Wonderful Leftovers #1 (Roast Chicken)

I'm not a chicken fan... something to do with a weirdo sound designer staying with us many years ago in Yuendumu interrogating me over the cutting of vegetables on the same bread board that I had cut chicken on minutes before.. he put the fear of god into me about chicken, and it is has never left me.  My bloke, on the other hand, loves chicken... loves any flesh in fact.  So on Sunday night we had a large roast chicken which I picked over.., and on Monday night we had half a cold roast chicken to do something with for dinner.  My childhood spent poring over the Timelife Foods of the World series of cookbooks always stands me in good stead at moments like this, and I remembered a rice pie... Actually, what I really wanted to cook was a chicken, rice and almond dish I have eat at the wonderful Abla's in Carlton, Melbourne... but couldn't locate the recipe.  So, back to the pie.  I had tried the recipe once or twice before, without success.. but my skills as a home cook have progressed substantially, and I also read recipes in detail before changing them. So, I cooked this Rice Pie  with some major adaptations, and it was fab... and looked fab too.  So, now for the recipe....

Leek & Bacon Pie

 This is the first dish I cook with leeks,.. the second is soup and that's about it for me... although I have a vague memory of a japanese dish with leeks, mushrooms and soba noodles.. must research that one.

 Ingredients for Leek & Bacon Pie

1 bunch of leeks (usually 3 leeks)

Butter

3-4 rashes bacon

3 eggs, little beaten

1 tbsp cream

Pinch nutmeg

salt and freshly ground pepper

1/3 cup grated cheese (mature cheddar)

1/4 cup parmesan

+ your choice of pastry, eg. shortcrust, puff pastry or yeasted dough (my choice).. made with a half kilo of flour.

Method

1. Cut leeks lengthwise, then across into slices.  Place the sliced leeks in a large bowl or sink of cold water and pull apart with your hands to get rid of the dirt.  Strain thoroughly.

2. Melt butter in a large frying pan, and add leeks.  Saute over a low heat until soft.  Set aside.

3. Beat eggs in a large bowl, then mix in cheddar cheese and half the parmesan, and cream.

 4. Add leeks, salt, pepper and nutmeg and mix thoroughly.

5. Butter or oil a large-ish spring form pan -26/28cm.

6. Roll out pastry and line pan, leaving a good amount of pastry to cover the sides and hang over the edge around 1 cm.

7. Pour filling into pastry and sprinkle over remaining parmesan.

8. Fold over sides of pastry.

9. Bake in a medium over for around 40 minutes or until the pie is brown on top.

10. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

11.  Serve with baked root vegetables in season.

Leeks

My grandmother Daisy used to recommend that every household have a small grove of leeks growing in the wetter parts of the yard, down the back, for those times when onions were scarce.  Leeks are the same family as garlic and onions, but with a slightly different, milder flavour.  None-the-less, if push comes to shove, use a leek if you don't have an onion.

I love leeks, but I have none growing in my garden at the moment.  However they are cheap and plentiful at the moment (I think I paid $1.88 per leek at the Supermarket last week).  There are two things you can do with leeks: soup and pie.  I'm a pie head, so I always go with a leek and bacon pie.  And when I've made that, and still have a hankering for leeks, I make leek and potato pie.

Pork and Apple Pie

 I found this recipe a few weeks ago on a Sunday afernoon . I had two lovely pork fillets in the fridge and some apples.  This recipe is adapted from the Timelife Good Food Pork cookbook.
Ingredients
One quantity of shortcrust pastry make with 150gm flour and  75 gm of unsalted butter.
1 pork fillets thinly sliced across.
2-3 apples, cored, peeled and cut into wedges around 1 cm in width.
1 onion finely chopped
1 tbs butter
sage (4-6 leaves)
1/2 - 3/4 cup of white wine or cider
salt & pepper

American Apple Pie

This recipe has been adapted from the Time Life Foods of the World, American cookbook.  I have been cooking this apple pie since I was a teenager.

Ingredients:
One quantity of shortcrust pastry made with 350gm flour and 175gm unsalted butter kept in refrigerator for at least a half hour. (Refer someone in this blog).
For filling....
Approximately 1 kg apples (6-8 apples depending on size) cored and sliced into pieces around 1cm in width.
1 tbs lemon juice (approx, and to taste)
1/2 cup castor sugar (approx, and to taste)
1 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
pinch ground cloves and nutmeg
1 tbs flour
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 eg mixed with 1 tbs milk for glazing.
Extra castor sugar

Method:
1. Butter a pie dish, around 22cm in diameter.
2. Mix all filling ingredients together, except for the butter
2. Divide the pastry in half and roll out one half so that it can cover the inside and sides of the pie dish with a hang over.
3. Line pie dish with pastry.
4. Pour in filling and pile in the centre. Dot with extra butter.
5. Roll out remaining pastry to size of pie.
6. Wet edges of pastry in pie shell with water and lay over the second rolle out pastry.
7.Press the edges down and cut the pastry with around a 1 cm overhang.
8. Either pinch the edge of the pastry to form a pattern, or push the pastry against the sides.
9. Make a couple of gashes in the top of the pastry, and brush with wash and sprinkle with extra castor sugar.
(If you are feeling artistic, you can make some leaves and a rose for the top of the pie.)

Bake in a medium oven (180 degrees) for at least 40 minutes, and put alfoil on top if it looks like burning.
Serve at room temperature.

Apples & Apple Pies

Apples are looking great at the moment, with a good variety to choose from: Royal Gala, Fuji,  Johnathon, Pink Lady, Granny Smiths.  This great website http://www.oneadaysuperfood.com.au/apple_info has all of them.
When apples are cheap and good, I love to cook with them, particularly pies. (I love pies.) There are so many wonderful variations of apples and pastry to cook with, including: good ole' American apple pie, apple strudel, apple crumble, tarte tatin, French apple tart and savoury pork and apple pie.
I am going to give recipes for three of my favourite apple pies including: American Apple Pie, Pork and Apple Pie and Tarte Tatin.
The choice of apple is up to you but  I always prefer the tartness of Granny Smith to any other apple.
  The basic principle with any pie, and in particular apple pie, is to use the pastry to enclose, seal and cook your apples.   I would suggest that you don't want apple mush, which usually happens when you cook your apples ahead of time.  I like my apples cooked, but still in shape.  

Home-made drinks

Now, you don't always want to serve alcohol at events in Alice Springs, but what can you do instead?  I recently made up three drinks for an event including a spicy ginger lemonade, a tamarind soda and a pomegranate and orange blossom punch.  Basically each drink was a balance of sour and sweet, with added flavours such as ginger, orange blossom water and spices and pomegranate juice (Pomme) for colour.
Tomorrow I'm going to make two lemonades on live radio.  The first is a classic traditional Australian lemonade using lemons, sugar and lemon essence.  The second, is of course a Middle Eastern lemonade, almost identical to the Australian, with the lemon essence being replaced with orange blossom water.  For both, you will need to make a sugar syrup on one part sugar to two parts water, bring to the boil to dissolve the sugar and allow to cool.  Squeeze at least 6 lemons.
The following recipe is adapted from "Cookery, the Australian Way"

Lemon Cordial

1. Make up 1 quantity of sugar syrup and cool.
2. Add the juice of around six lemons (at least a cup).
3. Add 1/2 teaspoon of lemon assence.

To serve, add a small quantity of cordial to glass with ice and mint.  Add either sparkling mineral water or iced water.  Garnish with a slice of lemon.



Middle Eastern Lemonade
(Adapted from 'Great Vegetarian Dishes' by Kurma Dasa)

1. Make up 1 quantity of sugar syrup and cool.
2. Add the juice of around six lemons (at least a cup).
3. Add 2 teaspoons of orange blossom water.

To serve, add a small quantity of lemonade to glass with ice and mint.  Add either sparkling mineral water or iced water.  Garnish with a slice of lemon.


Indian Lemonade
(Adapted from  'Feast Bazaar' by Barry Vera)
Ingredients
Large piece of ginger (around 10 cm in length, grated)
1 cup sugar
1 cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
4-5 cardamom pads, bruised
10 -15 peppercorns
1 teaspoon roasted cummin seeds
(Ice, mint and either chilled water or sparkling mineral water to serve)

Method
Place all ingredients and 2 cups sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil.
Allow to simmer for around 1 hour, then place a lid on the pan and stand overnight.
Pour the liquid through a strainer lined with muslin and pull into a tight bag to squeeze out as much of the mixuture.

To serve, add a small-ish quantity (more than the recipes above) of lemonade to glass with ice and mint.  Add either sparkling mineral water or iced water.  Garnish with a slice of lemon.


Tip: try adding a few pieces or lemon peel to the sugar syrup when you make it up.