Chicken Pastrami Roulade ( wraps)

Ingredients                                                

• 250 gr sliced pastrami
• 2 jars of white asparagus spears
• 1 C mayonaise       

Directions                                                                   

1. Drain well the asparagus.
2. Lay a thinly sliced pastrami, place 4 asparagus stalks lengthwise.
3. Roll up  from the narrowest end of the pastrami slice. Place seam side down.
4. Refrigerate until serving.
5. Serve with mayonaise, accompanied  with fresh tomatoes.

Spinach Fritada (Spinach Souffle)

Ingredients

• 1 kg. fresh spinach, stemmed, cooked, chopped and squeezed dry.
• 1 1/2 C mashed potatoes ( 2 potatoes ) or 2 thick slices of white bread, soaked ( crust removed ) and squeezed.
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 Tbs oil
• 4 eggs
• ( Optional ) 1 C gruyere ( Swiss cheese )or other hard cheese, grated.
• 2 Tbs breadcrumbs, for topping, if you don't use cheese
• 1 tsp salt, a pinch of pepper.

Preparation

1. In a skillet cook onions until light brown with oil.
2. Put  spinach, mashed potatoes or squeezed bread, cooked onions, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix well all the ingredients.  
3. Add  eggs one at a time stirring well. (optional - with a hand mixer)
4. Add half of the cheese  (only if you want to use cheese)               
5. Pour the mixture into a greased baking dish.
6. Top with bread crumbs, or with the rest of the cheese, if  you use cheese.
7. Bake in 180 C preheated oven for about 30 minutes, until golden brown.

Note: If you want you can increase the cheese quantity. You mix half of the cheese with the spinach and eggs. And half of it you use for the top.

Rice with Vermicelli

Ingredients

• 1 C basmati rice
• 3 Tbs oil 
• 2 C water
• 1/4 C vermicelli
• 1 tsp salt   

Directions

1. Wash the rice several times until water comes out clean. Then drain it.
2. Put the oil in a pot and fry the vermicelli until light brown. Try not to burn.
3. Add hot water and salt. Bring to a boil.
4. Add the drained rice. Stir well. When the liquid starts to bobble stir once more.Make the heat very low.
5. Put the lid on and cook until rice absorbes all the liquid.
6. Don't stir the rice while cooking.
7. Take the pot away from the heat.
8. Open the lid and place a clean kitchen towel or a paper towel across the top of the pot on the rim and return the lid on it.
9. Let the rice stand for a while. Then serve.

Note: You can prepare simple white rice omitting the fried vermicelli. You boil the water and cook the rice as indicated.

FOR RICE WITH TOMATOES

1. You take 3 - 4 tomatoes. You take off the skins and chop them.
2. Put the oil in a pan. Add the chopped tomatoes. Stir well, cook for 2 - 3 minutes.
3. Add the water and cook as indicated for the rice above.

Bouchee a la Reine

Bouchee a la Reine is a specialty composed of vol- au- vent shell filled with chicken / fish with Beshamel.
This recipe focuses on chicken-based filling. You may replace the chicken with fish.

Ingredients

• 1 chicken
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, cut to small cubes
• 1/2 kg. button mushrooms
• 2 Tbs oil
• 50 gr butter
• 50 gr flour
• 1 lt. milk
• 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, a pinch of pepper
• for the shells - 1 kg puff pastry

Directions

1. Prepare filling:
1. Place the chicken in a saucepan. Cover it with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until the chicken meat is tender. 
2. Take off the bones and cut the chicken meat into small pieces. 
3. Cut the onions and carrots to small pieces. 
4. Cut the mushrooms in quarters. 
5. In a frying pan put the oil and cook the onions, then add the carrots. Simmer for a minute. Add the mushrooms. Cook until all the liquid is evaporated.
2. Make a Bechamel sauce:
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
• Add flour.
• Cook, stirring for 1 minute or until bubbling.
• Remove from heat.
• Slowly add milk, whisking constantly until mixture is smooth.
• Add salt, nutmeg and pepper
• Return to heat. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon until sauce is very thick.
• Remove from heat.
3. Add the diced chicken, the cooked onions, carrots and mushrooms to the bechamel sauce.
4. Make vol-au-vent shells:

• Roll out the pastry on a floured surface.
• Each vol- au- vent shell is composed of 2 round layers of 7 cm. diameter.
• You have to cut the central of one of the layers to create a ring.
• Place the pastry ring on top of the  entire one. This doubles the height of the sides of the finished vol- au- vent shell.
• You bake also the middle part which you cut out. You use it as a lid when you serve the bouchee a la reine.
• Preheat the oven to 200C - 220C before putting the unbaked vol- au- vent shells into the oven.
• Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.Once baked they will be firm and well risen.
5. Fill the vol- au- vents rapidly.                 
6. Serve accompanied by green salad.

Meat Balls with Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

For Meat Balls

• 500 gr. minced beef.
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 Tbs bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp salt, a pinch of pepper

For Tomato Sauce

• 2 Tbs oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt, a pinch of pepper
• 4 Tbs tomato paste
• 2 C water
• 1 C tomato juice ( bottle)

Directions:  For Meat Balls

1. In a bowl mix the minced beef, the chopped onion, egg, bread crumbs, salt and pepper.
2. Form small round balls, about size of ping pong balls.

Directions: For Tomato Sauce

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the chopped onion. Cook on low heat until soft and golden. Add the crashed garlic.
2. Add the tomato paste, tomato juice, water, sugar, salt and pepper to the onions
3. Boil the sauce
4. Add the meatballs. 
5. Cook for 20 minutes in medium low heat.
6. Serve with white rice or spagetti.

Note: I used the small falafel instrument to form the meat balls.

Fried Fish with Agristada sauce

Ingredients for fish:

·        1 kg fish filet (Nile perch, boneless)

·        1 C milk for marinade

·        1/2 C flour

·        2 eggs

·        1 tsp mustard

·        pinch of salt, pepper, paprika

·        oil for frying

Ingredients for sauce:

·        2 eggs

·        2 Tbs flour

·        2 Tbs oil

·        1/4 C fresh squeezed lemon juice

·        1 tsp salt

·        1.5 C water

  

Directions for fish:

1. Cut it into small portions (~4x5 cm each)
2. Place the fish on a shallow bowl and marinate with milk for at least 1 hour
3. Drain well the fish 
4. Add salt, pepper and paprika to the flour
5. Dip fish filets into the flour
6. Beat the eggs with mustard
7. Dip in beaten eggs to coat completely
8. Fry the fish in hot oil until golden brown and cook through about 3 minutes per side
9. Put the fried fish on a platter covered with paper towel to drain  

Directions for sauce:

1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan. Stir in the flour. Cook on low heat .
2. After ~1 minute, add the water stirring constantly with a wire whisk or wooden spoon.
3. Add the  beaten eggs , lemon juice, salt and stir well until thickened.  
4. Pour the sauce into a shallow bowl.
5. You can pour over the sauce 1 tbs of the oil that you fried the fish with. You have to pass the oil through a sieve.