Moroccan Lamb pie

 Makes one large pie for 4 people

Preparation Time: 45 minutes
Cooking Time around 40 minutes

1/2 large shallot diced finely
500g diced lamb meat
1 tablespoon of Moroccan seasoning
1 handful of chopped rosemary
1 clove of garlic crushed
400g  tomato passata (or crushed)
1/2 cup vege or beef stock
4 small potatoes diced small
1 handful of pitted dates torn in half
Puff pastry for the lid (defrosted on benchtop ready)
one egg beaten in a cup for the glaze
One glass pie baker

Cook shallot onion in a large fry pan with a little olive oil until softened.  Add lamb and stir with wooden spoon until browned.  Then add the seasoning and rosemary. Add the tomatoes, stock, potato and dates.  Simmer on low heat for around 20 minutes until thickening.

Place the meat mix into the glass baking dish and if you like add a little pepper to the top layer.  Then place a piece of pastry on top and press to the sides of the dish.  you can make a small hole in the centre so the heat can escape.  Decorate with sprigs of rosemary.
Now you can glaze with a pastry brush with the egg mixture to make the pie amazingly brown.

Bake in oven around 160 degrees celcius fan forced for 40 minutes. Check as some ovens are different.

Baked Potato

Potato washed and cut halfway down diagonally
Little water to steam in microwave for however long your microwave cooks potatoes with lid on ( i used a glass pyrex dish with a lid)

When ready place in a bowl with foil underneath and add your toppings.

Toppings:
Mozzarella cheese grated
Lurpak butter
Spring onions (not dark part) diced up
Tomato with basil leaves (fresh) chopped up
Sour cream with chives
grated carrot
Steamed broccoli
a little egg beaten

Then place the potato with the foil into the oven on a tray and leave the foil open a little and cook for around 10 minutes on 180 degrees celcius.

Delicious meal which the kids will love !

Potato and leek soup

Serves 2
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

1 white part of leek cut finely
3 medium potatoes peeled and diced finely
1/4 white onion finely chopped
1 stalk of celery cut finely
1 small clove of garlic diced finely
2-3 large cups of chicken stock
cream to serve
chives chopped finely to serve
approx 50 g butter

Place butter into large saucepan and add the onion, leek, celery and garlic.  Heat on low heat for around 15 minutes stirring with wooden spoon. Make sure not to brown.  Then add the potatoes and the stock and bring to boil.

Lower the heat to a simmer and cover for around 20 minutes.   Let it cool a little to blend with a hand blender or a food processor and return to saucepan.

Bring the heat up again and stir in the cream.  Alternatively you can add a swirl of cream when serving.

Top with fresh chopped chives from the garden.  Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Can be served hot or chilled.

Amazing!

Lamb and Rosemary Casserole with potato topping

Lamb and Rosemary Casserole with sliced potato topping

Serves: 6

Preparation Time: 2 hours approx

Require a baker that can be used on both stovetop and move to oven.

2 tablespoons of butter

700g shoulder lamb diced

1/4 brown onion cut up

2 tablespoons of diced fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon of oregano fresh diced

2 garlic cloves crushed

shake of pepper

1 carrot cut up thin

1 stalk celery cut up thin

4 potatoes skinned and finely sliced to top

2 cups of chicken stock home style

salt to taste

Cook the butter in a large casserole baker on the stovetop and add the meat to brown. Add the onion and rosemary and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add the garlic cloves. Pour your stock in and add vegetables and herbs. Place the potato slices over the top of the dish.  

Bake in oven for around 2 hours until the potatoes are nice and crispy on the edges.

Winter warmer with amazing tender lamb!

Potato beetles with bacon and cheese

Potato beetles with bacon and Cheese

Serves: 6

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour

6 medium size potatoes

3 rashers of bacon or 1 cup of diced bacon

Salt and pepper

Chicken Stock (enough to go halfway up the baker you use)

Mozzarella cheese 2/3 cup for topping the potatoes

Preheat oven to around 170 degrees celcius.  Place a large baker dish on your benchtop and butter its base slightly.  Add some crushed garlic or you can chop up a clove finely and spread on buttered base.

Peel the potatoes and using a knife slice the base off the potato to steady it.  Then make deep parallel cuts across it reaching almost to the bottom.  The potato should hold together like a book.

Place a few small pieces of bacon between each potato slice.  Salt and pepper them slightly. 

Pour the chicken stock around the potatoes so it is only halfway (no more than halfway).

Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes .  Open oven after this time and place the cheese over them and bake for another 30 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and soft when a knife is placed into one.

Serve with coleslaw or spring onions chopped.



Easy Roasted Vegetables

Easy Roasted Vegetables

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 min (approx) microwave, 25 minutes in oven at 180 degrees celsius

Use vegetables you prefer but i have used the following:

1 zucchini

1 large potato

2 brussell sprouts

two twigs of fresh rosemary

a shake of good quality olive oil

salt and pepper to your preferred taste

This is great for fussy eaters if they do not normally eat their vegetables. Its very tasty with the fresh garden herb rosemary and a splash of a good quality olive oil.  I prefer to use Cobram Estate extra virgin olive oil (Australian made).

Peel potato and cut up the various vegetables into pieces.  Place in a microwave pyrex with a tablespoon of water then place lid on and cook as per your microwave instructions for fresh vegetables.   

When ready take the vegetables out of pyrex and place into a cast iron oven baker.  Then sprinkle your olive oil and fresh rosemary over the vegetables.  Cook in oven for approx 25 minutes at 180 degrees celsius.

The vegetables can be served with other side dish ideas in my listing.  This meal the kids wanted to eat little ravioli (Latina), little pies and home style chips (side dish listing see for more).

Potato croquettes with Almond coating

Potato croquettes with almond coating

Cooking time: 3 minutes

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Serves approx: 8 people

4 large peeled potatoes 

45g unsalted butter

2 egg yolks (open one now and the other if you need it)

1 pinch of nutmeg

oil for deep frying ( i used olive oil australian good quality)

also for coating you will need:

100g plain flour in one bowl

2 eggs lightly beaten in their own bowl

100g almond meal and 50g of almond slithered incorporated in a bowl

Using a potato microwave dish such as a pyrex with a lid, peel the potatoes and make some incisions into the potatoes for cooking in the microwave.  Add a little water so it doesn't dry out too much. Cook as per microwave instructions for peeled potatoes. 

  Mash up the potatoes and add the butter, one of the egg yolks, nutmeg and a little salt and pepper to taste. Only add the second egg yolk if the consistency is still dry otherwise only one needs to be used.

In a frypan setup approx 1 cm of olive oil on low heat for preparation.

Take a handful of potato and roll into a ball then flatten down into a log shape.  Roll this into the flour, then the egg briskly and then into the almond mixture.   Place into frypan oil.  Repeat until you have a few sizzling in the oil. Cook til just lightly brown or how you prefer.

I am not a vegetarian so i served mine with frenched lamb cutlets and other vegetables.

Delightful!!! ...... mmmmmmm