Hubby's Calzone...

Hmmm, don't know how to start this one... We both came back from work very, very hungry and wanted to eat something wholesome and a lot of it ;) My Hubby decided to make Calzone - even though that he never ever made them before. The result was fantastic and I was so full I was hardly able to move... The dough was fantastic! The filling was just the content of our fridge that day.
P.S. Sorry for the quality of the photos - taken late at night ;)


"A calzone (Italian "stocking" or "trouser" or "drooping sack" or "hanging fold"), also called ripieno (Italian "filling" or "stuffed"), is an Italian turnover made from pizza dough and stuffed with cheese (usually mozzarella cheese and Ricotta, but some varieties contain Parmesan, Provolone, or a locally substituted cheese), ham or salami, vegetables, or a variety of other stuffings. It often contains an egg, the yolk of which should be runny. It is typically served with marinara sauce on the side for dipping, or topped with garlic and parsley infused olive oil." - by Wikipedia.org


How to make it...
Ingredients:
Dough (the same as basic pizza dough):
- 25 g fresh yeast or 15 g dried
- 250 ml lukewarm water
- pinch of sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 350 g / 400 g strong white flour
Filling:- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1 chicken breast, fried and cut into pieces
- a cup of grated cheese (whatever you have in the fridge)
- 1 can (small one) tomato puree/sauce
- 1 clove of garlic, pressed
- salt, pepper, herbs
- oil of olive, for serving


Making the dough - put the yeast into a bowl and pour over lukewarm water, add sugar and mix well. Allow to stand until the yeast dissolved and formed a foam. Mix in one-third of the flour and salt. Add another third of the flour and mix until it begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Sprinkle the remaining flour onto a clean surface and knead the dough, working in the remaining flour. Knead for about 10 minutes. Put the dough back to the bowl and leave in warm place for 45 minutes until the dough has doubled in volume. After that time 'punch' the dough to release the air and knead for 2 minutes. Divide the dough into 2 balls and roll into a flat circles (at this stage you can make normal pizza).
Preparing the filling - on a pan fry onions, pepper and garlic till soft. Add tomato puree and season to taste. Fry for few minutes. On one side of the rolled dough arrange tomato sauce with veges, chicken pieces, grated cheese and sprinkle some herbs on top. Fold in half and form a 'parcel'. Seal it with some beaten egg. Bake in the preheated oven in 220 C for about 25-30 minutes. Serve hot with some oil of olives.
Bon appétit!

Krokiety - Polish savoury, stuffed pancakes...

"Croquettes in Poland are basically made from a thin rolled pancake stuffed with mushrooms, meat, cabbage, sauerkraut or combinations of those ingredients. Then covered in breadcrumbs, fried in a pan and usually served usually with a clear soup like borscht." - by Wikipedia.org
Krokiety are very, very popular in Poland. It's a kind of savoury, stuffed pancake. They are quite easy to make and are a great accompaniment to another traditional dish - barszcz, beetroot soup. There are two main kinds of stuffing used to make krokiety: 1. meat, 2. sauerkraut and mushrooms. Personally I prefer the second one, but the recipe below is for the one with meat, as this time my Hubby ruled in the kitchen ;)


How to make it...
Ingredients:
- plain pancakes (big, flat, like French ones)
- brisket, cooked in broth till very tender
- beef shoulder, cooked in broth till very tender
- 1 red onion
- 2 eggs
- salt, pepper
For coating krokiety:
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup of bread crumbs

Take the meat of the one and mince (yes, you have to mince a cooked meat). Chop or mince (as my Hubby did it) the onion and add to the meat. Add two raw eggs to the meat and mix together well. Season to taste if you have to - you probably won't have to as the meat was cooked in the broth. Take one pancake and put a tablespoon of meat stuffing on one end. Form a kind of little parcel so it won't open or break up. Coat in beaten egg and then in the breadcrumbs. Do the same thing with the rest of the pancakes and the stuffing. Fry on all sides till nice and golden brown - and remember that you have raw eggs so it have to be cooked properly through out. Serve hot, preferably with barszcz. You can easily freeze them after frying - then just pop them into the microwave and lunch/dinner ready in few minuets!
Bon appétit!

O'Suzette - a piece of France in the Kerry village...

If you're reading this blog for some time now, you should now by now that I'm a huge 'all what's French fan'... My Hubby knows that too ;) Last Friday he took me for a surprise lunch to O'Suzette - French restaurant, deep in the Kerry county, in the town of Kilflynn. The first impression was great - small, cosy restaurant in French style. Menu was short but I'm sure it's updated on a daily basis. The only thing which you can eat everyday is La Galette - traditional Breton pancake. It can have savoury or sweet filling. The main ingredient in this batter is the buckwheat flour - which gives it it's unusual taste.
We ordered a soup of the day - which was a potato and courgette soup - very creamy and delicious :) Served with home made, still hot, baguette!
My Hubby took beef bourguignon - we always wanted to try that one! The meat was very tender, served with a lot of velvet, deep flavoured sauce, potatoes and carrots. I almost regretted that I didn't ordered it after I had a little taste...
My Main dish was of course 'le galette' - filled with ham, cheese and mushrooms. It was huge! On the side I got a basket (made from pancake's batter) of salad with real vinaigrette :) The only minus is that I didn't finish my main dish - it was just too much for me...
If that wasn't enough, what was our surprise when after ordering an orange juice we got freshly squeezed one!!!

The staff we met that day were actually the owners themselves - a French couple. The service is little on the slow side, but it doesn't really matter because the food, atmosphere and whole ambiance is very nice and 'home like'. It's like it says on the leaflet - Made in Love. It's perfect for a quite family or friends lunch/dinner, I would be a little concern to book a big group party there though...
Right now this is officially my favourite restaurant in the area.

Pickled cucumber soup...

It is a traditional Polish soup ('zupa ogórkowa' sometimes simply 'ogórkowa'). It is made from sour, salted cucumbers and potatoes. Occasionally rice is substituted for the potatoes. It's one of my all times favourite soups - brings back childhood memories... It's very simple, 'cheap' and the taste is somewhat unusual. To make it I used pured pickled cucumbers (photo on the left) - as you can buy them in Polish shops around the world - but grated pickled cucumbers will work well too. It's served with rice or potatoes and a spoon full of cream.

How to make it...
Ingredients:
- jar of pured pickled cucumbers or grated pickled cucumbers
- 1 carrot, grated
- 10 small potatoes, pealed and diced
- 0,5 l chicken or beef stock



Prepare the stock and add grated carrot and diced potatoes. Boil for few minutes. Ad pickled cucumbers (puree or grated). Be careful with that as the soup can turn out very acidic or not acidic at all. You should aim for fresh taste, a little of sweet and sour. It has to be slightly acidic as that is this soup's distinguish mark. Boil for few minutes so all the taste can blend together and potatoes (or rice, if you're using it) is soft. Serve hot with cream.
P.S. It may not look 'appetizing' all green etc., but trust me - it's great.
Bon appétit!