Mr Rice makes meatballs (Thai style)

Mr Rice likes to get his recipes from his head, but he spotted this one and thought he’d take the plunge. As he started to put his masterpiece together, he reminded me that he doesn’t like being ‘bossed about’. I was a little taken aback as I was keeping well out of the way in order to avoid any accusations like that. When I protested my innocence he explained that he was talking about the recipe itself – apparently he doesn’t like following instructions from anyone, not just me. The upshot is, this is his version of a recipe from the August edition of Delicious magazine.

 

Thai Pork Meatballs with coconut curry

 

Recipe for Thai Pork Meatballs with coconut curry

1kg pork mince
fresh ginger, grated
2 lemongrass stalks, chopped
Handful of fresh coriander, chopped
1 red chilli, chopped
Juice and zest of 1 lime
3cm fresh ginger, grated
5 spring onions, chopped
1 egg 

Coconut curry
4 tbsp Thai red curry paste
2 tins reduced fat coconut milk
5 spring onions
2 red peppers, thinly sliced 
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped into batons
Handful of green beans
2 lemongrass stalks, chopped
Juice of 2 limes
200g ground almonds 

Egg noodles to serve

Mix all the meatball ingredients together in a large bowl – mixing with your hands gets everything properly combined, so prepare to get your hands dirty and sticky. Then form them into small golfball-sized meatballs, then put them in the fridge to firm up, for a minimum of 20 minutes.

Fry the meatballs in a large frying pan with a little splash of olive oil until they are brown all over, then remove them from the pan and add the red peppers, sweet potatoes and green beans and stir-fry them for 5 minutes until they are nice and soft. Put the noodles on in a separate pan, then stir in the curry paste and cook for a couple of minutes, followed by the coconut milk, chillies, spring onions, lemongrass and lime juice and cook for a few minutes. Finally, add the ground almonds and cook for 5 more minutes.

Add the meatballs into the mix and cook for five more minutes to make sure they’re lovely and hot.

Drain and serve the noodles, then spoon the curry on top, making sure everyone gets their fair share of meatballs.

© Katheryn Rice 2009

Victoria sandwich cake

 

Mr Rice’s favourite ever cake. A classic, guaranteed to warm the coldest of hearts. This recipe is so simple – equal quantities of butter, sugar and flour, and light, lovely butter cream melting into sweet strawberry jam.

I’ve changed the recipe a little to make it even more light and fluffy. Nigella Lawson recommends replacing 25g of flour with cornflour. And I’ve added my own touch – creme fraiche. It just gives the cake that extra lift. Try it, and you’ll you know exactly what I mean!

NB: it’s best made in a food mixer with a K beater

Recipe for Victoria sandwich cake:
225g unsalted butter
225g golden caster sugar
200g plain white flour
25g cornflour
4 eggs
3 tsps baking powder
2 tbsp creme fraiche
6 tbsps strawberry jam
Buttercream recipe
150g unsalted butter
100g icing sugar

Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease and line two loose-bottomed cake tins. Put the butter and sugar into the food mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy. Then add the eggs one at a time, with a heaped spoonful of flour in between each one. When all the eggs are added, put the rest of the flour in, plus the cornflour and baking powder. Mix it all on a medium speed until it’s well combined, then add the vanilla and the creme fraiche and beat again until well mixed.

Transfer equal amounts of the mixture into each cake tin and place both tins on the centre shelf of the oven. Cook for 25 minutes at 180ºC. Be careful not to open the oven before 25 minutes or they might sink in the middle.

When the cakes are golden brown and springy to the touch, remove from the oven. Run a knife run the edge of the tin to loosen the cake, then carefully remove the cake and lay on a cooling rack. Carefully remove the loose bottom, then even more carefully peel away the paper.

To make the buttercream beat the butter and icing sugar together until it’s light and fluffy. It’s up to you how you put the cakes together. I put both tops facing inwards, which gives  perfectly flat top, plus if the cakes have sunk in the middle you can disguise this by filling up the gap with jam and buttercream, which is never a bad thing! So, spread a good dollop of jam on each cake, then spread the buttercream all over one side, as close to the edge as you can. Then sandwich the two cakes together, and finally dust with icing sugar. Irresistible!

©2007 Katheryn Rice

Mr Rice’s Halloumi and Chorizo Sandwiches

Mr Rice is getting into the high protein, lower carb way of eating, and he cleverly used this as a basis for these no bread, high-protein sandwiches.

Halloumi and Chorizo both have very strong flavours, but rather than clashing, they go very well. The salty, chewy cheese really teams up well with the tangy, chewy meat. I think what makes it works so well is that the flavours are equally sttrong, so rather than one dominate the other, they both get their message across. The houmous underneath smoothens everything out, and it’s all wrapped up in a crispy lettuce leaf. Maximum protein and minimum carbohydrate.

Recipe for Mr Rice’s Halloumi and Chorizo Sandwiches
½ pack of Halloumi Cheese
8 slices of Chorizo
4 crisp lettuce leaves
½ tub of houmous

Slice the halloumi into cm thick portions and cook on both sides under a medium grill. Grill or fry the chorizo slices. Assemble as follows: lettuce, houmous, chorizo, halloumi.

Fold the lettuce around the topping and tuck in.

© Katheryn Rice 2007

Pan fried duck breast with stir fried spring greens with egg and garlic

Mr Rice is so resourceful sometimes. I love it when I get home from work and he has been diligently cooking away. He’s not a ‘beans on toast for tea’ kind of man, he’s more of the ‘how can I show off with these ingredients?’ sort. This definitely works for me. This was a well-presented and carefully constructed dinner. The duck was succulent on the inside, crispy on the inside and sitting on a bed of Mr Rice’s lastest culinary invention: Stir fried spring greens with egg and garlic.

Recipe for Stir fried spring greens with egg and garlic
500g spring greens
1 egg
olive oil
soy sauce
several crushed garlic cloves

Cook the garlic gently in the oil for a few minutes, but be careful it doesn’t burn or it will be too bitter. Then add the spring greens and cook for a few minutes, coating in the garlic and oil. Then beat the egg and stir into the mixture. Cook for a couple more minutes and serve.

© Katheryn Rice 2007

Special bacon and eggs with asparagus

Mr Rice brought home some lovely, fresh asparagus, so I combined this with some fresh organic eggs from Abel & Cole, and some top of the range smoked bacon.

Blanch the asparagus for 3-4 minutes, then garnish with smoked bacon and a poached egg. Top it with hollandaise sauce, or maple syrup.

© Katheryn Rice 2007

Reunited Rices – BBQ Barn, Rockley, Barbados

Mr Rice sure knows how to treat his woman. He was watching the Cricket World Cup with his camera for a few weeks in the Caribbean while I stayed home with only my salad for company. Luckily I was able to visit him in Barbados for a week or so as the competition was coming to an end. On our first night together after 4 weeks he took me for chicken at the Barbeque Barn. Who needs wine and roses when you’ve got Mr Rice and deep fried mozzarella sticks?

We had a lovely time, catching up over chicken, rice and peas and a deep fried platter of onion rings, cheesy jalapenos and breaded mozzarella sticks. It was all pretty American, sitting in a booth eating fried food, but the restaurant itself seemed to be filled with locals, which tends to be a good sign. Cheap, quick and harmless food in an all American setting. I’m looking forward to something more Bajan tomorrow!

© Katheryn Rice 2007

Special Sausage and Mash

Sausage and mash can be done cheaply, extravagantly or originally. Mr Rice treated me to a farewell meal on his last day at home with his own take on the classic English dish.

What I loved about this meal was that Mr Rice chose all my favourite foods, and he knows very well that the way to my heart is through my sweet tooth, with a consideration for my interpretation of a low GL diet. His bangers and mash comprised:
Full sized pigs in smoked blankets
Sweet potato mash topped with parmesan
Caramelised onion gravy
Steamed brocolli

The pigs in blankets are cooked in the oven, giving them a super-crispiness combined with caramelised edges. Drizzle them with the caramelised onion gravy and fill your boots!

©2007 Katheryn Rice

Mr Rice’s best ever Bolognaise

I can’t believe how delicious this was. When Mr Rice cooks one of his signature dishes he likes to remind me that his dad was a chef at the Savoy for a while – obviously this is a way of reiterating that his cooking ability is just one of the many riches of the Rice inheritance. And I have to say pretty much everything he makes lives up to this bold claim. This Spaghetti Bolognaise was definitely, honestly the best I have eaten. In fact just thinking about it again now is almost too much to bear now that it is all gone.

Of course the precious chef never likes to give away all his secrets, so Mr Rice has given me a summary of the ingredients and method. It is up to you to use them as you see fit to make your own version of this stonkingly delicious meal.

Recipe for Mr Rice’s best ever Bolognaise
Beef mince
Onions
Garlic
Carrots
Smoked bacon
Tinned plum tomatoes
Red wine
Brown, organic spaghetti
Parmesan cheese
Cheddar cheese

Fry the onions and garlic. When soft and translucent, add the mince and chopped bacon and cook until the mince is browned. Then finely grate the carrot into the mixture, cook for a few minutes and then add the tomatoes, breaking them down as you stir the mixture. Use less tomato than you think you should – this is the key to the dish. Then add a slug of red wine to your taste. Cook on a low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and rich.

Serve with the spaghetti and top with the finely grated parmesan and cheddar.

©2007 Katheryn Rice

Mr Rice makes an omelette

After a frazzling day at work, not many things could make me happier than the sight of Mr Rice in the kitchen with his pinny on, lovingly preparing me a cheese and ham omelette. He even garnished it with a side salad of lettuce, red pepper and cherry tomatoes – my favourite salady things. Accompany this with a glass of skimmed milk and it’s the perfect GL tea.

Mr Rice’s Cheese and ham omelette recipe
2 eggs
splash of skimmed milk
50g cheddar cheese, grated
50g honey roast ham, shredded
1 spring onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
butter for frying

Warm the butter in a medium frying pan. Mix the milk and eggs together, then pour quickly into the frying pan and stir lightly and gently to give the omelette texture without making it into scrambled eggs. When the egg is still soft, sprinkle the cheese, then ham, then spring onions evenly over the top of the omelette. Keep the heat gentle and keep still for a few minutes while the bottom of the omelette cooks. When it is golden brown on the bottom, flip the omelette and cook the other side. Then fold in half and serve with a light salad.

©2007 Katheryn Rice

Super-trendy prawn cocktail

A favourite at Rice Towers is the classic prawn cocktail. Don’t be fooled by the nay-sayers who tell you it’s passe or unimaginative. Mr Rice likes to make it when he’s in show-off mode. Choose good quality prawns, preferably some meaty tiger prawns, sit it on a bed of little gem lettuce, and serve with slices of crusty baguette.

Prawn Cocktail Recipe
500g meaty prawns (preferably tiger)
4 tbsps mayonnaise
4 tbsps tomato ketchup
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp garlic puree (optional)
1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
salt & black pepper to taste
1 tsp lime juice
lime wedges to serve

Mix all the sauce ingredients together, then serve on a bed of little gem lettuce, with crusty granary bread.

GL Tips:

• Use light mayonnaise and reduced sugar ketchup.
• The lime juice lowers the overall GL of the dish, so make sure you squeeze those wedges over your finished dish.
• Use granary bread, not white.

©2007 Katheryn Rice