Mum’s Lamb Hotpot with Peas

Mum's Lamb Hot Pot with Peas

This is my idea of comfort food from home, one of the dishes my mum used to prepare, and we all loved it.

Category: Main, Main Course

Style: Australian

Keyword: Carrot, Hot Pot, Lamb, Peas

Quantity: 4

Author: My mum - Grace Flood

Ingredients

1 large onion chopped
500 g lamb shoulder cut into 3cm cubes
2 tbsp plain flour for gluten free option see note below
60 g butter
450 ml lamb or chicken stock
250 g carrots chopped
1 x 400g can of peas see note below
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped parsley to garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 160˚C.
Toss the lamb in the flour.
Melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat.
Fry the lamb, carrot and onion in the butter for 3 minutes.
Stirring, add the stock and liquor from the peas.
Season to taste, bring to boil and stir until thickend.
Transfer to a casserole dish, cover with the lid and cook in preheated oven for 2 hours, adding the peas for last 15 minutes.
Garnish with parsley.

Notes

This recipe needs canned peas, not fresh or frozen, and you will need to ensure that the canned peas are not "mushy" peas.
While Mum used diced lamb, I have also used lamb neck chops as well.
For gluten free:
- I sautée the lamb and remove to casserole dish, then sautée the onion and carrot, add the stock and add that to the casserole dish.
- To thicken, I add a slurry of potato flour and water about 5-10 minutes before it is done, the liquid will be bubbling, and by stirring it through for a minute, then replacing the lid and returning the dish to the oven, it cooks perfectly.
Perfect sides for this dish:
- Mashed potato
- Steamed cabbage
- Steamed pumpkin

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Yum

Majestic Magenta

August 4, 2021August 21, 2021 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

Hmmm… I started with the title Pretty and Pink…, then thought maybe Radiant Red…!

But really I think Majestic Magenta describes the colour at the end…

A while ago we were in Melbourne for a few days to spend time with our son and his family. This meant that I was able to visit my sister, Sonnie. Sonnie is an amazing cook, and had just finished making a batch of her late husband’s grandmother’s pickled red cabbage, a jar of which, she had kindly set aside for us, I was so excited and very grateful.

Since then I’ve started receiving a regular delivery of fresh, mostly Gippsland grown, vegetables, and the fun thing with the vegie (Farm) box is that each week is different. With produce that we don’t normally use, and being one who hates waste, I’ve just had to get a little creative.

What’s inside the Farm Box?

Fresh produce from the Farm Box Co.

Beautiful fresh red cabbage

After receiving red cabbage in my mystery veg box, I instantly knew what to do – I would make Grandma Martin’s Pickled Red Cabbage. I often prepare braised red cabbage, but this time it was definitely going to be a batch of Grandma Martin’s Pickled Red Cabbage, and with my beautiful sister’s permission, I can now share the recipe with you. Continue reading →

Apricots

January 19, 2017 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

I still remember the joy of fresh bread, lashings of homemade apricot jam, and the cream! Fresh cream, real cream, not the homogenised, pasturised stuff from the supermarket shelf – just fresh, runny cream, no sugar, not whipped, just pure fresh cream dribbling over the edge of the bread.- Oh the memories …

We now have two apricot trees in our garden, a Moorpark – supposedly rich in flavour making it great for fresh fruit, jam, drying, stewing and juice, and a Blenheim, said to be one of the most flavourful of apricots around! However, like all of our fruit trees, they have only been in the ground for six months, which means that we must be patient, and wait until they grow before we see a nice crop.

We did have a tiny surprise though – just after Christmas I spotted one solitary little apricot. It had been hiding and growing out of our sight and, fortunately, out of the sight of the birds. I watched it carefully, trying to make sure that the birds did not beat us to it. Then early last week, when I checked on it, I discovered that a grub had made it’s mark – I hadn’t counted on that, so quickly whisked it off the tree, and took it to the kitchen, where it became a simple little sweet treat to finish our evening meal – A simple apricot pastry.

Given the lack of fruit from the garden at the moment, I am constantly on the watch for a good buy, and was delighted to read a little add in the local newspaper for apricots. I made a call and was able to pick up 10kg, which lead to a couple of heavy days in the kitchen! But from that 10kg, we now have 14 jars of apricot halves in a light syrup, 15 jars of Worcestershire sauce, and 10 jars of apricot jam in the store.

Apricot Jam

There were a few left over so whipped up an apricot and pine nut tart – gluten free.

Apricot and Pine Nut Tart – Gluten Free

You know, apricot jam is not only great as a spread, but it can also be used to flavour meat dishes too, and the apricot halves can be used to make delicious sweet treats such as clafoutis, charlottes, tarts etc, but will also used in savoury dishes, including a favourite – Spicy Chicken Tagine with Apricots, Rosemary and Ginger! As for the Worcestershire sauce, it’s always handy to lift an otherwise dull dish!

So now that the store is stocked up with apricot preserves, it is my plan to highlight some of them in recipes over the coming months.

Until next time…

Bon appétit!

Links:

Nougat Glacé

January 5, 2017January 5, 2017 / sbaskitchen / 2 Comments

Nougat Glace evokes memories of special times spent with beautiful friends. Some years ago, my amazing husband decided I needed to get away, so whisked me off to France for a much needed ten day break and opportunity to be with my best friend, Véronique. Below is a little piece I wrote in my diary about our arrival…

As we pull into the Auxerre station I notice Véronique and Yannick waiting for us on the
platform and wave madly, Véronique notices me and as we go to step off the train they are waiting at our carriage door. We hug and kiss each other – it is so good to be together again.

The Little Gite

In the car we chat all the way back to their home and our luggage is quickly stowed in their little gite where we will sleep during our stay, and quickly note the log fire burning in the living area. This is heaven.

Over at the main house we sit down to lunch, the first meal of what is going to be a four day gourmet feast! Our meal starts with Yannick’s walnut wine, a delicious tipple that I have now learnt to make. As sip on the aperitif, we continue to catch up and nibble on chips and pistachios. Entrée was then served – a terrine of foie gras with brioche, all made by my wonderful friend. Next on the menu was a main of braised veal with vegetables from their garden, which was followed by a selection of local cheeses and a basket of bread.. Finally for dessert, nougat glace, a delicious homemade icecream, served with raspberry coulis. I have to add that throughout the meal, Yannick produced an incredible array of wines, carefully selected to complement each course – what a wonderful welcome!

So what is Nougat Glace? It is a delicious creamy frozen mousse of Italian meringue and whipped cream, that has a selection of dried and/or glace fruits, and nuts carefully folded through. The nougat flavour is created by adding honey to the sugar syrup used when making the Italian meringue. Often made with praline, I prefer to make it with lightly roasted nuts, which cuts back the sweetness a little. It is generally served with a raspberry coulis and little sprigs of mint to garnish. If you want to impress at a dinner party, this is the way to go, everything is prepared ahead, all you need to do at the last minute is melt a little dark chocolate and plate it up!

With all the trimmings!

A simple presentation – just fresh raspberries

As I mentioned, this is a very sweet ice cream, so we find that the tartness of fresh raspberries and a little drizzle of good quality 70% chocolate, helps to balance the sweetness a little. Of course you must use a beautiful honey in such a special treat, and our preferred honey is macadammia honey – just delicious!

Nougat Glacé

Servings: 8
Print

A frozen mouse of meringue and cream with all the flavours of nougat. This delicious sweet treat is often served during the Christmas festivities in France. A perfect dessert for the summer.

Ingredients

3 egg whites
300 ml pure cream, very cold
3 tbsp honey
40 g sugar
40 g pistachio nuts
40 g blanched hazlenuts or almonds
40 g golden raisins
40 g dried cranberries
40 g dried blueberries

To Serve

250 ml raspberry coulis
50 g 70% dark chocolate, melted
200 g fresh raspberries
sprigs of mint to garnish

Directions

Beat the egg whites until stiff.
Meanwhile, place the sugar and the honey in a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved, increase the heat slightly and continue to cook until the mixture has reached 117° C.
With the mixer beating slowly, pour the honey syrup in a thin stream into the egg whites, then increase the speed and continue whipping until the mixture has cooled.
Whip the cream to soft peaks.
Cut the raisins and into pieces.
Chop/crush hazelnuts and pistachios.
Line a cake mould with parchment paper or plastic wrap.
Gently fold the egg whites into whipped cream, and then gently fold through the fruit and nuts.
Pour the mixture into the prepared mould and cover with plastic wrap.
Place in the freezer for at least 12 hours, to freeze.
To serve, turn out onto a flat cake plate, drizzle with a little melted dark chocolate and garnish with raspberry coulis, fresh berries and mint leaves.

Notes:

If you prefer, make a praline from the nuts as folows:
1. Line a baking tray with baking/parchment paper.
2. Combine 3/4 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of water in saucepan and heat, stirring just until the sugar is dissolved. Increase to medium-high heat and cook without stirring until mixture turns golden caramel brown.
3. Remove from heat and quickly stir in the nuts just to coat them in the caramel.
4. Immediately, pour the mixture in a thin layer onto the prepared baking tray.
5. Allow to cool completely and harden.
6. Break into one to two inch pieces, enclose in a clean tea towel and then crush using a rolling pin – be careful not to overdo it and turn it into a powder!
To blanch hazelnuts:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Roast in oven for 5-10 minutes, until the hazelnuts are aromatic, lightly roasted and the skins start to crack.
3. Place the hazelnuts into a clean tea towel and gently rub together, to remove the skins.
4. Spread the shelled hazelnuts, in a single layer, on a baking tray.

Until next time…

Bon appétit!

Links:

Nougat Glace

The Little Gite – a perfect little home away from home in the Burgundy countryside

Family, fun, love and food

January 3, 2017January 3, 2017 / sbaskitchen / 2 Comments

Christmas morning dawned and we woke to the voices of children, our grandchildren, not all of them, mind you, the last one would arrive later in the morning along with other treasured members of our family.

Preparations had been underway for some time, and the day before, late afternoon, our Christmas began with the arrival of my husband’s daughter and her family from Roma in Queensland – it had taken them three days to get here. We were so excited to see them and have them join us in our new home for Christmas. This year was going to be very special with all of our children and grandchildren together with us for this special time of year.

It was going to be a hot day, but there was a lot of cooking to be done. A huge slab of pork belly was prepared and put in the oven, it needed to cook slow for a couple of hours. Chickens were filled with handfuls of fresh herbs and placed on a spit out on the terrace.

Meanwhile the vegetables were prepared – trays full for roasting, and others for the steamer. I had made a the day before and we also made a beetroot, orange and fresh herb salad.

The arrival of our son and his family from Melbourne, created great excitement with the family from Queensland meeting their little cousin, Cooper for the first time. There was a lot of catching up.

The cooking continued, electric fans were dusted off and set up to try and cool things down. Cream was whipped, Irish Mist Cream prepared to accompany the plum pudding which was bubbling away on the side burner of the BBQ alongside the chickens.

The vegetables were placed in the oven and the temperature bumped up so that we would have beautiful pork crackle.

The last of our guests arrived, my two gorgeous sisters, Sonnie and Jan, together with my beautiful mum and our great-nephew, Aussie. With everyone here, it was time to think about carving and serving, but alas, the oven was not cooperating with the quantity of food in it, the veg weren’t cooking fast enough and the crackle was definitely not happening! The oven could not go any higher – Our lunch was going to be late, but what could I do!

The ham that I had cured and smoked was retrieved from the fridge – it would be served cold alongside the corned silverside, they were both carved. The chickens were carved, salads placed in bowls, veggies steamed, gravy made and finally the pork had to be carved, even though the crackle was not as I wanted – there was very little left, and the meat was succulent, tender and moist.

Corned Silverside from Wuk Wuk Beef Ham from Coltish Pork, but cured by me – my first ever ham!

Pork Belly from Coltish Pork

Bon Bons made by me

People gathered around, filled their plates, and then everyone decided to sit around our kitchen table, which comfortably seats six! Chairs were seconded from throughout the house and squeezed wherever they would or might fit, our table was surrounded by fourteen – it was amazing.

After the meal was finished and everything cleared away it was time for something the children had been waiting for all day…. Gifts from under the tree – they couldn’t wait… Everyone gathered in the sitting room and Jan, Chris, and I played Santa, handing out gifts, to some particularly eager little ones, and some almost as eager older ones – it was mayhem, but wonderful mayhem.

Unfortunately time was close for Chris and his family to return to Melbourne, so we quickly served a little dessert for them to eat before they left.

Once they left, Pavlova with lashings of cream and fresh berries, cheesecake heaped with cherries, peaches, and various other fresh fruits, and of course, the plum pudding with Irish Mist Cream, brandy sauce and icecream were set out for all to enjoy. As we were enjoying our sweet treats, Sonnie walked in and said “don’t eat the cream – it’s off!” Everyone stopped, and then it dawned on them that there was nothing wrong with the cream – it is her favourite and she was just trying to stop eveyone eating it.

Irish Mist Cream

So that was our Christmas feast – family, fun, love and food, one cannot ask for anything more, can one.

The afternoon continued with time to cool off in the pool, and I was surprised that people were interested in eating again later that evening. So brought out a platters of local cheeses, fresh fruit, cold meat and fruit cake, and we all sat around the table on the back porch and nibbled and chatted. Before setting up beds for all, for a good night sleep.

Until next time…

Bon appétit!