Recipe Club

[natty]

Here's a yummo recipe that's been handed down from generation to generation from italy apparently (no, i'm not italian but i managed to get hold of it) i'm just going off the top of my head though so i don'thave exact measurements etc.....it's so delicious and vegetarian too (not vegan sorry)!

Eggplant Parmigiana

What you'll need:

3 Medium to Large Eggplants (or aubergines as they are sometimes referred to)
3 cans of chopped tomatoes (you can get the ones with flavour added such as garlic and basil etc if you wish)
Flat-leaf (continental) parsley
1-2 cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper
Other herbs to taste
A few cups of self-raising flour
A packet of pre-grated mozzarella cheese
A few tablespoons of parmessan cheese
Lots of olive oil (good grade cos this recipe uses quite a bit of oil unfortunately)
Blotting paper (paper towel is fine)
A corningware/pyrex dish at least 30cm long and 20 odd cm wide...about 4cm plus deep
A saucepan and a frypan
Patience and a few hours up your sleeve
An oven and stove top (not a camping recipe)

Preparation / Steps

* Pre-heat oven to moderate (around 180 degrees celcius)
* Pour the cans of chopped tomatoes into a saucepan (high heat).....when boiled reduce heat to a simmer and add chopped parsely, crushed garlic cloves, salt and pepper to taste. Allow to simmer for around 30 mins or until thickened and reduced
* Peel away the eggplants' purplish skin, and slice lengthways (only 2-3mms thick) then set aside
* Break and lightly beat 2 eggs and place in a dish (you will need this for dipping the eggplant into)
* Pour some SR flour onto a flatish plate until it is covered...add pepper, salt and other herbs you wish to use (eg dried basil, dried oregano, dried onion or garlic flakes) and give it a stir to ensure consistency
* Dip each eggplant slice lightly into the egg (wipe any excess egg on the side of the dish) and then cover with the SR flour mixture on both sides. Set aside in yet another plate for frying (later). Continue dipping eggplant into egg then flour, adding more eggs or flour to the preparation plates as needed.
* Heat some olive oil in a frying pan - you need to ensure that the oil is always hot but not boiling. When oil is hot enough, add eggplant pieces being careful not to overcrowd the frypan. Cook on each side for a few minutes until coating turns brownish but being careful not to burn the slices. Take eggplant out and put onto paper towel (underneath and on top).
* Add more oil and eggplant slices as needed - cook in the same manner until all slices are cooked.
* Layer the eggplant into the baking dish - one layer of eggplant, then one layer of sauce (which should be ready by the time you reach this point), then one layer of mozzarella...keep layering in this fashion until you reach the last layer where you will also add the parmessan to the mozzarella.
* Place in oven and cook until cheese browns and cooks through.....check oven after about 15/20 minutes (can take longer depending on whether you have a conventional or gas or other oven etc)
* Serve the eggplant dish like it were lasagne - should get 4-6 decent servings....and it usually tastes better the 2nd day for some reason!


Word of advice - this can be a messy recipe but well worth the washing up! It is a very filling meal - almost meaty tasting. Mmmmmm my mouth is watering thinking about it!

Also, if you want to modify the recipe to make it less fatty then make sure you choose a good low-fat mozzarella cos reduced fat cheeses don't melt the same as the regular type and can ruin your dish (best thing to do is just use regular mozzarella)

Once you've mastered this meal (and it may take you 1 or 2 tries) then you can get more creative and add things to the sauce like mushrooms, minced meat, whatever really!

Let me know if anyone tries this and what you think of it!

N
;D

[fathershark]

Chicken Cordon Bleu

serves 4

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 Ham slices (sliced thinly)
4 Provolone cheese slices
1 egg
1 Tablespoon. water
ground oregano
onion powder
pepper
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 cup flour
1/3 cup. Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 180 C

Butterfly each chicken breast horizontally so that you may add the fillings and fold them back together later on. If this sounds confusing, just think about how you or someone else would butterfly shrimp.

Sprinkle each with onion powder, pepper, and oregano. Place a piece of ham and cheese on each chicken breast. Fold the chicken breasts back together so that the chicken appears almost as it did before being butterflied. If any of the ham and cheese pokes out, push them back inside as best as you can. Use toothpicks to keep the edges sealed.

Using 3 bowls or plates add the following ingredients:

Note: Be sure to have extra on hand in case you need to replenish the bowls with more.

Bowl one: Flour mixed with a sprinkling of salt and pepper
Bowl two: Beaten egg and water mixture.
Bowl three: Bread crumbs and parmesan mixture.

Dip and coat each breast into the flour mixture first, then the egg, and finally the bread crumbs.

Brush oil liberally onto a baking pan large enough to hold all the chicken breasts yet has extra room so that they do not touch one another. Bake the cordon chicken bleu for about 20 minutes on each side.

Ovens do vary in how they disperse heat, check on occasion to make sure the breading does not burn before chicken is cooked.

As with all poultry dishes, make sure the meat is fully-cooked before serving.

[loux2]

Steph will love me for finalllllly (what's it been, like year or two?? Sorry!!) putting this down.

Rice Salad (featured at Parramatta picnic)

1 cup brown rice
6 spring onions, chopped
1 red capsicum, chopped
1/3 cup currants
60g cashews
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
3 tablespoons chopped parsley

Sauce
1/2 cup olive oil
4 Tbls soy sauce
2 Tbls lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed

Cook rice in boiling water 30-40mins. Rinse (put it in a collander/sieve and run cold water over it, it gets rid of the starch, the water should go almost clear)
Add spring onions while warm
Add remaining ingredients when cool.

Sauce: Add all ingredients together and pour on salad.



yay tis soooo yummy. i love it.

[cheer up emo kid]

i think we got the basis of this one fro good ol' jamie o..

i dunno whats its called..greek yoghurt lamb? greek lamb? anyway..

you will need:
1 butterflied and boned leg of lamb, your butcher can do this and i recomend you get them to because as much fun as it is working it out your self, its messy and a bit icky if you dont like chunks of fat.

1 tub of good quality greek style natural yoghurt (it isn't greek style, but King Island natural yoghurt is superbly delicious)

2-4 (depending on taste) crushed cloves of garlic

1/2-1 lemon, juice of, depending on size

a good handful of herbs, mostly up to you but a large percentage of rosemary is necesary. chopped

1 large plastic bag to marinate meat in


whack the meat and all the marinade ingredients into the bag, squeeze as much air as humanly possibly out and tie of securely.

now, this is the fun part, play with it, moosh it, throw it up in the air, squeeze it HEAPS

when you're done playing let it marinate for a few hours, overnight if you wish but this may be too long as the acid in the citrus starts to cook the meat ever so slightly

get your barbie nice and hot and whack it on, cook depending on your taste, but i would recommend medium-rare

this can be done on a wire rack in the oven at 200-220 depending on your oven

serve with fresh bitter greens and perhaps some form of potato

enjoy!

[sarahj]

Thunderhead said:

"Goon of fortune"

No no, it's the "Wheel of 4-goon"!

Also, while partaking in this activity, 3 of the bags must contain white wine, and the 4th red. Each particpant will cry "no, keep going!" as the red looms overhead...thus, it represents the "bankrupt" square.

[Tiberius]

Hawaiian said:

I've dived into a health food binge that has suprisingly lasted almost 3 weeks now ;D

Although, I am running out of things to cook...so anyone got any healthy (possibly low in unhealthy fat such as oils and unnecessary cream) recipes? Vegetarian ones would be great, I still eat meat, so I don't really care...just give me!

Yep, here’s a vegetarian steak sandwich:

Get a portobello mushroom, cut out the stalk, and grill it. Once grilled, it’ll have a taste and consistency of steak. Then put it in between some toast, add in some lettuce, capsaicin, sliced cherry tomatoes, and um, whatever other extras you want. Volia, mushroom sandwich. Good for lunch.