Cajun Potato Wedges and Butter Tarts

Originally posted on Facebook May 11, 2009

Cajun Potato Wedges

4 potatoes, unpeeled
3 red onions, cut into wedges
1 lemon, cut into wedges
12 cloves of garlic
4 bay leaves
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 F. Cut the potatoes into thick wedges. Parcook in salted boiling water for 3 min. Combine the potatoes, onions, lemon, garlic and bay leaves in a large roasting pan. In another bowl whisk together oil, lemon juice, tomato paste, paprika, oregano, thyme, cayenne and cumin. Pour over potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30-40 min, turning frequently until potatoes are tender and have absorbed the liquid. Serve hot.

Okay, so not baking but I made them for my mom for Mother's Day. Everyone else liked them but I'm not big on spicy.

Butter Tarts

1/2 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
Frozen tart shells (unsweetened)

Cream butter and sugar. Mix in eggs. Add other ingredients and mix well. Spoon into tart shells. Bake at 425 for 10 min and then reduce heat to 350 and bake for a few more minutes until pastry is lightly browned.

I may have posted this during the Christmas bake-a-thon but its worth posting again. And its one of my Mom's favourites.

Homemade Fish and Chips

My brother's been asking for these for at least 2 months. He loves fish and chips and ever since I saw a show on the cooking network about how to make them without a deep fat fryer he's been begging me to have some.

I will have to admit I did not expect these to turn out at all. And they didn't start off well. My first recipe for fish batter turned into more of a dough than a batter (I'm not posting that recipe). So I tried a second recipe. Anyway, so this meal is more of instructions than a recipe so here goes..

Cut as many (russet) potatoes as you like into slices. 'Parboil' them for 6-8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Make the batter by whisking together 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, 2 tbsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt.
Using a deep fry (candy) thermometer heat a pot of oil to 360 F. Preheat oven to 250 F.

Drop in potatoes a few at a time for 4 minutes or so. Then place them in a bowl lined with paper towel to soak up the grease. When you have finished frying all of the potatoes put the bowl in the oven to keep warm.
Cut up about 500 gr of cod into pieces the size you want to eat.
One piece at a time dip the cod in batter and then lower into the oil. When it is browned on one side, turn over to brown the other side.
Place on a plate with paper towel until you have finished frying all of the fish pieces.
Serve fish with the chips and also vinegar and tarter sauce or whatever you like.

These were AMAZING. Very worth the time to prepare. So very tasty. Very greasy as well but very tasty. They turned out so well, I was surprised. But yes, I can't really describe how tasty they were... you'll just have to make them yourself. :-P