HeartOfTheHouse.org » Soups

Chicken, Quail Eggs & Galangal Soup

elsie — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 04:51:04 +0000

Chicken and galangal soup originates from Thailand and if you have been to a Thai restaurant you will most probably see it featured in the menu. It is quick and easy to prepare at home and hugely satisfying. Besides chicken, you can use seafood, pork, duck, mushrooms, … lots of possibilities.

Recipe (source: David Thompson’s Thai Food)

Ingredients
2 cups home made chicken stock
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup coconut cream
6 quail eggs, boiled and shelled (optional)
Pinch of salt
1tsp palm sugar
2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed
3 red shallots, peeled
2 coriander roots, scraped
1 green chilli, coarsely cut
1 red chilli, coarsely cut
10 slices galangal
3 kaffir lime leaves
100g mushrooms, sliced
100g chicken thigh fillets, sliced or left over roast chicken
2-3tbsp fish sauce
1tbsp lime juice
1tbsp coriander leaves

Method:

In a pan, combine stock with coconut milk and cream.
Bring to the boil, season with salt and sugar.
Bruise lemongrass, shallots, coriander roots and chillis using a pestle and mortar. Add to boiling stock, along with galangal and kaffir lime leaves.
Simmer for a few minutes, then add mushrooms and chicken, turn down the heat and continue to simmer until chicken is cooked.
Add the quail eggs.
Season with fish sauce and lime juice.
Garnish with coriander leaves.

Note: Lately I have switched from using tin coconut milk/cream to creamed coconut made from 100% coconut. To make milk or cream, I add hot water to it. Unlike the canned milk/cream, it also contains all the fibre of the coconut with a fat content of 70%.

Lemony Avocado Sauce

elsie — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 06:39:16 +0000

This sauce is easy and quick to make. The 2 basic ingredients you need are avocado and lemon juice. Put into a blender, season with some salt and pepper and there you have it. A delicious sauce to liven up your salad, chicken, seafood, etc…. You can make it creamier by adding cream, creme fraiche, buttermilk, butter, homemade mayonnaise or yogurt. Add your favourite herbs – chopped basil, cilantro or parsley …. Like it spicy – add a chopped green chilli, chilli flakes or prepared wasabi or horseradish.

Ingredients

1 avocado, skinned and pitted
1/4 cup creme fraiche (sour cream)
1 lemon, juiced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp wasabi powder

Method

Put all ingredient in a blender and blend till smooth.
Season with salt and pepper.

Here I used it as dressing for my chicken and asparagus salad (pictured above).

Video: Weston A Price Press Conference 14/2/2011

elsie — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 04:17:57 +0000

Happy New Year 2011

elsie — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 23:05:39 +0000

Wishing each and everyone a Very Happy and Blessed New Year!

Having been away for nearly 4 months, regular postings has not happened as I hope. The whole month of January will take me away from home again, so I will most likely be posting from February onwards.

I would like share with you a photo of a Scarlet Honeyeater which I took on a beautiful rainy morning a few days ago. It was happily enjoying the nectar from the Kumquat blossoms. Such a beauty and it gave me great joy when I saw it!

Love & Peace

Elsie

xxx

Here’s to a bright New Year

and a fond farewell to the old

Here’s to the things that are yet to come

and to the memories that we hold!

–author unknown

Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Stew

elsie — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 05:19:06 +0000

Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Stew

(inspired by a recipe for Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Pie in Gourmet Traveller)

Serves 2

Ingredients

60 gm Butter

1 onion, peeled and sliced

2 cloves garlic – finely chopped

500 gms stewing beef, cut into cubes

100 gm mushrooms, quartered

2 tbsp arrowroot flour

250 ml beef stock

200 ml Guinness

1 tbsp homemade mushroom ketchup (or Worcestershire sauce)

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 bay leaf

parsley, finely chopped

Method

Melt half the butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and garlic, cook for 5 minutes
Add the mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
Toss the steak in seasoned flour.
Melt the rest of the butter in the saucepan and sauté the steak for about 5-7 minutes or until browned.
Return the onions and mushrooms to the pan with the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Add beef stock, Guinness and mushroom ketchup (or Worcestershire sauce), tomato puree, bay leaf and bring to the boil.
Cover and then simmer gently, stirring occasionally, 2 hours or until the meat is tender.
Serve with boiled potatoes tossed with chopped parsley and butter.

Beautiful Sunday Morning

elsie — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 11:11:16 +0000

A walk along the beach – Noosa ….

Squid Ink Risotto

elsie — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 12:01:39 +0000

Squid Ink Risotto
(recipe adapted from Gourmet magazine)

serves 2

Ingredients

2 cups fish stock or bone broth
30 ml olive oil + butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
300 gm small squids, cleaned, tentacles separated and bodies cut into rings
¼ cup (firmly packed) thinly sliced greens (silverbeet, spinach or any asian greens)
140 gm risotto rice, rinsed (Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano)
1 sachet (4 gm) squid ink

Method

Bring fish stock or bone broth to the boil in a saucepan over medium heat, then reduce heat to low and keep hot.
Heat olive oil/butter in a large heavy-based saucepan over low heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is soft and translucent.
Add squid and cook until opaque (3-4 minutes).
Add greens, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir continuously until soft.
Add rice and squid ink, cook over medium heat, then add 1 cup of hot stock at a time and cook, stirring until stock is absorbed, then continue adding more stock as stock is absorbed.
Cook until al dente (about 20-25 minutes), adding more water if risotto is too dry.
Season to taste and serve immediately.

Sourdough Rice Crackers

elsie — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 10:52:38 +0000

With leftover cooked rice in the fridge, I made these lovely crackers using the recipe from the book Wild Fermentation.

Sourdough Rice Crackers

Ingredients
1 cup leftover cooked rice
1/2 cup of sourdough starter
1/2 cup water
2 tbs melted coconut ghee
2 tbs sesame oil
1 cup spelt flour
1 tbs sea salt
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup brown rice flour
3 tbs black sesame seeds

Method

In a large bowl, mix the rice, sourdough starter, water, ghee, sesame oil and spelt flour. Stir into a thick batter and leave to ferment for 8 to 12 hours.
Once it is good and bubbly, add the salt, garlic, and rice flour. Knead into a dough, adding a little more flour if the dough seems sticky. Leave to ferment for a further 8 to 12 hours.
Preheat the oven to 160 C.
On a floured surface, roll out balls of dough one at a time, getting each as thin as you can roll it.
Cut the rolled-out dough into individual crackers and place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet.
Prick crackers with a fork, brush with oil, sprinkle sesame seed on the surface and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until dry and crispy.

Sardines with Kamut Pasta

elsie — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 12:01:14 +0000

Sardines are highly nutritious – rich in omega 3 fatty acids and a good source of vitamin D, calcium, B12 and protein. I love fresh sardines and buy them whenever I spot them at Spanner Crab Noosa. They are delicious simply pan fried or grilled. I have also used them to make fermented fish and in pate. But for today I will leave with you this recipe.

Sardines with Kamut Pasta

(Serves 2)

Ingredients

1 tbs butter or bacon fat
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
200 sardine fillets cut into 2cm pieces
30 gm crispy macadamia nuts
140 gm kamut spaghetti (or homemade sourdough pasta)
flat leaf parsley, chopped
zest of 1/2 lemon
lemon juice
shavings of Parmesan cheese
extra virgin olive oil

Method

Cook pasta and drain.
While the pasta is cooking, heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the chilli and garlic.
Add sardines and lemon zest and fry until cook through, about 2 minutes.
Stir in the macadamia nuts.
Mix the sardines through the pasta, add a squeeze of lemon juice, some chopped fresh parsley and a drizzle of olive oil. Season with some sea salt and pepper and top with some Parmesan cheese.

Duck & Mushroom Dumplings

elsie — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 07:34:05 +0000

Max and I love Asian dumplings. They are easy to make and the variations are endless. I did one with duck and mushrooms recently. Here is the recipe:

Duck & Mushroom Dumplings

Ingredients

For the filling:

100 gm mushrooms (shiitake, oyster or swiss brown…), chopped
300 gm minced duck
100 gm minced fatty pork
1 tbs green onions (scallion), finely chopped
1 tbs coriander, chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tbs fish sauce
1 tsp vinegar (rice or kombucha)
1 tsp sesame oil
freshly ground pepper
1 egg, beaten
Gow Gee wrappers or homemade wrapper (pel’meni recipe)

For the dipping sauce:

Mix together in a small bowl:

1 tbs finely shredded ginger
2 tbs vinegar (rice or balsamic)
1/2 tbs fish sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp hot chilli sauce

Method

In a large mixing bowl, combine the minced duck, pork, scallion, coriander, ginger, chopped mushrooms, fish sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, pepper and egg. With clean hands, mix together ingredients until well combined.
Place 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper. Dab lightly the outside edge of the wrapper with a little water. Fold wrapper in half and press together. Seal tightly, then pinch and pleat.
Arrange dumplings in a lightly oiled plate and steam until cook (about 15 to 20 minutes). Alternatively, the dumplings can be fried.
Serve the dumplings hot with the dipping sauce.

Note: Be creative and try different fillings - use minced chicken, prawn, pork, beef, add water chestnut, bamboo, chinese cabbage, chives… I am fermenting a new batch of kim-chi and once they are ready, I will be making pork and kim-chi dumplings.