Coronation Chicken

Last Saturday was the annual Moonstruck charity event on 4th beach Clifton. What a great event and thank goodness we  went early and found a lekker spot against the rocks as it ended up being 36 000 people on that beach. The concert was organised by Radio 702 and one of the performers was Vivky Samson who finished her her set with her signature song that makes every expat overseas homesick with a dose of "wet eyes" - My African Dream - brings goosebumps every time I hear it. No vino allowed unfortunately but we all brought some nice munchies. One of my friends had Coronation Chicken. I must say it was the first time I ate this really nice way of using up day old chicken as with me having done my apprentiship in a German kitchen,  there was definitely no coronation :):):):).... We had something similar and called it Hawaien Chicken Salad..

So here goes with the South African version of Coronation Chicken:



Ingredients:

2 either freshly cooked or day-old chicken breasts
1 large Tbsp Hellman's light
1 large Tbsp plain yogurt
1 tsp Tandoori curry mix
1/2 tsp Tamarind paste
1/2 tsp bottled ginger
pinch of smoked bell pepper
pinch of smoked chilli (Smoking Shed)




Shred the chicken meat very finely.
Mix all the dressing ingredients together.
Fold the shredded chicken into the mix.

Serve with some fresh mango and some pecan nuts for crunchiness ( nuts always go well with a chicken salad)

One can obviously adjust the spices to ones own taste...  the way above  just has a slight bite which is nice as you can actually taste all the different ingredients.

ALBONDIGAS SOUP

My sister lives in Brussels and this is one of her favourite meals for lunch and she kindly passed her recipe on to me. The combination of beef and chorizo works so well and gives the whole meal a bit of a zing which I love. ( I am not too fond of those extreme hot sort of dishes which most South Africans love so much). Having received one of those amazing Smoking Shed hampers last Sunday at the Food Bloggers Indaba, I also added a spoon of smoked bell pepper to the soup part of the dish.. and it made it WOW ..:)J

MEATBALLS 1/2 lb lean ground beef 1/2 lb chorizo sausage, casing removed  1 egg, beaten 2 garlic cloves, minced 1/2 carrot, grated 1/2 cup cooked rice 1/2 cup  coriander, chopped 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon ground cumin

ALBONDIGAS SOUP 6 cups chicken stock  1/2 cup onion, chopped 3 stalks celery, cut in chunks 1 can diced tomatoes 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon oregano 1/2 cup coriander 1 teaspoon smoked bell pepper (Smoking Shed’s) 1 large zucchini, sliced salt pepper

Make the meatballs first: Combine everything and mix thoroughly.
Form meatballs and roll between your palms (Otherwise, meatballs will fall apart in the soup).
You should make around 20 to 24 meatballs, set aside.

Combine chicken stock, onion, celery, tomatoes and their liquid, cumin, oregano, smoked bell pepper and cilantro leaves in a large pot.
Bring to broil, and reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Drop meatballs in the soup (Make sure the soup is slightly boiling, the meatballs need to be cooked quickly).
Return to simmer and cook another 10 minutes.
Add zucchini and cook 10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper, to taste.10

Tapenade Dressing

Yes I know...  its been 3 months of silence... ! so very sorry !  Now I have moved home back to Hout Bay and am ready to tackle the world of blogging once more in a big way !

Also joined SureSlim again and even better am going 3 times a week to water arobics ! so 2011 will definitely be the year of health and happiness !

So looking forward to Sunday at the food bloggers conference in Monkey Valley which is really just around the corner from me.

Seeing that these coming weeks / months will be more on the skinny food side here is an amazing recipe for a dressing that i found and tried out:

Tapenade Dressing


This super-easy dressing will make even the most boring of lettuces taste amazing, but it would also be great on arugula, spinach, for just about any salad green.  Garnish with toasted pine nuts, tomatoes, and feta cheese or hard boiled eggs ( for the protein)  for a more substantial salad.  Grilled or marinated vegetables would most certainly be a great idea as well..

  
2 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. tapenade
1 Tbsp. red wine, balsamic, or sherry vinegar or even some rosmary infussed vinegar gives it a nice touch
4 Tbsp. good olive oil

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk.
2. Drizzle over salad greens of choice and toss before serving.
3. Add pine nuts and feta or eggs....  whatever grabs you at the moment

Makes enough to dress 4-6 salads.  Leftovers will keep several days in an airtight container in the fridge.