Christmas Food

Instead of cooking a whole turkey or a gammon this Christmas, serve one of these delicious but affordable dishes to your guests.

• OPTION 1:
  
  • CHICKEN AND MUSHROOMS IN WHITE WINE

    6 tsp oil

    16 boneless chicken thighs or 8 chicken breasts

    500g mushrooms, roughly chopped

    2 large onions, finely chopped

    2 tbsp crushed garlic

    3 cups of white wine

    4 tbsp flour

    150ml sour cream

    2 bay leaves

    Heat the oil in a deep frying, brown the chicken on both sides and set it aside. Add the onion, garlic and bay leaves and fry it over low heat until the onions are translucent. Add the flour and cook it for a further minute. Return the chicken and wine and let it simmer for 25 minutes.

    Add the mushrooms and let it simmer for a further 5 minutes. Remove it from the stove top, add the sour cream and serve with rice and roasted vegetables.

    For dessert: Homemade Pecan Nut Pie and whipped cream

    (Serves 8)

  
  
  • ROAST VEGETABLES

    100g patty pans, cut into chunks

    100g broccoli, cut into florets

    5 carrots, roughly chopped

    1 red pepper, cut into strips

    100g cherry tomatoes, halved

    1 onion, roughly chopped

    1 heaped tsp crushed garlic

    4 baby marrows, roughly chopped

    50ml oil

    thumb length of fresh rosemary

    15ml mixed herbs

    salt and pepper to taste

    Preheat the oven to 200deg Celsius and place all the ingredients on a baking tray. Drizzle it with the oil and season with the herbs and salt and pepper.

    Mix it well to coat all ingredients with the oil and bake it for 40 minutes, tossing the vegetables once or twice during the baking process.

  
  

  • PECAN NUT PIE

    1 Small box of salty cracks

    1/4 cup melted butter

    Filling:

    1 cup of golden syrup

    3 eggs

    3 tbsp melted butter

    1/2 cup brown sugar

    1 Tbsp vanilla essence

    1 cup Pecan Nuts

    Roughly crush salty cracks and mix it with the butter and press it firmly into a pie dish.

    Mix all the filling ingredients, except the nuts together and pour it onto the salty cracks shell. Top it with the Pecan Nuts and bake at 180deg C for about 1 hour.

    Allow it the cool a little and serve with whipped cream.

  
  

• OPTION 2:
  

  • PORK CHOPS AND MASH

    8 Pork Chops

    1/4 cup flour

    BBQ spice or similar spice for meat

    oil for frying

    2 Tins apricot halves

    2 packets of brown onion soup powder

    Sprinkle BBQ spice and flour over the chops. Heat the oil in a pan and lightly fry the chops on both sides. Place them in an ovenproof dish.

    Drain the syrup from the tinned apricots into a bowl and mix the syrup and soup powder together, adding water if the mixture is too thick.

    Sprinkle the apricots over the chops and pour the soup mixture over.

    Bake it in the oven for 25 minutes at 180deg Celsius. Serve it with mashed potatoes and cooked peas or mixed vegetables.

    For dessert: Jelly and Custard or baked custard

    Serves 6

  
  

  • BAKED CUSTARD

    4 eggs

    2 cups of milk, warmed

    2 Tbsp sugar

    1 tsp vanilla essence

    large pinch of salt

    [1/2 cup of desicated coconut or replace 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of black coffee (both optional)]

    Beat the eggs, sugar and salt together, add the milk (and optional coffee or coconut) and vanilla essence and mix well.

    Pour it into an ovenproof dish and place this dish in an ovenproof dish with water in the oven.

    Bake it for 45 minutes at 180deg Celsius

  
  

• OPTION 3:
  
  • YUMMY CHICKEN AND BUTTERNUT CURRY

    Oil for frying

    8 Chicken pieces

    1 medium butternut, peeled and cubed

    1 medium cauliflower, broken up into florets

    2 medium onions, peeled and chopped

    2 tsp red curry paste

    Large tin coconut milk

    1 Tbsp Soy Sauce / Fish Sauce

    2 tsp crushed garlic

    1 cup chicken stock

    1 tsp brown sugar

    Sprinkle 2 tbsp oil over the butternut and cauliflower and roast it in the oven for 20 minutes at 220deg Celsius, stirring once.

    In the mean time fry the chopped onion in the oil, add the garlic and chicken and brown the chicken over medium heat.

    Add the chicken stock and simmer for 20 minutes.

    Add the vegetables, curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar to the chicken, bring it all to a boil, reduce the heat again and simmer for 15 minutes.

    Serve with rice.

    For dessert: Mud Pie

    Serves 6

  
  

  • MUD PIE

    4 Cups of milk

    2 heaped Tbsp Corn flour

    2 Tbsp Cocoa

    3/4 Cup sugar

    3 eggs, seperate the egg whites from the egg yolk

    Dissolve the cocoa in a 1/4 cup of coffee.

    Mix the corn flour in a bit of milk and beat the corn flour, cocoa and egg yolks together.

    Bring the milk to a boil, add the egg mixture and stir until cooked. Remove from the heat and add sugar and a pinch of salt.

    Allow it to cool down slightly.

    Beat the egg whites until stiff, fold it into the egg mixture and pour it into a serving dish with lid. Leave the lid on while the dessert cools down.

    Serve your mud pie with custard

  
  

• OPTION 4:
  
  • ROAST CHICKEN

    4lb chicken (approximately 1.6kg)

    Bacon rashers

    2Tbsp margarine / butter, melted

    BBQ Spice

    Stuffing:

    1 onion, finely chopped

    2Tbsp melted margarine / butter

    2 cups breadcrumbs

    1/4 cup dried apricots, chopped

    1/2 cup mixed nuts

    1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

    1 tbsp dried mixed herbs

    1 egg, beaten

    Heat the butter and cook the onion until soft. Allow it to cool off a bit before adding the rest of the ingredients. Season it well with salt and pepper.

    Season the chicken generously with BBQ spice. and then stuff the chicken with the stuffing - at the neck end make sure you only stuff it loosely to allow for the breadcrubms to swell.

    Roll any leftover stuffing into balls and fry them in oil until cooked (delicious!)

    Tuck the bird's neck skin over and tuck it uder the wings, securing it with the wing tips.

    Use string to tie around the chicken in order to tie the wings and legs to the body - this will prevent them from drying out too quickly.

    Place the chicken in a roasting tin with the breast down and pour the melted butter over the chicken. Cover the tin loosely with foil and roast the chicken for 1 hour at 190deg Celsius.

    Baste the chicken a number of times with its own juices. Turn the Chicken around, place the bacon over the Chicken breast and cook the chicken for a further 30 minutes. Baste it again at least once.

    Remove the string and place the Chicken in a serving plate - allow it to stand while you prepare the gravy - this will make it easier to cut.

    Make the gravy with about 2 Tbsps of flour, chicken juices and a cup of stock.

    Carve the chicken and enjoy it with gravy, fried stuffing, roast potatoes and vegetables.

    For dessert: Bread Pudding

    Serves 6

  
  
  • BREAD PUDDING

    4 Cups hot milk

    2 eggs

    1 tsp vanilla essence

    1 tsp cinnamon

    2 Cups fresh bread crumbs (Remove the crust from 3 - 4 slices of bread and crumble)

    1/4 Cup sugar

    2 Tbsp margarine

    Soak the crumbs in milk and margarine and let it cool completely. Beat the eggs, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla and mix it into the breadcrumbs.

    Spoon it into an ovenproof dish and bake it at 180deg Celsius for 1 hour 45 minutes.

    Make a sauce from 2Tbsp hot water, 1tsp vanilla or caramel essence, 1/4 brick margarine, 1 egg and 1 cup sugar - heat it until the margarine has melted and the sugar has completely dissolved.

    Pour the sauce over the dessert and place it back into the oven. Switch the oven off but leave the pudding in the oven until you are ready to serve it.

    Serve the bread pudding with custard

  
  

• OPTION 5:
  
  • EASY ROASTED CHICKEN PIECES

    4 Chicken breasts cut in half

    oil for frying

    BBQ spice / garlic salt

    2 tsp of crushed garlic

    1 lemon freshly squeezed

    1 lemon cut in half

    1/4 brick of butter

    Place the chicken breasts in an ovenproof dish. Season it with garlic salt and the juice of a freshly squeezed lemon - cover and refrigerate the chicken for at least an hour.

    Heat 2 Tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and fry the chicken brown on both sides (about 4 mins per side). Place the chicken back in the sauce in the ovenproof dish.

    Squeeze the juice of half the other lemon over the chicken portions - melt the butter over low heat, add the garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper.

    Pour the butter over the chicken and bake it at 200deg Celsius for 30 minutes (baste the chicken once or twice with the lemon sauce)

    Serve it with rice and vegetables.

    Serves 6

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