Mediterranean Recipes

Here are a few recipes of the most popular Mediterranean dishes:

Mediterranean Chicken - ingredients for two people:

• 2 Plump - skin on - chicken breasts
• 1 Large glass of dry white wine
• The same amount of chicken stock
• 12 Black olives - pitted
• 18 Capers
• 6 Cloves of garlic - skinned but left whole
• 1/2 A preserved lemon, skin only, cut into thin strips, or the grated rind of a fresh lemon
• About 40 fresh pine nuts
• 1/2 A red pepper cut into thin strips
• 12 Sprigs of fresh rosemary - the tender top bits
• Extra virgin olive oil to fry
• A teaspoon of cornflour (corn starch) to thicken
• Salt and black pepper

How to make: Season the chicken breasts with salt and plenty of black pepper and leave to rest. Put the wine, red pepper, stock, half your rosemary and all the garlic into a pan and bring it to the boil. Simmer for about thirty minutes, reducing the liquid by about half.Take out the rosemary and discard, add the olives, capers and preserved lemons. Thicken the sauce to the desired consistency, and slake the cornflour in a little cold water.Cook the chicken in the olive oil, skinside down until the skin is crisp and browned, about 7- 10 minutes. Turn over and cook for another 5 - 7 minutes until cooked through. Remove from the pan and keep warm in the oven. Pour off most of the oil from your pan on to the pine nuts. Stir until browned. Spoon the sauce onto warmed dinner plates and place the chicken on them. Garnish with the toasted pine nuts.

Pan fried salmon - ingredients for 4 people:

• 4 Skinless - boneless Salmon cutlets - about 6ozs. each.
• 1 Large orange - juice and zest.
• 1 Large lemon - juice and zest.
• 1/2 A cup (4 fl. ozs.) fish or chicken stock.
• 1 Clove of garlic - skin on - bashed.
• 12 Black olives pitted and halved.
• 2 Heaped teaspoons of capers.
• Plain flour to dust.
• Corn starch to thicken the sauce (cornflour).
• 2 Tbs. olive oil to fry.
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Make the sauce by putting the lemon & orange juice and the zest into a pan with the stock and bring to the boil. Simmer gently for ten minutes. Thicken to the desired consistency with a little slaked corn starch (cornflour). Add the olives and capers and remove from the heat. Season the plain flour with plenty of salt and black pepper. Turn the Salmon cutlets over in the seasoned flour until it is well covered. Fry the salmon in the olive il for about ten minutes until all surfaces are brown. Put the cutlets into a low oven to keep warm.Then reheat the sauce and serve with saffron paella rice and steamed broccoli.

Lasagne - ingredients for 4 people:

Meat Sauce

• 1lb. ground beef
• 1 Large onion finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic mashed
• 116oz. Can of chopped tomatoes
• 2ozs. strong tomato paste
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• 1/4 Teaspoon dried chilli powder
• 1 Lemon - juice and grated zest
• 1 Glass of red wine
• 1 Teaspoon each of dried thyme and marjoram
• 1 Tablespoon of olive oil for frying

The Pasta
• 15 Sheets About 8ozs. of lasagne

Bechamel Sauce

• 2oz. plain flour
• 2ozs. Butter
• 1pt. Milk
• 1/2 A beef bouillon cube
• 1 Good pinch nutmeg

Topping

• Freshly grated Parmesan
• fresh breadcrumbs

For the Bolognese sauce fry the onions in olive oil, about five minutes, until it softens. Add the meat mix and stir well to make sure that all the lumps are removed, about ten minutes. When the meat and onion mix is nicely browned turn down the heat and add the garlic, stir for another five minutes Add all the other ingredients except the lemon juice and let the sauce cook out at a simmer for 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice. Use a earthenware to place lasagne and spoon in the sauce until evenly covered. Repeat until you have THREE layers of pasta and a layer of sauce on top, but leave room for the béchamel. Cover tightly with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes at 400ºf/200ºc. Make the béchamel in a saucepan by melting the butter, add the flour and stir until well bursted. Add the stock cube and half the milk bit-by-bit stirring all the time. Then whisk on the rest of the milk and the nutmeg until you have a smooth creamy sauce. Take the foil off your lasagne and put on the bechamel - cover with cheese and crumbs. Return to the oven and finish under the grill until golden brown.

Rice recipe - ingredients for four people:

• 4 Good sized Chicken legs - skinned and boned
• 200g./8ozs. of paella rice
• 1 Medium onion coarsly chopped
• 1 Red pepper cut into 1" dice
• 50g./2ozs. of broad beans
• 50g./2ozs. of peas
• 1/2 lb. of mushrooms chopped
• 3 Cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 1 Bunch of parsley
• 1 Pint of chicken stock
• 12 Threads of saffron
• 2 Lemons cut in quarters lengthwise
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and black pepper

How to make:

Fry the onions mushrooms and red pepper with the chicken pieces on high heat - stirring frequently for about five minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, stir for two minutes. Then stir the rice for a couple of minutes until it begins to turn opaque. Remove from the heat and boil up the stock with the saffron for about ten minutes. Replace the pan on a high heat, add half of the the peas and beans and give a final stir. Let the liquid reduce (don't stir it again) - and add the rest of the stock. Cook until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and then remove from the heat. Cover the pan with a clean cloth and leave until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Chop the parsley and sprinkle liberally on top of your paella. Serve with the lemon quarters.

Roast leg of lamb - ingredients:

• 1 Leg of Lamb of about 3 lbs (boned but not rolled)
• 6 Sprigs of fresh rosemary or two teaspoons of dried
• 1 Tablespoon of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
• 4 Cloves of garlic (chopped)
• 2 Tablespoons of coriander (chopped)
• 1 Fresh red chilli (chopped)
• Salt

For the spicy crust

• 2 Teaspoons of Cumin Seeds
• 2 Teaspoons of Coriander seeds
• 1 oz. Pine nuts

Red wine gravy

• 1/2 a pint/1cup Good Lamb stock
• 1/2 a pint/1cup Good red wine
• 1 Tablespoon of honey
• 1 Tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar
• 1 heaped teaspoon of Cornflour (cornstarch)
• water

Rub the boned leg of lamb with rosemary, garlic, fresh coriander, chilli and salt. Roll it up neatly and tie with string. Dry roast your pine nuts, spices and salt, and roughly crush them in a pestle and mortar. Roll the lamb in olive oil and the mixture. Roast in a medium-hot oven at 350f./175c. for about 45 minutes, turn once. Add the stock and red wine together and reduce to half in a pan, then add the honey and balsamic. Thicken with the cornflour (slaked in a little cold water). Cut the lamb and serve with gravy.

And there are a few recipes [http://the-mediterranean-region-and-all-its-beatuy.com/mediterranean-recipes/] for some common dishes in the Mediterranean region.

[http://the-mediterranean-region-and-all-its-beatuy.com/mediterranean-recipes/]

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