Donna Hay's Porcini Mushroom & Chicken Pie

Recipe from Donna Hay No Time To Cook, page 156

Ingredients

16g dried porcini mushrooms
¼ cup boiling water
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 x 140g chicken thigh fillets, cubed
2 tablespoons plain flour
1 cup chicken stock
¾ cup fresh or frozen peas
½ cup flatleaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
6 sheets (25cm x 25cm) store-bought puff pastry, thawed
lightly beaten egg, for brushing
onion slices, for topping
salad leaves, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Place porcini in a small bowl, cover with boiling water and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Drain the porcini, reserve soaking liquid and chop porcini finely.
2. Heat oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat, add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until onion softens slightly. 
3. Add chicken, cook 2 minutes more, stir in flour then add porcini, reserved soaking liquid and stock and cook for 10 minutes, or until sauce thickens.
4. Stir in peas and parsley, remove from heat and set mixture aside to cool for 30 minutes. 
5. Cut 12 pastry rectangles measuring 10cm x 12cm (or divide pastry sheets into 4 squares). Place 6 pastry rectangles on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper and divide chicken mixture among them (1/3 cup each).
6. Brush edges of the pastry with egg, cover with remaining pastry rectangles and press edges to seal. Top with onion slices, brush pies with egg and bake for 18 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden. Serve with salad leaves. 
7. To freeze, wrap the pies in baking paper, then plastic wrap and aluminium foil to seal. Freeze for up to 3 months.

Herb & Mozzarella Wrapped Veal

Recipe from Donna Hay's No Time to Cook, page 125

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 teaspoons oregano leaves
4 large slices pancetta
4x60g thin veal steaks
2 teaspoons thyme leaves
4 slices mozzarella

Method

1. Place pancetta on a board and top with a piece of veal. Sprinkle with thyme and oregano and place a slice of mozzarella on one end so that you can fold the pancetta and veal over to enclose the cheese.
2. Place veal on a baking tray and cook under a preheated grill for 5-7 minutes or until veal is cooked and pancetta is crispy. Divide veal between plates. Serve with salad or balsamic carrots.
   

Donna Hay's Lime & Lemongrass Salmon Cakes

This is a really simple dish to create but a really impressive one to serve. Just make sure to check that all the bones from your salmon fillet are removed. You wouldn't want to choke on them or spit them out whilst you're eating this dish. Now that certainly would not be impressive!

Recipe adapted from Donna Hay No Time to Cook, page 78

Serves 2

Ingredients

¼ cup whole-egg mayonnaise
1 teaspoons wasabi
½ teaspoon lime juice
2 x180g salmon fillets, cut into 1 cm cubes
2 tablespoons rice flour
1 egg white
1 teaspoon finely grated lime rind
1 stalk lemon-grass, finely chopped
3 kaffir lime leaves, shredded
1 long red chilli, seeded and chopped
sea salt and cracked black pepper
vegetable oil, for shallow frying
lime wedges and salad greens, to serve

Method

1. Place mayonnaise, wasabi and lime juice in a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
2. Place salmon, rice flour, egg white, lime rind, lemongrass, lime leaves, chilli, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix to combine. Shape mixture into 4 patties.
3. Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add oil to the pan, add patties and cook for 4 minutes each side or until cooked through.
4. Serve with lime wedges, salad greens and the lime and wasabi mayonnaise.
   

Donna Hay's Rustic Simmered Chicken

Recipe from Donna Hay, No Time to Cook, page 84

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 leek, trimmed and chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
4 slices pancetta, chopped
4 chicken thigh fillets, halved
plain flour, for dusting
200g small button mushrooms
4 chat (baby) potatoes, quartered
½ cup (125ml) dry white wine
1 cup (250ml) chicken stock
3 sprigs thyme
1 sprig tarragon
½ cup (125ml) cream
sea salt and cracked black pepper, to season

Method

1. Heat a frying pan over medium- high heat. Add oil, leek, garlic and pancetta and cook for 1 minute or until golden. Dust chicken with flour and cook for 2 minutes each side or until golden.
2. Add mushrooms, cook for 2 minutes. Add potatoes, wine, stock, thyme and tarragon, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until chicken is tender.
3. Stir in cream, salt and pepper.
   

Donna Hay's Lemon Salmon Pasta

This dish is very easy to whip up, with very little time needed for preparation and even less for cleaning up! For all you time poor people out there, this dish is for you :)

Recipe adapted from Donna Hay, No Time to Cook, page 106

Serves 2

Ingredients

200g thin spaghetti
¼ cup light cream
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon roughly chopped dill
1 tablespoon salted capers
180g smoked salmon fillet, flaked

Method

Cook spaghetti in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 10-12 minutes or until al dente. Drain and return to the pan.

Add cream, lemon juice and mustard to pasta, toss to coat.

Toss through dill, capers and salmon, and serve immediately.