Bread and Butter Pudding

Ingredients

•  4 eggs
•  2 cups milk
•  300ml pure cream
•  1/4 cup caster sugar
•  1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•  1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•  8 thick slices white bread, crusts removed
•  40g butter, softened
•  1/2 cup sultanas
•  2 tablespoons demerara sugar

Method

Step 1

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease a 5cm-deep, 17cm x 28cm (base) baking dish. Whisk eggs, milk, cream, caster sugar, vanilla and cinnamon in a bowl.

Step 2

Spread both sides of each bread slice with butter. Cut each slice in half diagonally. Arrange half the bread in rows in prepared dish. Sprinkle with half the sultanas. Repeat with remaining bread and sultanas.

Step 3

Pour egg mixture over bread. Sprinkle with demerara sugar. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden and set. Serve.

Chicken Stew

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 stalks celery, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 carrot, peeled, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 small onion, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
• 1 (14-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 2 chicken breast with ribs (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
• 1 (15-ounce) can organic kidney beans, drained (rinsed if not organic)

Directions

• Heat the oil in a heavy 5 1/2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the celery, carrot, and onion. 
• Saute the vegetables until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. 
• Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, chicken broth, basil, tomato paste, bay leaf, and thyme. Add the chicken breasts; press to submerge.
• Bring the cooking liquid to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently uncovered until the chicken is almost cooked through, turning the chicken breasts over and stirring the mixture occasionally, about 25 minutes. 
• Using tongs, transfer the chicken breasts to a work surface and cool for 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. 
• Add the kidney beans to the pot and simmer until the liquid has reduced into a stew consistency, about 10 minutes.

Discard the skin and bones from the chicken breasts. Shred or cut the chicken into bite- size pieces. Return the chicken meat to the stew. Bring the stew just to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle the stew into serving bowls and serve with the bread.

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/chicken-stew-recipe.html?oc=linkback


Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/chicken-stew-recipe.html?oc=linkback