Hi Everyone,

I do hope you are keeping warm as the winter chill starts to settle in. All the magazines coming out at present are filled with fabulous wintery mains and desserts which I am anxious to try over the next few weeks. These will be interspersed with the usual recipes from my array of cookbooks.

Chicken Marbella

Chicken thighs and drumsticks are marinated overnight with garlic, green olives, capers, prunes, oregano and red wine vinegar, so the flavours have time to work right through the meat. The next day everything roasts together in a single layer, sprinkled with brown sugar and splashed with white wine, basted now and then until golden and cooked through. The result is savoury and slightly sweet, with the prunes softening into the pan sauce. Scatter with parsley and serve with risotto, mash or a green salad. Any leftovers are excellent shredded through pasta with that sauce.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 13 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Main Course

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1.5 kg chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 4 cloves garlic crushed
• 1/2 cup pitted green olives
• 1/4 cup capers
• 1/4 cup prunes halved
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white wine
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp parsley chopped, to serve

Equipment

• Large mixing bowl or bag (for marinating)
• Roasting dish

Method

 

1. Combine chicken, garlic, olives, capers, prunes, olive oil, vinegar, bay leaves and oregano in a large bowl or bag. Cover and marinate in the fridge overnight.
2. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 190°C. Arrange chicken and marinade in a single layer in a roasting dish.
3. Sprinkle with brown sugar and pour wine around the chicken. Roast for 45 minutes, basting occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and golden.
4. Scatter with parsley and serve with risotto, mash or a green salad.

Notes

Rated 10/10 by the family. Also delicious shredded through pasta with the pan sauce.

Tiramisu Self-Saucing Pudding

A pudding that makes its own sauce as it bakes. A simple cocoa batter goes into the dish first, then a mixture of instant coffee, brown sugar and boiling water is poured carefully over the top and left unstirred. In the oven the two separate, leaving a set sponge above and a dark coffee sauce beneath. While it bakes, mascarpone is whisked with icing sugar and Marsala or coffee liqueur to spoon over each serving. It carries all the flavours of tiramisu in a warm dessert, and it is rich enough that a little goes a long way.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Servings: 6

Course: Dessert

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup self-raising flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 60 g butter melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp instant coffee granules
• 1.5 cups boiling water
• 250 g mascarpone
• 1/4 cup icing sugar
• 2 tbsp Marsala or coffee liqueur

Equipment

• Baking dish
• Mixing bowls

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and grease a baking dish.
2. Sift flour and cocoa into a bowl, stir in caster sugar. Add milk, melted butter and vanilla, mix until smooth, and pour into the baking dish.
3. Dissolve coffee granules in boiling water, stir in brown sugar, and carefully pour over the batter (do not stir).
4. Bake for 30–35 minutes until the top is set and a sauce has formed underneath.
5. Meanwhile, whisk mascarpone, icing sugar and Marsala until smooth.
6. Serve warm pudding topped with the mascarpone cream.

Notes

Very rich, a little goes a long way. Rated 9/10. Beware, this dessert is super rich, so a little goes a long way. Rated 9/10 and worth making again.