The Hyper Community Picture Cookbook - Look & Taste

[ElPresidente]

Howdy folks,

Been meaning to do this for some time (after I shameless ripped the idea from another forum) and with the Masterchef finale still on everyone's lips what better time than now to start this recipe thread.

Now I know we've had cooking threads in the past but what I'd like to do is limit this to recipes that have some photography involved. You don't need to go as silly as me and do step by step photos but hey... I'm not gonna stop you if you want to. :D

And lets stick to recipes with a bit of effort behind them... in other words unless it is a really spectacular jaffle chances are folks aren't going to be interested.

Let's see what you guys like to whip up in the kitchen when feeling gastronomically inclined.

[ElPresidente]

Beef & Paprika Pie

This pie has been a long favourite of mine. It is based off an original recipe by Neil Perry of Rockpool (Sydney & Melbourne) fame which he allgedly likes to whip up for mates during footy season.

The recipe is pretty much intact from its original form other than me switching out veal for beef and the sweet paprika for your regular garden variety paprika. The rational behind this being that I found the original recipe too sweet for my tastes.

This is quite a simple pie to make with the only real trick being to make sure you are using a heavy based non-stick pot otherwise you are going to have a hell of a time stewing this puppy.

Oh... this isn't a free standing pie (if you have a nice stiff pastry recipe feel free to make this a free standing pie) so if you are following these instructions to the letter you will need ramekins or other small bowls which you can pop in the oven.

Ingredients

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie01.jpg

700 grams diced (approx 2cm) chuck steak
(if you do decide to use veal instead you are asking for the shoulder meat - you need all the connective tissue to up the flavour during cooking)
50 grams plain flour
3 table spoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 Onion
2 leeks, white part only, sliced
1 celery stalk cut into 5 mm pieces
1 large carrot cut as above
4 garlic cloves - finely chopped
3 teaspoons paprika
1 bay leaf
1.5 cups dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock (feel free to use store bought if you don't make your own)
400g tin of diced plum (roma) tomatoes
Small handful of finely chopped basil leaves
Small handful of finely chopped Italian parsley leaves
Sea salt & freshly ground pepper
1-2 sheets of frozen puff pastry
1 egg yolk
Handful of grated stilton cheese (optional)


Instructions

Dust the meat in flour. The easiest way to do this is to simply chuck portions of the beef in a plastic bag with some flour then just shake-shake-shake. Thanks to Maggie Beer for that idea ;)

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie02.jpg

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie03.jpg


Put some of the oil in a pan with the butter and melt them together.

Brown the meat in batches...

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie05.jpg

...and pop aside on some paper towel to absorb some of the fat.

Into the same pot put all your vegetables plus the garlic along with some extra oil if the meat has taken too much out of the pot. Cook gently for ten minutes until the vegetables have softened.

With the vegetables softened put in the bay leaf, paprika and white wine. Simmer, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pot, until the wine has reduced and thickened.

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie07.jpg

Once this has happened add the stock, meat, tomatoes and half each of your parsely and basil. Cook, covered, over a low heat for 30 minutes.

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie09.jpg

Remove the lid and cook for a further 60 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened making a rich brown gravy. Test the meat here too, it should fall apart in your mouth.

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie10.jpg

During this time you may find the sauce thickens too much to provide enough moisture to the meat during the cooking (chuck steak is not a great cut of meat and must be stewed properly before it has an agreeable texture - furthermore, since all its flavour is found in the connective tissue and fats, it simply tastes bland if you don't stew it enough). If you find your sauce getting too thick before the meat has had a chance to really tenderise feel free to add a cup of water now and then. Hell you can even add another splash of wine if you want to make a slightly tangier pie.

Add the remaining herbs and check your seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Take out your pastry from the freezer and let it thaw slightly but not lose its chill. Now you can pop the pastry as is on the pie but I experimented and found the following works as an excellent counterpoint to the sweetness of the filling:
Take a single sheet of the puff pastry and lay it out.
Crumble a generous portion of stilton cheese on one half of the pastry sheet.
Fold the cheeseless side of the pastry on top of the cheese side.
Roll this out to the original thickness of the pastry with a rolling pin.

The stilton's bitterness contrasts brilliantly against the sweet filling, giving more body to the dish. Of course, let your own tastebuds decide. This pie is excellent with a plain pastry top regardless.

Place your ramekin on the pastry (or cheese/pastry combo as above) and trace out a circle a good half a centimetre out from the edge, cutting it out with a sharp knife.

Fill your ramekin as high as possible with the meat filling and brush the sides with beaten egg yolk.

Place your pastry top over the meat and push it down around the edges. Pierce the pastry with a fork and just to make it look a bit nicer push down around the edges with a fork and lightly score the pastry with a sharp knife.

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie11.jpg

Place into a pre-heated 200 degree celcius oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed and golden.

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/Pie12.jpg

[Second]

Next time I make cheesecake, I'll be in this thread. (h)

[ElPresidente]

Yes, please to be adding recipes! :)

[texta]

As soon as my tax return comes and I can afford something more exciting than baked beans, I will post.

[HiredMan]

You just had to sneak in a pic of your ****ing 46" Bravia didn't you Prez ;) Bastard.

Next time I do my lamb backstrap (marinated in olive oil, honey, rosemary, garlic and sea salt served with a dry red wine reduction sauce) I'll try and get some pics in. Pie looks awesome btw mate.

[Theiffy]

I'm so jealous of your awesome cooking skills Prez >.<

I know how to make an awesome Lentil Soup, which is loosely based around this recipe: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/5802/lentil+soup but instead of pancetta, i tend to use chorizo instead cause i'm a dirty dirty spaniard, and i like to chuck in zucchini and a bit of vinegar to heighten the soups flavour a bit.

[Cerebral]

I'm hitting F5 furiously until that pizza recipe comes up!

[immol8]

Great thread. Since winter began I've been thinking about making some tasty-as lamb and artichoke stew. Gonna do some shopping tomorrow and get it sorted!

[Theiffy]

Soups are the friggin bomb at the moment. I remember Trin making me a morrocan beef stew once, it was pretty nice!

[JubeiSaotome]

I suggest everyone try bacon choc chip cookies, they are the best cookies ever.
http://www.peterandrewryan.com/baking/2009/02/bacon-chocolate-chip-cookies-and-candied-bacon/

[Quatters]

For people who are monstrously lazy but want to look fancy.

Crack an egg in a bowl, pour in about 3 spoons of soy sauce, a spoon of water and a large spoon of garlic powder. Beat it up, also I personally like to dice some garlic and drop that in too.

Dip some pork chops in the mix, then put them in a large plate of bread crumbs. Cover them nicely.

Throw them into an oven, 200 for about 20 mins, flip them and let them cook for another 15mins.

Tastes awesome, looks quite fancy, is as easy as piss.

[Stevorooni]

Hmmmm that Prez Pie looks like it's above my cooking skills (my cooking skills are "throw in pan, turn occasionally, remove when dead") But damn it looks good.

[Theiffy]

For people who are monstrously lazy but want to look fancy.

Crack an egg in a bowl, pour in about 3 spoons of soy sauce, a spoon of water and a large spoon of garlic powder. Beat it up, also I personally like to dice some garlic and drop that in too.

Dip some pork chops in the mix, then put them in a large plate of bread crumbs. Cover them nicely.

Throw them into an oven, 200 for about 20 mins, flip them and let them cook for another 15mins.

Tastes awesome, looks quite fancy, is as easy as piss.

Sounds very similar to the pork chops i make! I don't add bread crumbs but i fry em up with soya sauce and a touch of garlic :P I love how Soya Sauce goes with pretty much every meat!

[Second]

I want your pork chops, Teegs.

[Quatters]

I want your pork chops, Teegs.

I have a sausage recipe you might like.

:freddie:

[TrinityJayOne]

I had a thought the other day of making our own Masterchef competition, but this is probably just as good.

Not sure I know how to make anything quite as fancy as that pie, most of my creations are done on the fly.

[ElPresidente]

ElPrez's Authentic New York Style Pizza

The first time I went to New York I can't say I was overjoyed with the experience. I was sick with a cold I caught on the flight from LAX to JFK thanks to an immune system largely unconcious as a result of too many margaritas waiting at the Los Angelas airport's Chilli's family restaurant. In my defence this was the 'restaurants' speciality, a lethal combination called El Presidente. What was I to do?

Intoxicated exploits aside my illness meant that I didn't enjoy much of the city on that first trip. The only real solace I found was in discovering the strange and wonderful traditions of the New York pizzaria.

Ordering a 'slice of pie' in most New York pizzarias recieving a giant pizza slice that is either straight cheese with a tomato base or the same combination plus pepperoni. You can then shake some herbs, chilli flakes or parmesan on top and away you go.

The dough is extremely flavoursome and, unlike pizzas over here, the star of the show.

When it comes out of pizza oven there is only the faintest amount of crispness to the crust with a firmer seared buttom. Look along the edge of a slice and you will see giant pockets of air and the texture is very chewy.

I fell in love with this pizza style and tried off and on again over the years to recreate it at home but it was only after a semi-dedicated six months of making pizzas over and over again while comparing my experiences with those of the dedicated pizza nuts at http://www.pizzamaking.com (go there if you love making pizza - the site is a treasure trove of pizza making knowledge) that I finally hit a recipe that worked perfectly for me.

Note: For this dough to work you will want access to three things you may not be aware of. You can get by without them but the dough will lose much of what enables it to carry the flavour of the pizza.

1. High gluten (protein) flour - This is really important. This dough needs to be able to hold shape when stretched thin. In addition this flour produces a much chewier consistency. Thankfully most supermarkets now stock a speciality flour called Lighthouse Brand. They have a pizza flour in their product lineup which is a high protein flour perfect for this recipe.

2. A VERY hot oven - This is a pizza base, not a bread. It is not dry from extended baking times. The pizza needs to cook at a high temperature (approximately 300 degrees) so the dough is cooked right through but does not have enough time to lose its moisture. Many home ovens cannot reach these temperatures but the dough will still cook, it just won't be as tasty or carry the same texture. If you are dedicated pizza hound but don't have the facilities to build a full scale pizza oven I highly recommend this portable pizza oven (http://www.pizzamaking.com/). It is what I use.

3. A pizza stone - This is to ensure that the bottom of your pizza is cooked evenly and the base can be made appropriately crisp without over cooking the top.

How to cook

If you are using a pizza stone pre-heat it in an over at around 150 degrees.

Just before putting the pizza in get the oven as high as it can go (ideally you want it around the 300 degrees mark as mentioned above).

Pop in the pizza and let it cook.

Now if you have a high temperature oven this should be finished cooking in less than five minutes. Other ovens will take longer. You want the pizza to have a slight crust on the top but still have a bit of give when you press it. The dough should be slightly browned while your toppings are well cooked. If you have used a stone the base should be firm but flexible. It should hold it shape but not be rigid. The traditional way of eating this pizza is to actually fold it in half before taking your first bite.

Recommended Topping

This not what you usually see on this type of pizza but everyone loves a margherita.

An even mix of:
Grated cheddar
Grated parmesan
Grated yellow mozzerella (you know the kind, comes in a little snow man shapped packet)
Bocconcini, sliced - if you are lucky enough to get access to some buffalo bocconcini is the best to use.
Dried oregano
Fresh basil leaves

Simply pop on your sauce, a very thin sprinkle of the cheese mix. Then lay out your bocconcini slices evenly over the pizza. Top with another thin sprinkle of the cheese mix. Strategically place your basil leaves (feel free to tear them if you like). A few flicks of cheese on the basil and then a splash of the oregano. Tasty (unfortunately these photos were done on a day where I couldn't be arsed getting bocconcini and I resorted to dry basil flakes. :D)

Ingredients

Dough
350 grams high-protein flour
225 ml warm water
Half teaspoon of instant dry yeast
1.25 teaspoons of salt
Three quarters of a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil

Sauce
400g tin of chopped roma (plum) tomatoes
Tablespoon of tomato paste
Half teaspoon of brown sugar
Half cup of wine
Fresh basil leaves
Thyme leaves (no sprigs)
Oregano
Salt
Black Pepper
3 cloves of garlic, crushed.

Method

Sift the flour into a large bowl.
Sprinkle the yeast over the top.
Dissolve the salt into the warm water and add to the flour/yeast mix.
Mix with a wooden spoon til the flour starts to bind.
Add olive oil and continue mixing.
If you have an electric mixer you can use the kneading arm on that at a very low speed to save yourself the effort.
Once the flour and water have combined and a proper dough has formed take the dough from the bowl and place it on a floured surface.
Knead the dough until it has a smooth silky (if ever so slightly sticky) consistency. Don't be disheartened if the dough seems sticky. This is a heavily hydrated dough, it will be slightly wet as you start working it.
Coat the inside of a bowl with olive oil and drop the dough inside, swirling it around so the entire ball of dough is lightly coated with the oil.
Put the dough aside to rise until it has doubled in size (usually takes about two to three hours).
Take out the dough, punch it down and knead it again. At this stage you can either go on to make your pizza or if you want the best results pop the dough in the fridge for an hour or two so it is cold when you work with it.
To make the base grab about a third to a half of the dough (based on how big you want your pizza) and roll it out into a small thick circle with a rolling pin. The trick now is to place the dough over your first and pull your fists apart to make the circle bigger. What this does is ensure that as you work the dough it is the center that is the thinest with a gradual increase in thickness as you move to the edge.
If you aren't confident with tossing dough a good trick to get you comfortable with working the dough is simply to grab one edge of the pizza with both hands close together and stretch the out the edge, slowly working your way around.
Alternate between tossing (or using the method in the previous point) and letting gravity let the dough pull down over your fists.
By the end the very middle of the dough should be so thin that you can see shadows cast through it when held up to the light. Don't worry about how thin this dough now is, it will thicken considerably in the oven.
To save yourself a lot of trouble (assuming you aren't using an oven pan - which I advise you don't unless you have no choice) get two stiff pieces of cardboard, lay them side by side and heavily dust them with flour. When your dough is ready place the pizza base on top of these pieces of cardboard so the line where the pieces meet runs down the center of the pizza. When you are placing the dough into the pizza oven you can carry the pizza with the two pieces of cardboard and just pull them apart to drop the pizza on your pizza stone.

The Sauce

You can use any pizza sauce you like but I quite like the following recipe.

Melt butter in a pan
Fry the crushed garlic in the butter
Add a tablespoon of flour to the melted butter and whisk it through
Add herbs except the basil to the flour and cook til aromatic
Add your tin of tomatos, the white wine and the basil.
Cook for about five minutes and season to taste.
Simmer for thirty minutes.
With a handheld blender, blend the contents of the pan til a smooth paste forms.
Add tomato paste til the desired consistency is reached.
You're done!


Fair bit of detail in that one but my experience taught me that when it comes to making this dough right attention to detail is key.

It seems like a lot of effort but after the first time you do it you will fly through subsequent times. That's enough dough for two large pizzas in a half hour of prep time with a couple of hours waiting for the dough to rise.

You can also refridgerate the remaining dough if want to use it in the next day or two. For longer storage this dough freezes extremely well.

And even though it was posted above here is what the final product looks like (take note of the cross section shot, you can see the triangular shape you should be aiming for).

http://members.iinet.net.au/~elpresidente/pizza.jpg

[Mike-Towns]

I need to make that pizza.

[Sytadel]

Yeah, that looks beautiful.

I'll try and post my (mum's >_>) sweet potato and chickpea curry recipe - it's delicious!

[incompatible with life]

Out of curiosity, is it particularly necessary to sift the flour? Since it's getting kneaded anyway won't it lose all the air gained from sifting?

[Filthy Old Drunk]

Out of curiosity, is it particularly necessary to sift the flour? Since it's getting kneaded anyway won't it lose all the air gained from sifting?

Sifting flour also removed any hidden things, like hard bits, weevils etc. It also allows for a better consistency because sometimes flour clumps up especially if it's been stored in a container. It's also wise to sift any other dry powders along with the flour to help it combine properly. It's not really necessary, but if you've got the time you may as well.

When we cooked at TAFE we were always told to sift, but out in the real world (a pro kitchen), I haven't seen any chef sift their flour yet.

Put the dough aside to rise until it has doubled in size (usually takes about two to three hours).

If you put it in a warm spot, it'll speed up the process.

Great recipe btw. I can't wait to try it out.

[incompatible with life]

If you put it in a warm spot, it'll speed up the process.

In the absence of a warm spot (particularly in the winter) I just get a larger bowl, fill it partially with warm/hot-ish water, pop the bowl with the dough in and put cling wrap on top.

[ElPresidente]

The best option is to put a moist warm teatowel over the bowl. The moist fabric helps create a seal that will prevent the dough from drying out during the proofing process.

Incidently this is the same reason the dough is smeared with oil prior to rising. You don't want a dried skin on the dough as that will mess with consistency.

On the subject of sifting the flour it is more to ensure consistency as has been pointed out.

And Filthy is right regarding the use of sifting in commercial kitchens. The only time you sift when cooking for large numbers of people is when the consistency of the flour is key to the meal working. This dough is one of those cases, as mentioned earlier, the dough is the star of the meal more than the topping is so it is best to sift if you can.

[Serenity]

Chocolate Mousse

Prep time: 15-20 mins
Chilling time: 6 hours

Ingredients
300g of good quality cooking or dark chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons of milk
6 egg yolks
100g caster sugar
2 cups thickened cream
A teaspoon of vanilla essence (optional)
Whipped cream to serve (optional)

Instructions:
First, chop the chocolate into roughly even pieces and put in saucepan along with the milk. Get another saucepan, fill with water and bring to boil. Place the other saucepan on/in the boiling water and stir continuously till fully melted.
http://fc07.deviantart.com/fs47/f/2009/218/1/6/I__m_meeeelting_by_kmw1990.jpg
Then you remove and allow it to cool. Now it’s time to separate those eggs. Whites left over can be used to make meringues or pavlovas. Put the yolks in with the 100g of caster sugar and beat with an electric mixer for around 5 minutes or until it goes creamy and pale. Beat in the chocolate. Beat the cream until stiff peaks have formed and then combine with the mixture. I opted to keep some left over for serving purposes and added the vanilla essence to the leftover cream.
http://fc09.deviantart.com/fs48/f/2009/218/f/9/Mr__Whippy_by_kmw1990.jpg
Then I alternated layers with pouring in the cream and chocolate, topped with berries (optional) and stuck it in the fridge for 6 hours to cool.
http://fc09.deviantart.com/fs47/f/2009/218/8/d/Finished_product__by_kmw1990.jpg
And there we have it. Adapted from a recipe I found in a TaBLE magazine.

[Big Kev]

For people who are monstrously lazy but want to look fancy.

Crack an egg in a bowl, pour in about 3 spoons of soy sauce, a spoon of water and a large spoon of garlic powder. Beat it up, also I personally like to dice some garlic and drop that in too.

Dip some pork chops in the mix, then put them in a large plate of bread crumbs. Cover them nicely.

Throw them into an oven, 200 for about 20 mins, flip them and let them cook for another 15mins.

Tastes awesome, looks quite fancy, is as easy as piss.

Now that's my kind of cooking.

I had a thought the other day of making our own Masterchef competition, but this is probably just as good.

Not sure I know how to make anything quite as fancy as that pie, most of my creations are done on the fly.

...I mean, fish fingers were created by SOMEBODY right? ;)

[TrinityJayOne]

BUMP!

So I decided to whip up ElPres' pie, with a few alterations. First of all mine is a cheesey shepard's pie, and secondly it's free-standing because if it wasn't there wouldn't be any pastry and what sort of pie is that?! The only other differences are that I used red wine instead of white and shank/gravy beef instead of chuck steak.

Apart from the pastry the recipe is exactly the same as ElPres', only half way through the uncovered cooking part I put the pre-cut spuds on so that the mash would be ready as soon as the filling was. I also added a bit of cheese between the filling and the potatoes. For those who don't know how to make mash-

-Dice some potatoes, 1cm cubes are perfect.
-Add to water, bring to boil and wait til the potatoes are soft (should take about 20mins).
-Drain potatoes, then mash the crap out of them with a spoon or some other utensil.
-OPTIONAL! Add cheese at this point, grated as finely as you can, if you want something a bit different. You need to do this as soon as possible so that the potatoes are hot enough to melt the cheese.
-Once it resembles a chunky paste, add butter and some milk to your liking and keep mashing. It's impossible to overdo it here, but some will like it smoother than others. Personally I like it a bit chunky.

Pics time! These are pretty much just to show- A. that I did actually make it, and B. how similar it is to Pres' efforts on my first go. Anyone should be able to pull this off. (Excuse the shit colours, had it on the wrong setting until the last shot)

http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie1.jpg

Softening up the vegetables in the pot


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie2.jpg

Wine added


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie3.jpg

Wine sauce reduced, in goes the meat + everything else


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie4.jpg

90mins later :D


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie5.jpg

Aaaand here's where it starts getting different. Lightly greased dish, pastry around the side and some cheese slices (already melting) on top.


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie6.jpg

Just out of the oven. I would've liked the mash browner, but that was already 10mins longer in the oven than instructed. A few mins under the grill would probably do the trick.


http://members.iinet.net.au/~trinityjayone/pie7.jpg

Free-standing pie SUCCESS! Admittedly I had my doubts at first, but it actually holds together pretty well. The pastry sheets I used were a bit small for the dish and I ended up having to do a little nip & tuck + some grafting from another sheet to get it all even. Next time I might try making it myself as apparently it's piss easy.

Only thing I didn't like was that the wine flavour seemed to disappear in the cooking. Before the meat was added it smelled great, and it still did after the first 30mins of cooking but the wine had all but disappeared. I've slow-cooked with wine before and not had that issue (from the same bottle as a matter of fact), so not sure what happened there.

I rate it 9/10! Would be stellar with a side of chips. A big thumbs up to ElPres for sharing. :D

[Spazzola]

I am so ****ing hungry right now.

[Second]

TJ1 has never made me dinner.


I think this should be fixed.

[ElPresidente]

Looks like it came up a treat. I am pleased. :)

[Slippery]

I am so ****ing hungry right now.

I'm suddenly dissapointed with the pancakes I was planning to eat for lunch

[sausage]

eating p/apple lumps atm tbh imo

[TrinityJayOne]

I have a Boston Beans recipe that I've been wanting to take a shot at for a while, but it requires several hours of cooking and navy beans, which I can't find outside of a tin.

[9warbane]

Pokemon cake.
1. catch the ingredients
2. train the ingredients
3. cook the power that's inside at 160°C for 60 minutes
4 gotta bake em all, Pokemon cake!

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/6242/pokemoncake.jpg

[Mr.Mew]

Did it taste like the very best?

[9warbane]

Like no cake ever was.

[Vindik8or]

The best option is to put a moist warm teatowel over the bowl. The moist fabric helps create a seal that will prevent the dough from drying out during the proofing process.

Incidently this is the same reason the dough is smeared with oil prior to rising. You don't want a dried skin on the dough as that will mess with consistency.

On the subject of sifting the flour it is more to ensure consistency as has been pointed out.

And Filthy is right regarding the use of sifting in commercial kitchens. The only time you sift when cooking for large numbers of people is when the consistency of the flour is key to the meal working. This dough is one of those cases, as mentioned earlier, the dough is the star of the meal more than the topping is so it is best to sift if you can.

The problem with a warm towel is that while it will be warm at first, the evaporation of the water will quickly cool it to well below the ambient temperature. I find that covering the bowl well with clingwrap and then wrapping it up in dry towels for insulation works well. I also have a water bed, so in my case it goes in between the covers for proofing.