Coffee, Rum & Raisin Meringue 'Roll'

Obviously, I didn't get the roll part right. I'm a meringue novice, so it ended up at the bottom of the plate, which was still good.

Meringue

3 egg whites

2/3 cup caster sugar (I totally screwed up because I often forget to read instructions fully, and used icing sugar, which made a nice glossy meringue but it tasted a bit eggy)

Filling

2 tbspn rum

1/2 c raisins

2 tsp powdered instant coffee, plus extra to dust

300ml thickened cream

2 tbspn icing sugar, plus extra to dust

**I also had some powdered chocolate that I used as a topping and to dust the plate

For filling, combine rum & raisins in bowl. Cover and stand for 1 hour. Dissolve coffee in 1-2 tsp water. Add to raisin mix. With electric beater, mix together cream and icing sugar until firm peaks form. Stir in raisin mixture. Chill until required.

Preheat oven to 180C or 160C fan. Line a baking pan with baking paper and using electric mixer, beat egg whites with pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Add sugar, 1 tbspn at a time, beating constantly, until sugar dissolves and meringue is thick and glossy. Spread over pan and bake for 10 minutes, until just firm and browning slightly.

Invert meringue onto large dish (dust first with icing sugar) and top with rum and raisin mix. Dust with chocolate and coffee.

Part 3, Seafood Red Curry

1/4 cup water
1 medium onion, minced
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 tsp bottled red-curry paste
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
bok choy and other Asian veg, as preferred
1/2 kg seafood marinara
1 tablespoon fish sauce
rice, to serve

Cook onion in oil in a wok. Reduce heat, then add garlic and curry paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in coconut milk, salt, and 1/4 cup water and bring to a boil. Stir in vegetables and return to a boil. Cover pot, then reduce heat and cook at a brisk simmer, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes. Gently stir in seafood and simmer curry, partially covered, until vegetables are tender and seafood cooked through, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove pot from heat and stir in fish sauce and salt to taste. Serve curry with rice.

Part 2, Wok-Charred Long Beans w/Black Olives

This can also be served as an appetiser or main.

1 kg fresh long beans or other green beans, tipped & tailed, cut into 2-inch lengths
3 tbspns peanut oil
1/2kg ground pork
1 1/2 tbspns minced garlic
1 1/2 tbspns minced fresh ginger
1 fresh, small, hot red chile, seeded and minced (or a jalapeno, again!)
1/4 cup plus 2 tbspns salted chicken stock
2 tbspns Chinese black vinegar (or balsamic)
1 tbspn soy sauce
1/2 cup halved, pitted dry-cured black olives

Blanch the beans: Bring a large saucepan of water to boil, immerse beans and boil them 1-2 minutes. Drain and set aside. Heat wok over high heat. Add oil, then pork and fry, breaking into tiny bits. When pork has all lost its raw colour, stir in garlic, ginger, and chili; stir for a minute. Add green beans and stir fry for several minutes until just tender. Pour in the stock, vinegar and soy sauce and toss the beans until the liquid is mostly evaporated. Mix in the olives and heat through briefly.

Asian-style Tapas, part 1

It's hubs birthday weekend, so I decided to do up a few Asian/Pacific Island dishes. The first is Poisson Cru, or Tahitian Salad. It can be served as an appetiser or main,

1/2 kg fresh ahi tuna, diced into 1/2 in cubes
1/2 c fresh lime juice
1/2 c coconut milk
1/2 c diced cucumber, sliced
4 to 5 scallions, green & white portions, split lengthwise and minced
1 fresh green or red chile, seeded and minced (optional, I am using a jalapeno from father-in-law's garden again)
2 tablespoons shredded coconut (optional, I am using just a bit of dried shredded coconut)
3/4 tsp salt, or more to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 medium tomato, squeezed to eliminate liquid, and diced

Combine al ingredients but tomato and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Mix in tomato and serve straight away.

Chana Pubjabi, with Liver

This could be a vegetarian main, but we had leftover liver, so thought it would be worth using. I'm using garam masala for the first time as well, and fresh jalapenos from the father-in-law's garden. Thank you Wednesday Chef!

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 small jalapeño, seeded and chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained

In medium saucepan, heat oil and saute onion until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and chili, and sauté until soft and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook until tomatoes are very soft, about 5 minutes, then remove from heat.

Purée mixture in blender or food processor until smooth. Return to pan and place over medium heat. Add paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, coriander, the garam masala, turmeric and lemon juice. Add chickpeas and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.

Cover and simmer until sauce is thick and chickpeas are soft, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir pan about every 10 minutes, adding water as needed (up to 1 1/2 cups) to prevent burning. When ready to serve, sauce should be thick.

Lamb & Barley Stew

Found another great recipe on Closet Cooking, and am going to change it up slightly to include some parsnips and squash. I'll also use the frozen diced lamb I have and see how it goes, instead of beef. A perfect start to the winter stew season, as we are soon to head into it here in Oz.

Ingredients:
1/2 kg diced lamb
salt and ground pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon oil
1 onion (chopped)
carrots, diced
celery, cut up
parsnips, cut up
1/3 cup barley
1 cup red wine
beef stock
1 bay leaf

Season the meat by tossing in bag with flour, salt & ground pepper. Heat oil in a large pot. Add lamb and brown, then set aside. Heat more oil in the same pot, and add the onions, sauteing until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add the rest of the veggies saute for a few minutes. Add the barley and saute for a minute, then add the red wine and deglaze the bottom of the pan. Put the lamb back in the pot and pour in the beef stock until everything is covered. Add the bay leaves, and some additional salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about an hour, or until meat and veg are tender.