This delicious pear and roquette salad has become a signature dish at our house. The peppery roquette, sweet pear, salty parmesan and crispy almond flakes combine perfectly to satisfy all flavour cravings. You'll definitely want seconds!
-Ingredients-
1 green pear (any sweet pears will do)
1 bag of roquette
1 small wedge of parmesan or peccorino
1/4 cup of slithered almonds
1 tbl spoon olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
(Serves four)
Wash the roquette and put into a large salad or mixing bowl. Thinly slice the pear and add to roquette.Toast the almonds in a fry pan over low heat until golden brown and crispy. Leave to cool then add to the roquette and pear. Dress the salad with the olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, then toss to combine. Shave a generous amount of the cheese over the salad using a potato peeler. Serve.
Pear and roquette salad is great with chicken and fish, or at a summer barbeque.
Enjoy,
La x
(I'll post some pics next time I make it!)
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
My beef stroganoff
Inspired by Masterchef, I decided to make Beef Stroganoff for dinner tonight.
I looked online for a recipe and found so many variations - so I ditched the recipe idea and just made it up as I went along. The result was yum, so here is my recipe for Beef Stroganoff!
My shopping list included:
50 gms beef fillet, cut into thin strips
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 cps stock
1 brown onion, finely chopped
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 tbsp plain flour
1 packet of fettuccine
In a plastic bag, toss the beef strips with the flour and a teaspoon of the paprika. Brown the beef in a large, hot fry pan with a nob of butter and some olive oil. When the beef is brown but not cooked all the way through, take it our of the pan and put it on a plate.
Deglaze the pan with a cup of the stock, and add the chopped garlic and onions. Simmer until tender. Add the sliced mushrooms and continue to simmer for a further five minutes.
Return the meat to the pan. Add the rest of the paprika, the tomato paste and the leftover stock, stirring continuously. Add the sour cream and stir through. Add pepper and salt to taste.
Serve over aldente fettuccine.
Serves four, or dinner tonight/ lunch tomorrow for two!
I looked online for a recipe and found so many variations - so I ditched the recipe idea and just made it up as I went along. The result was yum, so here is my recipe for Beef Stroganoff!
My shopping list included:
50 gms beef fillet, cut into thin strips
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 cps stock
1 brown onion, finely chopped
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 tbsp plain flour
1 packet of fettuccine
In a plastic bag, toss the beef strips with the flour and a teaspoon of the paprika. Brown the beef in a large, hot fry pan with a nob of butter and some olive oil. When the beef is brown but not cooked all the way through, take it our of the pan and put it on a plate.
Deglaze the pan with a cup of the stock, and add the chopped garlic and onions. Simmer until tender. Add the sliced mushrooms and continue to simmer for a further five minutes.
Return the meat to the pan. Add the rest of the paprika, the tomato paste and the leftover stock, stirring continuously. Add the sour cream and stir through. Add pepper and salt to taste.
Serve over aldente fettuccine.
Serves four, or dinner tonight/ lunch tomorrow for two!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Profiteroles as promised!
 |
| This is Martha Stewart's croquembouche |
After Ax told me about the chocolate profiteroles, I planned to make some one day, sometime, vaguely in the near future...But it was only when Elizabeth Bard described her wedding cake, a traditional French croquembouche (profiteroles, crème patisserie, and crunchy toffee), in her novel Lunch in Paris, that I started looking at recipes.
Making a croquembouche seemed a tad over ambitious, so I decided to try my hand at profiteroles filled with crème patisserie, and drizzled with chocolate.
Ax found this recipe for the choux pastry on his iPhone!
To make the choux pastry, you will need:
1 cup water
1/2 cup unsalted butter (chopped)
1 cup plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
4 large eggs
Bring water and butter to boil in medium saucepan
Reduce heat, add flour and salt and stir until a smooth ball forms
Transfer to a large bowl and beat in eggs one at a time with an electric mixer
After the fourth egg is integrated, the mixture will look smooth and silky. Cover with gladwrap and let stand for about an hour.
To make the crème patisserie, you will need:
1 cup milk
75g castor sugar
3 egg yolks
25g plain flour
1 vanilla bean, split length ways
Heat the milk with 50g of sugar in a small saucepan, add the scrapings from the vanilla bean and bring to a gentle boil.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the remaining 25g of sugar.When the yolk mix is pale and frothy, add the flour and whisk to combine.
Add the hot milk slowly to the egg mixture, whisking as you go.
Return mixture to saucepan and whisk over heat until it thickens.
Remove from heat and allow to come to room temperature.
To make the profiteroles, preheat the oven to 215C
Transfer the pastry mixture to piping bag. Use a 1/2" tip to pipe 1" rounds onto a lightly greased tray leaving puffing room between each round. If you want smooth profiteroles, use a moistened finger to smooth the piping ridges.
Bake until golden brown puffed (about 23 minutes). Remove from oven and turn off heat.
Use a small knife to make a small slit in the side of each puff. Return the puffs to the oven, with the door slightly ajar for a further 10 minutes. Remove puff from oven and allow to cool completely.
When the profiterole are cool, use a 1/4" piping tip to pipe a bit of the crème patisserie into each puff, through the slit you made earlier. Once filled, the profiteroles are ready to be served, with your choice of sauce.
Transfer the pastry mixture to piping bag. Use a 1/2" tip to pipe 1" rounds onto a lightly greased tray leaving puffing room between each round. If you want smooth profiteroles, use a moistened finger to smooth the piping ridges.
Bake until golden brown puffed (about 23 minutes). Remove from oven and turn off heat.
Use a small knife to make a small slit in the side of each puff. Return the puffs to the oven, with the door slightly ajar for a further 10 minutes. Remove puff from oven and allow to cool completely.
When the profiterole are cool, use a 1/4" piping tip to pipe a bit of the crème patisserie into each puff, through the slit you made earlier. Once filled, the profiteroles are ready to be served, with your choice of sauce.
I made a chocolate sauce, by melting down a milk chocolate Easter rabbit, with a splosh of milk and a shot of Kahlua. Yum!
 |
| The shapes are a little rustic but who cares! |
The profiteroles were so good, that Ax and I polished off about four before they even made it to the plate, we didn't have much room for dinner afterwards though!
Happy baking...
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Heartbreak Cake
The passing of my Aunty Eve has sparked an abundance of comfort food in our house. Cups of sugary tea, bread and pastries bring some sustenance to the weary soul, but nothing reassures the broken hearted quite like a flourless chocolate cake.
This cake has been made 4 times (and counting) in our house over the past week. Originally an Elizabeth David recipe that has been adapted by Jill Dupleix, it comes close to culinary perfection.
FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE & ALMOND CAKE (serves 6)
200g dark choc
1tbsp strong espresso
1tbsp rum or brandy
150g caster sugar
150g butter
100g ground almonds
5 eggs, separated
icing sugar for dusting
METHOD
Melt the chocolate, coffee, rum/brandy, sugar and butter in a bowl sitting over a pot of gently simmering water. When melty remove from heat and stir until mixed well.
Add the ground almonds and mix well. Beat in the egg yolks one by one.
Beat the egg whites until stiff and peaky. Stir a couple of spoonfuls into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest.
Pour mixture into a buttered and floured 20cm round cake tin (a clip tin with a removable base is best). Bake at 180C for 40-50 mins (less for fudgey, more for cakey).
Leave to cool before gently removing from tin. Dust with icing sugar.
Serve with fresh raspberries and a dollop of cream.
Be warned, you won't be able to stop eating until it's all gone!
This cake has been made 4 times (and counting) in our house over the past week. Originally an Elizabeth David recipe that has been adapted by Jill Dupleix, it comes close to culinary perfection.
FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE & ALMOND CAKE (serves 6)
200g dark choc
1tbsp strong espresso
1tbsp rum or brandy
150g caster sugar
150g butter
100g ground almonds
5 eggs, separated
icing sugar for dusting
METHOD
Melt the chocolate, coffee, rum/brandy, sugar and butter in a bowl sitting over a pot of gently simmering water. When melty remove from heat and stir until mixed well.
Add the ground almonds and mix well. Beat in the egg yolks one by one.
Beat the egg whites until stiff and peaky. Stir a couple of spoonfuls into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest.
Pour mixture into a buttered and floured 20cm round cake tin (a clip tin with a removable base is best). Bake at 180C for 40-50 mins (less for fudgey, more for cakey).
Leave to cool before gently removing from tin. Dust with icing sugar.
Serve with fresh raspberries and a dollop of cream.
Be warned, you won't be able to stop eating until it's all gone!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
