Sunday, June 16, 2013

Winter Warmers

It has been such a cold and rainy week, but the perfect weather to cook a real winter warmer.
My family loves this recipe and has become one of our winter favorites.  I thought I would share it with you.

                       

Chicken and Prosciutto Cannelloni.

50g butter  - 1/4 cup plain flour  - 2/3 cup milk - 375ml chicken stock.
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese - 400g fontina cheese grated - 1 tab spoon olive oil.
2 medium onions finely chopped - 3 clove garlic crushed -1kg chicken mince.
2 tab finely chopped fresh sage - 850g canned tomatoes - 125ml dry white wine.
70g tomato paste - 12 fresh lasagne sheets -24 slices prosciutto.

Heat butter in medium saucepan, cook flour, stirring, until four thickens and bubbles. Gradually stir in milk and stock, stirring until sauce boils and thickens.  Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan and a quarter of the fontina.
Heat oil in large saucepan, cook onion and garlic, stirring until onion is soft.  Add chicken, cook until browned.  Stir in sage.  Combine chicken and cheese sauce in large bowl and cool.
Combine undrained tomatoes, wine, paste in large pan, cook and stir for 10 min.Cool then blend or process until smooth.
Cut pasta sheets and prosciutto slices in half.  Place two pieces of prosciutto on each piece of pasta, top with 1/4 cup of chicken mixture and roll to enclose.  Repeat.
Oil 2 ovenproof dishes. Pour a 1/4 of the tomato sauce into each base, place pasta rolls seam side down in each dish.  Pour remaining tomato sauce over rolls and sprinkle each dish with fontina cheese.
Bake in moderate oven for 30 min covered, then uncover, further bake 15 min till brown.

I use Robert Gordon bakeware to cook my cannelloni. I have found the Robert Gordon bakeware absolutely remarkable for baking.  They don't craze and any baked on crusts wash off very easily.
Rapt Up stocks the Robert Gordon range of bakeware which includes varying sizes and colours. The bakeware comes with a 10 year guarantee and that is recommendation enough.





Saturday, June 8, 2013

Colours of Autumn

I love all the seasons in the garden, but I especially love Autumn.  The summer heat has gone, which I am sure all the plants appreciate, the roses are still gorgeous and the colours of the deciduous tree are just something else. We have had some Autumn rain that was very welcome which helps with the daily grind of watering.

The capital pear (pyrus calleryana) trees that I have many of in the garden, are the last of the ornamental pear trees to change colour and lose there leaves, along with one of my favorite plants Spirea Cantoniensis ( May Bush ).  In front of these plants I have a prostate Rosemary which falls over a wall and is in constant bloom.  It's a lovely garden bed at any time of the year but especially in the Autumn.

The roses are almost at their end but are still producing blooms that last much longer than in the Summer.  My two favorite David Austin roses are Redoute and Glamis Castle which I couldn't resist photographing.


Our back garden is still very much a work in progress.  Just recently we have added a wooden structure to connect the garden and have a walk way up to very back of the yard.  It now needs to be paved through the middle which is a job for my ever patient husband. Still to be decided what to plant over the top of the structure, but am thinking about an ornamental vine, to give even more Autumn colour to the garden.


The website www. raptup.com.au  has been extremely busy but my garden is my sanctuary and I always make time every week to be out in it.