Bragiolo

INGREDIENTS
6 thin slices of round steak, flattened with a mallet
400g veal mince
2 rashers bacon, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 boiled eggs chopped
½ cup parsley, finely chopped
1 tbsp oregano
½ cup grated mozzarella cheese
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Sauce
3 tbsp olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
5 cloves crushed garlic
1 tin tomatoes
½ cup chopped parsley
½ cup chopped basil
1 cup red wine
2 cups water
Salt and pepper to taste


METHOD
To make sauce, fry onion and garlic in olive oil until softened.Add water, wine, tomatoes, herbs and simmer for 20 minutes.

Lay steak pieces on preparation table.

Mix remaining ingredients together to make the stuffing. Place a heaped tablespoon of stuffing mixture on each piece of steak and spread out well. Season with salt and pepper.

Roll up and secure with toothpicks or tie with string.

Place in sauce and simmer for 1 ½ hours over low heat.

Remove bay leaves when serving.

Baked Pasta

Baked pasta is a traditional Maltese dish, its very similar to the Italian pasta al forno. I remember as a young girl my mother would tell me stories about her childhood, and how on a Sunday morning her mother would make the "Imqarrun fil- Forn" baked pasta and take it to the local bakery to be cooked in the wood fired oven.

This delicious recipe is simple to make and one sure to please the whole family.

INGREDIENTS

1 x 500gram packet macaroni
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 cup grated cheese
2 x 375gram tins crushed tomatoes
250 gram minced beef
1 onion finely chopped
3 eggs
salt and pepper
olive oil

METHOD

Fry chopped onions until golden brown then add minced meat, continue cooking until meat is cooked and brown.
Add tin tomatoes and tomato paste and and let simmer for 20 minutes.
Boil the pasta in plenty of salted water until almost cooked, when ready drain water and return pasta to pot.
Add the meat, sauce, cheese, eggs and seasoning to the pasta and mix all together.

Place the macaroni in an oven proof dish and bake in hot oven for 30-45 minutes on 220 degree Celsius.

Treacle Rings

One of the most common sweets in Malta are the ‘Kaghak tal Ghasel’, translated as Treacle Rings. These are rings of pastry which are filled with black treacle, marmalade, grated orange peel, and spices.


Ingredients

1kg of Treacle
water ( fill treacle jar with water)
3 tablespoon of sugar
400grms of semolina
1 tablespoon orange marmalade
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 orange rind ( thinly cut)
1/2 lemon rind (thinly cut)
1/2 mandarin rind (thinly cut)

Method

Boil treacle and water. Add sugar and all ingredients slowly. Keep mixing constantly

Pastry

Sift flour, then add butter and mix together. Add egg yolk . make a well in the middle and add water as you need it. Roll out dough thinly.
Roll treacle filling like a log and put into pastry. Make into a circle shape and make a few slits on top of the pastry. Cook on 180dgs for 20-30 mins until golden brown.

Almond Biscuits

Almond biscuits are one of my favorite Maltese sweets, and I remember as a young child my mother would whip these up in no time, ready for those unexpected visitors on a Sunday afternoon.
These biscuits are quick and easy to make, even a beginner can't mess this recipe up.





INGREDIENTS

4 egg whites
25ml Almond essence
1/2 kilo caster sugar
1/2 kilo raw almonds (crushed)
8-10 tablespoon self raising flour
Rice paper

METHOD

Using a mixer blend egg whites till frothy.
Slowly add sugar and mix well.
Add almond essence, and raw almonds. Then slowly add flour spoon by spoon.
Place small amounts of dough on rice paper and place an almond on top of biscuits.
Bake in hot oven on 180 degree Celsius for 10-15 minutes.