Everybody loves Meatballs!

The large increase in mince meat purchases has prompted me to provide you my Meatballs recipe. This recipe comes in two parts. The sauce in which the raw meatballs are cooked must be prepared before the meatballs are prepared so they are ready to be cooked as they are rolled.

Sauce: brown an onion, sliced into rings. Once brown, add four cans of diced tomatoes and half a large jar of Leggo's Tomato Paste. Add a hand full of chopped Continental parsley, cracked pepper, a pinch of marine or Murray River Salt, a teaspoon of Massel chicken stock and the 'Secret ingredient' a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg and cinnamon (don't tell anyone). Mix it all together and bring it up to temperature whilst preparing the meat balls. Simmer once boiled.

Meatballs: mix a large packet of premium mince, a well diced onion, a hand full of Continental parsley, a cup of breadcrumbs, (I like the Anchor brand), two eggs, a cup of grated Grana Padano parmesan cheese, a sprinkle of cracked pepper, a pinch of marine or Murray River Salt, a teaspoon of Massel chicken stock and the quarter teaspoon of nutmeg and cinnamon. Once mixed, roll your balls into what ever size you choose.

Gently place them into the now simmering sauce. Do not stir the pot as they will break! If you need room in the pot, shake the pot so they all fit under the sauce. Let them cook for about 20 mins. They are ready to serve. They can be stored in the fridge for a few days.

This is a 'starter' recipe for the kids to get involved in cooking!

Melanzane Parmigiana (Eggplant and Parmesan Cheese)

Tonight I made my old favourite Sicilian meal. It can be vegan or vegetarian depending on your taste. As the nights grow colder this fabulous dish will warm your soul and your belly. It is so good it is hard to believe! I'm actually eating it as I type!

I saw the most magnificent perfect shiny black eggplants in the produce department today and I could not resist my temptation to cook them! They looked like black mirrors!

There are two parts: the sauce and the eggplant. If you treat it as a lasagna, the preparations in largely the same.

Preheat the oven to 150C. You will need a lasagna type oven dish for this to cook in the oven.

Sauce: in a large pot brown a large diced onion in olive oil. Then add three cans of chopped tomatoes, a handful of chopped Continental parsley, half a large jar of Leggo's tomato paste, cracked pepper, a cup of water, Murray River Pink Salt and of course a teaspoon of Massel powdered chicken stock. Bring to the boil and then turn down to the lowest setting to simmer.

Eggplant: peel four fresh eggplants and slice them into 5-6mm slices. Pan fry them until gently brown in hot olive oil and set aside. This process is quite time consuming and the eggplant will soak a lot of the oil, so the fry pan will need to be topped up regularly. Set the fried slices aside.

If you prepare your sauce first, it will be ready to use once the eggplant slices are ready.

Grate your Parmesan Cheese. You will need 3 cups (grated), which is about the size of the piece on the photo (about 200 gms)

Layer your sauce and eggplant pieces in the oven dish, sprinkling each layer with cheese before moving onto the next. Once the layers a complete, pour over any remaining tomato sauce and cheese. Cover the top with the grated Parmesan you have left over.

Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Enjoy! (it's hot).

Meat Pies

Tonight I made 12 meat pies. No frills, just home made meat pies. Suggest this would be a great starter recipe for the kids to start their love for cooking!

Preheat your oven to 225C

Brown a large diced onion (or two small onions) in olive oil. Add your diced Gravy Beef and start to brown. Add your premium mince meat, cracked pepper, Murray River Pink Salt, a teaspoon of powdered Massel chicken stock and a handful of chopped Continental parsley. Let it cook, stirring regularly. Add a cup of water. Let it all cook for about 30 mins as the liquid boils off. We want the liquid to boil off. Add 200ml of Beerenberg Worcestershire sauce (from the German Village of Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills) and the same amount of tomato sauce. These two ingredients really flavour the meat so the drier the meat when these two sauces are added, the more they will absorb.

Two types of pastry are required. Shortcrust pastry for the base and puff pastry for the lid. Thawed Pampas Pastry sheets have been my pastry sheets of choice for years. I highly recommend them. They will thaw on the bench top in minutes. Quarter cut each sheet to provide four smaller squares per sheet. Lay the Shortcrust pastry on your pie tin. Add the meat pie filling. Add it hot. The pie filling will cause the pastry to sink into the tray and provide the perfect pie dish shape. Make sure every pie gets a mix of mince and gravy beef. Good chunky meat pies are best!

Once filled, lay your puff pastry on top and gently break away the edges to leave what appears to be an uncooked pie! Prick the top with a fork to allow the heat to flow. Crack and beat and egg and brush the tops of the pies with the beaten egg. Add cracked pepper if you choose. I put cracked pepper on four only.

Place into the oven for about 20 mins or until the pastry is golden and shiny. Allow to cool before removing the pies from your pie dish.

These pies do not need tomato sauce because they are so good as they are, but you may be forgiven if you cover them with tomato sauce!

Spicy Apple Dessert

Puff pastry is finally being stocked again the stores. Both Pampas and Borgs puff pastry are excellent choices for this dessert, but you can always make your own...

Winter is here tonight, so it is an appropriate time to offer my Spicy Apple Dessert recipe, a relatively simple pastry dish I have been making for about five years with extraordinary success!

The recipe below is in three parts. I recently made three different desserts, one with apple, one with apple using honey as an alternative to brown sugar and the final one was just a punnet of blueberries! The methods is the same, the ingredients vary.

Preheat the oven to 225c. Thaw three sheets of puff pastry on the bench. Peel, core and dice two Granny Smith apples per pasty sheet.

Regular Apple: in a mixing bowl, toss your diced apple, 50 gms of brown sugar, a teaspoon of plain flour, a tspn of ground cinnamon and two tspns of 'Mixed Spice'. Toss it all together until each piece of apple is coated and dry (add a handful of sultanas if you want a really great dessert!). Pour the dried mixture onto a thawed sheet of puff pastry.

Apple with Honey: in a mixing bowl, toss your diced apple, a tspn plain flour, two tspns of Mixed Spice. Toss until coated and dry. Pour the mixture onto a puff pastry sheet and add the honey at this stage. Maybe a couple of tablespoons is a good amount.

Blueberry: simply wash your blueberries and place them onto the pastry sheet. Sprinkle 50 gms of brown sugar on top.

Wrap the pastry sheet over the fruit mixture and seal each end. Turn the envelope over so the seal is on the bottom. Place the envelopes onto a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. Evenly slice the pastry in with a knife to allow heat to transfer and a texture to form. Coat the envelopes with a beaten egg.

Bake for about 25 mins or until dark golden brown. Let them cook! A little burnt edge here and there is a good sign that your pastries are ready.

Sprinkle with icing sugar (if you choose) and serve with lashings of whipped cream, whipped with with four or five drops of Vanilla Essence.

Enjoy!

Magnificent Poached Pears

I think you all like desserts as much as the main meal! So I made a special dessert tonight. It is a rich gourmet delight that is guaranteed to send praise your way by all who indulge!

It is very simple and inexpensive to make. Who knew that blending and preparing foods can create the most wonderful flavours.

Peel and core five ripe (but firm) green pears. Be sure to leave the stalk on top and coring is done with two simple scoops using a melon baller into the base of the pear. It removes all the seeds and leaves a whole solid pear.

Place all five peeled and cored pears into a deep pot, pour in any cheap red wine (or expensive if you don't want to drink it), 100 gms of brown sugar, two vanilla beans, split lengthways to release the essence, two whole cinnamon sticks and about six star anise pods.

Bring to the boil and then simmer on low heat, covered, for about an hour. Turn the pears gently using a large cooking spoon so all the pear soaks the wine juice. Let them cook. They will progressively become a dark burgundy colour. Let them cook and soften. They will become quite delicate and they will score or damage easily, so turn them gently.

The alcohol in the wine will completely evaporate at relatively low heat, so children can enjoy these too.

Serve them warm. Be sure to provide your guests with a pear, a large pond of red wine juice and a sampling of the remaining spices.

There is no limit to the amount of whipped cream you are allowed to add. A couple of drops of vanilla essence will make the cream blend so well.

The best way to handle these poached pears is not to serve them to your family and friends. Instead put them in the refrigerator so you can warm them and enjoy them each night without any one else knowing they are there.

They are too good to share!

Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder

I just love this dish. The lamb shoulder meat is so tender and moist. It requires two sets of hands to remove if from the cooking rack as it breaks apart once it is moved!

This is a very simple meal to cook. It requires a little time, 4.5 hours in fact. You will need a deepish baking dish with a wire tray. The wire tray is essential as it allows the fat to drip off the meat and separate from it as opposed to pan frying the meat for an extended time. The wire rack helps lean the meat.

Preheat your oven to 250c. Take your should and rub it all over with olive oil, Murray River pink salt and freshly ground pepper. Place it on the wire rack in the tray.

Wrap the tray completely with aluminium foil. We are looking for an airtight wrap. Several layers may be required. The shoulder will cook in this enclosed area.

When the oven reaches 250c, place your wrapped shoulder in and close the door. Now turn the oven temperature down to 160c and leave for 4.5 hours. If you want to present this meal at 6.30pm your shoulder needs to be in the oven at 2.00pm in the early afternoon. Remember, cook it low and slow.

If you choose to brown the top, which I do not, once the 4.5 hours has endured, remove the foil and place the tray back into the oven for another 10 mins.

The two shoulder bones will slide out clean!

I served this shoulder tonight with hand sliced, stove top fried sweet potato chips in olive oil. I also served dressed baby cos lettuce.

Now a word about baby cos lettuce. It is so fresh and mildly bitter. No other salad vegetables need join it. Keep the other vegetables in a separate salad section! The baby cos lettuce was dressed with olive oil and Murray River pink salt. The secret to the salad is in the tossing. Every leaf must be coated in the dressing. I tossed this lettuce tonight for about one minute. The result: nothing left!

Remember, low and slow.

Please enjoy this meal. This recipe is a keeper.

15 minute Special Fried Rice

Tonight I made a quick 15 minute fried rice. The key to making this dish quickly is to prepare your rice primarily and separately, then add it to your finely diced and now cooked other ingredients and simply add soy sauce and toss.

I made this tonight in two batches as the volume of rice was greater than the fry pan I used to prepare the other items. You can add whatever ingredients you want. I always believe food should be colourful when using fresh ingredients so the items I placed into the fried rice represent loads of colour and life.

The basic rule to cooking rice is: one cup of rice to two cups of water, then boil (uncovered) until cooked. I tend to add water as it cooks, but I also like to drain off excess water so the gluginess goes way with the excess water. It also leaves a wonderfully moist rice once drained.

While your rice is cooking, in olive oil, pan fry your thinly sliced bacon and crack an egg into a hot pan. Let the bacon cook and stir the egg so it breaks into smaller pieces. Then add all your finely diced vegetables, all at once. I used onion, spring onion, carrot, red capsicum, Continental parsley and a single clove of garlic. Add cracked pepper, a couple of pinches of Murray River Salt and a teaspoon of Massell Chicken stock powder. Spread the veggies out in the pan. Stir them in with the bacon and egg. Let it all cook for about 4-5 minutes. As the vegetables are in small pieces, they cook quickly! Add a splash of olive oil if it is drying up.

By about now your rice should be ready. Add your drained, cooked rice. Mix it in. Splash in a tablespoon of soy sauce, or more or less to your taste. Toss it all for about a minute or until everything is mixed.

Now eat!

Four types of Mushroom Pasta sauce

The overwhelming engagement of the red 'Fly Agaric' mushrooms yesterday has prompted a four variety creamy mushroom pasta sauce, that you can eat! You don't need to use four types of mushrooms, one will do, but beware...it's very good!

So I used Swiss brown mushrooms, Button mushrooms, Oyster mushrooms and Enoki mushrooms (the long stem small head mushrooms).

The ingredients picture shows a lot of ingredients. If you use them all you will be very vegetarian.

Boil the water for your pasta as the timing is critical. By the time the sauce is ready, the pasta will be ready. Add boiling time plus cooking time (about 20 mins).

Finely chop your onion and pan fry in olive oil. Add a chunk of butter. You may need a large pan. Once nicely brown, add all the other ingredients at the same time, your chopped mushrooms (but with a recognisable shape), three cloves of garlic, spring onions, thyme, Continental Parsley, Murray River Pink salt, cracked pepper and a teaspoon of Massel chicken stock. Hold the cream and the grated parmesan cheese.

Cook it in the large pan on medium heat until the mushrooms reduce in size and they are nicely cooked. Add a little hot water to create steam in the pan and keep it moist. Don't let it dry out. Turn it down to low heat.

Once the pasta is ready, drain it and set it aside. Into your mushroom pan pour about 200 mls of Bulla Thickened cream. Toss your mushrooms to mix in the cream. Don't let it cook too long as the cream will spoil. When the cream is nicely brown, add your pasta and mix it together.

Serve with a generous sprinkle of grated Grana Padano cheese. Maybe some fresh chopped parsley for presentation, otherwise it won't last long enough to need to look that good!

Having said that, presentation is everything!

Hot tip: to bring some heat to your soul, because it is 2 degrees outside, add more cracked pepper. It won't taste peppery, it will warm you up inside!

How do you cook Asparagus?

If you want to cook asparagus like a super star, this is what you do:

Preheat the oven to 150c.

Chop about 2.5cms of 'wood' off the thick end of each spear and discard. Guinea pigs do not like it!

Finely chop three cloves of fresh garlic.

Place your asparagus spears in a bowl, toss in your chopped garlic, liberally splash with olive oil, crack some fresh pepper on top and sprinkle your Murray River Pink salt. Toss it all about so the spears are covered in oil.

Place your spears onto a baking tray. If you use baking paper, like I do, there is nothing to clean up. Just toss the paper in the bin. The asparagus won't stick to the paper. Make sure all the garlic and oil leave the bowl. Grind a little extra pepper and add a sprinkle more salt.

Bake in the oven for 10 mins. No longer. 10 mins is all it requires.

This is best made when you are using the oven for something else. 10 mins before you take out whatever you are cooking, add the asparagus to the oven so it will be timed perfectly.

Now eat.

Did you know that cheesecake is a breakfast food? It is at my house!

Question: when did you last make a good old cheesecake?
Answer: yesterday.

Crush your Arnott's Marie biscuits. I place them into a plastic bag and roll them with a rolling pin. Melt 50 gms of butter and then pour the hot molten butter into a bowl with the crushed biscuits and mix well together with a spoon. Your high side tin is, of course, already prepared and lined with greaseproof paper or foil.

Tip your biscuit and butter mix into the tin, mould the sides up using a well shaped glass. Make sure your base is firm and there are no holes or thin spots.

Meanwhile, using a mixer, mix two packets of Philadelphia cream cheese (at room temperature) with 300ml Bulla Thickened cream, 1/2 cup castor sugar (although I used Maple Syrup) and a few drops of vanilla essence. In a separate cup, dissolve a teaspoon of gelatine in a splash of hot water. When dissolved, add it into the mixer. Feel free to add some lemon or lime rind at this time if you want to flavour it up.

When it is well mixed without any 'unmixed' cream cheese, which tends to happen, pour it into the biscuit base lined tin and smooth it over using a fork. Lick the fork, it saves on cleaning.

Wash your mixing bowl, beat the remaining 300ml (of your 600ml btle of cream). Add a few drops of vanilla essence (and a dash of icing sugar if you want to sweeten it). Once firmly whipped place it over your cream base and again smooth it over with fork. Lick the fork.

Sprinkle with ground nutmeg. Refrigerate for 4 hours.

Now eat.

Delicious Hungarian Goulash

You may now know that I love slow cooked meals. Hungarian Goulash is so simple to make and it tastes so good. Unfortunately, as usual, I have none to offer as it all went in one sitting!

If you have a slow cooker, dust it off. I don't have a slow cooker, but I cooked it slow and low on the stove top for about three hours. You have to start cooking mid afternoon for an evening meal or alternately make it the night before and slowly reheat it the next day.

Beef skirt steak is the meat of choice for goulash so I have asked the butchers to put out a little more than usual in case some of you are game to try to cook this. I have asked the butchers to prepare more lamb shoulders for you also.

In a heavy pot, in a decent dollop of hot frying butter, pan fry your diced skirt steak until it is nicely browned. Do it in batches so as not to crowd the pan. Whilst the beef is browning, finely slice two onions, one red and one green capsicum, chop some Continental parsley and chop two cloves of garlic.

Once the meat is browned, remove it from the pot. Into the same pot add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and pan fry the finely sliced onion. When the onion is nicely golden, add the browned meat, two tablespoons of sweet paprika, a good sprinkle of Murray River Pink salt and cracked pepper to taste. Add a cup of hot water and a teaspoon of Massel chicken stock. Stir it up!

In a few minutes add your capsicum, garlic, two tablespoons of tomato paste and a can of diced tomatoes (or two freshly diced tomatoes if you choose).
Cover and bring it to the boil. Once boiling, turn the heat source down to the lowest setting and let it cook for three hours. Make sure to stir it every now and then so the heavy stuff doesn't stick to the pot.

Serve on a bed of freshly cooked rice.

Delightful! Hearty! Comforting!!

Scalloped potatoes

I'm pushing my wintery meals now because its time to get comfortable and settle into the colder months with warm 'comforting' foods!

Scalloped potatoes have always been a winner in my household. I made a mixed Pontiac and sweet potato bake a few days ago. It worked out really well. Sorry I can't offer a sample, nothing left...

Preheat your oven to about 150c. Gently pan fry your onion rings in a tablespoon of olive oil until they are golden and nicely cooked. Whilst they're frying away, peel and slice your potatoes. I recently acquired a vegetable slicer which has sped up my slicing time, otherwise a manual 5mm slice is a good thickness.

In a bowl, mix the sliced potatoes and cooked onion. Add 300ml Bulla Thickened cream, cracked paper and Murray River Pink Salt to taste. Collate the slices into groups and place them upright into a baking dish. Pour any excess cream into the dish and add a couple of small dollops of butter throughout the dish.

Bake, uncovered for about an hour when the potato will be nicely cooked and browned.

If you choose not to stand the slices vertically, the flat ones in the bottom of the dish can be a little 'well cooked'.

Add some Continental Parsley to the mixing bowl before you bake. I love Continental parsley. I think everything (almost) you cook should have it!

Enjoy.

Pumpkin Soup with Nutmeg

Now I know you can all make pumpkin soup, but I want to provide a refresher as I made this on the weekend.

I find a blend of Jap and Grey pumpkin flavours up nicely, but this time I tried the good old Butternut and the result was just as good.

In a large stovetop pot, gently fry an onion on olive oil. When it is becoming transparent, add an entire peeled and coarsely diced pumpkin and a peeled and diced potato. Also add a handful of fresh Continental Parsley, two teaspoons of Massel Chicken stock powder, Murray River pink salt to taste (about two or three teaspoons) and a sprinkle of cracked pepper.

Add the quantity of water you want to make the soup thinner or thicker. I added eight cups of boiling water.

Cover and bring to the boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to the lowest setting and allow it to cook slow and low for about 45 mins or until the pumpkin and potato pieces are thoroughly cooked. Poke them with a knife to test.

Now you will need a blender. Scoop the mixture into your blender and blend until the texture is smooth and consistent. Do this in several batches as the blender may not be able to accomodate the entire volume.

There may be small pieces of pumpkin or potato that remain larger than expected after the blending process. These are gems and ought be left to be found by your complaining diners!

It is good all on its own. Add a dollop of sour or thickened cream and a sprinkle of nutmeg for an extra special feast.

Some buttered sour dough bread or my Italian Bruschetta appetiser makes this a full meal.

Make more than you need so you can have it again tomorrow.

Italian Bruschetta (pronounced Brusketta)

I was taught to make authentic Italian Bruschetta by my friend Sergio Di Benedetto, in Agrigento, Sicily in 1993. He lives in a house adjacent the Temple of Concordia in the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, central Sicilia. In his garden were Greek columns and statue ruins you might expect to see in a museum, but alas, they were items picked up on the valley floor!

This is the authentic way to make Bruschetta and it is so simple, variations need not be created!

Toast your bread. Good heavy sour dough is best.

Take a peeled clove of fresh garlic and rub it across the surface of the bread. The garlic will erode as if it were a piece of soap. Don't use too much garlic or the flavour will be quite strong, unless you're an avid garlic lover.

In a bowl dice ripe tomatoes, chop fresh basil and add fresh olive oil, marine salt and a light sprinkle of freshly ground pepper. Mix it all together.

Place the tomato and basil mix on your garlic infused bread and eat.

Excellent!

Baked Cauliflower with Béchamel sauce

There is something magical about Bechamel (white) sauce. It is just so good on just about anything! Today's recipe, however, is specifically for Cauliflower. It is so easy and tastes so good there cannot be an excuse not to make this dish (tonight).

Preheat the oven to 150c.

Remove the green leaves from your firm cauliflower and trim the large 'stalks' from the base. If you remove the 'stalks' from the base, you can remove whole florets of cauliflower instead of cutting through the head of the flower. Very desirable!

Take your florets and steam them by placing them into a covered pot with 3cm of boiling water in the base for about 15 mins, or until soft. Steam cooks faster than boiling water due to its intense heat. Make sure the water does not dry up! The stalk, as a single piece, should also be steamed. This is my favourite piece of both cauliflower and broccoli.

Whilst the cauliflower is softening, prepare your Bechamel sauce. There are probably a hundred ways to make this. I learned from an old recipe 20 years ago and I have never looked elsewhere.

In a deep saucepan melt 60gms of butter. Once melted, introduce 1 cup of white plain flour. It will form lumps which need to be broken but not before adding your first cup (of three cups) of milk. The best way to break the lumps is to mix with an egg whisk. Keep stirring. This sauce cannot be left alone for a second! Add your second cup of milk and keep stirring. Add a cup of grated melting or Parmesan cheese (or both). Add a pinch of Murray River Pink Salt, grind some fresh pepper and a few shakes of nutmeg. Add your final cup of milk.

Keep stirring on low heat as it thickens. Be careful here. This sauce thickens quickly. You will want it to remain a pourable sauce. If it becomes too thick you will have a 'bread sauce' which is no good!

By now your florets are ready. Using tongs, dip each floret into the sauce and place it into a baking dish. Once all the florets are dipped, pour the remaining sauce over the cauliflower. If you want to add bread crumbs, now is the time to sprinkle them on top.

Bake for about 20 mins or until the peaks start to brown.

Now eat! Careful, it's hot!

Pan fried Zucchini strips

So I pan fried zucchini strips tonight. I made chicken schnitzels as well, but you already have that recipe.

I bought a vegetable hand slicer a few months ago. It is adjustable and very consistent, so I sliced three zucchinis using the slicer.

A little olive oil into the bowl, tossed with Murray River Pink salt and freshly ground pepper.

Pan fried on a hot ribbed cast iron skillet.

I think I have to stop saying how good things are because you really can't taste what I cook, but you can see it.

They were fantastic!

Corn was born to be barbecued!

The best way to cook corn is on the barbecue. Let the barbecue warm up on a medium flame. Open flame is best.

Peel your fresh corn and tidy the ends. In a bowl splash some olive oil, freshly ground pepper and a good sprinkle of Murray River Pink salt. Toss it about so al the corn is lightly coated in oil.

Put the corn on an open grill. Turn it every five or so minutes until it is gently charred all over.

Serve it hot. It will be juicy, crunchy and sweet.

Slow Roasted Lamb Leg

Tonight I slow cooked a half lamb leg in the same way I cook the slow roasted lamb shoulder. Whilst it should have turned out the same, it was a little drier than the shoulder. It was stringy and tender, but it did lack the delicious moisture that you find when the shoulder is slow roasted.

Maybe 4.5 hours for a half leg was too long? Anyway, whilst it was really good, it wasn't a pinch on the slow roasted shoulder!

Jap pumpkin, sweet potato and Pontiacs were the roasting vegetables of choice and they went into the oven at the 3.5 hour mark to given them an hour to cook at the 160c temperature, alongside the lamb.

I tossed the veggies in olive oil, pepper and Murray River Pink salt.

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mums who (legally) cannot enjoy the company of their families this Mother's Day.

If you cook your mum a leg of lamb, do it in 2 hours, not 4.5!

BTW: I have enjoyed the many customers who have come up to me to say 'you don't really do all that cooking do you?"

Chicken, Leek and Vegetable Soup

So I made a large pot of soup last night while I waited for the curry to cook. I warmed the soup tonight and it was absolutely delicious.

Interestingly, if meals like this are made the day before they are consumed the opportunity to remove the fat content, which settles on the top, is provided. If the soup is consumed as it is prepared, any fats remain in the soup which can give it a greasy texture.

In a large pot on the stovetop, over medium heat, pan fry a sliced leek in olive oil. After the first 'leek flip', add your sliced chicken thigh fillet pieces and give it a toss so the chicken is cooked. If you add a splash of water and cover, the water steams the meat and it won't stick to the bottom of the pot.

While these two are cooking, peel your potatoes and dice them into small pieces. Do the same with your carrots, celery, onion and parsley. Place them all into a bowl and then tip them all into the pot at the same time. Gently toss the vegetables with the meat and let them cook, without adding any more water at this stage, until they soften. They will want to stick to the pan, particularly if it is dry, but endure with this as the vegetables release water and they form enough moisture to allow it all to heat up and soften at a rather quick pace. Add your three finely chopped garlic cloves.

Add your cracked pepper, about a teaspoon of marine salt and a teaspoon of Massel powdered Chicken stock.

When the vegetables have softened, add your water. If you add boiling water from the kettle, the mixture doesn't cool down to then have to re-heat. So add hot water if you can. I added about eight cups of hot water, which meant that the now larger volume required a little more salt, pepper and stock powder.

Bring it to the boil and then turn it down to the lowest possible heat source and cover. Stir it occasionally. Leave it for a good hour. Like the curry, the longer it cooks (slow and low) the better the flavour.

Allow to cool and refrigerate in the pot overnight. Before re-heating (slowly on a low heat source) remove the settled fat layer so your soup is fat free. Serve with buttery bread!

Make a large pot and have a little every night over a few days. The more you make, the less you cook...

Please enjoy!

Chicken and Vegetable Curry Korma

The winter dishes just keep coming. I have used Pataks Curry Korma paste for many years with very consistent results. I made this curry tonight and served it on a bed of hot rice. I prepared a really large batch so tomorrow night I won't be cooking! Just heating.

This dish can be 'stretched'. The more water you add the larger the meal becomes. I once had to feed all my family of 10 who stayed late for an unplanned dinner on Good Friday, so I 'stretched' the curry and made extra rice and everyone was fed!

The recipe is on the jar. This is how I make it:

In a large stovetop pot, fry a finely diced onion in olive oil. Once lightly brown, add the full jar of Pataks Curry Korma paste and add a cup of water. Mix it all together and let it heat. Add your sliced chicken thigh fillet pieces. I used three large thigh fillets tonight. Let them cook, stirring gently. While they are cooking, coarsely chop your Pontiac potatoes, sweet potatoes and Continental Parsley.

When the chicken is looking cooked, about (five minutes) add all your vegetables. Then add two cans of Coconut Cream. Mix it together, then add the quantity of water you want. I added eight cups of water. The less water the stronger the flavour of the curry spices. Add cracked pepper and marine salt. Not too much, the curry paste is rather complete.

Korma is a mild curry so it is an excellent beginner curry, especially for children.

Cover the pot with a lid. Bring the curry to the boil then turn it down to the lowest possible heat setting. Leave the lid on and let it develop slowly for about an hour. Stir the pot every ten minutes or so and make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot with your wooden spoon. This is where the flavour is! Curry is an interesting food. The longer you cook it, the more the flavours develop.

Jasmine rice is my preference, but these days, get whatever rice you can.

This dish is really a very good meal.

While this cooked, I made a chicken soup following a customer request. I'll post it tomorrow.

Please enjoy. Let me know your results.

Kindest regards,
Brendan Blake