Cherry Chicken

INGREDIENTS

*3 tablespoons vegetable oil
*1 (4 pound) whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
*salt and pepper to taste
*1/2 cup all-purpose flour for dusting
*1 (15 ounce) can pitted dark cherries packed in water
*1/2 cup white sugar
*1 tablespoon cornstarch
*1 orange - with peel, quartered and thinly sliced
*1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

METHOD

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then coat with flour. Fry in the hot oil until browned, turning as needed. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook for about 25 minutes or until meat is tender and juices run clear.

2. Remove the chicken from the pan, and pour off all but 1/4 cup of the drippings. Return to medium heat and stir in the cherries, reserving some of the cherry liquid for later. Stir in sugar and bring to a boil. Dissolve the cornstarch in the reserved cherry liquid, then stir into the pan. Cook, stirring gently, until thickened.

3. Add orange slices and almonds to the skillet, then return the chicken pieces to the skillet. Spoon sauce over the chicken to coat, and simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

N.B. Almonds can be toasted in a dry skillet over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

VERDICT

This dish was really easy to make and was really tasty. The orange and cherries go nice together and the cooking method ensures that the chicken is nice and tender.

Score: 92/100

Polska Kielbasa with Beer ‘n Onions

This is a recipe that I got from my mum. Kielbasa is a Polish sausage and had I bothered to look it up before making the dish, I definitely would not have chosen bratwurst as my substitute. However, now I know!

INGREDIENTS

*1/2 c honey mustard
*1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
*18 oz brown ale or beer
*2 kielbasa sausage (16 oz each) cut into 4” pieces
*2 onions, quartered

METHOD

Combine mustard and brown sugar in the crockpot.
Whisk in ale. Add sausage pieces. Top with onions.
Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours, stirring occasionally.
Makes 6-8 servings.

VERDICT

My first mistake in making this dish was to go with the boring sausage alternative of bratwurst. Being cooked all day in the slow cooker seemed to have sapped the bratwurst of any flavour that it had. My second mistake was not to halve the recipe, since I had much less than the called for amount of sausage (it was clearly one of those days!). This meant that I had to add quite a bit of flour to the sauce before serving to turn it into a gravy, which I am sure took away some of the flavour as well. However, saying all of that, this dish has potential. You can't fault it on how simple it is to make. Despite pouring beer all over the floor, I was still able to get it all ready in under ten minutes. The flavour, or what was left of it, was quite yummy and when served over potatoes it added an instantly 'winter food' quality to it that counts for extra points. So it is worth making again, this time with a different sausage.

Score: 73/100 (possibly higher with the called for sausage or at least a better alternative)

Borscht

Having lived in Estonia for a year, anything that resembles the good food that I got to eat there is worth trying to make.

INGREDIENTS

*225g thinly sliced potatoes
*140g thinly sliced beetroot
*1L vegetable stock or water
*2 tablespoons butter
*250g chopped onions
*1 teaspoon caraway seed (optional)
*2 teaspoons salt
*1 celery stick, chopped
*1 large carrot, sliced
*250g coarsely chopped red cabbage
*black pepper to taste
*1/4 teaspoon fresh dill
*1 tablespoon cider vinegar
*1 tablespoon honey
*250ml passata
*soured cream, for topping
*chopped tomatoes, for garnish

METHOD

1. Place sliced potatoes and beetroot in a medium saucepan over high heat; cover with stock, and boil until vegetables are tender. Remove potatoes and beetroot with a slotted spoon, and reserve stock.

2. Melt butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Stir in onions, caraway seeds and salt; cook until onions become soft and translucent. Then stir in celery, carrots and cabbage. Mix in reserved stock; cook, covered, until all vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

3. Add potatoes and beetroot to the pan. Season with black pepper and dill. Stir in cider vinegar, honey and passata. Cover, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer at least 30 minutes. Serve topped with soured cream, extra dill and chopped fresh tomatoes.

VERDICT

YUM!!!! This soup is one of my favourite and despite what might look like quite a lot of work, is in fact quite simple to make. It does take a little time time to make but is well worth the time and effort. We also tried making it with some meat as well, which was equally as nice.

Score: 98/100

Chicken Pot Pie

I found the pot pie recipe first and then searched for a pot pie dough recipe, so they are separate.




POT PIE Dough

2 cups of flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp butter
3/4 cup of water

Mix dry ingredients, blend in butter, add eggs and water to make a soft dough. Roll out about 1/4 thick.

MINI VERDICT

While this recipe was simple the dough needed a lot of flour added to it to make it not too sticky, which of course had the extra downfall of making the dough quite tough and heavy.

CHICKEN POT PIE

INGREDIENTS

*1 cup potato, diced
*1 cup chopped onion
*1 cup celery, diced
*1 cup chopped carrot
*1/3 cup melted margarine
*1/2 cup all-purpose flour
*2 cups chicken broth
*1 cup half-and-half
*1 teaspoon salt
*1/4 teaspoon pepper
*4 cups of chopped, cooked chicken
*2 pie crusts (or dough made from recipe)

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 400F/200C.

2. Saute onion, celery, carrots and potatoes in butter for ten minutes.

3. Add flour to sauted mixture, stirring well. Cook one minute, stirring constantly.

4. Combine broth and half and half.

5. Gradually stir into vegetable mixture.

6. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly.

7. Stir in salt and pepper; add chicken and stir well.

8. Pour into shallow 2 quart casserole dish and top with pie shells.

9. Cut slits to allow steam to escape.

10. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly and cooked through.

VERDICT

The dough recipe was really disappointing, so if I was to make this dish again, I would find another one to try. The actual filling recipe, however was really quite yummy - creamy, full of flavour and looked exactly as you would expect chicken pot pie to look (unless you are used to the more liquidy version). Be warned that the filling recipe does make a lot. So you might want to reserve some to have with rice or similar on another day.

Score: 75/100 (maybe higher with a different dough recipe)

N.B. If you can't find half and half you can substitute it with the following: 1 tablespoon of butter, melted plus milk to equal one cup.

Turkey, Pasta and Leek Crisp

INGREDIENTS

*2 carrots, sliced
*400 g (14 oz) leeks, sliced
*450 ml (15 fl oz) vegetable or chicken stock
*300 ml (10 fl oz) white wine or additional stock
*300 g (10½ oz) cavatelli (fluted pasta shells) or other shapes such as fusilli (spirals)
*2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
*400 g (14 oz) turkey breast fillet, skin removed, then cut into thin strips
*300 ml (10 fl oz) semi-skimmed milk
*45 g (1½ oz) plain flour
*salt and pepper

Topping
*50 g (1¾ oz) fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs
*2 tbsp grated Cheddar cheese
*2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

METHOD

1. Place the carrots and leeks in a saucepan. Add the stock and the wine, if using, and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are tender but not soft.

2. Drain the vegetables, reserving the stock. Place the vegetables in a large ovenproof dish. Return the stock to the pan and boil it until it is reduced to about 300 ml (10 fl oz). Set aside to cool.

3. Cook the pasta in boiling water for 10–12 minutes, or according to the packet instructions, until al dente. Drain well and add to the vegetables; mix together. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F, gas mark 5).

4. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the turkey and cook, stirring, for 5–10 minutes or until lightly browned. Use a draining spoon to remove the turkey from the pan and mix it with the pasta and vegetables.

5. Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the milk and cooled stock. Whisking constantly, sprinkle the flour into the liquid. Return the pan to the heat and bring the sauce to the boil, still whisking. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 3 minutes, whisking frequently, until the sauce is thick and smooth. Add seasoning to taste.

6. Pour the sauce over the pasta mixture, coating it evenly. Mix together the breadcrumbs, cheese and parsley, and sprinkle this evenly over the top. Bake for about 15 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Copyright by The Readers Digest Association, Inc. 2003

VERDICT

Well first off I couldn't find any turkey in the supermarket (oh the joys of living in the Netherlands), so I replaced the turkey with chicken. Second, this dish took ages to prepare (although I must admit watching the sauce turn thick and smooth was fun!). Lastly, it was kinda boring. We found it quite bland and not very exciting. So probably not one I would make again.

Score: 45/100

Meatloaf

First off, apologies for the crummy photo. My camera was not cooperating.

However this meatloaf recipe more than made up for the crummy photo!


INGREDIENTS

*1 pound ground beef
*1/4 cup ketchup
*1/2 packet dry onion soup mix
*3 slices leftover bread (heels are great), torn into bite-size pieces
*1 teaspoon Italian-style seasoning
*1 tablespoon water
*water as needed

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, combine the beef, ketchup, soup mix, bread, Italian-style seasoning and water. Mix well. Shape into a loaf and place into a 9 inch pie pan OR a 9x13 inch baking dish. Baste the top of the meatloaf with ketchup.

3. Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for one hour, or until the edges are just crispy and the top has a crust.

4. Cool for 15 to 20 minutes before cutting.

THE VERDICT

This recipe is fantastic! The meatloaf is really moist, full of flavour and any leftovers taste just as good the next day, heated up. The top does seem to go brown (or black if you let it!) quickly with the sauce on top, so the second time I made this I covered the dish in foil for the first 40 minutes of cooking. I also substituted passata for the ketchup, breadcrumbs for the bread and added dill. This one is definitely a contender for the signature dish!

Score: 99/100