Sausages with caramelised onions and parmesan mash

I have a neighbour who makes his own bacon and pork sausages. I’m not much of a bacon person. No matter how mouthwatering bacon sounds, I usually end up disappointed. Maybe it’s the dry texture. I prefer my meat moist, like my neighbour’s homemade sausages. None of the processed stuff of compacted meat and ‘other parts’, his contain minced meat that crumbles out when the casing bursts from the heat of the pan.

I’m usually quite lazy when it comes to sausages. Just fry with onions and eat with bread. But since I’m on a quest to try new recipes, it doesn’t hurt to have something more fancy once in a while.

The onions are baked in the oven with a drizzle of olive oil and vinegar, plus a sprinkle of sugar, chilli flakes, salt and pepper. The sausages are just fried while the mash is made with boiled potatoes, mashed and mixed with heated milk and butter, plus salt and pepper to taste.

Shopping list: sausages, desiree potatoes (or any red skin potato), milk, parmesan cheese (grated)

From the pantry: red onions, olive oil, soft brown sugar, butter, red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar,  salt, black pepper

Hardware: oven, potato masher

Can I do it?: This is as easy as it gets.

Credit: Every Day by Bill Granger.

Tip: Use good quality sausages from the deli. If you’re using those cheap ones from the frozen section of the supermarket, you might as well order a hot dog from Ikea or neighbourhood Ramly Burger stall.  

Spicy squid salad with cucumber and capers

If your idea of a salad is Caesar Salad, you need to expand your horizons. There is so much more to a salad than lettuce and tomatoes. If you’ve been cooking with Jamie Oliver, you would have been introduced to basil and rocket.

But today I’m writing about Bill Granger’s salad recipe. This one uses squid, and other than a quick cooking of the marinated squid (with olive oil, garlic and chilli) and the pickled capers, everything else is raw. It’s easy assembly. Just drizzle with a dressing of olive oil and lemon juice seasoned with salt and pepper and you’re done.

Shopping list: squid, chilli, Lebanese cucumber (I used Japanese cucumber), yellow teardrop tomatoes (any small tomatoes will do, e.g. cherry tomatoes), celery stalks, celery leaves, basil, lemon, capers (you can find this in ‘expat’ mini markets like Hock Lee’s)

From the pantry: olive oil, garlic, salt, black pepper

Hardware: salad spinner (to dry the washed basil to prevent a soggy salad)

Can I do it?: If you can handle a knife, you’re all set.

Credit: Every Day by Bill Granger.

Tip: The success of this recipe is in the squid. Watch the stove. Don’t overcook the squid or it’ll end up rubbery.

 

What to do with that grapefruit in the fridge – make grapefruit sorbet!

When you live in a tropical country like I do, it’s always nice to have some sorbet in the freezer for hot, sunny days. It’s also a great dessert to follow heavy meals, when you want something to ease that sluggish feeling in your stomach.

The only snag is you need to anticipate when you want to have it, because it has to be ‘defrosted’ in the fridge for about an hour or two, depending on the container you use to store it (shallow/deep).

This is the second sorbet recipe I’ve tried, only because I happened to have some grapefruit in the fridge. It’s not readily available here and when I saw it at my regular fruit stall, I thought I’d give it a try, even though I did not fancy eating it raw.

This recipe calls for raw egg white, which I skipped when I first tried making lemon sorbet. I don’t think the egg white made a difference, so I may leave it out next time.

Shopping list: Grapefruit, egg white (optional)

From the pantry: Sugar

Hardware: Freezer, fridge, shallow metal tray, whisk

Can I do it?: Yes, if you have half a day to spare at home for the freezing of the mixture, taking it out and beating it – three times!

Tips: 1. Don’t strain the fibre of the fruit. It’s always nice to have some ‘bite’ to the sorbet.   2. Shallow metal tray is not a good idea if you end up spilling half the content before you reach the freezer. A freeze-proof plastic container with lid would be a better alternative.

Credit: Bills Sydney Food by Bill Granger

Oatmeal and Raisin Cookies for the Clients

Cooking in a household of one poses a slight ‘problem’. Especially with baking, because you can’t just ‘halve’ the recipe. Baking is an exact science – reducing the ingredients according to the serving you want doesn’t work.

Well, I think I’ve found the perfect taste testers for my cooking experiment, and earned a few brownie points along the way. I served this to the clients when they came to the office for a meeting. The clients and suits almost finished the whole Tupperware of cookies, but then again, the meeting lasted the whole day. They could’ve just been starving!

These cookies have less ‘guilt’ because of the oats and raisins. The brown sugar gives them a mellow sweetness, not the toothache-inducing sweetness of white sugar. As for the butter, well, I never apologize for butter.

Shopping list: eggs

From the pantry: butter, soft brown sugar, oats, raisins, vanilla extract, baking powder, salt

Hardware: baking tray, baking paper, flour sieve, egg beater, oven

Can I do it?: Definitely. One of the easiest cookie recipes I’ve tried. You don’t need delicate hands too because these cookies are earthy rather than pretty. Just roll the mixture into balls and flatten them with a fork.

Credit: Bill Granger’s Every Day. Full recipe here.