Potato and Spinach Gratin

2 lbs small white potatoes, scrubbed and sliced THIN (about 7 cups sliced)
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1/8-1/4 cup minced onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 cups cream
2 tablespoons butter melted
1 1/2-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat over to 375, grease a 13"x 9"baking dish, set aside.
Place potato slices in a large bowl, add spinach, onions, garlic, toss well to evenly distribute.
In a separate bowl combine cream, melted butter, cheese, salt, and pepper, stir together well; pour this mixture over potato mixture and stir well to evenly combine.
Pour into the prepared baking dish, cover with foil and bake at 375 for 50-60 mins or until potatoes are tender.
Uncover and continue to bake for additional 20 mins.
Serves 8.

Fennel, Blood Orange and Sunflower Seed Salad

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper

2 medium fennel heads thinly sliced
3 blood oranges, peeled and segmented
1 cup sunflower seeds


In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, orange juice, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add the sliced fennel, toss to combine and chill for at about 1 hour.Add the orange sections to the fennel mixture and sprinkle with the sunflower seeds.
Toss very gently to combine. Arrange salad on a platter.

Fish Meuniere

[Recipe by Neil Perry]

4 fish fillets [200g each], skin off - [suggest John Dory]

clarified butter [melt 250g butter over a medium heat, then strain off and discard the milk solids]

1/2 cup milk

1 cup plain flour

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

125g unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

2 lemons, quartered

2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

[Serves 4]

Place a large stainless steel or non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat and pour in enough clarified butter to cover the base of the pan. Heat the butter to hot.

Meanwhile dip the fish fillets in the milk, then the flour, and sprinkle with sea salt. Place the fish fillets in the hot pan and cook for about one minute. Turn and cook the fish for another minute.

Place a fish fillet on each of 4 plates, squeeze a little lemon juice over the fish, sprinkle with parsley and sea salt and give a good grind of pepper.

Add the unsalted butter to the pan over high heat. As the butter turns a nut-brown colour, spoon it over the fish. The butter, parsley and lemon juice will mingle to create the meuniere sauce. Serve immediately.

[Serve the fish with boiled new potatoes tossed in butter or olive oil, and peas]

Flat bread Salad (Fattoush)

[A slight variation on the regular Fattoush]:

2 flatbreads, toasted, cut into bite size pieces
Lettuce
Cucumber
Purple Cabbage
Cherry tomatoes
Spanish onion

Slice vegetables and layer in a large bowl.

Dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove crushed garlic
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
dash of pepper

Shake all together and pour over salad then add the flatbread.

Honey Mustard Salad Dressing

3 tbsp. cider vinegar
3 tbsp. honey
6 tbsp. mayonnaise
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. onion, finely minced
1 1/2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup salad oil

 

Heat vinegar and honey in a small heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until honey dissolves. Pour into bowl. Cool. Whisk in all other ingredients except oil. Mix well. Gradually whisk in oil. May be prepared 3 days ahead, covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature. Mix well before dressing salad.

 

Good with avocado and watercress salad.

Options: Make a salad with finely chopped capsicums (red, green and yellow), finely chopped snow-peas, finely chopped radicchio lettuce and baby spinach leaves.

Spicy Pumpkin and Parsnip Soup

Olive oil, knob of butter
3 onions, roughly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 parsnips, peeled and thinly sliced
1 medium butternut pumpkin, peeled and chopped
2 Massel parve chicken stock cubes
half tsp Cayenne Pepper
Salt

Fry onion in olive oil/butter for a few minutes, add sliced parsnip and garlic, saute for another minute.  Add pumpkin, stock cubes, salt and cayenne pepper.  Cover with water. Bring to boil and allow to simmer for about half an hour, until vegetables are cooked through.  Puree until smooth.

Onions Never Make Me Cry....

...because I keep them in the fridge.  Cut them when they are cold, and you will never cry over an onion again.

Macaroni Cauliflower Cheese

1 small head of cauliflower
200g macaroni pasta

Cheese Sauce:
600ml milk
50g butter
50g flour
100g grated cheese
1 tablespoon English mustard

Preheat oven to 190c. Cut the cauliflower into florets, and boil with the pasta for 10 mins.

In the meantime, to make the cheese sauce, heat the butter in a pan then add the flour gradually to the melted butter. Stir vigorously for a minute. Remove pan from heat and stir in the milk. Place back on the heat and increase temperature, whisking the milk mixture continuously as it thickens. Bring to the boil, by which time it should have thickened, then stir in the cheese and mustard. Season to taste. Drain the pasta and cauliflower,   then tip them both into a baking dish. Top with the cheese sauce and grate a little extra Parmesan over the top. Place in oven and cook for 30 minutes or until the cheese begins to brown.

Buttercream Frosting

2 sticks butter, softened
6 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract

Using a kitchen whiz, beat all ingredients slowly at first until everything starts to come together. If you go too fast you will get powdered sugar all over your counter. Let whip for approximately 5 minutes, until frosting is light and fluffy. Spread on cake as desired.

* Tip – the trick to getting smooth frosted cakes is to frequently scrap off excess frosting and dip your spreader into a cup of warm water, then continue spreading. It will look a bit wet as you go along, but the frosting will harden up beautifully.

Bok Choy Salad



Baby bok choy (about 6), finely chopped
Shallots, finely chopped
Pepitas
Craisins
Long Sippets (crunchy noodles)


Dressing:  In a blender, mix
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
Salt and pepper

Arrange bok choy and other ingredients on a large platter. Cover with dressing.

The Best Minestrone Soup

1 tblspn olive oil
2 onions
2 carrots
4 sticks celery
3 cloves garlic
1 can chopped tomatoes
Broccoli, green beans....whatever you want
1 can cannelini beans (rinsed)
2 Massel chicken stock cubes (parev)
2 cups baby spinach leaves

1 cup pasta shells
Salt and pepper

Finely chop onion and saute in oil for a couple of minutes. Add finely chopped celery, carrot and garlic. Saute for five minutes.
Add can of tomatoes, broccoli chopped into florets, green beans, stock cubes, salt and pepper and enough water to 3/4 fill the pot. Simmer for about 20 minutes, then add pasta shells and cannelini beans, and cook a further 10 minutes.
Finally, add the baby spinach and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Jamie Oliver's Spinach and Feta Filo Pie

Ingredients
100g (3½oz) pinenuts
5 free range or organic eggs
300g (10½oz) feta cheese
50g (1¾oz) Cheddar cheese
Dried oregano
1 lemon
A knob of butter
400g (14oz) prewashed baby spinach
1 x 270g pack of filo pastry

Put the pinenuts into the dry ovenproof frying pan to toast, tossing occasionally. Keep an eye on them. Crack 5 eggs into a mixing bowl and crumble in 300g (10½oz) feta. Grate in the Cheddar.

Add a pinch of pepper, a couple of pinches of dried oregano, zest of 1 lemon and a glug of olive oil. Once the nuts are light golden, add them to the egg mixture and mix well.

Put the empty frying pan back on the heat, add a little olive oil and a knob of butter and pile in half of the spinach. Gently push and move it around and add more as it wilts down. Make sure it doesn't catch on the bottom and, when there's room, start adding the rest, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile, take the pastry out of the fridge.

Lay a large sheet of greaseproof paper, approx 50cm (20in) long, on the worktop, rub a little olive oil all over it, then scrunch it up and lay it out flat again. Arrange 4 filo pastry sheets in a large rectangle, overlapping at the edges, so they almost cover the paper. Rub some olive oil over them. Sprinkle over a good pinch of salt and pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Repeat until you have 3 layers. Don't worry about any cracked bits. Remember to keep stirring the spinach.

Once the spinach is really nice and dense, take the pan off the heat. Add the wilted spinach to the egg mixture and grate in ½ a nutmeg. Mix well. Carefully move the greaseproof paper and filo into the empty frying pan so the edges spill over. Push it down into the sides of the pan, then pour in the egg mixture and spread it out. Fold the filo sheets over the top and let them fall where they will (for more help go to www. jamieoliver.com/how-to-filo-pie).

Put the pan back on a medium heat for a couple of minutes to get the bottom cooking, then put the pan into the oven on the top shelf to cook for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp.