Tuesday 26 June 2012

Chicken Casserole

This is a quick and easy recipe with minimal prep time, throw it in the oven and enjoy the extra time away from the kitchen. Present a divine meal for dinner which looks and tastes like you spend hours in the kitchen.

What's required:

800g of chicken pieces
Small robot peppers sliced in julienne strips - 1 each
1 can of tomato and onion mix
1/2t of rosemary
2T oil
Salt and Freshly ground black pepper
1T of Ginger and Garlic paste
1 cup of parboiled rice
2T of paprika

Method:

Preheat your oven to about 180 degrees. Add all your ingredients (excluding rice) onto a marinex and place your chicken pieces on top. Place in oven uncovered for about 20 minutes.
Remove and add your parboiled rice. Place in oven for about another 20-30 minutes or until chicken is cooked.

Nothing easier, a full meal that serves 4 in no time and effort.

Carrot Cake


My favourite of all desserts is Carrot Cake. I will have it for breakfast, lunch and dinner....and  most times I eat the whole cake...lol!

Most cakes are dry, some oily...but this is a perfect recipe, or at least I think so...


Ingredients:

250 ml - Oil
300 ml - Sugar
3 - Eggs
2 Cups - Flour
5ml - Bicarbonate of soda
5ml - ground nutmeg
7ml - Ground Cinnamon
10ml - Baking Powder
5 Carrots - Grated
Chopped Pecans - handful

Beat eggs and sugar together and add oil. Sift dry ingredients and add to the liquid mix. Add the grated carrots and pecans.
Pour into a greased baking tin and bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour oat 180 degrees celcius.

Icing:

50ml - soft butter
2ml - vanilla essence
700ml - Icing sugar

Mix ingredaients together and ice when cake is cool. For a touch of excellence, add in about 1/2 cup of cream cheese to your icing mix.

Fish Curry

Curried fish is best enjoyed with Barracuda, John Dory or Butter fish. The recipe I have put together is once again slightly different to the original fish curry recipe. The ingredients are not overpowering giving you a perfect balance in taste.

As always, its simple to make and I think tastes good.

Ingredients:

500-800 g of fish or 4 large slices cut into smaller pieces
3T oil
1 can of tomato and onion mix
5 cloves of garlic
2 green chilli (slit in 2)
1t of coriander powder
1/2 t of tumeric powder
2 T of chilli powder (can be adjusted according to your heat level)
1t of freshly crushed ginger
1 pinch of cumin seeds
1t of garam masala
2T of tamarind
1 pinch of mustard seeds
Salt
Handful of freshly chopped coriander

Putting it together:

Heat oil and add your mustard seeds & cumin seeds. As soon as it starts to pop, add your onion and tomato mix, along with your chilli, pressed garlic and crushed ginger. Let simmer for about 5 minutes then add your coriander powder, tumeric powder, chilli powder and garam masala. Mix well and let cook for about 5-8 minutes not letting it burn, add a little water if necessary.
Now add your fish pieces and salt to taste. We don't want to add alot of salt, as the tamarind will make the curry a little salty/sour, about 1t will do and you can add more if required once the curry is nearly done.
Cover and let cook. In the meantime, mix your tamarind with water separating the seed from the paste, use your fingers if you have to.
Once done, pour the tamarind water to the curry using a tea strainer. We are going to let the spices infuse and fish to get a little flaky on medium heat.
It should be ready in 30-45 minutes. Remove from heat and add your coriander leaves.

Enjoy with rice or fresh bread.