Blau Bakes

I got bored last night and happened to have dark cooking chocolate, cherries, ground cinnamon and rice crispies lying around.

Blau x

Making Moussaka

I don't know what it is about the weekend that makes my mouth water, oh yes having the time to cook! Tonight I'll be working from this Antony Worrall Thompson recipe for a marvellous moussaka.

Ingredients

• 75ml/6fl oz olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 675g/1½lb lamb mince
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1.25ml/¼tsp cinnamon
• 1.25ml/¼tsp allspice
• 2 x 400g/14oz tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp fresh, soft thyme leaves
• 175ml/6fl oz white wine
• 4 medium aubergines, cut into 1cm/½in slices
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Plain flour, for dusting

For the topping.

 

• 85g/3oz unsalted butter
• 85g/3oz plain flour
• 900ml/1½pt milk
• 85g/3oz parmesan, grated
• 115g/4oz gruyère, grated
• 2 free-range egg yolks
• 1 free-range egg

Preparation method

1. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large casserole dish. Add the onion and cook gently for 10 minutes or until the onion is soft, but not coloured. Brown half the lamb in a frying pan and add to the onion. Add the garlic and break up the meat with a wooden fork until it has a loose texture. Brown the remaining lamb.
2. Stir the cinnamon, allspice, chopped tomatoes, oregano, bay leaves and thyme into the casserole. Add the rest of the browned lamb and de-glaze the pan with white wine. Pour straight into the casserole dish, reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 1 hour.
3. Place the aubergines in a colander, sprinkle with salt and leave for 30 minutes. This draws out any bitter juices.
4. Meanwhile make the béchamel sauce. Melt the butter in a non-stick pan and stir in the flour. Take off the heat and gradually stir in the milk. Return the pan to the heat and stir continuously until the sauce thickens. Simmer over a gentle heat for 5-8 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in 55g/2oz of the parmesan and 55g/2oz of the gruyère cheese and season with salt and pepper.
5. Rinse the aubergines and pat dry. Dust the aubergines with flour and fry in batches in the remaining olive oil until golden on both sides, about 8 - 10 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper. Set aside until ready to construct the moussaka.
6. The white sauce should now have cooled enough to whisk in the egg and egg yolks.
7. Cover the base of an ovenproof dish (30 x 20cm/12 x 8in) with a third of the mince then cover with half the aubergine slices. Repeat the layers, ending in the last of the mince, then pour over the cheese sauce. Sprinkle over the remaining parmesan and gruyère. Bake in a preheated oven at 180C/350F/Gas4 for 50-60 minutes, until bubbling and golden. Allow the moussaka to settle for 5 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.
8. Serve the moussaka with a chunky tomato, cucumber, parsley and mint salad and crusty bread.

Blau x

The Wholesome 'Brownie'

What is it about sunshine that triggers that innate want and desire to 'go healthy' and detox, to make your body a temple and cleanse it of all those nasty toxins? Ah yes, having to show off more skin than normal. Well, I've decided to embark on a life of nutrition and exercise with the first step being to 'go brown'; brown bread instead of white and wholegrain pasta. With its darker and more moist whole wheat perfection I love it with a softly boiled egg, it's a better start to the day than my usual.

Ingredients.

320g Wholemeal Flour
260g Irish white flour or unbleached flour
80g Wheat germ
2 teaspoon Honey
½ teaspoon Bread soda
½ teaspoon Salt
3 teaspoons Butter, at room temperature
1 Large egg
0.5 litres Buttermilk or sour milk

Method.  

Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC/Gas Mark 6). Do not start until the oven is hot.

• Spread the wheat germ on a baking tray and place in the hot oven for 3-5 minutes until it is lightly toasted. In the meantime mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Whisk together the egg, oil, honey and about ¾ of the milk.
• When the wheat germ is done, leave it for about 2-3 minutes to cool a little then mix it in with the dry ingredients. Cut the butter into small pieces and with the tips of your fingers rub it into the flour.
• Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and pour in the milk mix. Quickly and bring the flour in from the edges and mix with the milk, until all the ingredients come together into a soft slightly wet dough. It should not be overly sloppy, you should feel you could pick it up without it running through your fingers, but it should be soft enough that it sinks slowly down and takes on the shape of the bowl. If it is too dry add a little more buttermilk. There is no need to knead this dough.
• Put into a 9″ x 5″ loaf tin, the inside of which has been smeared with a little butter or oil. Place in the oven. Bake for 50 minutes. The bread should be nicely browned, have a good crust and sound hollow when you tap it. If it seems a little underdone, put it back in for 10 minutes.
• Allow the bread to cool in the loaf tin before turning it out.
• This bread keeps for a few days, and is much easier to slice thinly if you wrap it in aluminium foil and keep it until the next day.

Recipe from dochara.com

Blau x

Chicken Stuffed with Herby Mascarpone

Being eager to impress my mister on his return after a weekend away,  I decided to give this a go;

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Take mascarpone, mix with crushed garlic, chopped rosemary and salt and pepper. Slice chicken breasts and stuff mixture inside. Wrap with dry cured ham (prosciutto was what I was aiming for, but I couldn't find it. It worked in my favour) to keep the centre inside. 

Bake for 20 minutes. 

Serve with baby potatoes and pan fried green beans.

The result was, if I do say so myself, absolutely amazing and earned myself a few brownie points.  I was tempted to post a pic of my smug face too. 

Ezzie x

Sexy Mexican Maid

So we all have the default recipe that gets us through nights of entertainment and dining, this is mine. If you ever end up in an episode of Come Dine With Blau then this is what you'll be having courtesy of Delia Smith's How to Cook Book Two. Dinner to be served in the tipi.

Mexican Enchiladas with Cheese

Begin by making the salsa: first tip the tomatoes into a sieve over a bowl to let the excess liquid drain away. Next remove the stalk from the chilli, cut it in half, remove and discard the seeds, chop the flesh very finely and place it in a bowl. Then add half the chopped onion, the drained tomatoes, chopped coriander leaves and lime juice, and season well with salt and pepper.Now give everything a thorough mixing.

Meanwhile, mix the 2 cheeses together in a bowl. Next put the frying pan over a high flame to pre-heat and, when it's hot, dry-fry each of the tortillas for 6 seconds on each side. Place one tortilla on a flat surface and spread a tablespoon of salsa over it, but not quite to the edges, sprinkle over a heaped tablespoon of the cheese mixture, then follow this with a tablespoon of the crème fraîche.

Then roll the tortilla up and place it in the baking dish with the sealed-side down. Repeat this with the others, then spread the remaining crème fraîche on top of the tortillas in the dish and sprinkle the rest of the salsa over the top, followed by the remaining cheeses and red onion.

Now place the dish on a high shelf of the oven for 25-30 minutes, garnish with the extra coriander and serve absolutely immediately – if you keep them waiting they can become a bit soggy.

Blau x

Black Forest Cupcake

I do so love a deliciously rich dessert...

 

Ingredients.

15 oz  can pitted cherries (sweet) in syrup 

4 oz  bittersweet (dark) eating chocolate - coarsely chopped

5½ oz  butter - coarsely chopped

11 oz superfine(castor) sugar

2¼ fl oz cherry brandy

5 oz all-purpose (plain) flour

2 tblsp self-raising flour

2 tbls cocoa powder

1 egg

Decoration.

6 fl oz thickened cream, whipped

2 tsp cherry brandy

4 oz (100g) block of bittersweet (dark) eating choclate

Method.

1. Pre-heat the oven to 335oF (170oC).

2. Line a 12 cupcake pan, with cupcake papers.

3. Drain the cherries and reserve the syrup.

4. Take ½ cup of cherries and ½ of syrup and process in a food processor, until smooth.

5. Cut the remaining cherries in half and reserve. Discard the remaining syrup.

6. Place the chocolate, butter, sugar, brandy and cherry puree into a saucepan. Over a low heat, stir until chocolate has melted.

7. Pour into a large bowl and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

8. Whisk in sifted flours and cocoa.

9. Then wisk in the egg. It will be runny - but that is correct.

10. Divide the mixture evenly between the cake cases. You will probably find that you fill the cases close to the top (don't worry, they don't rise a lot).

11. Bake for 40-45 minutes until firm to touch.

12. Allow to cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.

Decorate.

1. Allow cakes to cool completely.

2. Mix the brandy into the whipped cream.

3. Top each cake with some of the remaining cherry halves.

4. And top this with some of the cream.

5. Using a vegetable peeler, scrap along the side of the block of chocolate to create curls. (You made need to clean the peeler from time to time.) And decorate the top of each cake.

Previous recipes include; French toast, red velvet cupcakes, and sinful Oreo cheescake.

Blau x

French Toast

 

You will never understand just how much I adore french toast.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 teaspoon sugar, optional
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
10 to 12 slices white bread
butter
maple syrup or other syrup

 

 

Preparation:

Break eggs into a wide, shallow bowl or pie plate; beat lightly with a fork. Stir in sugar, salt, and milk. Over medium-low heat, heat griddle or skillet coated with a thin layer of butter or margarine.
Place the bread slices, one at a time, into the bowl or plate, letting slices soak up egg mixture for a few seconds, then carefully turn to coat the other side. Soak/coat only as many slices as you will be cooking at one time.
Transfer bread slices to griddle or skillet, heating slowly until bottom is golden brown. Turn and brown the other side. Serve French toast hot with butter and syrup.
Recipe for French toast serves 4.

If you prefer to follow video instructions then please click here,
Blau x

Soup's Up

So given that its January, time of all things clean and healthy, I've been souping it up at home. I've always been slightly intimidated by the idea of souping from scratch, but given the amount of time I've spent studying noodle soup in my local vientnamese, I realised its far simpler then meets the eye, and pretty much open to interpretation.

Try this one

Fry garlic, ginger and spices with oil, adding a little water to make a paste if they start to stick. Add stock, nam pla, lime juice, red chilli and coconut cream. Bring to a gentle boil.Add noodles to stock, cook for a further 4 minutes.Divide the prepared vegetables between two bowls. Top with broth and noodles. Add lime wedge to broth and serve.

Now, unfortunatly, in my house we are not ones for measureing things, prefering the 'pinch of this', 'splash of that' rule. But that way, you get to really personalise it for your own taste, and learn about what you're cooking.

They are usually low fat, packed with vitimins and easy to make. Plus you get to sing the Soup Crimp from The Mighty Boosh. Get involved.

Soup, Soup - a tasty soup, soup
A spicy carrot and coriander, chili chowder!
Crouton, crouton - crunchy bread in a liqid broth
I am gaspachio - uh! I am a summersoup - mm!
Miso, miso - fighting in the Dojo
Miso, miso - oriental prince in the land of soup!

Ezzie x

To Dot Your Heart

The name dim sum, literally means "to dot your heart" may refer to small dishes Chinese eat between meals, for snacks or tea time. These small portions, bite-size Chinese food consists of a variety of steamed, braised, baked and deep fried dishes, are not only pleasant to the eyes but delicious too. I'm finding it difficult to find dim sum in Cork and refusinf to that the Marks and Spencers option I might just attempt this myself.

Steamed Dumpling with Meat & Vegetable Filling

Ingredients:

Pastry:

* 1 ½ packages active dry yeast

* 2 ½ tsps sugar

* 3 tbsps lukewarm water

* 4 cups all-purpose flour

* 1 ¼ cups lukewarm milk

Filling:

* 1 lb pork tenderloin, diced

* 2-3 scallions, finely chopped

* 3 tbsps soy sauce

* 1 tbsp sesame oil

* 1 lb cabbage, cored and finely chopped

* 1 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Dissolve the yeast and sugar in water. Leave in a warm place for 15 minutes until frothy.
2. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl. Gradually pour in the yeast mixture and milk and mix to a smooth, firm dough.
3. Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead well for 10 minutes. Leave in a warm place for 1 ½ to 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled in bulk.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Mix together the pork, scallions, soy sauce and sesame seed oil. Mix the cabbage with the salt and leave for 5 minutes, then squeeze dry, discarding the salty water. Add the cabbage to the pork and mix well.
5. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, then form into a long sausage shape, 2 inches in diameter. Slice the roll into about twenty-four 1 inch thick rounds. Flatten each round with the palm of the hand, then with a rolling pin, roll out each piece until it is 4 inches in diameter.
6. Place 2 tbsps of the pork filling in the centre of each round. Gather the sides over the filling to meet at the top, then twist the top to close tightly. Let the dumplings rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Place the dumplings on a damp cloth on the bottom of a steamer, leaving 1 inch space between each. Steam vigorously for 20 minutes. Serve hot.

 Blau x