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Slow-Cooked Saucy Curry

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Slow-Cooked Saucy Curry
Slow-Cooked Saucy Curry

1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
5ml salt
15ml ground ginger
15ml curry powder
15ml turmeric
15ml sumac
15ml sugar
30ml lemon juice
2kg stewing lamb
2 x 400g tins of coconut milk
750ml + 250ml vegetable stock
5 carrots, peeled and cubed
5 potatoes, peeled and cubed

Place a large saucepan over medium-high heat and pour in enough oil to cover the base.
Add the onion and cook until soft.
Add the garlic, salt, ginger, curry powder, turmeric, sumac, sugar and lemon juice and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
Add the lamb and stir to cover the meat in the spices.
Pour 1 can of coconut milk and 750ml stock into the saucepan and bring to a boil.
Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for an hour.
Add the carrots and potato and pour in the 250ml stock.
Simmer for another hour.
Now add the last can of coconut milk and crusty some of the potato against the sides of the saucepan to thicken the sauce.
Cook for 5 minutes and serve on steamed rice.

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Ice Cream Loaf

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Ice Cream Loaf
Ice Cream Loaf

300g ice cream
225g self-raising flour
food colouring, 3 colours of your choice
250ml icing sugar, sifted
vermicelli sprinkles

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a 22cm x 12cm loaf tin with baking paper.
Scoop the ice cream into a mixing bowl and allow it to melt. (You may melt it in the microwave as long as you don’t allow it to become hot).
Beat with an electric whisk until it is really fluffy.
Sift the flour over the ice cream and fold it in until well combined.
Spoon the batter into a loaf tin and randomly drip some food colouring on to the batter.
Swirl the colouring through with the tip of a knife.
Bake the loaf for 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack.
Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add 30ml of boiling water.
Mix through and pour over the top of the loaf, allowing it to run down.
Sprinkle the vermicelli over and allow 20 minutes to set.
Slice and serve.

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Dressed-Up Butternut Soup

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Dressed-Up Butternut Soup
Dressed-Up Butternut Soup

This recipe yields enough soup for 6 people.

olive oil
3 medium butternuts
800g butternut, cut into 1,5cm chunks
1 onion, chopped
1 apple, peeled and chopped
2 x 400g tins of coconut milk
250ml vegetable stock
10ml curry powder
5ml ground ginger
small flowers and herbs to garnish

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a baking sheet with alluminium foil.
Peel and half the butternuts.
Cut a 7cm x 3cm rectangle of butternut from each halved veg.
Place a pan on medium-high heat and add a splash of oil to it.
Brown the butternut on its 6 flat sides and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Arrange the butternut chunks alongside, drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkling of salt.
Roast in the oven until just cooked. (about 15 minutes but check it by inserting a toothpick)
Place a large saucepan on medium heat, add some olive oil and the onion and cook until soft.
Add the cubed butternut, apple, curry powder and ginger and stir-fry for a minute or two.
Pour in one of the tins of coconut milk as well as the stock.
Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
Insert an immersion blender into the saucepan and blitz until completely smooth.
Pour in the other tin of coconut milk and bring the soup back to a gentle simmer for another 10 minutes.
Taste the soup and season with salt and white pepper.

Ladle the soup into soup bowls and place a roasted butternut triangle in the centre of each soup bowl.
Decorate the top surface of the butternut with small flowers and herbs to serve.

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New Retro Apricot Chicken

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on New Retro Apricot Chicken
New Retro Apricot Chicken

125ml flour
45ml vegetable oil
8 chicken breasts, skin and bone removed
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
15ml sumac
10ml salt
2 x 400g tins of halved apricots
250ml chicken stock
almond flakes

Add the flour to a shallow bowl and season with salt.
Place a large, heavy-based frying pan over medium-high heat and add the oil.
Dip the chicken in the flour to coat both sides and fry in batches for 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown. (Add extra oil to the pan if you need to)
Keep the browned chicken on the side.
Add the onion to the pan and cook until soft.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for one minute.
Sprinkle the sumac and salt over and stir.
Pour the syrup and fruit of one of the tins of apricot into a blender and process until smooth.
Pour into the pan, add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken breasts.
Cook for 20 minutes with a lid on, stirring every now and then.
Drain the second tin of apricots and add the fruit to the pan.
Cook for another 2-3 minutes until the sauce has thickened.
Serve on couscous with almond flakes scattered over.


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Chocolate Crunch Bars

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Chocolate Crunch Bars
Chocolate Crunch Bars

750ml Rice Krispies (puffed rice cereal)
250ml peanut butter, I like the crunchy
125ml maple syrup
250g chocolate, chopped
60ml butter, cubed

Line a 200cm x 200cm baking tin with baking paper.
Add the Rice Krispies to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Add the peanut butter, syrup, chocolate and butter to a saucepan and place over a very low heat until melted.
Remove from the heat and stir through.
Pour this mixture over the Rice Krispies and mix until well combined.
Spoon into the prepared baking tin, level it out and refrigerate for one hour.
Cut into bars.

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Banana-Meatball Bake

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Banana-Meatball Bake
Banana-Meatball Bake

This recipe makes about 30 medium sized meatballs.

Meatballs:
4 slices white bread, crusts cut off
500ml water
1kg minced/ground beef
2 eggs
15ml salt
2,5ml ground coriander
2,5ml ground cumin
5ml white pepper
10ml ground ginger
125ml flour
vegetable oil

Banana and Onion Sauce:
3 onions, sliced
10ml ground turmeric
20ml curry powder
20ml sugar
25ml flour
30ml apricot jam
50ml vinegar
500ml water
4 bananas, sliced
125ml desiccated coconut

For the meatballs:
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and spray a large ceramic dish with cooking spray.
Place the bread in a bowl and pour over the water.
Stand for 1 minute. Drain the water and squeeze out any excess.
Add the bread to a large mixing bowl and break it up.
Add the minced meat, eggs, salt coriander, cumin, ginger and white pepper.
Mix together with your hands, squeezing it through your fingers.
Roll medium sized meatballs (about 15ml scoop) and place them on a baking sheet.
Add the flour to a shallow bowl and lightly roll each meatball in it.
Place a large pan on medium-high heat, add enough oil to cover the surface and fry the meatballs in batches until brown.
Place the meatballs in the prepared baking dish and set aside.

For the banana and onion sauce:
Place the same pan in which you browned the meatballs over medium-high heat, add the onions and cook until soft.
Add the turmeric, curry powder, sugar and flour and stir-fry for one minute.
Now add the jam, vinegar and water and stir while cooking, until you have a thickened sauce.
Season with salt.
Add the banana and stir through.
Pour the sauce over the meatballs, sprinkle over the coconut and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
Serve the meatballs and sauce on fluffy steamed rice.

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Open Vegetable Pie

by Karen Claassen1 Comment on Open Vegetable Pie
Open Vegetable Pie

350g sweet potato, cut into 1-1,5cm cubes
350g potato, cut into 1-1,5cm cubes
1 small cauliflower head, 350-400g, cut into florets
45ml olive oil
3 eggs
250ml cultured buttermilk
5ml salt
100g mature cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat your oven to 170℃ and spray a 20cm x 20cm baking dish with cooking spray.
Spread the cubed sweet potato, potato and cauliflower florets on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and roast in the oven until cooked but not mushy.
Set aside to cool.
Add the olive oil and eggs to a large jug and whisk together.
Pour in the buttermilk and salt and whisk until the mixture is amalgamated.
Add the grated cheese and stir through.
Place the pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to a square.
Line the prepared baking dish on the bottom and sides and trim the edges.
Spoon the cooled vegetables in the pastry shell and pour the buttermilk mixture over.
Bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
Serve as a side dish or as a vegetarian main with a salad.

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Tortilla-Pizza Snack

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Tortilla-Pizza Snack
Tortilla-Pizza Snack

I am listing the ingredients and the method but the quantities are loose and depends on how many people you will feed.

tortilla wraps
marinara or any other tomato-based pasta sauce
salami or pepperoni
mozzarella cheese
fresh basil leaves
a hard cheese like parmesan

Preheat your oven to 190℃.
Once the cheese has melted (about 15 minutes) the tortilla snack is ready to serve.

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Whipped Feta Salad

by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment on Whipped Feta Salad
Whipped Feta Salad

200g + 50g feta, crumbled
100ml milk
350g cherry tomatoes, halved
1 small cucumber, diced
a handful of basil, chopped
half an onion, finely chopped
30ml balsamic vinegar
30ml olive oil
20g pine nuts, toasted

Crumble the feta into a blender’s cup and add half the milk.
Blitz with an immersion blender until it becomes emulsified – add the rest of the milk a little at a time, aiming for a creamy consistency that will sit on a plate.
Crumb the 50g feta into the whipped feta and spread on a serving plate.
Add the halved tomatoes, cucumber, basil and onion to a mixing bowl and pour over the balsamic, olive oil and salt and pepper.
Mix together and spoon on to the whipped feta.
Scatter over the toasted pine nuts and a few extra basil leaves.