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CHICKEN BREASTS with SOUR CHERRY SAUCE Microwave

8 boneless chicken fillets, soy sauce, lemon slices, black pepper,

Sour Cherry sauce: 2 tblspns cider vinegar, 4 tblspns brown sugar, 250 mls chicken stock, 1 tblspn grated orange rind, 1 tblspn grated lemon rind, 120 mls fresh orange juice, 2 tblspns lemon juice, 425 grams pitted black cherries, drained reserving cherry liquid, 2 tspns cornflour, 2 tblspns reserved cherry liquid

Brush chicken fillets with soy sauce. Place lemon slice on each chicken fillet and black pepper over the top. Place chicken breasts in a large shallow baking dish, cover dish with plastic wrap. Bake on HIGH for 5 minutes. Turn chicken breasts, around and bake a further 5-7 minutes on MEDIUM-HIGH. Allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving with Sour Cherry Sauce. Serves 8.

Sour Cherry sauce: Place cider vinegar and brown sugar in a bowl and caramelize on HIGH for 4 minutes. Add chicken stock, orange rind, lemon rind, orange juice, lemon juice and black cherries. Heat on HIGH for 5 minutes. Blend cornflour, with 2 tablespoons reserved cherry liquid, add to sauce and cook on HIGH for 1 minute. Stir briskly and spoon over chicken.

TURKEY with APRICOTS and CHILLIES

1½ cups uncooked long-grain white rice, 2 tblspns margarine, 1 cup onion chopped, 2 garlic cloves minced, 1¼ cups chicken stock, 1 tspn ground cumin, ¼ tspn ground coriander, ¼ tspn ground allspice, 10 dried apricots quartered, 1 tblspn green chillies chopped, 1 cup fresh tomato chopped, 500 grams cooked turkey chopped, apricots sliced into strips

Cook the long-grain white rice. Combine margarine, onion, garlic and 2 tablespoons of chicken stock in casserole. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until onion is soft 5-6 minutes. Stir in cumin, coriander, allspice. Add remaining stock, dried apricots, green chilies and tomato. Stir to mix well. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, or until flavours are well blended. Stir in turkey and cook for additional 5 minutes. Serve over rice, garnished with apricots strips.

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HAM and DRIED APRICOTS Emma Sergeant

2 cups dried apricots, 4 cups boiling water, 6 tblspns oil, ¼ cup plain flour, Two 440 grams can evaporated milk, 2 cups water, 2 tspns dry mustard, 1 cup ham chopped

In bowl put dried apricots and pour boiling water over them. Set aside until softened. Drain; Cut the apricots into small pieces. In a frying pan heat the oil and add the plain flour. Cook for 2 minutes stirring constantly. Slowly add the evaporated milk and remaining water. Stirring constantly, add the mustard. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the apricots and ham and cook until heated through. Serve hot. Serves 6.

ROAST PORK TENDERLOINS with FRUIT STUFFING Betty Rosbottom

3¾ cups chicken broth, ½ cup sour cherries, 1/3 cup dried apricots cut, 1/3 cup dried apples diced,

2 tblspns currants, 3 tblspns unsalted butter, ½ cup spring onions chopped, ½ cup fresh breadcrumbs,

¾ tspn dried thyme leaves, ¾ tspn dried sage leaves 4 pork tenderloins, salt, black pepper, 1 tblspn vegetable oil, 1 cup dry white wine, ½ cup apricot preserves, 2 tblspns cornflour dissolved in 2 tblspns water,

Bring ¾ cup chicken broth to a boil in saucepan. Add sour cherries, dried apricots, apples, currants, remove from heat and let stand for 20 minutes. Strain fruit mixture in a sieve set over a bowl, pressing down on fruit with back of spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Transfer fruit to a bowl and reserve liquid. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in large frying pan over medium heat. Add spring onions, breadcrumbs, thyme leaves, sage leaves and sauté for 1 minute. Add to fruit mixture. Place pork tenderloins on work surface. Using a sharp knife make a lengthwise cut down centre of tenderloin cutting two-thirds of the way through. Open like a book. Make a lengthwise cut down the centre of each flap cutting 6mm deep to open up meat slightly, making it easier to pound. Using a meat mallet or rolling pin, pound pork to a 5mm thickness. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining tenderloins. Preheat the oven to 180c. Spread one fourth of the stuffing over 1 tenderloin, leaving a 1cm border on all sides. Starting with long side, roll up meat Swiss roll style. Tie with kitchen string at 3.5cm intervals to hold shape. Repeat with remaining tenderloins and filling. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter with oil in large heavy frying pan over medium-high heat. Add pork and brown on all sides for about 7 minutes. Remove pork from pan; do not clean pan. Place rack in same roasting pan and set pork on rack. Mix reserved fruit soaking liquid and remaining 3 cups broth. Pour mixture over pork. Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into centre of pork registers done, basting every 10 minutes with pan juices, about 35 minutes. Transfer pork to a platter and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm. Strain liquid from roasting pan into a measuring cup. Add more broth, if necessary, to make 2 cups. Place roasting pan over medium high heat. Add dry white wine and 2 cups cooking liquid; bring to the boil, scraping up brown bits. Boil until reduced to 2 cups, for about 15 minutes. Mix in apricot preserves, add cornflour dissolved in water and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove strings from pork. Slice pork and overlap slices on a platter. Spoon some sauce over and garnish with thyme and sage sprigs, if desired. Pass remaining sauce separately

CHERRY GLAZED CHICKEN

3 chicken breasts, ½ cup plain flour, ¼ tblspn thyme crumbled, salt, pepper, milk, vegetable oil, 1½ cups cherries stoned and chopped, 1/8 cup brown sugar, ¾ cup castor sugar, ¼ tblspn yellow mustard ground

Split, skin and rinse chicken breasts. Combine plain flour, thyme, salt and pepper. Dip chicken in milk, then in plain flour mixture, coating evenly. Brown chicken on all sides in hot oil in large fry pan. Remove chicken from fry pan, place in single layer on large baking pan. Bake covered for 30 minutes. Prepare cherry glaze: Drain cherries, reserving liquid. In a saucepan combine drained cherries, 3 cups cherry liquid water or chicken stock. vegetable oil, brown sugar and castor sugar. Bring cherry mixture to a boil over medium heat. Add mustard; mix well. Continue cooking at a rapid boil for 5 minutes or until sauce is syrupy. After chicken has cooked 30 minutes spoon cherry glaze evenly over chicken. Return chicken uncovered to the oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until chicken is tender. Serve immediately.

APRICOT STUFFED SHOULDER of LAMB Lyn Haupt

90 grams dried apricots, 1 ½ cups fresh breadcrumbs, 1 tblspn parsley finely chopped, ½ tspn dried thyme, salt and freshly ground black pepper, 1 tblspn lemon juice, 30 grams butter, 1 egg beaten, 1.5-1.75 kgs shoulder of lamb boned, 1 tblspn plain flour, 1¼ cups vegetable stock or water, watercress

Bring dried apricots to the boil in a little water and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Drain, allow to cool and chop finely. Add to breadcrumbs with parsley, thyme, salt black pepper and lemon juice, Heat butter over a low heat and pour into stuffing ingredients. Combine well and bind together with the beaten egg. Season lamb well and spread prepared stuffing over surface. Roll up tightly and secure with string at intervals. Bake in moderate oven for about 2 hours until lightly browned. Place on hot serving dish. Pour off excess fat from roasting tin, stir in plain flour and cook for a couple of minutes. Allow to cool before adding water from vegetables or stock, gradually and bring to boil, stirring constantly. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve sauce in gravy boat. Remove string from joint and garnish with watercress.

SALMON in RED WINE with APRICOTS

625 grams salmon fillets, ¼ cup plain flour, 2 tblspns vegetable oil, 1 cup dry red wine, ½ cup fish stock, 1 cup dried apricots, salt to taste, freshly ground pepper, 2 tblspns unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 190c. Pat the salmon fillets dry on paper towels. Dust in plain flour shaking off excess. Heat the vegetable oil in a 30cm frying pan over medium, heat on the stove. Add the salmon and brown on all sides. Remove to a plate and discard oil. Add the dry red wine and fish stock to the fry pan and bring to a boil. Replace salmon in the fry pan, add the apricots and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place uncovered, in the oven. Cook for 7 minutes. When done, transfer fry pan to the stove top and remove the salmon to caring board. Cook the liquid in the roasting pan over high heat stirring until it thickens slightly. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter. Cut the salmon fillets into 1cm slices, arrange on a serving platter and spoon over the sauce. Serves 4.

HOLIDAY STEAMED PUDDING Steamed

2½ cups plain flour, 1 tspn ground cinnamon, ¾ tspn bi-carb soda, ½ tspn ground ginger, ½ tspn ground nutmeg, ½ tspn salt, ¼ tspn ground cloves, 1 2/3 cups Maraschino cherries drained cut into halves, 1 cup dried apricots, 1 cup dried figs chopped, 1 cup prunes chopped, 1 cup walnuts chopped, ¾ cup currants, 7/8 cup finely ground suet, ¾ cup light molasses, ¾ cup milk, boiling water, brandied figs, red candied cherries and maraschino cherry slices for decoration, Hard sauce

Sift plain flour, cinnamon, bi-carb soda, ginger, nutmeg, salt and cloves into large bowl. Add Maraschino cherries halves, dried apricots, dried figs, prunes, walnuts and currants, toss to mix well. Add suet, molasses and milk to a bowl; mix well. Pour into well-buttered 1 litre mould. Cover mould with aluminum foil; tie securely with string. Place mould on rack in large saucepan; add boiling water to come halfway up sides of mould. Cover saucepan; adjust heat to maintain simmer. Steam until metal skewer inserted comes out clean 2-2½ hours. Add water to saucepan if needed during cooking. Unmould pudding onto platter; decorate with brandied figs, red candied cherries and maraschino cherry slices. Serve with Hard sauce. Serves 10-12.

CHERRY TRIFLE

2 cups vanilla custard, 24 ladyfingers or 1 layer sponge cake cut into fingers, 1 cup cherry jam, rind of 1 lemon grated, ½ cup sherry, 3 tblspns brandy, 1 litre fresh cherries stoned, 12 macaroons crushed, 1 cup cream whipped, maraschino cherries

Prepare vanilla custard, Coat ladyfingers or sponge cake fingers with cherry jam, place in the bottom of crystal bowl 20cm in diameter and 9 cm deep sprinkle with lemon rind grated. Sprinkle with ¼ cup sherry, 1½ tblspns brandy. Cover with layer of half the cherries and 6 crushed macaroons. Allow to stand an hour or so. Pour half the custard sauce over top, repeat layers of ladyfingers, cherry jam, lemon rind, sherry, brandy, cherries and remaining macaroons. Repeat custard layer. Chill. Just before serving, top with whipped cream and maraschino cherries.