Tag Archives: onions

Jul8

peas + lettuce + parsley + onions = petits pois a la francaise

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Lettuce + peas + onions – in French … Petits Pois a la Francaise. Sometime a go I decided to up my French cooking techniques and my friend Pierre (kitchenbabble.com) from Bangkok suggested we start cooking our way through Le Cordon Bleu at Home recipe book. As it then turned out, Saturdays became a specific cooking lesson, with Pierre in Bangkok and myself here in Cape Town, we set out on what was such an intriguing and rewarding international, virtual cooking experience. From other ends of the atlas, we emailed and facebooked our comparative findings.

This dish of lettuce + peas + onions was a lesson in which they paired it with a roast chicken. My culinary dictionary expletives included…it is absolutely delicious!!! As it happened, we did not finish the chicken – as this dish just took centre stage on the table…. My friends tucked into this dish, with bread in hand it was like a peasant dish – or from the look of my friends, their last meal as they soaked up the juices, finishing every little last little pea! You can serve this as a side dish or as a main meal – just bring the bread, good wine..and good friends.

Serves: 4 as a main meal – 6 as a side dish
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 30 min

Ingredients

1 Small head of lettuce chiffonade * see at bottom of recipe for the chiffonade technique
5 Tablespoons of real butter (margarine is not going to work this time!)
3 Cups of peas ( I used frozen peas, I simply poured hot water over and let it stand for 5 minutes and thereafter drain)
18 Pearl onions pealed
1 Small bunch of parsley ( tie into bouquet with kitchen twine)
1/3 Cup water
11/2 T Sugar
1t Salt

Method

1. Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add the lettuce + peas + onions. Stir gently until the lettuce wilts.
3. Add the parsley + water + sugar + salt.
4. Stand back, simmer for +/- 30 minutes, taste for seasoning, then be amazed!
5. Remove parsley and serve.

* Stack the lettuce leaves one on top of each other and roll them up tight into a cylinder – or something like a rolled lettuce tube. Then cut the cylinder crosswise into thin slices.

Remember … lifisazoobiscuit

Jun10

tomato + onion + basil + puff pastry = easy + hearty tomato tart

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I just LOVE tomatoes – and I need no inspiration to cook with these amazing and nutritional gifts from nature’s wonderful garden. This is probably the easiest and most delicious tomato tart you will ever taste – simple, hearty, sweet and sour and such a rich taste when combined with the caramalised onions!
Serve this with a side serving of rocket salad + balsamic dressing!

Preparation time: 10 min
Baking time: 25 min
Serves: 6

Ingredients
1 ½ Big onion – thinly sliced
2 T Olive oil
Pinch of salt
500g Rosa tomatoes
1 Roll puff pastry
30 – 40 g Parmesan cheese grated
1 handful of shredded fresh basil leaves
Salt
Pepper
To serve
Parmesan shavings
Handful of basil leaves – shredded

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 200°C.
2. In a pan – on medium heat – caramalise the onions for about 10 minutes until golden brown.
3. Take a +- 37cm by 25cm pan (+- the same size as the puff pastry) put the tomatoes in the pan. Sprinkle with olive oil and roll around till each tomato is lightly coated in oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and a bit of black pepper.
4. Take the caramalised onion and scoop these over the tomatoes.
5. Sprinkle the grated parmesan and a hand full of shredded basil over the tomatoes.
6. Take the whole piece of pastry and cover the tomatoes. Don’t press it down or anything. I you want you can tuck the sides in.
7. Bake for 25 minutes or till pastry is a lovely golden colour.
8. Turn over on a big dish (so the tomatoes are on top) and sprinkle some shredded fresh basil and parmesan shavings.
9. Cut into pieces and serve with your green rocket salad….

Remember to never forget the “pomme d’amour”!

May23

ostrich fillet + red wine + king oyster mushrooms + beetroot blocks

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Today, I need to tell you about my little weekend adventure … the Ultimate Braai Challenge… This past Saturday my friend Joani and I took part in the Western Cape auditions for the Ultimate Braai Challenge. This turned out to be one of the best foodie experiences of my life – the 100 crazy teams, the ‘gees”, the organizers, the judges were just amazing and Justin Bonello is such a fabulous guy and so down to earth! Kudu’s go to all the organizers, the sponsors and everyone that took part both young and old. I was really gob-smacked by all the different people that took part – their liveliness, their spirit and what passion we South Africans have! I realised once again – we LOVE a braai! I cannot wait for this show to start – I really think it is going to take SA by storm!!

But let me get back to what food we presented to the judges – our main course was braaied Ostrich fillet in a red wine and mushroom jus with beetroot blocks – all done on the braai. One of the judges told us that this specific dish was the best dish he had tasted on the day. So I thought I would share this recipe with you. For sure you can do this on the stove as well but for those of you who are adventurous why not also try this on the braai…? Serve this with buttery, mustardy, crushed new potatoes. If you are not so much an ostrich steak fan you can always swap this with a cut of beef or even kudu fillet. Do not forget to enjoy this with a good glass of red wine …

Ingredients
4 x 200g Ostrich Fillet
1Tablespoon cooking oil
Salt and pepper
For the Jus
15 g butter
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 ½ large onion, cut in quarters and parted
3 king oyster mushrooms, cut in 3x lengthwise
4 button mushrooms, thinly sliced
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 Tablespoons fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove, grated or finely chopped
Pinch of salt
Big pinch of black pepper
1 ½ cups of red wine
1 Cup chicken stock (it is ok to use stock cubes diluted in water as per instruction)
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
3 teaspoons of brown sugar
20 g butter (I know … more butter 🙂 )
250g cooked beetroot cut into 1cm x 1cm cubes

Method
1. Add the oil and butter to a pot then add the onion – caramalise the onions over medium heat for about 10 minutes.
Onions need to have that beautiful honey colour.
2. Add the mushrooms, thyme, rosemary and the salt and pepper. Fry for a further 10 minutes.
I love to hear the snap-crackle-pop of the thyme!
3. Add the red wine and garlic and de-glaze the pan.
4. Then add the chicken stock and the tomato paste. Simmer till half the amount is left.
This is important – it needs to be a thickish sauce consistency.
5. Add the rest of the butter and let it melt. Taste and season.
6. Sieve through a fine sieve and add the beetroot blocks. Set aside.
7. Keep the big onion pieces and oyster mushrooms aside – discard the thyme and rosemary.
8. Heat the oil in the pan and fry the ostrich according to your taste – medium rare for me. Season meat to your taste.
9. Add the onions and mushrooms (that you used in the jus) and fry these with the steak.
11. Take the steak out of the frying pan to rest (let it rest for least 8 minutes) and add the red wine jus to the steak juices. The jus is now going to be infused with the steak flavours. OH! that is so yummy.
10. To serve: Put the steak on a plate – add some onion pieces and giant oyster mushroom on top. Then pour some jus at the bottom of the plate. Dress with a few blocks of beetroot around the steak.

Happy Braaiing … remember where there’s smoke … there is a braai!