Dish 10: Pork & Fennel Sausage Rolls

The dish

You may know by now that I'm not a huge pork fan. Still, not only have I sworn to myself to prepare every dish in this cookbook, I will always give stuff a second, third, or fourth chance. 

And so I chose to make Pork & Fennel Sausage Rolls (p. 120).

The preparation

To be honest, the prospect of having to make my own sausage rolls was kind of daunting. I had no idea if it was going to be hard or if I had to be very careful with amounts. 

In terms of preparation, this is becoming kind of a regular thing: you start by chopping things up, such as shallots!

And then you chop up some more things, including the fennel! For the record and in case you have never cooked with fennel before (comme moi), remove the heart of the fennel, like you would with witlof (chicory/endive).

Next step: mashing everything together with your pork mince. It seemed all fine and dandy up until this point. 

And then came the part that worried me: getting out your puff pastry and actually forming the sausage rolls.

Unlike the recipe in the book, the puff pastry I had were not slabs of 15 x 30cm. Instead I had to work with squares of 10 x 10cm.

I had calculated that I didn't need that many, but ended up adding more as the portions of the minced meat concoction were so plentiful that the 6 or 7 sheets I had laid out were hardly sufficient.

Still, I tried to stuff as much meat into the puff pastry as possible.

As you can see, the meat mix took up about one third of the puff pastry, so folding these little rascals and keeping them shut was quite an experience. Luckily my egg wash helped a lot, and I think the experience I have with using this kind puff pastry when making apple turnovers also gave me a boost of confidence.

Let me tell you: I won. And all these little pigs in blankets went straight into the oven with their fennel comrades.

 

The result

They turned out quite alright, although, perfectionist as I am, I'm not entirely pleased with the way they look, simply because they don't look the way they do in the book. But then, this is the first time ever I made them, and they are incredibly good-looking, aren't they?

As for taste... Well, let's just say they tasted of pork. But the addition of fennel was really great! I think I did make a mistake regarding seasoning, though, because I found that I really needed to sprinkle extra salt over it to give it some flavour. The moment I had figured that out, it was all good.

Mine were also twice as big as they are supposed to be if you follow the recipe precisely, but since I prepared them for dinner, I figured a slightly bigger version of the same thing couldn't do any harm. And it didn't, but they are quite heavy on the stomach. I would definitely suggest them as a party snack, though!

Next time

Next time I'm not going to prepare a full dish. Instead, I will focus on one of the extras in The Next Element, and that is a sauce! I know, it's absolutely thrilling. But just you wait, Henry Higgins!

See you at our next elemental meal!

Dish 9: Rosemary Baked Hand-Cut Chips

The dish

Alright, let me start off by saying that I have been dreadfully negligent with regards to this here blog. Sorry, blog!

However, that doesn't mean that I haven't kept to my promise of trying out every Andy Allen recipe; it just means that you know nothing about it! Muahaha! Nah, just kidding. It just means that I will have to write a lot, and I will do so today, because my lovely friend Judith basically forced me into it. She is going to share a link to this blog on her own incredibly pretty and professional blog. Yeah, so by the by, if you are looking for an awesome and stylish blog, head over to Judy's Books and Bakery.

On with the actual blog. As I noted in my previous update, I hardly had any time for proper cooking, let alone documenting all that I did. And no, I obviously did not end up making those scones (they live to love another day). Instead, it was Oscar night! And what do you eat during Oscar night?

That's right! Nothing, because all those skinny women in beautiful dresses intimidate the hell out of you. Except if you're me, and all that intimidation just leads to you eating your way through your cupboards.

Actually, none of that is true. Well, not really. I just figured that a snack such as this one would be perfect. Why buy crisps/chips if you could also make them yourself?

The preparation

As you would expect with a dish called Rosemary Baked Hand-Cut Chips (p. 70), it is pretty straightforward.

You get your potatoes, and you slice them. If you are fancy you use a mandoline. If not, and you're like me, you create your own (slight more wobbly) version.

Once you have sliced as many potatoes as you need, you put them in a bowl, and add some seasoning.

Don't forget the olive oil and mix it all together. 

Then comes the lazy part if you're someone else, and tedious "it will fit perfectly" part if you're me: you put all the slices onto your baking tray.

Add your rosemary and your garlic. Add a little more olive oil, add a little more seasoning, and chuck the tray into the oven.

Because the slices are so thin, it only takes a short while before they're done. However, did I mention that you need to flip them over halfway through? Yeah.

But, in the end you will end up with some lovely hand-cut chips!

The result

They say a picture is worth more than a thousand words. So here:

And I only have one more to add: Yum.

Next time

Due to the fact that I'm writing this update after I've already done four other dishes, I can tell you, without any form of surprise or change of plan, that the next dish is something I have never tried before: Pork & Fennel Sausage Rolls (p. 120).

Oh dear. Pork again. Read on to see how this Next Elemental meal was received.

Dish 8: Mediterranean Chicken Skewers with Coriander Yoghurt

The dish

I was in the mood for something easy and light. Something that didn't take a lot of prepping, but was still a warm meal, since I'm saving the salad recipes for Spring and Summer.

Consequently, I chose chicken skewers. Because who doesn't like chicken skewers?! I can tell you, the Dutch love it. We love barbecuing. You know why? We don't get to do it all that much, so when we get the chance, we take it. So chicken skewers it was, even if I had to make do with a grill pan rather than a barbecue.

The preparation

You get the ingredients; you chop them up. Then you mix them all together with some herbs, garlic and olive oil, and let them marinate overnight (or throughout the day, as I did).

You also you dunk your wooden bamboo skewers in water and let them soak.

When the time has come, approximately 3 hours before you are hungry), you start preparing the skewers. I love that in the recipe Andy is so very specific. First chicken, then capsicum, then zucchini, then onion. Repeat. Until you have two of each kind of vegetable. TWO. NO MORE. I don't know, I didn't try it out, maybe the skewers self-destruct if you don't stick to this way (pun a little intended)?

Eventually, you end up with a pile that looks like this:

If I didn't know that raw chicken was bad for you, I'd eat it like it was, that's how good this pile looked. And see? Chicken, capsicum, zucchini, onion. Repeat. ;)

I put my grill pan on the stove with a little bit of oil, and while I was waiting for it to be hot enough, I prepared the coriander yoghurt. I am telling you, I need a herb garden and a lemon tree, because I don't think that there's been a recipe yet that didn't involve thyme, coriander, lemon and/or lime. 

This stuff is gorgeous, and it is a lovely addition to these chicken skewers.

The result

Because my grill only had enough room to grill 4 skewers at a time, it took me quite some time to have all skewers cooked through and through. Luckily, this dish is so tasty, you don't really need to eat it while it's hot. Cold will do just fine.

Do make sure to add some lemon wedges when you dine. Sprinkle some lemon juice over the food and the add the coriander yoghurt. Delish, I tell you.

Next time

Due to the fact that I will only have time on Friday for the next meal, after returning from work at 5 p.m., I will most likely opt for a dessert, or perhaps those scones that have been eyeing me since the moment I got this book. After all, it's never too late at night for some dessert. Wink wink nud-- never mind. :)

What it is going to be is therefore going to be a huge surprise, so see you all at our (my) next elemental meal!

P.S. I'm still avoiding the creepy crawly dishes, aren't you proud?

Dish 7: Roast Beef with Winter Vegetables

The dish

I owe you two posts by now, so you'll get both of them quickly following one another. Although, if you read this later, you'd never know (schedule-manipulation ftw, muahaha!).

Anyway, I had already decided on this dish quite some time ago, so I was looking forward to preparing it. Also, I had expected most of this being sitting around while the oven does all the work, which always makes me tingle a little on the inside. 

The preparation

And sitting around I did. Not so much while the oven did it's work, but while the oil and thyme sprigs did their job. 

While the meat (which I didn't expect to be so expensive. Oh well, you live, you learn!) was marinating, I made a start on the vegetables.

This was the first time ever I have touched a parsnip, and it was the first time since forever that I touched a beetroot. 

I felt so healthy preparing all of the vegetables. This dish isn't complicated, unless you don't know how to use a small kitchen knife, in which case you're pretty much screwed.

I was, however, surprised when I didn't need to chuck the meat into the baking tin together with the vegetables, but that I was going to have to brown the meat in a frying pan. False advertising, I call that, because the pictures in the book all had the roast lying amidst the vegetables inside the baking tray. 

Luckily I got a great frying pan for Christmas 2012 that allows for time in the oven, so after I browned the meat I was able to put it - pan and all - into the oven, just above the vegetables in their baking tray. 

In the meantime I started on the dressing, because I had all the time in the world now.

Let me get one thing straight: I love horseradish. I love wasabi. Seriously, even the feeling of having your nose pinched shut just above the nostrils, bringing tears to your eyes? Yup. :)

I also put the plates in a bath of scalding hot water to heat them up a little.

Once the dressing was done, the meat had to come out of the oven to rest for about 15 minutes. I grabbed my oven mitt and pulled the frying pan out of the oven, transferred the beef onto a wooden cutting board and covered it with some foil.

And then, unexpectedly, I still managed to pull an Andy. Remember that pan-oven vs the hand situation? Yeah. Having safely pulled the pan out of the oven, it was in the way, so I figured I'd just clean up a little. Without the mitt, this time. Boy, did I feel stupid. Luckily, no severe harm done (and it only cost me about 10 minutes of cooling - which still left me 5 minutes).

Unfortunately, one of my dinner guests notified me about 7 minutes before it was done (and 2 minutes before she was due to arrive) that she was going to be around 10 minutes late. Needless to say, I was not amused, especially not because I did not want this expensive meat to be overdone. But what can you do? So I waited and prayed to the gods of meat. No, not really. Well, okay, maybe a little.

The result

This dish is pretty much what it says it is: roast beef with winter vegetables. And once finished, it can look like this:

Yes, I realise I should have put the two pieces of meat with the pink sides up as well, but oh well, I was hungry and the meat was pretty much cold by then.

I also served with a delicious Australian wine that my best friend bought just because of the label. 

Read it and weep, my darling readers. And be sure to buy it, because it was actually pretty tasty. (But what do I know? I've just finished being a student so I settle for most wines.)

Also, quick question: how do people let meat rest for so long without it going absolutely cold? Does one warm it up again right before serving? And if so, how? Oh the mysteries of life!

I figured out with this dish that horseradish can make up for a lot of things, but it cannot make up for parsnip. I am not a sweet vegetable eating girl, and although most of the vegetables were fine, I couldn't for the life of me finish the chunk of parsnip on my plate.

But no worries: there is so much food on your plate, that you definitely won't go hungry!

Next time

Technically next time has already been, but just so you know, the dish after this I made Mediterranean Chicken Skewers with Coriander Yoghurt. During the Olympic closing ceremony. Which I then ended up missing completely. :(

Still, see you at our (sort of) next elemental meal!

Dish 6: Simple Chicken Satay

The dish

I love satay. I also love that by writing satay the way you do you also pronounce it the way I was always taught by my Dutch-Indo grandmother. In Dutch the word is pronounced with the accent on the "tay" part of it, which has never ceased bothering me. Yeah, I know, right? 

But anyway, back to the recipe. I love chicken, I love spice, I love rice and I definitely love peanuts, so this dish really couldn't go wrong.

The preparation

The trickiest part about preparing this is getting rid of the bones in the chicken thighs. I have to admit, the first thigh I butchered, I seriously butchered. But by thigh four, the bone started to come away more or less clean. A moral victory, although I did curse a bit at our cookbook author for the duration of thighs one and two ("Why couldn't we just have used chicken breast fillets?"). But I suppose that this entire journey is also one that should teach me a thing or two about cooking, and I have learned now that after getting really angry, I don't care much about cutting through bone/joints, ripping off skin and generally getting my hands dirty. Will that also do the trick when I have to handle the too-many-legged dishes? I'm not so sure.

Once you've chopped up all the chicken, it's a matter of preparing the marinade and covering the chicken with it. Then you proceed to leave it standing for quite some time.

What I found very important to keep in mind is that reducing any kind of sauce simply takes a lot of time. If you follow this recipe step by step, you might start on this part a little late. However, since I've learned from my past mistakes, I got my peanut butter and stock bubbling away quite pleasantly while my chicken was still marinating.

You may worry that this dish doesn't have a lot of vegetables in it, but that's actually quite alright. It contains a lot of onion and also quite a fair bit of tomatoes.

The result

What can I say? This dish's title lives up to his name (which is awesome!). It is simple, it has chicken and it has satay. 

Oh, and if you are a fan of spicy, you will love it all the more. Eating this left a tingle on my lips. Next time I might even add another red chilli. Delish.

Unfortunately, due to the heavy load of onion, my onion-loathing best friend was not as impressed with this plate of food as she was with the Mid-Weekend Beef Curry, but she still finished her plate and didn't hurl. That's quite a victory, I should say!

Next time

As promised and already announced, next time (which will be Saturday) I will prepare the Roast Beef with Winter Vegetables (p. 52) for my friends, and if it is hard and if after that my friends say it's disgusting, I will whack them with the roasting tin I made it in. Even if it turns out that it is disgusting. Not that I expect it to be, mind. :)

See you at our next elemental meal!

Oh, but before I end this, let me just leave you with this:

That's right. We're ruling this joint! (For now.)

Dish 5: Mid-Week Beef Curry

The dish

What to say about this dish? I love curries, so I was excited this one out. Moreover, because I do have a full-time job, mid-week seems like a call from heaven. After all, a mid-week dinner is supposed to be fast, right?

Wrong! This dish takes about 2 (two) hours to prepare, so unless you are self-employed, currently between jobs or a stay-at-home parent, this is definitely not - and I do mean definitely not! - a dish that's suitable for your average rushed mid-week day.

Andy Allen, if ever you read this: mid-week should mean a preparation and cooking time of 20-30 minutes, not 120. (Yes, yes, I know I should have read through the recipe sooner...)

The preparation

This dish seems pretty straightforward. You take some spices and chuck them in a large pan (yay, I love chucking!), together with some meat and other ingredients such as finely chopped onion and red chillies. 

Unfortunately getting all of the correct spices turned out to be a little trickier than anticipated. You should know that I have a lovely best friend/flatmate who takes care of getting most groceries. She ended up visited approximately five different stores all over town to locate the final few ingredients. This means that in the end I did have to cheat a little, since I technically did not have all of the spices necessary.

Once you do have all ingredients, the dish is incredibly simple to prepare. You start out by chopping up a fair amount of beef, which can take up quite a bit of time if you want to make sure you have gotten rid of all of those sneaky tendons. However, once you've done that, the hardest part is over. Huzzah!

Then you proceed to dry-roast your spices. In my case, only one of three was available in seed-format, so I used the ground version of the other two. In comes one of the best things in the world: the mortar and pestle. I bought mine about half a year ago, but had yet to use it for the very first time. 

It was glorious, I can tell you! Even if I wasn't the one who thought up which spices had to be ground together, there is something about creating your own spice mix that makes you feel like a proper cook, instead of the usual easy grab a pre-fab concoction from the shop.

Once the meat is browned, you use the same pan to fry the other ingredients and spices before you put the meat back in there with some stock and lemon juice. And then the waiting game starts.

I did a workout while the curry was simmering away, which made my initial feeling of hunger fade, as it does when you wait long enough.

Approximately two hours and a pan of boiled basmati rice later (I don't even know how to steam rice), it was finally time to dine!

The result

Was it tasty? Hell yes. There was a slight error in judgement, which caused my final version of the dish to be a little more sour than intended, but it was delicious nevertheless. Change the name to a Mid-Weekend Beef Curry and I'm all for it! Oh, and guess what? My onion-loating best friend didn't even mind the onion so much. Score!

Next time

Although I was planning on making something out of Ben's section of the book, all the deep frying that was involved kind of put me off... for now. Instead I'll try my hand at what I grew up with as a proper Sunday dinner: Simple Chicken Satay (p. 31). And yes, I did check the preparation time beforehand. Also, it's called Simple, so if it ends up being difficult, I know where to find you! ;)

See you at our next elemental meal!

Dish 2, 3 and 4: The Crispiest Skin Pork Belly, Honeyed Carrots, Pomme Puree

The dish

Yesterday I prepared The Crispiest Skin Pork Belly (p. 92). I usually don't eat a lot of pork, because I don't like the taste of it very much, but I had never really had pork belly, so I was definitely keen to try this.

Other than pork I also prepared some Honeyed Carrots (p. 73) and Pomme Puree (p. 60), to accompany that slab of meat. I have prepared honeyed carrots before, but for those I took inspiration from Julie Goodwin's cookbook. I was curious to see how much these carrots would differ from that recipe. Naturally I have also prepared mashed potatoes before, but I have never actually pressed potatoes through a sieve, despite having seen it done on various cooking shows.

The preparation

A trip to the butcher's got me some nice pork belly, although I bought a little over half of what the recipe required, because I only prepared it for two people, whereas the recipe is for a company of four.

If you don't like handling meat or seeing that meat comes from "a real animal", keep in mind that carving the pork's skin may be a little daunting. In the broad daylight, seeing how much their skin and ours look alike, it really makes it sink in that this used to be a living animal.

Anyway, I carved the skin, which proved to be a little trickier than expected. I guess my chef's knife just isn't as sharp as I'd hoped, because it was quite hard to get through.

I figured that because the piece I bought was so much smaller than the one in the recipe, I would be fine putting it in the oven for a shorter period of time. However, because it was the first time ever I had made it, I wasn't sure what it was supposed to look like after the first scorching 30-40 minutes. Strangely enough, despite having salted both sides equally, only one side started to look like I know crackling to look like, whereas the other stayed white and dry. I still don't know what happened there.

Because it took the full 40 minutes for the better half to look crispy, by then I decided I would just follow the recipe as it was, overcooking the pork be damned. I'm fine with messing up a dish if it's the first time ever, so that I know what went wrong.

In the meantime I started on the pomme purée and the honeyed carrots. Luckily I had done both of these before, and since neither required the oven (whereas Julie Goodwin's honeyed carrots also spend some time in the oven), I could combine it perfectly.

First time ever I pressed boiled potatoes through a sieve with a tea towel. And yes, the purée was silky smooth and to my big surprise the pan I mixed the potatoes, milk and butter in stayed almost perfectly clean, and the purée began to look like a kind of dough. Perhaps it was a bit like gnocchi in that sense. Interesting.

Final result

Was the pork belly crispy? Definitely! You couldn't hear yourself think when chewing it, and I have proof in the form of a video which I may or may not post later.

The pomme puree was super smooth, and because I added extra butter, had a great flavour. All in all, however, I'm much more of a chunky mash eater, so although I know that I could make some of my friends really happy serving them this puree, I myself probably won't make it this way soon again.

As for the carrots, although I couldn't really mess up there, I do think I was a little overenthusiastic with the lemon juice. The carrots, although lovely, sweet and fresh, were a little on the sour side, thanks to this overdose of lemon juice. It did accompany the silky creamy puree and the fatty pork crackling perfectly, though!

If you do love pork, this dish is amazing. If, like me, you're not a big fan of the flavour of pork, I would give this dish a miss. Over all, for a cold and snowy day, such as the one we had yesterday (and today), why not prepare such a wintery meal?

Next time

Next time I will prepare an Andy Allen dish a little later than the weekend, because, as it goes, those days are already planned full. Instead I'm going to go for the Mid-Week Beef Curry (p. 51) on Tuesday or Wednesday. Perhaps it is a little easier than some of the other dishes, but I find that with limited time, one needs to make such choices.

You already know what I will prepare the week after that, and if the recipe is really simple, I will also attempt one of Kylie Millar's desserts. Which one, I don't know yet.

Stay tuned and see you at our next elemental meal!