Recipe - Poulet Cocotte Grandmère

I used to love my grandmother's cooking ... so I always love a recipe that reminds me of her and this Gabriel Gate recipe does :)

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 free-range chicken drumsticks
• 4 free-range chicken thighs
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 brown onion, diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp rosemary sprigs
• 150 g bacon, diced
• 100 ml white Macon wine or other chardonnay
• 300 g baby mushrooms, washed
• 4 medium potatoes, cubed

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil and the butter in a wide heavy-based pan and brown the chicken pieces for a few minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the onion, bay leaf and rosemary and stir well. Add the bacon and cook for a few minutes.
2. Add the white wine and bring to the boil. Stir in the mushrooms, cover with foil and a lid and cook over low heat for about 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a heavy frypan and cook the potato cubes for about 15 minutes or until they are almost cooked. Transfer the potatoes to the chicken dish and mix gently and cook for a further 5 minutes to combine the wonderful flavours.
4. Serve two pieces of chicken on each plate with the vegetables.

Source: http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/grandmothers-chicken-casserole

Recipe - Poached Pears

Ingredients

• 4 firm, medium-size pears, such as Anjou, Bartlett, or Bosc
• 1 bottle robust red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, or Merlot
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise
• 1 whole cinnamon stick
• 1 orange peel
• 1 lemon peel
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 star anise
• 1 whole bay leaf

Directions 

• Peel the pears, and place in medium saucepan. Add wine, sugar, vanilla bean, cinnamon stick, orange peel, lemon peel, cloves, star anise, bay leaf, and just enough water to cover pears.
• Set saucepan over high heat, and bring liquid to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook, occasionally stirring gently, over medium-low heat, until a paring knife easily pierces pears, about 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat; let pears cool in liquid.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer pears to a plate. Pour poaching liquid through a sieve set over a bowl. Discard solids, and return liquid to saucepan. Place over medium-high heat, and cook until liquid has been reduced to a syrup that coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 45 minutes. Let cool; store pears in an airtight container until ready to serve.
• When ready to serve, arrange pears on a platter or on individual plates, and drizzle poaching liquid over them.

Source: Thanks Martha! http://www.marthastewart.com/339823/poached-pears

Recipe - Mudcake

You only need one mudcake recipe for the rest of your life and it’s from AGFG!!! 

Ingredients

• 220g butter
• 220g dark chocolate, chopped
• 160ml water
• 125g plain flour
• 125g self-raising flour
• 50g cocoa powder
• 240g caster sugar
• 4 eggs lightly beaten
• 35ml vegetable oil
• 100ml milk

Icing

• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
• 50g butter, melted
• 2 tbsp milk

Method

• Preheat oven to 140C. Prepare a cake tin using baking paper with a collar that extends 2cm above the tin.
• Place the butter, chocolate and water in a saucepan and stir over low heat until melted, then remove from heat.
• Sift the flours and cocoa into a large bowl. Add the combined egg, oil and milk followed by the chocolate mixture and combine (will appear thick).
• Add sugar and stir until well combined but no longer than necessary - the sugar should thin the mixture back to a runny batter.
• Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for approx. 1 hour. Cake is ready when a skewer comes out clean, though it may be sticky. Leave the cake in the tin until cold.

Icing

• Place all ingredients into a medium size mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon beat together until completely combined.

Recipe – Minestrone Soup

I like to bang out soup 6L at a time and just live off it J Here’s how I do my mega minestrone batch...

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 2 brown onions, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 chilli, chopped
• 150g pancetta, chopped
• 4 carrots, diced
• 2 sticks celery, diced
• 3 potatoes, diced
• 1/4 cabbage diced
• 400g red kidney beans
• 800g cannellini beans
• 3 zucchini, chopped
• 2 x 700g bottles of passata
• 2l chicken stock
• 1 cup pasta (macaroni works)
• Salt and pepper. 
• Parmesan to serve

Method

1. Place the onion, garlic, chilli, pancetta, carrots, celery, and potato in a large saucepan and stir to combine. Cook over high heat, uncovered, stirring often, for 5 minutes.
2. Add the red kidney beans, cannellini beans, zucchini, cabbage and cook for another 5 minutes
3. Add the passata and stock to the pan, cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
4. Increase heat to high. Add pasta and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, following packet directions or until pasta is al dente.
5. Season with salt and pepper. 
6. Ladle into serving bowls and sprinkle with parmesan
7. Serve immediately.