cooking challenge week thirteen: homemade pasta

This was a great challenge. The kind of challenge I started this whole adventure to get to grips with. I am so pleased! I can't wait to whip up another batch of home made pasta. I made a ravioli with sweet potato, caramelised onion, goats cheese and basil. Honestly, one of the nicest things I've eaten. Certainly one of the nicest I've made. I topped it with a simple, rustic pesto - heavy on all the classic ingredients - loads of fresh basil, pine nuts, really hearty parmesan and good olive oil.

For the pasta:

You will need:

2.5 cups strong white flour (type "oo" if possible - and I actually used half whole grain flour)

4 organic free range eggs, at room temperature

A few tablespoons oil

A teaspoon of salt

What to do:

Sift your flour into a mound on the top of your work surface, and add a teaspoon of salt. Make a deep well in the centre. Crack one egg in and beat lightly to break the yolk. Incorporate some of the flour. Repeat with the next three eggs and then start to mix more and more of the flour until you have a crumbly dough. Add a tablespoon of oil, then a tablespoon of water, one at a time, until you have the consistency of a stretchy but firm dough.

Wrap in lightly oiled cling film and refrigerate for at least a half hour.

Lightly sprinkle flour on a clean work surface and roll the flour out, if you're working manually. You need to get the dough paper thin - about a milimetre, so you should be able to pick it up, hold it to the light and see through it. Obviously this is easier with a pasta maker but hey, let's go rustica! Because I was making ravioli, I did this in batches. The aim is to get two strips of dough that are roughly the same size.

Spoon your mixture equally along one strip then use an egg wash to cover the exposed pasta. Drape the other piece of dough over the top. You need to take your time to squeeze the air bubbles out of the ravioli. Work from the inside of the mix out. Use your fingertips to press the edges down. Use a cup to slice the pasta into rounds, or a knife to cut into squares.

Pasta should need to boil for around 2 minutes at the most. And it is GOOD. I am going to make a spaghetti tomorrow night, so stay tuned as I'll update with my success!

To make the ravioli filling, I peeled and sliced one small sweet potato until soft. Caramelised onion - One onion, finely chopped, mixed with 1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon oil, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar and 1.5 tablespoons brown sugar. Mix well and simmer over a low heat for around 30 minutes. Keep stirring to ensure it doesn't stick to the bottom or burn. Mix with finely chopped basil, and a good quality goats cheese. Season to taste and mix all ingredients together until you get the consistency of chunky mash potato.

For the pesto - use a food processor or hand mixer to combine basil, pine nuts, organic garlic (my new love!), olive oil, parmesan cheese and salt until you get the right consistency.

If you love pasta, then make this! You'll never buy store bought filled pasta again.

foody weekend

Well this week's challenge has been spread over Saturday and Sunday, as we caught up with some friends last night so I wasn't able to do my full three course meal!

I was, however, able to serve part of the enree as a snack for us to share. I made a loaf of bread, soft and white, which was to be turned into Bruschetta. I am learning, with this cooking challenge, to be more of a patient cook. There is no way you can rush baking, particularly not yeast based doughs, which need time to rise and prove. The longer you can leave the dough to rise, the softer and fluffier the bread.

Then, the main course (and cooking challenge) was a ravioli I made from scratch. I have tried this in the past but it didn't work out. I think this was because I didn't roll the pasta thin enough. Without a pasta machine you need to get the ravioli paper thin, which takes patience and arm muscles! I made a sweet potato, goats cheese, caramelised onion, basil and pine nut filling, and I served the ravioli with home made pesto and aged parmesan. To make the ravioli, I used a mix of wholegrain and white flour.

I don't think the photographs do this challenge justice but it was absolutely delicious. The combination of flavours was sooo good and the texture was perfect. I was really, really pleased. I think using a pasta maker would still give you a slightly thinner product though, but I'm going to make a heap of these and freeze them in portions. Delicious.

Finally, for dessert, sweet berries with rum sauce and home made ice cream. Delicious!

a day in belgium

I spent a fantastic day in Brussels today, to help a good friend celebrate her birthday eve. It's my personal belief that birthdays should span a minimum of three days: birthday eve, birthday day and birthday boxing day, and ideally more if possible.

The food in certain cities in Europe is beyond compare, and Brussels is definitely in my top ten. It isn't any particular dish or flavour for me, but more the craftsmanship and attention to detail in the national specialties - chocolate, waffles, moules, beer. Of course, there are also the enterprising locals who, intent on making the most of the tourist trade, cast crude Manequin Pis knock offs out of chocolate and waffle batter!

In any event, we spent the day wandering the beautiful cobbled streets and eating as much of the food as possible, and souveniring anything we weren't able to make room for.

These treats consist of delicious chocolate flavours with a spoon embedded in the top, and in some cases, a plastic vial of liquor. You heat some full cream milk and then stir the chocolate in (squeeze the liquor as you go) and voila! a delicious belgian hot chocolate. I brought two home for us.

Great artisanal cheese shop off the Grand Place

All of the restaurants make these elaborate seafood displays to entice you in. Worked for us.

This sweets shop looked almost radioactive.

PAUL is a chain of patisserie/boulangerie all over Europe (well, specifically, France, Brussels and the UK, I think). Their cakes are to die for, their hot chocolate the most sinful creation ever and their savouries super yummy too. The first time we had food from PAUL was in Paris - it was a baguette sliced down the middle, filled with two long, skinny sausages and topped with gruyere cheese, then grilled, so it solidified into one melty cheese mess.

This chocolate shop was fantastic. They let us try so many samples - all delicious, of course - so we picked up around 800g of chocolates between us. Brussels is a great city to explore and the food is definitely a highlight!

cooking challenge week twelve: prawn laksa

You will need:

For the Laksa Paste

1 red chilli, deseeded (add an extra chilli if you like it hot, hot, hot)
3 lemongrass stalks
3 cloves garlic
1 green shallot, trimmed
Ginger (3cm by 3cm piece, sliced)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
3 tbs vegetable oil

For the Laksa

The Laksa Paste (See above)
Noodles (egg, or thick rice - quantity to suit)
Prawns
Boiled eggs
Cucumber
Salad Onion
Mint
Braised tofu
Bean sprouts


What to do:

To make your paste, combine all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until you get a nice, textured paste. Add more oil or water as required.

Peel the prawns but leave the tails on. Put the heads and shells in a saucepan with 4 cups of water and a teaspoon of salt and bring to the boil. Strain solids and keep the stock.

Tip the Laksa paste into a large saucepan over a low heat. Stir pretty constantly for around 15 minutes. Be careful to keep the heat low - I did my first batch too high and it burned the spices. You're aiming for the colour to darken quite a bit (from yellow to a really nice amber) and the spices to give off a beautiful aroma. Once your paste has reached this stage, pour in a can of coconut cream and 2 -3 cups of stock. Turn the heat up. Once the laksa starts to boil, return the heat to moderate and leave it to simmer and thicken for around 5 - 10 minutes. If it reduces too much, pour in anothe cup of stock. Check your seasoning. I added another tablespoon of fish sauce here, having come to appreciate that it is a really fantastic ingredient in Asian cooking. It's a great salt substitute and really brings out a great flavour in the dish.

Prepare your vegetables - julienne the cucumber, slice the onion finely and cut the tofu into 1cm pieces. Fry off your prawns in a bit of vegetable oil until they are just cooked (You could boil them with the noodles instead, which is quite traditional).

Boil your noodles in salted boiling water until they are just al dente. Strain them, then stir through the vegetables, mint, bean sprouts and tofu.

Place the noodles in the middle of the bowl, top with the prawns, add the boiled eggs then spoon the laksa in. Top with more mint (laksa leaf is preferred but mint is a fine substitute) and serve immediately. Delicious!

I hope you enjoy this. I wasn't sure I loved this, last night, but looking back at the photos this morning, I am already craving my next one...

a trip to south east asia

Today was another absolutely fantastic day, weatherwise, but I have been fluey! So a good answer to this was lots of spice.

For entree, we started with Vietnamese cold rolls and Thai corn cakes, with lots of mint, lime and Indonesian kecap manis sauce.

I love the fresh flavours in cold rolls. Lots of onion, mint, coriander and cucumber. Delicious.

For main course, and my cooking challenge of the week, I made a prawn laksa. It was really nice, but not fantastic. We both gave it an 8/10, which makes it the lowest rated cooking challenge so far. ;) Don't get me wrong, the flavours were great, but I think there's room for improvement. I'm going to enjoy refining my technique though as it's such a fresh, vibrant and flavoursome dish.

For dessert, one of our favourite Thai desserts - banana coconut cream. It's really easy but you have to get it just right, in terms of cooking time and seasoning - and tonight it was great.

Will blog recipes tomorrow.

dd.x

Moules Mariniere

As you know by now, this is one of my favourite meals.

You will need:

Fresh mussels. We usually use around 1kg for the two of us (but we are piggies when it comes to seafood!).
A cup of cream
A cup of dry white wine
3 cloves garlic
1 small onion, diced finely
A few springs of thyme
Some parsley, finely chopped
Olive oil

What to do:

Over medium high heat, fry off the garlic and onions until opaque and starting to brown. Don't let them burn. Add the wine, thyme and some salt and cook for a minute or two, until it's bubbling away. Add the prepared mussels (see notes below) and cover with a well fitting lid. Steam for up to five minutes - or until the mussels have opened.

Splash the cream and the finely chopped parsley over the top and stir. Discard any mussels that haven't opened. Serve immediately, best with crunchy french fries and a garlic baguette.

NB I think adding bay leaves (2) is quite traditional with this dish but I find the taste overpowering.

Some tips for preparing mussels.

* They are best eaten on the day of purchase, or at latest, the next day.
* Run some cold water into a clean sink, or a large bowl. One by one, dip the mussels in the water, pulling out the beard (stringy sea net) in one swift motion, like you are pulling a weed from the grass. Use a sharp paring knife to chip off any barnacles.
* Don't scrub the shells as this will wash away their colour and taint the colour of your sauce.
* If any mussels are open at this stage, press them shut. If they stay shut, they're fine, if they remain open, discard them.

after work dinner

Yesterday was a gorgeous spring day in my little spot on the river Thames, with a clear blue sky, bright and shiny sun, the smell of daffodils and jasmine sweet in the air.

And to make a great day even better, I was having friends over for dinner - some of my favourite people on this side of the globe. My guests arrived laden with beautiful spring flowers (apparently my love for all things fresh, floral and fragrant is well known) which are now beautifying my little home. They were a delicious backdrop to a casual evening. Look! Don't you love them?

We started with drinks (New Zealand white wine, Spanish red wine and Mexican beers) and some home made foccacia, dipped into good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

The main event was my old favourite - moules, frites and garlic bread. This never fails, you literally can't go wrong with it, and it's great to share with friends. I love the kind of food that you can all dig into, getting messy fingers and with sauce to be slurped. It's also good because it it's done alla'minute but doesn't require much time or attention so you can still relax and enjoy your night. I realised last night that I haven't yet blogged my recipe for moules mariniere - as it is really so simple and traditional - but will do so shortly.

Two of my friends had placed orders for dessert so we had a bit of a mini-buffet. Sticky date pudding with warm toffee sauce, as well as an apple, strawberry and walnut crumble.

So thank you for a great night, friends, and especially for being willing little guinea pigs in my little blogxploration. Mwah.

dd.x

cooking challenge week eleven: rich beef and guinness stew with creamy colcannon (st patrick's day!)

As you know, I'm new to the meat thing so this is my first stew/casserole.

You will need:

For the Stew-

500g Shin (gravy) beef. Ask your butcher to dice it for you.

1.5 cups good quality beef stock

1.5 cups Guinness

1/4 cup Olive Oil

4 tablespoons flour

3 carrots, peeled and cubed into chunky squares

6 sprigs thyme

1 onion

4 cloves garlic

2 dried bay leaves

1/4 cup sliced flat leaf parsley

For the Colcannon

2 good size potatoes

1 cup (loosely packed) sliced Savoy cabbage

1/4 cup green shallots, sliced finely

1 clove garlic

1.5 cups milk

80g butter

What to do:

Preheat oven to 180'c.

Coat your beef pieces loosely in flour. Shake off any excess. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan and fry the beef off in batches, adding more oil as required. Once the beef is browned, set aside.

Slice the onion and garlic and fry them in the oil with the diced carrtots (use the same pan as you used for the beef). Once the onion is softened, but not browned, turn the heat up to high and add the Guinnes and Beef stock, as well as the thyme and bay leaves. Bring to the boil.

Combine the beef with the stock mixture in a large oven proof dish and bake for approximately 2 hours. Prior to serving, mix the finely sliced flat leaf parsley through for a spot of colour.

When you are almost ready to serve, make the Colcannon.

Peel and cube your potato and put them in a saucepan with water. Bring to the boil and cook until tender. Strain, then return to the saucepan and mash until fluffy.

In a frying pan, heat the butter until it liquifies then fry off the cabbage, garlic and shallots. Stir over moderate heat until the cabbage is softened. Mix the cabbage mix and milk through the potatoes and stir over low heat until combined. Season as required.

I've just reheated leftovers for next day lunch and it looks even yummier today than last night. Next time, though, I think I might add bacon to the casserole.

great craic, to be sure, to be sure

With St Patrick's Day just a few sleeps away, I decided to give this week's feast and cooking challenge an Irish flavour. My maternal grandfather was from Ireland (like many Aussies I proudly lay claim to this heritage). This was good, stodgy soul food.

I started with parmesan cheese soda bread (what we in Australia would know as a damper) with Cashel Blue cheese (from Ireland). Bicarb Soda is used as a raising agent instead of yeast and a deep cross is scored in the top.

For main course, I made Colcannon (absolutely delicious) and a really slow cooked Beef Stew with Guinness and organic garlic.

And for dessert, home made bailey's ice cream with mini (oh, so rich) irish coffees. Oh! And I tried to make a chocolate four leaf clover but it was a bit tricky for me...!

With food like that, I am proud to lay claim to my Irish heritage!!

dd.x

duck pizza

I made this pizza the other night for dinner. I made the pizza base, then fried off a plump little duck breast (which I'd marinated in teriyaki and soy sauce) until the skin was crispy and the meat was rare. I sliced it thinly then returned to the frying pan (which was off the heat). Then, I topped the pizza with tomato paste, duck pieces, porcini mushrooms, blue gorgonzola cheese, rocket, and home made caramelison onion, and vintage cheddar. It smelled so good, I almost ate some!

risotteroles!

A great way to use left over risotto the next day. Form into palm-sized patties and coat them with bread crumbs. Freeze them here, if you'd like, or fry them in a bit of butter over low heat until they're crispy then finish them in the oven (around 200'c). Serve with a spring salad.

NB - don't do this if you're risotto has chicken in it.

cooking challenge week ten: ginger and lemon cheesecake

You will need:

For the base

300g digestive biscuits (I used ginger snap biscuits)

1 cup caster sugar

150g butter, melted

For the filling

400g Philadelphia cream cheese (low fat is fine)

250g Marscapone cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract (essence, at a pinch)

2 thumb size nobs of ginger, peeled

1 cup caster sugar

2 large lemons

3 eggs

1 egg yolk

250mL pouring cream

_

What to do:

To make the base you need to turn the cookies into coarse crumbs. You can do this in a food processor, or stuff them in a freezer bag and bang them between a rolling pin and a chopping board. As I have a seriously rudimentary kitchen at the moment, I put the cookies in two plastic bags and rolled a Guiness pint glass over them until they were pulverised ! Put them in a large mixing bowl and add the sugar and melted butter. Use a spoon to combine thoroughly, then finish with your fingers to form a coarse, thick dough.

Preheat the oven to 220'c (fan forced).

Lightly grease a 22cm spring form tin and spoon the cookie crumbs into the tin. Use your fingers to mould it to the sides and base, and then a glass to pack it tightly. Keep it about a centimetre from the surface. Put it in your freezer for 20 minutes, then remove it and use a sharp bladed knife to trim the top so that it is perfectly straight (or as near to it as possible). Return the pie crust to the freezer.

Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, marscapone, sugar, lemon rind and the juice of both lemons, ginger and vanilla and beat with electric mixers. Once this has reached a just smooth consistency, add the egg yolk, then the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.

Liquid proof the cake tin. Everyone has their own way of doing this. You can wrap foil around the base. I wrap baking parchment and use twine to secure it, so that it covers the base and 1.5cm or so up the side.

Pour the cream into the mix and stir with a spoon until combined. Pour the cream cheese mix into the base and use a spoon to smooth the surface. Lightly bang it on the work surface so that it doesn't crack during cooking.

Bake the cheese cake at 220'c for 15 minutes, then turn the temperature to 150'c and bake for 40 minutes. Check the cake. It should be firm for 5cm or so on the edge, and wobbly in the middle. Don't worry about the wobbles - it sets further in the fridge. Turn the oven off, open the door a fraction and leave the cake to cool for an hour or two. Once it's near room temperature, cover it and put it in the refrigerator.

I served it with a sauce - made with sherry, butter, brown sugar, nutmeg and ginger (yummy), strawberries and cream.

Make this - it's great !!

oh, what a night!

I am so excited by tonight's dinner.

I was talking to my sister yesterday. She mentioned that she had been to one of her favourite local cafes and enjoyed a beetroot and goats cheese risotto. I remember having attempted something like this in the past, and both my sister and I loved it, but weren't so fussed on the bright purple colour. It was almost as vibrant in colour as the time I made a raspberry and white chocolate risotto (that's another story). So tonight, for our entree, I made a goats cheese and beetroot risotto with balsamic reduction, but experimented a bit with the technique to keep the colour as normal as possible. We loved i it! I served it with finely sliced chicory, the bitterness of which was a good contrast to the richness of the goats cheese.

For main course, I made a seafood linguine with chilli, vodka, lemon zest and breadcrumbs. In Australia, we are spoiled for wonderful fresh seafood. That is not always the case in the UK, however, our local fishmonger has great stock on Fridays and Saturdays. Their king prawns and mussels are always particularly good, and this simple dish really shows off their salty, sweet flavour.

Finally, for the cooking challenge this week (week ten, can you believe it? where has this year gone?) I made a cheesecake. My first ever. Wagamama's does an awesome ginger and lime cheese cake and this is a variation on that. I couldn't find a perfect recipe for what I wanted so I sort of played around with a few until I was happy with the taste. And it was pretty delicious (but oh, so rich!). I will definitely be making it again another time. This is a real crowd pleaser. Everyone will love it.

Recipe coming shortly!

dd.x