The Cook Book » Savory Recipes

Basil Pesto – “Pesto Alla Genovese”

Clair — Thu, 06 May 2010 06:01:21 +0000

A great easy recipe that is bursting with freshness. Pesto is perfect for smearing on crusty bread, dolloping on pizza just as it comes out of the oven, or stirring through fresh pasta.

Or thin the pesto with extra olive oil and use it as a dressing for a salad of ripe juicy tomatoes and fresh buffalo mozzarella.

Pesto is best used immediately, but can be stored in the fridge in an airtight jar with a thin layer of olive oil drizzled on top to stop the pesto from oxidising.

Basil Pesto – “Pesto Alla Genovese” Recipe Ingredients

1 large bunch fresh basil, leaves removed from storks (equals approximately 2 cups packed basil leaves)
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped, or pressed through a garlic press
1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted*
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Juice of 1/2 lemon
50 ml olive oil

Basil Pesto – “Pesto Alla Genovese” Recipe Method

Wash and dry the basil leaves in a salad spinner. Roughly chop the leaves and place in a food processor with the garlic, pine nuts and cheese. Pulse for a few seconds to roughly combine.

Add the lemon juice and half of the olive oil and pulse again for a few seconds. If the pesto doesn’t look wet enough, add the remaining olive oil and pulse to combine. You may wish to add a bit more oil than the recipe states, if you prefer a slightly more liquid pesto.

Try not to over process the pesto in the food processor, it is better to leave some chunky bits in for texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

*NB, you can toast pine nuts in a small frypan over low heat (dry fry), stirring constantly, or place on a tray and toast in a moderate oven (approximately 160ºC) for 5-10 minutes. Make sure you keep an eye on them no matter what method you use, as they have a habit of turning from golden brown to burnt in no time!

Quick & Easy Mayonnaise Mussels

Clair — Mon, 03 May 2010 22:58:14 +0000

A fabulous dish to share with the one you love, or make double and feed a crowd! Serve with plenty of toasted crusty bread (with butter!) and a large leafy green salad.

Quick & Easy Mayonnaise Mussel Recipe Ingredients

1 egg yolk
1 tbsp dijon or French mustard
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp white wine vinegar
150ml olive oil
50ml vegetable oil
4 green shallots, finely sliced
1 kg black mussels, cleaned and debearded (you can now buy ready prepared live mussels in 1kg packs)
1/2 glass dry white wine
1/2 bunch parsley, finely chopped

Quick & Easy Mayonnaise Mussel Recipe Method

Place the egg yolk, mustard, lemon juice and vinegar in a bowl and give it a whisk to incorporate and slightly thicken.

Then, whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in the oils until you end up with a thick mayonnaise (definitely don’t add all of the oil at once as this will cause the mayonnaise to split). You can also do this step in a food processor, but whisking is better for you!

In a large saucepan with a fitted lid (we use our 10 litre stockpot for this recipe), gently saute the shallots in a bit of extra olive oil until golden. Turn the heat up high and toss in the wine, it should bubble up quickly. Add the mussels, give the pan a shake and then stick on the lid to steam them for around 5-7 minutes.

While the mussels are steaming, toast the bread on both sides under the grill.

Take the lid off the mussels, then pour in the mayonnaise and parsley. Give the mussels a quick stir to combine the juices and mayonnaise and serve with the bread and salad. Enjoy!

Ricotta, Pesto and Roasted Vegetable Tart Recipe

Clair — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:42:43 +0000

A quick and nutritious recipe that makes for a great vegetarian dinner for when you fancy a night off from meat. The quantities in this recipe will serve approximately 4 as a main course and 6 as an entree or light lunch with salad and bread.

Ricotta, Pesto and Roasted Vegetable Tart Recipe Ingredients

2 sheets short crust pastry (either good quality shop bought, or use our Short Crust Pastry recipe to make your own)
100g fresh ricotta cheese
2 heaped tbsp basil pesto (either good quality shop bought, or make your own)
Vegetables suitable for roasting, chopped into bite sized pieces*
Olive oil for roasting
Rocket to garnish
Salt and pepper to taste

*You can use any vegetables you have on hand, I generally make this with a mixture of 1/2 a butternut pumpkin, 1 black zucchini, 4-6 button mushrooms, handful cherry tomatoes, 6-8 florets broccoli, 1 carrot, 1/2 bunch asparagus all cut into bite sized pieces.

Ricotta, Pesto and Roasted Vegetable Tart Recipe Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Add a good glug of olive oil to a large roasting tray, place hard vegetables (the vegetables that take the longest time to cook, for example pumpkin, carrot etc) on the tray, toss in the oil and roast for 15-20 minutes, turning frequently. When the vegetables start to soften and brown, add the remaining soft vegetables (for example broccoli, tomatoes, mushrooms etc), toss to coat with the oil and place back in the oven for a further 5-10 minutes until all vegetables are golden brown.

You don’t want to over cook the vegetables at this stage, as they will get another cooking when the tart goes in.

Mix the pesto through the ricotta and season with salt and pepper to taste (you might like to also add a little bit of lemon juice if the mixture isn’t sharp enough). Line a shallow (24 cm) greased pie dish with the pastry and blind bake for 10-15 minutes (you can do this while the vegetables are roasting) until the pastry is golden brown.

Top the pastry with the ricotta and pesto mixture and smooth down slightly. Top with the roasted vegetables and place back in the oven for a further 5-10 minutes until the pastry is crisp and the tart is warmed through.

Serve topped with rocket, and if you feel you need some meat, some finely sliced prosciutto.

Caramelised Onion, Goats Cheese and Thyme Tart

Clair — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:28:26 +0000

As Spring warms up and heads into Summer, now is the perfect time for light, delicious lunch dishes served outdoors and shared with friends. This caramelised onion, goats cheese and thyme tart fits the bill perfectly, and is ideal served with crusty bread, a crisp, refreshing white wine and a large green salad.

This tart can be served warm or cold, so if you are rushed for time, you can make it in advance (it also freezes well and can be defrosted and reheated).

Caramelised Onion, Goats Cheese and Thyme Tart Ingredients

1 quantity short crust pastry (you can either use good quality shop bought pastry – you will need one sheet for a 24cm pie plate or 4 sheets joined together for 24 mini tartlets – or use the pastry recipe from the our Lemon Tart recipe rolled out to 5mm thick)
4 spanish onions, skins removed, cut in half and sliced finely
1 tsp brown sugar
Olive oil
200g soft goats cheese (if you find goats cheese too ‘goaty’, then substitute with Danish fetta)
Large handful fresh thyme sprigs, leaves removed from stems and chopped roughly
4 eggs
300ml cream

Caramelised Onion, Goats Cheese and Thyme Tart Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Grease a 24cm flan or pie plate well, roll out the pastry to 5mm thick and place into the pie plate then trim the edges. Blind bake in the oven for 15 minutes until golden brown, removing the pie weights after 10 minutes to allow the bottom to colour.

Whilst the pastry case is baking, place the onions, brown sugar and a good few glugs of olive oil in a medium sized saucepan and allow the onions to saute very gently over low heat until caramelised. This will take some time, approx 30-45 minutes. Don’t be tempted to turn up the heat and rush this step.

In a medium bowl whisk the eggs and cream until well combined, and season with salt and pepper. Add the thyme and combine.

Remove the pastry from the oven, top with the caramalised onions, sprinkle with the goats cheese (or fetta), then top with the egg mixture.

Reduce the oven temperature to 170-180°C and bake the tart for 20 minutes until the egg mixture is just set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly, then serve.

Smoked Trout and Avocado Salad Recipe

Clair — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:24:33 +0000

If you are organised enough to plan meals ahead for the week, make this dish the night after you have had a roast. Make extra roast potato slices, steamed asparagus and/or green beans and then allow to cool, ready for the salad the next night. This recipe is also great for weekend lunches (lovely with a light rose), as you can prepare it a few hours in advance, and serve it on one platter for everyone to help themselves.

Smoked Trout and Avocado Salad Recipe Ingredients

1 large smoked trout, skin and bones removed, and flesh flaked into medium chunks
1 lemon
2 heaped tbsps natural yoghurt
2 heaped tbsps mayonnaise (make your own or use a good quality shop bought mayo)
1/2 tsp grated fresh horseradish (or 1 tsp horseradish cream)
1 ripe avocado, sliced
1 bunch asparagus, woody ends snapped off and cut into thirds
1 handful green beans, topped and tailed and cut into two inch lengths
4-6 chat (baby) potatoes (or leftover roast potato slices)
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
Good two or three large handfuls of mixed salad greens, torn into bite sized pieces (for example, oak lettuce, snow pea sprouts, parsley, dill, chervil, witlof, endive etc)

Smoked Trout and Avocado Salad Recipe Method

Boil the potatoes in plenty of salted water until cooked, then drain, slice into rounds and sprinkle with olive oil, then set aside. If you have leftover roast potatoes (bite sized rounds work best for this recipe), you can also use these instead, just gently reheat them in the oven to take the cold ‘fridge’ edge off them.

In the same saucepan boil the asparagus and green beans until just cooked (they should be bright green), and then refresh in cold iced water.

Pour enough olive oil or canola oil into a medium saucepan to a one inch depth, then heat over medium-high heat to frying temperature (to test this drop a small piece of bread in and if the oil bubbles around the bread it is the right temperature). Fry the fennel slices until golden brown and slightly crisp, then drain on paper towel (you might need to do this in a couple of batches).

Pour the yoghurt, mayonnaise, horseradish and the juice of half the lemon into a glass jar with a lid and shake to combine. In a bowl dress the salad greens with a sprinkle of olive oil, lemon juice and some salt and pepper.

On a large serving platter, arrange the potatoes, drained asparagus and green beans, fennel, and avocado, then top with the smoked trout. Sprinkle with a generous amount of the yoghurt dressing. Top with the salad leaves and serve immediately.
Serves four for a light lunch (with bread), or six as an entree.

Seafood Bouillebaisse Soup Recipe

Clair — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:07:41 +0000

This is a wonderful French classic. Don’t be put off by cooking seafood, it really is quite simple, and makes a lovely meal. Start to finish will probably take you around 30-40 minutes (including all of the preparation). Make sure that you use the freshest and in season seafood and other ingredients to produce the most delicious bouillebaisse.

Seafood Bouillebaisse Soup Ingredients

NB, ensure that all of the seafood you purchase is fresh, not frozen. If you can’t find some of the seafood below, or they are not in season, ask your fishmonger what they would suggest in place, or leave out. You will need a large saucepan/stockpot and a fine sieve for this recipe.

This recipe will serve four as a hearty meal, or six as a lighter meal. Serve with toasted crusty sourdough bread and a green garden salad dressed with a simple vinaigrette.

200g firm white fish fillet (such as blue eye trevalla, snapper etc), skin & bones removed, chopped into large bite sized pieces
200g pink fish fillet (such as atlantic salmon or ocean trout etc), skin & bones removed, chopped into large bite sized pieces
250g black mussels in shells, debearded and cleaned
250g vongole (small clams) in shells, cleaned
12 green king prawns in shells (don’t purchase peeled prawns, as you will need the prawn heads and shells for the soup)
200g baby octopus, halved
8 scallops, roe attached
Extra virgin olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups dry white wine (such as sav blanc etc)
1 heaped tbsp tomato paste/concentrate
Generous pinch saffron threads
2 bay leaves
3 cups water
4 french eshallots, finely chopped
1 small bulb fennel (if available), finely chopped (leaves/fronds reserved for garnish)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped, or pressed through a garlic press
4 large ripe tomatoes, skin removed (plunge tomatoes into boiling water for a minute to make removing skin easier) and chopped finely (or 400g tin chopped tomatoes)
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
1 large bunch parsley, finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Seafood Bouillebaisse Soup Method

In a large saucepan/stockpot, heat a good glug of oil. Saute the brown onion for a few minutes, over medium heat until golden brown. Add the prawn heads and shells, turn up the heat and cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly, until the prawns shells change colour. Pour in 1 cup of the wine, it should bubble up and release all of the caramelised bits from the base of the saucepan. Add the tomato paste, stir quickly to incorporate, then pour in the water and add bay leaves and saffron. Bring to a boil, then turn down heat and allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat, pour the stock into a bowl through a fine sieve and discard the prawn heads and onion left in the sieve.

Rinse out the saucepan/stockpot. Add a good glug of olive oil to the saucepan, and lightly saute the eschallots and fennel (if using) over medium heat for a few minutes until golden brown. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute or so. Turn the heat up, then pour in the remaining wine and allow to bubble. Add the chopped tomatoes and stock and stir to combine. You can do up to this step a day or so in advance, storing the saucepan in the fridge and then start from here when ready to serve.

Bring the mixture to a very gentle simmer, then start to add the seafood, cooking with the lid on to steam the seafood slightly. Note that you should add the seafood according to cooking times (eg. prawns cook much quicker than fish, so add them a few minutes after the fish). Add the fish first, cook for a minute, then add the mussels and clams, then the prawns and finally the scallops and octopus. The cooking of the seafood will only take around 5-7 minutes. Be careful when stirring the soup, as you don’t want to break up the fish.

To serve, place seafood in warm individual serving bowls, and pour over a couple of ladels of the bouillebaisse soup and sprinkle with a generous amount of parsley, orange zest and fennel fronds. Serve with buttered sourdough bread and a green garden salad dressed with a simple vinaigrette.

Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas: Asian Style Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe

Clair — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 03:35:31 +0000

Given that the steamed fish parcels recipe was such a success (perfect Monday night dinner for when you don’t know what to cook; quick, easy, healthy and delicious), we have done another steamed fish parcel recipe, but this time with an asian slant. Delicious served over steamed rice with steamed asian greens.

Asian Style Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe Ingredients

2 x 200g skinless and boneless fish fillets (any firm white or pink fish will work for this recipe, I used Blue Eye Trevalla, but Salmon or Trout would work equally well)
2 green shallots, finely sliced on the diagonal
2 tbsp chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsbp lemon juice
1 tsp honey
1 small clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped
1 small knob ginger (size of your thumb tip), finely grated
1 tsp sesame oil
Steamed rice, to serve
Steamed asian greens, to serve

Asian Style Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe Method

Steam the rice in a rice steamer (or cook in a saucepan according to directions on packet). While rice is cooking, mix rice wine (or sherry), soy, lemon juice, honey, garlic, ginger and sesame oil together in a small bowl.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Place two 40 centimetre pieces of foil on the bench, then place an equal sized piece of baking paper on top of each sheet of foil.

Place a piece of fish in the middle of each foil/baking paper sheet and top with equal amounts of the shallots. Fold the foil/baking paper sheet around the fish to create a parcel, leaving one end open. Pour in half the rice wine and soy mixture into each parcel and seal. Place both foil parcels on a baking tray and cook in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until the fish is just cooked through.

Divide the rice and steamed asian greens between two bowls. Top with the fish and pour over the fish parcel juice.

Mediterranean Style Whole Baked Snapper Recipe

Clair — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:59:49 +0000

This is quite quick to whip up and makes a very impressive (yet very easy) table centre piece for a dinner party. I made this for lunch on Fathers Day recently, and everyone said it was delicious!

Mediterranean Style Whole Baked Snapper Recipe Ingredients

1 x 2kg whole fresh snapper, gutted, cleaned and scaled (your fishmonger should be able to do this for you)
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or pressed through a garlic press
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 large bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp salt
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Pepper to taste
400g tin chopped tomatoes, sieved to remove juice (freeze the juice to use in another recipe)
Spice roasted carrot and chick pea salad, to serve
Roast potatoes, to serve

Mediterranean Style Whole Baked Snapper Recipe Method

Line a baking tray, large enough to fit the snapper, with foil and spray lightly with olive oil spray. Dry the fish, inside and out with paper towel and sprinkle lightly with salt. Slash three slits across the thickest paste of the fish flesh on both sides using a sharp knife.

In a food processor quickly blend the butter, oil, garlic, paprika, parsley, salt, lemon juice, pepper and sieved tomatoes until a rough paste is formed (it will be a bit sloppy). Rub the paste all over the fish (inside and out), and push into the slits.

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Place the fish in the oven and roast for 15-25 minutes. Check the thickest part of the fish flesh with a fork. It should flake gently and be just cooked (almost white). If it isn’t, return to the oven for a further few minutes. Remove from the oven when cooked, cover with a piece of foil and rest for 5 minutes. Place fish on a large serving dish, and serve straight on the table with the salad and roast potatoes (just watch out for bones!).

Man Proof Macaroni Cheese With Pumpkin Recipe

Clair — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 07:01:05 +0000

This was a recipe I emailed to PS when I was going to be working late, and he wanted something easy to cook (that the child would actually eat!). It is completely man-proof and 100% tested on mine!

And yes, if you are wondering, the child did actually eat it; there was even that rare child approval that every parent craves at meal times… “it’s okay I suppose” (he had seconds!).

So send this on to your man and give him a crack in the kitchen!

Man Proof Macaroni Cheese With Pumpkin Ingredients

1/2 butternut pumpkin (or other pumpkin, like jap or blue)
2 twigs of fresh rosemary (if you have some)
1/2 packet of pasta twists
3 large spoonfuls butter
3 large spoonfuls plain flour
600mL milk
Piece of cheddar cheese (approx size of a set of cards), grated
Piece of parmesan cheese (approx size of a matchbox), grated
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 tsp ground/grated nutmeg
Handful fresh or bought breadcrumbs

Man Proof Macaroni Cheese With Pumpkin Method (the actual email)

“Sure love, here you go – make sure you read it all before you start

Preheat oven to 190 deg. Remove skin and cut pumpkin (use the whole one in the fridge) into small pieces and toss with olive oil and chopped rosemary in a plastic bag. Place pumpkin on tray (all of the trays are in the oven) and roast, turning frequently until well browned, then remove from oven.

When the pumpkin is halfway done roasting, bring a med saucepan of salted (1 heaped tsp) water to the boil then cook the pasta (use the whole remaining packet of twists in the cupboard – they are in the basket) and while the pasta is cooking make white sauce (see below). You want to cook the pasta so that it is almost done (cos when you put it in the oven it will cook a little bit more). When the pasta is cooked, drain it and put it back in the saucepan with the lid on to keep warm.

In small saucepan heat 3 large spoonfuls of butter until bubbling. Add 3 large spoonfuls of plain flour and stir until all of the butter has been absorbed by the flour (if it looks too runny just add a little bit more flour, it should sort of come together a bit). Stir the butter and flour mixture for 2 minutes over the heat (this cooks out the flour).

Add approx 500-700mL of milk to butter/flour mixture, a little at a time, whisking really well after each addition. Probably best to take the saucepan off the heat to do this. At first only add a little of the milk at a time and whisk it really quickly into the butter/flour to stop developing any lumps. Once it starts to look like thick cream, you can add a bit more of the milk. You should end up with a smooth mixture that is the consistency of runny cream.

Return to the heat and bring to the boil, whisking all the time (don’t be tempted to walk away cos it will get lumps) until the sauce thickens (should take a few minutes to thicken properly). Add grated (big holes) cheddar cheese (probably use all of the last bit of it in the fridge) and grated (small holes) parmo (use the last of the used block) to the sauce off the heat a little at a time to melt the cheese into the mixture. Add plenty of salt and pepper and about 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and stir thoroughly. Add the sauce to the pasta in the med saucepan and stir thoroughly.

In the large pyrex dish pour 1/2 pasta/sauce mix into the bottom, then top with roasted pumpkin and cover with remaining 1/2 pasta/sauce. Sprinkle the top with additional parmo (small holes) and breadcrumbs, then bake approx 15 mins until top is golden and bubbling. Serve with big salad (there is also corn if you fancy it).”

Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas: Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe

Clair — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 06:31:52 +0000

This is an incredibly quick and easy recipe, perfect for nights when you are in a rush. You can literally have dinner on the table within 20 minutes (and it is very healthy)! Serve with steamed green vegies.

If you are serving more than 2 people, then just double the ingredients for the number of people you need to serve.

Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe Ingredients

1 large leek, rinsed to remove grit, and chopped finely into rounds (use all the leek, including the green stem)
2 x 200g fish fillets (any firm white fish will work for this recipe, I used Blue Eye Trevalla)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Butter
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
100mL dry white wine
1/2 cup long grain rice

Steamed Fish Parcels Recipe Method

Bring a small saucepan of salted water to boil and cook rice according to packet directions.

While rice is cooking, in a medium frypan, heat a knob of butter and a glug of olive oil over medium heat. Add the leek, and gently saute for a few minutes until collapsed.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Place two 40 centimetre pieces of foil on the bench, then place an equal sized piece of baking paper on top of each sheet of foil.

Place a piece of fish in the middle of each foil/baking paper sheet, top with equal amounts of the cooked leek (and any juices from the pan the leek was cooked in), a good squeeze of lemon juice, a knob of butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Fold the foil/baking paper sheet around the fish to create a parcel, leaving one end open. Pour in half the wine into each parcel and seal. Place both foil parcels on a baking tray and cook in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until the fish is just cooked through.

Drain the rice and divide between two bowls. Top with the fish and pour over the fish parcel juice.

You could also add a dash of pure cream to the fish parcel juice before pouring over the fish and rice to enrich the dish slightly.