dine in true english style Pink Gin Mushroom Pâté with Melba Toast Stilton Pâté with Watercress and Melba Toast Roast Beef with Brown Gravy Horseradish Sauce Mini Herbed Yorkshire Puddings Roast Potatoes Peas and Brussels Sprouts in a Creamy Onion Sauce Creamed Parsnips Royal Apple Pudding Coffee

Pink Gin

Serves 1

This is not the diluted, with tonic, version. Makes me think of a quote by Ogden Nash "Candy is dandy but liquor is Quicker".

ice cubes
2 good splashes of Angostura bitters
1-2 tot measures of dry gin
a slice of lemon

A cocktail shaker does the job perfectly, especially if preparing drinks for more than one person.
Half-fill the shaker with ice, add bitters and gin. Shake well.
Pour into cocktail or martini glasses, add a slice of lemon and lots of ice.

Ina's Note:
I prefer the gin on the ice, not quite as strong! In Victorian times gin was called "Mother's Ruin", probably for good reason!

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Mushroom Pâté with Melba Toast

Serves 8

This is an outstanding pâté with great flavour depth. It keeps for up to 4 days in the fridge and freezes very well. Also delicious tossed with warm pasta for a midweek meal.

2 T (30 ml) butter
1 T (15 ml) oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 punnet (250 g) portabellini mushrooms, sliced
1 x 25 g Ina Paarman's Concentrated Beef Stock
1½ T (22,5 ml) Ina Paarman's White Sauce Powder
¼ cup (60 ml) water
½ t (2,5 ml) Ina Paarman's Garlic Pepper Seasoning if needed
⅓ cup (80 ml) melted butter

Warm the frying pan.
Add the butter, when it foams and starts to brown, add the oil and onions.
Stir-fry over medium heat just until the onions start changing colour.
Place a lid on the pan.
Turn the heat right down and soften the onions completely for ± 7 minutes.
When the onions are soft - turn the heat right up again and add the sliced mushrooms. Stir-fry over high heat, just until the mushrooms begin to draw water.
Add the Concentrated Beef Stock and White Sauce Powder. Add the water, bring to the boil for 1 minute and stir through.
Blitz in a processor until you have a semi-smooth mixture. Taste for Garlic Pepper Seasoning.
Spoon and level in pâté pots. Spoon 2 teaspoons of butter over each pâté, tilt the pots to coat the pâtés with butter. The butter seals in flavour and preserves the pâté.

Serve with melba toast. Click here for recipe. We used thinly sliced olive bread.

CHEF'S TIP:
Reserve a few slices of cooked mushrooms and place one on each pot before coating with butter.

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Stilton Pâté with Watercress and Melba Toast

Serves 6-8

If you can get your hands on a good Stilton cheese, do show it off at the beginning of the meal. Stilton is a cheese with jaggered veins of blue. It is creamy, rich and tangy.

1 x 250 g cream cheese
100-150 g Stilton cheese, cut up
½ t (2,5 ml) Ina Paarman's Green Onion Seasoning
⅓ cup (80 ml) melted butter

Place the cream cheese, Stilton and Green Onion Seasoning in a processor and whiz until absolutely smooth.
Dish into pâté pots. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of butter over each pâté and tilt the pots to coat the pâté with butter. This seals in flavour and preserves the pâté.

Keeps for up to 4 days, covered, in the fridge. Serve with watercress and melba toast.

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Roast Beef with Brown Gravy

Serves 6

Few people can resist the smell of a good roast, especially if accompanied by an eye watering horseradish sauce! The trick is to cook the beef at a low temperature of 140°C.

2 kg of well matured rolled sirloin
2 T (30 ml) Ina Paarman's Garlic Pepper Seasoning
olive oil
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 cups (500 ml) water
Meat Thermometer - essential equipment

Remove the meat from the fridge and rub with a generous coating of Garlic Pepper Seasoning. Drizzle with olive oil. Cover with cling film and leave to stand at room temperature for 1 hour.
Position oven shelf 1 slot below the middle.
Preheat oven to 140°C.
Place cut up onions and water in a roasting pan. Put the meat on a trivet or rack that fits on top of the pan. Insert meat thermometer into the centre of the thickest part of the roast.
Roast open for about 1 hour until the temperature on the thermometer reads 60°C (140°F) for rare.

Remove the pan from the oven. Lift off the rack (don't wash the pan!) and cover the meat snugly with foil. Leave to rest for at least 30 minutes on a wooden board to give the juices time to settle. The meat will stay warm, covered like this for 45 minutes, so don't panic and rush. It gives you time to make gravy, bake the mini Yorkshire puddings and rev up the roast potatoes.
The meat need not be boiling hot, as long as the gravy is piping hot and the dinner plates are warm.

BROWN GRAVY

Pan with meat drippings and onion
1 wine glass of red wine (optional)
2 cups (500 ml) boiling water
1 x 25 g sachet of Ina Paarman's Concentrated Beef Stock
1 T (15 ml) Ina Paarman's Brown Gravy Powder
2 T (30 ml) cold water
a splash of well aged balsamic vinegar or a good squeeze of lemon

Remove the onions with a slotted spoon. Add the wine to the pan drippings. Put over high heat on top of the stove and boil vigorously while scraping up the brown bits. The wine needs to be reduced for about 5 minutes. Add the boiling water, squeeze in the sachet of Beef Concentrate. Mix the Brown Gravy Powder with the cold water and add. Boil to thicken slightly. Add balsamic vinegar or lemon to balance the flavours. Taste for seasoning.

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Horseradish Sauce

Serves 6

Fresh horseradish roots will definitely give best results - it grows like a weed in any sunny spot in the garden, and the leaves are pretty. Once you have it, it comes out every year. Alternately use bottled horseradish.

½ cup (125 ml) sour cream
1 T (15 ml) lemon juice
1 t (5 ml) Ina Paarman's Lemon & Black Pepper Seasoning
1 t (5 ml) prepared mustard
½ cup (125 ml) fresh horseradish roots, well washed and grated

Mix everything together, cover and refrigerate. Will keep in the fridge for 3 days.

CHEF'S TIP:
Horseradish is very fibrous, even more so than ginger, a microplane grater works well. We also freeze the roots as they are easier to grate when frozen.

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Mini Herbed Yorkshire Puddings

Makes 12

We received a great tip from one of our Facebook fans, Lynn Cuthill, on how to simulate the browning in the pan if baking Mini Yorkshire Puddings in a muffin pan.

1 cup (250 ml) flour
1 t (5 ml) Ina Paarman's Garlic & Herb Seasoning
2 large or extra large eggs
200 ml milk
¼ cup (60 ml) canola oil or 2 T Holsum
2 x 25g Ina Paarman's Concentrated Beef Stock

Put all the ingredients, except canola oil, into a biggish measuring jug and beat lightly with a wire whisk. It will still be slightly lumpy. Cover and stand at room temperature for at least an hour or in the fridge overnight.
Move rack up to the very top position of the oven.
Heat oven to 220°C.
Add a small teaspoon of canola oil or ½ t of Holsum and a squeeze of beef stock concentrate to the hollows of a shallow muffin pan and put the pan in the oven on the top shelf (without any batter) to get the oil boiling hot.
Remove hot pan from the oven and immediately pour the batter into the hollows. Bake on the top shelf for ± 15 minutes until brown and puffy. Serve as soon as possible as they deflate on standing. But still delicious.

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Roast Potatoes

Serves 6

The final baking of the potatoes must be done with the Yorkshire puddings at a higher oven temperature of 220°C.

8 medium potatoes, peeled
1 T (15 ml) Ina Paarman's Potato Spice
½ cup (125 ml) canola oil

Season the potatoes and toss with oil. Spread out in a shallow ovenproof dish.
Bake from the start in the same oven with the roast, one rack below at 140°C. As soon as the roast is removed from the oven, turn the oven temperature up to 220°C and turn the potatoes over. Put them back into the oven and bake for ± 20 minutes until crispy and golden.

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Peas and Brussels Sprouts in a Creamy Onion Sauce

Serves 6

We are combining these two vegetables (loved by the English) in an onion flavoured sauce made super creamy with our White Sauce Powder.

250-300 g Brussels sprouts (fresh or frozen), trim off the stem end, leave whole or cut each one into 4 wedges
250 g frozen peas
2 t (10 ml) Ina Paarman's Green Onion Seasoning
1 onion, finely chopped
2 T (30 ml) butter
2 T (30 ml) Ina Paarman's White Sauce Powder
1 cup (250 ml) milk

Steam the Brussels sprouts until just done, add the peas and just steam for 2-3 minutes until defrosted. Toss with Green Onion Seasoning.

Sauté the onion in the butter until very soft and golden. Stir in the dry White Sauce Powder and add the milk. Bring to the boil. (Can be done in advance.) Add vegetables and heat through just before serving.

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Creamed Parsnips

Serves 6

Select parsnips that feel heavy for their size. Peel before cooking or use carrots in the same way.

1-2 bunches (± 800g) parsnips or carrots, well washed and peeled
½ cup (125 ml) boiling water
2 t (10 ml) Ina Paarman's Vegetable Stock Powder or 1 x 25 g sachet of Ina Paarman's Concentrated Vegetable Stock
2 T (30 ml) butter
Ina Paarman's Lemon & Black Pepper Seasoning to taste

Slice the parsnips into rings. Add boiling water and Vegetable Stock. Cook until tender. Drain, reserve water. Mash with butter and taste for seasoning, add a little more of the reserved water until you get a smooth mash.

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Royal Apple Pudding

Serves 12

This is one of the best apple puddings I have ever eaten!. One can make one large pudding or divide the mixture into two and freeze the one. Individual puddings also work well.

APPLES

1½ kg fresh eating apples in season (Royal Gala work well)
1½ cups (375 ml) water
½ t (2,5 ml) salt
½ cup (125 ml) white sugar
2 T (30 ml) butter

CAKE BATTER

250 g butter at room temperature
3 extra large eggs at room temperature
1 x 600 g Ina Paarman's Vanilla Cake Mix
2 t (10 ml) ground cinnamon
½ t (2,5 ml) grated or ground nutmeg
1 cup (250 ml) sour cream or Crème fraîche

CINNAMON SUGAR

½ t (2,5 ml) ground cinnamon
¼ cup (60 ml) white sugar

Peel and core apples. Cut each into 8 wedges.
Add water and boil until just soft. Remove from the heat and only then stir through the salt, sugar and butter. Leave to cool down completely. Can be done the day before. Dish into a large ovenproof dish 33cm x 23cm, together with all the liquid, except ½ cup.
Adjust oven shelf to one shelf blow the middle position.
Preheat oven to 180°C.

Ignore package instructions for cake and follow the method below.
Beat butter until soft and creamy.
Add 1 egg and 1T cake mix at a time, beating after each addition, until you have used all 3 eggs. Add the ground cinnamon and nutmeg to the remaining dry cake mix
Add sour cream to butter mixture and beat it in. Add all remaining dry cake mix and gently fold in by hand with a spatula until evenly mixed.

Spoon the cake batter over the apples. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle over. Bake for ±50 minutes. As soon as it comes out of the oven pour over the remaining ½ cup of reserved apple liquid.

Serve warm or at room temperature accompanied by thick cream.

CHEF'S TIP:
Prepare the pudding in advance (even up to a day before) cover and refrigerate. Put in the oven to bake when your guests sit down to dinner.

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This month's special prize:

SNAPPY CHEF (Ph: 012 997 1612) is offering two Snappy Chef induction stoves and two Snappy Chef pot sets valued at R1 400 to two of our May winners !

The Snappy Chef induction stove will save you more than 64% on cooking time AND 50% on electricity. Because it creates no heat itself, it’s save and easy to use in the kitchen and ideal for camping. Voted product of the year 2010, Snappy Chef prides itself as the market leader with regards to induction cooking in South Africa. Snappy Chef is certainly the CHEAPER- FASTER- SAFER way of cooking!

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This month's wine sponsor: Bon Cap Wine Cellar

Bon Cap Wine Cellar are giving away five bottles of their Bon Cap Méthode Cap Classique to this month's lucky winners!

This is a fresh, fruit driven style of Cap Classique-loads of bright yellow citrus and peach aromas closes off with hints of green lime and a musky earthy tone. The secondary flavours remind of light biscuit and buttery flavours that will gradually develop into complex lees dough and oxidative aromas. The palate is crisp and refreshing yet full elegant and lingering.