dinner – Page 14 – My Whisk and I

Poached Beef Fillet with Chimichurri Sauce

May 10, 2023April 29, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

This is an easy recipe that deliver fork-tender fillet and melts in your mouth…

Chimichurri Sauce:
60ml parsley
60ml chives
30ml thyme leaves
1 clove of garlic
2,5ml salt
125ml olive oil
45ml apple cider vinegar

1 whole beef fillet, trimmed
about 4 litres beef stock

For the Chimichurri Sauce:
Place the parsley, chives, thyme, garlic and salt on a chopping board and chop together until very fine.
Add the herb-mixture to a small bowl and pour in the olive oil and vinegar.
Stir together until the salt has dissolved.
Cover and set aside at room temperature so that the flavours can develop.

Put a cast iron pan over high heat and wait for it to warm up.
Pat the fillet dry and season generously with salt and pepper.
Now sear the fillet in the hot pan, on both sides. If the meat sticks to the pan when you want to turn it, it simply means it hasn’t caramelised enough. Be patient and wait until it comes loose easily and then turn it.
Place the browned fillet in a large saucepan and pour in enough stock to cover it by at least 3 cm.
Bring the stock to the boil, turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for one hour. Do not cover the saucepan and check the liquid every now and then – top up the stock so that the fillet stays submerged.
Turn off the heat and now place a lid on the saucepan. Rest the fillet in the stock for one hour.
Remove the meat from the saucepan and pat it dry with a clean tea towel.
Slice in to 0,5cm thick slices and arrange on a serving plate.
Serve the fillet with the Chimichurri sauce.

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Gnocchi-Noodle Mushrooms

May 6, 2023April 24, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Not quite gnocchi but also not quite noodle…. You will need a clean wine or beer bottle to shape the noodles into a mushroom shape. The top must be clean and dry.

400g potato, peeled and cubed
120g cornflour (or potato flour)
5ml salt
80ml chives, very finely chopped
30ml butter
200g mushrooms, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
45ml salad onion, finely chopped
15ml thyme leaves

Cook the potato in salted water until very soft.
Drain, add the potato back into the hot saucepan and place over a medium-high heat. Stir around for a minute or two until the potato is dry and there are no trace of water.
Take off the heat and mash to a fine texture.
Add the cornflour, salt and chives and mix through.
Knead/squeesh the ingredients together until it forms a dough. If you REALLY can’t bring it together, add a few drops of water and knead again.
Scoop up about 15ml of the dough and squeeze/roll into a ball shape.
Press the dough balls into the top of a dry wine bottle and carefully lift it off. Put aside and continue shaping the rest of the dough.
Fill a saucepan with water, bring to the boil and then turn it down to a simmer.
Add the gnocchi to the water and simmer for 4 minutes – they will float once they are done.
Remove and drain. Set aside.
Add the butter to a pan set over medium-high heat.
Add the mushroom, onion and salad onion and cook for about 5 minutes.
Scatter in the thyme leaves and add the gnocchi-noodles.
Reduce the heat to medium and stir-fry for 3 minutes until the noodles are warmed through.
Serve immediately.

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How to make pastry lids for soup

May 2, 2023April 20, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

This is an easy way to spruce up a cup of soup with store bought pastry.

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Thick Chicken Soup

May 1, 2023April 20, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

If you need to speed things up in the kitchen you may make this soup with store-bought stock and rotisserie chicken.

45ml olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
a small bunch of salad onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1l chicken stock
2 eggs
60ml fresh lemon juice
375ml cooked rice
500ml cooked chicken breast, shredded

Place a saucepan on medium-high heat and add the oil, onion and salad onion.
Cook until the onion is soft and translucent.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Pour in the chicken stock and season with salt and pepper.
Bring the mixture to the boil, turn down the heat and leave to simmer.
Add the eggs, lemon juice and 60ml of the rice to a blender.
Blend until smooth.
Keep the blender running and slowly pour in 250ml of the hot stock.
Now pour this mixture into the stock mixture in the saucepan while stirring.
Add the rest of the rice and the shredded chicken.
Simmer the soup for 10 minutes, on a low heat (do not let it boil) until thick.
Spoon into bowls and serve immediately.

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Tartiflette

April 28, 2023April 16, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1kg potatoes
200g bacon, diced
30g butter
2 onions, thinly sliced
125ml dry white wine
125ml cream
450g soft rind cheese of your choice, I used Camembert, traditionally Reblochon is used

Peel the potatoes and slice them into 1cm thick rounds.
Add the potato to a large saucepan and pour in enough cold water to cover. Season the water with salt and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until the rounds are just tender – about 25minutes.
Drain the potato rounds and return to the saucepan. Set aside.
Preheat your oven to 180℃.
Place a saucepan on medium-high heat and add the bacon.
Lower the heat once the fat renders, add the butter and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the onions, season with salt and pepper and cook until soft and translucent.
Add the wine and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the potato rounds and mix through.
Pour the cream over and mix again.
Spoon the mixture into an ovenproof dish.
Slice the cheese into halves, horizontally and arrange on top, cut-side down.
Bake in the oven for 40 minutes – the cheese should be melted, bubbling and golden brown on top.
Serve immediately.

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Beef Stroganoff Pie

April 26, 2023April 16, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1kg beef, cut into 2cm cubes
30ml flour
45ml vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
10ml smoked paprika
30ml tomato paste
15ml wholegrain mustard
250ml beef stock
300g brown mushrooms, sliced
80ml + 80ml sour cream
1,2kg potatoes, peeled and quartered
50g butter, cubed

Add the cubed beef to a bowl and sprinkle over the flour.
Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.
Place a saucepan over medium-high heat and pour in the oil.
Cook the beef in 3 batches, for 5-6 minutes or until browned all over.
Spoon the beef into a bowl and keep on the side.
Add the onion to the saucepan and cook until translucent.
Add the garlic and paprika and stir-fry for one minute.
Add the tomato paste, mustard and stock and bring to the boil.
Return the beef to the saucepan, reduce the heat to low and cover with a lid.
Simmer the beef for one hour, stirring every now and then.
Preheat your oven to 200℃.
Remove the lid, add the mushrooms and simmer without a lid for 30 minutes more.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in 80ml sour cream.
Spoon the mixture into an ovenproof casserole dish.
Cook the potato until very soft, drain and return to its saucepan.
Add the remaining 80ml sour cream and half of the cubed butter and mash together.
Season the mashed potato with salt and pepper.
Spoon the potato on the beef and spread it evenly to cover the beef.
Dot with the remaining butter and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
Stand the pie for 10 minutes before serving.

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Dressed up Corn on the Cob

April 20, 2023April 14, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Cook the corn to your liking and then simply dress it up in one of two ways. Both the recipes are enough for 6 – 8 corn on the cob.

Spicy Mexican Corn:
125ml mayonnaise
10ml + 10ml smoked paprika
5ml chilli flakes
5ml salt
125ml grated parmesan cheese
2 lemons

Add the mayonnaise and 10ml smoked paprika to a small bowl and mix through. Set aside.
Add the other 10ml smoked paprika, chilli flakes and salt to another bowl and mix together.
Brush the cooked corn with the mayonnaise mixture, sprinkle over the spice rub and roll the corn in the grated parmesan.
Cut the lemons into quarters and serve with the corn.

Herbed Corn:
60ml parsley, tightly packed
60ml coriander, tightly packed
60ml garlic chives
30ml grated lemon rind
80g grated parmesan cheese
60ml butter, cubed

Chop the parsley, coriander, chives and grated lemon rind together until very fine and spoon into a shallow dish.
Add the grated parmesan to another shallow dish.
Melt the butter and brush it all over the cooked corn.
Roll the corn in the herbs and then in the parmesan.
Serve immediately.

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Pulled Brisket with gnocchi and gremolata

April 16, 2023April 12, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1kg brisket, fat on
2 onions, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 carrots, chopped
1 x 400g tin of diced tomatoes
240g tomato purée
60ml Worcestershire sauce
60ml apple cider vinegar
20ml wholegrain mustard
30ml brown sugar
10ml smoked paprika
store bought gnocchi

Preheat your oven to 160℃.
Add the onion, garlic, carrot and tinned tomato to a food processor and blitz until it is a thick saucy mixture.
Pour in the tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, sugar and paprika and blitz again.
Add 5ml salt and stir through.
Decant the sauce into an ovenproof saucepan.
Place the brisket on top of the sauce and then spoon enough of the mixture over to cover the meat.
Place a lid on the saucepan and bake in the oven for 4 hours.
Remove the brisket from the oven, take off the lid and leave to cool for 15 minutes or so.
Pull the meat and fat apart with two forks and add it to a saucepan.

Cook your gnocchi according to packet instructions.
Place the saucepan with the meat over a low heat, add the gnocchi and stir through.
Serve warm with gremolata.

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Green Peppercorn Sauce

April 13, 2023April 7, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

This peppercorn sauce can obviously be served with any meat of your choice but is really elevated when made in the same pan as the steaks.

80ml brandy
180ml beef stock
125ml cream
45ml canned green peppercorns

Cook your steak in a cast-iron pan, remove the meat but keep the pan on the heat.
Add the brandy to the hot pan.
Turn the heat to medium-high and simmer for a few minutes while scraping down the pan.
Reduce the brandy by half and until you can no longer smell the alcohol.
Pour in the beef stock, bring to a quick simmer and cook until it has also reduced by half.
Turn the heat down to medium and pour in the cream.
Add the peppercorns and cook for 2 minutes.
Taste and season the sauce with salt and a few good grindings of black pepper.
Serve as needed.

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Hummus Pasta

April 11, 2023April 7, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

This can be served warm or cold, as a fragrant pasta salad.

250g dried pasta (I used Cavatappi)
30ml olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 handfuls of baby spinach
250ml hummus
the juice and grated rind of 1 lemon
a handful of small basil leaves

Cook the pasta according to packet instructions. Reserve about a cup of the cooking water.
Add the olive oil to a large saucepan and cook the onion over medium-high heat until soft and translucent.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for one minute.
Now add the spinach and stir-fry for another minute.
Turn the heat down slightly and add the hummus.
Slowly add the cooking water of the pasta while stirring constantly. Stop adding water once it is of a consistency that will cover the pasta and still stick to it.
Add the cooked pasta and stir to coat with the sauce.
Squeeze over the lemon juice and grate the lemon over the pasta.
Taste and season with salt.

Serve the hummus pasta with grated parmesan cheese and a scattering of basil leaves.