Orange Turkey/Chicken

Friday night is my absolute favorite time of the week: the weekend is stretching ahead of you, and there's a world of possibilities. This Friday was even better as, due to some brilliant and completely unexpected circumstances I finished work a bit earlier than usual. When I arrived home, I felt like treating myself to a tasty dinner and a cup of strong coffee and curling up in my armchair to read Dexter In The Dark (a great read, btw). I had an astonishingly beautiful piece of turkey breast, and thought I might somehow enhance it with bacon. However, then I remembered I had seen a pretty cool looking orange chicken recipe over at Dishing Up Delights and decided to give it a try. On Friday I made little turkey breast rolls with leeks and carrots, and then served them with the orange sauce. It was so good I had to make it again today, but this time I didn't bother with the rolls. I just stir-fried the meat with some carrots and followed the original recipe with just a few changes.
Even my husband enjoyed this recipe, and he generally doesn't like Asian cuisine. I, on the other hand adore it, and am really happy that I have finally found a recipe that truly tastes like stuff from a good Chinese restaurant.

Ingredients

1.5 lb/700 g turkey or chicken breast, diced
3 carrots, peeled and finely diced
1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup scallions, sliced
2 tbsp corn starch
salt
oil

For the sauce

2 oranges, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 cup chicken stock
3 tbsp soy sauce
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tbsp sugar,
2 tsp corn starch
salt and chili powder to taste

Season the meat with salt and coat it with the corn starch. Fry the meat and carrots in hot oil until the carrots are cooked and the meat golden. Remove from heat and when it cools down slightly, add the toasted sesame seeds, scallions and garlic.
In a saucepan combine all of the ingredients for the sauce, apart from the corn starch. Boil for 3-5 minutes, then run through a strainer (to get all of the juice from the oranges, mash them slightly with a fork). Return the strained liquid to the saucepan, bring to a boil, and add the corn starch dissolved in a tablespoon or two of water. When the sauce thickens, remove from heat and add it to the meat and vegetables. Stir to coat everything. Serve with rice.

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Lasagna

Lasagna is the Italian dish that I crave the most often. I usually use homemade sheets, but yesterday I wanted a quick lunch so I used store-bought. It was the kind that you don't have to cook beforehand, and I was very happy with how it turned out. Delicious and done in no time!

Ingredients

250 g (9 oz) lasagna sheets
500 g (1 lb) ground beef
100 g (3 1/2 oz) smoked bacon
2/3 cup chopped leeks
500 ml (2 cups) tomato sauce
350 g (12 oz) grated gouda
oil, butter
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp rosemary
salt, pepper

For the bechamel sauce

1 tbsp butter
2 1/2 tbsp flour
500 ml (2 cups) milk

Cook the leeks and bacon in a skillet. When the bacon starts turning golden, add the beef. Stir occasionally to help the beef separate. When the beef has separated, add the tomato sauce and simmer for another 15-20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the oregano and rosemary.
In the meantime, in a deeper pot melt the butter and add the flour. Cook for about a minute, stirring constantly. Add the milk, whisking to avoid lumps. Cook for a few minutes, until it starts bubbling and thickens.
Grease a baking dish with a bit of butter and arrange 1/4 of the pasta sheets to cover the bottom. Add a layer (1/3) of meat (spread evenly), then 1/4 of the bechamel and 1/4 of the grated cheese. Add two more layers of everything, and finish with pasta covered with bechamel and cheese. Bake for 35 minutes or until golden and bubbling.

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Rice Croquettes

This is my second attempt at rice croquettes. My husband used to eat them when he was a kid (I never did until now), so the first time round I tried his sister's recipe. However, I wasn't too satisfied with the end result, so I improvised a little bit. Basically, I used my onion rings batter, and just folded in the rice and ham.

Ingredients

1 cup rice
3 eggs
300 g (10 oz) ham (diced)
120 g (4 oz) flour
75 ml (1/3 cup) milk
75 ml (1/3 cup) sparkling water
2 tbsp fresh or 1 tbsp dried parsley (chopped)
salt, pepper

Boil the rice.
Separate the eggs. In a large bowl combine the yolks with the flour, water and milk. When the batter is smooth add the ham, rice and parsley and season with salt and a generous quantity of pepper (around 1/2 tsp). Whisk the egg whites, then fold them gently into the batter. Spoon the croquettes into hot oil and fry until golden.

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