recipes

chicken xacuti

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>A heavenly dish originally from Goa – pronounced “chakooty”. The chicken is marinated in freshly roasted spices and cooked slowly in sweet, fresh coconut juice. Perfectly Delightful!

Ingredients
1Kg chicken, cut into medium sized pieces
(substitute tofu, paneer or soya if veggie/vegan)
6 tbsp ghee or vegetable oil
6 -8 onions
Juice of 2 limes
Coconut juice either tinned or fresh
1 fresh coconut – grate the coconut and roast with two of the onions (sliced lengthwise) and a little ghee.
The coconut needs to turn a pale brown

The key is to roast the whole spices before grinding them. This brings out the nutty, warm flavors. To roast, heat a griddle over a moderate heat, add the spices, and shake the pan for 20 seconds. A lovely aroma will be released.

Roast and grind (to paste with a little water):
– Toasted coconut/onion mixture
– 2 tbsp coriander seeds
– 5 black peppercorns
– 10 dried red chilies (or less)
– 1tsp turmeric
– 4 cloves of garlic
– 1/2 inch piece cinnamon
– 1/2 nutmeg
– 3 tblsp aniseed
– 1tbsp poppy seeds

Method
• Chop four of the onions and fry until light brown.
• Add the chicken and brown.
• Add the ground paste, fry for a minute and then add the coconut milk.
• Cook until chicken is tender.
• Cut the remaining onions and add to the chicken.
• Boil for a few minutes then lower flame
• Add the thick coconut milk.
• Add salt if required.
• Simmer until sauce has thickened.
• Sprinkle over some limejuice and fresh coriander leaves prior to serving.

Enjoy with naan bread, chappatis or rice.

fettucini pollo e funghi

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>This is one of my favourite comfort foods, derived from a recipe first taught to me by my sister Annette. It is quick, easy an delicious, and anything but low fat, but the taste is divine: rich and creamy. Works just as well without the chicken.

Ingredients
500g chicken, diced
400g button mushrooms or sliced mushrooms
250g broccolli florets, chopped as small as you like (frozen works well)
1 small tin of Campbell’s condensed chicken soup
1 glass of milk
200g grated cheese
garlic
olive oil

Method
Fry the chicken pieces with the garlic and olive oil until golden brown.
Add the mushrooms and cook until soft.
Tip in the chicken soup and milk and stir until warmed up.
Add the broccolli and cook until soft (this will obviously take longer if using frozen).
At this point put your fettucini (or rigatoni or whatever) on to cook.
Throw in your grated cheese a bit at a time and stir in until melted to make the sauce as cheesy as you want.
Serve immediately with lots of freshly ground black pepper.

marilyn’s dips

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>Marilyn is an interesting woman, the PA for the Chairman of the London Ambulance Service. When you meet her first she appears incredibly sophisticated and urbane. However this polished veneer hides a wicked sense of humour, and a glass of wine or two usually unleashes an uproarious laugh worthy of a fishwife.

Here are some of her favourite things to have on the table as you drink.

Hoummus b’Tahini

Makes approx 3 cups Make sure you leave enough time to soak the chickpeas overnight – or use tinned, they are just as good.

1 1/2 cups chick peas, soaked overnight
2 tsp salt
approx 2 cloves garlic
3/4 cup tahini (white, slightly bitter sesame paste – obtained from food stores or delis and keeps indefinitely)
1/2 cup lemon juice
pinch cayenne and 2 tbs chopped parsley to garnish

Drain soaked chickpeas, place in pot, add 3 times their amount of water. Add 1 tsp salt and boil vigorously for about 10 minutes, turn heat down, cover saucepan and simmer about an hour until they are very soft. Drain liquor (keep liquor) and reserve.

Reserve a few whole cooked chick peas for garnish. Puree remainder. Crush garlic with remaining teaspoon salt, add to puree. Slowly beat in tahini and lemon juice alternately. Blend in little of the reserved cooking liquid to make mixture creamy consistency. Adjust salt and lemon.

Baba Ghannouj

1 large eggplant
1/4 cup lemon juice
4-5 tbs tahini
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tsp salt

Either roast eggplant in hot oven until soft and outside blackened (15-20 minutes) or hold onto stem and place over open grill turning until the skin is charred. Allow to cool.

Remove skin carefully, mash pulp thoroughly and slowly beat in lemon juice alternately with tahini.Crush garlic with salt and mix to a paste. Blend into eggplant mixture.

sam’s prawn curry

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>Our new Aussie friends Sam and Amanda live just down the road. Sam is convinced this great curry will prevent Alzheimer’s disease because it includes lots of brain food. Whether this is true or not, it is a delicious hearty curry that can be made with fish or prawns or both.

Ingredients

1lb king prawns or meaty white fish
1 medium red capsicum cut into large pieces
1 medium green capsicum cut into small pieces
½lb unpeeled sweet potatoes, cubed
½ pint chicken stock
A handful of semi-sundried tomatoes
2 teasp olive oil
1 medium chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped or minced
2 tablesp curry powder*
½ teasp sugar (optional)
A handful of chopped coriander

*instead of shop-bought curry powder I prefer to use the ingredients below, but either is OK:
1 teasp turmeric
1-2 teasp garam masala
2 cloves
2 cardamom pods
1-2 teasp chilli powder or 1 hot red chilli, chopped

Method

In a medium saucepan, bring red capsicum, sweet potatoes and chicken stock to a boil over a medium-high heat. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until the sweet potatoes are just tender (about 10-15 minutes).

Meanwhile in a large non-stick pan, heat the oil over a medium-high heat. Fry the onion and garlic until lightly browned. Add turmeric, garam masala, chilli, cloves and cardamom pods (or curry powder) and cook for about a minute. Remove from heat.

Reserving the stock, transfer the cooked sweet potatoes and capsicum to a food processor and blend until smooth (or just use a potato masher on it). Add to the onion mixture. Then add the rest of the stock, and ½ teasp sugar if needed, and mix well. Bring back to the boil.

Add the prawns/fish, the green capsicum and the sundried tomatoes, and cook until the prawns/fish are cooked. If you prefer, use your wooden spoon to break up the fish when cooked into bite-sized pieces.

Stir the coriander into the curry and serve with rice or naan bread.

tortellini with creamy pesto and bacon

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>Mena and I went to the Melbourne Food and Wine Show and went to a cookery demonstration. This dish blew us away. The creamy rocket pesto is to die for.

Ingredients
625g packet of fresh spinach and ricotta tortellini
6 rashers of streaky bacon, rind removed, cut into strips
400g mushrooms sliced
100g semi-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced
Shaved parmesan

Sauce
½ bunch rocket, ends trimmed
½ cup (firmly packed) continental (flat leaf) parsley leaves
2 garlic cloves
½ cup shredded parmesan
2 tbsp toasted pine nuts
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
125ml buttermilk

Method

Blend first five sauce ingredients till finely chopped

With the blender running add the oil and lemon juice to form a smooth paste

Transfer to a large bowl

Stir in the buttermilk

Cook the tortellini, drain and return to the pan

Cook bacon and mushroom over a medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes until the bacon is crisp

Add the tomatoes and toss through

Combine the pesto, pasta and bacon mixture until well combined

Serve topped with fresh parmesan

mummum’s fairy cakes

~ maireaddoyle ~ Leave a comment

>My mum’s recipe is really easy to remember and to increase or decrease according to how many you want. You can make them with just raisins in, or make them without raisins and decorate them with cream or jam and coconut or whatever you want.

Ingredients
Raisins 125g (optional)
Butter 125g
Caster sugar 125g
Self raising flour 125g
2 eggs beaten
1 teasp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

Method
Pre-heat oven to 190˚C

Beat butter and sugar till fluffy

Add egg a little at a time, whisking as you go

Add raisins (optional)

Beat in the vanilla

Stir in half the flour

Add milk and the rest of the flour

Fold until well combined

Spoon into cups and bake 10-12 minutes or until golden on top

Cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack