French Inspired Lunch Menu

A few weeks ago I had two of my very dear friends over for lunch. As I hadn’t seen both of them for a while, due to us all being super busy, I decided I wanted to make something a little extra special so I created a French themed menu. I chose dished that would be very tasty and not too complex to make as I wanted to spend the majority of the day chin-wagging  and not slaving over a hot stove! Here is what I came up with:

Hors d’Oeurve: Salade d’Asperges (Asparagus Salad)

 

Mains:Coq Au Vin served with Potato Dauphinoise 

 

Salade d’Asperges

I’ll own up to the fact that I created this dish entirely myself. I know that the French do like to serve steamed asparagus as a starter or side dish, and my friend Sian is obsessed with Beetroot so I decided to try and created a French styled starter that would incorporate both of these elements hence this dish was born.

  

Serves: 4

 

You will need:

1 bunch of asparagus

1 packet of fresh rocket

Fresh Parmesan cheese grated

Balsamic vinegar

Black pepper to season.

Beetroot Puree:

Jar of beetroot (You will end up using about 4 heads of beetroot or if sliced about two heaped serving spoons of Beetroot.)

1.5 tsps of green pesto

1 tsp of French whole grain mustard

3 Brazil nuts

Dash of fresh cream

Method:

Into a Blender/ Food Processor place the beetroot, pesto, mustard and brazil nuts. Blend together until it forms a smooth creamy puree texture. After this has happened, add a dash of fresh cream and blend further. When this is complete place the puree into the fridge to chill for about 20 minutes.

While this is happening into a pan add some boiling water, about half full and on top place a colander or steaming pan. Cut the ends off the asparagus, about half an inch and place them directly into the colander. Place this over a medium to high heat and begin the steaming process, remembering to cover the top with a lid.

While the asparagus is steaming arrange a bed of rocket on each place and start to grate the fresh parmesan (about 100-150g). The Asparagus will take about 15-20 mins to steam,  checking it regularly to make sure it doesn’t to too mushy, I like mine to have as little crunch to it.

Once the asparagus has been steamed, removed from pan and arrange a few stalks on top of the bed of rocket on each plate, sprinkle with a little balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese, on the side add a scoop/helping of the beetroot puree and season with some black pepper if you wish.

You dish is now ready to serve !

Coq Au Vin

Coq Au Vin is a French stew consisting of chicken braised in wine, lardons, mushrooms and onions. I remember having this dish as a child and liking it a lot as it was different from ‘Irish Stew , much more tasty in fact. It’s one of those one pot wonders that’s perfect when you are having friends over for dinner. It’s a dish I like to describe as a ‘ good hearty meal’ very cost effective and delicious.

Serves: 4

You will need:

4-8 Chicken thighs (depending on size)

10-16 button onions or 10 small onions

10 small chestnut mushrooms

1 pack of chopped smoked bacon bits (lardons)

1 bottle of cheap red wine

2 cloves of garlic crushed

2-3 stalks of fresh parsley or 1 tsp of dried

2-3 stalks of fresh rosemary or 1 tsp of dried

Pinch of salt

Black pepper

1 tbl spoon of plain flower

1 generous knob of butter

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180-190 *c

Firstly add some olive oil to a frying pan and begin to fry the chicken, skin side down until they become golden brown. Once this has happened remove the chicken from the frying pan and transfer to the cooking pot/ casserole dish. Arrange the pieces of meat in the pot nicely and  evenly.

Next  dice the bacon or if you managed to get a pack of pre-diced bacon, brown them also in the pan and add them to the dish with the chicken. Finally brown off the onions and add them to the pot.

The next step is to add ¾ of the bottle of the wine to the cooking pot and add the parsley and rosemary and mix well so its evenly distributed around the pot.

Peel the two cloves of garlic, place them on the chopping board and with the flat of the knife blade, push down on them to squash them. Now add the garlic to the pot. Season with a pinch of salt and with the ground black pepper.

Place the pot in the oven with the lid on and gently simmer for 45-60 mins. During the last ½ hr of cooking, Brown off the mushrooms in the frying pan and add to the cooking pot with the rest of the ingredients.

Once the chicken is done, remove from the oven. Remove all chicken, mushrooms and onions from the dish and keep warm. Blend the semi melted knob of butter together with the flour to form a paste. Add this paste to the remaining juice, placing the casserole dish over a low heat, stir until it thickens.

Add the thickened sauce to the chicken, onions and mushrooms and serve.

Bon Appetite 

Potato Dauphinoise

Serves: about 4

You will need:

500g potatoes thinly sliced

200ml of double cream

100ml of milk

2 large or 3 small cloves of garlic

A generous pinch of cumin

50g of light cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper to season

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180*c

Slice the 500g of potatoes into circles thinly. Place them in a bowl of cold water to stop them going black. Rinse then pat dry with kitchen towel.

Next place the cream. Milk and garlic into a large pot and gently bring to a simmer, add the sliced potatoes and place the lid on the pot, simmering for 10 mins remove the lid thereafter and season with a pinch of salt and black pepper.

Transfer to a buttered oven dish and now sprinkle evenly with the cumin and the grated cheese. Bake for about 25 mins or until golden brown.

There you go it’s really that simple.

Quick Summer Wine Spritzer ;-)

Myself and my friend and housemate Rob, fancied a summery cocktail one rather hot and sunny evening last week. Filled by the joys of anything containing alcohol and the fact we were parched, I created this super easy and rather refreshing white wine spritzer.

A perfect drink for summer parties or to have with a few snacks, its costs very little and tasty!

Bottoms up! :-)

You will need:

1 bottle of white wine, dry or sweet depending on your preference.
1 bottle of white lemonade
1 punnet of strawberries
3-4 berry/fruity tea-bags (non-caffeine, just fried fruits and berries)
Ice
A few sprigs of fresh basil to garnish (optional)

These tea-bags are excellent and sold in Lidl Uk ;-)

 Serving:

A large jug or punch bowl

Method:

Firstly cut the strawberries in half, I used about 10 or so but its up to you. Add the fruit to the jug/bowl.

Next pour the entire bottle of white wine into the jug/bowl and to that add the same volume of white lemonade to it, you can add less or more depending on how strong or weak you fancy it.

Next add the ice to the jug and then add 3-4 fruit tea-bags, its best to tie them together with a piece of thread or string and let the dangle in the mixture for about 10mins. While this is happening I advise you store it in the fridge. The object of this is to both colour the spritzer and to add a fruity flavour to it. Once the 10 or so minutes are up gently squeeze out the tea-bags and remove from the mixture.

Add the sprigs of basil and stir well. Its now time to serve!

Rob enjoying his Spritzer !! ;-)

Crumble Recipe "Everybody's good at cooking something, I'm good at cooking crumble" The Crumble Song

Crumble Recipe

“Everybody’s good at cooking something, and I’m good at cooking Crumble”- Lorraine Bowen

Link to her BGT Performance

Inspired by Singer/Songwriter Lorraine Bowen’s hit song ‘The Crumble Song’ from this year’s Britain’s Got Talent completion, I decided to create a crumble recipe.

Her tantalizing and tongue-in-cheek lyrics reminded me of the fun I had as a child when having crumble for Sunday pudding. Lorraine’s attitude and approach to life is so inspiring and this nouveau-styled love song, although simply worded is genius in execution.

This dish is simple, yet effective and is perfect for those with the ‘Can’t cook, won’t cook attitude’.

Enjoy ;-)

You will need:

For crumble:

120-150g of plain flour (depending on the size of the dish)

50g Butter

3 tsps of Coconut oil

60g of Brown sugar

For Filling:

3-4 large apples of your liking

3-4 peaches

1 heaped tsp of Cinnamon

2 heaped dessert spoons of brown sugar

Cookware:

Crumble dish or any pyrex  dish that’s suitable for the oven.

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 180c gas mark 6.

Into a mixing bowl sift the flour and add the brown sugar. Dice up the butter and add to the flour. With your fingertips start to rub the butter and flour together so that it starts to resemble a breadcrumb like consistency.

Next add a spoon of coconut oil and mix it through with your fingertips, continue to do so with the other two spoons until you have a bowl of breadcrumb like mixture. Set aside.

Next peel and core the apples and peaches .Cut them into 2cm wide pieces. Add the fruit to the dish and sprinkle on top the 2 dessert spoons of sugar and spoon of cinnamon.

Next cover the fruit with the crumble mixture, making sure to do so in an even fashion. Pop the dish into the pre-heated oven for about 25-30 mins or until the top has gone golden brown. Once done take out and let cool down. Serve with cream or custard.

Quick Pasta Carbonara

Quick Pasta Carbonara

When you want make something really quick and tasty why not try Pasta Carbonara.This is my version of the dish which is super quick and easy as I use the cream to create the sauce and not eggs as is traditionally used. Pasta Carbonara originates from Rome in Italy and it was created in the 20^th century. The smoked bacon merges with the creamy sauce well. It’s the perfect comfort food! And I for one am a big fan of comfort-food cuisine.

You will need:

1 large red onion

Dried basil

1 pack of smoked diced bacon

Garlic (powdered or fresh)

1 container of single fresh cream (about 300ml)

Spaghetti ( 1 generous handful)

Serves: 2 generous portions

Garnish:

Fresh basil

Parmesan cheese

Black pepper

Method:

Firstly dice the red onion and garlic and add to the pan with a generous dribble of olive oil. Next add the diced smoked bacon and 1 tsp. of dried basil. Over a medium heat begin to fry.

While this is frying start to bring the water for the spaghetti to the boil and add a pinch of salt.

Once the Onion, garlic and bacon has cooked, take off the heat and set to the side.

Once the spaghetti has cooked, drain and add to the Onion, garlic and bacon to the pot and stir in well. Next add the fresh cream and season with some black pepper, place the pot back on the heat and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring well so that all the flavours merge together.

After all the flavours have merged, serve the portions into two bowls and sprinkle with parmesan and black pepper and garnish with fresh basil.

Buon Appetito!

Humble Beginnings

I have always had a fascination with food ever since I can remember.  Although brought up in Ireland, I had a very unconventional upbringing when it came to food. When people think of Irish cuisine, their minds travel down a path edged with such foods as potatoes, cabbage and the inevitably over-boiled shoulder of Bacon. However in my case it was different mostly due to the fact that my mother had lived in and traveled through several countries across Europe during her early twenties. This exposure to European cuisine and the fact that she was a prolific dinner host  from the 1970’s onwards, contributed to my passion for food.  I have many childhood memories of such dishes as Hungarian Goulash, Beef Stroganoff and Coq au Vin gracing our dinner table.

As I grew older I became more interested in what was going on behind the scenes in the kitchen and eventually I asked my mother to teach me how to create some of these wonderful dishes. She promised to teach me ‘her way of cooking’ as she put it. She always maintained that a recipe was merely a ‘guideline and not a religion’ when it came to creating a dish, and this is how I have cooked ever since.

I have been fortunate enough thus far to maintain my interest in all things food related. I cook on a regular basis and I love trying out new dishes.