Curried Coronation Chicken Cups

Melt in your mouth goodness with plenty of flavour these tasty morsels are simple and easy to whip up for any occasion. 

Curried Coronation Chicken Cups

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6 tablespoons mayonaise 

2 to 3 teaspoons mild curry powder, to taste

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons mango chutney

1 to 3 tablespoons sultanas

1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries

500g cooked chicken, diced
1 to 2 packages of fully baked mini Phyllo shells

Mix the mayonnaise, curry powder, cinnamon, chutney, sultanas and dried cranberries together and season with black pepper.

Add the diced cooked chicken and stir to coat in the sauce. 

Warm the fully baked phyllo shells according to package directions. Spoon the mixture into the warm pastry cups. Serve.  

Notes: You can make the mixture ahead and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight allowing the flavours to mellow however if pressed for time use once made. 

Leftovers #31 ~ Apple Goats Cheese Phyllo Squares

It is rare there is leftover phyllo pastry or goats cheese however apples always seem to be lying about the kitchen and prove to be handy with this recipe. Pair all three together and you have created a very delicious dessert. 

Apple Goats Cheese Phyllo Squares

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8 sheets of phyllo pastry

6 apples, peeled, cored and diced

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

about 1 to 2 tablespoons melted butter

more melted butter for brushing, approximately 3 to 4 tablespoons 

sliced almonds for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a baking tray with some baking parchment paper, set aside. 

Place the diced apples into a large bowl and add the cinnamon, sugar, and melted butter. Toss to coat. Set aside.

Undo the sheets of phyllo pastry and lay on a flat clean surface. Going down the middle cut the sheets in half and going lengthwise, cut the sheets in half, again. You should have 4 separate rectangles with 4 phyllo pastry layers each. Brush each set of sheets, including the top layer, with melted butter until all sheets have been buttered and laying on top of one another, you will now have 4 separate well buttered phyllo rectangles...

Crumble the goats cheese to one side and spoon the apple mixture over top...

Fold over, or in half, to form a smaller rectangle, sealing the sides with melted butter. Folding the sides inwards, as tightly as you can, until you have a lovely square parcel, brush with the melted butter, to hold the sides in place, and place seam side or folded sided down on the prepared baking tray...

Repeat the same until all are done then brush the tops with melted butter and sprinkle with the sliced almonds and bake until nicely brown and crisp approximately 30 minutes.

 Ready to serve. A delicious dessert or Sunday brunch drizzled with maple syrup.

Notes: This recipe makes 4 large apple goats cheese squares however you could cut the phyllo pastry again to get 8 small squares. You could also add honey or walnuts to the apple mixture.   

Hope everyone had a great weekend. - JD 

The Ultimate Vegetarian Cookbook

This was one of my first five cookbooks so when it went missing from my collection it really bothered me. I was sure that I misplaced it and that one day it would appear before my eyes. Always resting in the back of my mind and vowing to replace it, good things come to those who wait. A few weeks ago the waiting was over and it crossed my path at a local shop. The other copy I had, had a different dust jacket and I am sure it was the North American edition because if I recall correctly the measurements were mostly in cups. This cookbook the measurements are in grams and ounces. Not a major annoyance because this hefty cookbook is worth it! It truly is the ultimate vegetarian cookbook with 251 pages, over 200 recipes, 800 photographs and with step by step instructions. Ditch the soup cans and use this cookbook to tone your upper arms instead. 

I have made many recipes from this cookbook and the one that stands out the most... or rather the one that I have repetitively made is the Spicy Potato Strudel. And since I have been in a puff pastry mood as of late, filo pastry is just as good. Who would have thought that curry and cheddar cheese would work so well together. 

Spicy Potato Strudel

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serves 4

1 onion, chopped

2 carrots, coarsely grated

1 courgette, chopped

350g/12oz potatoes, chopped

65g/ 2 1/2 oz/5 tablespoons butter

10ml/2 tsp mild curry paste

2.5ml/1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

150ml/1/4 pint/2/3 cup water

salt and ground black pepper

1 egg, beaten

30ml/2 tablespoons single cream

50g/2oz Cheddar cheese, grated

8 sheets filo pastry

sesame seeds, to sprinkle

1. Fry the onion, carrots, courgette and potatoes in half the butter for 5 minutes. Until they are soft then add the curry paste and cook for a further minute. 

2. Add the thyme, water and seasoning. Continue to cook gently, uncovered for another 10 minutes.

3. Allow the mixture to cool and mix in the egg, cream and cheese. Chill until ready to fill and roll.

4. Melt the remaining butter and lay out 4 sheets of filo pastry, slightly overlapping them to form a large rectangle. Brush with the butter and fit the other sheets on top Brush again.

5. Spoon the filling along one long edge, then roll up the pastry. Form it into a circle and brush again with the last of the butter. Sprinkle over the sesame seeds and set on a baking sheet.

6. Heat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/Gas 5 then bake the strudel for about 25 minutes until golden and crisp. Allow to stand for 5 minutes or so before cutting. 

Notes: 

This recipe is fairly easy and quite simple to put together. The cheddar cheese mixed with curry makes for a fabulous combination. Since I have made this many times and on occasion I will add different veggies and more cheese. Who doesn't like more cheese? 

Hope everyone had a good weekend! - JD   

Veggie Strudel

I am just plowing through that 10 pound bag of potatoes. A veggie strudel I have made before using chickpeas instead of potatoes. I managed to pre-boil the potatoes and chop the veggies which saved me a bit of time. You may be thinking cheddar cheese and curry? They are actually very quite tasty together. Don't let this delicious combination fool you. Give it a try. The recipe goes as follows...

5 potatoes - boiled with the skins and chopped
1 onion - chopped
1-2 tablespoon of no salt butter or low sodium margarine
3 teaspoons of curry powder
1 carrot - chopped
1/2 cup of peas  *frozen peas will do nicely too*
3/4 cup low sodium organic chicken or vegetable stock
juice of half a lemon
1 cup cheddar cheese - grated
pinch of salt
pepper
10 sheets of phyllo pastry 
melted butter


1) Pre-heat oven to 350º. Line a baking try with parchment paper. Making sure that the parchment paper goes a bit up the sides. To catch any runny liquid. 

2) Boil the potatoes in their skins until done. Firm so that a fork can pierce. When the potatoes are done, drain and rinse under cold water. Set them aside. 

3) Melt the butter in a hot pan. Add the onions and cook until slightly transparent. Then add the curry powder. Stir. Coating all of the onion bits. Cook for a few more minutes.

4 Add the chopped carrot and peas. Stir. Cooking until veggies are slightly soft. Then add the chicken stock. Stir and let the liquid reduce a bit. Remove from heat. If you are concerned about the liquid or as I like to call it gravy being to runny. Just take a bit of cornstarch in a small bowl and mix it with a bit of water. Then add that to the veggie mixture and stir. The liquid should thicken up a bit. 

5) Chop the potatoes and place them into a large mixing bowl. Pour the curried veggies over the chopped potatoes. Stir. Mixing well. Then add the grated cheddar cheese and the the freshly squeezed lemon juice. 

6) On a clean surface place one phyllo pastry sheet. Narrow edge towards you. Brush with butter than place another sheet of phyllo pastry on top, brush that one with butter and repeat this, layering all 10 phyllo pastry sheets. Brushing each with melted butter or margarine. Then spread the veggie mixture about an inch or two from the narrow edge. Not spreading the veggie filling completely to either ends. Once all the filling has been placed roll once then tuck in the sides all the way down the length of the prepared sheets of phyllo pastry. Then continue to gently roll until you have reached the other end. Place on a parchment paper lined baking tray. Brush with melted butter or margarine. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Checking after 20 minutes. Serve with a green leafy salad.

You can change this dish up by adding different veggies to suit your taste. You can omit the curry powder if you wish and add other herbs to season. 
Have a good weekend everyone! - JW