Heroes Rush in When Fools Crumble

Hi everyone and welcome to the blog. This week’s blog is dedicated to two memorable days for totally different reasons; April Fool’s Day, and National Armed Forces Day in Burma. So this week’s recipes are fit for heroes and fools alike. They are Cardamom Plum Fool, Beef Wellington, Mushroom Wellington, Beef & Red Wine Stew, Wake Up Callcocktail and the herb of the week is Lemon Verbena.

April Fool’s Day is celebrated in the Western world on the 1st of April of every year. Sometimes referred to as All Fools' Day, 1st April is not a legal holiday, but is widely recognized and celebrated as a day which tolerates practical jokes and general foolishness. The day is marked by the commission of good humoured or funny jokes, hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, family members, teachers, neighbours, work associates, etc.

Traditionally, in some countries such as New Zealand, the UK, Australia, and South Africa, the jokes only last until noon, and someone who plays a trick after noon is called an "April Fool". It is for this reason that newspapers in the U.K. that run a front page April fool only do so on the first (morning) edition. Elsewhere, such as in France, Ireland, Italy, South Korea, Japan, Russia, The Netherlands, Germany, Brazil, Canada, and the U.S., the jokes last all day. The earliest recorded association between 1st April and foolishness can be found in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (1392). Many writers suggest that the restoration of the 1st of January as New Year's Day in the 16th century was responsible for the creation of the holiday, but this theory does not explain earlier references.

In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (1392), the "Nun's Priest's Tale" is set Syn March bigan thritty dayes and two. Chaucer probably meant 32 days after March, i.e. 2nd of May, the anniversary of the engagement of King Richard II of England to Anne of Bohemia, which took place in 1381. However, readers apparently misunderstood this line to mean "32nd of March," i.e. 1st April. In Chaucer's tale, the vain cock Chauntecleer is tricked by a fox.
In 1509, a French poet referred to a poisson d’avril (April fool, literally "April fish"), a possible reference to the holiday. In 1539, Flemish poet Eduard de Dene wrote of a nobleman who sent his servants on foolish errands on the 1st of April. In 1686, John Aubrey referred to the holiday as "Fooles holy day", the first British reference. On 1st April, 1698, several people were tricked into going to the Tower of London to "see the Lions washed". The name "April Fools" echoes that of the Feast of Fools, a Medieval holiday held on the 28th December.

In the Middle Ages, New Year's Day was celebrated on the 25th of March in most European towns. In some areas of France, New Year's was a week-long holiday ending on the 1st of April. So it is possible that April Fools originated because those who celebrated on the 1st of January made fun of those who celebrated on other dates. The use of the 1st of January as New Year's Day was common in France by the mid-sixteenth century, and this date was adopted officially in 1564 by the Edict of Roussillon.

In the eighteenth century the festival was often posited as going back to the time of Noah. According to an English newspaper article published in 1789, the day had its origin when Noah sent his dove off too early, before the waters had receded; he did this on the first day of the Hebrew month that corresponds with April.

The Burmese Armed Forces Day, in Myanmar Tatmadaw Nay, is celebrated on March 27 in commemoration of the start of Burmese army's resistance to Japanese occupation in 1945. However, countries all over the world have different days when they celebrate their own Armed Forces Day, here in the UK we celebrate our day on 25th June.
The day is an annual opportunity for those nations to show their support for the men and women who make up their Armed Forces community ranging from currently serving troops to service families, and from veterans to cadets. Across the world people get involved in community held events along with businesses to show their support.

My first recipe is Cardamom Plum Fool courtesy of Good Food Channel Website

Serves 6, Prep time is 15 mins, Cook time is 25 mins.

1kg x Plums, stoned and chopped 
125g x Caster Sugar
3 x Cardamom Pods, husks discarded and seeds crushed 
Juice of 2 Lemons
150g x Ready-Made Custard
500g x Greek Yoghurt
Mint leaves, to garnish 
Amaretti Biscuits

Simmer the plums with the sugar, cardamom and lemon juice for about 15 minutes. Leave to cool. Drain the plums (reserving the syrup) then puree the plums until smooth. Re-heat the syrup and reduce by half. Stir the reduced syrup into the plum puree. Mix the puree with the custard and yoghurt, folding together well. Spoon into dessert bowls, cover and chill until required. Garnish with mint leaves. Serve with amaretti biscuits.

My next recipe is Beef Wellington Recipe by Gordon Ramsey, courtesy of BBC Good Food Website

Serves 4, 10mins to prepare, takes 1hr and 30mins plus chilling time to cook.

500g x Button Mushrooms , stalks removed and finely chopped
Olive Oil
1 x Sprig Thyme, leaves stripped off
600g x Beef Fillet, choose a centre cut piece
1 tbsp x English Mustard
500g x Pre-made All-Butter Puff Pastry
3 x Parma Ham Slices
1 x Egg Yolk, beaten

HERB CRÊPES
50g x Plain Flour
½ x egg
125ml x Milk
1 tbsp x Mixed Herbs, such as chervil, chives and tarragon, chopped
½ tbsp x Melted Butter

To make the crêpes, whizz the flour, egg and milk with a pinch of salt in a blender or processor until smooth. Pour into a jug and stir in the herbs and some seasoning. Leave to rest.

Fry the mushrooms in a little oil until they give up all their moisture and it has evaporated, leaving you with a thick paste. Add the thyme leaves and some seasoning and keep cooking for a few minutes. Cool.

Stir the melted butter into the crêpe batter, heat a 15cm crêpe pan and oil it lightly. Pour in enough batter to make a thin layer on the base of the pan, cook until the top surface sets and then turn over and cook briefly. Remove and repeat with the rest of the batter. This will make a couple more than you need so choose the thinnest ones for the recipe.

Sear the beef all over in a little oil in a very hot pan. Brush with the mustard, season and allow to cool. Lay a large sheet of clingfilm on a kitchen surface and put two crêpes down on it, overlapping a little. Lay over the Parma ham. Spread the mushroom mixture over the ham and put the beef in the centre. Roll the clingfilm up, taking the crêpe with it, to wrap the beef completely into a nice neat log. Chill for 1 hour.

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 4. Roll out the pastry, remove the clingfilm and wrap the beef in the pastry like a parcel, with the ends tucked under. Trim to keep it nice and neat. Brush with egg, score with shallow lines across the top and chill for 20 minutes. Cook for 20 minutes. The best way to test if the meat is done to your liking is to neatly and carefully stick a skewer into the beef, count to three and then test it against your inner wrist. If it is cold the beef will be raw, if it is warm then the beef will be rare and if it's hot, it'll be cooked through. Leave to rest for 20 minutes before carving.

An Alternative to this carnivore’s delight, try this recipe for any vegetarian diners:-

Mushroom Wellington, recipe by Barney Desmazery, courtesy of BBC Good Food website.

Serves 4, prep time 30mins, takes 50mins to cook.

4 x Large Field Mushrooms
4 tbsp x Olive Oil
1 x Garlic Clove , chopped
Approx. 400g x Spinach Leaves
A dusting of flour
1 tbsp x Thyme Leaves (no stalkes)
500g x Read-made All-Butter Puff Pastry
140g x Stilton, sliced
1 x Egg, beaten

Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Remove the stalks from the mushrooms. Heat half the oil in a large frying pan and sizzle the mushrooms for 3-4 mins on each side until golden and cooked through - add a drop more oil if needed. Lift the mushrooms out onto kitchen paper to drain. Place the same pan back on the heat with the rest of the oil. Fry the garlic for a moment, add the spinach to the pan, then cook for 2-3 mins over a high heat until completely wilted. Season with salt and pepper, then tip the spinach into a large sieve to drain thoroughly.
On a lightly floured surface scattered with the thyme leaves, roll the pastry out to the thickness of a £1 coin. Using a saucer and a larger-size plate, cut out 4 circles about 5cm wider than the mushrooms (for the bottoms) and 4 circles about 10cm wider (for the tops), re-rolling the trimmings if you need to. Place the 4 smaller circles on a baking tray and top each with a quarter of the spinach, making sure the pile of spinach isn't wider than the mushrooms. Top the spinach with a slice of cheese, then a mushroom, smooth-side up, and top the mushroom with another slice of cheese. Brush the border to each circle with egg, then gently stretch the larger circle over the mushroom, trying not to trap any air, then press the edges together with a fork. Trim the edges with a knife if you want, then brush each generously with egg. Bake for 40 mins until golden, then leave to cool for a few mins before serving.

Herb of the week – Lemon Verbena (Aloysia citrodora) 
Lemon Verbena is a deciduous perennial shrub, which is killed to the ground with hard frost, though it springs anew from the roots where the ground has not frozen; in mild, frost-free gardens, such as in the west of Ireland, it may attain heights of 25 feet (7.6 meters). It grows to a height of 3 to 7 metres and exudes a powerful lemony scent. It prefers full sun, a lot of water, and a light loam soil. It is sensitive to cold, losing leaves at temperatures below 0°C although the wood is hardy to -10°C. Lemon Verbena, if covered with some straw, cut down and kept free from very moist conditions, will also withstand up to a -15°C frost and will make new leaves in spring. The light green leaves are lancet-shaped, and its tiny flowers bloom lavender or white in late summer.

Lemon verbena leaves are used to add a lemony flavour to fish and poultry dishes, vegetable marinades, salad dressings, jams, puddings, and beverages. It also is used to make herbal teas and can be used to make a sorbet. In addition, it has anti-Candida albicans activity. In European Union, Verbena essential oils (Lippia citriodora Kunth.) and derivatives other than absolute are prohibited when used as a fragrance ingredient (Commission Directive 2009/164/EU of 22 December 2009).

Very little scientific research examines the lemon verbena herb as a medicinal plant, though it has a long history of use in folk medicine for treating a variety of ailments. One of its most popular uses is masking the flavour of bitter or less-palatable herbs in medicinal teas. Lemon verbena tea, however, has its own claim to fame. Herbalists and natural healers often prescribe the lemony beverage for treating digestive upsets, nerves, depression, headache and fever. In addition, it is one of the most effective natural remedies for colic and indigestion. The tea may also benefit sufferers of colds, bronchitis, congestion, cramps, sore or tired muscles, and nausea.

The intense citrus taste and aroma of lemon verbena contribute to its popularity as a culinary herb. The plant’s fresh and dried leaves are commonly used to flavour rice dishes, teas and beverages, fruit salads, custards, steamed puddings, cold soups, gelatine, jams and jellies, cakes, liqueurs and homemade ice cream. Lemon verbena is sometimes used in place of mint or lemon balm, though it takes only half the recommended amount because of the herb’s strength. Lemon verbena tea makes a refreshing drink after eating a heavy dinner.

My next recipe is Beef & Red Wine Stew, this is my variation on a recipe which first appeared in Slimming World Magazine.

Serves 4, takes 20mins to prepare & approx. 2.1/2hrs to cook.

900g x Irish Beef Fillet – chopped into chunks
2 x Garlic Cloves – peeled and crushed
6 x Small Sweet Shallots – peeled and halved
2 x Celery Stalks – chopped into 1” pieces
6 x Carrots – peeled and chopped roughly
400ml x Beef Stock 
Sea Salt
Black Pepper
175ml x Red Wine
Fry Light 
5 tbsp x Beef Gravy Granules
2 x Bay Leaf
2 tbsp x Flour
2 tsp x Paprika

First of all, season your flour with a salt, black pepper and 1 tsp of paprika, then coat your beef chunks with it ensuring that all the beef is covered. Preheat your oven to gas mark 3. Spray a large frying pan with fry light and place over a medium heat. Add the beef and stir fry until browned on all sides. Next add the vegetables, wine, stock, paprika and gravy granules. Season well and add the bay leaves. Bring to the boil, transfer to a lidded casserole dish and cover. Cook in the oven for 1.1/2-2hrs or until the beef is tender. Serve with potatoes.

My final recipe is a cocktail especially for the start of British Summer Time (BST) Which starts on 27th March this year.Wake Up Call. Recipe by Andy Pearson, courtesy of BBC’s Something For The Weekend website.

35ml x Gin
1 tbsp x Orange Liqueur
25ml x Grapefruit Juice
1 x Pink Grapefruit, peel cut into a spiral

Pour the gin, orange liqueur and grapefuit juice into a cocktail shaker. Fill with ice and shake hard to combine. Strain into a tall glass full of ice and garnish with a spiral of pink grapefruit peel

If you have enjoyed my blog, or have tried out the recipes I have included and wish to comment, please feel free to comment using the comment button or by visiting my guestbook, all comments and suggestions will be gratefully received.

Hope you enjoy!!..... ChefGarfy =D

http://chefgarfy.blogspot.com/
http://chefgarfy.blog.co.uk/
www.chefgarfy.com
www.ukfba.co.uk/profile/chefgarfy

A Feast Fit For A Founding Father

Hi everyone and welcome to the blog. This week’s blog is dedicated to George Washington, the first President of the United States of America, whose birthday is celebrated on 22nd February.

George Washington, (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander in chief of the Continental Army in 1775–1783, and he presided over the writing of the Constitution in 1787. As the unanimous choice to serve as the first President of the United States (1789–1797), he developed the forms and rituals of government that have been used ever since, such as using a cabinet system and delivering an inaugural address. As President, he built a strong, well-financed national government that avoided war, suppressed rebellion and won acceptance among Americans of all types, and Washington is now known as the "Father of his country". Apocryphal stories about Washington's childhood include a claim that he skipped a silver dollar across the Potomac River at Mount Vernon, and that he chopped down his father's cherry tree, and admitted the deed when questioned; "I can't tell a lie, Pa." The anecdote was first reported by biographer Parson Weems, who after Washington's death interviewed people who knew him as a child. The Weems version was very widely reprinted throughout the 19th century, for example in McGuffey Readers. Moralistic adults wanted children to learn moral lessons from the past from history, especially as taught by great national heroes like Washington. After 1890 however, historians insisted on scientific research methods to validate every story, and there was no evidence apart from Weems' report. Joseph Rodman in 1904 noted that Weems plagiarized other Washington tales from published fiction set in England; no one has found an alternative source for the cherry tree story, but Weems' credibility is questioned.

In Colonial Virginia, Washington was born into the provincial gentry in a wealthy, well connected family that owned tobacco plantations using slave labour. He was home schooled by his father and older brother, but both died young, and he became attached to the powerful Fairfax clan, who promoted his career as a surveyor and soldier. Strong, brave, eager for combat and a natural leader, young Washington quickly became a senior officer of the colonial forces, 1754–58, during the first stages of the French and Indian War. Indeed, his rash actions helped precipitate the war. Washington's experience, his military bearing, his leadership of the Patriot cause in Virginia, and his political base in the largest colony made him the obvious choice of the Second Continental Congress in 1775 as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army to fight the British in the American Revolution. He forced the British out of Boston in 1776, but was defeated and nearly captured later that year when he lost New York City. After crossing the Delaware River in the dead of winter, he defeated the enemy in two battles, retook New Jersey, and restored momentum to the Patriot cause. Because of his strategy, Revolutionary forces captured two major British armies at Saratoga in 1777 and Yorktown in 1781. Negotiating with Congress, governors, and French allies, he held together a tenuous army and a fragile nation amid the threats of disintegration and invasion. Historians give the commander in chief high marks for his selection and supervision of his generals, his encouragement of morale, his coordination with the state governors and state militia units, his relations with Congress, and his attention to supplies, logistics, and training. In battle, however, Washington was repeatedly outmanoeuvred by British generals with larger armies. Washington is given full credit for the strategies that forced the British evacuation of Boston in 1776 and the surrender at Yorktown in 1781. After victory had been finalized in 1783, Washington resigned rather than seize power, and returned to his plantation at Mount Vernon, proving his opposition to dictatorship and his commitment to republican government.

Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention that drafted the United States Constitution in 1787 because of his dissatisfaction with the weaknesses of Articles of Confederation that had time and again impeded the war effort. Washington became the first President of the United States in 1789. He attempted to bring rival factions together to unify the nation. He supported Alexander Hamilton's programs to pay off all state and national debt, implement an effective tax system, and create a national bank, despite opposition from Thomas Jefferson. Washington proclaimed the U.S. neutral in the wars raging in Europe after 1793. He avoided war with Britain and guaranteed a decade of peace and profitable trade by securing the Jay Treaty in 1795, despite intense opposition from the Jeffersonians. Although never officially joining the Federalist Party, he supported its programs. Washington's "Farewell Address" was an influential primer on republican virtue and a stern warning against partisanship, sectionalism, and involvement in foreign wars.
Washington had a vision of a great and powerful nation that would be built on republican lines using federal power. He sought to use the national government to improve the infrastructure, open the western lands, create a national university, promote commerce, found a capital city (later named Washington, D.C.), reduce regional tensions and promote a spirit of nationalism. "The name of American," he said, must override any local attachments. At his death, Washington was hailed as "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen". The Federalists made him the symbol of their party, but for many years the Jeffersonians continued to distrust his influence and delayed building the Washington Monument. As the leader of the first successful revolution against a colonial empire in world history, Washington became an international icon for liberation and nationalism. His symbolism especially resonated in France and Latin America. Historical scholars consistently rank him as one of the two or three greatest presidents.

So this week my recipes have are a tribute to President George Washington, the Founding Father of the United States of America. They are American Cherry Pie, Italian Pork Patties with Potato Wedges, Cherry Manhattan and Plain Egg Nog. The spice of the week is Sumac.

My first recipe is American Cherry Pie, Recipe by Sophie Grigson, courtesy of GoodFood Channel website, first appeared on Market Kitchen.

This recipe serves 6, takes 30mins, plus 1-2 hours chilling time to prepare, and 1hr to cook.

FOR THE PASTRY
300g x Plain Flour
2 tbsp x Icing Sugar
A Large Pinch of Salt
170g x Chilled Unsalted Butter
170g x Cream Cheese
60-80ml x Single or Double Cream

FOR THE FILLING
1kg x Pitted Sour or Sweet Cherries
235g x Caster Sugar (if using sour cherries, 140g if using sweet)
1 Heaped tsp x Ground Cinnamon
1/2 x Small Lemons, juice only
3 Rounded tbsp x Cornflour

For the pastry: sift the flour into a bowl with the icing sugar and salt. Using a pair of knives or a pastry blender, cut the butter and cream cheese into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs, with the odd larger knobble here and there. Pour in enough cream to mix to a soft dough. Gather up the dough to form a ball, knead very briefly to smooth out, divide in two, then chill both portions in the fridge for at least 1 hour. For the filling: mix the cherries with all the remaining ingredients. Let the mixture stand for 20 minutes, then stir once more. Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7. Roll out half the dough to line a 23cm pie plate or shallow tart tin. Roll out the second half of the dough to form a circle to cover the tin. Put the circle on a sheet of baking paper and chill both the dough-lined tin and the circle in the fridge until needed. Pile the cherries into the lined pie plate until it becomes a gently swelling mound. Brush the edges of the pastry crust with water, then lay the pastry lid on top. Trim the edges, then crimp together firmly. Cut a hole in the centre of the pie to allow steam to escape. Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180C/gas 4 and bake for a further 30-40 minutes until the thickened cherry juices bubble up through the central steam hole. If the pastry is darkening too rapidly, cover loosely with tin foil. Serve the pie warm or cold, with cream or vanilla or white chocolate ice cream.

My next recipe is a cocktail for you to celebrate the US’ “Founding Father’s” birthday. Cherry Manhattan, Recipe by Wayne Collins, courtesy of BBC Website take from “Something for the Weekend”.

This recipe serves 1, takes mins to prepare.

4 x Fresh Black Cherries, plus 1 extra, to serve
2 tsp x Cherry Brandy
2 dashes of Angastura Bitters
50ml x Bourbon
25ml x Vermouth
A Scoop of Ice Cubes
A Twist of Pink Grapefruit Peel, to garnish

Place the cherries into a cocktail shaker and crush lightly (muddle) with the back of a long-handled spoon. Add the cherry brandy, bitters, bourbon, vermouth and a scoop of ice. Stir well. Double-strain the mixture into a coupette glass. Hook the twist of pink grapefruit peel and the cherry over the side of the glass.

Spice of the week – Sumac
Sumac (also spelt as sumach) is any one of approximately 250 species of flowering plants in the genus Rhus and related genera, in the family Anacardiaceae. Sumacs grow in subtropical and temperate regions throughout the world, especially in Africa and North America.
Sumacs are shrubs and small trees that can reach a height of 1–10 metres (3.3–33 ft). The leaves are spirally arranged; they are usually pinnately compound, though some species have trifoliate or simple leaves. The flowers are in dense panicles or spikes 5–30 centimetres (2.0–12 in) long, each flower very small, greenish, creamy white or red, with five petals. The fruits form dense clusters of reddish drupes called sumac bobs. The dried drupes of some species are ground to produce a tangy purple spice. Sumacs propagate both by seed (spread by birds and other animals through their droppings), and by new shoots from rhizomes, forming large clonal colonies.The word sumac traces its etymology from Old French sumac (13th century), from Medieval Latin sumach, from Arabic summaq - meaning "red."

The fruits (drupes) of the genus Rhus are ground into a deep-red or purple powder used as a spice in Middle Eastern cuisine to add a lemony taste to salads or meat.[5] In Arab cuisine, it is used as a garnish on meze dishes such as hummus and is added on salads in the Levant. In Iranian (Persian and Kurdish) cuisine, sumac is added to rice or kebab. In Turkish cuisine, for example, it is added to salad-servings of kebabs and lahmacun. In North America, the Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra) and the Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) are sometimes used to make a beverage termed "sumac-ade," "Indian lemonade" or "rhus juice". This drink is made by soaking the drupes in cool water, rubbing them to extract the essence, straining the liquid through a cotton cloth and sweetening it. Native Americans also used the leaves and drupes of the Smooth and Staghorn Sumacs combined with tobacco in traditional smoking mixtures.
Species including the Fragrant Sumac (Rhus aromatica), the Littleleaf Sumac (R. microphylla), the Skunkbush Sumac (R. trilobata), the Smooth Sumac and the Staghorn Sumac are grown for ornament, either as the wild types or as cultivars. The leaves of certain sumacs yield tannin (mostly pyrogallol-type), a substance used in vegetable tanning. Leather tanned with sumac is flexible, light in weight, and light in colour. One type of leather made with sumac tannins is morocco leather. Sumac was used as a treatment for half a dozen different ailments in medieval medicine, primarily in Islamic countries (where sumac was more readily available than in Europe). An 11th century shipwreck off the coast of Rhodes, excavated by archaeologists in the 1970s, contained commercial quantities of sumac drupes. These could have been intended for use as medicine, or as a culinary spice, or as a dye. Some beekeepers use dried sumac bobs as a source of fuel for their smokers. Dried sumac wood fluoresces under long-wave ultraviolet radiation, commonly known as black light.
Some species, such as Poison ivy (Rhus toxicodendron, syn.Toxicodendron radicans), Poison oak (Rhus diversiloba, syn. Toxicodendron diversilobum) and Poison sumac (Rhus vernix, syn. Toxicodendron vernix), have the allergen urushiol and can cause severe allergic reactions. You may identify Poison sumac by its white drupes. Mowing of sumac is not a good control measure as the wood is springy resulting in jagged, sharp pointed stumps when mowed. The plant will quickly recover with new growth after mowing. Goats have long been considered an efficient and quick removal method as they eat the bark, which helps prevent new shoots.
Sumac is used widely in cookery in Arabia, Turkey and the Levant, and especially in Lebanese cuisine. In these areas it is a major souring agent, used where other regions would employ lemon, tamarind or vinegar. It is rubbed on to kebabs before grilling and may be used in this way with fish or chicken. The juice extracted from sumac is popular in salad dressings and marinades and the powdered form is used in stews and vegetable and chicken casseroles. “The seed of Sumach eaten in sauces with meat, stoppeth all manner of fluxes of the belly...” (Gerard, 1597) A mixture of yogurt and sumac is often served with kebabs. Zather is a blend of sumac and thyme use to flavour labni, a cream cheese made from yogurt.

My non-alcoholic cocktail is for those who prefer the lighter tipple, Plain Egg Nog, recipe courtesy ofwww.drinksmixer.com. An apparent favourite of President Washington.

This recipe serves 1, takes mins to prepare.

1 x Egg
1 tsp x Sugar
Milk
Nutmeg

Shake with ice and strain into a tall glass. Fill with milk and garnish with nutmeg.

My last recipe is Italian Pork Patties with Potato Wedges, courtesy of BBC GoodFood Magazine June 2010.

This recipe serves 4 easily doubled, takes 15mins to prepare & 35-45mins to cook.

4 x Baking Potatoes, unpeeled, Each cut into 8-10 wedges
2 tbsp x Olive Oil
Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon
50g x Fresh Breadcrumbs
500g x Pork Mince
50g x Grated Parmesan
2 tbsp x Fresh Parsley, chopped
1 x Large Garlic Clove, crushed
2 tbsp x Cold Water

Heat your oven to 200C Gas Mark 6. Toss the potato wedges in a large roasting tin with 1 tbsp of oil and lemon juice. Spread out in a single layer. Bake for 35-45mins, turning halfway, until golden brown and crisp. Meanwhile, place the breadcrumbs in a mixing bowl and moisten with 2 tbsp of cold water. Add the mince, Parmesan, parsley, garlic and lemon zest. Season, mix well, then shape into 4 large flat patties. Heat the remaining oil in a pan and cook the patties for 7mins on each side, or until they have a golden crust and cooked through. Serve with the wedges and a tomato and rocket salad, if you like.

If you have enjoyed my blog, or have tried out the recipes I have included and wish to comment, please feel free to comment using the comment button or by visiting my guestbook, all comments and suggestions will be gratefully received.

Hope you enjoy!!..... ChefGarfy =D

http://chefgarfy.blogspot.com/
http://chefgarfy.blog.co.uk/
www.chefgarfy.com