Minestrone Soup

Posted on August 29, 2012 by DemeterG

I love Minestrone Soup……… OK, so I start most of my blogs with “I love…”, but I do! I love so many foods! Minestrone soup is such a great way to get a helping of veges and is wonderful served up with freshly baked sourdough on a cold winter’s night.

This might not be a traditional recipe, but it is very tasty. I bought a lovely slab of Pancetta from the Aproneers and everyone commented on the great taste of the soup this time around.

Ingredients:

1½ tablespoon olive oil
250g pancetta, diced
1 onion, finely diced
1 carrot, diced
2 celery sticks, diced
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups beef stock
1 x 400g can Italian diced Roma tomatoes
2 tablespoon tomato paste
Sea salt & black pepper
1 cup shell pasta
1 cup finely shredded cabbage
½ cup frozen peas
1 zucchini, diced
1 x 400g can rinsed cannellini beans

Method:

Heat olive oil in large saucepan and cook the pancetta, onion, carrot and celery. Stir for 3 minutes or until onion is soft.

Add the stock, tomatoes, tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, simmer, cover for 25 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally.

Add pasta,  cabbage, peas and zucchini. Boil uncovered for 8-10 mins. Stir through cannellini beans until warmed through and serve immediately with parmesan and crusty sourdough bread.

 

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Rainbow Cake

Posted on August 26, 2012 by DemeterG

I spent hours in the kitchen on Sunday

creating  a trial cake for B1’s birthday. Mostly it took hours because I only had one 6″ cake pan and each layer has to be cooked separately. I copied the Rainbow Doodle Cake from Sweetapolita, who got it from Whisk Kid.

In a few weeks I plan to make the cake on a larger scale and use royal icing on top

of the buttercream frosting. I won’t tell you what else I plan to do, just in case B1 reads this before her birthday, but stay tuned as I will blog the results.

I used a gel colour by Americolour, that is available at Spotlight and it gives a great vibrant colour. Much better than the supermarket food colourings.

The cake is just a plain vanilla cake and I covered it with a vanilla buttercream

icing.

Really, it looks a bit average with the icing on it (this is also due to my lack of cake decorating ability), but once you cut it it really looks awesome. We were all crowded in the kitchen for the cutting and there were plenty of smiles and “wow’s” once it was cut.

I can’t wait to actually do the “big” version. Looks like work will get leftover’s again. I am sure they won’t complain.


 

 

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Pasta Carbonara

Posted on August 24, 2012 by DemeterG

 

I love a good carbonara, but until now haven’t been able to cook one. Finally I have found a recipe that works for me and is very tasty. It is a nice, quick recipe for mid week.


Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
150g pancetta, cut into thin matchsticks
500g tagliatelle
6 egg yolks
100ml thickened cream
30g unsalted butter
¼ cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, plus extra to serve
50g grated pecorino
50g grated parmesan, plus extra to serve

Method:

Heat oil in a fry pan over medium heat, add the pancetta and cook until it starts to crisp, 5 – 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water according to packet instructions. Drain. Alternatively you can make fresh pasta, but remember it needs a couple of hours in advance too prepare.

Lightly whisk eggs and cream in a bowl.

Add the butter and parsley to pancetta, then add pasta and cheeses and toss well to combine. Remove the pan from the heat and quickly add the cream mixture. Toss gently to combine. (The pasta’s heat will cook the egg slightly and form a creamy sauce, overcooking will give the dish a scrambled egg look)

Season, then serve with extra parmesan and parsley.

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My Babies are growing up……

Posted on August 24, 2012 by DemeterG

The baby cheeses have grown fuzz, so I have left them alone in their room to do their thing….. Much like you do with any teenager.

In a week or so they will have more fuzz and start to get a little soft around the middle.….. a bit like me. About that time they will be mature enough and ready to leave home….. I mean eat.

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Sourdough bread

Posted on August 19, 2012 by DemeterG

I made a Sourdough starter following the instructions from the Sourdough Baker.

The flour I used was a light spelt from Callington Mill at Outlands.

The recipe for the bread was compliments of Chef Vinnie from Henry’s Restaurant. Thanks Chef, it worked a treat!

After posting the original recipe, I have modified it slightly as I have been getting a better result this way. I have just added an extra teaspoon of yeast and a teaspoon of sugar. You can leave it in the fridge overnight still, but I have been putting the dough in front of the fire for an hour if I need to use it on the day. Also, the Sourdough Baker seems to have dissappeared from the interweb, so here is another site to get your starter going.

Ingredients:

400g flour
125g Sourdough starter (you need to prepare the starter a week before you want your first loaf)
2 teaspoons yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoon salt
300g lukewarm water (use more or less depending on the consistency of the dough)

Method:

Add all the ingredients except the water to a bowl. Slowly add the water while gently mixing the dough by hand. Add enough water so that the dough is combined and just sticky but not wet.

Cover with cling wrap and leave in the fridge overnight, or put in a warm spot for an hour or so, until risen.

When you are ready to bake, gently move the dough from the bowl to a baking tray and shape to desired shape. I just let it take the rounded shape of the bowl and tried not to move it around too much, so as not to deflate the dough.

Put the tray in the oven and then turn it on to 220°C. When the oven comes up to temperature or 10 minutes (whichever comes first), add a cup of boiling water in a tray to the bottom of the oven.

Bake for a further 20 minutes or until a nice golden crust is formed and the base is hard and hollow sounding when knocked

 

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