Saturday, December 25, 2010

Apple Crumble

4 apples
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon powder

crumble:
300g flour
180g brown sugar
200g cold butter, cut into cubes

peel, core and slice the apples. sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon into the apples and distribute well. arrange into a baking dish. in another dish, mix the sugar and flour evenly. rub in the butter little by little till it resembles breadcrumb. sprinkle onto the apples, and bake in a 180deg C oven for 30 min. eat hot with vanilla ice cream.

Moussaka

this is something i learnt on TLC, but i modified it, so that it has more of the greek kick to it..here goes..

3 medium potatoes, sliced into 8mm thick
3 medium aubergines, sliced into 8mm thick
1 green capsicum, wedged into 6 and sliced into 8mm thick
1 red capsicum, wedged into 6 and sliced into 8mm thick

meat sauce:
1 onion
3 garlic
400g beef
3 tomatoes, chopped (i dont bother skinning it)
raisins
1 cinnamon stick
2 tsp cumin
salt & black pepper & oregano

bechamel:
100g butter
2 tbsp flour
1/2 L milk
2 bay leaves
salt & white pepper to taste
2 tbsp cheese (i used blue cheese for extra ummph. you can use parmesan too)

heat some olive oil in a flat pan. fry the potatoes on both sides to golden. lift and arrange in a baking dish. repeat with the aubergines. saute the capsicum and arrange on the aubergine layer in the dish.

for the meat sauce, heat some olive oil, fry the onion and garlic till fragrant. stir in the beef till fully cooked. put in the tomatoes, cinnamon, cumin, oregano, raisin, salt and pepper. stir and cover on low heat till thickens. while waiting to thicken, make the bechamel.

for the bechamel, melt the butter in a sauce pot. put in the flour and stir till it resembles a smooth paste and golden. pour in the milk slowly, while stirring vigorously. put in the leaves and stir till thickens and simmers. turn off the heat and put in the cheese. stir till melted.

arrange the meat sauce over the capsicum layer. pour the bechamel onto the top layer. put into a 200deg C oven for about 30 - 45 min; till the top is golden. let it stand for about 10 min, and its ready to be indulged.