the concept

the concept

The idea came from some friends, Lucy Jason & George, who were back home briefly & raved about a chef in London's East End...http://fridaynightakeout.blogspot.com/
I thought it was such a good idea, the best thing to do would be to bring it to life here where I live in New Zealand.
So...I'm also a freelance chef, each week I cook a different dish, depending on what's in season, what's good now, or just how I feel. Lately I've been cooking a lot of my mother's dishes

Dish descriptions will be posted here online early in the week, recipes later over the weekend, with links to:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pabloskitchen/130053437081945 & http:/twitter.com/#!/pabloskitchen

As I play with the idea through the week, the dish maybe evolves a little, but that's half the fun. Meals will be priced at $20, incl delivery & orders can be made anytime up to roughly lunchtime Thursday, which is when I go shopping. Simply get in touch, email or txt, you can order as many as you like!
Afternoon Friday I'll deliver dinnerboxes warm/cooling/cold, locally in & around my base, which admittedly does change a bit - currently I'm north of Auckland, living by the beach in Mangawhai (just let me know where you are when you get in touch).

tel: 021 676 123
email: pabloskitchen@yahoo.com

I've recently included an email subscription option at the bottom of this page &, while I have no idea how it works, the hope is that it automatically sends to subscribers email notifications each week about the dish...so, sign up!

disclaimer:
From time to time, when the wanderlust takes over, I hit the road & disappear in search of dishes, tastes & ingredients elsewhere. Then this blog takes on a different kind of persona; a travelling recipe book of notes, pics & stories, ideas to inspire & for me to return to, once I get back home.

Monday, 28 January 2013

fri01feb2013: chicken parmigiana, saltimbocca potato, red summer slaw

This week's fridaynightdinnerbox dish, Chicken Parmigiana, basically crumbed breast meets tomato & cheese gratin, served alongside saltimbocca potatoes,  little baby ones wrapped in sage & proscuito, brushed with olive oil & garlic, then pan roasted. There'll be some chutney for the potatoes & a coleslaw style salad.

Your part is simple: get in touch by thursday afternoon, cos that's when I go shopping, & tell me how many dinnerboxes you'd like.
Drop-offs from 4pm onwards, to the office/site/home just let me know what suits.

To order, contact me by txt or email:
txt: 021 676 123
email: pabloskitchen@yahoo.com (subject heading: “fridaynightdinnerbox”)
& I’ll confirm your order when received.

talk to you soon…

cheers - Pablo

Sunday, 27 January 2013

recipe: risotto, goat's cheese & proscuito

fridaynightdinnerbox 
main item accompaniment + salad = three noodle boxes; a meal in three parts
The idea is simple enough, the meal packed in carry bags, paper towels for wiping fingers, no dishes required, dropped at your door on Friday afternoon to take the hassle of coming home to cook dinner, just pick up a bottle of vino on the way home, choose a good movie, & curl up on the couch. Job done.

In sitting down to type up the recipe, I thought I'd write about this aspect of fridaynightdinnerbox, the make-up I mean, because a lot of thought goes into choosing three items that can be regarded as separate dishes which also work in combination. Also, this week's combination was particularly good, so deserved mention because it was so tasty. The main item I like to serve plain, in this case the risotto. Delicious on its own anyway, the other ingredients are there to be added as required. The result is still a meal of your own making, but all the pieces are there for you to simply reheat & bring together the way you like them.
By way of constructing a dish descriptor then, this week's fridaynightdinnerbox contained:
#1) plain risotto, made with onions & garlic, thyme, white wine & chicken stock
#2) goat's cheese & roasted garlic potatoes (hasselbach), spring onions, proscuito, cranberries
#3) salad of mixed lettuce, toasted pumpkin & sesame seeds, lemon zest & cracked peppercorns

While I ate my salad separately, I did pick out the baby spinach leaves & add some toasted pinenuts to my risotto, just cos I could, though in theory, all three boxes could be mixed together, the hot creamy texture & flavour of the rice, sweet meaty proscuito & salty goast's cheese, the crunch of toasted seeds & the bitter green of salad leaves, with the slight zing of lemon at the end. Just think about that for a moment. Imagine all those flavours & textures & colours one by one & side by side, in your mouth, as you munch...nice aye?
While combination ingredients for both accompanying dishes is simple enough, I mean you add more of the things you like, less of those you don't, the hasselbach potatoes do need a little instruction & the risotto, although simple, requires attention to make sure it comes out just right. 
Ingredients: Hasselbach potatoes:
agria (roasting) potatoes, 
garlic, salt, olive oil
Method:
*set oven to 220
*crush garlic & infuse with olive oil, warmed for a few minutes for example
*whole baby potatoes or slice in 1/2, cutting it a thinly ridged back, as with garlic bread
*liberally brush the potatoes with garlic oil, separating the cuts where possible & season
*roast for 15 minutes, then give the pan  shake & rebrush oil everywhere, putting back into the oven for more roasting, timing will depend on size, but keep an eye on them, they are ready when golden brown outside & soft & steamy inside
-I broke these down further once roasted & tossed with baby spinach, together with the chevre & proscuito, which in turn was combined with the risotto, a splash of cream, lemon; yummy

Ingredients: Risotto:
aborio rice 
garlic/onion
butter/olive oil
thyme/bay/salt
white wine/chicken stock
Method:
*bring white wine & chicken stock to the boil, reduce to a simmer
*sweat the onions & garlic in olive oil & butter, thyme & bay, be generous with your oil
*add the rice, stir until the rice goes a little translucent, give it a cpl of minutes
*pour in a cupful of simmering stock/wine, & stir the rice
*when it's absorbed, repeat the process, until whats left is a creamy, separating type rice
*make sure the rice is al dente firm to the bite

From here, at home, I like to throw together a sauce then combine the risotto, cooked blanc & left in the fridge. It's a quick dinner. For me, the quality of the risotto is all important.  If the plain old risotto is actually amazing all by itself, well that's the place to start, isn't it?.

Monday, 21 January 2013

fri25jan: risotto, goat's cheese with proscuito

This week's fridaynightdinnerbox dish, a risotto, with two of my favourite ingredients, proscuito & goat's cheese. The addition of parmesan, definitely, a little fresh parsley & mint, a squeeze of lemon. Broad beans would be nice, or peas, have to wait & see what turns up at market before making that call.

On the side, one of my favourite vegetable dishes: hasselbach's potatoes, some sauteed spinach >spinaci saltati, & roast red capsicum also, with a light vinaigrette.

Your part is simple: get in touch by thursday afternoon, cos that's when I go shopping, & tell me how many dinnerboxes you'd like.
Drop-offs from 4pm onwards, to the office/site/home just let me know what suits.

To order, contact me by txt or email:
txt: 021 676 123
email: pabloskitchen@yahoo.com (subject heading: “fridaynightdinnerbox”)
& I’ll confirm your order when received.

talk to you soon…

cheers - Pablo

recipe: chicken onion & olive pie

Beginning stage, when the dish takes form, a gathering of ideas, stream of consciousness:

Ok, if I relax & let my thoughts roam with the idea of,,,home. An overgrown garden>fruit trees full of yellow plums yellow honey flavoured apricots quince apples figs lemons>yellow flowers>bees>sun>long grass>hot muggy days & warm nights>the beach>the surf>sand between toes>pohutakawas>cold beers...
Focus on the food! The food! ...crisp fresh simple hearty is what I want.
Starting point then, the veg: yellow & red & green are the colours of summer>carrot ribbons, curly corn on the cob, broccoli spears, asparagus discs...butter lemon salt & black pepper, blanched & tossed>shape flavour colour texture contrasts>veg sorted.
Hero of the dish: chicken. Slow cooked, initially covered & cooked as a braise, then finished uncovered to brown>caramelised onions>saltiness from olives...with...hmmm the Marabella the other week was pretty tasty...on a bed of onions with prunes & capers, olives, & a glass of white wine, bay & pepper, a splash of pomegranate molasses if you have it, & I'm adding a spoonful of quince paste, just cause I can.
So then, a chicken braised in its marinade, finished uncovered to caramelise>chicken sorted.
Pastry. Now I come to think of it, yes: absolutely.
A pastry lid over  proper pie dish>crimped whole>lattice cut>cooked with a pastry base>possible to finish cooking in oven at home say 15mins>think dishes>think bother factor>pie in a dish better>oven 5-10 mins o heat thru enough>chicken pie sorted.
Salad to start/finish/combine: something green & crisp>spinach, baby spinach, whole leaves>alfa sprouts>zest & segments of tangelo>juice to dress & olive oil>almonds toasted>salad sorted,
....
yea, that works for me.
For cookery of the chicken, refer to my earlier fridaynightdinnerbox recipe for Chicken Marbella, as I took the Marbella idea & cooked a very similar chicken this time around too.
Ingredients: the chicken
1 whole chicken, quartered, on the bone
2 onions/a carrot/3 or 4 garlic cloves
1 lemon, cut in half/handful of olives/capers/prunes
dollop of quince paste & a drizzle of pomegranate molasses
a glass of white wine & a pinch of salt
method:
*put all in a casserole dish, marinate for 2 hours/overnight
*set oven to 220°
*cover with foil & braise the chicken for 30 minutes
*lower oven to 180°
*uncover (discard foil), sit the casserole on a lower oven shelf , cook another 20-30 minutes
keeping an eye on the chicken to see it doesn't burn or dry out
*eat as is, Marbella style, or allow to cool before ripping the chicken from the bone, discarding the bones & the lemon
* what remains is mixed together & ready to be used as pie filling.
Ingredients: the pastry: rough puff
500g flour/500g cold butter/350ml iced water/pinch salt
Method:
*chop the butter in small cubes & place in a large mixing bowl with the flour & pinch of salt
*rub in for a moment or so, just to take the corners off really
*make a well in the middle, add the water, combine gently, without kneading
*roll out to a rectangle shape, roughly - it will be chunky & lumpy still, thats fine
*fold pastry rectangle into three, turn 90 clockwise, roll out again
*repeat twice more & rest the pastry for 1/2 an hour
*then repeat that stage another 2 times 
*rolled, folded & turned x3 in all, with a rest between each time
*this is called 3x3 book turns & creates layers of pastry which rise in the cooking stage.
*check out the link for more detail on making puff pastry, slightly different (mines a cheat)
Ingredients: assembling the pie
pastry/chicken filling
eggwash- 1egg & splash milk beaten in a cup with a fork
Method:
*roll out the pastry, not too thin, for the lids
*I experimented with different sizes & pastry lid types, whatever works for you is best, for me I chose  large round ramekin type dish & a flat lid, which I decorated with pastry bird cutout
*brush pasty disc cutouts with eggwash & the underside edge, then lay over pie dish (filled already)
*crimp or pinch the edges, the eggwash is like glue & creates a seal when baking
*bake at 200° for 15-20 minutes, pastry should be golden
In a bowl, steamed summer vegetables, crunchy, bursting & with flavour. Rip off the flakey pie lid & all the sweet wet loveliness of the chicken onions prunes & olives comes wafting out...was that.the sound of a cold beer being opened somewhere in the background?? 

Monday, 14 January 2013

fri18jan2013: chicken onion & olive pie

Making the journey north to Mangawhai this week, to the house in the country where the memories of  my mother dwell. The bush & the beach, clean air, starry starry nights, rain water in the tank...the best of what it means to be in New Zealand for summer...& in my mother's house, where I feel her spirit everywhere. My centre, my happy place. Hers is a kitchen made for cooking.
After cooking like crazy since Christmas came to town, friends & I, & all three of us chefs, will escape Auckland for Mangawhai to relax & make the most of it. My agenda, for this week's fridaynightdinnerbox, a dish to reflect the comfort of being at home again in the country. My thoughts are for a country style pie, free range chicken, olives, a nice puff pastry crust, some summer vegetables, a garden salad...
Your part is simple: get in touch by thursday afternoon, cos that's when I go shopping, & tell me how many dinnerboxes you'd like.
Drop-offs from 4pm onwards, to the office/site/home just let me know what suits.
To order, contact me by txt or email:
txt: 021 676 123
email: pabloskitchen@yahoo.com (subject heading: “fridaynightdinnerbox”)
& I’ll confirm your order when received.
talk to you soon…
cheers - Pablo