Kottsbulla Recipe

NAME: _Kottsbulla Recipe

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
500g beef mince
500g pork mince
2 cups breadcrumbs
250mL thickened cream
1 small nutmeg
1 medium onion
salt
2 tbsp flour
100g butter
3 cups chicken stock or 3 cups water and three chicken stock cubes

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METHOD:
Pretty standard - mix the breadcrumbs with about 1/5th of the cream so that the cream moistens the breadcrumbs, set aside while you grate as much of the nutmeg as will fill a teaspoon. (Should make about a slightly heaped teaspoon or a smidgen more.) Peel the onion and chop to almost minced consistency. Add the two meats, the nutmeg, the minced onion, and around a teaspoon of salt to the breadcrumbs and spoon mix or hand mix until the mixture coheres properly, around five minutes. Try not to let the mixture warm too much as you do it. At this stage you can refrigerate the meat for half an hour or more.

Divide the mixture into four balls, and each ball into about sixteen portions, which you then form into balls roughly the size of a walnut. You should get around 64 meatballs.

Start with around half the butter in a frying pan, and do the meatballs in batches of sixteen, frying until they just get to dark brown. Keep the temperature medium to prevent burning the butter black, and work the batches, adding the remaining butter as needed.

When the meatballs are done, reduce the temperature a bit more, stir in the flour and let it brown a bit, then slowly add the chicken stock, (or water and crumbled chicken stock cubes) stirring as you go to loosen pan dark bits, keep adding the water until desired consistency is reached. Remember the sauce will thicken until all the flour has been cooked. Add the remaining cream, then put the meatballs back in to warm through again.

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SERVING:
This serves four to six people. Serve with mashed potatoes, a fruit sauce and pickles if desired.

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NOTES:
I generally remove 2/3 of the sauce, and put 2/3 of the meatballs aside at this stage, because there's just too many for two people. The extras will freeze quite well in a ziploc bag or a container, with the sauce included in a separate ziploc bag, and makes two more meals.

Fruit sauce - traditionally lingonberry but I make a sauce with plum jam, pinch of salt, half a lemon's juice, extra water and a smidgen of flour when I forget to go to Ikea to get a jar of the lingonberry...

Free thought of the day:
I thought "kottsbulla" may have derived from the word "bulla" that has to mean balls, right? and "kott" which sounded suspiciously close to the Austrian word for cat. But in actual fact "kott" means meat and "bullar" is a word for buns... Oy, am I ever embarrassed!

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ENJOY!

Mild Mannered Mex Chicken Casserole

NAME: _Mild Mannered Mex Chicken Casserole

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
Around half a chicken
2 cobs fresh corn (or one tin corn kernels)
1 medium brown onion
2 cloves garlic
1 red capsicum or sweet pepper
1 medium sweet potato
2 tbsp lard (or duck fat)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp olive oil additional
1 tin tomato diced
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp cumin ground
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp coriander seed powder
half a bunch of fresh coriander
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp honey, molasses, or golden syrup
salt to taste
1 chicken stock cube

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METHOD:
Boil corn cobs for ten minutes, strip kernels. (Or drain the tin of corn kernels.) Peel onion and cut into corn kernel sized dice. Peel garlic cloves and rough chop into rice grain sized chunks. Peel sweet potato and slice about 3mm thin. Remove bones and cut chicken into 1cm cubes. Slice red pepper / capsicum into 3mm thick rings, remove inner pith and seeds. Roughly chop the fresh coriander leaves and stems. Set each item aside in bowls as you prepare it.

Heat the additional 2 tbsp olive oil in frypan, add cumin and fennel seeds, fry for around a minute to start the fragrance, then add the corn, onion, garlic, and chicken meat. Continue to stir and fry until some corn kernels begin to show brown spots, then add the cumin and coriander powder, honey (or other sweetener) and stir and fry for another three minutes. Add the tin of diced tomato, crumbled chicken stock cube, chopped coriander, and salt to taste. Stir and allow to simmer until almost all the tomato liquid is absorbed or evaporated.

Turn out into a casserole dish and level out into a smooth layer, top with sliced capsicum / pepper. Add the remaining fats (olive oil, butter, pork or duck fat) into the frypan, batch fry the sweet potato so that each slice is coated and beginning to show brown spots. Lift each batch from the frypan and arrange in a layer over the casserole dish. Cover the casserole dish and place in the middle zone of a medium oven, check every 20 - 30 minutes for browning of the sweet potato. Once the potato starts to show extra browning, remove casserole from oven. This should take about an hour to an hour and a half.

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SERVING:
Top with thin sliced spring onion greens and plate up.

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NOTES:
It's always a pleasure when I make up a recipe and it comes up tops. Even more so when my wife asks me to "write the recipe down so you don't forget it - this one's a 'have again' recipe!" It's meant to be sweet - pick as ripe a capsicum or pepper as you can, add more chilli flakes if you like it spicier - but the sweet / coriander / cumin favour is what makes this, and the slight acid of the tomato rounds out the flavour.

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ENJOY!

Chicken and Leek Casserole Gratin

NAME: _Chicken and Leek Casserole Gratin

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
1 dbl chicken breast or two marylands
6 medium potatoes
1 leek
1 large brown onion
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp lard
100g streaky bacon
1/2 tsp ground coriander seed
1/2 tsp ground fenugreek seed
600ml buttermilk
1 tbsp plain flour
1 chicken stock cube
150g cheddar cheese

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METHOD:
Wash the potatoes, place in a steamer with the chicken pieces and steam for 40 - 60 minutes, until the potatoes are soft enough to pierce with a skewer, remove from heat and set aside to cool. Grate all the cheese, divide into three portions. Pull the chicken off the bone and tear into chunks. Cut to about 1/2 inch cubes.

Peel and slice the onion into half inch thick slices, fry in the fat in a hot frypan until browned, then lift out of the fat and place in a layer on the bottom of a casserole dish. Use the same fat to fry the bacon, diced to about half inch squares, lift from the fat, and set aside.

Slice the leek into half inch rings, wash well and dry with a tea towel or paper towel, place in the frypan and fry until beginning to brown. Peel and slice the garlic thinly and add to the leek, then add the bacon back again, and the spices. Fry a further three to five minutes then add about a quarter of the buttermilk and let simmer for around five to ten minutes. Add one third of the cheese, he cubed chicken pieces, stir to mix, and remove from heat.

Slide the skin off the potatoes and slice three of them into 1/4 inch slices, lay over the onions, then lift the leek / chicken mixture out of the buttermilk and layer that on top of the potato. Slice the last three potatoes and lay those over the top of the casserole.

Put the frypan back on the heat, stir the flour in and keep stirring, add the remaining buttermilk, the crumbled chicken stock cube, and one third of the cheese, heating gently until the cheese dissolves. Pour the mixture over the contents of the casserole, working it down among the contents, then crumble the remaining cheese over the top.

Bake in a moderately hot oven for 30 - 50 minutes until the cheese browns.

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SERVING:
Serve after allowing to rest for ten minutes or so.

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NOTES:
Nothing. Just enjoy.

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ENJOY!

Beer and Barley Bunny Ballyhoo

NAME: _Beer and Barley Bunny Ballyhoo

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:

1 rabbit

2 medium onions

3 medium potatoes

3 medium carrots

4 - 6 kale leaves

1/4 cup barley

1 cup dried swiss brown mushrooms

1/4 cup dry faba beans (or pinto or navy - faba just seem nicer)

370ml (one small bottle) of beer.

salt

pepper

flour

beef or rabbit dripping

chicken stock cube

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METHOD:

Preparation:

Soak the beans overnight in plenty of clean water, change it and soak some more, depending on the beans you've decided to go with. About an hour before beginning the cooking, open the beer and let stand while doing everything else so it has a chance to go flat. 

Directions:

Cut the rabbit into fryable sized portions, salt lightly and fry them off until golden in the dripping, then put them in an appropriately sized pot, Slice the onions into really thick slices, fry them and the barley off unti the barley begins to show browning and put in the pot, also the drained faba beans. Deglaze the frypan with 500ml of water and add that to the pot. Add a further 1.5L water and the stock cube, and bring to a boil then simmer for around an hour, remove the rabbit pieces and continue to simmer for another hour until the barley is tender. 

Cut the potatoes and carrots into big (3cm approx) slices and add those, add the dried mushrooms, shred the kale and add that too, let it simmer until the carrots are just tender. By now the liquid should be well reduced so add around half the beer (more or less according to taste, make up the balance with water if necessary) and allow to come to a simmer again. Gradually add a paste of about 4 tsp flour and water and stir in, checking for desired consistency as you go. Don't feel you need to add all the flour, nor that you should only use four teaspoonsful or less. Don't forget it will continue to thicken for a few more minutes. 

Debone the rabbit meat and add it back into the stew, then remove from heat and allow to sit for 20 minutes or so before serving.

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SERVING:
Serve as is with crusty bead and butter, perhaps a dollop of sour cream. This sized serving could feed four average appetites or two hungry ones.

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NOTES:
I like faba beans, but there's no reason you couldn't use cannelini beans or something similar. Or different mushrooms, come to think of it.

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ENJOY!

"Meat" Meat Pies

NAME: _"Meat" Meat Pies

Shown served with buttered riced potato topped with grated cheese.

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
500g lean minced beef
2 tbsp besan flour
juice of half a small lemon

2 tsp rock salt
2 tsp raw sugar
3 tsp granulated garlic
1 (or 2, to taste) tsp dried chilli flakes
2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 cup coarse burghul

200g (approx) frozen mixed vegetables

1 tsp cooking salt

1 tsp coarse ground black pepper

juice half a small lemon

1 tbsp olive oil

8 eggs
1 cup and a bit grated cheese

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METHOD:
Put minced beef, besan flour, and lemon juice into food processor with steel blades. Put ingredients from rock salt to cumin seeds into a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder, add to food processor and process to fine consistency. Be careful to make sure everything stays cold, and process in short bursts so as not to make greasy. (Warm fat "breaks" and smears through the meat mixture. It alters the texture and the flavour.) Add the burghul and process until barely mixed through. Scrape into a small bowl and set aside for 30 minutes. This gives the cracked wheat time to absorb some moisture out of the meat mixture.

Place the frozen vegetables, salt, pepper, lemon, and olive oil into the food processor and process in bursts until the vegetables are in coarse crumbles. Set aside.

Divide the meat mixture into as many portions as you intend to make pies. In my case, I used eight micro loaf tins, so formed eight portions. Place a portion in each dish, and use either another dish or something similar to force the meat to adopt a pastry shell shape.

Note the toothpick dispenser wrapped in plastic and used as the stamp.

In my case, a toothpick cylinder made the ideal pressing block. I wrapped it in plastic wrap for hygiene's sake, and for ease of cleaning up. Add a spoonful or two of the vegetables to each pie and smooth out, then break an egg into it, top with grated cheese. Bake at 190C for around 40 minutes, until the cheese begins to brown.

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SERVING:
May be served hot or cold. If hot, rice or mashed potato is a good choice of accompaniment, along with a vegetable cooked in tomato based sauce, I used okra garlic and onion in tomato sauce. Serves four when served with sides.

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NOTES:
The only reason lean mince was specified is because if it is not kept almost frozen, the fat will "smear" during the processing, and that affects the texture and flavour of the shells. Smeared fat also affects how the burghul absorbs moisture out of the meat mixture.

The idea came about because I like meat kibbeh and wanted to try a Turkish / Arabian based dish but of my own recipe. It is even GPG (my wife, aka "Guinea Pig Goddess") approved. Thank you Kerry for testing my food experiment ideas with me. You're a brave woman. %)

This style of "meat pie" can be the basis for a whole lot of different recipes. As they can be served cold as mezzes, you could make up different batches and serve as party food. Or adjust the sides to suit each different style. The secret to the pastry casing is the food processor developing the meat glutens, and then the starch (burghul, polenta, chickpea flour, etc) being given time to absorb and bind.

Six variations I can think of right away:
-Minced lean pork, fine polenta, cayenne pepper and cumin for the shell, refried beans and chilli con carne for filling, nacho cheese for the topping, would be Mexican style,
-Or substitute chorizo and olive based filing topped with sliced tomato and herb crusting  to make Spanish style. Both served with white rice, tomatoes, chillies, and side salad type things.
-Minced lamb, burghul, curry spice for the shell, chicken / tomato / raisin / cardamom based filling, and goat cheese topping for a Middle Eastern version...
-For the ultimate meat lovers, make a beef shell as above with a minced lamb, burghul, and toasted pine nut filling, and close the top with more beef shell. This would be a "kibbeh meat pie." Serve both Middle Eastern versions with lentil and raisin rice or pilaf style.
-Minced beef, basil, polenta, with a filling of bolognese style sauce with small pasta stars and topped with slices of tasty cheese for Italian style. Serve with garden salad dressed with olives, cheese, pickled capers.
-Minced goat or lamb with mint and burghul, filling of chopped eggplant moussaka and topped with goat feta for Greek style. Greek salad goes without saying.

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ENJOY!

Chicken Lasagna alla Ted

NAME: _Chicken Lasagna alla Ted

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INGREDIENTS/UTENSILS:
Filling
1 chicken breast half
1 small brown onion
2 cloves garlic
1/4 medium turnip
1/4 medium swede
1 medium carrot
several leaves kale
2 red european capsicums
1 tsp crushed chilli
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp fish sauce (or one anchovy shredded)
1 tsp light soya sauce
2 tsp capsicum powder (paprika)
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp plum jam
sufficient lasagne sheets.

Bechamel topping
100g butter
1/2 cup plain flour
150g cheese
1 cup cream
1 egg
2 tsp hot english mustard

water, salt, pepper, etc as per instructions

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METHOD:
Filling
Dice onion and garlic finely, add to saucepan. Remove skin (if any) from chicken breast and knife chop into very small dice, (more coarse than mince - barely) and add to saucepan. Pare skin from, and then julienne, the turnip and swede, add those to the saucepan. Finely dice one red capsicum and add to saucepan. Peel and cube the carrot, add to saucepan. Add the olive oil, and place on high heat.

Fry until browning begins, stirring often, then add the plum jam, capsicum powder, thyme, fish oil and soya sauce, continue frying until all liquid is absorbed and browning begins again, then add tomato, and about one tin of water. (1.25 cups) Reduce to a fast simmer. Season with ground black pepper and salt to taste.

Remove stems from kale leaves, finely shred, and add to saucepan, also cut remaining capsicum to rings, quarter the rings, add to saucepan. Leave simmering for half an hour to an hour.

Bechamel topping
Dice or grate the cheese. Warm the butter in a saucepan, add a half teaspoon of salt, dissolve the English mustard, and then add the flour, stirring contantly. Keep stirring and add the cream, enough water to form a paste, and the cheese. Set aside once partially thickened.

Lasagne
Layer as a normal lasagne, spread a *thin* layer of filling on the bottom of dish, then layer lasagne sheets and fillng, then top with bechamel topping.

Bake in medium low oven for an hour or until a skewer meets no resistance from the pasta, and the top is golden brown.

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SERVING:
Serve immediately.

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NOTES:
Chicken mince might work, but I think it would be too fine. The plum jam is important.

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ENJOY!