the METRONOME Menu #3

MNM#3

This suggestion should keep you occupied for more than an hour. Main course will be baked pasta with minced meat and bechamel sauce, a.k.a. "pastitsio", accompanied by a winter cabbage salad. Pastitsio is a full meal by itself, combining filling pasta, with salty meat flavors, creamy sauce and a crusty surface. Serve with beers of your choice, to complete the crime. For dessert we shall make fried apples. The menu could serve up to four people. Enjoy !

Gather, wash and prepare your ingredients. Set up your work surfaces, and your chopping board. Preheat your oven to 180°C. Knives sharpened and ready. Hand towel close by. Use extra virgin olive oil for all the recipes (unless stated otherwise). Start with the main course, it’s the most complicated. While the pastitsio is being baked, prepare the dessert and leave the salad for last. At the end of the bake, you should be ready to serve.

The main course may seem complicated, but it's actually fairly straightforward, and believe me very rewarding in the end. Try it out, it's fun (a pain though for the washing up afterwards).

Fried apples

4 apples, sliced (but not peeled)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp cinnamon

a pinch of salt

a pinch of ground nutmeg

What to do :

1.      In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium to low heat. Pour apples evenly over skillet bottom. Sprinkle lemon juice over them, then brown sugar, then salt. Cover and cook over low heat for 15 minutes until apples are tender and juicy. Turn once or twice.

2.      Sprinkle with the cinnamon and nutmeg prior to serving.

You can keep the remainder, to eat with your next day breakfast.

Cabbage & carrot salad

1 small to medium cabbage (1/2 kg or more)

2-3 carrots

1 fresh onion

Olive oil to taste (1/3-1/2 of a cup)

1 lemon, the juice

1/2 lemon, the zest

1 tbsp lime juice (optional)

Pinch of freshly ground pepper (green preferably)

Salt to taste

What to do :

1.      (1^st stage) Cut the cabbage, core and shred it. In a mixing bowl use your hands and gring roughly the cabbage with the zest and juice from ½ a lemon and the salt.

[Tip] We do this to break the cabbage, to release its fluids and for the salt and lemon to penetrate it. You will realise the difference when you taste it.

2.      (2^nd stage) Peel and grate the carrots coarsely. Add them to the cabbage. Cut the onion and add it too. Prior to serving, season with the pepper, and add more salt if you wish. Pour the olive oil and the rest of the juices over the mix, and toss all together.

 For a twist, you can add 1-2 tsp of soy sauce.

The "pastitsio"

 

The bechamel sauce :

11/2 lt fresh, full fat milk

7-8 tbsp corn flour

3 tbsp butter (not margarine)

2 eggs

1 pinch of ground nutmeg

Salt (to taste) and ground pepper

The minced meat :

400 gr minced meat (beef)

300 gr minced meat (pork)

2 tomatoes (medium to large) grated, discard the skins

1 onion (medium to large), cut in small cubes

1 tbsp tomato paste

1/3 cup of olive oil

1 clove of garlic (or more, if you feel like it)

1 tsp sugar

1 pinch of powdered allspice

1 pinch of ground cinnamon

2 bay leaves

Red wine (to put out the heat)

Ground pepper

Salt (to taste)

The rest of the ingredients :

500 gr pasta (macaroni, or penne, or to put it in general terms pasta with a hole in the center either long or short, so that the filling can get in)

Grated cheese (to your liking)

3-4 tbsp butter (not margarine), or olive oil, for the pasta

3-4 tbsp butter (not margarine), for the baking

What to do :

1.      Put the kettle on. You will need the hot water for the pasta.

2.      (1^st stage - A) For the minced meat preparation. Mix the two varieties of minced meat. In a skillet, you heat up the oil, and cook the onions until golden. Don't overcook, they will become bitter. Add the minced meat mix, and cook while stirring, over medium to high temperature, until the meat breaks up to small pieces (not chunks) and has light color. Approx 5mins. Put the heat out with the wine, and lower the temperature. Add the garlic through a press, the grated tomatoes, the spices and the seasoning and let the ingredients cook until the fluid evaporate (that could take more than 30 mins.) Add the paste and a bit of olive oil more, if its seems very dry. When ready remove from the heat and take oput the bay leaves.

3.      (1^st stage - B) While the minced meat is being cooked, boil the pasta into lightly salted water (use the hot water from the kettle to speed up your cooking), until "sticky". Drain them and add the butter (or olive oil if you do not like the taste or smell of butter. Stir well and let aside.

4.      (1^st stage - C) For the bechamel sauce preparation. Heat the milk in a pan over medium heat, but do not let it boil. Add the butter and the seasoning, and let it rest a while. Disolve the corn flour in a glass with some of the heated milk, then pour the solution in the pan, and beat the mixture with a whisk for the ingredients to mix and become firmer. Take off the heat and let rest. Beat the eggs lightly by themselves, and then pour them slowly in the milk & flour mix, while whisking again (lightly this time). Add the nutmeg, and whisk some more.

[Tip] There is another way of making the sauce. Both my grandmother and my mother-in-law, I have seen using this technique, and somehow their pastitsios were legendary. This is what you have to do, but it takes care and some pretty neat kitchen trickery (you only have one set of hands), since it can easily go wrong. Heat olive oil in a large pot, over medium heat (and maintain medium heat throughout), enough to well cover its bottom. Do not let it boil. When heated, put in 12 tbsp (mounds actually) of flour (general purpose) in quick successive spoonfuls, while whisking with your other hand the mixture. The purpose is to wet thoroughly the flour, and give it a dough-like consistency, without it being clotted. When finished with the flour, pour gradually the milk in (keep the milk in room temperature before), while whisking. Whisk and stir the mix continuously, until the flour mixes with the milk, and you feel the mixture easy and creamy. This whisking could take some time, and you should remove the pan from the heat every now and then, so that it doesn't boil over. Stir in a clockwise fashion (it is important !). When you feel the mix homogenized, remove from the heat and whisk in the beaten eggs (beat them slightly beforehand and pour them slowly !) When finished, sprinkle with grated cheese and whisk. Whisk again before pouring over the pasta and minced meat. After that you may give your hands a rest. J

5.      (2^nd stage) Coat a baking pan with some butter. Put half of the cooked pasta in, sprinkle with the grated cheese (not too much), then add a layer of the cooked minced meat. Repeat with the rest of the pasta, a bit of cheese and the remaining minced meat.

[Tip] You can use some beaten egg to pour over the pasta layer. In that way the whole mixture becomes more firm, more robust, when you need to cut it in slices to serve afterwards.

6.      Pour the bechamel sauce over the layered ingredients, to cover them all. Add small nibs of butter here and there (you can omit those if you wish), and sprinkle a thin layer of cheese (to your liking - don't overdo it).

7.      (3^rd stage) The bake. Put the pan in the oven, 170-180°C, for about 30-40 minutes, or until the surface is golden and crusty. Serve after 10-15 mins.

For a twist, you can add some chilli peppers, or tabasco sauce, while the minced meat is being cooked, if you like things spicy. If you do, bare in mind that you may spoil the smell and taste of the rest of the ingredients.

Photo credits :

Ref.1  http://opistachio.blogspot.gr/2009/02/cabbage-carrot-salad.html

Ref.2  http://www.copykat.com/2009/05/03/cracker-barrel-old-country-store-fried-apples/

the METRONOME Menu #2

MNM#2

This suggestion should keep you in the kitchen a while, but with long intervals. All dishes are easy to make, and do not require much of attention. Main course will be cauliflower & broccoli with cheese, accompanied by a green salad with bacon and blue cheese. For dessert a simple lemon posset, served with cookies or whipped cream. The menu could serve 4 people max. Enjoy !

Gather, wash and prepare your ingredients. Set up your work surfaces, and your chopping board. Preheat your oven to 220°C. Knive sharpened and ready. Hand towel close by. Use extra virgin olive oil for all the recipes (unless stated otherwise). Start with the dessert since it needs to stay in the fridge for a couple of hours.

Cauliflower & Broccoli with Cheese

1 small head of cauliflower, cut into large florets

1 small head of broccoli, cut into large florets

40gr butter

40gr flour

700ml milk

150gr Cheddar cheese (or Gooda cheese ; yellow cheese) plus 50gr extra for sprinkling

1-2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Pinch of freshly ground pepper

Salt to taste

What to do :

1.      Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Boil the cauliflower florets for 5 minutes. After 3 minutes add the broccoli then drain both.

2.      To make the sauce, melt the butter in a medium-sized pan. Spoon in the flour and stir for about a minute, without allowing it to brown. Remove from the heat and gradually beat in the milk, a few spoonfuls at a time at first, then increasing the flow as the sauce thins. Once all the milk has been added bring the sauce up to the boil, stirring constantly then remove from the heat. Finally stir in the cheese and mustard and season with a little salt and pepper.

3.      Place the broccoli and cauliflower in an ovenproof dish and pour over the sauce. Finish with a sprinkling of cheese and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Green Salad with Bacon and Blue Cheese

5-6 strips of good quality bacon

4 spring onions (medium size)

100gr rocket, chopped coarsely

200gr lettuce chopped coarsely, or other greens

50gr chopped parsley

4-5 tablespoons Blue cheese or Roquefort

½ lemon juice

Olive oil

Pinch of freshly ground pepper (green preferably)

Salt to taste

What to do :

1.      Cook the bacon in a hot skillet until crisp on both sides. Remove and place on a paper towel to drain and cool.

2.      Chop the green onions with a bit of their greens. Mix in a medium bowl with the greens and crumble in the bacon.

3.      Sprinkle with the salt and pepper, drizzle with the olive oil and the lemon. Then toss all the ingredients together. Crumble the blue cheese over the salad and serve.

Lemon Posset

2cups (480ml) heavy cream

2/3cups (170gr) granulated white sugar

5 tablespoons lemon juice (passed through a strainer)

What to do :

1.      In a small saucepan, heat cream and sugar to boiling, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Continue boiling for 5 minutes. Watch the heat - don’t let the cream boil over.

2.      Remove pan from heat and stir in lemon juice. Let cool, about 15 minutes.

3.      Pour even amounts into four ramekins. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, or until set.

4.      Serve with unsweetened whipped cream, or shortbread cookies to dunk.

For the original recipes please visit :

Ref.1 http://www.spar.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/CauliflowerandBroccoliCheese.aspx

Ref.2 http://www.food52.com/recipes/4351_assertive_green_salad_with_ramps_bacon_and_blue_cheese

Ref.3 http://www.food52.com/recipes/3060_lemon_posset

the METRONOME Menu #1

MNM#1

This suggestion should keep you in the kitchen for roughly an hour. Main course will be baked sausages in a batter, aka "toad-in-the-hole", by James Taner, accompanied by a hearty greek salad. Serve with red dry wine of your choice, that you have left to "breathe" for a while in room temperature. For dessert we shall use a simple idea from Jamie Oliver. Frozen grapes, served with chocolate and paired with chilled Grappa. That should keep you discussing for a while. Enjoy !

Gather, wash and prepare your ingredients. Set up your work surfaces, and your chopping board. Preheat your oven to 220°C. Knife sharpened and ready. Hand towel close by. Use extra virgin olive oil for all the recipes (unless stated otherwise). Start with the dessert. When finished start preparing the sausages. While the sausages are being baked for the first stage, prepare the first stage of the salad. Then proceed to the second stage of the bake and that of the salad. At the end of the bake, you should be ready to serve.

Grapes & Choc

• Dark chocolate bar, Milk chocolate bar, almonds chocolate bar (basically whatever you like, but keep >70% cocoa).
• Muscat, dark or strawberry grapes

What to do :

• Put your bottle of grappa and the grapes in the freezer, about 2 to 3 hours before you want to serve them.
• Prior to serving, break the chocolate into large chunks. 
• Arrange the chocolate with the grapes, and serve with shots of Grappa 

Greek Salad

    1 large slice of feta cheese

     1 large ripe tomato, chopped coarsely

     2 medium onions sliced (you may also use green fresh onions)

     1/2 cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped

     7-8 black olives (optionally pit and slice them)

     1 teaspoon capers

     Several basil leaves

     1 teaspoon dried oregano (or to taste)

     Olive oil to taste (1/3-1/2 of a cup)

     1 teaspoon vinegar

     Pinch of freshly ground pepper (green preferably)

     Salt to taste

What to do :

• (1^st stage) Cut the tomato, onions, cucumber. Add the olives and capers. Sprinkle with the oregano and ground pepper and toss all the ingredients. Leave at room temperature to rest, or until you are ready to serve.
• (2^nd stage) Prior to serving, season with the salt. Pour the olive oil and vinegar over the mix, and toss again.
• On top crumble the feta cheese (or break gently in large chunks). Drizzle with olive oil, and add the basil leaves (crush them a bit with your fingers first).

"Toad-in-the-hole"

The "toads" :

     8 great quality sausages (pork or spiced)

     1 onion, sliced coarsely

     2 tablespoons olive oil

     Crushed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

The batter :

     100gr all-purpose flour

     2 eggs

     300ml full-fat milk

     Pinch of crushed sea salt

What to do :

• (1^st stage) Put the sausages in a medium roasting tin (so they are quite snug). Scatter over the onion, season with crushed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and drizzle with the olive oil. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, at 200°C until the sausages are beginning to brown and the onions are tinged at the edges.
• For the batter, sift the flour into a mixing bowl with the salt. Make a well in the centre and crack in the eggs. Beat lightly, then gradually pour in the milk, beating all the time, until you have a smooth batter.
• (2^nd stage) Remove the roasting tin from the oven and pour the batter over the sausages. Sausages should be partially covered. You may cut them coarsely if you prefer.
• Return to the oven for a further 25-30 minutes, at the same temperature, until the batter is crisp, golden and well risen. Serve immediately.

For the original recipes please visit :

Ref.1 http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fruit-recipes/frozen-grapes-chocolate-grappa

Ref.2 http://www.redonline.co.uk/food/recipes/james-tanner-s-toad-in-the-hole