Chocolate Eclair Dessert

 

1 ½ x 250g packets Milk Coffee biscuits 

2/3 cup milk 

CUSTARD 

2 x 100g vanilla instant pudding 

2 ½ cups milk 

600ml tub thickened cream

CHOCOLATE ICING 

300g dark chocolate, finely chopped 

1 cup thickened cream 

1 tablespoon honey 

To make custard, combine all ingredients and beat until thick peaks form. Do not overbeat.

One at a time, dip one-third of the biscuits into milk, turning to coat. Arrange over base of a 23cm x 32cm x 6cm deep, rectangular serving dish (14-cup capacity), trimming to fit. 

Spoon half the custard over biscuits. Spread evenly. Repeat layering with remaining biscuits and custard, finishing with a biscuit layer. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. 

To make icing, combine all ingredients in a large heatproof bowl. Sit bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth. Pour over biscuits in dish. Spread evenly. Refrigerate, covered, for at least 6 hours, or overnight. Spoon into serving bowls.

Tomato Coconut Chicken with Rice

 

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thigh fillets

Cumin, Paprika, Oregano, and turmeric

Salt and Pepper 

Olive Oil 

Brown Onion

Fresh Garlic 

Fresh Tomatoes or 1 can diced tomatoes 

Coconut Milk

Frozen peas or beans

Parsley: Chop finely for a garnish.

Prepare the Chicken: Pat dry the chicken with paper towels and set aside. Combine spices, herbs, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub seasoning mixture all over chicken.

Brown the Chicken: Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add chicken and cook for 6 to 7 minutes on each side, or until browned. Remove chicken, cover, and set aside. 

Create the Sauce: Gently saute onions, garlic, and tomatoes in the remaining olive oil until soft. Stir in the coconut milk and bring to a simmer; simmer for 5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. 

Finish Cooking the Chicken in the Sauce: Carefully add the chicken back into pan, with the peas/beans. Be careful not to splash the simmering sauce. Reduce the heat to low, and cook for 4 or 5 more minutes, until the chicken is tender but not dry and has an internal temperature of 165°F. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste, and garnish with parsley.

How to store: Store leftover chicken in the sauce to keep it from drying out. Place the chicken with its sauce in a food storage bag or container and refrigerate up to 4 days. 

Refrigerate the rice in a separate container for the same length of time. 

Salmon, Leek and Mushroom Pie

 

225g skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

150g sliced mushrooms, sliced

1 leek sliced 

1.5 tablespoons butter or olive oil

1/8 cup flour

3/4 cup milk 

Salt and pepper 

1 sheet puff pastry

In a bowl, combine the salmon, lemon juice and dill. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand for 5 minutes. 

Meanwhile, in a pan over medium heat, sautethe leek and mushrooms in the butter/oil. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the flour on the vegetables and stir to combine. Slowly stir in the milk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer for 1 minute.  

Add the salmon to the mushroom sauce. 

Pour into a 23-cm (9-inch) pie plate. Cover with the pastry dough.  Prick pastry with a fork in a few places to allow steam to escape. Bake until the crust is lightly browned and filling is hot, about 25 minutes.

Mushroom and Leek Alfredo Pasta

1 Tbsp olive oil 

1 large leeks, thinly sliced

200g sliced mushroooms

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/4 cup  chicken broth 

3/4 cup sour cream

1 Tbsp chopped Dill or Parsley

Salt and Pepper

Parmesan to serve 

150g cooked pasta

Saute leek for 2 minutes, add mushrooms and garlic and cook uncovered until mushrooms are soft. Stir in chicken broth and sour cream. Add dill and seasoning, cook another minute uncovered to allow to thicken slightly.  Pour over pasta and top with grated parmesan.

Zucchini and Onion Crustless Quiche

This amount makes a small quiche for two or three people.

To make a larger one, use 3 cups zucchini, 2 cups cheese, 6 eggs and 3/4 cup milk.

3 tablespoons butter 

1 medium onion, chopped 

Salt and pepper to taste 

2 cups of grated zucchini

1 cups shredded cheese

3 large eggs

1/2 cup milk 

Preheat the oven to 180C

Melt the butter in a pan over medium low heat. Add the onion, and salt and pepper. Sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent and slightly caramelised. Add the zucchini and cook for another 2  minutes, until the zucchini has softened. Set aside. 

In a small bowl whisk together the eggs and milk. Set aside. 

Spread the sautéed vegetables evenly over base of a small lightly greased oven dish.  Cover with the cheese and then pour the egg and milk mixture over the cheese. Bake the quiche for 30 to 45 minutes, until a thin knife inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Meatballs

For the meatballs -

One small onion
One small potato
1/4 bunch parsley

Puree all together. Then add

1 egg
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt
Pepper
500g minced beef

Mix all together and form into balls. Bake on 350 for 25 mins on parchment lined baking sheet OR place meatballs in tomato passata with onion/garlic and boil on low simmer for 25 mins.

Cabbage Salad

 Cabbage salad

Thinly slice 3/4 head of cabbage

1 lemon squeezed

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

Mix all together! If you want it to be more sour, add another half of lemon.

Sandra's Beef Stew

50g plain flour 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1kg oyster blade steak, cut up into smallish pieces 

6 tablespoons vegetable oil 

2 onions, sliced 

3 garlic cloves, chopped 

1 tbsp tomato paste 

4 carrots, roughly chopped 

2 kg small round potatoes 

handful sliced mushrooms 

450ml beef stock 

1 tbsp apricot or plum jam 

Place the flour in a bowl or in a plastic bag with plenty of salt and black pepper and toss the meat in it until well coated.

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole and add the beef. Fry until browned on all sides. You may need to do this in batches as you don’t want to overcrowd the pan; it is important to just brown the beef and not stew it. Remove the meat from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the onions, tomato paste, garlic and carrots to the pan and fry for 5 minutes until softened a little.

Return the meat to the pan and add half the stock. Bring to the boil and bubble for 4-5 minutes, until reduced by about a third, then add the remaining stock, potatoes and mushrooms. Bring back to the boil then cover and simmer on a low heat for about two hours or until tender. If preferred, you can place the dish in a preheated oven at 150C/130C fan/gas 2 to cook for the same amount of time. 

Add the jam and continue to cook for a further 30 minutes or until the meat is meltingly tender.

This can be cooked the day before, chilled in the fridge and reheated.

Alternately, leave out the potatoes and serve with mashed potato.

If you want to thicken the sauce further, mix 1 tablespoon of plain flour with 2-3 tablespoons of cold water to make a thin paste, and add gradually to the boiling sauce until thickened to your liking.  

Cabbage Kugel

Vegetable oil for frying 

2 red onions, finely sliced 

1 garlic clove, crushed 

half small green cabbage, finely shredded 

6 large free-range eggs 

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon flour

Salt and pepper

Heat some oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onions and fry for 5 minutes or until starting to soften. Add the garlic and fry for 2-3 minutes.  Add the cabbage with a splash of water (the cabbage will fill the pan) and turn up the heat. Stir-fry until the cabbage wilts and fits the pan more easily (4-5 minutes). Beat the eggs with the oil, season, then mix evenly with the cabbage. Pour into baking dish and bake on low heat 160C until done. 

Strawberry Puff Pastry Bites

 

1 sheet of ready-made puff pastry thawed 

1 cup strawberries, finely chopped 

1/4 cup mascarpone cheese, room temperature

2 tsp caster sugar

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Cut the puff pastry into squares or hearts.  Use a fork to score holes half an inch from the edges. Make sure that you do not cut through the pastry. Now spread some mascarpone(room temp) within the scored part. Mix together chopped strawberries and sugar and carefully place them over the mascarpone. Transfer to oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the edges are puffed up and pastries are golden brown in colour.

Colcannon

 

1kg potato, 

100g butter 

140g finely sliced onion 

half small Savoy cabbage, finely shredded 

150ml double cream 

Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes. 

Heat a quarter of the butter in a saucepan, then fry the onion until just starting to turn gold, then add  cabbage and cook for a further 5 mins.  Turn off the heat and set aside. Drain potatoes in a colander. Mash potato until smooth. 

Heat cream with remaining butter and, when almost boiling, beat into the potato. Add onion and cabbage to potato and mix. Season with salt and pepper.

Quinoa Sweet Potato Salad

Quinoa

Sweet potato [medium size]

Flat leaf parsley [half a bunch]

Extra virgin olive oil

One lemon

Salt and pepper

Put 1 cup quinoa into a fine-meshed sieve and rinse well under cold running water, swishing the quinoa with your hand. Drain the quinoa well. Add 2 cups water to a medium saucepan, add the quinoa, bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer, UNcovered, for about 10 minutes, until all the water is absorbed.

If you cover the pot, the water will not fully absorb.

Once the quinoa has absorbed the water, put the lid on the pan and remove from heat.  After 5 mins the quinoa will have puffed up.

Cut sweet potato into bit size pieces and roast in oven with some good olive oil and a pinch of salt.

Chop parsley very finely.

To make dressing, use the juice of a freshly squeezed lemon, a drop of good quality olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Combine all ingredients gently in a large dish and pour over dressing.