weekend lunch – My Whisk and I

Perde Pilavi

July 13, 2023May 25, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Perde Pilavi is a traditional Turkish dish made of chicken and rice flavoured with nuts, fruit and spices and wrapped up in a delicious pastry, specked with flaked almonds.

1 chicken (1-1,5kg)
1 litre chicken stock
40g butter
40g flaked almonds
330g short grain rice (like Arborio)
30g raisins
5ml salt
5ml paprika
10ml mint, chopped
660ml chicken stock

Pastry:
2 eggs
60ml yoghurt
60g butter
50ml vegetable oil
5ml salt
350g flour
5ml baking powder
50g flaked almonds

Place the chicken in a large saucepan and pour in the stock.
Cook on medium heat for an hour, until done.
Remove the chicken from the stock and set aside to cool slightly.
Reserve the stock.
Place a large frying pan on medium-high heat, add the butter and wait for it to melt.
Add the almonds and stir-fry until golden.
Add the rice and cook for a minute or so, stirring all the while to coat in the butter.
Now add the raisins, salt, a few grindings of black pepper, paprika and mint.
Pour in 660ml of the reserved stock (add boiling water if you dont have enough), stir the mixture and cover with a lid.
Turn the heat to a gentle simmer and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is almost cooked.
Remove from the heat and set aside.
Shred the chicken into strips and discard the bones and skin.
Add the chicken to the rice mixture and stir through.

For the pastry:
Preheat your oven to 180℃.
Add the eggs, yoghurt, butter and vegetable oil to a bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
Add the salt, flour and baking powder to a bowl and whisk through.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet.
Lightly knead the pastry to bring it together.
Flour a work surface and roll the pastry to a 45cm diameter circle. It should be large enough to line the dish and have enough hanging over the sides to close around the filling.
Spray a 18cm diameter x 8cm deep ceramic dish with cooking spray.
Scatter the almonds on the bottom of the dish.
Line the bottom and sides of the dish with the pastry, leaving the overhang.
Spoon the cooled rice mixture into the pastry.
Fold the overhang-pastry over the filling to enclose it completely – trim off any excess.
Bake for 40 minutes, until golden.
Take the dish from the oven and rest it for 15 minutes.
Place a serving plate over the baking dish and invert it.
Serve the pilavi with a crispy salad.

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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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Orzotto Alla Norma

December 5, 2022December 5, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2 aubergines
olive oil
250g cherry tomatoes
1 red onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomato
15ml fresh thyme, chopped
300g orzo
100g parmesan cheese, grated
a handful of fresh basil
1 Burrata

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Slice the aubergine into discs, spread them out on the prepared baking sheet and generously drizzle with olive oil.
Scatter the cherry tomatoes over the aubergine and bake for 30 minutes.
Place a saucepan on medium-high heat and add some olive oil.
Fry the onion and garlic until soft.
Add the chopped tomato and thyme and season with salt and pepper.
Simmer for 15 minutes while stirring occasionally.
Cook the orzo according to packet instructions.
Drain the orzo and add it to the tomato sauce.
Add the grated parmesan and stir through.
Spoon the orzo into a serving dish and top with the aubergine, roasted tomato and burrata.
Serve with fresh basil leaves scattered on top.

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Minestrone Soup

August 8, 2022July 31, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2 onions, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 carrots, chopped
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 x 400g tin of butter beans (or any other white bean, cooked)
4 x 250ml vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
5ml dried thyme
250ml small pasta, e.g. elbows, shells, vermicelli
125ml fresh parsley, chopped
salt and black pepper

Add some olive oil to a saucepan set over medium-high heat and fry the onion until soft.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Now add the carrots, tomato, beans, stock, bay leaves and thyme. Cover the saucepan with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir in the pasta and cook uncovered until done – about 10 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle the chopped parsley over the soup and serve piping hot.

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Papino and Blue Cheese Salad

June 10, 2022June 5, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

This is such a simple salad but so very satisfying and delicious to eat!! Make extra, you will want seconds!

papino
rocket leaves
50g + 100g blue cheese
60ml cream
pomegranate seeds
50g cashew nuts, roughly chopped

Peel, halve and deseed the papino and place it on a serving dish.
Add some rocket leaves to the papino and break chunks of blue cheese and arrange it between the leaves.
Place the 100g blue cheese and cream in a small saucepan and set it over a low heat. Stir the mixture until melted and the sauce has amalgamated.
Generously spoon the sauce over the papino and rocket.
Sprinkle the cashew nuts and pomegranate seeds over.
Serve the papino with extra blue cheese dressing on the side.

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Frittata with Potato Crisps

March 16, 2022March 16, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

8 eggs
62ml sour cream
200g roasted red peppers (store bought or home made)
45ml thyme leaves
140 potato crisps (chacalaka/tomato sauce/cheese and onion)
30ml butter
50-100g goats cheese

Preheat your oven to 180℃.
Crack the eggs in a large mixing bowl and whisk together.
Add the sour cream, season the mixture with salt and pepper and whisk again.
Chop the roasted peppers into chunks and add to the egg mixture.
Add the thyme leaves and all of the potato chips.
Mix everything together with a spatula.
Place an ovenproof frying pan on medium heat, add the butter and wait for it to melt.
Add the frittata mixture to the pan and stir around for a few minutes, lightly scraping the bottom of the pan.
Spread the ingredients evenly with the spatula and place the pan in the oven.
Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the frittata is set.
Dot the goats cheese on the frittata’s surface and serve warm with a side salad.

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Savoury Fig Galette

February 23, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

When it comes to a galette the success thereof is often determined by the pastry! But then again, if you do not have the time to make the pastry it can be equally successful if you replace the homemade pastry with a store bought short crust pastry. I include the recipe for a classic flaky pastry and would highly recommend that you try it when the time is right…..

Classic Flaky Pastry

65g bread flour
150g cake flour
3,5ml salt
105g butter, cubed
35g shortening, cubed (you may replace this with butter)
70ml ice cold water

Add the bread flour, cake flour and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to mix.
Add the cubed butter and shortening and pulse until the mixture forms tiny clumps, the size of lentils.
Keep the engine running and slowly drizzle in half of the water. Now keep adding very small amounts of water until the pastry JUST comes together.
Wrap the pastry in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.

For the galette:

1 batch Classic Flaky Pastry or short crust pastry
250g cream cheese
1 batch Caramelised Onions (search the recipe on this blog)
12 fresh figs
12 bocconcini balls or other soft cheese
olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
thyme
1 egg yolk

Preheat your oven to 190℃ and line a large baking sheet with baking paper.
Roll the pastry to a 30cm circle and mark a 5cm border on the outside edges.
Place the pastry on the prepared baking sheet.
Spread the cream cheese evenly on the pastry, keeping the border clear.
Spoon the caramelised onion on the cream cheese and spread it evenly.
Cut 2 slits down the centre of each fig (or half/quarter each) and arrange onto the caramelised onion.
Now arrange the bocconcini on and between the figs, drizzle the galette with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and scatter over the thyme.
Fold the clear border of the pastry up/over the figs.
Whisk the egg yolk and 15ml water together and evenly brush a thin layer onto the pastry.
Bake the galette in the oven for 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven and drizzle with more balsamic vinegar before setting aside to cool down slightly.
Serve the fig galette at room temperature.

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Fusion Chicken

November 3, 2021November 3, 2021by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

I have named this recipe “Fusion Chicken” because it brings together a few different principles in cooking chicken: almost black-chicken; almost butter chicken and almost pan-fried chicken. The combination makes for a very flavourful and juicy chicken that is one of the quickest dishes you will ever put together!

125g + 90g butter
30ml ground cumin
30ml smoked paprika
30ml dried origanum
20ml salt
6 chicken breasts, skin removed
15ml flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
fresh lemon wedges to serve – these are essential!!

Melt the 125g butter and add the cumin, paprika, origanum and salt to it. Stir/whisk together to dissolve as much of the spices as possible.
Lay the chicken flat in a ceramic dish and pour the butter mixture over it. Flip the breasts to coat them evenly.
Cover with a tea towel and set aside at room temperature for 20 minutes.
Place a large cast iron pan on medium-high heat and add the 90g butter to the pan, to melt.
Add the chicken breasts to the warm pan and cook for 7 minutes before turning to cook for another 7 minutes. Do not fiddle around with the chicken! Spoon some of the pan juices onto the chicken as it cooks.
Remove the breasts from the pan and slice them.
Place on a serving dish and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.
Squeeze a good amount of lemon over the chicken before serving.