柑Tangerine，梨Pear

柑与橘形状相似,只是柑略带扁行,含丰富的维生素A,B,C. 果皮稍厚而黄，味辛甘寒，可作药用。能通气消泄，健胃，止咳祛痰，食欲不振，胃弛缓和腹中积闷。
也有柑橘种类，含丰富的维生素，胡萝卜素和钙，能治肝胃气郁，有通气快膈之效，因此被加工成蜜饯凉果。

梨的品种很多，其中雪梨可作药用。有青，白，黄，红，棕颜色，香气宜人，使人望之生津，凉脆解渴。可生吃也可烹煮清炖，能消炎化痰，利尿，滑大肠，甘凉润肺，是秋冬之间最好的水果。

橙Orange,苹果Apple

橙属于橘类。含丰富的维生素和，是最常吃的水果，品种很多。橙分成果皮和果肉两部分，橙的果皮部分约占整个成的百分之二十五，含有挥发油，能化痰消泄，健胃，刺激食欲。

苹果是水果中的最大家族，全世界约有一万种品种，多产与寒冷地方。削皮后，果肉白里透黄，晶莹细腻。含有碳水化合物，钙，磷，钾和维生素A,B,C，具有补心意气，生津止渴，健胃脾的功效。
苹果对消化不良有很大的助效，将苹果榨汁饮用，可消食顺气。苹果含鞣酸，既有收检作用, 果胶和纤维素, 有吸收细菌和毒素的作用, 所以能止泻.有机酸可刺激子肠, 纤维素可促进子肠挪动, 通大便和治疗便秘.

Glossary

Cool immediately-- Allow baked cakes or hot sauces to come to lower temperature over ice water.

Batter (dough)-- Mixture of lour, butter, eggs, etc is called batter (dough when it is hard enough to handle with hands) before baked or cooked.

Cream-- Beat butter or cheese with wire whisk until light and fluffy.

Beat until stiff peaks form-- Beat egg whites or heavy cream until stiff peaks form when wire whisk is raised.

Dust with flour-- When rolling out dough or pouring batter into baking pan, dust pastry board, rolling pin or pan with flour to prevent from sticking. Don't flour too much, if you do, surface of cakes or cookies will become tough and will not taste good.

Rest-- After making dough for pies or cookies, place it in refrigerator to rest for 15 to 30 minutes in order to allow all ingredients blend well.

Melt or warm over hot water-- Boil water in large saucepan and place bowl with chocolate, butter or other food over boiling water.

Black Forest

Sponge Mixture:
Serves 6:
3 Large Eggs
75g Castor Sugar
50g Plain Flour
1 tablespoon Cocoa Powder
1 tablespoon Oil

To Finish:
1 can black cherries
3 tablespoons Kirsch
300ml Double Cream, whipped
Chocolate Curls-Shave thin layers from a block of chocolate, using a potato peeler.

1) Place the eggs and sugar in a bowl and whisk over a pan of simmering water until thick and mousse-like.
2) Sift the flour with the cocoa and fold in, then fold in the oil.
3) Turn into a lined and greased 20cm-8 inch round cake tin. Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven, 190°C for 30 minutes to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
4) Drain the cherries.
5) Slice the cake in half horizontally and sprinkle both layers aith Kirsch.
6) Place one layer on a plate, and sandwich the layers with some whipped .cream
7) Spread the cherries in the cetre and top with another layer.
8) Spread the remaining whipped cream over the top and sides of the cake.
9) Lightly press the chocolate curls into the cream around the edge of the cake.
10) Pipe cream rosettes around the top, lay the chocolate curls over the top of the cake, decorate with cherries.
11) Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar. Transfer to a serving plate. Serve.

Profiteroles(Puff pastry) with Vanilla Ice Cream

Choux Pastry:
Serves 8:
50g Butter or Margarine
150ml Water
65g Sifted Plain Flour
2 Eggs, beaten

1) Melt the fat in a large pan, add the water and bring to the boil.
2) Add the flour all at once and beat until the mixture forms a mass that leaves the sides of the pan and moves freely with the wooden spoon. Cool slightly, then add the eggs a little at atime, beating well after each egg is added. The finished paste should be thick, smooth and shiny.
3) Put the mixture into a piping bag, fitted with a plain round/star nozzle, and pipe small mounds on a dampened baking sheet.
4) Bake in a preheated hotoven, 220°C for 10 minutes,then lower the heat to 190°C, and bake for a further 20 to 25 minutes until golden. The profiteroles should have doubled in size.
5) Make a slit in the side of each bun with a small sharp knife. Cool on a wire rack.
6) Fill the bottom with a scoop of ice cream. Or with whipped cream, replace the top and gently press the profiterole together again. Dust the top lightly with confectioner's sugar. Or pour a little with melted chocolate sauce on top.

Vanilla Ice Cream:
2 Eggs
2 Egg yolks
75g castor
450ml Single Cream
2-3 drops of vanilla essence
284ml double cream, whipped

1) Mix the eggs egg yolks and sugar together.
2) Bring the single cream gently to the boil and por onto the egg mixture, stirring vigorously.
3) Strain, then stir in the vanilla essence. Leave to cool, then fold in the whipped cream.
4) Pour into a rigid freezerproof container. Cover, seal and freeze for 1 hour. Remove and stir well, then re-freeze until firm.
5) Transfer to the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving to soften.
6) Scoop into chilled glasses and serve.

Variations of Ice cream:
Chocolate: Break 250g plain chocolate into pieces and melt with the single cream.

Praline: Place 50g blanched almonds and 50g castor sugar in a pan and heat gently until the sugar melts. Cook, stirring, until nut brown. Turn onto an oiled baking sheet and leave until hard. Crush with a rolling pin and add to the custard with a double cream.

Coffee: Dissolve 2 tablespoons instant coffee powder in 2 tablespoons bioling water, cool and add the custard with the double cream.

Ginger: Finely chop 125g preserved stem ginger. Add to the eggs and sugar. Add 2 tablespoons of the ginger syrup to the custard with the double cream.

Simple Black Chocolate Mousse

75g Black Chocolate, broken into pieces
3 Eggs separated
2 tablespoons Sherry/Rum-optional
3 tablesppons whipped cream

1) Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water, then add the egg yolks and sherry and mix well.
2) Whisk the egg whites until fairly stiff then carefully fold into the chocolate mixture.Pour it to a bowl and leave in the refrigerator to set.
3) Decorate with remaining whipped cream and chocolate curls.

Herbs_1

Rosemary(Fr. romarin; Gr. Rosmarin) - a fresh, sweet flavour. It is primarily used to flavour meats- sparingly, because when heated it releases a strong, acrid oil.




Savory(Fr. sariette; Gr. Bohnenkraut) - a warm, piquant flavour. A member of the mint family, savory is a traditional seasoning for vegetables like string beans or peas.



Tarragon(Fr. estragon; Gr. Estragon) - faintly liquorice-like in flavour. It is best known as flavouring for vinegar. It is also widely used for fish and chicken.




Parsley(Fr. persil; Gr. Petersilie) - slightly peppery flavour. Popular as a garnish, both to enhance the looks of food and to enrich the taste of soups, salads, stews, sauces.




Oregano-(Fr. origan; Gr. Oregano) strong, aromatic, slightly bitter. Its flavour is particularly suitable to robust Mediterranean dishes that use tomatoes or eggplant.




Dill(Fr. aneth; Gr. Dill) - liquorice-like in flavour. Entire plant edible. Its root and stalks are eaten raw or cooked. Seeds in sausage and baked goods; leaves used with fish, vegetables, cheese spreads, and soups.



Chives(Fr. ciboulette/ civette; Gr. Schnittlauch)- a delicate relative of the onion. Their long, thin stalks, which should be cut frequently, go well in salads or as a garnish for bland dishes.



Chervil(Fr. cerfeuil; Gr. Kerbel) - a cousin of parley. Its fresh leaves are good in salads. Its dried leaves go well with eggs and on cream soups or broiled fish.




Thyme(Fr. thyme; thymian) - aromatic and pungent. This must be used judiciously, because of its strong taste. It helps flavour almost all French soups and stews.




Basil(Fr. basilic; Gr. Basilikum)- a refreshing member of the mint family. It is used with tomatoes in any form- the vegetables, juice or sauce, and also with eggs and seafood.




Sage(Fr. sauge; Gr. Salbei) - strongly fragrant and slightly bitter. Commonly used in poultry stuffing, it can also be used to complement pork and sausage dishes.

A Grow-It-Yourself Herb Garden

Herbs- flavourful, aromatic plants are not at all difficult to grow. They have a much better flavour fresh than dried, and the best way to ensure a ready supply is to have your own herb garden.

If you don’t have enough land for a garden, herbs can be grown in pots on terraces or even in sunny windows. They may also be dried and stored for later use.

For drying, select herbs at their peak, pick them in the early morning, and sun-dry for several hours during the hottest part of the day (to help prevent mould). Then tie them in bunches and hang them upside down, or spread them thinly on a piece of window screening that is supported above the floor-in a dark room where the air can circulate freely around the herbs.

Many herbs are hardly perennials (savory, tarragon, thyme); some are annuals, and a few are biennials (parsley), producing seeds every other year(basil, chervil, fennel, marjoram).