Smoked Oyster Pate

Often in the summer friends will stop by or at the beach an evening soiree will be planned.  Keeping a pack of cream cheese in the fridge and a can of smoked oysters in the pantry will enable you to produce a delicious and quick appetizer at a moments notice.

Smoked Oyster Pate
1 package of cream cheese
1 can smoked oysters
1/4 cup mayo
1-2 tablespoons soy sauce
parsley
2 small cloves of garlic
a squeeze of lemon or lime juice

Throw all the ingredients into a food processor and mix until smooth.  Serve with crackers or chunks of fresh bread.

What to do with Leftover Chicken.

Leftovers is not a dirty word, though when I was first married Tom seemed to think so.  Yes, there is chicken curry, chicken salad, Tetrezzini, chicken enchiladas not to mention chicken suprise!  But I am guessing many of us are in the mood for something a little more interesting.
How about Chicken Tagine?  I made this for my friends the Reardons the other night.



                                     Chicken Tagine with dried Apricots and Almonds

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon dried ginger

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon cumin

Black pepper

1 medium spanish onion, sliced

4 large cloves of garlic

1 lemon, zest and juice

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1/2 cup chopped parsley

1 1/2 cups chicken stock or left over gravy

1/4 cup toasted almonds

1/2 cup dried apricots

3-4 cups cooked chopped chicken

Firstly slice the onions and saute in olive oil until they become translucent.  Add the dried spice mixture and garlic. 

Cook a few more minutes.  Add the chicken stock, lemon, apricots and chicken.  Cook 10 minutes on medium high heat.  Salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving sprinkle in the fresh herbs and when plated garnish with the toasted almonds.

This should be enough for 4 adults.

Spring is within sight; get into your vegetable garden !

OK fellow gardeners it’s almost time to start planting your vegetable garden. So put away that over used snow shovel and get out your garden spade.

Peas are a garden favorite. There's nothing quite so rewarding as the taste of fresh sweet peas in the spring and early summer. Ideas and recipes abound with both color and beauty.

No matter where you live, English Peas should be planted as soon as the garden can be worked. In the North that means early spring, because peas can survive the occasional late frost.

Prepare your soil by turning it to a depth of 8 inches. By turning it over and breaking up the soil there will be less weeds later and let’s face it, by late summer I for one, am completely over weeding.  Picking a sunny spot in your vegetable garden will help the seeds germinate early and since they don’t mind a chilly start you can get them in the ground as soon as the end of March.

If peas are planted in the shade, they will still grow, however, the sugar content will be low, and the peas will taste as if they have been hanging around for a while rather than super fresh and sweet. Some gardeners advise a 24 hour soaking period before planting the seeds. This will speed up the germination process and encourage sprouts to appear within a few days to a week. I have also heard that soaking them in Vitamin C increases their propagation.  Plant the seeds 2 inches deep and a few inches apart in wide trenches.

Martha Stewart uses Grey Birch branches as a trellis for her English peas, beans and cucumbers as you can see from the picture I took at her garden in New York last spring. This makes a beautiful and interesting statement, however poles and plastic trellises are perfectly functional and a lot less work.

The two best known types of English peas are ‘dwarf’, which grow to a height of about 16 inches, and ‘telephone’ or tall varieties, which grow more than three feet. Seed catalogs and packets indicate the preferred time for planting different varieties. 'Green Arrow', 'Maestro', and 'Patriot' are three popular dwarf varieties. For tall types, try 'Alderman', 'Lincoln', and 'Wando'.

So pass the peas please!

xxx

Miranda

Miranda's table: The Spice House

http://www.thespicehouse.com/info/stores.html

The Spice House

While Tom and I were living in Chicago a new shop opened in beautiful Old Town that intrigued us no end. At the time we wondered if there would really be enough demand for such a specialized product. Over the years they proved our uncertainty to be unfounded. The Spice House is now one of our family’s favorite purveyor or fine herbs and spices.


Their philosophy has always been to make the freshest product by small, weekly batch grindings to ensure the highest quality spices for their customers cooking needs.

They offer several selections of the same herb or spice from different regions so that you can sample the subtle variations and decide upon your own personal preference.

When you walk into the section of your local grocery store that houses spices, you see a myriad of bottles of multicolored powders. Some spices look relatively fresh, while other spices look like they were scooped out of the desert on the planet Mars and bottled. Unfortunately, this is the only view many people have of spices - mostly uninteresting, merely a way to add some flavor to food.

Years ago I had girl friends over for an Indian meal. While they were kind and enjoyed the international experience, I was not happy with it at all. I had used old spices from the grocery store and realized that that in itself was the deal breaker. Why bother spending time in the kitchen if one knows there is more flavor to be had with fresh spices.
My family has always been enamored by the spices of India. My father still owns a property that houses a Tandori restaurant which, I think, is how we first became accustomed to the intriguing and diverse flavors of the Orient.

Whether it’s dried Thyme you need for your Coq au Vin or Cinnamon for your Cinnamon Swirl Bread or indeed Pink Pepper corns for your baked Salmon check out http://www.thespicehouse.com/info/stores.html. It is not only fun to browse the pages of this web site it will give your cooking a boost and actually will save you money in the spice isle, even with the shipping.

Thai Parchment Parcels

Here, at last, is the recipe quite a few of you have been requesting.  It is actually a slightly altered version of a recipe by Nigel Slater.   You can use either shrimp or fish and because you can make it ahead of time - this is an easy, useful and impressive dish for your next dinner party. 

Thai Parcel for 6

To make the Thai curry:

4 cloves of garlic

½ cup red onion

1 red hot chili pepper

2” of ginger

Zest and juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon coriander

A generous fist full of fresh Cilantro

1 tablespoon of Thai fish sauce

1 large tablespoon of lemongrass

(I prefer lemongrass in a tube)

1 can of lite cocnut milk

Throw all of this into a Cuisinart and puree.
Choose six 5oz filets of Salmon or white fish or (I prefer) 4 large shrimp per person.   Julienne one green red and orange pepper and a hand full of pea pods.

Cut six 8”sheets of parchment (do not use wax paper.)  In the middle of the paper place a small handful of veggies.  On top, lay the fish or shrimp.  Then ladle over 2 teaspoons of the Thai curry paste and 2 generous tablespoons of coconut milk.

Now to wrap them.  Don’t worry it’s not rocket science, just go for it!  Bring the longer ends up together and fold over each other a few times then fold the side in the same way. There are many different ways of doing this.  You could do Burrito style or in the French style, folding the parchment over itself all the way round. 

Set the parcels aside in the fridge until you are ready.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.   Place the parchments onto a sheet pan with a rim to catch any stray juices. Bake for 25 minutes.  Serve immediately onto warmed dinner plates.

Rice and salad are all you need to accompany this healthy and delicious dish.  If you are putting the parcels straight onto your guest’s plates don’t forget to offer a bowel in which to discard the papers. Save the rest of the curry paste and use it later for a delicious leftover chicken curry dinner.

Bon Appetite my friends!

Miranda

Horrid Eggs !

So now we are onto the season of the 'cozy foods' again it seems.  Its January 6th and already we have forgotten about eating light and in moderation.  Beware! It's next to impossible to have just one helping of these delicious eggs.  An English variation of an Indian classic curry this was my Mum's effort to eat what the Brits refer to as a "vegetarian meal" once in a while.  Try it - I guarantee it will be a smash !

 HORRID EGGS !

4 Hard boiled eggs, sliced

(these days you can buy eggs already hard boiled, this might be an easy option for a crowd)

1/2 cup hot milk

3 oz grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon flour

1 tablespoon butter

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

First prepare a lightly buttered medium sized ceramic baking dish and place the chopped up hard boiled eggs in the dish.  Set that dish aside then in a saucepan you will make a classic white sauce. To make this classic, simply melt the butter and add the flour together.  TIP- Be sure to cook this for a minute or two to cook out the unpleasant flour taste blend well and by hand.  Then add the hot milk a little at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon with each addition, until the mixture is smooth. 

Once the white sauce is smooth in texture you will add the cheese and then as soon as your cheese is melted and add the paprika, curry powder and salt and blend. Once blended pour the seasoned mixture over the eggs.  Cover with buttered bread crumbs or panko.  Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until it starts to bubble and brown.

Serve with vegetables and a nice green salad with a cool, light dressing.  A little garlic bread makes a great compliment. A crisp Chardonnay is always nice as well -maybe a lovely luncheon with the girls !

 Just a little hint of ancient India from Miranda's Table !!

Miranda