WHEN this week's One Chef to Rule Them All competitors were given mint as their key ingredient, The Land staffers weren't backward in telling them what a second key ingredient should be.
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"We'll vote for whoever cooks lamb and mint sauce," they declared.
This left news editor Robyn Ainsworth in a pickle.
Robyn has two ovens in her house. The problem being, one oven doesn't work and the other is still sitting in a box in the living room waiting to be installed. So lamb roast was definitely out.
Despite Robyn's ability to improvise, she was beaten by a couple of votes by the no-fuss and savvy executive assistant Lee-Ann Dowd.
WINNER: Lamb and mint koftas with dipping sauce
The Land's executive assistant Lee-Ann is all about spending as little time in the kitchen as possible.
While some might insinuate there was a little foul play, Lee-Ann reckons she was just being resourceful when she purchased both her dipping sauce and her marinade from local stores.
While serving her dish, Lee-Ann pleaded with the eager taste testers not to vote for her, as she didn't want to do it again, but the tasty morsels of meat with the cool and fresh tzatziki dip were too good to resist.
Lee-Ann will progress into the next round but to ensure competitors embrace the spirit of the competition in future, organisers have updated the rulebook to ensure contestants disclose which elements of their dish are shop-bought before voting commences.
RUNNER-UP: Slow cooked lamb tarts with mint and rosemary yoghurt
WHEN news editor Robyn Ainsworth learnt this week’s “must” ingredient was mint, she was quietly joyful it wasn’t chorizo – the most ubiquitous ingredient in the country at the moment.
Being a pie-maker from way back, she couldn’t resist the challenge. But how to cook lamb sans oven? The answer - mince and mint.
Her local butcher provided the preservative-free meat; the rest was up to the cook.
RECIPES
Lamb and mint koftas with dipping sauce
Ingredients
1kg Lamb mince
Mint and Rosemary marinade (supplied by my butcher)
1 diced onion
1 diced carrot
1 sprig mint diced
Salt & cracked pepper
Method
Put all the ingredients into a mixing bowl then roll individual koftas to size.
Heat a pan and fry the koftas - try not to overcook or it will dry them out.
The tzatziki dipping sauce was supplied by my deli.
Slow cooked lamb tarts with mint and rosemary yoghurt
Ingredients
1kg lamb mince
1 onion, finely diced
2 large cloves garlic, finely diced
1 small carrot, grated
1 sprig rosemary, remove stems and chop
Mint
2 tbsp tomato paste
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp arrowroot, cornflour or plain flour
½ cup red wine
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Shortcrust pastry
Yoghurt
Mint and rosemary jelly (see below)
Method
Heat olive oil in a heavy-based pan and lower the heat. Sweat the onions and garlic until translucent.
Add mince and brown. Remove from heat and pour off excess fat.
Return to heat and add carrot, rosemary, sauce and tomato paste. Cook for three hours on a low heat, stirring occasionally.
Add red wine and arrowroot (or flour), stir, cover and cook on a low heat for a further hour.
Prepare pastry (ready-made pastry will do).
Spoon a generous amount of meat mixture into each pastry cup.
Combine yoghurt and mint and rosemary jelly.
Top tarts with yoghurt dressing and sprinkle the plate with chopped or torn mint before serving.
Mint and rosemary jelly
Ingredients
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons fruit pectin
2 cups packed chopped fresh mint leaves and stems
1 tsp rosemary, chopped
1 cup apple juice
2 cups water
Method
Whisk the sugar and pectin together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Put mint leaves and stems and rosemary in a large, heavy-bottomed pot and crush them gently with a wooden spoon. Add juice and water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the sugar-pectin mixture and return to a boil. Boil hard for one minute.
Pour jelly through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a large bowl. Discard mint leaves.
Pour jelly back into pot and return to a boil.
Remove pot from heat. Ladle jelly into hot, sterilised jars and process in a hot water bath for 20 minutes.
The Land's cookery competition continues next week.
