Month: October 2010

Potatoes au gratin a’la Pioneer Woman

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I have always made potatoes au gratin like my mother makes it, and that is a very good way. But sometimes it is good to try new things, right? So I tried Pioneer Woman’s version, and that was really good too!

It is less fiddly because than my mothers which require thin slices of potatoes, where as here Pioneer woman suggests chunks and not peeling the potatoes. To be honest, you don’t notice the potato peel at all, so why not skip it all the time?!

Potatoes au gratin, serves 3-4

10 medium-sized potatoes

knob of butter

2 cloves of garlic, pressed

350 ml single cream

150 ml milk

2 tbsp plain flour

salt

black pepper

grated cheddar

Wash the potatoes and leave the skin on. Slice the potatoes into quite thick slices (5 mm), tack them and cut them into four. Take an oven dish and smear the butter all over it, sides as well as the bottom. Place a third of the potatoes in the dish. Mix together cream, garlic, flour, salt and pepper and pour a third of it over the potatoes. Season it a bit extra. Place another layer of potatoes on top (half of what is left) and pour half the cream mixture on top, a bit extra of salt and pepper and the top layer. Bake in 200 C oven for 40 mins or so, with the dish covered in tin foil. When the cream is hot and bubbly and the potatoes are cooked, cover the top with grated cheese and place the dish under the grill for 10 minutes until the cheese is crisp and golden. Serve with any type of meat.

Chorizo and butter bean stew

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Christopher is of the opinion that I cook too much with butter and/or cream and sometimes I listen to what he has to say. 😉 Without any dairy products I tested (and altered) this recipe by Jamie Oliver. I’m very proud. 

Our nearest supermarket is a real messy one. The other day I was looking for glue for 15 minutes before I gave up, and before that I was searching for lightbulbs for 10 minutes because it wasn’t signposted or logical at all in there. On top of that, the fish counter is terrible, they only have salmon, and all over the shop they sell out or don’t stock it properly. It’s not for me. And since it’s not a Waitrose either (I heart Waitrose) I’m incredibly happy with my Ocado deliveries. It is great to avoid the stress of shopping while hungry on your way home from work, and lovely not to have to carry the heavy bags at all.  

Only downside is that when they are out of stock, they choose what to replace it with. In this case I had ordered proper chorizo sausages, but ended up with the thinly sliced version. No harm done, it tasted lovely, but the texture of the other sausage would have made it so much better. Oh well. Next time.

Chorizo and butterbean stew, serves 3-4

1 onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, pressed

250-200 g chorizo, sliced

olive oil

400 g tinned chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

a dash concentrated stock

salt and black pepper

2 tsp smoked paprika

400 g tinned butterbeans

a large handful spinach

optional: vegeble stock to thin the stew

Heat up some olive oil in a pan and fry the inion, garlic and chorizo for a couple of minutes, without browning very much. Add the tomatoes, stock, vinegar and spices and season to taste. Let it simmer for a few minutes, and add some stock if you think it is too thick. Add the beans and the spinach and let it simmer for another couple of minutes. Serve with rice and garlic bread. Autumnal and warming!

Burgers with potato wedges, parsnips and feta creme

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Beef mince is great weekday food. It is cheap, healthy and very versatile. I often make these burgers served with feta creme and potato wedges instead of in a bun.

Burgers with potato wedges, parsnips and feta creme, serves 2 + a lunch box

Burgers:

500 g beef mince

1 egg

3 tbsp milk 

ca 100 ml breadcrumbs

1,5 tsp sambal oelek

a splash of lemon juice

1 tsp onion granules or 1/2 onion, finely chopped

salt and white pepper

Potatoes and root vegetables:

5 potatoes

3 parsnips

a few carrots

olive oil

rosmary

salt, white pepper

Feta creme:

1/2 packet proper feta

200 ml creme fraiche

a splash of lemon juice

salt, white pepper

Peel the parnsips and perhaps the carrots (I used chantenays so it wasn’t necessary), cut into wedges. Wash the potatoes and cut into wedges as well, put it all in a roasting dish, drizzle over some olive oil and season. Toss and roast in 200C for about 45 minutes. 

Mix all the ingredients for the burgers apart from the mince. Leave it for a few minutes so the breadcrumbs can swell, then mix in the meat. Incorporate thoroughly and shape into burgers. Put them on a plate until needed. When the potatoes have 20 minutes left to cook, fry the burgers in a frying pan in a knob of butter and some oilve oil.

Crumble the feta in a bowl and mush it up with a fork, mix in the creme fraiche, squeeze in some lemon and season with salt and pepper.

I also served some broadbeans with this, sautéed for a few minutes in olive oil with some finely chopped onions, lemon juice and a few chilli flakes.

Nigella’s steak slice with lemon and thyme

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I really like Nigella. Even though she loves to eat in bed (I prefer a proper table) and has a spoon in her dressing gown pocket. 🙂  

Most of her recipes are really good, especially her cookbook Nigella Express is perfekt for weekdays when you’re in a rush.  This recipe, where you marinate the meat after cooking it, than before, comes from that cookbook.

 Do you like Nigella?

A slightly out of focus photo of my new Le Creuset dish, in the colour Granite. Love it!

 Steak slice med citron och timjan, serves 2

 300 g rump steak (preferrably thick)

 2 cloves of garlic, smashed up 

1/2 lemon, zest and juice

1 tsp salt

black pepper 

40 ml olive oil

 3 stalks of thyme, just the leaves 

Cut the fat off the meat and fry it in olive oil a couple of minutes (2-3 mins) on each side. Meanwhile mix the ingredients for the marinade. Put the meat in a dish and marinate each side for 4-5 minutes. Slice it into small pieces and put it back in the dish and serve it.  A potato gratin and broccoli are good accompaniments.

Lazy Saturday morning

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I love the unplanned weekends when you can sleep until you wake up by yourself and then potter around the house until your head feels awake too, and then make a nice breakfast and really enjoy it.

On weekdays I have my sparse breakfast when I get to work. Just creamy fruity yoghurt. I’m not very hungry in the mornings. But at the weekend, after a lie in, I actually am.

Today, I had oeufs en cocotte again. Please try it, it is just perfect for a lazy breakfast. Perfect.

Or why not try Eggs Benedict,

or sweet eggy bread,

an omelette,

or something a bit untraditional, like bruschetta 

or Toast Skagen?

Bon weekend!

Chapel Down

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When I moved to England two years ago I had no idea that there were vineyards here. During that time, even my parents neighbours in the south of Sweden has started a vineyard, and both there and here the climate is mild and suitable, so why not. The most famous vineyard in England is Chapel Down in Tenterden, Kent in the south-east.

So far I have only tried one of their wines, the Flint Dry and I must say, it is very good. The wine is (of course) dry and the mainly consists of Chardonnay, Huxelrebe and Bacchus. I find it quite fruity despite it being dry, and it was much nicer than I had imagined.  Why not try local produce when it comes to wines as well as food?!