A delicious dinner at Ann's place

Roast Duck with Sweet-Sour Sauce

Ruby’s recipe:

½ cup Golden Circle Sweet-Sour Sauce, 1 young duck, 1 tspn salt, dash pepper, 1 sliced onion, 1 large sliced carrot, 2 sliced stalks celery, 3 cups boiling water.

Prepare duck for roasting, rub with salt and sprinkle with pepper.

Place vegetables in roasting pan, lay duck on top and pour hot water into pan. Roast in moderately-hot oven (150° - 180° C) allowing about 25 minutes per 500 grams. When cooked remove duck to hot platter and keep hot. Strain liquid in pan, skim off any fat, add sweet-sour sauce, bring to boil and thicken slightly with 1 tblspn cornflour blended in 2 tblspns cold water. Cook 5 minutes. A tblspn brandy or soy sauce can be added to gravy if you wish. Carve duck and serve hot with the sauce.

Ann’s variation:

4 duck breasts, 1 carrot sliced, 1 stalk celery sliced, 1 red onion in chunks, 1 green capsicum cut in squares, 1 tblspn grated fresh ginger, 1 tblspn oil, ½ can Golden Circle pineapple rings and juice from can; 1 tblspn cornflour, 2 tblspn cider vinegar, 2 tblspn tomato sauce, 1 tsp soy sauce.

Sear duck breasts skin side down in hot pan, drain off fat (save for roast potatoes another day), turn and cook a minute on other side.  Put in oven to cook through, about 10 mins. For sauce, quickly stir fry carrot, celery, onion, ginger, pineapple and capsicum.  Mix cornflour with pineapple juice and other sauce ingredients, pour into pan with veg and cook until thickened. Serve with duck breasts, a green vegetable and steamed rice.

And for dessert . . .

Spiced Shortcake Slices

(Ruby’s recipe once again with added suggestions from Ann)

2 X 440g cans Golden Circle Crushed Pineapple, ¼ cup each cornflour and cold water (or use juice of half a lemon made up to ¼ cup with cold water), 3 cups self-raising flour, 1 tblsp cocoa, 1 tspn cinnamon, ½ tspn ground ginger, 185 gm butter, ½ cup icing sugar, 1 egg, ¼ cup milk.

Empty contents of cans into saucepan, bring to boiling point. Stir in cornflour mixed with water. Cook until thickened. Set aside to cool.

Sift flour, cocoa and spices. Cream butter, gradually beating in icing sugar. Beat in egg. Blend in half of flour mixture, add milk, then remaining flour. Mix to firm dough. Alternate method: process butter and icing sugar until creamy, add egg and process again.  Add 1 cup flour and all spices, process.  Add milk and process, finally add remaining flour and process until a dough. 

Roll two-thirds out to line shallow greased pan approx. 20 cm X 28 cm X 3 cm. Roll remainder to fit top of pan. Add pineapple filling to pan. Moisten edges of pastry and cover with top crust. Prick surface. Bake in moderate oven (190°C) 25 minutes or until pastry is crisp. Cool and slice.

To make handling pastry easier, roll out between plastic wrap. After rolling, chill the 1/3 piece for the top, still between the plastic, while you press the remaining 2/3 into the tin and add the filling.  Arrange the top piece on the pie, remove plastic, trim edges and prick with a fork.

Delicious with Ann's homemade fig ice cream.

Apple-a-day

Chilled Golden Circle Apple Juice with a ripe strawberry or cherry slipped over a straw if desired.

Note: The fabulous pineapple shaped ice cubes !

Note: The cute little Golden Circle Pineapple Juice bottle Les tracked down on e bay !

Dancing with the pineapples

Thanks very much to Val in Sydney who gave us permission to use this great photo of the colourful and joyous Flor de Pina dance in Oaxaca, Mexico.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/71072750@N00/5369671064/

 

Chickenburgers

440g can Golden Circle Pineapple Pieces, 230g cooked chicken, 230g creamed potatoes, 1 beaten egg, 1 tspn grated onion, 1 tspn chopped parsley and seasonings.

Mince chicken fine and place in bowl with potatoes, beaten egg, onion, parsley and seasonings. Mix well, form into patties, dust with flour, dip in beaten egg and coat with fine dry crumbs. Fry golden brown on both sides. Drain pineapple pieces and heat in pan after cooking patties. Serve burgers sandwich style with filling of pineapple pieces. NOTE: Some cooks like to add ham or mushrooms to chickenburgers.

Fish fingers . . . and pineapple

Bring back the 70s! A friend, Greg, sent me this link – I hope you weren't thinking of cooking this for dinner Greg! It certainly reminds me of when I first left home and started cooking my own haute cuisine! I suspect I even owned these Betty Crocker recipe cards! Anne

Fish Stick Breakfast Broil  (4 servings)

1 package (16 ounces) frozen fish sticks, 1 can (8 and 1/2 ounces) sliced pineapple – drained, 2 tablespoons cranberry-orange relish, 4 English muffins - split and toasted.

Arrange fish sticks and pineapple slices on lightly buttered baking sheet. Fill each pineapple slice with rounded teaspoonful cranberry-orange relish. Set oven control at broil and/or 550 degrees. Broil fish sticks and pineapple slices 5 inches from heat about 5 minutes or until fish sticks are golden. Serve with English muffins.

This classic recipe is from a Betty Crocker recipe card.
©Copyright 1971 by General Mills, Inc.

Scandinavian Ice-Box Cake

This was delicious, must contain a million calories, Ann.

440g can Golden Circle Crushed Pineapple, ½ cup castor sugar, 110g each butter and brown sugar, ¼ tspn nutmeg, ½ tspn cinnamon, 1 pkt wheatmeal biscuits, 1 tspn grated lemon rind, 1 cup whipping cream, 1 tblspn castor sugar, ½ tspn vanilla essence.

Empty contents of pineapple can into saucepan, add the ½ cup sugar and bring to boiling point, stirring to dissolve sugar. Set aside to cool. Stir in lemon rind. Crush biscuits finely. Melt butter in saucepan, add brown sugar and spices, stir over low heat until blended, then pour over biscuits crumbs. Stir to blend. Make layers of crumbs and pineapple in a 20cm square cake pan, starting and ending with crumbs. Whip the chilled cream, adding the tblspn sugar and vanilla during beating. When thick and fluffy spread over top of dessert. Chill two or more hours before serving.

Be a "hit with the children"

Pineapple Coconut Squares

440g Golden Circle Pineapple Pieces, 1 cup sweetened condensed milk, 3 tblspns fresh lemon juice, 1 tblspn grated lemon rind, 1 layer sponge cake baked in pan 18 cm X 28 cm X 4 cm, 2 cups toasted coconut, mint leaves.

Drain pineapple pieces. Combine condensed milk, lemon juice and rind. Stir until thick. Cut cake into 5 cm squares. Spread with the milk mixture and sprinkle with coconut. Chill. Garnish with pineapple pieces and mint.

As Ruby says “This simple dessert cake will make a great hit with the children. It’s pretty enough for party fare.”

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 Maria and Pascal made this delicious looking Pineapple Upside Down Cake.

They found the recipe online at http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/pineapple_upside_down_cake/

Topping:

1 cup of firmly packed dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 can (440g) of pineapple slices

Cake:

1 1/2 cups plain flour, 6 tbsp cake flour, 6 tbsp of ground almonds (from about 2 oz of whole almonds,  3/4 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 3/4 cups of sugar, 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature, 4 large eggs,  3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, 3/4 cup sour cream

Start by making the caramel topping. Take brown sugar and butter and combine and melt in a saucepan on medium heat until sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbly, this should take several minutes. (After sugar melts, don't stir.) Pour mixture into a 10 inch diameter stick-free cake pan with 2 inch high sides. Arrange pineapple slices in a single layer on top of the caramel mixture.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Whisk the flours, almonds, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the sugar and butter together until light. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add dry ingredients alternately with sour cream in 2 additions each, beating well after each addition. Pour cake batter over caramel and pineapple in pan.

Bake cake until tester inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Marshmallows and what ?

Marshmallows and celery !

Tropical Mallow

Golden Circle Pineapple and Orange Drink with Pineapple Pieces set in lime jelly, add chopped celery and a white marshmallow.

Marshmallows and sherry ! Why didn’t I think of that !

Pineapple Delight

440g can Golden Circle Crushed Pineapple, ½ cup sweet sherry, ¼ pint whipped cream, 24 white marshmallows, 1 tblspn gelatine, ½ cup boiling water.

Cut marshmallows into quarters, soak in sherry overnight. Place crushed pineapple and syrup in saucepan, bring to boiling point and stir in the gelatine soaked in the ½ cup boiling water. Stir to blend. Cool. Fold in soaked marshmallows and whipped cream. Turn into 18cm soufflé dish or glass serving dish. Chill until firm.

Summer fare

Pineapple Tuna Spread

440g can Golden Circle Pineapple Pieces, drained, 200g can solid pack Tuna Fish, drained, ½ cup grated Cheddar Cheese, 1 tblspn grated onion or chopped eschalot, ¼ tsp dry mustard, 2 tblspns prepared mayonnaise.

Flake the tuna fish and blend with the pineapple pieces and cheese. Stir onion and mustard into mayonnaise and combine with pineapple mixture. Spread on buttered toast and serve with salad vegetables.

The Salad Bowl

440g can Golden Circle Sliced Pineapple, 1 lettuce, 1 cucumber, 1 onion (optional), 3 tomatoes, salad dressing.

Drain pineapple slices and cut in halves. Wash and crisp lettuce, break into thumb-sized pieces. Peel and cut cucumber into finger-lengths. Cut tomatoes in quarters. Slice onion finely. Wipe wooden salad bowl with warm olive oil then rub with cut garlic. At serving time arrange prepared vegetables in bowl. Toss and add dressing.

I enjoyed reading Ruby’s measurements in this recipe and half expected her to continue the body part lengths with ear-sized tomatoes and toe-nail sized chopped onions! Anne.