Curried Mince

This recipe is so easy to prepare that it almost feels like a cheat method for no-hassle mince. With mince, there’s no worrying about whether the meat is cooked through, as you would have with chunks of meat. Mince doesn’t have to be checked for tenderness, and other ingredients can be added and subtracted as you please. There’s also no link between effort and scrumptiousness!

Ingredients:

7.5ml salt

7.5ml Red Freezer Masala

10ml turmeric

5ml grated ginger root

10ml vinegar

400g beef or lamb mince

30ml ghee

1 onion, finely chopped

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into small pieces

7.5ml sunflower oil

375ml water

100g frozen peas

2 tomatoes, coarse chopped in a blender

Pan Spices:

2-3 cardamom pods

3-4 whole cloves

4-5 pieces Indian cinnamon

To Garnish:

5ml garam masala

30ml coriander, finely chopped

Method:

Prepare the marinade:

Mix the salt, Red Freezer Masala, turmeric, ginger and vinegar into a paste. Press this thoroughly through the mince with the back of a spoon.

Heat the ghee in a saucepan on medium-high. When hot, add the cardamom, cloves and cinnamon and sizzle for ½-1 minute. Add the onion and braise, stirring, for 3-5 minutes until translucent to golden brown.

Add the mince to the pot and mix well into the onion. Brown for 10-12 minutes, stirring regularly , breaking up the meat to prevent clumping until the mince juices have reduced considerably.

Reduce the heat, add the potatoes then add 7.5ml oil and about 60ml water and stir. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Mix in the peas and chopped tomatoes into the mince, add about 200ml water Stir gently and cover, returning the pan to a simmer for 15 minutes. The dish is done when the potatoes are cooked through. Adjust for the required amount of gravy by adding water in small amounts, heating between each addition.

Garnish with garam masala and fresh coriander. Serve rolled in roti or as a filling for bread rolls or Vetkoeks. 

Moussaka

Moussaka is a great standby for those family gatherings when you need to be sure you have enough food for the multitude, and it makes a nice change to lasagne, LOL. Make it in advance, leaving you time to chat with friends while it cooks in the oven... Yum, love it!

Ingredients:

Eggplants and meat sauce: 

5-6 medium large brinjals (aubergines)
A pinch of salt (do not use salt substitute- salt is used to eliminate the bitter taste of the eggplants)
Olive oil for sautéing and broiling
3 medium onions, peelled and chopped into small pieces
3 cloves of garlic, minced
7 whole garlic cloves
black pepper, to taste
2.5ml of freshly ground cinnamon 
1ml allspice
2 fresh bay leaves
750ml ripe tomatoes chopped (substitute with 750ml canned tomatoes with the juice, if desired)
250ml whole wheat bread crumbs 
125ml red cooking wine
1.3 kg of beef or lamb mince (lamb is the meet traditionally used)
Grated Kefalotyri cheese for garnish (optional, if you can’t get Kefalotyri, use Cheddar) 

Béchamel sauce (6 cups) 

Note: - When doubling the recipe, use no more than 3 yolks. 

200ml plus 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
200g of unsalted butter
1.5L hot whole milk
Sea salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2.5ml nutmeg

Method:

Eggplant preparation: 

Wash eggplants and trim the steams. Peel off the skin and cut  
lengthwise into medium-sized pieces. Place in a large bowl and 
sprinkle liberally with salt. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes. 

Rinse the eggplant slices and coat liberally with olive oil. Place in a 
baking tray.

Broil for 10-15 minutes, until the eggplant is lightly browned and soft. 
Set aside to cool.

 Meat sauce preparation:

Heat a lightly oiled skillet on medium-low heat. Sauté the onions and 
the garlic for 10 minutes, or until transparent and soft. 

Add the meat and sauté until lightly browned.

Add tomatoes, and sprinkle half of the breadcrumbs. Mix thoroughly

Add the spices tomato paste and wine. Cover the pen and simmer for 45-50
minutes or until all liquids are absorbed. If the mixture still contains liquids, 
uncover, and mix thoroughly for an additional 5 minutes until dry. 

Turn off the heat and set aside uncovered.

 Béchamel sauce preparation: 

To save time, prepare the sauce while the meat is simmering. 

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan under low heat. 

Gradually add the flour, ¼ cup at a time and stir until smooth. Repeat until all of the flour is added.
    
Increase the heat to medium-low and slowly ad the milk whisking constantly, until creamy and 
thick.

Remove from the heat and add the beaten egg yolks and the spices. 

Return to the heat and whisk for an additional minute until all ingredients are combined. Set aside 
to cool. 

Assembly:

To save time, preheat the oven to 180°C before you begin assembling the Moussaka.

On a lightly oiled baking pan, sprinkle the remaining breadcrumbs.

Align the eggplants on top of the breadcrumbs.

Spread the meat mixture on top of the eggplants.

Cover the meat with remaining eggplants.

Spread the béchamel sauce on top.

Bake for 30 minutes, and then sprinkle the cheese on top. Return to the oven and bake for an  
additional 15-20 minutes until the top becomes golden brown.

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

Ingredients:

500g beef mince

500g sausage meat or pork mince

250ml breadcrumbs

15ml Italian seasoning

3 eggs

3 garlic cloves, minced

5ml sea salt

5ml freshly ground black pepper

250g mozzarella cheese, cut into 1cm cubes

Olive oil

Spaghetti sauce

Method:

In a large bowl, mix the beef, sausage meat, breadcrumbs, seasoning, eggs, garlic, salt and pepper well with the hands, massaging all the ingredients together.

Form into 2 inch balls, press a cube of mozzarella in the middle and seal the meat all around it.

Heat a shallow layer of olive oil in a large frying pan and brown the meat balls until golden all over.

Set aside on a plate.

Pour the spaghetti sauce into a pan and bring to a simmer.

Add the meatballs and simmer for about 30 minutes until cooked through.

Serve with spaghetti.

Mother-in-law's Christmas Fruit Mincemeat

My Mother-in-law uses a different fruit mince for Christmas pies than I do,

so I nicked her recipe.

This recipe needs to be made up about a week before it is needed.

Ingredients:
500g raisins
500g saltanas
250g currants
250g butter
1ml nutmeg
375g brown sugar
150ml brandy
zest and juice of 1/2 orange
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
500g grated apples
15ml mixed spice

Method:
Mince all the fruit. Add all the other ingredients and mix well.
Place in a large sterilised jar and stir ecvery day for a week.

.

Christmas Mince Pies

Christmas mince pies are sweet fruit pies traditionally served in the Christmas season.

The recipe can be traced back to the 13th century

when the Crusaders returned from the holy land,

bringing with them the idea for a dish sized pie containing

mincemeats, fruit, suet and spices, such as cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.

The pies were originally associated with

the offerings of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh

brought to the Christ child by the three kings from the east in the Christmas story.

The pies were oblong, representing the manger in which the Christ child lay.

Even though the pies were banned in puritanical times,

they were brought back in Victorian times

as the small, sweet pies with suet, fruit and spices

that we know today -

no longer containing any mincemeat at all.

.

Ingredients:
Pastry:
125g butter
125ml caster sugar
1 egg
5ml vanilla extract
500ml flour
7.5ml baking powder
Christmas fruit mince, which can be bought in the supermarket or homemade.
icing sugar to dust before serving

.

Christmas Fruit Mince:

Although my source recipe for Christmas Mincemeat suggested that this should be made about a month in advance and should not be kept for longer than 6 weeks, I usually make this up as much as a year or more in advance.

The longer it is kept, the more mature and boosie it is.

The traditional recipe contains currants, which I find a little to potent,

so I use blueberries or dried cranberries instead.

.

250g cooking apples, peeled and cored

250g blueberries or dried cranberries, or a mix of both

250g raisins

250g sultanas

250g prunes

250g dried apricots

125g glace cherries

125g chopped mixed peel

125g chopped walnuts, hazel nuts, Brazil nuts or a mix of all three

250g suet, minced

500g Muscovado sugar

10ml mixed spice

125ml brandy or rum

.

Method:

Clean and mince the dried fruit.

Mix in a large bowl with the nuts and the chopped apples.

Fold in the suet, sugar and spice.

Add the brandy or rum and mix into the fruit. Make sure the liquor is enough to cover all the fruit.

Cover the bowl with cling film and leave for 48 hours to allow the fruit to absorb the liquor and swell.

Stir well and store in sterilised jars. Seal well and put away until required for the pies.

Method:
Pies:
Cream the butter and the sugar until it takes on a creamy smoothness.
Add the egg and vanilla extract; beat well.
Fold in the flour and baking powder, a little at a time to make a stiff dough.
Form the dough, which will have quite a sticky constituency, into a ball and transfer it to a flowered board to knead.
Knead the dough until it takes on a more firm constituency.
Cover in cling film and place in the fridge to firm up for about half an hour to an hour.
Prepare a 12 holed tart baking tray but buttering it and dusting with flour.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thickness and cut out circles of dough with a biscuit cutter. Fill the depressions in the tray with the circles of pastry.
Put about a teaspoonful of fruit mince in each tart and cover each with a smaller circle of pastry than the bases or with a star of pastry. The tarts do not have to be sealed if you use the star shape.
Bake in a moderate oven for about 20 minutes or until the pastry starts to take on a bit of colour.
Transfer the pies to a wire rack to cool.
These can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container.
Before serving, warm them up by putting them in the oven again for 5-8 minutes.
To serve, dust them with a little icing sugar.