Belgian Recipes

20 cups (5 pounds) all-purpose flour
4 1/2 cups (2 pounds) brown sugar
12 eggs
2 cups butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
splash or two of whiskey, rum, or scotch (optional)
Cream butter and brown sugar. Add eggs, vanilla, salt, and liquor (if desired). Blend in.

Now it gets to be fun. You have to work in all five pounds of flour little by little by hand. It will work in but it takes a while. You’ll wind up with a BIG mixing bowl of dough.

Refrigerate dough overnight.

Have plenty of people to help with the cooking. Lightly grease and heat the empty cookie iron over a gas burner. Start with a tablespoon and a half of dough rolled into a little “cigar” shape and vary amount to fit the size of your cookie iron. It takes from one to one and a half minutes to cook each cookie – it’s a trial and error process at first till you get a handle on the temperature of the gas burner and the heat retaining capabilities of your iron. A properly cooked cookie will be golden and after cooled, crisp. If you are using an electric iron, the temp won’t be an issue.

Remarks:
No quantities given but this should be a lot of cookies!

Source: Tara Godfrey – Posted to the Food Forum 09:23:43 12/20/2000.

  

4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 lb. sweet butter, softened
4 eggs
2 tbsp. rum

Preparation:
Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl. Make a well in the center and put the softened butter, eggs and rum in well. Gradually mix the flour into other ingredients. Let the mixture, which will be a paste, stand at room temperature, uncovered, for 2 hours. Divide into small balls the size of 2 tablespoons, and cook them in a waffle iron. Cool on a rack and store as for cookies. (Note:
Belgians eat these like cookies instead of as a breakfast food).

Makes 3-4 dozen.

Source: Olga Drozd – Posted at the Food Forum at 18:54:14 06/18/2001.

  

3 lbs. pickerel, whitefish, lake herring, or bass fillets; if possible, several kinds, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 cups chopped celery leaves
1 tsp. salt
Black pepper
3 egg yolks
3 tbsp. whipping cream
3 tbsp. chopped parsley

Lay fish fillets in a shallow pan. Sprinkle with celery leaves, salt, and some pepper and barely cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer carefully until fish flakes. Remove fish with a slotted spoon to a dish in a warm oven. Strain fish stock into a clean saucepan, discarding celery leaves.

Beat egg yolks and cream together. Stir 1 tbsp. of fish stock into egg mixture and then blend into remaining stock. Reheat very slowly, stirring continuously. Do not boil. Adjust seasoning.

Pour sauce over fish, garnish with parsley and serve. Traditionally the fish and sauce is spooned onto thick slices of dark rye bread.

Makes 4 servings.

Source: Olga Drozd – Posted at the Food Forum at 17:54:59 06/18/2001.

  

1 kg – 2,2 lb pork meat
2 onions, coarsly chopped
2 cloves mashed garlic
18 g – 3/4 oz. flour
salt, pepper
a good, tasty red wine
red porto
a piece of lemon peel (white part removed)
1 piece of cinnamon bark
250 gr – 1/2 lb dried prunes (put them in water first so they soften)
butter
oil

Heat the butter in a casserole with a thick bottom and fry the onions until they have browned (about 7 minutes). Heat the oil in another pan and brown the meat.

Transfer the meat to the casserole with the onions. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir for about 3 minutes.

Then pour in the wine and porto (2/3 wine-2/3 porto) so that the meat is just covered. Stir continuously untill the sauce has thickened. Add salt, pepper, 2 cloves mashed garlic, the lemon peel and the piece of cinnamon bark.

Simmer for one hour.

Then add the dried prunes and simmer 45 minutes more. Remove the lemon peel and the cinnamon bark, check seasonings and serve.

I am not sure abouth the amount of flour. But if the sauce is too thin, you can always add a portion of butter mixed with an equal amount of flour. Stir well when you add it.

Makes 4 servings.

Source: my collection.

  

800 g – 28 oz. lean beef
4 egg yolks
2 tb ground-nut oil
2 tb capers (preserved in vinegar)
12 small gherkins – preserved in vinegar
1 tb minced parsley
1 tb Worchestershiresauce
1 tb minced onion
Pepper and salt

The devil may know where the name filet am?ricain (as we call it in Dutch) comes from. Americans seem to be horrified to eat raw red meat. But everybody in our country loves it. As a course “am?ricain” is served with a salad and french fries (belgian fries!), but frequently the meat is served with bread or toast and then it is called “Toast Cannibale”.

Mince the meat with a mincing-machine, or still better : mince it with a big, sharp knife.

Put the meat in a bowl and mix with all the other ingredients. Use a lot of pepper. Make 4 portions and serve them cold and raw.

Makes 4 servings.

Source: Dirk De Prins en Nest Mertens: “De Belgische Keuken”, Standaard Uitgeverij, Antwerpen 1995.

  

2 cups milk
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 large celery stalk with leaves, chopped
6 fresh parsley sprigs
7 large shallots, minced
1 large garlic clove, crushed
2 bay leaves, broken
3 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
pinch of dried thyme

1 tablespoon butter
12 oz boneless lean center loin pork
9 oz fresh pork fat cut from loin, fresh
3 medium eggs
6 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 cup tawny port
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
2 1/2 tablespoon currants, minced
9 feet sausage casings, rinsed inside
1/4 cup butter

Bring milk, onions, carrots, celery, parsley, 3 shallots, garlic clove, bay leaves, salt, cloves, pepper, nutmeg and thyme just to boil in heavy 4-quart saucepan over medium heat. Remove from het, cover and let stand 30 minutes. Refrigerate until mixture is well chilled, about 2 hours.

Meanwhile, melt 1 Tbsp butter in heavy small skillet over low heat. Add remaining 4 minced shallots. Cover and cook until very soft, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Puree with on/off turns in processor with pork, pork fat, eggs, flour, Port and 1/4 tsp garlic until smooth. Strain milk into processor, pressing down on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Blend into puree. Transfer to large bowl. Stir in currants. Refrigerate 1 to 8 hours. (If processor has small capacity, puree in batches.)

Cut sausage casings into 3-foot lengths. Tie knot at one end of each. Gather 1 piece around tip of pastry bag fitted with 1/2-inch plain tip. Spoon pork mixture into pastry bag, pressing down to prevent air pockets. Pipe mixture into casing, twisting casing every 6 inches to create individual sausages. Tie know at end of casing. Repeat with remaining pork and casings. Tie twists in sausage with string.

Bring 8 quarts water to boil in stockpot. Remove from heat and add sausages. Return pot to heat, adjusting as necessary to maintain water just below simmer (180 F). Cook until sausages are firm to touch, 20 minutes, turning occasionally. Cool in cold water to retain plumpness. Cut into individual links. (Can be prepared ahead to this point. Wrap and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 2 months.)

Melt butter in heavy skillet over medium heat. Lightly brown sausages on all sides, about 8 minutes total. Serve hot. (Sausage can also be grilled.)

Source: my collection

  

MEATBALLS:
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs
1/4 cup – 7 cl milk; or more
1 lb – 500 g ground beef, lean
1/2 lb – 250 g ground pork or veal
1 large egg
1 tablespoon shallots; minced
1 tablespoon parsley, fresh; fine minced
salt & pepper to taste
1 pinch nutmeg; grated
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
SAUCE:
1 medium onion; thinly sliced
3 belgian endives; cored andcut in 1/4-inch rounds
1 teaspoon sugar
salt & pepper to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons flour; up to 2 tablespoons
1 cup – 2,5 dl blond pilsner-style beer
1/2 cup – 1,25 dl beef broth or chicken
2 tablespoons parsley, fresh; for garnish

To prepare meatballs, soak bread crumbs in milk until thoroughly moistened; squeeze dry with hands. Combine bread crumbs, ground meats, eggs, shallots, parsley, salt, pepper and nutmeg in medium bowl. Form mixture into 6 to 8 balls or patties (2 inches in diameter and 1/2-inch thick); dust with 2 tablespoons flour.

Heat butter and oil in deep, heavy Dutch oven, until hot but not smoking, over high heat. Add meatballs; cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes, making sure butter does not burn. Remove meat balls to platter; keep warm.

To prepare sauce, discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat in pan. Add onion and endives. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 10 minutes. Add sugar, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons flour to vegetables; cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes longer. Add beer and broth; heat to quick boil, scraping up all brown bits from bottom of pan.

Reduce heat to simmer; return meatballs to pan, placing them on top of vegetables. Simmer, partly covered, until meat is cooked through, 45 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

4 servings.

Source: Everybody Eats Well in Belgium Cookbook by Ruth Van Warebeeck; printed in the Chicago Tribune, October 2, 1996

  

2 lb – 1 kg beef roast; boneless
2 lb – 1 kg pork shoulder roast; boned and bone reserved
3 qt – 3 lit. water;
2 bay leaves
8 peppercorns
2 ts salt
8 small new potatoes
1 medium savoy cabbage
4 medium white turnips
2 lb – 1 kg peas
Toasted croutons
Chives; chopped
Dijon mustard
Horseradish

This recipe originates in Flanders where Savoy cabbage is much loved. The stock is made into a quick pea soup and served as a first course. It is similar to the French Pot au Feu although the former has peas and the latter garlic and leeks.

Cover the beef, pork, pork bone, bay leaves and peppercorns in water in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Skim the foam away and cover; simmer 2 1/2-3 hrs until the meats are tender. Add the salt during the last hour.

Prepare and reserve the vegetables. Wash the potatoes; do not peel if new. Wash, trim, core and cut the cabbage into 8 wedges. Peel and quarter the turnips. About 30 min before the meat is done add the potatoes and turnips. Remove the meats and vegetables from the broth; arrange the vegetables around the meat on a large platter, cover with foil and keep warm. Discard the pork bone.

Strain the broth through cheesecloth and reserve 2 cups for the pea soup, returning the rest to the pot to cook the cabbage in. Simmer the cabbage 5-7 min until tender and remove; arrange on the meat platter.

Meanwhile cook the peas in a separate smaller pot; puree in a blender with the reserved broth in small lots until smooth. Strain through a wire sieve discarding the pulp. Re-heat and serve as a first course garnished with croutons and chives. Then bring the hot platter to the table; slice meat and serve with mustard and horseradish.

To adapt to a crockpot I would suggest [but have not tested] about 10-12 hrs on low for the meats, perhaps 4 hrs for the potatoes and turnips and do the cabbage with the meats and vegetables say the last 30 min. Do the peas separately on the stove at the last minute.

Remarks:
8 servings.

Source: Adapted from a recipe in the Sunset Cook Book for Soups and Stews by Jim Weller – Intercook

  

6 tablespoons butter
1/2 lb – 250 g Belgian endive, chopped
1/2 lb – 250 g potatoes, chopped
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 lb – 500 g wolffish filets
2/3 cup – 16 cl dry white wine
2/3 cup – 16 cl fish stock

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. – 190° C

Melt half of the butter in a large skillet. Add the endive and potatoes and saut? until just tender.

Butter a baking dish and strew the shallots over the bottom, with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Lay the fish on this bed, pour in the wine and stock, cover with foil and bake 10 minutes.

Transfer the potatoes and endive to a second baking dish, lay the fish on top, and cover with foil to keep warm.

Reduce the cooking liquid in the fish pan to a syrup, swirl in the remaining butter, taste for seasoning, and pour over the fish. Return to the oven uncovered for a few minutes to give the sauce a glaze.

4 servings.

Source: Jay Harlow in the San Francisco Chronicle, 10/6/93.

  

1 kg – 2,2 lb eels
80 g – 2,8 oz. butter
4 slices white bread
2 egg yolks
2,5 dl – 1 cup white wine
1 lemon
100 g – 3,5 oz. sorrel
tarragon
100 g – 3,5 oz. spinach
parsley
powdered thyme
sage
powdered bay leaves
salt and pepper

Chop some parsley, tarragon and sage. Wash and chop sorrel and spinach. Clean eels and cut into 3-inch pieces. Melt the butter and saut? the eels. Lower the heat and add spinach and sorrel. When these vegetables are wilted add wine, thyme, bay leaves, chopped parsley, tarragon and sage. Season with pepper and salt and let simmer for 15 minutes.

Cut the bread slices in 2 and brown them in butter. Keep warm. Beat the egg yolks with some sauce and add this mixture to the rest of the sauce. Don’t let it cook, or it will curdle!

Put the eels on the croutons, pour some sauce over them and serve at once.

4 servings.

Source: my collection