The Night Santa Went Crazy

Reading a book by Diam Zainuddin in regards to the War in Iraq...with all the recent hoopla with Saddam Hussein finally being captured yesterday, it's a pretty interesting read nonetheless...

Dusty's staying outside from tonight onwards...damn dog left some little gifts for me to find this morning...no, it wasn't anything evacuated from inside her body, but on the outside - ticks, lots and lots of...

Finished Cocharan's Minute that he gave me a couple of days ago...it's pretty neat...gives details of everything that we need at the Squadron HQ...hopefully they'll all be ok'ed...we'll just have to see

Heck...I'm getting bored...polished my boots, finished the chores, done my homework...what else can I do?

Here's some recipes that I made up for the past couple of nights...I hope these work out...whenever I cook it's normally be touch and feel, so the measurements might not be accurate...give them a go anyway...:)

(I find cooking while slightly tipsy sometimes the best way to cook...go the lemon essence!)
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Beef and Beer Goulash

Serves 4

800g beef, cubed
100g butter
4 tbsp sunflower oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
20ml white wine vinegar
Herbs, fresh or dry
2 beef stock cubes
500ml beer
2 tbsp cream
2 tbsp corn flour
Salt to taste


Heat butter and oil in a large pan over medium heat. Place meat in skillet and brown on all sides. Remove meat from the pan. Add onion and garlic to skillet; cook until lightly browned. Add half of the beer and stock cubes to pan, stirring to remove browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Return meat into pan. Add vinegar, stock cubes, herbs, and remaining beer, stirring to blend. Cover and simmer over medium-high heat for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, add cream and corn flour to pan, stirring until thick. Add salt as needed.


Serve with pasta and a garden salad

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Lamb Pockets

Serves 2

500g lamb, cubed
2 tbsp sunflower oil

Marinade
20ml white wine vinegar
3 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp black peppercorns, crushed
2 tbsp chilli sauce (optional)
1 tsp Cheyenne pepper
1 tsp rosemary
Salt

Soured Mint Cream
100ml cream
1 lemon
1 tbsp mint jelly
Salt and white pepper, to taste


Add lamb and marinade ingredients into bowl, mixing well to cover. Place in fridge for 30 minutes or overnight
Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the lamb and marinade mixture and cook until done.

To make the soured mint cream, combine all ingredients together.


Serve with warmed pita bread pockets and a salad