushrooms, chopped
2 tablespoons plain flour 1\ cups chicken stock
pinch of ground mace

Directions:

  1. Trim the fillet, cut in halt and put one piece on top of the other.
  2. Season lightly with salt and pepper and sprinkle with sage.
  3. Wrap the prosciutto around the pork and secure with toothpicks
    if necessary.
  4. Heat the oil in a frying pan.
  5. Add the pork and brown it all over for about 10 minutes.
  6. Remove and cool.
  7. Roll out the pastry dough thinly if necessary.
  8. Cook an oblong piece of pastry  that will fit underneath the pork fillet. This is necessary to absorb the cooking juices and stop the underside of the pastry going soggy when the whole lot is cooked.
  9. Take the toothpicks out of the pork.
  10. Place the pork on top of the cooked piece of pastry and wrap with the uncooked dough around to enclose completely.
  11. Dampen the edges and press well together to seal.
  12. Place on a dampened baking sheet, seam underneath, and decorate with the dough trimmings.
  13. Glaze with the beaten egg and cook in a preheated hot oven (200C) for 15 minutes.
  14. Reduce the temperature to  moderate (180C) and continue cooking for 20 to 25
    minutes.
  15. Just before the pork is ready, make the sauce

Melt the butter in a saucepan and fry the mushrooms for 2 to 3 minutes.
Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
Gradually stir in the stock and bring to the boil.
Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper
Add the mace

Serve with the pork, cut into slices.

Garnish with parsley.

Thai prawn and fish cakes

thai fish cakes

This recipe comers from: http://fivetastes.com.au/recipes/thai-fish–prawn-cakes

I’ve made it a few times, and it’s sensational. I use either ling or blue grenadier (hoki) fillets, fresh or frozen. For an extra dash of fantastic I use Antarctic crab claw meat instead of prawns.

300g firm white fish fillet, chopped
¼ cup Five Tastes Thai Red Curry Paste
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 egg white
2 teaspoons cornflour
1 teaspoon finely chopped lemongrass
200g shelled raw prawns, chopped
2 spring onions, chopped
½ kaffir lime leaf, finely chopped (I use coriander if I haven’t got kaffir lime)
oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS
STEP 1
Place fish, Five Tastes Curry Paste, fish sauce, egg white, cornflour and lemongrass in a food processor and mix until well combined.

STEP 2
Place mixture in a bowl, add prawns, spring onion and kaffir lime leaf and mix well.

STEP 3
Using wet hands or gloves shape into even sized round 12 patties (mixture will be moist).

STEP 4
Heat oil in a wok or frypan. Cook fish cakes for 5-6 minutes taking care not to overcrowd the pan, turning half way. Drain on paper towel

STEP 5
Serve with lime wedges or sweet chilli sauce.

Serves about four.

Mango, lychee and coconut terrine

A beautiful summer dessert, luchee, mango and cocmut terrine

This is absolutely fantastic, light, sweet, tropical – perfect for a summer’s day, and made to perfection by Mrs Day junior

It comes from here at taste.com.au

Ingredients

24 lychees, peeled, seeded
1L Weis’ Mango Sorbet, softened slightly
270ml can light coconut cream
40g pkt roasted coconut chips
Lime rind, to serve

Method

Line the base and sides of a 20 x 10cm (base measurement) loaf pan with non-stick baking paper, allowing the 2 long sides to overhang.

Chop half the lychees. Combine sorbet, chopped lychees and coconut cream in a bowl. Transfer to prepared pan and smooth the surface. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 4 hours or overnight until firm.

Turn terrine onto a serving platter. Top with remaining lychees, coconut chips and lime rind.

 

 

 

Spinach Dip in a Cob

cob bread with spinach dip cob1

Ingredients

I pkt frozen spinach

I ctn sour cream

1cup whole egg mayonnaise

1 can water chestnuts

3 spring onions

1 pkt powdered leek soup if you can get it, otherwise french onion

1 cob loaf

Method

Defrost and drain spinach

Dice spring onions and water chestnuts

Mix ingedients

Cut top off the cob

Pull out as much of the bread as possible, leaving the crust intact

Place the cob on a platter with the bread pieces around

Fill the cob with the mixture and replace the top.

To eat

Use bread pieces to dip into mixture

When they run out, tear the cob to bits.

 

Zucchini boats stuffed with prawns

zucchini stuffed with prawns

The picture doesn’t really reflect the recipe, but it’s close.

Serves 4 to 6

1 kg small to medium young zucchini
500g prawns, in their shells
1/2 cup toasted, unflavored bread crumbs
1 teaspoon garlic chopped very fine
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Black Pepper
1 large egg

Soak the zucchini in cold water for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse well under cold running water.
Drop the zucchini into boiling salted water. The moment the water returns to a boil, drain the zucchini, removing them gently from the pot. Set aside to cool completely.
Trim the ends off , cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, using a narrow-bladed tool, scoop out the insides, taking care not to puncture the skin. Leave a wall about 1/4 inch thick
Turn on the oven to 180 C
Rinse the prawns in cold water, shell them, and remove the dark vein from each. Chop them into pieces not bigger than a large pea.

Put the chopped shrimp in a bowl together with 1/4 cup of the bread crumbs, the garlic, parsley, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, salt, and grindings of pepper.

Seperate the egg, set aside the white, and add the yolk to the bowl. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly.

Choose a shallow baking pan that can accommodate all the zucchini in a single layer. Grease the bottom of the pan lightly with olive oil and place the zucchini on it cut side up.

Sprinkle them lightly with salt. Beat the egg white lightly and brush the insides of the zucchini with it.

Stuff the zucchini with the prawn  mixture. heaping them full enough, if possible, to form a slight mound.

Sprinkle the top of each boat with the remaining bread crumbs and pour the remaining olive oil over in a thin stream.

Place the boats in the uppermost level of the ovenfor 6 to 7 minutes, until the top forms a light, pale golden crust. Serve when lukewarm