Puff Pastry Lamb Pie
Nowadays, I am craving for anything and everything you can think of; of course the taste and hearty ones that will satisfy my appetite. These little puff pastry lamb pies made the afternoon tea-time more enjoyable…
Ingredients:
- 8 piece puff pastry (about 3″ x 3″)
- 1lb lamb meat (lean; diced)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup peas (canned or frozen is fine)
- 1 carrot (diced to pea size)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon blackpepper
- a pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup finely chopped dill
- 1 egg yolk
- black seeds
Recipe:
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
- Heat the oil on medium heat. Add the meat to the pan and sautee well. Reduce the heat to low and let it cook covered until it absorbs all the juice.
- Add the carrots to the pan and sautee 2-3 minutes on medium heat.
- Add the salt, blackpepper, tyhme, and dill.
- Finally, add the peas to the mixture and cook until the peas are warmed thoroughly. Turn of the heat and let the mixture cool down.
- Meanwhile take the puff pastries out of the freezer and let them defrost.
- Place about 2 tablespoons of the mixture in the middle of each puff pastry. Bring for corners of each puff pastry together and pinch the edges to seal. Place them on a cookie sheet.
- Brush them with the egg yolk and sprinkle with the black seeds. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve while they are still warm.
Russian Potato Salad
This salad is great with meat, on picnics and barbecues. Next time you have a hot dog try lining the bun with this salad.
Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 4 medium size potatoes (boiled; diced)
- 1 carrot (boiled; diced to pea size)
- 1/2 cup peas (boiled(
- 2 cucumber pickle (diced to pea size)
- pinch of salt
- pinch of blackpepper
Recipe:
Mix all the ingredients together. Adjust the amount of mayonnaise and spices to taste. If desired, use canned or frozen peas. Drain the canned peas well. If using frozen peas, you only need to cook them for 3-4 minutes in boiling water. You can add boiled eggs or salami for a richer taste.
Perfect Whole Roasted Chicken
For a perfectly roasted chicken, all you have to do is season the chicken well and throw it in a hot oven for about an hour.
Ingredients:
- 1 whole chicken (3 1/2 to 4 lb; rinsed; patted dry)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons cracked white pepper
- 1 lemon (halved)
- 2 fresh bay leaves
- 4 springs rosemary (roughly chopped)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (at room temperature)
- 3 carrots (peeled; cut into thirds)
- 3 ribs celery (peeled; cut into thirds)
- 3 onions (peeled; cut into quarters)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 cup dry white wine
Recipe:
- Preheat the oven to 500°F.
- Season the chicken both inside and out with kosher salt and pepper. Squeeze the lemon halves over the chicken.
- Place the lemon rinds and the bay leaves inside the chicken’s cavity.
- In a small bowl, combine the rosemary and butter. Rub the chicken both inside and out with the butter and stuffed the remaining butter between the skin and meat.
- In a 9 by 13 inch roasting pan, add the carrots, celery, and onions. Place the seasoned chicken in the roasting pan over the vegetables.
- Place the pan in the oven and roast the chicken for 50-60 minutes until the juices run clear and the thermometer registers at 160°F.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and allow for cool for 10-15 minutes before carving.
- Pour off excess fat from pan and return to heat. Whisk in chicken stock and white wine and bring to boil. Then reduce to a simmer. Reduce gravy by half until thickened.
Spicy Turkish Rice
A rice recipe I save for special occasions like Thanskgiving and New Year’s Eve. A touch of sweet from cinnamon and currants, a touch of spiciness with fresh blackpepper, and the final nutty touch of roasted chestnuts.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 small onion (finely chopped)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon currant
- 1/2 bunch dill (finely chopped)
- 5-6 chestnuts (roasted; peeled; quartered)
Recipe:
- Melt the butter in a wide pan and sautee the onion over medium heat.
- Once the onions are translucent add the rice and sautee the rice over medium heat until they are translucent.
- Add all the spices, dill, and chestnuts and mix well.
- Pour the chicken broth and 2 cups of water and turn the heat high. Once boiled, turn the heat to simmer and cook until rice absorbs all the water and holes form on the surface of the rice.
- Turn the heat down. Cover the rice with a paper towel, put the lid on and let it rest for 15 minutes.
Real Pumpkin Pie
With the fall’s harvest, everywhere is decorated with colorful fresh pumpkins. It is the perfect time to bake a pie made with real pumpkin.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups fresh pumpkin pure
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups half-n-half
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp cloves
- 1 9 inch unbaked deep dish pie shell
Recipe:
- Blend the pumpkin and half-n-half together in a medium size mixing bowl.
- Mix the sugar and spices together thoroughly and stir into the pumpkin mixture.
- Slightly beat the eggs and then add to the pumpkin mixture.
- Pour into the 9 inch unbaked pie shell.
- Bake at 425°F for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 350°F and bake 45 to 60 additional minutes. Pie is done when inserted knife comes out clean.
- Cool pie on wire baking rack.
Fresh Pumpkin Soup
A soup with freshly harvested fall flavors of just-picked pumpkins and tart apples to warm you up on a crisp autumn day.
Ingredients (serves 4):
- 4 cups fresh pumpkin puree
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tart apple (peeled and chopped)
- 1 medium onion (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh gingerroot
- pinch of salt
- pinch of blackpepper
Recipe:
- Combine all the ingredients except the pumpkin puree. Bring to boil and then let it simmer under the apples are tender, about 15 minutes.
- Add the pumpkin puree to the soup. Bring to boil and then simmer for an hour.
- Cool soup slightly; process in batches in a blender. Transfer to a large saucepan; season with salt and pepper to taste and heat through. Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds.
Baking with Fresh Pumpkin
Finally I got the tine to cook the pumpkin we bought back in October. Plan is to bake a pumpkin pie and have pumpkin-apple soup. But first the fresh pumpkin needs to be baked and pureed. And we are not wasting anything; seeds will be roasted as well.
- Cut the pumpkin in half and discard the stem section and stringy pulp. Save the seeds to dry and roast.
- In a shallow baking dish, place the two halves face down and cover with foil.
- Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for about 1½ hours for a medium-sized sugar pumpkin, or until tender.
- Once the baked pumpkin has cooled, scoop out the flesh and puree or mash it.
- While the oven is hot, roast the pumpkin seeds as well.
Extra pureed pumpkin also freezes nicely. Place 1 to 2 cup portions in freezer bags and lay flat in freezer.
Stuffed Courgette Flower
Delicate courgette flowers stuffed with spiced rice…
Ingredients:
- 10 courgete flowers
- 1/2 onion (finely chopped)
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons rice
- 1 teaspoon dried mint
- 1 teaspoon currants
- 1 teaspoon pinenuts
- a pinch of salt
- a pinch of blackpepper
Recipe:
- Wash the courgette flowers and remove the pistil from inside without bruising the flowers.
- Sautee the onions and pinenuts with olive oil.
- Add the washed and drained rice, currants, and spices to the pan.
- Pour hot water just enough to cover the rice. Cook over low heat until the rice absorbs all the water.
- Stuff each courgette flower with the rice mixture and fold the tops over to encase the filling,
- Cover the bottom of a pan with waxed pepper and place the stuffed courgette flowers over the waxed pepper.
- Sprinkle the stuffed courgette flowers with olive oil and pour hot water upto the half way.
- Cook for 20 minutes over low heat.
- Once cool down serve with lemon wedges.
