Just like a bought one, only better!

Looking for something easy and tasty to cook for dinner tonight?  Chicken Parmy is the answer, with a beautiful creamy mash and whatever other veges you've got.  I'll bet you've got everything you need, already in the fridge and pantry, and there are a multitude of things you can substitute.  Instead of making your own tomato sauce for the top, why not use a tin of tomatoes with basil and garlic already in it.  Don't have Panko Breadcrumbs (they're just a little coarser than normal ones)?  Toast a piece of bread and crumble it up with your rolling pin or mortar and pestle.  Don't be put off by doing your own crumbing - it's not that hard or messy.  Just remember to keep one hand for dry (flour and breadcrumbs) and one had for wet (egg).  Really there's no excuse.  It's just too easy.  Enjoy!

Chicken Parmigiana
(Serves 4)
150g (2 cups) panko breadcrumbs
1 lemon, zested
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
150g (1 cup) plain flour
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 large chicken breasts, halved lengthwise
1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes (or get the tin that has the basil and garlic in it, and skip step 4!)
handful basil, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
100g grated mozarella

1. Combine breadcrumbs, lemon zest and half the parsley, in one bowl.  Season flour with salt and pepper, in second bowl.  Lightly beat eggs, in a third bowl.
2. Arrange bowls - flour, egg, then breadcrumbs.  Dust 1 piece of chicken with flour, then dip in egg, then coat in breadcrumbs.  Repeat for all pieces of chicken.  Try to keep one hand for dry (flour, breadcrumbs) and one hand for wet (eggs) - it makes everything a lot less messy!
3. Heat some oil or butter in a large, heavy-based fry pan over medium heat.  Cook chicken, in batches (depending on size of pan) for 3 - 4 minutes each side or until golden.  
4. Mix chopped tomatoes with basil and garlic.
5. Preheat grill to high.  Place all chicken pieces in a large oven-proof dish (or use the frypan you cooked them in).  Spoon tomato mixture over each piece of chicken and top with mozarella.
6. Grill for 3 - 5 minutes, until cheese is golden and chicken is cooked through.  Allow to stand a few minutes before serving.
7. Serve parmigiana on top of creamy mashed potato and snow peas/green beans, with lemon wedges.  Garnish with remaining parsley.

Chilly nights = chilli nights

So it's winter in my part of the world.  Compared to a lot of other places, winter in south-east Queensland is usually quite mild, averaging 9C over night and about 21C during the days.  This past month though has seen some very cold nights (4 -5 C) following clear crisp days.  This kind of weather says chilli to me!  Below is my favourite Chilli Con Carne recipe.  No need to buy the recipe base mix in the supermarket, you just need chilli powder and ground cumin instead.  Add as much or as little chilli powder and fresh chilli to suit your taste - you do need some though, otherwise it's just savoury mince!  As always, with fresh chilli, taste a small piece as you are chopping it up so you can gauge the heat level.

To follow this chilli, why not calm down the taste buds and keep the insides warm with Rhubarb and Apple Crumble - a winter favourite!

Chilli Con Carne

500g lean beef mince
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 long green or red chillies, seeded, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon chilli powder (to your own taste)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tins (400g - 410g) chopped tomatoes
400g tin red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
250mL Beef (or vege) stock
1/2 bunch coriander leaves

1. Heat some oil in a large heavy based pan over high heat.  Cook mince, stirring, to break up lumps, until browned.  Remove mince from pan and set aside.
2. In the same pan, add another splash of olive oil and cook onion, garlic, chillies and spices, over a medium heat, until the onion has softened and the spices are fragrant.
3. Add the mince back into the pan and stir in the tomato paste.  Add chopped tomatoes and kidney beans.  Stir well.  Season with salt and pepper.
4. Carefully stir in the stock.  Cover and allow to simmer for about 45 minutes.  (You can also do all of this in a heavy-based oven-proof casserole dish, and at this point bake at 180C for 45 minutes).
5. Whilst it's bubbling away, cook/steam rice.  You might like to make a quick guacamole at this point too - mash an avocado or two, add in 1 - 2 finely diced tomatoes, 1 small red onion finely diced, the juice of half a lemon or lime (to your taste) and a splash of tobasco sauce (to your taste).
6. Serve the chilli on steamed rice, garnish with coriander leaves.  Also serve with corn chips, sour cream and guacamole on the side.

Rhubarb and Apple Crumble
6 - 8 stalks rhubarb, leaves discarded (they are poisonous!)
2 apples, peeled, cored, roughly chopped
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/3 dessicated coconut
1/3 cup brown sugar
50g butter
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. Roughly chop the rhubarb stems.  Add rhubarb and apple to a small saucepan with the caster sugar.  Add a little water, and allow to stew till cooked through.  Keep an eye on it!
2. To make the crumble: mix together the oats, coconut and brown sugar.  Rub the butter through the dry ingredients.  Mix in the cinnamon
3. Once the rhubarb and apple is cooked taste it for sweetness, add more sugar if necessary (remembering there is sugar in the crumble as well).  Then pour it into an appropriate sized baking dish.
4. Loosely place the crumble over the top.  Bake at 180C for 10 - 15 minutes or until crumble looks brown and crunchy.  Serve with cream or icecream.

Warm winter wonder Part 2

Inspired by some fresh produce from the local farmers market - very ripe tomatoes, aromatic basil and garlic - this was either going to be a rich tomato sauce for pasta or tomato soup.  In the end the weather helped make the decision.  So on a cold (well for Queensland anyway), rainy winter's day, it was time to make some warming soup.  This Tomato Bisque is simple,  delicious and takes very little time.  It certainly warmed me up for lunch today.

Tomato Bisque (serves 6 - 8)

1kg vine ripened tomatoes
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
50g unsalted butter
1 Spanish onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 fresh bay leaf
2 basil stalks (leaves and stalks)
1 cup (250mL) dry sherry
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
300mL tomato water (the water the tomatoes were blanched in, plus skins and seeds)
300mL cream

1. Score base of tomatoes and blanch in boiling water, till skin starts to split and peel away - about a minute.  Remove, drain and peel tomatoes.  Cut each tomato in half and de-seed.  Reserve the seeds and juice.  Chop tomatoes roughly.  (I usually peel and de-seed the tomatoes into the saucepan lid, then you can easily tip them into a sieve to drain the juice off.  Add water from the pot you blanched the tomatoes in, to the drained tomato juice to make up the 300mL 'tomato water', which you add to the soup later on. Then discard the seeds and skin.)
2. Heat a large saucepan, add olive oil and butter.  Lightly fry onions, garlic, bay leaf and basil stalks.
3. Once the onions are translucent pour in the sherry and allow to boil.
4. Add sugar, salt, pepper and chopped tomatoes.  Stir to combine, then pour in the tomato water (the juice from the drained skins and seeds, topped up with water from the blanching pan), bring to the boil.
5. Allow to cool slightly, remove the bay leaf (leave the basil in) and blend in batches until smooth.  (The soup could be chilled and frozen at this point.)
6. Return to saucepan add cream, stir, bring to boil.
7. Serve with crusty bread and a sprig of basil on top.