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Recipe #58: Macaroni Cauliflower Cheese Bake
This looks delicious in the cookbook and looked delicious when it came out of the oven all bubbly and golden but I'm just not a fan of cauliflower. I don't mind a bit but all through mac & cheese... please just mac & cheese with NO cauliflower next time.
On the bright side, my mum who likes cauliflower LOVED it!
This is what went in it:
- 1/2 a head of cauliflower (I put a whole one in because I only just realised then I read the recipe wrong so maybe thats why it was too cauliflower-ee)
- 200g cheddar cheese (we only had low fat grated cheese)
- 100g parmesan cheese (grated)
- a bunch of fresh parsley
- S&P
- 400g dried macaroni (I used elbow pasta)
- 200g creme fraiche (I used 100g sour cream & 100g of pouring cream because we didn't have any creme fancy delicious-ness at home)
- pinch of chilli flakes (this was my touch as I felt for a little spice tonight)
I chopped the cauliflower up breaking small florets off and finely slicing the stalks of the larger florets. The cheeses when in a large heatproof bowl and the parsley finely chopped and kept to the side. I brought a large pot of salted water to boil and threw in the pasta and then placed the bowl of cheeses over the boiling pasta. The creams went into the cheeses and attempted to melt... I say attempted because it all glooped up to start with and the pasta water started to over flow onto the stove top. But once that was under control and the sauce stirred, it started to melt I regained my faith in Mr Oliver. After 5 min I threw in the cauliflower and let cook for a further 3-4 min.
Parsley and S&P went in the melted cheese and cream while the pasta and cauliflower drained. Everything was then combined and poured into a baking dish. I then topped this with a bit more cheese and grilled it in a preheated oven for about 20min until golden and oozy on top.
I made a variation of my favourite salad to go with this and I needed a fresh taste after the creaminess of cauliflower. The salad had rocket, ripe tomatoes, red onion and avo; dressed with the usual white wine and balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.
Sorry Jamie but wont be making it again...
Last week on the 17th of the August I hosted cupcake day at work to support the RSPCA. We raised $154.15 which will help our furry friends find homes and have a better life. This was the 2nd year in which I have hosted cupcake day and love the idea that we have made a difference, even if only small. Even my fat cat Molly enjoyed the cupcakes this year which my dad shared with her.
I cooked the usual Red Velvet Cupcakes and also Mini Cheese Cakes which turned out like individual slices. The Mini Cheese Cakes/Slice were a test which I made only a few of but they were loved by all (including Molly). I got a recipe request which I have been terribly lazy and not passed on yet. So here I am sharing my recipe which is slightly adapted from the famous Nigella Laswon's recipe (love her cheese cakes!! they never fail me on flavour and texture... yum) with a little touch of Dani and also pictures finally of my Red Velvet cupcakes which have always been demolished before I can find my camera.
Mini Cheese Cakes/Slice
100g unsalted butter
250g digestive biscuits
400g cream cheese
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
4 tbs sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract (or vanilla paste)
4 tsp lemon juice
1- Line 18 muffin tins with muffin cases.
2- Melt butter (in pan or microwave), smash digestives with with a mallet or food processor (heads up- mallet is VERY satisfying). Combine the butter and crumbled digestives together; it will look like wet sand then evenly distribute amongst the muffin cases.
3- Refrigerate while you get on with the cheese filling.
4- Beat cream cheese until smooth and then add the caster sugar gradually.
5- Add the eggs, beating well then add the sour cream, vanilla and lemon juice. Beat until everything is combine and smooth.
6- Fill each muffin case with the filling and bake at a moderate oven for about 40min or until set (remember ovens vary, you might need to bake them longer or for less time). Let cool for 5 min in the tins before removing them.
7- Cool in refrigerator for at least 3 hours or overnight.
8- Devour with greedy pleasure.
Tonight for dinner I cooked (recipe #50 and #51) Mexican-style corn and Parmesan Chicken Breasts with Crispy Posh Ham. It was an incredibly easy dinner.
You slice the chicken but not all the way through, just to make scores on one side then you sprinkle over pepper, fresh thyme, lemon zest and parmesan cheese. Top with prosciutto and olive oil. Cover with glad and smash with a hammer/mallet till the chicken is 1cm thick. Heat a frying pan and add the chicken prosciutto side down and cook for 3min. the turn and cook until cooked through.
While the chicken is cooking, cook your corn (I used the microwave- mum style). Chop your chilli finely, grate your parmesan and spread both over a large plate and sprinkle with pepper and salt. When the corn is cooked add butter to it and make sure it melts and overs the corn. Roll the buttered corn in the cheese and chilli.
Serve Chicken and corn on a hot plate (we also had a baked potato with dinner) and ENJOY! Dinner was delish I just wish I didn't have crackers and cheese when I got home.
**do not add salt to the chicken as the posh ham is very salty.
Recipe #37 and 38: Crunchy Garlic Chicken with Baked Creamy Leeks.
This was last weeks dinner and it all went surprisingly well. I made the garlic crumbs, chopped the leeks and started cooking them while the chicken defrosted. Once the leeks were cooked on the stove they were mixed with cheese and cream and baked for 20min. While the leeks were baking the chicken breasts were crumbed and fried.
Ok so admit I over cooked the first side of the chicken a little too much as a have a fear of under cooked chicken so I seem to over cook it all the time just incase ;)
Dinner was delish even with the crunchy crunchy garlic chicken. Leeks turned out lovely and came out of the oven bubbling and oozy as they should. Mum even licked the serving spoon when we were clearing the table so they must have impressed her :)
Recipe # 33: Cracking Burgers.
Hamburgers for dinner last night, obviously not made with ham... why do they get the name hamburgers?? If anyone out there in the endless void who actually reads this knows, please share this bit of trivia.
Cracking Burgers starts with Jamie asking you to bash 12 Jacob cream crackers in a tea towel and add them to 500g's of beef mince in a mixing bowl. We didn't have any crackers like Jamie uses (Auzzie version is sayo's) so I used store bought bread crumbs. My opinion is if your going to use store bought crackers you may as well use store bought crumbs. If your using fresh breadcrumbs on the other hand that is completely different.
Next went in 2 heaped teaspoons of Dijon mustard. Mmm I love the colour of Dijon mustard when it’s heaped out on a spoon. It almost looks gold.
Pepper and salt was next, along with fresh chopped parsley. You’re meant to add an egg next but I did a typical Danielle and read the recipe once over and thought I new better then Jamie and forgot to add the egg. I think this was why they were a little dry and didn't stick together well.
I shaped the mince into 4 patties and put them in the fridge while I watched my backed up TV of MKR. (p.s. SO pumped that Shadi and Veronica won!!!)
We had salad fillers such as avo, baby spinach, truss tomatoes, cucumber and gherkins to go with the burgers which were being served with hot Tommy mustard, tomato sauce and focaccia bread instead of burger buns as that was all we had at home.
I oiled the patties with Mum's trusty garlic spray oil (Love it!) and placed them on a hot griddle pan. No idea how long I cooked them for but I cooked them until they were cooked through and the cheese was melted on top. We had frozen wedges with our burgers -left over’s from my 21st that were still in the freezer :) probably not the healthiest choice but it was easy and quick since the grand finale of MKR was on TV last night and nothing was getting in the way of me watching that :)
A delicious meal in all.
While reading "My Year of Cooking Dangerously" by Julie Powell on the bus I was not sure if I gave myself bus sickness or if what she wrote made me queazy.
"These kidneys...were large and messy and many-lobed, striated with white fat filaments"
Need I elaborate? If I do I think I'll be leaving you feeling bus sick too. Although the positive thing is, that she admits that they don't taste like piss when she eats them which is what her mother thinks kidneys taste like. I am thanking Jamie and the heavens that there is no offal in 'Jamie's Ministry of Food'!!
Recipe #9 & #10- On Saturday morning I put two recipes together and made the perfect omelette. Bacon, tomato and cheese. Need I say more?? Mmmm I could do an omelette for dinner tonight thinking about it... don't think mum would approve of omelette for dinner though.
Recipe #11-Saturday night was our Terminator marathon. So the only thing better then a Terminator marathon is a Terminator marathon with cheesecake. I made Jamie's 'Vanilla Cheesecake with a Raspberry topping' for dessert. I thought of my growing bum and used light philly instead of full fat. I also didn't read the recipe right so I used pure cream instead of double cream. It was a non-bake cheese cake so I don't think it made much difference as all it had to do was set in the fridge after everything was mixed together. I've never made a non-bake cheese cake before, I've only ever done the New York Cheesecake from Nigella Lawson's 'How to be a domestic goddess' and you know what?? You will definitely feel like your a domestic goddess if you try that recipe, it is AMAZING! Jamie's cheesecake was also amazing but didn't quite earn the caps yet... maybe more lemon next time and it will be on par.
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