Cook my Books Challenge- Frugal & Fabulous



Apparently it is spring. The calendar says so, but while I have seen my share of gambolling lambs (and who else but a cute little lamb chop could gambol??) and daffodils, until I enjoy that first plate of asparagus, it is still winter as far as I am concerned.

Watching the All Blacks play Argentina in a Wellington gale on the weekend, Mr PK and I enjoyed excellent cold weather footie watching food. A pasty is a perfect hand held dinner, sustaining, savoury, and if you don’t mind a hail of pastry crumbs all over the carpet, relatively low maintenance fare.

I actually made two versions. The first, based on the famous Cornish version, I baked in a lard based pastry (yes really, lard is wonderful stuff, see here). I kept it simple, with the traditional beef, onion, swede (known as turnip in Cornwall) and potato, going off piste only to add some fresh green parsley.

The second, for my non meat eating sister, a flaky short mess-making butter pastry also containing potato, parsley and onion, with the addition of sharp cheddar cheese. Completely delicious, even a carnivore would be impressed………

The Cornish pasty is based on ther recipe in the inimitable Delia's Frugal Food. I have the 2008 reissue, the book originally came out in 1976, and is full of good hearty mostly English style food that wont cost the earth.

A Long Way from Cornwall Pasties...... based on a recipe by Delia Smith

Makes 4 meal sized pasties, but you could make 6 smaller ones

First make your pastry. 

275 gr plain flour

125 gr cold lard (or cold butter)

pinch salt

Ice cold water 

In a large bowl, rub the fat between your fingers into your flour and salt. You can do this in a food processor, but to be honest it only takes a couple of minutes, and the resulting pastry is much softer & easier to roll than the processor version. Use the same method, adding a couple of spoons of icing sugar and some nutmeg for a lovely crust for an Apple Pie

As you can see there a still little chunks of fat, this is fine, it will melt in the heat of the oven & create steam, giving you little flakes of pastry (which if you are like me, will end up all down the front of your shirt....)

Using a knife to mix, add your ice cold water until the mixture comes together as a dough. Tip out onto a floured bench & just bring together. This isnt bread, it does not require kneading, you are just bringing everything together into a workable dough. Wrap in cling film and pop into the fridge for 30 mins or so (or overnight if you are working ahead)

Now prepare your pasty filling

1 large potato, peeled and cut into small slices
1 medium onions, peeled and chopped into tiny chunks
Half a swede, peeled and cut into small slices
300 gr chuck, blade or topside beef, trimmed of fat & cut into small slices
Salt & pepper
Chopped parsley (not traditional, but delicious)

Try to keep everything a similar size, thin slices of meat and vege will cook right through without overcooking your pastry. You will think there isn't enough filling but trust me, this is plenty, pasties are very economical fare....

Take your pastry out of the fridge, and cut into four quarters (or 6 pieces if maker smaller pasties). Roll out one quarter into a circle about the size of a dinner plate.

Top with a spoonful of potato, then swede, onion & finally meat. Season with salt & pepper, then another layer of potato, swede, onion & finally a sprinkle of parsley. The theory for the layering is the meat juices & seasoning then work their way through the root vege as they cook and give the pasty extra flavour.

If you are using cheese rather than meat, just following the same theory, with your cheese layer in the middle. Use something good and strong like a really sharp cheddar for flavour

Now fold one half of the pastry over to completely encase your filling. This is easier then you think as this pastry is quite soft and pliable. Crimp the edges together, I just go around the edge folding the edge inwards on itself over my finger, I cant tell you it is totally authentic, but it looks ok and does the job! If all else fails go around the edge with the tines of a fork,the main object is to make sure your delicious filling cant escape. Cut a couple of steam holes in the top with the tip of your knife and place on an oven tray

Pop into a 200C/400F oven for 15 mins, then turn the heat down to 190C/375F for another 25-30 minutes, until golden and smelling heavenly.

Now I wont pretend these are the quickest things to make, but they are easy, great value, and if you make a batch up they freeze perfectly. Brilliant picnic food, they are also delicious at room temp, which of course if how they would have been eaten down the mines. The crimp was used to hold the pasty, keeping the rest of your lunch clean if you didn't have facilities to wash your hands, then discarded , but of course you can eat it if you prefer.

Mr PK recommends a good dark beer to drink with your pasty (on a windswept beach with a blanket for preference) , his latest fav is this gorgeous Chocolate Moose from Boundary Road Brewery based just out of Auckland at Red Hill. Rich and chocolatey this is also wonderful in a beef casserole, and I am going to try it in Nigella's Guinness Cake, watch this space.....

Cook My Books Challenge Three- Ole Cassoulet....?

This is the second version of this post, the first one disappeared off my laptop screen last night just as I was finishing it up………most annoying, especially as I still don’t know what I did

You may also need to forgive the pics, can I say it is quite tough to make Cassoulet look as good as it tastes, there is a lot of brown in that there pot. Duck, Pork Belly, Pork sausage and beans, this is a flavour packed dish, rich artery clogging meaty goodness, thankfully for your heart it is a treat and not for everyday…….

The book I have selected this week is Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles cookbook, based on recipes from his restaurant in New York city.  
I will be doing more than one recipe from this one as it is a fab book, and I cheated a bit on the Cassoulet. For some reason I have a mental bock when it comes to soaking legumes, so between that & neglecting to start the recipe 3 days early as instructed (?!) I ended up doing a sort of mash up of Les Halles, High Fearnly-Whittingstall & Rick Stein. This is a very traditional dish, so there will be as many interpretations as there are chefs, this is mine. I am actually pretty happy with this dish, I dont think a few short cuts have compromised flavour at all, it does take hours to make, but to be honest the actual time you spend doing anything is nothing like that much. I would not claim any degree of authenticity here, but I would claim this tastes fabulous....

Cassoulet - inspiration as above

serves 6-8 generously

First the beans....

500 gr haricot beans, soaked in cold water overnight (see below if you are forgetful like moi)
200 gr pork rind, cut into chunks
1 onion, peeled and studded with 4 cloves
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 Bouquet Garni (Bay, Thyme, & Parsley tied together in a little bunch with string)


Drain the beans, then put in a large pot with the rest of the ingredients. Cover by at least 3 cm with fresh cold water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 1.5-2 hours until the beans are nice & tender.
If you forget the soaking step, cover your beans with cold water, and bring to a rolling boil. Boil for a full 10 minutes, then turn the heat off & pop a lid on your pot. Leave to sit for 2 hours. The boiling gets rid of any toxins in the beans, so don't skimp on this step. Continue as above


Now the meatie bit....

2 confit duck legs (I will post how to make these later this week, or you can buy, I got mine at Sabato)
800 gr Pork Belly (I like Freedom Farms,) cut into chunks
6 good meaty pork sausages (I get mine at the fabulous Ellerslie Meats)
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled & chopped
1 small tin of crushed tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
salt & pepper

Ok, first you need to brown your meats. Take 2 tbsp of the fat from around your duck legs, and melt over a medium heat. Brown your duck legs on both side, and set aside. A bit of fat will come out of your duck, dont freak out, it is that kind of dish.
Now brown the pork belly, the skin will spit and crackle, so be careful. Set aside with the duck, and add the sausages to the pan. Brown on all sides and cut into chunks. By now you, the cooker, the floor & probably the wall will be covered in fat, this is what happens.........
Turn the heat to low, and add the onion & garlic to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes until soft but not really browned. Add the tomato pulp and paste, along with 1/2 cup of water. Stir & simmer for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 160C. When the beans are cooked, check you still have plenty of liquid in the pan. I dont think I had enough, I would aim for at least a cm over the level of the beans. The beans will soak up a lot more liquid in the oven. Stir through the tomato mixture, and check your seasoning, remember the duck has a bit of salt, but dont under season.

Layer the meat & beans, starting and finishing with beans. An earthenware pot in traditional, I use my Le Creuset which works perfectly. Now you could sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs, I didn't have any so relied on the beans to form their own crust. Apparently this would be the subject of hot debate in France, my audience didn't know the difference so it was fine!
Bake for 1.5 to 2 hours until crusty, bubbly, meaty & gorgeous. You are the déesse domestique....

I served my Cassoulet with this potato dish, (in for a penny as they say....) One of my sisters does not eat red meat, so she made a rather divine salad Nicoise to go with dinner, I think my arteries were saying thanks. A green salad would also be perfect, sharp with a mustard dressing.

I also made this tangy Rhubarb Creaming Soda syrup to use with my soda stream , thanks to Good Food in a Crap Kitchen, delicious, and so pretty.

I will be posting further recipes from Les Halles, it is a useful, well designed book, I like Anthony Bourdain's straight talking style, the recipes are relatively simple to use and the format is clear & easy to read. Probably not one for vegetarians however.

Les Halles Cookbook
Anthony Bourdain
Bloomsbury 2004

Cook My Books Challenge Two- new voices in food

For Cook My Books challenge two I have selected a really delicious book by young English chef Alice Hart. Alice is a chef, and was the youngest food editor at Waitrose Food Illustrated, as well as running a successful pop up "The Hart & Fuggle"............and she is still in her 20's! 

Her book, Alice's Cookbook is full of tempting recipes, sorted into categories such as simple wintry dinner, autumn film night, springtime camper van buy the sea.....the recipes are influenced by Alice's travels, and represent a variety of cuisines, all fairly simple with intriguing flavours. 

This book is one of a small series from Quadrille called New Voices in Food,  I am keen to get the other books in the series once the Cookbook Buying Ban expires! The layout is clear, and I love the matt finish to the cover and photos. Bear in mind there are not pictures for every recipe. This does not bother me at all, the pictures that are included are beautifully styled, with a real feel of the young hip author Alice is. This book would be particularly good for a younger person getting into cooking, the recipe are clear and easy for follow, with results that will encourage more cooking .

The first recipe I have chosen is a simple Chicken and Sweet Potato Curry. Actually where I come from this would be Chicken and Kumara Curry, but I wont confuse the issue.....Quick to prepare, this is the perfect midweek supper, full of flavour and goodness.

Vietnamese Chicken and Sweet Potato Curry (adapted from Alice's Cookbook)

Serves 4 

6-8 chicken thighs, skinned and boned

1 ½ tbsp medium curry powder

2 tsp palm sugar/light brown sugar

1 tbsp plain oil, I use canola

2 shallots, chopped (or 1/2 small onion)

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 lemongrass stalk, 

½ tsp chilli flakes (to taste, add more if you like more zip)

1 tbsp Thai fish sauce

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed

400 ml can coconut milk

coriander leaves, to serve

Mix half the curry powder, sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Coat the chicken in the mixture and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan or wok, and add the onion, garlic and lemongrass.I don't chop up my lemongrass,  but cut it into a couple of large chunks & bash with a rolling pin to release the flavour. I cant abide tiny bits of lemongrass in my teeth!  Cook for a couple of minutes, without burning the garlic, then add the curry powder, chilli flakes and chicken and cook for five more minutes. 

Add the sweet potato, 1 tbsp of fish sauce, coconut milk and 1/3 of the coconut can of water. Bring to the boil, and then simmer for 20 minutes, until the chicken and sweet potato are cooked through. Taste and add more fish sauce if required. I also added a big squeeze of lime, but that's up to you

Serve with steamed rice and a sprinkling of coriander. Or as it would be in Vietnam, with baguette .

This is really tasty, savoury, sweet and salty, and I like the use of curry powder, which apparently is what they use in Saigon. I have never been so I defer to Alice on this one.


Alice's Cookbook
Quadrille Publishing 2010
New Voices in Food series

Cook my Books Challenge One- do you know where Armenia is?

As you can see from the pictures, I have a few cookbooks. Not as many as Nigella (she has a collection in the thousands apparently), but more than a lot of people I know. More than the Minister of Finance would like. And probably many more than I actually need.  Even worse, I have some I have never actually cooked anything from. So to rectify this, and give myself a satisfying project to boot, I am going to cook a recipe/recipes from every single one of the 160 cookbooks I own and document the results here as the Cook My Books challenge. I will write up the recipe, and also a brief review of the book, in case you are lucky enough not to have an embargo on cookbook purchases for the next 12 months.  

Now I know this is opening myself up to comparison with another, rather more famous blogger who challenged herself to cook her way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I did initially worry about this, then realised I am 

a) not cooking from one book, my collection is pretty eclectic, so I will be cooking a variety of cuisines. And no matter what I am not doing anything in aspic. But I might bake more with lard

b) am cooking from a suburban kitchen in Auckland. Not a cool "loft" in New York City. In fact, given I am sitting typing this in track pants, watching the Rugby League, while my husband, also attired in track pants and stylish Chelsea FC fleece does his ironing.....I cant see there is any way I could be mistaken for a hip urbanite food blogger

d) I don't swear as much, or as creatively

c) Um, its my blog?

So, now we have that settled, the challenge itself. I have started with a New Zealand author, Michal Haines, and her wonderful Scent of the Monsoon Winds. Quite frankly the cover alone is worth the purchase price, never mind a wealth of delicious recipes. The dish I made first is Armenian Street Bread. I did have to get my Atlas out and see where Armenia actually is (needless to say I have not been, for reference  it is just to the right of Turkey, beneath Georgia & above Iran.....) 

Minced lamb with tomato, lemon and garlic, spread on a disk of dough and topped with ricotta and parsley, baked and spritzed with more lemon. Pretty hard to go wrong really, this would traditionally be served as street food, rolled up and eaten on the go. Or eaten on your lap in front of the telly, as the case may be......

Armenian Street Bread (from Scent of the Monsoon Winds by Michal Haines)

Makes 8 individual rounds

First make your bread dough

1 tbsp dry yeast (the original recipe used 3 tbsp, but 1 is plenty)

300ml warm water (ie hand warm, not hot)

1 tsp sugar

450 gr (3 cups) strong flour

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil

Put the yeast & sugar into the water and leave for 10 mins or so in a warm place until it becomes frothy. I put all my dry ingredients & oil into the bowl of my Kitchen Aid but you can do this by hand very easily, it just takes a few minutes longer. If using a mixer, use the dough hook attachment, and while the motor is running, add about half the liquid. Let it mix for a while, then slowly add as much of the remaining liquid as you need to make a smooth dough, you may not need it all. Let the dough mix for about 7 minutes until it is smooth & springy. If making by hand, do the same, using your hands to mix the dough in the bowl until most of it has come together. Tip out onto a clean bench sprinkled with flour, and knead for 10 mins or so until smooth. See here for further info on kneading and yeast cooking, there really is nothing to it so don't be afraid. 

Put the dough back into a clean bowl you have brushed lightly with oil, cover with cling film and leave to rise in a warm spot for 1.5-2 hours

Meanwhile, make your filling

2 tbsp oil

2 white onions, peeled and finely chopped

4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

450 gr lamb mince

2 tomatoes, skinned & chopped ( I used a small tin of crushed tomatoes as it is winter!)

2 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

Juice of a lemon

2 tsp tomato paste

Handful finely chopped parsley

250 gr ricotta, beaten with 1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp toasted cumin seeds (pop into a dry frying pan and cook over med. heat until fragrant)

1 tsp chilli flakes

Heat the oil over a med-low heat, and add the onion and garlic with 1 tsp of the salt. Fry gently for 5 minutes until the onion is soft, then turn the heat up to med-high. Add the mince (remembering to save a little morsel for your cats, who will attempt to trip you up if you don't.....) and fry for approx 10 minutes until the meat is browning. See here for a rave on browning mince. Turn the heat to low, and add the tomato, remaining 1 tsp salt, sugar, lemon juice and tomato paste. Cook for another 10 minutes until the meat is cooked and the liquid has evaporated. Set aside to cool , and stir in the chopped parsley

When your dough is nicely doubled in size (give or take!), pop a tray (or pizza stone if you have it) into the oven and crank the heat up to 230C. Split the dough into 8 balls, and roll each one out as thin as you can. Pop onto your heated tray, and top with some of the mince mixture, some of the ricotta and a sprinkle of the cumin seeds and chilli flakes.

Bake for approx 8 minutes, until nicely browned, then if you like top with 

a sprinkle of ground sumac ( actually a berry, with a tangy citrus flavour)

a squeeze of lemon

more chopped parsley

How good do they look? Well, they taste even better. The bread dough & the cooked mince mixture can both be frozen, so I now have a fabulous dinner ready to be popped in the fridge to defrost and bunged in the oven at supper time. If you don't have ricotta, a sprinkle of feta would also be wonderful, or even natural yoghurt, in which case top once the bread is cooked.

Love this recipe, and I have at least five others I cant wait to try. The book has a variety of dishes, all featuring interesting spices and bold flavours. The recipes are clearly written, and beautifully photographed by Jacqui Blanchard. The book is printed on matt paper, which I personally prefer, with gorgeous colours, completely appropriate to the type of food. What can I say, I recommend..........