Baked eggs with parma ham

This is another quick and easy breakfast treat, you can also make these in advance and take them on the run like you could a scotch egg. Picnic, brunch, brinner, whatever you fancy they won't disappoint. Great stuff.

Baked eggs with Parma ham and rosemary

Ingredients: (serves 2)
4 slices Parma ham/proscuitto/spek
4 eggs
a few sprigs of rosemary
salt and pepper
20g strong, hard cheese (emmental/pecorino/parmesan)

Toast to serve

Method:
Preheat oven to 200*C
Grease 4 cups of a muffin pan with butter
Line the 4 cups with the slices of ham, circling them around the edges and then joining the ends together to form a border.
Carefully crack the eggs inside each of the ham borders.

Season with a little rosemary and salt and pepper. Grate over the cheese and pop into to oven.
Bake for 7-9 minutes, 7 minutes for slightly runny and 9 minutes for just set.
Use a spoon or a knife to carefully lift the baked eggs out of the muffin tray and serve on buttered toasts.

Ostrich Koftas

Finger food, eating with hands, generally digging in when it comes to eating is a firm favourite of mine, but this could also be associated with fatty meals, drunkard behavior and boerewors roll stands on street corners at 2am (an occasional favourite of mine). These koftas are certainly not fatty nor are they drunkards, they are simply awesome, little, bite-sized meatballs of deliciousness that can be eaten as a canape, with your hands in a wrap or any which way you like.

Traditionally made with lamb, kofta's are of Middle Eastern origin, but the flavour of the spices usually associated with lamb goes perfectly with Ostrich which is also rich and gamey. All the flavour, none of the fat - booya!

Ostrich Koftas

Ingredients: (makes 20)
500g ostrich mince
1/2 onion (cut into wedges)
handful of fresh corinader
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary
2 tsp ground cumin
pinch of salt and pepper
1 egg

To serve:
tsatsiki and chutney if serving as a canapé
AND (if serving as a main)
tortillas or pita breads
tomatoes
avocado
slices of red onion
fresh rocket/lettuce/coriander/baby spinach

Method:
Put everything into a food processor and blitz until well combined.
Roll into equally sized balls.
Fry in a little oil on med/high heat in batches for 5-7 minutes, turning occasionally to brown on all sides. (You might want to cover the pan with a lid whilst cooking as the little suckers tend to spit)

Easy Thai fishcakes

Yet another fish recipe but it is so rewarding, cheap, easy and delicious that you'll have to forgive me. Angelfish is on the SASSI green list meaning you can eat it guilt-free. These fish cakes make the perfect starter but if you want to serve them as a main I would accompany them with this cucumber salad

The list of ingredients is a long one but they are all ingredients that are easy to source, very useful to have and are inexpensive. The prep time is literally 5 minutes, then you just need to roll them and fry them...easy peasy.

Easy Thai fishcakes

Ingredients: (makes 20)
700g fresh angelfish (approx 2 filleted fish/4 fillets)
1/2 red onion (cut into 3)
2 cloves garlic (peeled and halved)
handful fresh coriander
handful fresh basil
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 red chilli (deseeded and chopped)
1 tbsp corn flour

Method:
Ensure that the fish is completely free of bones by running your fingers up the centre of the fillet from tail to head end - there are often a few pin bones near the head end, if you find any, cut them out.
Place all the ingredients into a food processor and blitz until well combined.
Roll into small disks about the width of a poker chip, dipping your hands into water in between to stop the mixture from sticking to them.
Fry in batches on medium/high heat in a little oil for approx 2-3 minutes aside. To test doneness, press the cakes gently with your finger, they should be slightly springy to the touch if they are cooked through.

Serve with sweet chilli sauce/dipping sauce of your choice.

 

Tart tatin

This is one of those desserts that I will forever be enamored with French for making but will forever resent the French for naming...'Tart tatin' -the only way to say it is as if you have just tasted something awful and bitter so that you widen your mouth into a frog-like smile to let the words drip off your tongue to get the pronunciation right. In Layman's terms you would pronounce it 'tert - tata' with a 'n' on the end that is present but in the same annoying way as the 't' in 'Moet'. - in short, if you don't get it or can't get it, forget about it, just make it and tell your friends that it is a French apple tart, or say 'tart tatin' under your breath in the hope that they will all be too embarrassed to ask you to repeat it. Either way you should make this.

Tart tatin

Ingredients: (serves 6-8)
7 apples (granny smith)
1/2 cup sugar
50g butter
1 packet ready-made puff pastry
Cream to serve

Method:
Preheat oven to 220*C and grease a 23 centimeter oven proof frying pan or completely metal cake tin (you are going to melt the sugar in it on the stove top)
Peal, core and halve the apples.
Pour the sugar into the pan/cake tin and place on the stove top on high heat. When the sugar begins to dissolve swirl the pan so that the sugar melts evenly, once the sugar has melted and has turned a golden brown colour, continue to swirl until it turns a lighter shade of caramel (approx 5 min), now add the butter and swirl the pan so that, as the butter melts, it dissolves into the sugar to create a caramel.
When the caramel is a deep brown take it off the stove. (If it begins to darken too quickly, put the bottom of the pan into a sink of cold water which will stop the cooking process immediately.)
Carefully arrange the apples, centre side up in the caramel in the pan.
Cut the pastry into a circle just larger than the pan and carefully cover the apples with the circle of pastry. Tuck in the edges and prick the top with a fork.
Bake for 20 minutes on 220 and then a further 20-25 minutes on 200.
Remove from the oven, place a plate on top of the pan and, making sure not to burn yourself, turn the pan and plate over to release the tart onto the plate.
Serve warm or cold with cream.

If you are serving your tart the next day - I would advise you glaze it with a little melted apricot jam as the longer the tart stands, the more its shine will dissipate.