Porta Pilao (Chicken/Rice/Raisins Baked in Phyllo Dough)

This is a dish my mother-in-law made for years, the combination of phyllo dough with the unique flavors of the filling is delicious. Porta pilao never has left overs, it always disappears.
I made this two years ago, and it failed. The phyllo dough split while baking, this was such a disappointment that I never tried to make it again. Now my wonderful sister-in-law, Karen, who makes it with her eyes closed at top speed has very kindly given me a tutorial on the secrets of making this. She insists there is no need to fuss, she makes the filling the day before, she only buys fresh phyllo dough, never frozen and keeps it in the fridge for up to two weeks. She says frozen phyllo dough falls apart which is probably what happened to me. Also I never knew there were different sizes of phyllo dough ... she buys #4.
This can be made several days ahead.

Ingredients

6 lbs chicken legs and breasts
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 1/2 cups rice
2 cups seedless yellow raisins
1 cup slivered almonds
Phyllo Pastry Sheets #4 (fresh not frozen)
fresh phyllo dough can be found at Samir’s or any specialty store
2 sticks Unsalted Butter
1 large onion
1 1/2 teaspoons cloves
2 teaspoons cardamon
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 teaspoons allspice
Salt to taste
3 tablespoon hot Curry Powder
7-8 cups Chicken Broth

Directions

Wash and drain chicken in 6 cups cold water and 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar to refresh. Drain chicken and place in a deep pot, cover chicken with chicken broth, a teaspoon of salt and 3 tablespoons hot curry powder dissolving well in the broth. Bring to boil, skimming off any froth that rises to the surface. Lower heat, cover pot and simmer for 45 minutes or till tender.
Remove chicken, place on a flat tray to cool for about 30 minutes. Once cooled, you may debone and shred the chicken. Set broth aside.

Melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in a 3 quart pot and saute 2 1/2 cups rice for 1 minute stirring constantly.
Measure 3 1/2 cups of chicken broth and pour over the rice. Add 1 teaspoon salt.
Bring to boil and then lower heat. Simmer covered until rice is done.

Mince 1 large onion.
Saute onion in 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil till tender.
Add 2 cups slivered almonds and 2 cups seedless yellow raisins.
Continue frying over medium heat until almonds are beginning to brown. Stir from time to time.

Add chicken and sprinkle 
       2 teaspoons ground cardamon                              
       2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
       3 teaspoons ground allspice
       1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves   
       salt to taste
      Add 3 - 4 tablespoons chicken broth to avoid sticking
      to pan (a ladleful)
Saute for 3-4 minutes more, then turn off heat.

Pour rice over chicken, almond, raisin mixture and mix very gently until well blended. Set aside.

Phyllo Pastry Sheets #4

Always buy phyllo dough fresh not frozen. Remove dough from wrapper and place saran wrap over the dough, do not seal tight. Cover with a towel.
Work fast with phyllo pastry sheets as it dries quickly in the air. Remember to brush
each leaf with melted butter.

We use unsalted butter, but you can also use clarified butter. To make clarified butter, melt butter in a shallow pan, bring to a boil, spoon out white broth from top leaving clear butter at bottom of pan. Or microwave  50-65 seconds.

Have phyllo pastry sheets ready on a wooden board covered with saran wrap and a towel. Have melted unsalted butter and pastry brush by side of board along with a deep 5 quart oven proof bowl.

Brush the inside of the bowl first with melted butter before placing the phyllo pastry sheets in, or the whole dish will fail.
Lay the phyllo sheet out on your work surface, brush with butter all over, fold 1/3 of the dough over, then fold the remainder of the single sheet over to cover the 1/3 fold. Brush with butter. It will now be
Folded into 3 folds like a napkin, brush  with butter and place in bottom of bowl first.

Continue in this way, placing the sheets next to each other so that the inside of the bowl is covered and one end of the phyllo sheet is hanging outside of the edge of the bowl. Continue brushing dough with butter and lining the inside of the bowl with phyllo dough. Be sure there are some extra squares in the base of the bowl. Karen also reinforced the sides with square folds of dough, before adding the filling.

 

Next add chicken and rice mixture to the inside of bowl, fold over the phyllo sheets and put a couple of the remaining phyllo pieces on top. Brush with butter. The chicken mixture is now completely sealed inside the phyllo sheets.

Bake in oven at 350 degrees F. for approximately 1 1/2 hours till brown and crisp.

Turn out of bowl onto a platter and serve hot.

This recipe made one large and one small porta pilau, good for a crowd.

Vodka Sauce

Quick and easy!

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1 Onion
1 cup vodka
2 cans crushed tomatoes
1 pint heavy cream
1 teasp. salt

Directions

Melt butter in a saucepan, chop onion and saute in butter till lightly browned. Pour in vodka and cook for five minutes. Pour in crushed tomatoes and simmer for 30 mins.
Add 1 cup heavy cream, 1 teasp. salt and simmer stirring from time to time for 15 minutes.
Serve with pasta of your choice.

Spinach Salad with Chick Peas

Ingredients

4 Bunches Fresh Spinach
2 Cloves Garlic

Olive Oil
1 Red Onion
1 Can Chick Peas
2 Lemons
Salt
Pepper
Allspice

Directions

Wash spinach and chop. In a saucepan, put 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 cloves garlic quartered. Heat oil and once garlic cloves start sizzling, throw in spinach, stir, and cook covered over low heat till tender. Drain spinach in a colander over a pan.
In a bowl place 1 can drained chick peas, 1 red onion chopped and add the spinach.
Add 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and 1 teaspoon allspice. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and the juice of 2 lemons. Mix well together. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

Hungarian Pickled Peppers

Make sure you wear rubber gloves when working with these peppers! After you have sliced the peppers, change the gloves to fill the jars. If the juice by some error gets into your eyes, flush your eye with milk, keep blinking...... The jars can be stored in a cool place, once you have opened the jar, keep in refrigerator.

Ingredients

8  2qt pickling jars
1/2 bushel Hungarian peppers
Pickling salt
salicylic acid
16 cups water
16 cups white vinegar
8 cloves garlic
1 basil leaf (optional)
1 sprig oregano (optional)
1 teasp. sugar (optional, and cuts down on heat)

Directions
Wash 8  2qt. pickling jars in the dishwasher to sterilize.
Slice of each end of pepper, wash thoroughly and slice 1/2 inch thick. Leave seeds in.
In a large pot, bring 16 cups of vinegar and 16 cups water to the boil.

In the bottom of each jar, place a garlic clove sliced in half, 1 tablespoon pickling salt and 1/2 teaspoon salicylic acid. (the basil leaf and oregano sprig may be added also if you choose to use them). Pack the jars with the sliced peppers. Spoon boiling water and vinegar mixture into the jars so the level of liquid is right to the top. Leave to let the bubbles rise, add a little more liquid and place the lid firmly on top, twisting tight. Turn the jar upside down to seal the lid and leave overnight.
Store in a cool place. Does not need to be refrigerated until you have opened the jar.

Sausage Rolls

Ingredients

1 lb Gianelli Sweet Sausage
1 cup breadcrumbs
2 eggs (1 egg beaten plus 1 egg beaten for egg wash)
3 Puff Pastry Sheets


Directions

Thaw the puff pastry sheets by leaving the sealed package out for at least 1 hour.
Mix 1 cup breadcrumbs, 1/2 beaten egg and 1lb Gianelli sweet sausage (skins removed) in a bowl. Mix thoroughly until the meat starts to stick together.
Using your hands, roll the sausage meat, forming about 4 cylindrical shapes about 3/4 inch thick and 10 inches long. Set meat aside.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Line a large baking tray with parchment paper.
Open the thawed puff pastry and place a sheet on a floured surface. Cut into strips about 3 inches wide and 10 inches long.
Place a piece of the pre-formed sausage meat on the pastry close to the edge. Roll the pastry around the meat, overlapping underneath by one inch.
Cut the pastry roll, then roll it back to brush the lower layer with egg wash. Re-roll and seal the lower seam.
Using a sharp knife, cut two diagonal 1/2 slits in the top surface of the roll. Repeat the procedure to form 18 sausage rolls.
Lay the prepared sausage rolls on the baking tray in rows one inch apart.
Brush the top of the pastry with egg wash.
Bake in a 400 degree F. oven for 20 minutes. Lower the heat to 350 degrees F. and bake for a further 5 minutes.
Remove from the oven when golden brown on top. Cool the sausage rolls on a wire rack.
Serve hot or cold.
Can also be made ahead and frozen uncooked. Take straight from the freezer, brush with egg wash and bake in a 400 degree F. oven for 20 minutes as above.

Strawberry/Rasberry/Blueberry Trifle

Ingredients

Angel Food Cake
1 Package Jello Instant Pudding

1 Package Jello Strawberry Flavor
Rasberries
Blueberries
Blackberries
Strawberries or enough fruit to generously cover one layer.
Heavy Cream
9 x 12 pyrex dish
1 teaspoon Grand Marnier (optional)

Directions

Make the jello first from a large package Jello, use strawberry or rasberry. Follow the directions on the package and put in fridge to start thickening. You don’t want to have a totally jelled mixture, nor too runny, just on the edge of thickening so you can spread it around.
Once you feel the jello is just beginning to firm up, take one whole angel food cake, slice cake in half and make 1/4 inch wedge slices to cover the bottom of the pyrex dish. Leave half the remainder of the cake for the top.
Make the vanilla pudding mixture, following the directions on the package, add 1 teaspoon Grand Marnier to the pudding mix, it makes all the difference.
Spread a generous layer of rasberries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries (even bananas are nice) over the cake slices. Next spread half the jello mixture over the fruit.
Then spread half the vanilla mixture over the jello.
Place the remainder of the angel food cake slices all over the top of the pudding.
Spread the remainder of the jello mix and then the rest of the vanilla pudding.
Whip up1/2 cup heavy cream till firm and spread over top.
Top with some strawberries.

Scotch Eggs

We all fell in love with Scotch Eggs while in England this summer, my cousin Debs Culpan made us some using her distinguished chicken's eggs......... and then again at Marie Claire's wedding, scotch eggs were served made by the Dorset Lake Shipyard chef......... we just couldn't stop eating them! I remember them as a child, as being heavy and the eggs overcooked........... ...... but we tasted something entirely different...... the egg yolk was soft but not runny, and the sausage coating had a crunch. So I'm trying to recreate that taste. When I first made them they looked a bit like hand grenades, but sliced in half, more appetizing and we ate the lot!

Ingredients

8 oz Gianelli Sweet Sausage
4 eggs (plus one more egg beaten)
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup Panka breadcrumbs
1 egg beaten
Olive Oil

Directions

Place 4 eggs in a saucepan and cover with water, bring to the boil and then simmer for 9 minutes. Drain the water and place eggs in a bowl of cold water. Peel the eggs and place on a paper towel.
Divide the Gianelli sausage meat into 4 pieces, flatten into rounds. (Deborah says it help to put the sausage meat between two pieces of cling film and roll out flat with a rolling pin) Dip the egg in flour, then wrap the flattened sausage meat round the egg, sealing all spaces, then dip it in the beaten egg mixture and then the Panka breadcrumbs.
Heat 1 inch of olive oil in a small pan, make sure the oil is 350 to 375 degrees F. Deep fry the scotch eggs until dark golden brown.
Drain on paper towels
 Slice in half and eat.
Or can be stored once cooled in fridge.