Chicken & Apricot Terrine

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This terrine cost me my blender! Oh how I do need a food processor… {that and my ice cream maker!}
Luckily I managed to blitz up the goodies just in time, just as the smoke started to bellow from my trusty blender.
This recipe is from Sarie Kos – my favourite Afrikaans food magazine and I’ve been eyeing it for a while now. It seemed more tricky to make than it actually was.

You will need:
4 bay leaves {per pan}
3 sprigs of thyme {per pan}
Streaky bacon {enough to line 2x loaf pans plus extra to go on top – about 500g}
1 egg
500g pork mince
1 onion, finely chopped
1 handful parsley
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
250g chicken livers
Salt & black pepper
200g Turkish apricots, roughly chopped
400g Kassler chops, chopped
2 chicken breasts, skin removed and chopped

Preheat oven to 180C. Line 2x loaf pans with cling wrap and place the bay leaves and thyme at the bottom of each pan, on top of the cling wrap. Next, place the strips of bacon into the pan with the edges hanging over the pan.
In a FOOD PROCESSOR {do not ruin your blender!}, blend the onion, mince, egg, chicken livers, parsley and garlic to a smooth consistency. Season with salt & pepper.
Mix this with the chops, chicken and apricots and scoop into the pans. Cover with more bacon.
Cover the pans with foil, place in a Bain Marie {oven tray filled with water} and bake for 90minutes. Let it cool in the oven and then refrigerate overnight.
Once all set and chilled, slice thick slices and enjoy with a fresh herb salad and some mustard.
{I got two terrines from this recipe and it lasted such a long time! The more it ‘matured’ in the fridge, the better it tasted. It kept for about a week and a half before we finished it and it was absolutely fine. Will definitely make this one again and try out different variations.}
Enjoy!

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Best Steak – Ever!

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What a busy week {2 weeks actually!}… Phew! I’ve been meaning to post this and I honestly thought that I had – well, it turned out I haven’t! Oh well… Here it is – our grilled rump steak that we also entered into a steak cooking competition.
This is a giant rump – matured – rubbed with garlic, olive oil, black pepper and sea salt.

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We grilled or braaid {on 250C} the steak for about 3 minutes on each side and again 2 minutes a side {to create your char-marks}, then decreased the heat to 180C and baked it for about 7minutes. We used a big Green Egg but a Webber will do. You just want the outside to sear on a high heat and then because it’s such a thick steak, you need to lower the heat and bake it to get some heat to the centre. Ours was medium rare – perfect!
As it came off the grill, I placed dollops of coriander & chili butter on top and let it melt into the meat. {Simply chop a handful of coriander and 2 red chilies and mix with about 2 tbs of butter.}

Serve with a salad of butter lettuce, sweet basil, rosa tomatoes and olive oil.

Enjoy! X

Another pumpkin-goodie: Pumpkin cheesecake roll

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Happy Thanksgiving y’all, to all my American readers! This time of year, everything is pumpkin-themed, flavoured and inspired.. I must say, pumpkin cakes and things are not very big here in SA, although I’m sure it’s starting to take off. Pumpkin’s friend, Mr Carrot is much more popular with us Afrikaner folk! {Although a ‘pampoen koekie’ is quite traditional!}

Anyways, I was assigned to bring cake to my son’s playgroup this week and I decided to make a pumpkin roll. I’ve been wanting to make this and just haven’t gotten round to doing it – and it was surprisingly simple and easy to do. {And did I mention quick?! I quickly whipped it up the morning it was due.}

Cream cheese pumpkin roll

You will need the following for the batter:

3/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp bicarb of soda {baking soda}

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice {mix cinnamon, mixed spice & a pinch of nutmeg}

1/4 tsp salt

3 large eggs

1 cup sugar {I used a light brown sugar}

1 tsp vanilla

2/3 cup pumpkin puree

Mix the eggs and sugar together until it is nice and thick & creamy. Add vanilla and pumpkin. Add the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour the batter into a shallow, rectangular pan lined with baking paper AND greased with butter. Bake at 190C for about 15min.

When this is baked {a toothpick should come out clean when inserted}, invert onto a tea towel sprinkled with icing sugar. Gently peel off the baking paper and roll with the tea towel. Leave it to cool all rolled-up.

You will need the following for the filling:

1 tub of cream cheese {230g}

3 tbs butter, softened

1 cup icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Whip the butter and cream cheese until soft and fluffy, add icing sugar and vanilla.

When the cake has cooled, gently unroll, spread the filling onto the cake and sprinkle with the nuts. Carefully roll it back up again and wrap it tightly in cling wrap. Refridgerate for at least an hour before serving. Dust it with some more icing sugar when serving.

Enjoy! X

Bacon & brinjal roll

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Two of my favourites – bacon and brinjals! I could easily eat bacon three times a day and I just LOVE the creamy texture and taste of brinjals, so I decided to try these out in a type of meatloaf roll:

Bacon & brinjal roll

The result – salty bacon meatloaf, with a creamy centre of brinjals {or eggplant} and a hint of cumin. {Cumin & brinjals go oh so well together!}

What’s also great about this dish, is that you can make it a bit in advance, say in the afternoon, to be reheated later. {Running club on Wednesdays, remember?!}

So, you will need:

Streaky bacon rashers {enough to form a 15cm roll)

500g venison mince {you can use any type, I suppose}

1 medium brinjal, chopped into small cubes

1 onion, chopped

1tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp Peppadew spice

1 egg

1 green chili, finely chopped

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tbs chopped Italian parsley

Olive oil

In a skillet, heat the olive oil and saute the onions until soft. Add the cumin and parpika and let the spices fry off. Add the brinjals and cook until soft. Set aside.

In a bowl, mix the mince with the egg, Peppadew spice, cayene pepper, salt, chili & parsley.

Lay a sheet of cling wrap on your work surface and carefully arrange the bacon rashers to form a solid layer. Spoon the mince mixture on top and pat it down. Next, spoon the brinjal mixture onto the mince and carefully start to roll it.

Once you have a nice roll, remove the cling wrap and secure it with some twine.

Place it into an oven dish and bake at 180C for 40 minutes.

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This went nicely with a simple salad of roasted beetroot, mixed lettuce leaves, feta cheese and pecan nuts. Drizzle the salad with balsamic glaze and olive oil.

Enjoy!

{A few other top bacon goodies to try SOON are: Bacon Jam and bacon biltong – can I just say Oh My Goodness!!}

Honey & orange glazed chicken

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I recently bought some chickens from a farmers market – proper free-range farm chickens… Well they reminded me of the chickens we used to get in India, quite tough! Anyways, so there goes my grand ideal of eating proper free-range chickens… Although I must say that a bit of marinating helps a LOT!

Anyways, this honey & orange glazed chicken is not a farm chicken… {it’s funny though how much a free-range chicken from your favourite supermarket differs from one bought directly from the farm… I guess they just run around and have a better and more active life on the farm!} I will still try and eat proper free-range chickens as much as possible and just marinade it {with my own homemade marinade of course} – a small price to pay for wholesome goodness and a clear conscience!

The difference between shop-bought ‘free-range’ eggs and proper free-range eggs from our little hen is also quite amazing!

 

Honey & orange glazed chicken

You will need:

1 whole chicken

1 orange

1 tbs honey

freshly ground sea salt

8 carrots

Peel and cut carrots into quarters {length-wise} and place them in a casserole.

Place the whole chicken on top of the carrots and brush with the orange juice {squeezed from the orange!} and honey. Sprinkle with salt and bake at 180C for about an hour or until golden and cooked.

Serve with fresh salad leaves.

Enjoy! X

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