Asparagus | Memoirs of an Amateur Cook

Tag: Asparagus
- Recipe: Sun-dried Tomato Chicken with a Parmesan and White Wine Sauce (the most delicious meal I’ve had in a while)
  
  Posted at 5:30 pm by Sarah @ Memoirs of an Amateur Cook, on April 29, 2012
  The title of this post may sound like I am boasting. Perhaps I am a bit, but this dish really is boast worthy! The flavours compliment each other so beautifully and it really is a truly delicious meal, even if I do say so myself!
  
  Memoirs of an Amateur Cook’s Sun-dried Tomato Chicken in a Parmesan and White Wine Sauce
  
  Serves Two – Three
  
  Two chicken supremes
  
  5 sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated
  
  One clove of garlic, peeled
  
  A handful of fresh basil
  
  3 tbsp pine nuts
  
  Glug of extra virgin olive oil
  
  Glug of good quality balsamic vinegar
  
  4 slices of good quality British ham
  
  For the parmesan sauce:
  
  2 tbsp margarine
  
  2 tbsp plain flour
  
  250ml double cream
  
  100g parmesan
  
  Back pepper
  
  Large glug of dry white wine
  1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
  2. Turn the raw chicken breasts over and using a sharp knife, slice open to make a pocket.
  3. Roughly chop the tomatoes and garlic, add to a food processor with the basil, pine nuts, olive oil and balsamic. Whiz until all the ingredients are combined ad make a smooth paste. Add more olive oil if necessary. If too runny, bung in some more pine nuts.
  4. Suff the chicken breasts with the tomato mixture. Wrap each chicken breast in the ham using cocktail sticks to secure if necessary. Place into an oven proof casserole dish and into the oven. The cooking time will vary depending on the size of the chicken breasts; it can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 45mins – ours were whoppers so took about 45 mins!
  5. While the chicken is in the oven, make the sauce. In a small milk pan, melt the margarine.
  6. Add the flour and cook for one minute stirring with a whisk.
  7. Add the cream and continue to stir with the whisk to ensure there are no lumps. Cook for two minutes or so.
  8. Pour in the wine and grind in a liberal amount of black pepper. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally.
  9. Just before the chicken is ready to take out of the oven, add the parmesan into the sauce and allow to melt.
  10. Remove the chicken from the oven and slice diagonally. Pour the sauce over the top.
  We roasted and lightly crushed some new potatoes and chagrilled asparagus to serve with this dish – the perfect combination. A glass of dry white wine on the side is an even better combination!!
  
  Of course there are more technical and possibly better ways of preparing the chicken. For example, you could roll the prepared breasts in clingfilm and poach in water before pan frying for colouring. However, I think the above version makes the dish that bit easier and quicker to prepare and as long as you are careful, the chicken can still be well presented.
  
  This dish is very simple but the comibination of the tomatoes, nuts, herbs, cheese and ham mean that it can easily impress and not be out of place at your next dinner party. The seasonal ingredients mean it is the perfect summer dinner – the ease of the preparation means it is also perfect for those long, lazy summer evenings. I hope you enjoy it.
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  Posted in Main Course, Recipe | 9 Comments | Tagged Asparagus, British ham, Food, Parmesan and wine sauce, Recipe, Sundried Tomato Chicken
- Northamptonshire Blogs: Asparagus with a Parmesan and Prosciutto Crisp, Parmesan Foam and a Poached Duck Egg
  
  Posted at 6:43 pm by Sarah @ Memoirs of an Amateur Cook, on April 23, 2012
  Just when I was having a pretty rubbish day, Northampton Life went and put a big smile on my face by publishing my guest blog! Check out my recipe and the Northampton Life website here.
  
  The above recipe is pretty straight forward but in order to make it even easier, let me let you into a few little secrets….
  
  How to poach an egg
  
  Poaching an egg isn’t always as straight forward and easy as it would seem. God knows I’ve had enough disasters in my time! I make my own chocolates from scratch, am always in the kitchen, have mastered making my own pastry but sometimes poaching an egg defeats me! There are a few different methods and everyone has their own tips. I have used Lakeland’s ‘Poach Pods’ but although a clever invention, I find they tend to overcook the egg and give it an unnatural shape. I have also used the technique of putting a drop of vinegar in the pan but a top chef told me the vinegar really is pretty pointless and doesn’t do anything at all to keep the white together. On my cookery course at Bridge 67, the chefs recommended the technique of poaching the egg in clingfilm.
  
  Image courtesy of Google
  
  First take a small ramekin and line it with clingfilm making sure there is plenty of clingfilm overhanging the edges. Next, crack an egg into the clingfilmed dish. Twist the clingfilm so that it is sealed and no water will escape into the parcel. Use a small sandwich bag tie to make sure the parcel is really secure if necessary. Drop the egg parcel into a pan of boiling water and poach as normal. Use a slotted spoon to take the egg out of the pan and use scissors to carefully take the egg out of the clingfilm.
  
  Mr MAC and I actually used the above technique for our last dinner party. We poached the eggs in advance, took them out of the clingfilm and popped them in a bowl of cold water. Just before serving, we put them in some warm water for 20 seconds or so to warm up. It really takes the pressure off to be able to do such things in advance!
  
  Facts about foam
  
  ‘Foam’ is one of those things that is seen as a bit poncey and a bit flashy but I’m not really sure why, it isn’t that difficult to do really! It is very very tasty though!
  
  Saying that, the foam in the above picture was not ideal. Firstly, I put a bit too much of it on the plate which took away from the presentation which is what foam is all about in the first place! Secondly, I used light margarine instead of full fat margarine or butter. This is a no-no when making foam; fat is essential to the frothiness of the mixture and so that the foam can hold its shape so don’t try to make substitutions!
  
  Another tip is to not make the foam too hot. This is important otherwise the foam will not ‘froth’ and could spoil. Keep the pan on a smaller hob at a medium temperature when cooking. Burnt cheese is not a nice taste after all!
  
  Ferran Adria developed the technique of using foams, airs and espumas in the 1990’s and the ideas soon became very popular in the culinary world. Although foams aren’t seen in as many restaurants today, I would urge you to give the technique a try! You may well be pleasantly surprised!
  
  I hope you enjoy the recipe – asparagus is in season at the minute so I would get stuck in any enjoy while you can!
  
  Image courtesy of Google
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  Posted in Blog, Guest Blog, Light Meal, Northamptonshire, Recipe, Starter, Tips | 2 Comments | Tagged Asparagus, Bridge 67, Clingfilm, Dinner Parties, Foam, Northampton Life, Parmesan and Proscuitto Crisp, Poached Egg
- Recipe: Chorizo, Asparagus and Cheddar “Cupcakes”
  
  Posted at 6:50 am by Sarah @ Memoirs of an Amateur Cook, on April 20, 2012
  As my regular readers will know, I am a massive chorizo fan! I just love the smokey, rich flavour and the slightly crispy texture after it has been cooked. As I am such a fan of the stuff, I decided to do a bit of experimenting. For good measure, I decided to chuck some asparagus into the mix (as it is in season) and some extra mature cheddar (as it is another one of my favourite ingredients!). The below recipe came together as a result!
  
  Memoirs of an Amateur Cook’s Chorizo, Asparagus and Cheddar “Cupcakes” (Gluten Free)
  
  6 eggs
  
  150g mature cheddar
  
  6 asparagus spears
  
  100g chorizo
  
  salt and pepper
  1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
  2. Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk with salt and pepper.
  3. Peel the chorizo and cut into small chunks.
  4. Slice the asparagus keeping the small tips in tact.
  5. Cook the chorizo and asparagus (but not the tips) together in a small pan for a few minutes; no oil is needed in the pan as the chorizo will release enough of its own natural oils. Allow to cool.
  6. Grate the cheese.
  7. Using a slotted spoon, add the chorizo and asparagus to the egg. Chuck in the cheddar and mix.
  8. In a 12 hole cupcake tin, spray some frylight in each hole. Using a ladle, spoon the egg mixture into the holes until they are almost full. Top half of the egg wells with the asparagus tips.
  9. Bake in the oven for approximately 15 mins until the “cupcakes” are cooked through (tip: test with a skewer!).
  I think this recipe would also work well with a bit of flour to thicken the cupcakes a bit if you want a dish that contains gluten.
  
  As always, I just kind of throw things together when I’m in the kitchen so the above measurements are approximate! This is a recipe that can be very easily adapted. I think a British take on the “cupcakes” would taste great with local asparagus and British thick cut ham. A breakfast affair with mushrooms and bacon would also taste fab! They key is to experiment!!
  
  These savory “cupcakes” are so easy, so quick and so adaptable. They can also be part of the perfect portable feast – an ideal dish for the upcoming picnic season.
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  Posted in Healthy, Light Meal, Recipe, Wheat Free | 12 Comments | Tagged Asparagus, Cheddar, Chorizo, Cupcakes, Eggs, Food, Picnic, Recipe
- Recipe: Individual Baked Vanilla Cheesecakes for Valentines Day
  
  Posted at 6:02 pm by Sarah @ Memoirs of an Amateur Cook, on February 19, 2012
  I think that my best bit of cooking on Valentines day was possibly the piece of toast with “I Love You” stamped on that I brought to Mr Memoirs of an Amateur Cook (or Mr MAC as he will now be known!) in bed at 7:30am! Unfortunately the meal I planned for that evening was not as quick or succesful as my toast making.
  
  Menu
  
  Starter: Asparagus wrapped in Parma ham with parmesan shavings and a balsamic syrup
  
  Main: Winter salad with chorizo and poached egg
  
  Dessert: Individual vanilla baked cheesecakes with butterscotch sauce
  
  As I had some time on my hands, I thought I would go to the effort of making a three course meal that Mr MAC would enjoy, using a few of the recipes and techniques I learnt on my recent cookery course along the way.
  
  The starter was so-so; some of the asparagus spears were undercooked and the Parma ham was a little too salty for my liking. Still, Mr MAC seemed to enjoy it and it wasn’t a complete disaster!
  
  By the time the main came round I’d already had one glass of champagne so things weren’t going so swimmingly! I had gone to the effort (not a massive effort I will admit!) to making my own croutons. Unfortunately, despite being next to the dressing I had made and other ingredients for the salad, these were forgotten and were instead given to my other half at the end of the meal as an extra course! Despite using the newly taught technique of poaching eggs in cling film this went disastrously wrong – the eggs were somehow overcooked and undercooked at the same time!! Again, my very tolerant dining companion seemed to enjoy the second course however, I thought the chorizo was a bit overcooked and overpowering.
  
  The dessert was a lot more of a success but I cannot take credit for the recipe – it comes from wwww.exclusivelyfood.com and is really rather clever! I am always attempting to balance my love of food with being ‘healthy’ so I thought it more sensible to make individual cheesecakes so that we wouldn’t have a lot of ‘naughty’ (read calorific!) food left over. This recipe makes wonderfully small cheesecakes by baking them in cupcake trays and papers! Genius.
  
  Individual Baked Vanilla Cheesecakes
  
  Makes 10
  
  150g light digestive biscuits
  
  70g butter/margarine
  
  250g cream cheese
  
  75g caster sugar
  
  One egg
  
  Half tbsp lemon juice
  
  100ml double cream
  
  Tsp vanilla essence
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees
  2. Line a cupcake tray with cupcake cases
  3. Crush the biscuits in a food processor and add the butter until combined. Divide the biscuit mixture evenly amongst the cupcake cases and press down with the back of a teaspoon until smooth.
  4. Beat the cream cheese and caster sugar in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Add the egg and beat until combined.
  5. Add the lemon juice, cream and vanilla essence to the mixture and beat until combined. Divide amongst the cupcake cases.
  6. Bake for 20 minutes and allow to cool in the pan for 30 minutes before transferring to the fridge.
  7. To serve, remove the cupcake cases.
  I changed the recipe a bit by adding the vanilla essence and reducing the amount of lemon juice as I have made Mr MAC a baked vanilla cheesecake before and he said it tasted more like a lemon cheesecake than vanilla! A great, simple recipe though as the cheesecakes turned out wonderfully creamy and the recipe is very easy on the hands by making good use of the food processor. My only criticism would be that the cheesecakes are perhaps a little bit too small but that is probably better for my waistline!!
  
  I served the cheesecake on a pool of butterscotch sauce I had made earlier, a dollop of fromage frais and a sprig of mint on top and dusted with icing sugar. I think this was the best part of the meal for both of us!
  
  The desert was followed, of course, by the added course of croutons in a bowl and homemade chocolates I had received from Neil that morning.
  
  Overall, the food may not have been as perfect as I’d have hoped but the most important thing was spending some quality time and a lovely evening in with my boyfriend and that can be done any night of the week, not just on Valentines day.
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  Posted in Baking, Celebrations & Occasions, Dessert, Recipe, Valentines | 1 Comment | Tagged Asparagus, Cheesecake recipe, Chorizo, Individual Baked Vanilla Cheesecake, Menu, Poached Egg, Valentines Day
- My name is Sarah, self confessed foodie and amateur cook. On these pages you will find lots of recipes, reviews and food related banter. Thank you for stopping by, happy reading!
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