chicken in milk

ingredients

• 1 x 1.5kg organic chicken
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 115g or ½ a pack of butter
• olive oil
• 1/2 cinnamon stick
• 1 good handful of fresh sage, leaves picked
• zest of 2 lemons
• 10 cloves of garlic, skin left on
• 565ml milk

method

A slightly odd, but really fantastic combination that must be tried.

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas 5, and find a snug-fitting pot for the chicken. Season it generously all over, and fry it in the butter and a little olive oil, turning the chicken to get an even colour all over, until golden. Remove from the heat, put the chicken on a plate, and throw away the oil and butter left in the pot. This will leave you with tasty sticky goodness at the bottom of the pan which will give you a lovely caramel flavour later on.

Put your chicken back in the pot with the rest of the ingredients, and cook in the preheated oven for 1½ hours. Baste with the cooking juice when you remember. The lemon zest will sort of split the milk, making a sauce which is absolutely fantastic.

To serve, pull the meat off the bones and divide it onto your plates. Spoon over plenty of juice and the little curds. Serve with wilted spinach or greens and some mashed potato.

chocolate

ingredients

• 200g digestive biscuits
• 110g whole pecans, roughly chopped
• 110g pistachio nuts, peeled
• 10 glace cherries
• 2 ready-made meringue nests, smashed up
• 150g unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon golden syrup
• 200g dark chocolate

method

This chocolate cake is wicked! And even better, you don't need to do any baking. 

Break the biscuits into small pieces directly into a large bowl. Add the pecans, pistachio nuts and cherries and mix together. Put the rest of the ingredients into a separate heatproof bowl and put on a low heat over a pan of simmering water until the butter and chocolate have melted.

Combine the biscuit mix with the chocolate mixture. Line a 30 x 20 cm plastic container with cling film, leaving plenty of extra film at the edges to help turn the cake out later. Whack everything into the container, place in the fridge to firm up, then turn out and cut into chunky slices.

This cake can be kept in an airtight container for a few days, and it actually improves in flavour!

Breaded Fish Fingers with Sweet Potato Oven-Fries

4 catfish fillets, tilapia or basa fish fillets (about 6 oz/175 g each)
1/3 cup (75 mL) light mayonnaise
3/4 cup (175 mL) dry bread crumbs
1 tbsp (15 mL) minced fresh parsley
1-1/2 tsp (7 mL) Cajun seasoning
Sweet Potato Oven-Fries:
2 sweet potatoes, (about 1-1/2 lb/750 g total)
1 egg white
2 tsp (10 mL) vegetable oil
1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper

Sweet Potato Oven-Fries: Peel potatoes. Cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch (1 cm) thick slices; cut each lengthwise into 1/2-inch (1 cm) wide strips. Cut to about 3 inches (8 cm) long.

In large bowl, whisk egg white until frothy; whisk in oil, salt and pepper. Add potatoes, tossing to coat. Bake on parchment paper–lined rimmed baking sheet in 450°F (230°C) oven, turning once, for about 30 minutes or until tender and edges are browned and crisp.

Meanwhile, cut fish into 3- x 1-1/2-inch (8 x 4 cm) fingers; place in large bowl. Add mayonnaise; toss to coat. In shallow dish, combine bread crumbs, parsley and Cajun seasoning; dip fish into bread crumb mixture, turning to coat.

Bake on greased rimmed baking sheet, turning once, for about 15 minutes or until dark golden and fish flakes easily when tested. Serve with sweet potato fries.

Baked Herbed Crepes with Chicken and Mushrooms

Ingredients

12 Basic Crepes

Filling:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup (50 mL) butter
4 cups (1 L) halved button mushrooms
1 onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper
1/4 cup (50 mL) dry sherry, or sodium-reduced chicken stock
1/4 cup (50 mL) all-purpose flour
2 cups (500 mL) sodium-reduced chicken stock
1 cup (250 mL) milk
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 cup (250 mL) shredded fontina cheese

Preparation

Filling: In saucepan of simmering water, cover and poach chicken until no longer pink inside, about 12 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate and let cool; dice and set aside in large bowl.

Meanwhile, in skillet, melt 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the butter over medium-high heat; saute mushrooms, onion, garlic and half each of the salt and pepper until golden and almost no liquid remains, about 5 minutes.

Add sherry and bring to boil; boil until evaporated, about 1 minute. Scrape into bowl with chicken.

In saucepan, melt remaining butter over medium heat; whisk in flour and cook, whisking constantly, until pale golden, about 2 minutes.

Whisk in chicken stock, milk, nutmeg and remaining salt and pepper; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking often, until smooth and thickened, about 8 minutes. Whisk in Fontina cheese until smooth.

Reserve 2 cups (500 mL) of the sauce; stir remaining sauce into chicken mixture. Let cool. Cover and refrigerate filling and reserved sauce separately until filling is firm enough to roll, about 2 hours. (Make-ahead: Refrigerate for up to 24 hours.)

In small saucepan, reheat sauce over medium heat, whisking until smooth. (Or microwave on high in microwaveable bowl for 2 minutes, whisking once.) Spread 1/2 cup (125 mL) sauce in greased 13- x 9-inch (3 L) glass baking dish.

Spoon about 1/3 cup (75 mL) filling in line along centre of each cr?. Roll up and arrange snuggly, seam side down and in single layer, in prepared dish. Drizzle with remaining sauce. (Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 hour.)

Bake in 375°F (190°C) oven until golden, bubbly and heated through, about 35 minutes.