Tarte Normande

Sheet of sweet pastry
70g butter
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
50g standard flour
100g ground almonds
3 Tbsp cream
Tin pie apples
4 Tbsp jam (Traditionally this recipe uses apricot jam but we prefer strawberry).

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Line an oven proof baking dish with the pastry.
Bake the pastry blind for 15 minutes, then remove the blind and bake for another 4 minutes.
Beat together the butter and sugar.
Add the eggs, almonds, flour and cream.
Spread over the baked pastry.
Cover completely with apples and then spread the jam over the apples.
Bake for 30 minutes or until filling is set.
Serve with cream or ice-cream.

Oxtail stew with winter vegetables.

1 oxtail
Ginger and garlic
Herbs and spices
1 onion
2 carrots
3 parsnips
1 large leek
1 swede or turnip
1/2 bottle red wine
Frozen winter vegetable mix
Parsley
Crusty bread

Oxtail needs to be gently summered for a long time. A pressure cooker is ideal for this.
Brown the oxtail, onion, leek, garlic and ginger.
Add the herbs and spices.
Add the carrots, parsnips and swede / turnip.
Add the red wine and bring to the boil.
Pressure cook for an hour.
Allow to cool and skim off the excess fat.
Lightly mash the vegetables - this makes the gravy much thicker.
Add packet of winter vegetables and warm through.
Serve with sprig of parsley and bread to mop up the delicious gravy.

And another picture from another winter!

Blueberry tart

Sheet of sweet pastry
2 eggs
4 Tbsp sugar
200 ml cream
About 10 sponge biscuits
Tin blueberries (or fresh if available)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Line an oven proof baking dish with the pastry.
Bake the pastry blind for 15 minutes, then remove the blind and bake for another 4 minutes.
Beat eggs and sugar together.
Add cream and briefly beat.
Break up the sponge biscuits and add.
Spread the filling over the pastry base and place the blueberries on top.
Bake at 180 degrees C for 45 minutes or until filling is set.
Serve with cream or ice-cream.

Slow cooked Moroccan chicken with lemon

Chicken drumsticks
1 onion
Garlic and ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 lemons

Spread the onions, garlic and ginger over the base of an casserole dish.
Cover with drumsticks and sprinkle with spices.
Pour over stock.
Bring to boil and then gently simmer for around 1 hour or until the chicken is cooked.
Slice the lemons, add to the dish and simmer for 10 minutes.
Before serving, skim off excess fat.

Aside : St Joseph's lily in the garden

Must be spring! The garden is coming alive after a long, dreary, grey cold winter.

Aside : Azalea in the garden

Must have been a cold winter because they don't bloom every year but when they do, they are stunning.

Aside : Silver beet in the garden

Mainly a winter vegetable in NZ. Used in stews in much the same way as spinach.

Jelly with fruit

What could be simpler?

1 packet jelly
1 tin fruit - fruit salad used in photo.

Mix the packet of jelly with 1 cup boiling water.
Stir until the jelly is dissolved.
Pour the fruit juice from the tin into a cup and top up with cold water.
Mix with the jelly.
Stir in tin of fruit.
Refrigerate until set.
Enjoy with ice cream.

Aside : Daffodils in the garden

Daffodils are one of the annual signs of spring in NZ and are associated with Daffodil Day - use to raise funds for cancer research.

Pork slices with cumin and coriander

500g pork slices
1 onion
Garlic and ginger
400g tin peach slices
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 Tbsp soy sauce

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Place onions, garlic and ginger in an oven-proof dish.
Cover with the pork slices.
Sprinkle with the cumin, coriander and soy sauce.
Spread over the peaches and juice.
Bake for 1 hour or until slices are tender.

Aside : Peach tree in blossom

Spring is here and the blossoms are everywhere in the garden!

Tarte Tatin

4 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup sugar
Large tin pie apples
1 sheet sweet pastry

This needs to be cooked in an oven-proof dish that can also be placed on a hot plate e.g. a skillet. It's the classic upside-down tart.

Spread the butter and sugar over the bottom of the dish.
Place the pie pieces in the dish so that the whole surface is covered and there are no gaps.
Cook over high heat until sugar starts to melt.
Reduce heat to medium and cook for another 30 minutes. The purpose of this is to caramelize the apples.
Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Roll the pastry to fit over the dish.
Place the pastry over the dish tucking in the edges and pricking with a fork in a few places.
Bake until pastry is golden brown - about 30 minutes.
Remove tart, rest for 5 minutes and then invert over a large dish.
Re-arrange apples if needed - serve with cream or ice-cream.

There are two pictures showing the tart before and after inversion.

Aside : Koru in the garden

The Koru is an iconic symbol of NZ.

Jam tart

Sheet of sweet pastry
475g jar of jam

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Line an oven proof baking dish with the pastry.
Bake the pastry blind for 15 minutes, then remove the blind and bake for another 4 minutes.
Spoon jam onto pastry.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Allow to cool.
Serve with cream or ice-cream.

Quick stir fry with noodles

500g mince
1 onion
Garlic / ginger / herbs and spices
Packet frozen wok stir fry
Packet wok sauce mix
2 - 3 cups shredded cabbage
1 1/2 cups crispy noodles

Heat wok or deep saucepan
Brown mince, onion, and flavourings
Add the frozen wok stir fry mixture and cook for 4 minutes
Add the cabbage and the sauce and cook until cabbage has wilted.
Sprinkle with noodles before serving.