Vaguely Middle Eastern Chicken Livers

NAME: _Vaguely Middle Eastern Chicken Livers

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
Main:
300g - 500g chicken livers, fresh as possible
2 -3 tbsp olive oil and grapeseed oil mix
Rice:
1 cup uncooked basmati rice
2 cups water
1 tsp salt
Vegetables:
sml handful stringless beans
3 - 4 brussel sprouts
1 - 2 small pickling onions
1 tsp palm or date vinegar
1 cup chicken stock
1 tsp buckwheat flour (See Notes)
Dusting mix:
2 tbsp buckwheat flour (See Notes)
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp mild curry powder
1 tbsp dried ground coriander seed
1 tsp celery seeds (optional)
1 tbsp dried thyme or za'tar
2 tbsp dried onion flakes

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METHOD:
Place everything under the "Dusting Mix" section in a blender and blend to dust.  Set aside.

Take the stringy veins out of the livers, i.e. cut the livers either side of that bit.  Give the cat the stringy bits it will love you for it...  Cut larger lobes in half.  Place the livers in a plastic bag or a bowl with the dusting mix and coat well, turn out onto a cutting board or plate while doing the vegetables.

Prepare the vegetables - make crescents of the onion by cutting lengthways, cut stems from brussels and remove unsightly outer leaves, and quarter them lengthways.  Cut beans to approximately same length as brussels.

Preheat the oil mix in a good frypan, place as many livers in the pan as will fit single layer and allow to brown on one side. (Takes 3 - 5 minutes, longer if you'd like to have more crispiness.)  Turn over and do the other side.

Start the rice in the water and salt, and when it starts to boil, allow to simmer fast until all water is absorbed, turning down the heat towards the very end. This will take about as long as processing all those livers.  (Allow rice to stand after all water is absorbed, for a fluffier lighter rice.  Trust me, this works without sticking to the pot or going gluggy provided you make sure you keep the temperature to a low simmer and watch for the water to almost all steam away before turning off the heat.)

Once all livers have been cooked and set aside, put the prepared vegetables in the same pan, toss for about three to five minutes in a hot pan.  Add  the teaspoon of flour, stir into vegetables, and then add about a third of the chicken stock, slowly so it steams the vegetables.  Add the palm vinegar, and the rest of the stock, allow to simmer for up to five minutes, until brussels are tender.

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SERVING:

Lay rice on plate, pile livers on top.  Add vegetables to the side, along with some of the stock.  Serve with side dishes as noted in the next section.  Should serve two very well.

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NOTES:
Buckwheat flour tastes nice in this but you can use ordinary white flour or wholemeal in a pinch.  The less processed the flour, the better the flavour and the better for you.

Things to add to this dish are things like green olives simply processed in brine, a few wedges of tomato, some crescents of pickled onion, flat bread like khobs or lebanese bread.

Liver is inordinately nutritious and good for you, and this recipe makes it a super-tasty meal.  Even naughty big kids have been known to eat liver this way...

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Medieval Mushroom Soup

NAME: _Medieval Mushroom Soup

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
1kg field or portobello mushrooms.  I find a large fieldie is better flavour than 30 shirtbuttons

250g white bread.  (See Notes - normal white bread is NOT good)

2tsp caraway seeds

2tsp salt

2 cups water (alternatively, 1cup water 1cup milk or beer - See Notes)

50g butter

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METHOD:
Clean any growing medium (soil or straw etc) from the mushrooms, clean any spots that don't look nice.  Slice the mushrooms, turn, slice into straws, turn again and dice.  1/4" (5mm) cubes is fine enough.  Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the caraway seeds and salt, fry lightly for a few minutes then add the mushrooms.  Frying the caraway seeds brings out the oils in them, and the flavour.

Fry the mushrooms until they have gone slightly soft, then add the liquid you're using.  Bring to boil, simmer for about an hour with the lid on.  Stir from time to time to stop it catching.

Cut the crusts from the bread (or dice your potatoes, See Notes) and add to the soup.  Bring to the boil again and simmer for another hour or so, again covered.  Check often to prevent catching. (Sticking to the bottom.)

You can blend this soup for a finer texture or for freezing, I generally leave it as is and there's never enough left to freeze...

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SERVING:
Serve as is or with the same type bread you used to thicken, and butter.  Serves two people, be warned, they will come back for seconds!  

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NOTES:
Normal supermarket white bread is no good for this, due to the plasticisers and stuff making the dough too clingy to make good thickening for the soup.  I use sourdough natural types of bread, and if I can't get those, arab or lebanese bread.  The amount of bread varies, I generally do three slices worth and then wait and see, adding more if it isn't thickened nicely.  

You can also add one or two medium potatoes, peeled and diced very small, this will thicken the soup without using wheat gluten, albeit not as much.  Potatoes can be pre-boiled or the inside of leftover roasted potatoes, as long as it's very fine and going to boil to thicken the soup.

Aside from trying water and milk, you can also try water and a good beer.  You'd be surprised how well that turns out... 

The reason it's "Medieval" is that it's made and thickened the old way, no additives no preservatives, and this recipe is mentioned in several medieval cooking books.

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Bread N Egg Brekkie

NAME: _Bread N Egg Brekkie

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
1 round lebanese bread or arab khobs

2 eggs

1 tbsp EVOO

salt

zartar (optional)

2 tbsp water

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METHOD:
Brush the bread both sides lightly with olive oil, roll up into a cylinder and cut into strips.  Toss strips into a cast iron skillet or non-stick pan, start heat.  

Meanwhile, beat two eggs, the water, and the salt in a bowl.  As the bread begins to turn golden in the pan, toss occasionally to get all the bread strips crisping.  When crisp, drizzle the egg over while tossing the mixture gently.

When the egg mixture begins to get golden brown, toss the zartar into the mixture lightly and remove from heat.

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SERVING:
Serve immediately, the above makes two serves if served with sliced tomato and lettuce and perhaps a few thin strips of haloumi or fetta cheese.

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NOTES:
Zartar is a dried wild thyme and sesame seed and sumak spice mixture, and it adds a lovely flavour to the dish.  Other things you could try are:  Add a teaspoonful of sesame oil to the EVOO before brushing it on the bread.  Add some pine nuts or tiny pumpkin seeds or sesame seeds or sunflower seeds to the pan at the same time as the bread.  Add a touch of dried crushed chillies.  Try these separately or in combinations, the flavours combine quite well.

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Prawn + Pitta Fatoush

NAME: _Prawn + Pitta Fatoush

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
1 or 2 rounds of Lebanese bread, Arabic khobs, or pita if you're stuck
lots of EVOO
a dozen peeled deveined prawns, smaller types preferred.

2 - 4 cups mixed salad leaves

1 small pickling onion or shallot onion (optional)

Marinade
1 tbsp light soya
1 tbsp hoi sin
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp grated palm sugar
1 clove garlic, mashed (optional)

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METHOD:
Mix marinade ingredients together well, I usually find a jar with a close sealing lid large enough to hold the material to be marinated (in this case, the prawns) and when well combined and the sugar has dissolved, set aside about a spoonful of the marinade.  Now add the prawns to the main bulk of the mixture and shake.  Set aside.  (You may wish to do this a few hours before starting the meal, perhaps even the day before, in which case, place in a cold spot in your refrigerator.)

Wash and dry salad leaves, toss briefly in salad bowl.

Put olive oil in the pan, heat to almost smoking, add as many marinated prawns as will fit in a single layer, and fry both sides until prawns are cooked through and some of the marinade is caramelised and crisp.  Place on paper towel, set aside.  Cook all the prawns this way.

If you are using the onion, slice this very thinly, put some more olive oil in the pan, and slowly fry until golden-brown and crisp.  onion bits have to be crisp.  Drain, place on paper towel, set aside until cooled.

Roll the bread into a tight roll and slice 1/4" (half centimeter) slices.  Put some more EVOO in the pan, allow to get smoking hot, and put as much bread as will form a single layer at a time, toss and fry until bread strips are crisp and golden-brown, with occasional dark brown areas.  At that stage, place on paper towel, set aside until all the bread has been crisped.

If the prawns and bread have cooled sufficiently (they should be hot to warm, but not so hot as to wilt the leaves) assemble the salad, add shallots and prawns to the salad and toss, then add the bread crisps and toss once more.  Sprinkle with a few drops of the marinade you reserved that didn't have prawns in, drizzle a fine stream of EVOO over.

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SERVING:
Can be served as a salad dish with a meal, or just served as meal by itself.  Serve while still warm from cooking.

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NOTES:
Fatoush (I think) means "wet bread" or "soggy bread" but in fact it doesn't get soggy for quite a while, it stays crispy and crunchy in the salad.

There are genuine  fatoush  recipes,  and most of them include mint and vegetables and parsley or coriander, and a sprinkling of zartar, which is dried powdered wild thyme and sesame and sumak.  (By "genuine" I mean, of course, that every household in the Arab world has their own recipe, much like baharat mix. I was going for something that used the crisp bread and salad idea but with a savoury Asian component, and this worked together.)

Things you could try and which would go well:  Use a touch of sesame oil in the marinade, or some soya sauce in which you've soaked some sliced fresh chillies beforehand. I'm going to try each of those next time I make this recipe.

Steak and Pommes Parisienne a la Ted with salad

NAME: _Steak A La Ted

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
(These recipes are set up per person - increase quantities for each extra person.)
Steak:
1 steak, porterhouse or rump, 2cm thick if possible
1tbsp fresh rosemary needles
1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves
2 tsp fine salt
1 tbsp EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
about 1 tbsp Dijon mustard

Salad:
100g assorted salad leaves
1 tsp rosemary needles
1 tsp oregano leaves
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp grape molasses (or 1 tbsp red grape juice)
1/2 tsp fine salt
1 tbsp water (less if using grape juice)
1/4 to 1/2 a medium red onion


Potatoes:
1 large potato - Nadine or other general purpose
3 small pickling onions (more or less, depends how much you like onions)

Remember that the quantities above are per person.

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METHOD:
Prepare steak by trimming off large fat areas around the edges, leave steak intact.  Finely dice the trimmings and place in frying pan.  Knife chop the herbs medium fine, Put a third of the oil per steak into the pan with the trimmings. Mix herbs with salt and olive oil in a pestle and mortar, crush together lightly.  Perforate steak all over with a fork, rub in the herb/oil mixture, and set in a bowl to marinate.

When you've finished all the steaks and they are marinating, chop the herbs for the salad, adding salt, until they are a fine paste.  You could use the pestle and mortar but a knife will eventually give superior results.  Mix the herbs, salt, oil, grape and water in a jar, shake well, and set aside.

By now the steak should have marinated somewhat - this is a strong marinade - so heat the frypan and over medium heat, reduce the beef trimmings into fat.  Once the trimmings are crisp, use a skimmer or strainer to lift them out and dispose of.  Increase the heat to almost smoking, and sear each steak for around two to three minutes per side, then arrange in a baking dish or tray.  Place tray in preheated oven (180 degC) and allow to roast for about 20 minutes.

At this time, turn the steaks over and brush the top with a light coating of Dijon mustard.  Only one side needs this light coating.

Peel potatoes and pickling onions, use a melon baller to scoop as many balls as possible out of each potato. Heat the frypan to just below smoking again, and fry the onions and potato balls for about five to ten  minutes each batch, until the outside of the potatoes is lightly browned and crispy, drain and set aside in a warm place.

Shred or slice the salad leaves to strips about 0.5cm wide, thinly slice the red onion into rings and 

place shredded salad leaves and onion rings in a bowl, toss together, shake the dressing again and pour over the salad, toss one more time to thoroughly coat all the leaves with dressing.  There should be a pool of dressing, to drizzle over each serving of salad once plated.

Steak will have cooked to perfection while you are doing the potatoes - plate up the steak with mustard side up and a pile of potato balls and fried pickling onions to the side.  Garnish the steak with a fine drizzled stream of Dijon mustard.  Add salad with a generous drizzle of the dressing over it.

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SERVING:
Serve plated meals immediately, with some crusty bread (such as slices of a baguette) with olive oil to brush over or dip in as a side.

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NOTES:
There's no easy way out of this - it WILL take up your entire daily allowance of fats. Also, there's no easy way to get out of using the mustard - without it, the flavours are nice, with it, they positively sing...  Using the same herbs for the salad ties the flavours together, and the grape molasses or juice add a touch of sweetness that the mustard will pick up.

Australia's New Kitchen Nightmare

WARNING *** BAD WORDS BELOW

Hmmm The report on Seven about Ramsay is scary and also amusing. Half a dozen of his restaurants have health code violations, he's proving himself to not only be a rude ****er, but a dirty rude ****er at that.

And now he wants to open a restaurant in Australia, heaven ****ing help us another opinionated ****head Pom that thinks he can cook, tips hat at one Jamie somethingorother that's similarly better off in greasepaint than the cooking grease.

I do have one nit to pick with Seven - they repeatedly refer to Ramsay as a "chef" when in fact I believe he falls squarely under my definition of "cook" - because chefs know how to use more than just one swear word, and codron bleu chefs can also swear in several languages... Sorry Gordon but being fluent in **** is not really enough.