Instant Entertaining

Donna Hays Instant Entertaining is must have cook book for an easy yet stunning entertaining menu.

Ingredients
1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 red apples, thinly sliced
80g rocket leaves, washed
1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
sea salt
cracked black pepper
150 g goat's cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 180degC and arrange 8 x 1 1/2 tablespoons of parmesan in circles on a baking tray lined with non stick baking paper and bake for 10 minutes or until crispy. Set aside to cool.

Toss the apple and rocket in the combined vinegar, oil, salt and pepper. Arrange on serving plates with the goat's cheese and parmesan wafers.

Recipe and image from Donna Hay Instant Entertaining

Pumpkin Scones

Serves 12 Cooking Time Prep time 15 mins, cook 40 mins

250 gm peeled jarrahdale or Queensland blue pumpkin, cut into 3cm pieces
300 gm (2 cups) self-raising flour
½ tsp ground nutmeg
75 gm (1/3 cup) pure icing sugar, sifted
40 gm butter, softened
1 egg yolk
For brushing: milk
To serve: butter

Preheat oven to 200C. Place pumpkin in a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water, cover and steam until tender (about 15 minutes), then transfer to an oven tray and bake for 10 minutes to dry out. Cool, then pass through a coarse sieve.

Sift flour, nutmeg and 1 tsp salt into a bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat icing sugar and butter until pale and fluffy, add egg yolk and beat to combine. Using a wooden spoon, stir in pumpkin, then half the flour mixture. Add remaining flour mixture and, using your hands, bring together to make a dough, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until smooth (dough should be a little sticky).

Roll out to 2cm thick and, using a 5.5cm-diameter cutter dipped in flour, cut rounds (without twisting cutter) from dough and transfer to a lightly greased oven tray. Re-roll scraps and repeat. Brush tops with milk and bake until golden and sound hollow when tapped (10-15 minutes). Serve hot or at room temperature with butter.

Note Different types of pumpkins have varying moisture levels. Keep this in mind when bringing the dough together, as you may need to add a little more flour for ease of handling.

WORDS Belinda So RECIPE Adelaide Lucas PHOTOGRAPHY Teny Aghamalian STYLING Vanessa Austin Published by Gourmet Traveller

Pumpkin Soup

1 brown onion, peeled, wedged
600g pumpkin, peeled, cut into chunks
400g potatoes, peeled, cut into chunks
1 litre vegetable stock
2 fresh bay leaves, or dried if fresh unavailable.
4 whole peppercorns
Cream to serve

Place onion, pumpkin, potatoes, stock, bay leaves and peppercorns in a large saucepan and bring to a gentle boil.

Simmer uncovered, until potatoes are soft, you may need to top up with water if too much liquid evaporates.

Remove bay leaves and puree with stick blender until smooth.

For extra smooth soup you can pass it through a fine sieve.

Serve with cream and freshly ground black pepper and sea salt

Jerusalem Artichoke & Potato Soup

1 brown onion, diced finely

2 garlic cloves, sliced finely

500g jerusalem artichokes

500g potatoes, peeled and diced into 1cm cubes
1 cup vegetable stock
water
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat olive oil and butter in a saucepan over a low heat, when melted add the onion and garlic and sauté slowly for a few minutes, without browning. Gently scrub the Jerusalem Artichokes until well cleaned and remove any dark skin with a paring knife.

Cut them into chunks and add them with the diced potatoes to saucepan. Stir until well coated in oil and butter and sweat for 5 minutes before adding stock and then water to cover them. Simmer uncovered until they are soft.

Use a stick blender and blend until smooth. Push through a fine sieve to remove skin. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

The cheese wafers are from Donna Hay, Instant Entertaining. Preheat oven to 180. Arrange grated parmesan or pecorino in 2" circles on a baking paper lined tray and bake until melted and browned around the edges. set aside to cool.

Gourmet Baked Mushroom on Sourdough

I have used this recipe as a starter for a dinner party, a light meal and it would also make a fab breky with some crispy pancetta on the side. This recipe was sorced from Taste magazine

Bash olive oil, garlic and basil.

Brush flat mushrooms with basil oil and season with salt & pepper. Place two halved cherry tomatoes cut side up on mushroom and bake in oven for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile: brush a slice of sourdough or pane de casa bread with basil oil. Bake in oven for 6 minutes.

Place rocket on bread then mushroom. Sprinkle with crumbled feta and drizzle with basil oil.

Garnish with basil leaves.

I don't know where is recipe came from.

Rocket & Spinach Pesto Spaghetti

This is a great pasta that is packed full of freshness, you can add some oven roasted cherry tomatoes or pumpkin, or even some cooked salmon pieces. Make the pesto as close to serving time as possible as it tends to loose its bite.

½ bunch rocket, washed, ends trimmed and dry
½ bunch spinach, washed, ends trimmed and dry
3 garlic gloves
35g parmesan
35g pine nuts

Lemon rind of 1/4 of a lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
80ml (1/3 cup) fresh lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Bashed all of the dry ingredients in a mortar and pestle until it is a very thick chunky paste. Stir in lemon juice and olive oil to make it a pesto consistency. If you add the liquid too soon it makes it messy to bash up the dry ingredients. You can add a little bit of lemon juice earlier if it is too dry to bash.

Cook thin spaghetti in a large saucepan until al dente. Drain well and return to the pan.

Add the rocket and spinach pesto to the pasta and toss until well combined.

Serve with finely grated parmesan, lemon juice and rind.

Mediterranean Rice Salad

I am not sure where this recipe came from, my mother in law gave it to me. It is my most favorite salad and i have also made this using pasta instead of rice.

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 12 Minutes

2 cups white long grain rice
2 cups chicken stock
420g drained corn kernels
1 cup semi sundried tomatoes
½ cup pine nuts, toasted.
8 green onions
½ cup green olives, sliced
1 cup fresh basil, chopped
Mustard Dressing

½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons seeded mustard
1 glove garlic
salt & pepper

Place rice in a large sieve and rinse under cold water until water runs clear. Bring the chicken stock to the boil in a medium saucepan; add the rice, simmer covered, over low heat for about 10 minutes until the rice is just tender, and all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff rice with a fork and leave to cool.

In a jar combine all mustard dressing ingredients and shake.

Place the rice, corn, tomatoes, pinenuts, onions, olives and basil in a large bowl.
Just before serving add the mustard dressing. Season to taste.