Winter Lunch

Yay! Finally, another lunch. Mariette and I were chatting and we have worked out that our social lives have picked up exponentially, pretty much as soon as we have decided we needed to get a life. Go figure, either way we are having fun when we can. Apparently Mariette is tiling her house so this could be it for a while. So I figure that we need to do a snack evening at my house. That means Mariette will be subjected to cooking in a normal person’s kitchen, which includes limited appliances and only 1 normal sized oven.

Guests for tomorrow’s lunch will be an all girls affair. I think the girls’ lunches are quite a fabulous plan. Corne, my other director, will be there - hopefully without that big spoon she so likes to stir with. Another guest will be her friend, Des, who works in advertising, which means she is totally hysterically funny. Then we have Erica who, rumour has it, is an event planner, but I myself have never met her, Corne and Mariette know her quite well apparently, and Berna is making a second appearance at our lunch. Yay, we are all thrilled, we think she is most cool.

It should be mentioned that Mariette’s niece, Rochelle, will also be joining us. Alas, sadly her role is likened unto mine; she has to work for her lunch. She has been helping Mariette in the kitchen for years and is rather brilliant in her own right, so this means I will now have 2 task masters……. sigh.

I am not quite sure what I did to Mariette, but I am being punished with the most awful menu. I just simply cannot find a saving grace in any of the courses. Though, I should mention in all fairness that I never ate soup at all before embarking on this exercise. And look at me now! I have since discovered that I love French onion soup and can actually even stomach broccoli soup.

So, now I am being punished for having a open mind, cause the best thing on the scary lunch menu is the soup. Not just any soup, though …... wait for it: tomato and egg plant soup. Doesn’t that just make you want to taste it? I think not. Anyone else ever wonder why one odd vegetable like brinjal has three different names? Anyway, I am clinging to the hope that there is bread with the soup, because it does so not sound appetizing at all. I am, however, trying to keep an open mind.

Now my other conundrum is what kind of wine can you have with that? I have been scouring my books and haven’t found much on tomato. The best I could do was a tomato bredie and with that a merlot was recommended. I will try and be inventive.
Another punishment for making Mariette eat so much meat is that we will have fish for main course. On the upside it will be fish pie, so at least I have pastry to distract me from my woes.

Finally for dessert – oh, shoot me - it’s a pear, poached if I remember correctly. All things considered, the menu sucks, and that is just my humble opinion. There is nothing on it I would voluntarily eat, but a deal is a deal and I will definitely try. I might, however, have to make Di bring me a Mc Donalds burger, just in case. I mean we are still going to have lots of wine and I can’t drink on an empty stomach.

Winter Lunch

(6-8 people)


Menu

Starter

Roasted Aubergine, Tomato and Basil Soup
Wine: Seidelberg Roland Reserve 2003
Lindhorst Pinotage 2004


Main
Fish Pie
Green Salad
Wine: Stonybrook Semillion 2003
Chamonix Troika 2003


Dessert
Poached Pears with Sabayon
Wine: Beyerskloof


Tea / Coffee

Shopping list:

Fruit and Vegetables:
4 Brinjals
8 Plum Tomatoes
Garlic
Chilli
Basil
4 Onions
300g Button mushrooms
4 leeks
Dill
Parsley
8 Pears
2 Lemons
Mixed salad leaves
300g Green asparagus spears
Spring onion

Meat and Fish:
1kg White fish
500g Prawns (peeled and deveined)

Dairy and eggs:
12 Eggs
250ml Double cream
Gorgonzola cheese

Other Groceries:
1.5 – 2l Vegetable stock
100ml Sundried tomatoes
Dijon mustard
4 Rolls puff pastry
Dry white wine
Sweet white wine
Marsala wine

From the cupboard:

Salt
Black Pepper
Flour
Castor sugar
Olive oil
Honey
Coffee
Tea

From the fridge:

Unsalted butter
Milk

Time Planner

What can be done on Friday night:

Set the table
Poach the pears
Grill the vegetables for the soup
Make the soup

Plan of Action:

Saturday morning:

Poach the fish
Boil eggs
Make the white sauce
Combine ingredients for the fish pie
Make vinaigrette for green salad

1 hour before serving the following can be done:

Cover fish pie with pastry
Cut the gorgonzola into squares
Hollow out crusty bread rolls
Toast bread rolls in oven
Steam and refresh asparagus for green salad
Cut cucumber and spring onion for green salad

CRUNCH Time - ½ an hour before serving:

Prepare the mustard mix for the soup
Dress salad leaves
Reheat the soup
Pop the fish pies in the oven
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine (Thats me!!)
Serve the soup

Serving the main course:

Clear the table
Take fish pies out of oven
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine
Dish up green salad
If you made one big fish pie dish up at the table or let the guests dish up for themselves
If you made individual fish pies, you can just serve each pie on a pretty plate as it can get quite messy when eating

Serving the dessert:

Clear the table
Make the sabayon
Dish up the pears and sabayon
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine (Me again)
Serve the dessert

Roasted Aubergine, Tomato and Basil Soup from Food and Home – July 2006

What would you need to prepare the Aubergine, tomato and basil soup:

Roasting tin
Chopping board
Small sharp knife
4l Saucepan
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Food processor

Ingredients for the soup:

4 Aubergines, cut into chunks
8 Rosa tomatoes, chopped
300ml Olive oil
100ml Sun dried tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1.5 – 2l Vegetable stock
4 Garlic cloves crushed
2 chillies, seeded and chopped
30ml Dijon mustard
8 Crusty bread rolls
Gorgonzola cubes
Fresh Basil to garnish

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 200C
2. Place the aubergines and tomatoes in a roasting tin and drizzle with 180ml of the olive oil
3. Roast until the aubergines are cooked. This will take between 30 and 45 minutes.
4. Place the aubergines, tomatoes, their juices, 40ml of the olive oil, sun dried tomatoes and seasoning in a food processor
5. Process until slightly chunky
6. Bring the stock to the boil and add the aubergine mixture
7. You can make the soup up to this point and then leave it to serve later
8. When you want to serve the soup, simmer it over low heat for 5 minutes
9. Blend the garlic, chillies and mustard in a food processor and while the motor is running add the remaining olive oil in a slow stream until the mixture is thick and creamy
10. When serving the soup, add a couple of gorgonzola cubes, a dollop of the mustard mixture and garnish with basil

Considerations:

I usually use 1.5l of stock and check the consistency of the soup first, before adding more stock – aubergines vary greatly in size. If you want the soup to have a little more oomph, then add one or two more chillies. I usually hollow out some crusty bread rolls, toast them in the oven and then spoon the soup in the bread roll before serving.

Fish Pie

What would you need to prepare the fish pie:

Big glass pie dish / small individual pie dishes
Chopping board
Small sharp knife
2 X 3l Saucepan
1 x 2l Saucepan
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Pastry cutter
Small bowl for egg wash
Pastry brush

Ingredients for the fish pie:

1kg White fish (haddock, hake, cape whiting)
500g Cleaned deveined prawns
1 Onion finely chopped
300g Baby button mushrooms
6 Hard boiled eggs, cut into bite sized pieces
4 Leeks, washed and chopped
4 Rolls ready made puff pastry
170g Unsalted butter
170g Plain flour
1 Bunch dill, finely chopped
30g Parsley, finely chopped
1l Full cream milk
250ml Double cream
300ml Dry white wine
2 Onions, cubed

Method:

Poach the fish
1. Bring the milk and the cubed onion to the boil
2. Add the white fish to the milk and poach for 5 – 8 minutes until the fish becomes flaky
3. Pour the milk through a sieve and keep for using in the white sauce

Prepare mushrooms, onions and leeks
4. Melt 30g of butter over medium heat
5. Add the finely chopped onions and cook until soft but not brown
6. Add the leeks and mushrooms to the onions and cook for about 10 minutes
7. Add the wine and simmer for another 10 – 15 minutes

Make the white sauce (I helped)
8. Melt the rest of the butter over medium heat
9. Add the flour and stir to combine
10. Ladle the poaching milk into the butter and flour and whisk until smooth
11. Using a strainer, pour the wine from the onions and mushroom mix into the sauce
12. Add the cream and mix thoroughly
13. Season to taste

Assemble the fish pie
14. Preheat the oven to 200C
15. Combine the fish, prawns, eggs, mushroom mixture, parsley and dill
16. Add enough sauce to coat all the ingredients
17. Mix together
18. Spoon the mixture into one big pie dish or small individual dishes
19. Roll out the pastry
20. Trim strips of the pastry and attach to the edge of the dish
21. Trim the remaining pastry to fit over the top of the dish and attach to the pastry strip
22. Paint the pastry with egg wash
23. Place in the pre heated oven for 30 minutes or until the pastry is puffed up and golden brown

Considerations:

You can make the fish pie ahead of time and pop it in the fridge. Add the pastry lid just before popping it into the oven.

Green Salad

What would you need to prepare the green salad:

Steamer
Big glass bowl
Chopping board
Squeeze bottle
Measuring spoons


Ingredients:

450g Mixed salad leaves
300g Green asparagus spears
1 Cucumber
1 bunch of small spring onions
15ml Lemon juice
60ml Olive oil
Salt and pepper
5ml Honey

Method:

1. Rinse asparagus and steam for 4 – 5 minutes
2. Refresh asparagus in ice water
3. Drain the asparagus and keep to one side
4. Cut the cucumber thinly into rings
5. Cut the spring onions length ways in half and then in half again
6. For the vinaigrette, combine lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and honey in squeeze bottle and shake
7. Dress the salad leaves lightly with vinaigrette just before serving
8. Add asparagus, cucumber and spring onion and toss
9. Add a little more vinaigrette if needed


Considerations:

You can add any green vegetable to the green salad as long as it is crisp and fresh. A green salad provides the perfect counter point to a rich dish like the fish pie. I usually serve individual portions. If you want to do this, place some dressed leaves on a side plate and arrange the green vegetables on top. Drizzle with a little vinaigrette

Pears Poached in Red Wine

What would you need to prepare the poached pears:

3l sauce pan
Measuring cup
Zesting knife
Small sharp knife
Baking paper

Ingredients:

8 – 10 Pears
750ml Red wine
250g Castor sugar
Zest from two lemons

Method:

1. Peel the pears
2. Combine red wine, sugar and lemon zest and 500ml water in a saucepan
3. Bring to the boil stirring occasionally to ensure the sugar is dissolved
4. Add the pears and cover with baking paper
5. Simmer for 20 – 25 minutes until the pears are soft but still firm
6. Remove the saucepan from the heat and cool the pears in the poaching liquid
7. Once cool remove the pears with a slotted spoon and serve

Considerations:

I usually make the pears the night before and once done, transfer them to a glass bowl. Only remove them from the poaching liquid just before serving. The pears were served with sabayon, but can also be served with a butterscotch sauce or even chocolate ice cream.

Sabayon

What would you need to prepare the sabayon:

Double boiler
Electric whisk
Measuring cup


Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
60ml castor sugar
150ml Sweet white wine
30ml Marsala wine

Method:

1. Put the egg yolks, sugar and wine in the top part of a double boiler over boiling water not in it
2. Whisk for 15-20 minutes until thick and creamy
3. Dish a big spoonful of the sabayon in a serving plate and place a pear on top

Considerations:

Don’t even think of making the sabayon up front, make it just before serving. It must be rich and foamy. I have made it with grape juice instead of sweet white wine, but it did not have the same oomph, so I won’t recommend it.

Post Mortem

Well, what can I say, when the guests ask for more wine after the 5 bottles they had with lunch and 2 wine glasses get broken, you just know it was a good party!

Definitely a fun crowd, lots of wine flowing, interesting conversation, most certainly more than a 17 year old should hear, but hell, at least she is well educated now.

Let me get my preparation winge over and done with, sigh …..… I didn’t get to do all that much for the lunch because Mariette had belly dancing and prepared stuff in advance again. Tut tut

Starters

I hate to admit it, but Mariette has made a soup eater out of me. This was the highlight of the meal for me - who would ever have thought that this could happen to me? I didn’t even need the McDonalds burger, mainly because I ate the contents of the hollowed out rolls. Hmmm, I am just such a baker’s child - I simply love bread. Let me just say hollowing out the rolls isn’t a job that just anyone can do. I mean if it wasn’t for me large portions of rolls would have gone missing as it is a bit fiddly. I must say, I thought the idea of putting the soup into little bread rolls was fabulous. This changed the whole consistency of the soup. It was like eating really thick soup with melted cheese and nothing like a soggy roll at all. So in my opinion the soup was superb.

Wine: Seidelberg Roland Reserve 2003
Lindhorst Pinotage 2004

Yay me – this makes a change. Both wines worked really well with the soup. There was a hung jury for a while, until, surprise - surprise the Pinotage won out. So I guess the books are right after all, tomato based dishes are best suited to a young fruity red, such as Pinotage.

Main:

I learnt how to make white sauce. That previous glue like substance all makes so much sense now - the things you learn. I also stretched my pastry perfectly so there was no flopping in incident this time around. I have to say that I rather chuffed with myself.
Now let’s be honest, this was fish so how great can it be? But most fortunately it was also pie, which means there was pastry. So there was at least one thing that counted in favour of the fish. Personally it was better that I expected, not being a fish fan and all. The pastry was fabulous and the filling wasn’t half bad. I ate almost all of it, and partially enjoyed it. AlthoughI have to add it is not something I would rush out and have in a hurry, but as far as fish goes, definitely the best fish I have ever had. All the guests except for Di, who doesn’t like pie, (I find that quite odd), reckoned the fish was fabulous and demanded the recipe. So, hell, I guess I don’t know everything. Please try it out and let me know, everyone else seemed to like it a lot.

Wine: Stony Brook Semillion 2003
Chamonix Troika 2003

Aah, now I am back to my usual experimental ways. The Bordeaux blend was perfect for the meal and was loved by one and all. Now most people would have tried a wooded chardonnay with creamy fish, but not me. It turns out that I probably should have. It was not that the Semillion was bad, it was delightfully fruity and fragrant, and so not what I had in mind. Oops, oh well, so with this rich creamy fish pie, the troika won hands down

Dessert:

Oy , this was so not my food day. The starter was shocking in a very good way, as it turned out to be absolutely divine. Even the main course was surprisingly nice.

Dessert, well unfortunately it still tasted like pears and there was nothing you could do about that. Mariette may have painstakingly poached it, but the bottom line is, a pear by any other name is still a pear and if you don’t like pears you were pretty much stuffed. Di and Berna polished it off and really liked it. Corne and I didn’t like it at all, and we were later called philistines by Mariette’s husband. He was totally shocked that there were any left overs. Corne didn’t like the egg yolk taste on the foamy stuff (sabayon - I am told) and me, well not a pear person, shaped more like an apple actually.

Wine:
Beyerskloof
Well, finally!!! It is about high time I got dessert right. Port was clearly the way to go. The decision was unanimous - yummy port that complimented the food.

All in all, I do not have the most refined taste buds, but I have to say the food was a hit and for once so was the wine. Glasses were broken, more wine was opened and a good day was had by all.

Going Solo

Well I guess that time is upon me.

I have to prove that the recipes actually do work, and that I in fact have learnt something. Furthermore some evidence has to be provided that I deserve to wear that damned elusive jacket.

Going solo

So for our first grown up dinner we invite Di’s parents, aunt and uncle. Yeah right, no pressure there, let’s just invite the in laws - why don’t we - for our first solo attempt …. Oy!

So I decided to use a combination of past dishes for my dinner. We had the French onion soup from the Winter Supper menu as a starter. The crème caramel from the same menu was dessert. The main course was the chicken with mushroom sauce from the Mother’s Day Lunch menu. This was served with the beans from the Autumn Special Supper menu. I chose the wine from my new favourite vineyard, Raka. We had both their Biography (Shiraz) and Quinary (Bordeaux blend) during the evening.

First of all, words from the wise, if you don’t know what you are doing, take some time to print out the front bit on preparation time. Don’t just print out the recipes because then you don’t remember what you still have to do. Who knew that cutting all those things could take that long? Even worse, that you would need enough little dishes and bowls to put all the stuff in, - clearly not me.

The worst lesson that I learnt is that chillies burn like all hell. On the back of the packet it very clearly states that you should not rub your eyes when you are working with chillies, but nowhere did it refer to your nose. I have never experience such pain in my life. My nose was running and burning with a flame of a thousand suns. There is not enough words in the dictionary to describe the searing pain I experienced. There is really no way to stop it. The best solution I could come up with was milk, but I couldn’t pour it up my nose for fear of drowning. So I made poor Di dab it on my nose until a milky layer/crust doused the flames. Well that was a lesson I will not forget easily - don’t ever ever touch your nose while cutting up chilli, hell, don’t touch your nose at all while you are cooking in general, I guess.

Starter:

The soup – man, it really does take forever to prepare, but it is so worth the effort. Mariette very sweetly let me use her fancy onion cutting machine (called a mandolin I am told) on Friday night. I do think I may have boiled the stock a bit long, because there wasn’t enough liquid for the soup compared to the ratio of onions. Or maybe the bowls were too big. I am not quite sure which. Never the less, it still worked out well, and I have decided I really like French onion soup.

Main:

Well the chicken was nice. The beans had way too much butter in it. The mushroom sauce – well it was a bit odd. First of all the chillies were clearly hotter in my nose than on my tongue. I thought it was quite mild and it had a rather strange consistency. Later, after speaking to Mariette, it turned out that I probably split the cream in the sauce. I tried to have the sauce good – to - go in advance. But then it appears that I accidentally boiled the cream while finishing it off, thereby (new word for today) splitting the cream. This resulted in a dodgy sauce. The rice also didn’t go that well and that purely because I forgot to turn the stove on, so instead of being fluffy, it was a bit too al dente. (I realized it almost in time)

Dessert

Aah, this was fabulous …... primarily because I spent 3 hours with Mariette the night before making it (watching it being made – same thing). So all we had to do was drive it home and serve it. It was fabulous and is still my favourite dessert ever. I had the Woolies version the other day, and there is no comparison, the home made one rocks!

We had great fun, nothing quite like playing pictionary to get the party going..

So all in all, it was quite scary - going solo, I mean. I messed up a bit, but was very proud of how it all worked out well in the end. I mean everything was edible and some of the dishes were down right nice.

Winter Supper

Man, it has been so long, I think I have forgotten how to stand on my feet cooking for an extended period of time. Because it’s cold and winter (well not that cold, but apparently I am a freak that doesn’t get cold) we are doing hearty winter food, which for me means, yummy yummy yummy food.

Bizarrely enough we are cooking in the morning, because apparently everything needs a long time to cook, and Mariette has a kitchen tea in the afternoon. So I have to get to Mariette’s at an acceptable hour -10h00, after Di’s hockey trials. Then we will cook till about 14h00. So I am hoping to actually see it all, as opposed to her usual stunt of – gee, I prepared it the night before. So while Mariette and I cook, Di will be playing table tennis with Alan. She is most excited to play more and improve her game. When we were in Franschoek Di bought me a chef’s jacket, but I have not really felt worthy to wear it. Let’s be honest if you don’t know what top and tail means I don’t think u should be wearing one, but now Mariette is planning on humiliating me and announcing that she feels it is time. Man, tell me it is not happening…

So for starters we are doing a French onion soup, which I discovered I liked one night out with the girls. I am a bit concerned about the cheese and bread in the middle but I am definitely getting more adventuress so I will suck it up. I have never heard of Gruyere cheese, but I guess that isn’t saying much. Then we are doing lamb stew – yummy - lamb is my ultimate favorite. We are also making a chicken casserole for all those strange people who don’t love lamb. I will taste it anyway as per our deal.

The dessert is by far the best bit of all. It is my favorite dessert, crème caramel. I am so excited, as this is really is the perfect menu for me. I am so keyed up that I have already chosen the wine. I made a concerted effort to shut everyone up so I have chosen a sticky with the dessert. In order not to ruin it completely for me I am experimenting with a slightly chilled pinot noir as well. So all things considered it should be good fun.

We have invited a nice mix of people - Louise and Jaco, friend and ex colleague. Sigh……… Louise taught me everything I know about Staffware. I will however not bore you with sad job details. They got married recently, but since they have been together for over 7 years, they aren’t annoying newly weds - just kind of cool. Louise will also be bringing her camera so that she too can attempt the food photography, which is really way harder than I originally thought. They are also smokers, which mean I will probably get yelled at a lot for trying to sneak a smoke with the guests. Then we have Caroline and Stuart. Caroline is technically my boss but is so cool and funky, I sometimes tend to forget that, but they are both really good fun. Caroline doesn’t really drink wine much but I am hoping Stuart will like my selection. So on the upside everyone knows each other and there should not be any awkwardness and I am really looking forward to it.

Winter Supper
(6-8 people)


Menu

Starter
French Onion Soup
Wine: Muratie Isabella Chardonnay
Ridgeback Shiraz


Main
Lamb Stew
Chicken Casserole
Mashed Potatoes
Pearl Barley
Wine: Stonybrook Ghost Gum Cabernet Sauvignon
Lindhorst Shiraz


Dessert
Crème Caramel
Wine: Waterford Family Reserve Dessert Wine
Haute Espoir Pinot Noir


Tea / Coffee

Shopping list:

Fruit and Vegetables:
1.5kg Red onions
Garlic
500g baby potatoes
1.5 – 2kg Mashing potatoes
250g Carrots
300g Button mushrooms
6 Leeks
1 Orange
Thyme
Parsley
Mint
Frozen peas

Meat and Fish:
2 Large chickens
1.5kg Sheep neck / stewing lamb

Dairy and eggs:
18 Eggs
250ml Double cream

Other Groceries:
Pearl Barley
1l Beef stock
3.5l Chicken stock
2 Vanilla pods
1 Bottle fruity dry white wine e.g. Chenin Blanc
Dried Cannelini beans

From the cupboard:

Salt
Black Pepper
Flour
Castor sugar
Olive oil
Bay leaves
Herbs de Provence
Coffee
Tea

From the fridge:

Unsalted butter
Milk

Time Planner

What can be done on Friday night:

Set the table
Make the crème caramel
Marinate the chicken
Soak the beans

Plan of Action:

Saturday morning:

Peel and slice onions
Braise onions
Make soup
Flour the lamb
Shallow fry the lamb
Cut onions, potatoes and carrots for the lamb stew
Cut the mushrooms in half

5 hours before serving the following can be done:

Assemble lamb stew
Put lamb stew in the oven and forget about it

3 hours before serving the following can be done:

Fry the chicken pieces in batches
Assemble the chicken casserole
Put chicken casserole in the oven and forget about it
Peel the potatoes
Boil the potatoes
Drain the potatoes


1 hour before serving the following can be done:

Cook the barley
Reheat the onion soup on very low heat
Grate the gruyere cheese
Mash the potatoes

CRUNCH Time - ½ an hour before serving:

Prepare the gruyere croutons for the soup
Open the and wine
Pop the gruyere croutons under the grill
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine
Reheat the mashed potatoes on very low heat
Serve the soup

Serving the main course:

Clear the table
Spoon barley and mash into serving dishes
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine
Place all the serving dishes on the table
Dish up at the table or let the guests dish up for themselves

Serving the dessert:

Clear the table
Turn out the crème caramel
Ask the kitchen assistant to pour the wine
Serve the dessert

French Onion Soup

What would you need to prepare the French onion soup:

Roasting tin
Chopping board
Small sharp knife
Mandolin if possible
4l Saucepan
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons

Ingredients for the soup:

500g onion thinly sliced
8 cloves of garlic
1 bottle dry white wine
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
100g unsalted butter
2.5 – 3l chicken stock
Slices of crusty baguette
600g grated gruyere cheese

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 220C
2. Combine the onion, garlic, wine and butter in a roasting tin and braise uncovered until the onions are soft and most of the liquid is absorbed
3. This will take between 1½ and 2 hours
4. Bring the stock to a simmer in a large saucepan
5. Add the onion
6. Dish the soup up in individual bowls
7. Place a slice of baguette on each bowl of soup
8. Evenly distribute the grated cheese
9. Put under the grill until the cheese is melted

Considerations:

I usually use red onions as it is sweeter that white onions. I used Chenin Blanc with the onions. If you don’t have a big enough oven for all the soup bowls, you can grill the bread and cheese just before serving and then place on top of the soup as you dish up.

Lamb Stew

What would you need to prepare the lamb stew:

Casserole dish
Chopping board
Small sharp knife
3l Saucepan
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons

Ingredients for the lamb stew:

1.5kg neck of lamb / cubes of stewing lamb
125g flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
12 small onions
12 small carrots
300g small button mushrooms
250g frozen peas
10 – 12 baby potatoes peeled
100ml olive oil
1 – 1.5l chicken or beef stock
Bouquet garni
Chopped mint to garnish

Method:

10. Pre heat the oven to 180C
11. Put flour, salt and pepper in a plastic bag
12. Add the lamb to the plastic bag and shake to cover meat with the seasoned flour
13. Peel onions and carrots and leave whole
14. Heat the oil in a large saucepan
15. Shake excess flour from the lamb when taking it out of the plastic bag
16. Seal the meat in batches in the hot oil
17. Saute the onions in the oil
18. Add the stock gradually and bring to the boil
19. Simmer until stock gets slightly thicker
20. Transfer meat, vegetables except peas and bouquet garni to an oven proof casserole dish with a tight fitting lid
21. Pour stock over and cover with lid
22. Put in pre-heated oven
23. After an hour turn temperature down to 150C
24. Leave in the oven for at least 3 hours, but up to 5 hours
25. Add the frozen peas 10 minutes before taking the stew out of the oven
26. Remove the bouquet garni before serving and sprinkle with chopped mint


Considerations:

I tried the stew with both neck of lamb and lamb cubes. The neck worked better because the cubes tend to be a bit dry. Instead of just using olive oil for sautéing, use a combination of butter and olive oil for more flavour. Don’t cook the stew too quickly. Long slow cooking ensures soft meat and good blending of flavours. A bouquet garni consists of 3 stalks of parsley, 1 sprig thyme and 1 bay leave tied together with a piece of string. Serve with either mashed potatoes, rice or pearl barley.

Chicken Casserole – The Kitchen Diaries from Nigel Slater

What would you need to prepare the prepare the chicken casserole:

Casserole dish
Frying pan
Big glass bowl for marinating chicken
Chopping board
Knife
Measuring cup
Measuring spoons


Ingredients:

2 whole chickens cut up into 8 pieces each
300g dried cannellini beans
100ml olive oil plus extra for frying
100ml balsamic vinegar
8 cloves of garlic
6 bay leaves
3 - 4 teaspoons dried herbes de Provence
Pared rind of 2 oranges
6 leeks thickly sliced

Method:

1. Soak the beans in cold water overnight
2. Bring the beans to the boil in unsalted water and boil them for forty minutes
3. Put the chicken pieces in a glass dish
4. Pour over the olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of balsamic
5. Tuck in the garlic cloves and bay leaves
6. Scatter over the herbes de Provence, salt and freshly ground black pepper and strips of pared orange rind
7. Leave in a cool place overnight
8. Pre heat the oven to 200C
9. Heat enough olive oil to cover the bottom of a shallow sauce pan
10. Add the chicken pieces to the hot oil, shaking the marinade from each as you go
11. Fry until the golden brown on each sides
12. Do this in two or more batches
13. Transfer the browned meat to a deep casserole with a lid
14. Drain the boiled beans and add to the casserole
15. Fry the leeks in the same oil over low heat to soften rather than brown them
16. Add the garlic from the marinade
17. Pour in the remaining marinade, the rest of the balsamic vinegar and about a liter of water
18. Bring to the boil, season generously with salt and then pour over the chicken
19. Tuck in bay leaves and orange rind from the marinade
20. Cover the casserole and put in a pre heated oven for two to two and a half hours
21. Half way through the cooking check that the chicken is still submerged
22. Check for seasoning: it may need salt, it will need black pepper and you may feel it needs a little more balsamic vinegar
23. Serve steaming hot


Considerations:

Do not replace the water with the stock, because this would make the casserole too rich. If you cannot find herbes de Provence, just omit it. Sometimes I do not use it and it is still delicious. Serve the casserole with mashed potatoes – real comfort food.
Barley

What would you need to prepare the barley:

3l sauce pan
Measuring cup

Ingredients:

500 ml Barley
2l Chicken stock
Salt

Method:

1. Bring barley and chicken stock and salt to the boil
2. Turn the heat down to low
3. Put a lid on the sauce pan
4. Simmer for an hour

Crème Caramel – The Food I Love by Neil Perry

What would you need to prepare the crème caramel:

Large mixing bowl
Roasting tin
250 ml oven proof moulds
Knife
Whisk
Heavy base sauce pan
Pastry brush


Ingredients:

1.5l milk
180g castor sugar
2 vanilla bean pods, split lengthways and seed scraped out
9 eggs
9 egg yolks
340g castor sugar for the caramel

Method:

1. Combine the sugar, milk and vanilla bean and seeds in a sauce pan and bring slowly to the boil
2. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to stand for 1 hour to infuse
3. Meanwhile to make the caramel bring the sugar and 190ml warm water to a gentle simmer, stirring briefly to dissolve the sugar
4. Do not stir once it is simmering
5. Watch the sugar and water carefully, and simmer only until it starts turning a deep caramel colour
6. Remove the pan from the heat immediately and carefully pour equal amounts of the caramel into between 8 – 10 250ml dariole moulds or glass ramekins
7. Hold the moulds at the top of the rim and swirl to coat the moulds half way up teir sides with the caramel
8. Set aside
9. Pre-heat oven to 190C
10. Lightly mix the eggs and yolks in a bowl
11. Strain the cooled milk mixture into the egg mixture, slowly whisking
12. Strain again and pour into the moulds
13. Lay a tea towel on the bottom of a roasting tin or baine – marie that is deeper than the moulds
14. Put the moulds in and half fill the tin with hot water
15. Cover the tin with foil and place in the centre of the oven to cook for 30 – 55 minutes or until set (The time will vary depending on the oven)
16. Allow to cool, then store in the refrigerator for at least 4 – 5 hours
17. Pour some boiling water into a bowl and place a mould in the water for about 15 seconds
18. Carefully run a knife around the inside of the mould
19. Place the serving plate on top and quickly upturn the crème caramel and slowly remove the mould allowing the caramel to gently spill down the edges of the dessert
20. Repeat with the remaining moulds
21. Serve immediately


Considerations:

The two things that most affect the texture are the ratio of egg yolks to egg whites – too much egg white and it will be tough, too little and it will fall apart. I use extra large eggs in the crème caramel. The heat will affect the texture as well. If cooked for too long or at too high a heat it will have little air bubbles through it, which will destroy the texture. You can use a different flavour like lemon or orange in the custard. When making the caramel, it is very important to dissolve the sugar and use warm water, otherwise it will crystallize instead of caramelize.

Post Mortem

Well once again a really successful evening by my standards. The food was cool. In my humble opinion the starter and dessert were absolutely fantastic. The main meal was nice enough and the wine was fabulous. Alas, the weather wasn’t all that wintery, but the smokers thought it was cold enough and yearned to be by the fire place. I reckon the company made all the difference. Everyone knew each other and chatted up a storm. Louise even got Jaco to do bizarre party tricks. Unfortunately we don’t have any photos, because Louise was designated camera person. In case you were wondering, the answer is YES, Mariette did wack me on the head with a wooden spoon and ceremoniously handed me my chef’s jacket. We had Moet to celebrate the occasion - man it might be overpriced but it is really good stuff. I know - I know - here I am showing my peasant tendencies, because I have only had real champagne once before and then I didn’t appreciate it at all ……... but onto the food.

Starters:

Things I learned about French onion soup
1. It’s bloody delicious. It turns out if you melt the cheese for the croutons it is rather yum (when I had it previously the bread was wine soaked and the cheese not melted - not so hot).
2. It takes forever to make. I swear it must have taken about 3 hours to caramalise those stupid onions.
3. It wasn’t nearly as hard to make as I would have thought.
4. I was really grateful that Mariette has a kitchen full of stuff, so I could use a gadget to slice onions – it is called a mandolin and proved to be a real life saver. If I had to manually cut 2 bags of onions there would be tears (not the onion kind as they were there anyway).
5. As Floyd said, “If it’s not good enough to drink it’s certainly not good enough to cook with”. We upheld this philosophy using 2 really good chenins.

Personally I wouldn’t put the bread on top of the soup as it gets really soggy. I would like to dip it myself, but people thought I was odd on that point. Next time I’ll definitely ask for mine on the side. All in all the best soup I have ever eaten and would certainly want again. Two thumbs up!

Wine:

Muratie Isabella 2005 (Chardonnay): this is about the only white wine I like, so I was slightly biased.
Ridgeback Shiraz 2003: tough choice as this is also on my recent favourites list (next time you are in the Paarl vicinity, do yourself a favour and go to the vineyard - such a nice tasting experience too)

So, this was interesting as Mariette and I are both shiraz fans and thought the combination worked really well. There was a split at a point, but eventually the chardonnay won out since the majority felt that the shiraz over powered the soup a bit. Who would have thought - with all those onions, but it’s true. So the winner of the starter challenge was Muratie.

Main meal:

Stew versus casserole, here is my question: what the hell is the difference?

Anyway the lamb was a bit disappointing, because as it turns out, I don’t really like stew all that much. I am unquestionably more a roast or lamb chop girl. Anyway, it was rather pleasant with good flavour (I have to say this because I made this one). I did learn that one should use lamb on the bone because the cubes became a bit dry. In any case that was my opinion. All our polite guests disagreed with me. Well, since Caroline took the left-overs home, I guess she did enjoy it. I, bizarrely enough, enjoyed the chicken. It was delicious and the sauce was divine. I also very sneakily managed to avoid the beans so that made it even better. Even the barley wasn’t bad, but I must admit I did miss rice a wee bit.

Wine:
Lindhorst Shiraz 2003 (my favourite vineyard, we stayed in their cottage when we went to Cape Town)
Stony Brook Ghost Gum 2003 (Cabernet Sauvignon)

This battle was tougher than with the starters. The Shiraz is a true Shiraz, so not to everyone’s taste - but Stuart, Mariette and I thought it was fabulous, even Caroline (a G&T drinker) liked it. Here in lies the problem, the Shiraz was perfect for the lamb, but a bit overpowering for the chicken. The Cabernet was okay with the lamb, but went really well with the chicken. It was felt that it might have worked better with a white wine, but no fear, I quickly ignored that comment. And so in light of the fact that the chicken was better and the Cabernet more versatile it is only fair that the winner is… Ghost Gum!!

Dessert:

Herein lies a debacle to such a degree that I have not seen around a dinner table before. Anyone that says making crème caramel is easy, is a lying bastard. So I was tasked with watching the sugar and water and swirling occasionally. Sounds easy - yes? No, it’s damn complicated, because I am now paranoid and filled with dread at the possibility of burning the stupid sugar. So, I swirled it so many times that I had sugar crystallized on the side of the pot.

It also took over an hour to get it to the vague point of caramalisition, because I swirled so often it never got time to caramelize. So then we try to get the crystallized sides off, oy, not an easy endeavor, because that then caused a huge crystal lump in the middle of the pot.

Needless to say 2½ hours later it all crystallized and we had to try again. Mariette then claimed it would take half an hour. Then with less swirling and the expert eye - and just under an hour later, the whole thing crystallized again. So I fear I am cursed.

Eventually I left to fetch the wine and Mariette got it done perfectly without the Fenton curse peering over her shoulder. Still have no idea how to make it now, but guess we will try again. In the end, however, it was absolutely divine! Some of them didn’t set so well, because they were baked a bit late. But I stole Di’s and man there is a reason this is my favourite dessert. I have such good taste and a whole new appreciation for it.

Wine:

Haute Cabriere Pinot Noir 2002
Waterford Family Reserve

Okay, so I tried to move away from stickies with a chilled pinot noir. Oh yuck, let’s be honest, I don’t think there is much that goes with dessert and apparently pinot noir is definitely not one of them. The Waterford went down very well, even I had to admit it went well, though I did valiantly try to drink the pinot noir, sigh, but never again. So, basically no contest, the Waterford won with ease.

The experience was fantastic. Mariette had a girls’ night out and prepared almost nothing without me. I was broken, not that you do that much, but the standing around and swirling and watching nearly killed me. My back was so sore, I was in bed by 9 last night. It was also quite fun to see Mariette panic a bit, I think the caramel curse might have confused her slightly, ha - ha. I now have a new appreciation of food. Who thought that food that looked so simple would take so long. I guess it was worth it, as they say the proof is in the pudding and mine was great.

So a good evening was had by all, I hope, well I had fun.