<![CDATA[Cook Culinary Studio

<![CDATA[Cook Culinary Studio - Recipe Blog]]>Thu, 29 Jul 2010 23:58:47 +0200Weebly<![CDATA[Cheats Ferrero Rochers ]]>Mon, 26 Jul 2010 15:01:05 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/07/cheats-ferrero-rochers.html

If ever you had reason to purchase a R60 jar of organic cold pressed coconut oil, this is it. You will only use a smidgen of the oil, allowing you to change your lifestyle and use the rest for stir fry’s and other healthy cooking but you will no doubt make this over and over and over again. It works out to about half the price of the original ferrero rochers and tastes as good.

I also found the coconut oil to be fabulous mixed with white melting chocolate to use for chocolate crafts.

Cheats Ferrero Rochers makes 24
250g milk or dark chocolate, which ever you prefer
25g coconut oil
½ cup rice crispies
½ cup crushed nuts
nutella

1.Melt chocolate and coconut oil and add the nuts and rice crispies to combine.
2.Spoon 1 tsp of the mixture into each hole of a 24 hole mini muffin pan.
3.Freeze for 2-3 minutes just to cool and set. Add about ½ -1 teaspoon of nutella to the top of the mixture and then top with remaining mixture.
4.Pop back in the freezer for about 5 minutes to firm up then remove from muffin pan. These can also be kept in the fridge in summer.

]]><![CDATA[Spicy Lamb and Potato Curry]]>Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:51:17 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/07/spicy-lamb-and-potato-curry.html

So the sun came out in just the nick of time and while you may be reverting to cooler food, there is always room for the king of curries, regardless of the weather.

I use deboned shoulder of lamb, which is more succulent and tender than leg. I also serve my curries with non traditional salsa’s and this curry benefits from the addition of Greek yoghurt when cooked. Just blob some on top or swirl it through. Otherwise make the cooling cucumber and hot tomato sambal to accompany. Recipes below.

My spicy Lamb and potato Curry
Canola oil to fry (has a lower flashpoint than sunflower so the seeds will not burn)

1 bay leaf
4 green cardamom pods
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds

2 onions, peeled and finely chopped

800-900g small lamb cubes (deboned shoulder)

2 tsp fresh ginger grated
2 tsp garlic

2-4 tsp Durban masala (or substitute with fresh chillies)
½ tsp cinnamon powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 TBS coriander powder
1-2 tsp salt (or to taste)

1 TBS sugar
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 TBS tomato paste
½-3/4 cup water *

4 potatoes cut into small cubes

1 packet (30g) fresh coriander, chopped
1 TBS garam masala

1.       Heat the oil in a pot, and add 1st lot of ingredients/seeds. Toast lightly
2.       Add the onion. Fry for about 5-7 minutes until slightly browned
3.       Add the lamb and stir-fry for a few minutes, then add the remaining 3rd lot of ingredients
4.       Cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes, till the lamb starts to brown
5.       Add the tomatoes, sugar and water bring to a boil
6.       Place the lid on the pot and cook for about 1 ½ hours or till tender but still firm ( I find leg cubes need longer)
7.       Add potatoes, pop lid back on and cook till potatoes are cooked through but still firm. (30-40 min)
8.       To serve sprinkle over garam masala and fold in the coriander

COOK’S Notes: if you do not want to add potatoes then leave out the water-as there will be too much liquid in the pot and you could always add a bit of water later on. If you only have yellow curry powder, omit the turmeric. Stock may be used instead of water just reduce the salt.

SENSATIONAL SAMBALS

Cooling cucumber and mint raita
Combine 1 cup Greek yoghurt, 1 small cucumber deseeded and finely chopped, 3 TBS finely chopped mint and season with salt and pepper.

Hot tomato and chilli sambal
Combine 1 punnet of small cherry tomatoes halved, 3 TBS chopped coriander , and combine with 1-2 TBS sweet chilli sauce. For heat add 1 chilli finely chopped or ½ tsp dried chilli flakes. Chopped red or white onion or sliced spring onion can be added.

Spiced apple sambal
Combine 2 peeled, chopped apples with few tablespoons lemon juice, 2 TBS raisins, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, 2 chopped spring onion, 60ml walnuts, chopped and 1 cup Greek yoghurt.

Coconut and Banana Raita
Drizzle 2 firm diced bananas with 1 TBS lemon juice. Add 1 cup Greek yoghurt,
2 TBS desiccated coconut and ½ tsp sugar. Stand for 1 hour and allow flavours to develop.

Pineapple sambal
Combine 1 small pineapple, diced, 3 TBS fresh mint, 3 chopped spring onions 1 cup Greek yoghurt and scatter over sunflower seeds.

Pomegranate raita
Combine 1 cup Greek yoghurt with 2 chopped spring onions and ½ cup pomegranate rubies

Fresh mint chutney
In a food processor combine 1 cup mint leaves, 6 spring onions chopped, ½ tsp chilli, 1 tsp garlic, 2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp garam masala, 4 TBS lemon juice and 2 TBS water

Papaya and coconut sambal
Fry a small finely chopped onion, add 2 tsp brown sugar, 1 tsp cumin, a sprinkle of masala, ½ cup desiccated coconut and 2 tsp brown sugar. Fry till crisp and dry and dip wedges of papaya into the mix

]]><![CDATA[Chocolate and Orange]]>Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:22:08 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/07/chocolate-and-orange.html

In celebration of my new course: Chocolate and orange I decided on an indulgent recipe to kick off with: It’s not quick, it’s not that easy but this is the height of indulgence…..

Jamie Oliver’s baked chocolate tart

Short crust sweet pastry
125g butter
100g icing sugar
Pinch of salt
250g flour
2 egg yolks
2 TBS water

In a processor lightly and quickly cream the butter sugar and salt and then pulse in the flour and egg yolks. When the pastry has come together, add the water.
Gently work to form a dough and then refrigerate in cling wrap for an hour.
Roll on a floured non stick mat and carefully transfer the pastry into a large tart flan dish or about 12 individual tart pans. Rest for another hour in the fridge and then bake blind for 15 minutes at 160 ˚ C.

Filling:
140 g butter
150g chocolate (70%)
8TBS NoMu cocoa powder, sifted
Small pinch of salt
4 eggs
200g castor sugar
3 TBS golden syrup
3 medium heaped TBS crème fraiche

Place the butter, chocolate, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl over a pan of simmering water and allow to melt slowly. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until well creamed and then add the syrup and crème fraîche. Stir chocolate into this mixture and pour into the pastry shell. Bake at 150 ˚C for 40-45 minutes. A crust will form on top during cooking. Remove tart from oven and allow about 45 minutes to cool-during which time the skin will crack and the filling will shrink slightly!

Serve with balls of crème fraîche

]]><![CDATA[ONE- TWO- THREE back to school very berry muffins]]>Wed, 14 Jul 2010 10:42:10 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/07/one-two-three-back-to-school-muffins-very-berry-muffins.html

Ok..I know ...I have already featured blueberry muffins, but I could not resist posting some different ones. To be perfectly honest I had never heard of 1 2 3 muffins and these delicious muffins (almost as yummy as cupcakes) were made by a friend Alice.

These are perfect lunch box fillers-ok we are not talking nutrition here, we are talking better-than-the-cheap-sweet junk they sell at tuck shops (well at least at our school anyway). It’s a sweet treat but with no preservatives and you can squeeze in any berries you like! I am sure bananas would work just as well.

ONE -TWO- THREE Back To school very berry muffins

ONE cup yoghurt, ONE cup canola oil
TWO cups castor sugar TWO eggs
THREE cups self raising flour

ONE     Combine the yoghurt oil and eggs, add sugar and gently mix in the flour
TWO     Fill about 14-16 cupcake wrappers in muffin pans about halfway, push in 6 blueberries or whatever you fancy
THREE Bake at 180 ˚C for 15-20 minutes

Feel free to wrap half the muffins well and freeze so you will always have a treat for lunch boxes at hand.

]]><![CDATA[Creamy but lower-in-fat Asian style Chicken ]]>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 10:48:50 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/06/creamy-but-lower-in-fat-asian-style-chicken.html

I am all for using cream in mid week cooking but in an effort to try and cut back on fat in my new winter course (packed with sugar, butterscotch, chocolate and butter) I did some comparisons on the fat content of several creamy additives…hence my little breakdown and the reason for this luscious lower-in-fat mid week meal! I have found that coconut milk brands vary in fat content so check the tin first-you may be better off buying Spar brand regular milk than another brand of lite milk!

I could not paste the spreadsheet here, so if you have not received my newsletter and you would like to view it-please mail me at debbiehannibal@vodamail.co.za

This recipe actually calls for chicken thighs and is perfect for braaing. I decided to try using the popular choice of chicken breast for mid week cooking instead. Its very quick and full of flavour.

Creamy but lower-in-fat Asian style Chicken
4 large free range chicken breasts
½ cup sweet chilli sauce
90ml coconut milk
2 TBS lime juice
2 TBS finely chopped coriander
3 TBS chopped roasted peanuts
2 tsp soya sauce

Flatten the chicken breasts slightly with your hand, so they are the same height and place them on a non stick cooking mat, on a baking tray
Mix the remaining ingredients together and place on top of the chicken
Grill or cook on a high heat for 12-15 minutes or until cooked through-basting the chicken with any surrounding sauce

I served mine with a strawberry and poppy salad with low fat feta and Greek style potatoes cooked in lemon juice and chicken stock.

]]><![CDATA[Baked sweet potato and butternut curry with coconut cream ]]>Sat, 19 Jun 2010 09:29:01 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/06/baked-sweet-potato-and-butternut-curry-with-coconut-cream.html

As most of you know, I tried my best to convert to a vegetarian and if I was successful this dish would have kept me content…..

While all new dishes are exciting to sample, they quickly loose their appeal when I taste them on an ongoing basis during a course. This is one of those rare exceptions …Perhaps like eating chocolate on a daily basis. I happily ate this curry for supper and lunch every week for almost 2 months.

I am not a fan of vegetable curries as the name always conjures up images of cauliflower and frozen vegetables in a boiled hot sauce.

This beauty is baked, and the end result is creamy, aromatic and sweet..gosh and as I write this I am craving my fix….

You just CANNOT leave out the lentils..dont even attempt to try this without them!

Baked sweet potato and butternut curry with coconut cream (6 as a main, 10-12 side)
1 TBS coconut oil or canola oil
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp jeera (cumin) seeds

3 large onions quartered and sliced
1 tsp grated ginger
2 tsp Durban masala
2 tsp garlic
2 tsp salt
500g butternut pieces/cubes
500g sweet potato pieces/cubes (cut slightly smaller than the butternut)

1 tin of lentils, drained and rinsed
Juice of 2 oranges and peel or zest of 1 orange (no pith)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tin (400ml) coconut cream
1 bunch coriander, chopped

1.       Heat oil and add the first lot of spices
2.       Add the onions and cook for about 5-8 minutes, till soft
3.       Add the ginger, garlic, masala and salt and fry for about 3 minutes
4.       Oil a heatproof casserole dish
5.       Layer all the vegetables with the onion, add orange juice and peel/zest, cinnamon, and drizzle over the coconut cream
6.       Cover with foil and bake covered at 200 ˚C for 40 minutes, remove foil and bake for a further 25-30 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
7.       Scatter with coriander to serve

Serve with a basmati pilaff

Cook’s notes: A tin of butterbeans (with the juice) can be added to the bottom of the casserole dish. Aubergine/eggplant/brinjal can be sliced and added to make this a heartier dish. Larger aubergines may need to be salted first.

]]><![CDATA[Ayoba Nachos]]>Thu, 10 Jun 2010 23:25:55 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/06/ayoba-nachos.html

Just because I am supporting Bafana Bafana does not mean I have to put up with non- free range, hormone ridden Biltong, Braai’s and Boerewors!

Mexican is my food of choice for tomorrow and I am going meat free!

Darren, a friend and good cook came up with adding Philadelphia cheese to the nachos. Unlike feta or other firm cheese, the Philly retains its soft creaminess long after the dish cools down and the other cheese starts to turn a bit rubbery. Essentially this dish becomes a layered taste and texture sensation of crispy nachos, sweet and hot salsa, grilled cheese and then soft creamy heaven….

Feel free to make your own salsa or just cheat and get in front of the TV earlier. There are various bottled salsa’s on the market (Woolies, pick n pay all stock) –if you can’t find a hot one add some sliced jalapeño pepper.

The only snack on par with this is jalapeño peppers stuffed with Philly, drizzled with chilli oil and roasted…also one of Darren’s DELICIOUS specialities!

Enjoy the game and opening ceremony tomorrow.

Here is some great GEES from the girls at In Good Co:
Go to http://youareingoodcompany.blogspot.com/2010/06/goods-for-nothing_10.html for FREE worldcup soccer cupcake wrappers-just download, print and assemble.

Ayoba Nachos
1 packet of nachos
½ jar of ready made hot Salsa (you may not need the whole jar..)
1 block Philadelphia cream cheese, cubed
1 cup Mozzarella and extra mature cheddar grated (buy them ready grated at Woolies)

Arrange the nachos chips on a platter and dollop with the hot salsa. Add cubes of the Philadelphia cream cheese and top with grated mozzarella and cheddar.
Place in a hot oven or under the grill till the cheese is melted and starting to brown.

You can add additional jalapeños or coriander for garnish
Guacamole can also be added to the dish –I just felt it was too many layers of sauce and the grilled cheese and salsa was sufficient!

]]><![CDATA[Father's Day Oxtail and the POT lowdown]]>Sun, 30 May 2010 17:07:35 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/05/oxtail-and-the-pot-lowdown.html

Many customers have seen me whip out my “Jamie Oliver” pot for large dishes. The cheap and scratched wobbly aluminium Tiger pot is the only one fit for feeding large crowds, with a reasonable price tag of around R200. I bought the pot about 8 years ago, specifically to cook about 6 kg of oxtail, and have since unashamedly whipped it out at COOK. I always cook my oxtail overnight-covering the handles of the pot in foil and placing it, in my huge oven and waking up to the smell of sweet and succulent oxtail meat.

Just as a best friend or sister can influence your shopping and casually shrug off an expensive price tag, my brother in law recently exerted the same malicious influence. We popped into Fournos for a cappuccino and croissant and left Adams with the king of casserole pots-a large Le Crueset.

Dinner plans of going out were immediately altered and we sped off to Delft for oxtail pieces, arguing all the way home about who had the best recipe. We discovered the recipes were quite similar but since he was cooking, I indulged him and allowed him to do it his way. The result: Well, that’s like choosing between ripe cheese and chocolate. Two delicious recipes made in 2 vastly different pots. It all depends on what you have to work with-be it a pricey Le Crueset, cheapie Tiger or the old Corning Ware casserole dish.

And so I have included BOTH oxtail recipes: “His” and “Hers”, though both omit the traditional haricot beans, an ingredient which in my opinion, does nothing for the taste, texture or appearance of this velvety sweet dish.

We served it on mash laced with far too much butter, whole grain mustard and grated parmesan.

“My” secret is fresh orange juice and zest, mustard powder and oregano.

“Shaun’s” secret is raw carrot and celery juice, bacon and fresh thyme. He left out the bacon for me this time, and adjusted the seasoning accordingly.

NoMu fond is a concentrated liquid stock, use 2 TBS Ina Paarman beef stock instead.

The timing of this recipe was a bit off the mark and was made 2 days before the recent media outrage regarding the OHIO dairy farm. For optimum health eat red meat rarely and remember there is no such thing as cheap meat. Buy from a reputable butcher or supplier and rather pay more for free range and organic.

My Oxtail (6-8)
2kg oxtail
5 TBS cornflour
1 tsp pepper
1-2 tsp salt
2 TBS mustard powder
1 onion
6 garlic cloves
2-3 cups red wine
2 tins chopped tomatoes
4 orange peel twists (no pith) or grate some zest
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 punnet button onions
Small punnet carrots cubed/diced
Fresh oregano and bay leaves
1 TBS Nomu lamb or beef fond

Coat the oxtail pieces in the salt, pepper, mustard powder and 5TBS cornflour
Brown the oxtail in a pan in batches and remove.
In the same fat fry the chopped onion with garlic
Either place in a casserole dish, or put back into your cheap Tiger pot
Add remaining ingredients, tuck in the herbs and cover. Either pop the Tiger pot in your oven and leave overnight (from 7PM) at 100 ˚C or in the casserole dish at 160 ˚C for 4 hours.

The smell the next morning is indescribable and there is no doubt you will be eating oxtail on toast at 7AM.

Shaun’s Oxtail (6-8)
2kg oxtail
250g streaky bacon chopped
1 cup flour
1 tsp pepper
1 onion
6 garlic cloves
2 cups red wine
1 cup water
1 TBS tomato paste
2 punnets small
cherry tomatoes
2 celery sticks, juiced
1 punnet button onions
Large packet carrots (keep 3 and juice the rest)
Fresh thyme
1 TBS Nomu lamb or beef Fond

In a fruit and veg juicer-place all but 3 carrots and the celery and juice. Retain the juice and discard the pulp
Coat the oxtail pieces in the flour salt and pepper
Brown the oxtail in a pan in batches and remove.
In the same fat fry the chopped onion with garlic and bacon
Place in a casserole dish (we used the Le Crueset pot)
Add remaining ingredients, including the remaining 3 carrots cubed and the celery and carrot juice and cover. Cook for about 3 ½ -4hours at 170 ˚C

]]><![CDATA[Dry fried coconut and ginger chicken curry]]>Fri, 21 May 2010 18:43:12 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/05/dry-fried-coconut-and-ginger-chicken-curry.html

This is quite an unusual recipe, using minimum ingredients and taking little time to produce an aromatic and exotic dish.

As I mentioned in my newsletter, I have altered the recipe, using thighs instead of breasts and tweaking the method ever so slightly but enough to make me hesitate using its original name of chicken KOTE dried fried curry.

As I remind everyone on my current Bollywood course, matching one “traditional and authentic” Indian recipe to another is impossible as Indian cuisine is as diverse as South African cuisine.

Never the less, lets just call it dry fried coconut chicken curry and thank Gary for a great meal, which fed myself and 3 hungry but happy men.

Dry fried coconut chicken curry (4)
1 pack (about 700g) of Woolies free range skinless and boneless chicken thighs, cubed
2 large onions, sliced
Oil for frying
Large chunk grated ginger
1 heaped tsp garlic
3 tsp Durban Masala*
150ml desiccated coconut

Fry the onions in the oil for about 5-8 minutes till slightly browned
Add the ginger and garlic
Add the cubed chicken and fry till cooked
Add the masala and coconut
If frying on an electric stove, pop the lid on the pot, put the stove off and leave for 20 minutes
If using gas, turn down the heat, pop the lid on the pot and cook for about 3 minutes and then turn the gas off and leave the chicken to steam a bit longer
Warm gently before serving with basmati rice (or a Pilaff from the Bollywood course) and a yoghurt raita ( I made one using ¼ cucumber seeded and cubed, 1 cup Greek yoghurt and seasoned it with salt, pepper and sugar).

COOK’S NOTES: I used Durban Masala (a red curry powder) which is quite hot. Substitute this with 4TBS Chicken Masala curry powder.

I must confess I am all “pilaffed” out so I made mash potato with lightly toasted cumin and fennel seed butter and we were licking the bowl. The curry, though moist, is dry so the velvety and buttery mash was a good accompaniment

]]><![CDATA[2 minute celebration loaf]]>Sat, 15 May 2010 13:46:45 +0200http://www.cookstudio.co.za/1/post/2010/05/2-minute-celebration-loaf.html

This loaf takes 2 minutes to make and another 50 minutes to bake, yielding a moist orange or lemon (your preference) loaf with a rich icing.

Made today (the 15th), I have called it a celebration loaf because we have had so much luck today: Even receiving a limited edition Nelson Mandela coin as change in the pre paid parking meter!
7 years ago today our beautiful daughter was born and today we celebrate with friends, family and a celebration loaf

2 minute celebration loaf
In a blender combine:
125g butter
1 ½ cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 extra large eggs
190 ml sugar
Zest of 1 orange or lemon
½ cup milk

Pulse till combined, pour into a greased loaf pan and bake 180 ˚C for 50 minutes. (this can be done by hand)

Cool completely then remove and ice

Icing
Combine till smooth and creamy:
½ tub (125g) full fat cream cheese
3 cups icing sugar
2 tsp vanilla paste

for Alex

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