Shepherd's Pie

This was one of my favorite dishes when my mom used to make this growing up.  Its surprisingly easy, I find that the trick is to make sure that the meat mixture and mashed potatoes are both seasoned.  I like to add grated Cheddar cheese to the top during the last 10 minutes of baking and allow it to get crispy.

Ingredients

For meat mixture:
half pound ground meat (I used half lamb and half beef)
1 large onion, chopped
1 carrots, chopped
3 tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
couple dashes of Worcestershire Sauce
bay leaf
dash of ground allspice
1 bottle of dark beer (I used Guinness)
salt and pepper to taste

For potato mixture;
5-6 medium sized potatoes, cubed and boiled until soft
1/3 stick of butter
half a container of sour cream
milk (add until you have a creamy texture)
halt a cup of grated vintage cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Start with browning your meat, when brown, drain all but a bit of the fat.  In the remaining fat, brown the onion, carrot, garlic and tomatoes.  Then add the meat, bay leaf, Allspice, Worcestershire Sauce and dark beer.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for about an hour or until most of the liquid has evaporated and the remaining liquid becomes like a gravy.  Pour this mixture into the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish.  In the meantime, peal and boil the potatoes.  When they are tender enough, drain the water and mash.  Mix with butter, sour cream, cheese and milk until you have a smooth consistency.  Preheat oven to 350F (175C).  Then use a spatula and cover the meat, ensuring that the top is nice and smooth.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Then grate a little extra cheese, after the 20 minutes have past, take this cheese and place over top of the mashed potatoes and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese browns lightly on the top.  Take out of the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.  Enjoy!

Sopa de Feijão (Portuguese Bean Soup)

Most people think Portuguese cooking is mostly made with salt-fish, Bacalhau, however there are plenty of delicious dishes that comprise Portuguese Cuisine.  Today I have chosen to post a bean soup that is especially good during cold winter months.

Ingredients:
200 g. Bacon
200 g. Portuguese Chorizo (can be substituted with Spanish chorizo)
1 large onion, diced
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 carrots, diced
3-4 medium-sized potatoes, diced
half a head of white cabbage, shredded
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
minced parsley
300 gr. White beans, (soaked overnight), or 2 cans white beans

Place the beans in a bowl the night before, fill with water and allow to soak overnight.  The following day cook the bacon in the soup pot until the fat sweats out.  Removed the bacon leaving some of the fat drippings.  Then add the onion and carrot and cook until softened, 4-5 minutes.  Add the garlic and continue cooking 2 minutes.  Add the bay leaf, paprika, salt and pepper.  Continue cooking for a few more minutes.  Next, add the cabbage and sautee and few minutes.  Then add the beans, chorizo, and potatoes and add enough water so that everything is covered by an inch.  Bring the soup to a boil, when boiling, reduced to low-medium and cook for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours until the beans are soft.  Best made a day before.  Serve with a nice Portuguese white wine like Vinho Verde.

Sardine Spread

This is a very typical mousse for spreading on bread that hails from the Iberian Peninsula.  In Portugal and Spain, fish mousse (tuna, sardine, anchovy) and quite popular on toast in the morning.  It is very rich in Omega-3. You can also eat this as an appetizer or serve at a dinner party.

Ingredients

2 cans or sardines (skin and bones in the middle removed)
juice of one lemon
5 cl. Port Wine
6 black olives, pitted
half a stick of butter, softened
1 teaspoon of paprika
handful of parsley or cilantro, minced

Mince the black olives.  Wash the herbs and mince.  With a fork, take the sardines and mix with the butter.  Add the lemon juice, herbs, paprika, Port wine and mix until a nice paste forms.  Place in a boil and cover, place in the refrigerator for about an hour.  Serve spread on toasted bread.

Königsberger Klopse (German Meatballs)

I first tried this dish back in Stuttgart in 2006 when I was an exchange student in Germany.  My roommate at the time, Holger, who came from Rügen made this for me.  The flavor combination I find is quite amazing.  The meatballs are made with beef, pork and a small amount of anchovies (the secret ingredient).  The sauce contains capers, which may not be to everyone's taste, but they work well with the anchovies in the meatballs.

Ingredients:

1 old roll (from day before)
2 small onions, minced
butter
1 lb. mixed ground meat (50% beef, 50% pork)
1 egg
salt and pepper
2 teaspoons mustard
3 anchovy fillets, minced
1/2 liter beef broth
a pinch of whole peppercorns
bay leaf
juice from 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons flour
200 g cream
2 teaspoons capers
2 egg yolks

Put the old roll in water and let soak.  Mince the onions very fine and saute in butter until soft.  Mix the ground meat, sauteed onions, egg.  Take the roll and squeeze out all the moisture and then add to the meat mixture.  Add salt, pepper, mustard and minced anchovies and mix well.  (I used my hand here). With damp hand form meatballs.   In a large pan with lid, warm beef broth with pepper corns and bay leaf.  Carefully place the meatballs in the warm broth and cover, simmer for about 20 minutes on low heat.  Preheat the oven to 125F (50C).  When the meatballs are cooked through, place on a baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm.  Pass the broth through a sieve to remove large pieces and set aside.  Heat butter in the pan and add 2 tablespoons of flour until the flour is gold colored.  Add the broth and the cream and let simmer on low for 10 minutes.  Salt and pepper the sauce to taste and add the capers.  At the very end, beat the egg yolks together with 1 tablespoon of cold water and mix into the sauce, DO NOT let the sauce cook further.  Serve the meatballs with boiled potatoes and a side salad, cover meatballs and potatoes with sauce.  Guten Appetit!

Canary Island Beef Stew (Estofado Canario)

This recipes is an adaptation from a Canary Island cookbook that a friend brought back for me from his vacation there.  From looking through the cookbook, I noticed that the cuisine of the Canary Islands is very similar to cuisine on the Iberian Peninsula part of Spain.  Exception includes the a more extensive use of corn and sweet potatoes, however; the spices and flavors are all the same.  This delicious stew tastes better when allowed to stew on a low temperature for a long time then allowed to sit overnight so the flavors can mix.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

2 lbs. (1 kg) beef stewing meat
1 sweet pepper, chopped
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
medium sized onion, chopped
2 glasses of white wine
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
sprig of fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
salt and pepper

Heat olive oil in pot until hot.  Add the beef stew meat and brown on each side.  Remove from pot and add more olive oil.  Fry the onions, pepper and garlic until softened, about 3 minutes.  Add the meat again and the white white and the paprika, cumin and thyme.  Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer.  Simmer about 1 to 2 hours.  Served alongside starch of your choice (potatoes, noodles, rice)

Serbian Bean Soup

Although the name suggests its from the Balkans, this recipe actually came out of an Austrian Cookbook I bought when I was in Vienna.  I think the history behind this dish is that it migrated to Vienna during the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.  Like most soups and stews this soup benefits from being made a day before enjoying.

Ingredients

1/2 lb. dried white beans, soaked overnight
4 oz. bacon bacon (cubed if available)
4 oz. Smoked sausage, cubed
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
bay leaf
teaspoon marjoram
teaspoon thyme
splash of vinegar
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
4 cups beef stock
2-3 medium sized-potatoes, peeled and cubed
 
Soak the beans overnight it a bowl with water covering an inch over beans.  In a dutch over or soup pot fry bacon, sausage and onions together until onion is soft and bacon crispy.  Add garlic and cook for a minute, stirring.  Meanwhile, drain the beans and rinse, set aside.  Add bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, paprika and salt and pepper to the sausage onion mixture.  Add the beef stock and then beans  Bring to boil, and lower to simmer.  Simmer for aboot 1 hour or until beans are tender.  About 20 minutes before beans are done, add the cubed potatoes to the pot.  Continue simmering until beans are tender and potatos are soft.  Best served with crusty bread.

Frittaten Soup

This was a soup that I ate twice when I was recently in Vienna.  Its basically a savory pancake (or Palatschinken as its called in Austria) that is cut into strips and served in broth.  It is an excellent light soup to serve as a first course.  You could play around with the herbs and seasonings you use in the Frittaten batter.  Best served with homemade broth.

Ingredients

1 cup of milk
a little over a cup of flour
1 egg
1/2 bunch of parsley, chopped
freshly grated nutmeg
butter or oil for the pan

5 cups hot broth (chicken, beef or vegetable)

Mix flour and milk together with a whisk so that there are no lumps.  Then mix in the egg, salt, nutmeg and parsley.  Mix well and let stand for 15 minutes.  In a medium size frying pan, heat oil or butter.  When hot, put a ladle full of batter into the pan.  Move the pan around so that the batter gets evenly spread on the pan.  Flip when downside is lightly browned.  Remove from pan and let soak on paper towel. Repeat until all the batter is done.  To serve roll and cut into thin strips.  Divide among 4 bowls and ladle hot broth over top.  Serve with minced chives as garnish.