whatsforlunch – My Whisk and I

Greek Cheese Pie/Tiropita

July 21, 2022June 18, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

7 sheets Phyllo pastry
butter, melted
250g feta cheese
250g ricotta
15ml milk
15ml olive oil
30ml chopped dill
2 eggs

Preheat your oven to 170℃ and spray a 24cm loose-bottom cake tin with cooking spray.
Place one sheet of phyllo pastry in the cake tin and gently press it into the bottom and sides of the tin.
Brush the pastry with the melted butter.
Repeat the routine with the remaining 6 sheets of pastry, brushing each with butter and rotating the phyllo sheets slightly so that the corners are staggered. Leave the overhang.
Crumble the feta into a mixing bowl and add the ricotta. Mix through.
Add the milk, olive oil and dill and season with ground black pepper.
Add the eggs to a small bowl, whisk together and pour over the cheese mixture.
Stir the mixture really well until thoroughly mixed through.
Spoon the cheese mixture into the prepared baking tin and spread it out evenly.
Turn the pastry overhang in over the filling so that you have an uncovered area of about 5 cm in the centre. Cut the sheets with scissors if they are too long!! The pastry will be doubled over in places in an irregular way but that is how it is supposed to be – we are in Greece after all!!
Brush the top of the pastry with melted butter and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
Cool the pie for about 10 minutes before slicing it.
Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Greek Meatballs in Tomato Sauce/Soutzoukakia

July 14, 2022June 17, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

500g minced pork
500g minced beef
100g panko breadcrumbs
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 bunch of parsley, chopped
15ml ground cinnamon
5ml ground cumin
10ml salt
1 egg, beaten
150ml olive oil

Tomato Sauce:
45ml olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 x 400g tin tomato purée
500ml water
4 sprigs of thyme, leaves stripped
1 bay leaf
20ml sugar
1,2ml ground cumin
1,2ml smoked paprika
5ml salt

Add all the ingredients for the meatballs to a mixing bowl and mix it through with your hands.
Now shape the mixture into 30-40 fat sausages and place on a baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

For the Tomato Sauce:
Add the olive oil to a saucepan set over medium-high heat.
Add the onion and garlic and fry until soft and translucent.
Add the tomato purée and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Add the water, thyme leaves, bay leaf, sugar, cumin and paprika and simmer until the sauce has thickened.
Remove the bay leaf and blitz the sauce with a hand blender until smooth. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 220℃ and cover the bottom of an oven tray with a thin layer of oil.
Transfer the meatballs to this tray and bake in the preheated oven for 12 minutes.
Now put the tomato sauce back on the heat and add the meatballs to it. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Serve with basmati rice as a main or in the sauce as a Meze.

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Spelt Salad

June 22, 2022June 14, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

250ml spelt
250ml fresh tomato, chopped
250ml cucumber, chopped
250ml marinated sweet peppers, chopped
a handful of sprouts

Lemon Dressing:
62ml lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, minced
5ml dijon/wholegrain mustard
1,2ml salt
ground black pepper
7,5ml honey
62ml olive oil

Cook the spelt according to the instructions on the packet and set aside to cool.
Add the spelt, tomato, cucumber, peppers and sprouts to a large mixing bowl.
Add the lemon juice, garlic, mustard, salt, a few grindings of black pepper and honey to a small mixing bowl and whisk together.
Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously. Keep going until all the oil is incorporated and you have an emulsified mixture.
Pour about half of the lemon dressing over the salad and mix through.
The rest of the lemon dressing may be kept in the refrigerator.

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Oxtail Stew with Dumplings

June 15, 2022June 13, 2022by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2.5 – 3kg oxtail
vegetable oil
3 onions, chopped
4 clove of garlic, minced
60ml flour
5 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks
2 bay leaves
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomato
250ml red wine
1,5l beef stock
Worcestershire sauce

Dumplings:
250ml flour
7,5ml baking powder
2ml salt
60g butter, cut into small cubes
10ml dried mixed herbs
60-80ml milk

For the stew:
Preheat your oven to 220℃.
Add the oxtail to 2 large roasting tins and drizzle with the vegetable oil.
Season with salt and pepper.
Roast the oxtail for 20-25 minutes, until beautifully caramelised and golden. Set aside.
Place a large saucepan on medium-high heat, add some vegetable oil and then add the onions. Cook until soft.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for one minute.
Sprinkle over the flour and stir while cooking for another minute.
Now add the carrots, bay leaves, tomatoes, red wine, beef stock and about 6 dashes of Worcestershire sauce.
Add the oxtail and whatever pan juices you have and bring to a simmer.
Reduce the heat to a low simmer and partly cover with a lid.
Simmer the oxtail for 3 hours, stirring every now and then.
Remove the lid and check the consistency of the sauce – if it is too watery, simmer without the lid for 20-30 minutes longer. The sauce should be thick and rich and the meat should be fork tender.

For the dumplings:
Add the flour, baking powder and salt to a mixing bowl and stir through.
Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Add the herbs and enough milk to form a soft dough.
Spoon teaspoonful of the dough onto the oxtail stew and cover with a lid.
Simmer for 15 minutes without opening the lid.

Serve the oxtail on fragrant rice.

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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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Baked Camembert with Blood Orange Sauce

August 18, 2021August 18, 2021by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Baked cheese is such a versatile dish to serve; aperitifs, as a casual starter, an in-between-meals-snack and even as a cheese course after dinner. You may of course replace the Camembert with Brie or any other soft cheese with a runny centre and the blood orange with regular fresh oranges.

1 600g Camembert wheel (or 2-3 smaller ones)
1 roll store-bought puff pastry
egg wash: 1 egg and 15ml milk, whisked together

Blood Orange Sauce:
15ml honey
30ml red wine vinegar
180ml blood orange juice
15ml cold butter
2 oranges, segmented
a pinch of salt

For the baked cheese:
Preheat your oven to 190℃ and line a baking tray with baking paper.
Lightly dust a surface with flour and roll the pastry to a 3mm thickness.
Place the cheese wheel on the pastry and cut a circle 2cm wider than the cheese.

Now cut another pastry circle of the same size and drape it over the top of the cheese.
Lift the edges of the pastry at the bottom over the edges hanging down. Secure by pressing together with the tines of a fork.

Score the top of the pastry parcel with the back/blunt side of a sharp knife and brush the entire cheese parcel with the egg wash.
Bake for 25 minutes, remove from the oven and allow to stand for about 20 minutes.

For the sauce:
Pour the honey, vinegar and juice into a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Reduce the mixture until syrupy.
Take off the heat, add the butter and whisk until amalgamated and you have a beautifully shiny sauce.
Add the orange segments to the sauce and spoon over the baked cheese.