French Onion Soup

I'm becoming a soup-aholic! I could happily eat it every night of the week but I think the other members of this household might have a problem with that!

Apart from the fact that I love anything and everything French, to me this soup is pure comfort food. It's dark, rich and warming and served with cheese ... what could be better? :)

French Onion Soup
Recipe from Taste.com.au

80g butter
4 large brown onions, sliced crossways into rings (I used 5 onions)
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp plain flour (I used 3 tsp)
1.5L (6 cups) beef stock
125ml (1/2 cup) dry red wine (I left this out and used all beef stock)
1 bouquet garni sachet
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 x 30cm baguette (French stick), cut crossways into 12 slices (I used the remnants of a ciabatta from the freezer which toasted up beautifully)
55g (1 cup) finely shredded gruyere cheese

Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes or until the onions are soft and light golden. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until flour bubbles and comes away from the side of the pan. Add the stock, wine and bouquet garni and bring to the boil

Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until soup thickens slightly. Remove bouquet garni. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Preheat grill on high. Place baguette slices on a baking tray. Place under preheated grill and cook for 2 minutes each side or until light golden. Remove from grill and sprinkle each slice evenly with the cheese. Place under grill and cook for a further 2 minutes or until the cheese melts.

To serve, ladle soup into serving bowls and top with the bread.

Serves 4-6.

Wordle

Tuesdays with Dorie: Black and White Banana Loaf

Chocolate and bananas. One of the most perfect flavour combinations ever don't you think? This week Ashlee from A Year in the Kitchen chose Dorie's Black and White Banana Loaf.

The only change I made was to leave out the rum and use maple syrup instead (which probably added a little too much sweetness). I also found it was cooked a lot earlier than the recipe said - 70 minutes instead of 90.

The taste test ...

Wow. Seriously. This cake is moist and packed with flavour. The banana and chocolate are complemented by a hum of lemon and nutmeg in the background. Perfect to enjoy with a cup of tea (which is exactly what i'm doing as I type!) I can see this becoming a regular.

Next week: Blueberry Sour Cream Icecream. The bowl from our icecream maker is in the freezer and ready to go!

He's my brother

Too cute!

Sunday Brunch at Home

We've been going out for breakfast a bit lately and as nice as it is, it's becoming a bit expensive. This week we decided to do our own version of a 'big breakfast' at home and invited N's mum and my dad to share it with us.

The menu:

• Eggy crumpets with crispy bacon and real maple syrup
• Waffles with strawberry compote and icecream
• Fresh juice

Jungle Juice
Any combination of tropical fruits you like! We used:

1 large pineapple
4 pink grapefruits
1 lime
2 cm piece of ginger

Eggy Breakfast Crumpets
adapted from Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver, p30

This is essentially french toast made with crumpets instead of bread and it's absolutely brilliant! Because of all the air bubbles, the crumpets soak up the egg mixture like a sponge so the end result is incredibly light and fluffy.

3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 round crumpets
6 rashers of bacon
olive oil or butter
maple syrup, to serve

Lay out the crumpets in a single layer in a large baking dish. Whisk together the eggs and milk and season with salt and pepper. I usually add 1/2 ts vanilla and a glug of maple syrup as well. Pour the egg mixture over the crumpets and leave to soak, overnight if possible, or as long as you can (we always do ours the night before and by morning they have absorbed virtually all the liquid). If you are using them immediately make sure you turn them several times and really push them into the egg mix.

Heat a frypan over medium heat and fry the bacon until crispy. You shouldn't need to add any fat here. Remove and keep warm. Add a blob of butter and swirl the pan to coat.

Add the crumpets to the pan (we need to do 2 batches because of the size of the pan) and fry them for a few minutes until they are golden brown. Turn and fry on the other side until cooked through.

Serve topped with bacon and a genererous drizzle of maple syrup.

Crispy Waffles

We received our waffle maker as a wedding present just a few months ago and haven't gotten very adventurous with the recipe. We're still using the one that came with the instruction manual! Thank you Breville.

2 x 60g eggs, separated
2 ts sugar
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 ts vanilla
1/4 ts salt
2 cups (300g) self raising flour
2 tbs cornflour
80g g butter, melted

Beat the egg yolks and sugar together, then add the milk, water and vanilla and mix well.

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, add the egg mixture and melted butter. Beat mixture well into a smooth batter.

Beat the eggwhites until stiff and fold into the batter.

Allow to stand for 10 minutes before use.

Use 1/2 cup of batter per waffle. Makes 6.

Strawberry Compote
recipe from Taste.com.au

250g strawberries, washed, hulled and halved
1 tbs icing sugar (I used caster sugar)
1 ts balsamic vinegar (I used a delicious caramalised balsamic from Flaschengeist)

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until pulpy and syrupy. Remove from heat and cover until required. Perfect with waffles, french toast or just over ice cream.

After eating all that we went to the movies and saw The X-Files. I loved it when it was on tv and have seen every episode. Despite not being very hungry we then went to lunch at Chill on Oxford St. Now i'm absolutely stuffed!

All in all a lovely Sunday.

Summer Fruit Galette Round 2

So I still had half a quantity of pastry left from Tuesday and decided to make a proper galette following the original recipe. Unfortunately ... i burnt it! But here's the thing, even slightly singed around the edges this pastry is still fantastic. Thanks Dorie!

Smothered in cream and ready to eat ... yummy!

Kumara, Chilli and Coriander Soup

This is one recipe I should have blogged about immediately ... because now I've had it for 2 meals and i'm sick of it! It was delicious though and the colour is amazing. What's also amazing is that i've managed to get my husband to eat soup twice in a couple of weeks!

Kumara, Chilli and Coriander Soup
Recipe from Simple Meals by the Australian Women's Weekly Cookbooks, 2002, p12

100g fresh coriander, roots attached
1 tbs olive oil
1 onion, chopped roughly
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 tbs sambal oelek (asian chilli paste)
1.2kg kumara, chopped roughly
1 litre chicken stock
2 cups water
2/3 cup coconut milk

Wash and dry the coriander. Finely chop enough of the roots to make 2 teaspoons and enough leaves to make a loosely packed 1/4 cup (this is what the recipe said, I just did the whole bunch because I love coriander!).

Heat the oil in a large pot then add the onion, garlic, coriander and sambal oelek. Cook for a few minutes until the onion softens.

Add the kumara and toss to combine with other ingredients. Cover with the stock and water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until the kumara is soft.

Using a stab mixer, blend the soup in the pot or transfer to a food processor in batches. Simmer again for a few minutes until the soup thickens slightly then add the coconut milk and stir through.

Divide into serving bowls and top with a drizzle of coconut milk and scattering of coriander leaves.

Serves 4-6.

You won't need bread with this soup as it is incredibly hearty and perfect for this time of year.

PS. Because I am a weather nut (sad but true) I can tell you that Brisbane had its coldest morning of the year today - just 3.3 deg C. Lovely!

Tuesdays with Dorie: Inspired by Summer Fruit Galette

I love fruity desserts so i'm really enjoying the last couple of picks! This week Michelle of Michelle in Colorado Springs chose Dorie's Summer Fruit Galette. As I don't have Dorie's book I have been relying on either finding the recipe online or waiting until it is posted by the host. Given the host is on the other side of the world that wasn't going to happen until Wednesday my time. And that wasn't gonna get us any dessert tonight!

So I have made something inspired by this week's recipe. It is a cross between a galette and a pizza but with my own twist and using ingredients I already had on hand.

I decided to use Dorie's Good for Almost Everything Pie Crust which I haven't made before. Even though the recipe uses some lard, I went with all butter as it's what I had and I thought it would be dangerous having a pack of lard in the fridge waiting to be used for something else!

Apricot and Raspberry Galette

1 quanity of Dorie's pie crust (I found it on South in Your Mouth)
1/2 cup apricot jam
100g ground almonds
1 x 400g tin apricot halves
2/3 cup raspberries (I used frozen)
Demerara sugar to decorate

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C.

Roll out the pastry into a large round and scrunch/fold in the edges to form a rough pie. Spread the base with apricot jam then sprinkle over the ground almonds. This will absorb some of the juice from the fruit and prevent the crust from getting soggy. Layer the apricots over the top, cut side up, and fill in the gaps with raspberries. Sprinkle with demerara sugar.

Bake for approx 45 minutes or until the fruit is bubbly and the crust is cooked and golden brown.

I also made my own custard to serve with it.

Stirred Custard
From The Original Cookbook by the Australian Women's Weekly, 1977, p220. This is my go-to recipe and it's never failed me yet!

3 eggs
2 tbs sugar
1/2 ts vanilla extract
2 cups milk (reduced fat works fine)

Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla together in the top of a double boiler. Warm milk in a separate pan then stir into egg mixture. Stir constantly over simmering water until custard thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon. This could take 15 minutes or longer. Remove from heat IMMEDIATELY. (Sorry, don't mean to shout there but honestly it will start to curdle if you're not really quick).

Makes 2 cups (I normally do a double batch).

The taste test ...

This was absolutely delicious and after years of stomping and swearing, I have finally found a pastry that works for me! It was easy to throw together in the food processor and after a long rest in the fridge it rolled out to perfection. The texture was great too - crisp, buttery and flaky. It looked more like a fruit pizza when it came out of the oven but whatever you call it, it's a keeper!

Next week we have The Black and White Banana Loaf thanks to Ashlee of A Year in the Kitchen. Yum!

*I am not an official member of Tuesdays with Dorie - just playing along at home!

Steak, Guinness and Cheese Pie with Mushy Peas

This is another fabulous Jamie Oliver recipe and it's perfect for the arctic weather we are experiencing in Brisbane at the moment. Ok, so maybe not 'arctic' exactly but it's definitely pie weather!

Steak, Guinness and Cheese Pie
From Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver, p342

Olive oil
3 red onions, sliced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery sticks, finely sliced
4 field mushrooms, peeled and chopped
1kg stewing beef, cut into 2cm cubes
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 x 440ml can Guinness
2 heaped tbs plain flour
200g tasty cheese
Enough puff pastry sheets to cover the top and bottom of your pie dish
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 190 deg C.

On the stovetop, heat some olive oil in a large ovenproof pot over low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for about 10 minutes trying not to colour them too much. Turn up the heat and add the garlic, butter, carrots, celery and mushrooms. Fry for a few minutes then add the beef, rosemary, a pinch of salt and a level teaspoon of pepper. Once the beef is starting to colour, pour in the Guinness, the flour and enough water to cover (I don't normally need any water).

Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and place in the preheated oven for about 1.5hrs. Give it a stir then place back in the oven to cook for another hour or until the meat is very tender and the stew is dark and rich looking. If there's still a lot of liquid at this point, put it back on the stove top and simmer until the sauce reduces. Remove from the heat, stir in half the cheese and leave to cool while you prepare the pastry.

Butter your pie dish and line with puff pastry, leaving the edges hanging over the sides. Tip the stew into the dish, even it out and top with the remaining cheese. Brush the edges of the pastry with beaten egg. Top with another sheet or 2 of puff pastry and fold in all the edges so the filling is sealed. Make a slit for the steam to escape.

Brush the top with beaten egg then bake for 45 minutes until the pastry is puffed and golden brown. Delicious served with mushy peas or veg of your choice.

Serves 6

Mushy Peas
A food.baby original

1 litre water or chicken stock
1 packet frozen baby peas
2 cloves garlic, whole but skin removed
60g butter
1/4 cup cream
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Bring water or stock to the boil with the garlic. Add the peas, bring back to the boil and cook for approx 5 minutes or until done. Drain well and pour into food processor or blender. Add butter and cream and blend well. Season well with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Spiced Meatball Wrap

This was a really yummy dinner and a great alternative to tacos or burgers. It's also pretty healthy because the meat is baked not panfried and you can serve it with as much salad as you can squeeze into a wrap.

Spiced Meatball Wrap

Meatballs:
500g pork mince
500g lamb mince
1 thumb sized piece of ginger, grated
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 ts ground cummin
1ts ground coriander
1 1/2ts garam masala
2 tbs rolled oats
1 egg, lightly beaten
1tbs plain yoghurt

Sauce:
1 ripe avocado
2 tbs plain yoghurt
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
handful of fresh coriander stems, chopped finely

To serve:
Flatbreads
Tomato
Capsicum
Any other salad greens you like

Preheat oven to 220 deg C.

Place all meatball ingredients in a large bowl and mix well to combine. I find you get a better result using your hands as it tends to turn to mush in a food processor.

Using wet hands, shape into golfball sized meatballs. You should get 12 meatballs from this mix which will easily feed 6 people. Place on a non-stick baking tray. Do this a few hours ahead of time if you can as the flavours will develop, then store in the fridge until you are ready to cook.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cooked through but still juicy.

Meanwhile, make the sauce by mashing the avocado and combining with other ingredients. This is basically a version of guacamole but it contrasts perfectly with the aromatics in the meatballs.

Serve with freshly chopped tomato and capsicum in a flatbread wrap with plenty of sauce.

Serves 6. Delicious!

Lamburger

Toasted turkish bread with lamb steak, caramalised onions, Jarlsberg cheese, pancetta, tomato and beetroot ... can a burger get any better? I think not!