Sunday, 18 December 2011

Tis the season to be jolly




A few of my girlfriends and I got together and cooked up a storm recently. We had an amazing and sumptuous 3 course meal fit for a king – and we made it all from scratch! Here are a few of the winning recipes.









STARTERS
Cheese meatballs
Ingredients
·         3 cups finely shredded cheddar cheese
·         1 cup bread crumbs
·         salt
·         black pepper
·         1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
·         1 kg lean beef mince

Method

·         In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into balls. Place meatballs on a greased rack in a shallow baking pan.
·         Bake at 190° for 12-15 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink
Recipe from keyingredient.com

Grilled flat bread

Ingredients

•      1/2 cup warm water
•      1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
•      1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for bowl and brushing
•      1 1/3 cups white bread flour, plus more for dusting
•      3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste


Method

·         Heat a grill or grill pan until hot. Place water in a medium bowl, and sprinkle yeast on top; stir to dissolve. Let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
·         Add olive oil, flour, and salt; combine. Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, 1 to 2 minutes.
·         Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place for 30 minutes. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into four equal pieces, and roll out each into a 1/8-inch-thick round.
·         Lightly brush both sides of each portion with olive oil, and place directly on the hot grill. Grill the flatbread until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Remove from grill, and season with salt.

Recipe from keyingredient.com



 

MAIN COURSE
Grilled salmon
Ingredients
·         Salmon steaks
·         Chillies
·         Garlic
·         Fennel
·         Olive oil, salt and pepper
Method
·         Preheat oven to 190°
·         Finely chop the chillies, garlic and fennel and place in bowl
·         Add olive oil and some salt and pepper to taste and mix well
·         Lightly dip the salmon in the olive oil mix and place on a greased oven tray
·         Bake for approximately 15 minutes

DESSERT
Tiramisu
Ingredients
·         1 packet of Lady fingers (approximately 400g)
·         2 eggs
·         500g mascarpone cheese
·         4 cups brewed strong coffee, cooled
·         120g sugar
·         Cocoa powder
·         Coffee liqueur

Method

·         Separate eggs in a medium sized bowl. Mix egg yolks with sugar and beat until smooth. Gently mix yolks with mascarpone cheese until smooth
·          In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff. Fold egg whites into cheese
·         Dip Lady fingers in the coffee and line the bottom of a large glass bowl. This needs to be done quickly as they absorb moisture very quickly and become soggy
·         Spoon half of the filling over the lady fingers until completely covered
·         Add another layer of lady fingers on top of that
·         Top up with the rest of the mascarpone cheese filling
·         Dust with cocoa powder and refrigerate for at least 4 hours



             

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