Lunch invitation and Battered French Fries

We were invited to eat deer meat at our friend's house. I don't think I ever had deer meat before. Although the deer meat was a little tough, some of it I can shred it with my fork and dip my rolls in it. I also like the chicken and the coleslaw. Excellent!!!! I wanted to take pictures of the deer meat but I was like so hungry, cant wait to eat, only managed to get a few pics on my plate after a few bites.. hehe.. Whenever, we were invited to have lunch or dinner over at our friend's place, they never disappoint us with their cooking. It's always yummy!!!!

After lunch, we played corn toss game at the yard. They said I am getting better at the game, even though I only a beginner. I never knew this game ever exist  until I came to this town. Corn toss is quite a popular game in this area. My partner and I, won 2 games but my hubby and his partner lose in all the games... It don't matter whether we win or lose, what matters most is that we had a great, fun time with good friends. :)

When we reached home at night, we were little hungry, so I prepared something easy and fast.. French fries.. I don't want to just have ordinary French Fries, something simple yet a little fancy with some dips. I made some dips; Aioli and Herb Mayo (Aioli is classic French garlic mayonnaise which is particularly good served with French Fries.. It was yummy...

Battered French Fries with Aioli and Herb Mayo

Left dip: Herb Mayonnaise, Right dip: Aioli

Ingredients:
4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced 

Batter:

1 cup self-rising flour
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
water to mix

Combine flour, chilli powder and baking soda in a bowl. Whisk in sufficient water to make a smooth batter. Dip the sliced potatoes into batter. Fry in hot oil until golden brown and drain on paper towels. To serve, arrange fries on a platter with the dips. 

Dips

Aioli
4-5 tbsp Mayonnaise
1 garlic
1 egg yolk

Put all the ingredients in the food processor.

Herb Mayo
4-5 tbsp Mayonnaise
handful of cilantro, basil, parsley, tarragon - finely chop

Stir the herbs into the mayonnaise.

Notes:

• You can add salt to taste in the batter but without salt is also as good.
• For Aioli, instead of using the food processor, finely mince/pound the garlic. In a bowl, whisk all the ingredients together.
• Leftover dips, keep in the refrigerator.
  

Tuna Mornay

I was feeling like having some French food last night. So I browsed through my recipes books and found Tuna Mornay!! Looks easy and it was easy. We had Tuna Mornay with slices of bread but about 1 hr later, both of us were hungry again.. haha.. Instead of me messing the kitchen  again, we drove to Sonic for some junior burgers and fries.. Lol!!!

What is Mornay?? Mornay sauce is a classic French sauce, a cheese and milk sauce made combining a roux with milk and adding Parmesan or Gruyere cheese. When making Mornay sauce, it is best to use hard or semi-hard cheeses. You can get away with some jack cheeses or hard goat cheeses. Bad choices of cheeses would be brie, blue cheese, cream cheese and fresh mozzarella . French tend to avoid any but white  cheeses when making Mornay sauce. I used shredded mozzarella, still looks creamy consistency but of course not the authentically French.☻ Mornay sauce is often served with vegetables, seafood or poultry dishes. It can be mixed in with pasta to make variant macaroni or alfredo or even lasagna. 

Tuna Mornay 

recipe from Step-by-Step Comfort Food

Serves 4 

Ingredients

60g (2-/14 oz) butter

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

500ml (2 cups) milk

1/2 tsp dry mustard

90g (3/4 cup) grated cheese (I used shredded mozzarella cheese and Parmesan flakes)

600g (1 lb 5 oz) tin tuna in brine, drained

2 tbsp chopped parsley

2 hard boiled egg, chopped

25g (1/3 cup) breadcrumbs (I used the Kikkoman Panco Japanese style breadcrumbs)

paprika, to season

1. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C / Gas 4). Melt the butter in a pan, then add the flour and stir over low heat for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and add the milk gradually, stirring until smooth between each addition.
2. Return the pan to the heat and stir constantly until the sauce boils and thickens. Reduce the heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, whisk in the mustard and 60g (1/2 cup) cheese until smooth.
3. Flake the tuna with a fork, and mix into the sauce. Add the parsley and egg and season with salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture into 4 (250ml) (1 cup) ramekins (If you do not have these ramekins, you can use any other oven proof dish, like in the picture). Mix together the breadcrumbs and remaining cheese and sprinkle over the mornay. Dust with paprika. Bake for 15-20 minute, or until the topping is golden brown.

Notes:
Becareful when handling the ramekins when removing from the oven, they are very hot.

Taco meat fillings in Crepes

Tonight's dinner was fast and simple. We wanted to have Mexican food but do not have any Taco shells or Tortillas. In order to replace Taco shells, I made Crepes. French and Mexican combined. Simple and delicious. :)

It is very easy to make the taco meat fillings. I just used the Taco seasoning mix that can easily get at the store. Follow the instructions at the back of the packet. For my crepes, I followed the recipe from my recipe book. I love to eat crepes.. especially as desserts. All that chocolate sauce, ice-cream or even with Nutella.. oh my.. i wish i have some Nutella right now.. lol!! Anyway, it was a good dinner for the two of us. :)

Taco meat filling
1 package of Taco Seasoning Mix
2/3 cup water
1 pound ground beef

In a small saucepan, brown and crumble ground beef. Drain fat. Wipe out the excess fat in the saucepan with paper towels. Stir in Taco seasoning mix and water. Cook and stir for 2-4 minutes.

Crepes
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
3/4 cup water
2-1/4 cups butter melted
pinch of salt

Combined eggs, milk and water. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the center and add the combined mixture. With a whisk gradually drawn in the flour and whisk to a smooth batter. Stir in the melted butter. Pour into a jug and set aside for 30 minutes.
Heat a 8-inch non-stick frying pan and grease lightly. When the pan is hot, pour in about 1/4 cup of the mixture and tilt the pan to cover. Tip out any excess batter. When the edges begin to curl, gently turn the pancake over with a spatula. Cook until lightly browned on both sides and slide onto a plate. Serve immediately.

Top with diced tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, sour cream.. hmm.. yummy!