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Franco's Best Biscotti ¼ cup butter 1tbs vanilla essence 1 cup castor sugar 3 extra large eggs 2 cups flour 1.2 tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 cup pecan nuts 1 cup cake mix (assorted sultanas, raisins, ect) Castor sugar for sprinkling Beat the butter and sugar, adding one egg at a time, then the vanilla essence. Stir in the dry ingredients until a sticky dough forms. Place onto a baking tray in the shape of two logs. Sprinkle castor sugar over the logs. Bake at 180 for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, approximately two hours. Slice into fingers. Place on a clean tray and bake further until golden in colour. ENJOY! |
Franco's Delicious Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup A win, win quick and easy meal that will leave you and your family content, not only during the cold winter months, but also to store in portions in the freezer. 2lt water 1 large fresh piece of ginger… (Here I add lots and lots!) 4 large cloves of fresh garlic… (Again, lots!) 2 chicken stock cubes 1 roasted chicken… (Here I pick one up from my local supermarket, ready roasted) 1 pkt Chinese noodles Soya sauce to add as you like In a large pot, bring the water to a gentle boil, careful not to allow too much evaporation, otherwise top up with more water. Add the stock, the peeled and thinly sliced ginger and do the same with the garlic. Shred the chicken into pieces and add to the pot. Allow simmering for 15 minutes. Boil separately, in salted water as much noodles as you need and dinner is on the table…. We live on this healthy delicious soup! |
Linguini con Funghi 2/3 BIG brown mushrooms sliced. 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic, peeled 1 chilli deseeded A splash of white wine 1x 500g pack Italian linguini (Divella) Salt freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano In a medium saucepan put the butter, the oil, 2 cloves of garlic, chilli and the mushrooms; Note, don't over fry the mushrooms, they must remain firm and meaty. Sauté over medium heat stirring frequently until the garlic becomes a pale brown colour. At this point you can add the splash of white wine and salt to taste. Cook the spaghetti in boiling salted water until "al dente", very firm, drain, and mix thoroughly with the sauce. Sprinkle with some fresh copped parsley and dd the Parmigiano-Reggiano over the top. |
Trust the Italians to come up with the idea of what to do with day old bread… and what's more, make it taste great too! This is how the Bruschetta came to be, and today can be found on many menu's, not only Italian, but very popular in Cafés too. An excellent starter for dinner parties or snacks with drinks or even for a quick lunch; French loaf or chiabatta bread is best suited for this dish, but really, any bread will do. Toast fairly thick slices either in a toaster or under the oven grill. Rub with garlic, (optional) and drizzle with some good olive oil. Either premix your toppings and dress, or mix and match various combinations to your taste and dress once complete. One of my best toppings is cherry tomatoes chopped, fresh basil, a little pesto sauce, some olives, roasted papers and sun dried tomato's, garnished with fresh basil leaves. Salt and pepper, oil and balsamic… and serve! |
Bruschetta |
Bangers and Mash alla Franco |
I prepare this dish in two ways. Time on hand, I pan fry the bangers (sausages) together with sliced onion, a touch of oil, a splash of balsamic, salt pepper and sugar to taste. This combination creates a wonderfully sweet, sour sauce, which is a little sticky too…..If you find there is not much gravy, add a little water and if this thins out the sauce, you can thicken it with a little Maizena ( ½ teaspoon, diluted in some cold water). Separately, boil pealed, cut potatoes; drain them, adding salt, pepper, butter and a splash of milk, then mash and serve. Another quick way is to place the bangers in an oven proof dish, adding onion, a drop of oil, balsamic, salt, pepper and sugar. Sweet potato is my potato of choice, smallish preferably. Bang these in another oven proof dish, adding a splash of water, a drop of oil; salt, pepper and a sprinkle of sugar. Bake all at 200 degrees… remembering that the bangers will take less time, so remove and keep warm. The potatoes will caramelize, get soft, sticky and delicious…. all in plus minus, one hour. Mmmmm a great winter dish! I use lovely mutton bangers, which are so tasty and go down singing hymns….. Enjoy! |
The frittata is an Italian dish, similar in composition to an omelette. Unlike an omelette, the egg mixture is not folded over and finished on the stove top. Most variants of the frittata start with a few moments on the stove top until the bottom layer of the egg mixture has solidified, and then are baked in the oven for half an hour to an hour depending upon the size and recipe. Recipes for the frittata can be quite simple and the result excellent for brunches or lunch, since it is often served at room temperature For this frittata which I prepared in a non-stick frying pan and flipped ¾ of the way through, to cook the rest, I used leftover pesto. To that I added, pre-fried onion, zucchini, mushrooms and peas. Lightly beat six eggs, add this to your mix together with some olive oil, grated parmesan cheese, salt pepper and herbs of choice. Preheat your pan (very hot) with some cooking oil (not too much). Pour in your mix and flatten with a spatula and reduce your heat to around mark 3. Cover with a saucepan lid and allow to slowly solidifying. Once the centre of the frittata is firm, using the lid, flip the frittata carefully and slowly brown the other side; all in all, approximately 45min to an hour, depending on thickness. |
Frittata |
Home Made Calzone Make a calzone in the comfort of your home. Like the frittata, this dish is versatile and you can use up almost anything. For the dough; 500g cake flour 300ml lukewarm water 1 sachet dry yeast 1tbsp olive oil ½ tsp sugar Pinch of salt (not too much, as salt will upset the yeast activity) Filling; Grated mozzarella, then almost anything your taste buds desire; Some suggestions are, spinach, sausage, parmesan, various cheeses, fried onion, olives, salami, garlic, chilli…. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. Place all the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl, either use an electric mixer or by hand. Pour the lukewarm water and oil and mix till a soft wettish dough forms. Cover with a damp towel and allow the yeast to do its work, your dough should rise to approximately double its size; once raised, portion the dough off into balls, usually the size of tennis balls, but if you want to make smaller 'calzoncini', half that size. Cover again and allow rising once more. Flour a working surface and roll out the balls one at a time to almost fish plate size or side plate size (not too thin). Place about a heap full of mozzarella in the centre, and then top with other ingredients of your choice. Be careful not to over fill as you will still need to fold the calzone in half and it all needs to fit. Drizzle a little olive oil over the mix, salt, pepper and some herbs, usually oregano. Fold over the Calzone and pinch it closed. Make sure it is properly closed or else it will open and leak. Place the calzone onto an oiled baking tray and bake for approximately 20/30 minutes or until well browned. Take care to flour your working surface well, or else the calzone will stick. Once your calzone is baked, I like to drizzle a little olive oil over the top. Che Buono! |
Sweet Potato Wedges The other evening Jay's sisters asked me what can she do with sweet potatoes. This inspired me to post, what I make so often. Sweet potatoes are so much healthier than regular potatoes and are also tastier. Slice potatoes into wedges and place them onto a baking tray. Heat your oven at 180 and bake for approximately 40 minutes or until tender. Mix together ground paprika and salt flakes and sprinkle over. Mix together 50/50 sweet chili sauce and mayonnaise to make a great dip. Serve with a burger or even as a snack with drinks. |
Pizzette Small pizza's are great for a light lunch, finger food or just because you love pizza! Use the same dough mixture as you would for the calzone recipe. Roll smallish balls and allow rising, covered with a damp cloth. Flatten either with a rolling pin or by hand, yet keeping as much of the air in the dough as possible, (otherwise they will not rise). Heat your oven to 240 with a baking tray on the middle rack. Flour another tray and place your flatten pizza disks on this tray and dress to your desire. Remember that pizza need not always have cheese. I tomato and olive oil pizza with Parma ham & rocket (dressed once your basic tomato pizza is baked) is delicious!!! |
Roasted Peppers with Anchovies and Cherry Tomatoes Heat oven to 160c…. Slice open the peppers, deseed and place into a roasting dish. Drizzle and coat with some of the anchovy oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast the peppers for approximately 40 minutes, not allowing them to collapse. Remove from the oven and fill with sliced cherry tomatoes, anchovy fillets, garlic and rosemary. Drizzle some olive oil over the peppers. Place the dish back in the oven and bake for a further 30 minutes. These peppers can be served hot as a side dish or cold with a braai. |