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| Discussion Title: | A 3 course Meal for 'Posh' guests lol! |
| Emoticon: |  |
| Message #: | 3251.2 in response to 3251.1 |
| From: | summertime_girl |
| To: | hexbramble  |
| Date: | 14-Sep 19:08 |
| Replies: | 6 |
| Message: |
bit late for helping you with this particular dinner party now, hope it went OK though
for future reference, all you really need to do to present a risotto nicely is make sure the edges of the plate are nice and tidy - no "splash-age" LOL. And perhaps a little sprig of basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil on the top.
A good dessert is "Chocolate Pot" which is basically double cream heated up with melted dark chocolate, perhaps a slug of brandy if you fancy... I can provide recipe if you want
A failsafe main course could be chicken breast wrapped in parma ham, with lovely green veggies and herby roast potatoes... again, ask if you want to know for future parties
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| Discussion Title: | A 3 course Meal for 'Posh' guests lol! |
| Emoticon: |  |
| Message #: | 3251.3 in response to 3251.2 |
| From: | suezx |
| To: | summertime_girl |
| Date: | 14-Sep 21:50 |
| Replies: | 6 |
| Message: |
That desert sounds wonderful, and so simple! Can you post the recipe up?
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| Discussion Title: | A 3 course Meal for 'Posh' guests lol! |
| Emoticon: | |
| Message #: | 3251.4 in response to 3251.3 |
| From: | summertime_girl |
| To: | suezx |
| Date: | 15-Sep 13:07 |
| Replies: | 6 |
| Message: |
Hi, here goes
You need half a pint of cream, which you gently heat up in a saucepan and just before it starts to boil take it off the heat.
Break in an entire bar of good quality 75% dark chocolate eg Green & Blacks (I am talking the large bar, you can get them in the supermarket) stir with a wooden spoon until all the chocolate has melted and is incorporated in the warm cream
Now mix in the yolk of one large egg - this is why the cream must not have boiled or you could end up with scrambled egg in your dessert LOL - and a small knob of butter will make them shinier but not essential.
If you want it to be a bit special, also mix in a tablespoon of brandy, or you could use dark rum, whiskey, or Grand Marnier or Cointreau (lovely orangey flavour works well) But if you don't want to add alcohol it tastes fab as it is.
And that's basically it!!! Just pour the mixture into individual ramekin dishes, you will get about 4 good size ones. Or if you have some nice little white espresso cups, this would make 6-8 smaller portions and it's a fun way to present them. They set really quickly in the fridge, but will keep for a couple of days if you prefer to make in advance.
A nice touch for the presentation could be to pop half a strawberry on the top when they've set, or a couple of fresh raspberries, perhaps a mint leaf.
They are actually VERY rich and one thing I sometimes do is whisk up the leftover egg white to the stiff peak stage and fold it into the chocolate and cream mixture - this not only makes them a bit lighter but also makes the mixture go further so you can get a couple more portions :)
You don't need to worry about raw egg yolk because the heat from the chocolate and cream will cook the egg yolk so it's safe to give it to anybody who might normally be nervous about uncooked egg yolks.
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| Discussion Title: | A 3 course Meal for 'Posh' guests lol! |
| Emoticon: | |
| Message #: | 3251.6 in response to 3251.5 |
| From: | summertime_girl |
| To: | hexbramble |
| Date: | 23-Sep 12:50 |
| Replies: | 6 |
| Message: |
Here you go
You need one chicken breast per person. Cut a slit into the side of each one, at its thickest point, to make a little pocket for the stuffing.
My favourite stuffing is garlic lemon and thyme butter. I don't do precise measuring very often LOL, but a quarter of a block of butter will be plenty for 4 chicken breasts, mixed with the grated zest of one lemon, a large garlic clove finely chopped, and then strip the flowers off a couple of thyme sprigs and mix them in too. Obviously let the butter come to room temperature so it's easy to mix up. You could make a large quantity and freeze the left over for another time, I have seen TV chefs do this and they plonk the mixture on a sheet of cling film or foil, roll it into a sausage shape and then when they need to use it they run a sharp knife under the hot tap and slice a bit off! It'd be lovely melted onto a piece of grilled fish! Or if you are ever cooking a whole roast chicken, stick it under the skin (Jamie Oliver tip!)
OK, back to the chicken... get a heaped teaspoon of the butter and stuff it into the chicken breast - can be a bit messy but it's fun :) Next, you need either parma ham, strips of pancetta, or you could get away with streaky smoked bacon rashers but personally I don't think they're quite so nice, the mediterranean cured hams have a more delicate flavour and are less salty. Wrap a couple of slices around each chicken breast and then cook them in the oven about 180 degrees for 30-45 mins depending on how large the chicken breasts are.
A variation on the stuffing - one of my friends couldn't be bothered faffing around making the butter but she had some garlic and herb Philadelphia and used that, it worked well. Another friend tried it with a slice of mozzarella and a sun dried tomato in each chicken breast, it was lovely!
For the potatoes, I think little new potatoes are nicest and just cut them all in half and par boil them for about 10 minutes, drain them, place in a roasting tin and drizzle with olive oil. If you've got some thyme left from making the flavoured butter, stick the remaining sprigs in and around the spuds, or fresh rosemary sprigs work wonderfully (or both!) but I have occasionally made them with dried rosemary and thyme and still delicious. You also stick some whole, unpeeled garlic cloves in and around the potatoes - they will go all soft and gooey in the oven and you can eat them - YUM! The potatoes should be ready in the same time as the chicken.
My favourite veg to serve with this meal are the extra fine green beans that you can buy everywhere. It all looks good together and I just love them!
Before I go, I thought I'd share one more chicken and parma ham recipe that I tried after seeing it done on TV. It's supposed to be a veal recipe but not everyone likes veal or it's not always easy to get hold of. But it works with chicken.... You know how chicken breasts can be quite plump - cut them in half so you've got two thinner pieces of meat if you know what I mean - place between 2 sheets of clingfilm and give them a bash with a rolling pin or meat hammer til you've got "escolopes" (sp?) then using a cocktail stick, attach a large sage leaf to each piece, cover with a slice of parma ham and then pan fry them in butter (splash a few drops of olive oil in to stop the butter from burning)
I hope you'll enjoy trying these out then if you're having dinner guests again you've got something in your reportoire that's not too difficult to make but everyone will surely enjoy!
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