Pork chops, in a mustard cream sauce, sauteed new potatoes and carrots, peas parisienne

 

Well , the photo is a disappointment, but the dinner wasn't!  It was film night at KitchenFairies HQ, and I try to theme the dinner with the film.  The film was "Hugo" ... the connection was that the film was set in Gare du Nord, Paris - so it was French Bistro food.

Also, I have no idea if peas parisienne have any authenticity to them - it's just what I have always called leeks, peas and lettuce cooked this way.

Pork loin chops

Olive oil

Meat seasoning (black pepper, garlic, celery salt, paprika)

New potatoes

Carrots

Butter

Leek

white wine

Little gem lettuce

Garlic

Chicken stock

Dijon mustard

Cream

1.  Rub the pork loin chops with the seasoning and olive oil, set aside for an hour.

2.  Peel new potatoes and carrots, cut potatoes in to quarters, length wise, and the carrots into diagonal chunks.

3.  Wash and shred leeks.

4.  In a heavy frying pan with a lid melt butter (lots ... twice as much as you think you need) and add the potatoes, carrots and cup of water.  Put the lid on and simmer for about 10 minutes.

5.  Take the lid off the potatoes and simmer off most of the water.

6.  Sweat the leek off in olive oil, add crushed garlic.

7.  20 minutes to go ... heat butter and olive oil in a frying pan, when hot add the chops and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.

8.  Stir the potatoes and carrots, put the lid back on and let them crisp up.  Shake about every 3 minutes to stop them catching.

9.  Remove chops from the pan, add white wine to the pan, with a little chicken stock and a teaspoon of dijon mustard, stir and simmer.  Add cream.  Put chops back into the sauce and keep on a low heat.

10.  Add frozen peas and wedges of little gem lettuce to the leeks, add a splash of white wine.  Simmer for 3 minutes.  Add a drop of cream.

11.  Serve, scoff ... it was delicious!  really rich - but fabulous.

Mushroom and kale spaghetti

The veg box arrived today, so possibly too much choice.... but after unpacking all the goodies, couldn't resist the mushrooms, and there was a leek, a courgette and kale to finish up from the last box - so ....

Olive oil
Dried mushrooms (just a few, optional)
Leek
stick of celery
courgette
garlic
dried herbs
chestnut mushrooms
kale
vegetable stock
2 tbsp double cream
2 tbsp grated parmesan
salt and pepper

spaghetti (gluten free in this case)

1.  Soak dried mushrooms in boiling water.
2.  Sautee chopped, washed leek in olive oil.
3.  Add finely diced celery and courgette.
4.  When a bit soft, add crushed garlic and herbs.
5.  Add chopped mushrooms, fry the mixture off for a bit and then add stock so that it doesn't burn.
6.  Put on pasta water - when boiling add pasta to water (8 mins - follow packet instructions)
7.  Stir shredded kale into mushroom mixture with mushroom soaking liquid.  Chop reconstituted mushrooms finely, and add into mixture.
8.  When spaghetti is cooked - drain and add to sauce - add cream and cheese - stir around and serve.

Season as you go - with salt and a lot of freshly ground black pepper.

Scoff.  Flavourful, both earthy and fresh.  I'll do it again.

Chicken and mushroom stroganoff with cavolo nero

Day 3 of "training" for swimming the "channel" and I did my 40 lengths.  I am swimming the 22 miles of the channel - in a pool - between September and December to raise money for the Alzheimer's Society - see link to the right - and feel free to sponsor me.  (But more of that another time).  The victim, swimming with me, kept banging on about pie for dinner.  No, no, no ... there is no point swimming up and down just to reinsert the calories when you get out.  So, after the usual, spag bog, ricey stuff, pie requests we managed to land on stroganoff - which was good because a number of the ingredients were sitting in the fridge really needing to be used up.  Cavolo nero is just ready for harvesting in poly the tunnel, so I added that to mine.  Victim refuses anything quite so blatently green, so had some beetroot and radishes as a starter... go figure!  Anyway, there is too much cream to be really "diet", "low fat" etc, but I'm sure it's better than pie!

Chicken and mushroom stroganoff

Serves: 4.  Time: approx 30 minutes:  Calories:  approx 450 per portion  Cost:  approx £1.30 per portion

1/2 tbsp Olive oil
1 Onion
1 Leek
1 Celery stick
Garlic clove
2 skinless chicken breasts
Chicken stock (cube is fine)
About 12 Green beans
About 4 Runner beans
Some Mushrooms
Paprika & black pepper
100ml Half fat creme fraiche
100ml double cream
Chopped parsley

Tagliatelli - about 70g per portion

Method:

1. Chop and sautee in olive oil - leek, onion and celery.
2. Add bite sized pieces of chicken breast, turn over until edges are a bit coloured.
3. Add crushed garlic, and a cup of stock (add more if it looks like it's a bit dry).
4. Cook tagliatelli in salted boiling water.
5. Add chopped beans and mushrooms, and simmer until beg is soft and chicken is cooked, season with salt, pepper and paprika.
6. Just before pasta is al dente add creme fraiche and cream to chicken and vegetables.
7. Drain pasta and  mix into sauce.
8. Chuck in chopped parsley and sprinkling of paprika.
9. Scoff (with or without steamed cavolo nero (about 7 minutes steaming) or crunchy salad.

Mushroom etc stroganoff(ish)

OK. We eat quite a lot of pasta dinners.  I do not apologise.  This dinner, however, takes you away from the tomato (or tomato/meat/cheese)
 sauce with spaghetti/whatever, and towards a slightly more eastern european flavour [please note, no claim to any authenticity etc..] What I was going for was an earthy, slightly hot and aromatic, slightly crunchy silky smooth sauce with perfectly cooked, biteful pasta to add body.  So, the chosen pasta was tagliatelli (follow instructions) - I boiled the pasta for about half a minute less than instructed, but let to drain for half a minute, and rest in the sauce for a good couple of minutes before dishing up.  So, the sauce, chopped onion sauteed in olive oil, added minced garlic (quite a lot), sautee until onions nearly transparent (not burnt) - add chopped veg - today red pepper, green beans, celery, mushrooms & edame beans - and minced garlic - chucked  in glass of white wine. Keep stirring, add stock (about a pint) and some water if necessary, to get all veg to soften enough.  When veg is cooked to just still slightly crunchy, the pasta should be nearly ready - if it is not on yet - cook the pasta - finish the sauce when the pasta is ready.  So, to veg stir in big spoon of cream cheese, some grated parmesan and a big splosh of cream - toss in pasta - Serve, scoff - well tasty!

Breton(ish) chicken with rice

Many years ago I was presented with a plate of coronation chicken and rice.  The chicken mixture was yellow and gloopy, the rice was white.  Tonight's dinner reminded me a lot of that, until I tasted it.  The coronation chicken was very, very mildly curried, a bit sweet and tasted the same in every mouthful - this was better - I could taste the chicken, the beans, the mushrooms - and the sauce - but even so, it didn't set my taste buds on fire.  Personally, I think it's the cream that mutes all the flavours - but some people like it, so hey ho.  Amongst the people who like creamy sauces are current victims.  One of the current victims suffers from dementia, and possibly other degenerative mental illnesses (diagnosis may be difficult, therapies seem non-existent and coping strategies are similar for all of the conditions) .. really likes chicken and sauces, and doesn't always get enough veg - so this was a good opportunity to please, and to load up with vitamins - clean plate indicates success, as far as I can measure.  So, sautee onion and leek with a rasher of bacon (chopped) in olive oil (not much), add bite sized pieces of chicken breast, chopped mushrooms, green beans and courgette, and squished garlic - stock, splash of white wine, teaspoon of mustard, seasoning.  Simmer for a bit.  Chuck in some beans (or peas, or peas and beans and sweetcorn, or not) and simmer again for 4 mins.  Take off the heat and let cool down slightly, then stir in cream. (You can thicken the sauce with slaked cornflour if its too runny).  We had brown rice - you could have summat else - pasta, spuds, bread, salad etc.  Both victims ate it, and we all quite liked it, but none of us would have it for our last supper.

First decent dinner of 2012

Really!! .. we have been living out of the freezer, cupboards and phoned for a takeaway... However, "decent" - may be an over statement, but at least it was homemade, fresh and generally wholesome - the potatoes and gratin were both over done - and the presentation is limited.  I put it down to sluggish brain combined with indecision after the lurgy.  Anyway - it was - chicken in white wine and mushroom sauce with cauliflower and brussel sprout gratin, roast new potatoes, grandma's carrots.  "Recipes" - par boil halved new potatoes, then roast in hot olive oil; for the gratin used this recipe (almost - much less rich.., had no sage  - used some thyme, and used broken up crackers - cos they were left over - for the crust - from here) http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2008/11/cauliflower_and_brussels_sprout_gratin, carrots boiled and drained, and chopped furiously with a sharp knife with butter and lots of black pepper.  Saute onion and garlic, turn up heat, brown chicken strips on all sides chuck in big handful of mushrooms and good splosh of white wine.  Cook chicken through - remove - stir cream into wine mixture for sauce - pour over chicken.  Serve all bits and pieces and scoff.  Victim said some rude things about overcooked potatoes, but actually we both enjoyed vegetable gratin, and all the elements together.  (Victim had seconds of moaned about potatoes).

Chicken korma, Aloo Gobi and basmati rice

All beautifully presented to allow pic - but turned my back and  gathered victims took the opportunity to dive in.... seconds all round, so pots were even lower later.  Recipes later, perhaps.... sorting out multiple brews etc

Stroganoff mark 2: Chicken and vegetable this time

The green bowl doesn't help - but honestly this didn't resemble a bowl of sick so much in the flesh - and was, infact, better than the beef version from earlier this week.  However, I don't want you to focus on this pic too long, so recipe very brief - saute onion garlic, celery, courgette, chicken and bacon, also added pinch of dried chili flakes at this point, which I think was a good addition - add herbs, paprika and stir in a sprinkle of flour, add chicken stock and simmer - boil the pasta.  Add frozen peas and seetcorn to chicken mix with a splash of Lea and Perrins.  Drain pasta, take chicken mixture from heat - stir pasta into sauce, stir in 2 tbsp cream and 3 tbsp low fat greek yogurt.  Check seasonning and serve with plenty of black pepper.  Victim approves - which is good because it was her idea, hence the appearance of stroganoff twice in four days.