Especias

I know, we’ve gone ages without posting (as Palstelera would say), but we have an excuse: we were studying because we’re cultured people XD. That’s why today we’re going to introduce you to two new recipes so you can see that even though we’ve set the page aside a bit, we’re always ready and thinking about what new recipes we can share with you.

What do we need?

• 4 cabbage leaves

• 1 chicken breast

• Half an onion

• Half a green bell pepper

• Oil

• Salt

• Moroccan spices

• Flour for coating

How do we make it?

• Separate the largest cabbage leaves and blanch them in boiling water with salt.

• After three minutes, take them out and lay them on paper towels to dry. Set aside.

• Cut the onion into julienne strips and the bell pepper into small strips. Pour some oil into a frying pan and add the ingredients.

• Cut the chicken into strips and season. Add to the pan.

• Throw in some Moroccan spices, for example Ras el hanout, into the mix.

• Once the chicken is cooked, remove from the heat and set aside.

• Spread out the leaves and fill them with the mixture.

• Coat the rolls in flour and deep-fry them in plenty of oil.

• Leave them in for just a short time, turning them carefully so they don’t open up.

Tips:

• If you see the rolls opening up, you can use a toothpick to help — just remember to remove it before eating… — or a piece of string to tie them up.

• You can swap the chicken for ground meat.

Lo sé, llevamos un c***n de pato (como diría Palstelera) sin publicar pero tenemos excusa: estábamos estudiando ya que somos gente cultivada XD. Por eso hoy os vamos a presentar dos nuevas recetas para que veáis que aunque hayamos dejado un poco de lado la página siempre estamos preparados y pensando qué nuevas recetas os podemos presentar.

¿Qué necesitamos?

• 4 hojas de repollo

• 1 pechuga de pollo

• Media cebolla

• Medio pimiento verde

• Aceite

• Sal

• Especias marroquíes

• Harina para rebozar

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

• Separamos las hojas del repollo más grandes y las escaldamos en agua hirviendo y sal.

• Después de tres minutos las retiramos y las ponemos a secar en papel de cocina. Reservamos.

• Cortamos la cebolla en juliana y el pimiento en tiras pequeñas. Ponemos aceite en una sartén e incorporamos los ingredientes.

• Cortamos el pollo pollo en tiras y sazonamos. Añadimos a la sartén.

• Echamos especias marroquíes, por ejemplo Ras el hanout, a la mezcla.

• Cuando el pollo esté hecho retiramos del fuego y reservamos.

• Extendemos las hojas y rellenamos con la mezcla.

• Rebozamos los rollitos en harina y los ponemos a freír en abundante aceite.

• Lo dejamos muy poco tiempo dándole la vuelta con cuidado para que no se abra.

Consejos:

• Si ves que los rollitos se abren puedes ayudarte de un palillo, acuérdate de quitarlo antes de comer…, o una cuerda para atarlo.

• Puedes cambiar el pollo por carne picada.

[English version]  Cabbage’s rolls* *Ingredients: 

• 4 cabbage leaves

• 1 chicken breast

• 1/2 onion

• 1/2 green pepper

• Oil

• Salt

• Moroccan spices

• Flour

* *

• *Separate 4 cabbage leaves and immerse in boiling water with a pinch of salt. *

• *After 3 minutes, take them out and place them over kitchen paper. *

• Cut onion and pepper into julienne strips. Pour some oil in a frying pan and add the vegetables.

• *Cut chicken in strips, add some salt and place in the frying pan with the veggies. *

• Add some Moroccan spices. For instance, Ras el hanout.

• *When chicken is cooked, take it out with the veggies. *

• Place one cabbage leaf and stuff with a spoonful of the mixture. Create a roll with it. Repeat with all cabbage leaves.

• *Coat the rolls with flour and deep fry. *

• *Fry for a few minutes until golden brown. *

* *

Tips:

*- If the rolls open, you can use a toothpick or a string to hold them. *

*- You can substitute chicken for minced meat. *

* *

Estas galletas son típicas de Bélgica, Francia y Holanda y se caracterizan por su intenso aroma y sabor a diversas especias. Este aroma suele invadir los mercados navideños ya que tradicionalmente era San Nicolás quien las regalaba a los niños por aquellas tierras. Hoy en día en España las podemos encontrar bajo el nombre de galletas caramelizadas de la marca Lotus pero en Francia y Bélgica, al menos, es posible encontrarlas en diversos formatos y de un sinfín de marcas. Por ejemplo, si tenéis la oportunidad no dejéis de probar la crema de speculoos (pâte à tartiner) o el helado de speculoos.

¿Qué necesitamos?

• 250 g de harina

• 170 g de azúcar moreno

• 150 g de mantequilla

• 1 cucharadita de bicarbonato

• 1 huevo ligeramente batido

• 1 pizca de sal

• 2 cucharaditas de café de mezcla de especias*

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

• En un bol echamos la harina, el bicarbonato, la sal y las especias. Lo removemos un poco.

• En otro la mantequilla a temperatura ambiente, el azúcar y el huevo. Añadimos todo esto a la mezcla de harina y lo mezclamos bien hasta obtener una masa uniforme. Lo metemos en la nevera tapado en film durante al menos dos horas, o toda la noche.

• Precalentamos el horno a 170ºC.

• Al sacarlas de la nevera las estiramos con un rodillo entre dos plásticos para que no se nos pegue con un grosor aproximado de medio centímetro. Las cortamos con ayuda de los cortadores deseados o si no tenemos, hacemos rectángulos con un cuchillo.

• Horneamos durante unos 15 minutos.

• La mezcla de especias ya hecha no es muy fácil de encontrar así que la podéis hacer con estas proporciones: 2 cucharadas de canela molida, 5 clavos de esencia rallados, una cucharada nuez moscada pequeña rallada, una cucharadita de café de pimienta molida, una cucharada pequeña de jengibre molido y 3 semillas de cardamomo rallado.

Consejos:

• Las galletas de mantequilla es preferible que las horneemos cuando la masa está fría. De lo contrario, se desparramarán demasiado en el horno y perderán la forma que les hayamos dado. Lo que podéis hacer, es meter la masa estirada en la nevera, cortarla sin manipularla demasiado y directas al horno.

• Si buscáis recetas de galletas speculoos encontraréis muchísimas y todas varían en algo. De hecho, en las recetas belgas y francesas utilizan tipos de azúcar que aquí no tenemos (vergeoise y cassonade) y solemos sustituirla por azúcar moreno. Os aconsejo probar vuestra receta e ir introduciendo las modificaciones a vuestro gusto.

• Las galletas tradicionales se hacían con unos moldes de madera y por eso tienen motivos estampados. Yo utilicé unos tampones de galletas que compré en Francia pero hay que tener cuidado porque la masa es un poco pegajosa.

[English version]* *Ingredients:

* *

• *250 g flour *

• 170 g brown sugar

• 150 g butter

• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

• 1 egg

• 1 pinch of salt

• 2 tsps of speculoos spices mix*

* *

* *

• *Mix flour, bicarbonate, salt and spices into a large bowl. *

• *In other bowl, mix butter, sugar and egg. Add it to the previous mix and batter until getting a homogeneus dough. Cover with cling film and leave cool in the fridge for 2 hours or the whole night.  *

• Preheat oven 170ºC.

• *Roll out the dough (0,5 cm thick) with a rolling pin. Put the dough between two plastic sheets (or cling film) to avoid it to get stuck. Cut with cookie cutters or with a knife. *

• Bake for 15 minutes.

* *** Speculoos spices mix:  2 tbsp cinnamon, 5 cloves, 1 tbsp nutmeg, 1tsp pepper, 1tsp ginger and 1 tsp cardamome.*

*  *

Tips:

- When making butter biscuits, we have to bake them when the dough is cold. Otherwise, they will lose their shape in the oven. After rolling out the dough you can leave it in the fridge for a while, then cut the biscuits quickly and immediately place into oven.

*- There are many different recipes for these biscuits. Actually in France and Belgium they use some kinds of sugar (vergeoise and cassonade) that we don’t have in Spain and has to be substituted by brown sugar. Make the recipe and add your improvements! *

*- Traditional speculoos biscuits were shaped with wooden molds to make their designs. I used some stamps I bought in France but be carefuel when using them because the dough is quite sticky. *

These cookies are typical of Belgium, France, and the Netherlands, and they’re known for their intense aroma and flavor packed with spices. That smell tends to take over Christmas markets, since traditionally it was Saint Nicholas who handed them out to the kids over there. Nowadays in Spain you can find them under the name “galletas caramelizadas” by the Lotus brand, but in France and Belgium, at least, you can find them in all sorts of shapes and from a ton of different brands. For example, if you ever get the chance, don’t miss out on trying speculoos spread (pâte à tartiner) or speculoos ice cream.

What do we need?

• 250 g (2 cups) flour

• 170 g (3/4 cup) brown sugar

• 150 g (2/3 cup) butter

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 1 pinch of salt

• 2 teaspoons of spice mix*

How do we make it?

• In a bowl, add the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Stir a bit.

• In another bowl, the room-temperature butter, the sugar, and the egg. Add all of this to the flour mix and combine well until you get a smooth, even dough. Pop it in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap, for at least two hours or overnight.

• Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F).

• Once you take it out of the fridge, roll the dough between two plastic sheets so it doesn’t stick, to about half a centimeter (1/5 inch) thick. Cut it out with whatever cookie cutters you like, or if you don’t have any, just make rectangles with a knife.

• Bake for about 15 minutes.

• The pre-made spice mix isn’t easy to find, so you can make your own with these proportions: 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, 5 grated cloves, 1 small tablespoon grated nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground pepper, 1 small tablespoon ground ginger, and 3 grated cardamom seeds.

Tips:

• Butter cookies are best baked when the dough is cold. Otherwise, they’ll spread too much in the oven and lose whatever shape you gave them. What you can do is put the rolled-out dough in the fridge, cut it without handling it too much, and straight into the oven.

• If you go looking for speculoos cookie recipes, you’ll find tons, and they all vary in some way. In fact, Belgian and French recipes use kinds of sugar we don’t have here (vergeoise and cassonade), and we usually swap them out for brown sugar. My advice is to try out your recipe and tweak it to your taste.

• Traditional cookies were made using wooden molds, which is why they have stamped designs on them. I used some cookie stamps I bought in France, but you have to be careful because the dough is a bit sticky.

Comments

La Enana (2012-12-19 11:20:58):

Wow!! So easy to make!!!! :) I love them!!!

Esther (2012-12-29 14:21:45):

The dough is already in the fridge! In a few hours we’ll be tasting your recipe… I can already tell you the dough is super yummy!!!!

Palstelera (2012-12-30 21:09:47):

How did they turn out?

Esther (2012-12-31 17:23:31):

Really good… they didn’t last long, honestly! The oven I put them in runs hot, and at 170 they got a bit scorched, so afterwards I dropped it down to 150. As for the spice mix, total success! HAPPY 2013, Picsandcakes!!!

Palstelera (2013-01-05 00:17:16):

So glad to hear it!