Table Of ContentIntroduction
My passion for cooking started early during a family holiday to France to
stay with a French aristocratic lady who made the most wonderful soup (my
recipe to this day).
Spending subsequent years with a family in the South of France where
everything was home cooked and delicious from Bouillabaisse to Coq au
Vin, even the pizzas made by the totally blind father.
My love of France and its culinary delights culminated in living and working
in Paris for 4 years and learning to cook professionally. Circumstances
made me return to the UK but I retained my interest in food.
I opened a B&B in Cambridge catering for a foreign language school but
I pined for a warmer climate so decided to move to Spain. I took over a
small restaurant in Javea, turned it around with my love of cooking, good
presentation and reasonable prices. But again due to fate I had to leave
Spain for a while so went to Germany with a friend who was a German chef
and we opened and ran a restaurant there for 2 years.
But I missed the warmth and lifestyle in Spain so returned to the Costa
Brava, opening another restaurant. After a winter of severe snow I headed
south again to Moraira. I have never wavered from my passion for cooking
although I have tried my hand at many other things.
I speak fluent Spanish, French and German. This cookery book was my
dream, to show people that professional cooking is not difficult, nor time
consuming, but just enjoyable and fun!
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About Tasca Les Fonts
Having leased out my Bistro “Cafe Royal” and subsequently got bored I
realized that where I lived near Benitachell there was no “watering hole”
within walking distance of 2 large, mainly expat urbanizations.
So I decided to open one. But I met opposition from the planning
department at the Town Hall and was told I could only purchase and
build a Bar/Tavern on the only piece of commercial land in the area. I
also had this dream of a wooden structure.
After nearly 2 years of paperwork, jumping through Spanish bureaucracy
hoops, mega disasters, periods of mega depression and overpriced and
under efficient workmen, my “Swan song” dream was realized and La
Tasca Les Fonts opened on 1st December 2011.
The gods were not kindly on opening day, the beer chiller warmed the
beer, the coffee machine developed a leak and had no pressure and after
a week of torrential rain, the wooden floor somehow expanded and
exploded leaving a waterlogged hole.
But we survived. It is a stunning building set in a beautiful valley with
fabulous views. I have run and enjoyed 8 restaurants during my many
years (65) but La Tasca Les Fonts is definitely my best and favourite.
Now I want to share our fayre with you!
Betty’s Good Food Guide 3
A SIMPLE SOUP RECIPE
BASIC RECIPE STARTER
Feeds 4 can be increased to any amount
Ingredients
v 1 large onion chopped
v 2 medium size potatoes roughly chopped
v 1 clove garlic
v 1 tablespoon margarine
v 1 chicken stock cube
v Pinch black pepper
v 1/2 pint milk
Method
Melt the margarine over a low heat in a thick bottomed
saucepan. Crush garlic and add together with pepper and
stock cube. Add onion and potato and stir till coated with
margarine. Allow to cook gently till potato and onion soft
but not browned. Add milk and bring to the boil. Turn
down heat and cook gently for 5 minutes.
VARIOUS FLAVOURS
1. Leek and Blue cheese Soup
Add 2 chopped leeks with onion and potato and when
adding milk add 2ozs any cheap blue cheese
2. Smoked Salmon Bisque
Any left over smoked salmon, add to pan when adding
milk
3. Pea and Ham
Add small tin processed peas and chopped ham when
adding milk
4. Chicken
Boil chicken carcass, dissect any left over meat and add
stock and meat at milk stage.
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5. Tomato
Add can of plum tomatoes and carton tomato frito /
pureed tomato at milk stage
Any other fl avours you can think of
Always making sure that the added fl avours are cooked.
Method
Allow ingredients in saucepan to cool slightly then blitz
well till a smooth soup is achieved. If too thick add more
milk to bring to a soupy consistency.
Season to taste.
When serving drizzle with cream and if liked a few croutons
of fried bread fi nely diced can be added
Soups
Betty’s Good Food Guide 5
APPETIZERS
Paté
Ingredients
v 1/2 kilo pigs liver
v 1 kilo pork belly without the skin
v 1 large onion
v 1 cup fl our
v 2 cups red wine
v 1 cup brandy
v 2 teaspoons Provençal herbs
v 4 garlic cloves crushed
v 2 chicken stock cubes
v 1 teaspoon black pepper
v 2 tablespoons margarine
Method
Blitz Liver and pork belly or ask the butcher to do it until it
is very small
Place margarine in heavy bottomed saucepan together with
fi nely chopped onion, spices, garlic and sweat over low heat.
Add blitzed liver and pork and cook gently for 20 minutes,
stirring all the time to not allow the mixture to burn. Add fl our
and stir in and cook for further
5 minutes (mixture should be
thick) Add red wine and brandy
and stir well. Add stock cubes.
Cook in pan with lid for 1 hour
over gently heat.
If it becomes too thick add a
little more wine, then a glass
of sweet sherry. Allow to cool
slightly then blitz again till
smooth. When cool store in
suitable sized containers or
freeze depending on when you
want to use it.
Chicken livers can be substituted
for the pigs liver to give a fi ner,
Paté
creamier pate
See other recipes to use this
pate with.
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APPETIZERS
Paté With Mushrooms
Feeds 2
Ingredients
v 8 Medium sized button mushrooms
v 1 x tablespoon olive oil
v 2 x portions pate.
Method
Put oil in frying pan and add sliced mushrooms. Gently cook over
low heat.
Mix in pate and stir gently till warmed through.
Serve with crusty bread or toast as a starter or lunchtime snack.
Paté Diane
For each portion use individual oven proof earthenware bowl or
similar.
In each bowl place portion of paté and make a hollow in the middle.
Method
Break an egg into the hollow and place the bowls under a very hot
grill until egg is cooked. Sprinkle paprika over the egg and serve
with crusty bread or toast.
Pate En Croute
Method
Defrost a 200 gr roll of puff
pastry. Roll out as thinly as
possible into an oblong shape.
(As if making sausage rolls!)
Spread a goodly portion of
pate on one third of pastry
then fold over into a roll. Seal
the ends (can be cut off later,
this is to avoid the pate oozing
out) Make cuts in the top of the
pastry (where you will cut it
into portions when cooling)
Paté With Mushrooms
Brush the top with beaten
egg and cook in a hot oven till
puff ed up and brown.
Serve as a starter with salad,
party nibbles or a snack.
Betty’s Good Food Guide 7
APPETIZERS
Spinach with Blue Cheese (for 2)
Ingredients
v 400 grammes frozen spinach (defrosted in microwave)
v 1 x medium onion fi nely chopped v 1 garlic clove chopped.
v 1/2 teaspoon black pepper v Pinch salt
v Small cup of cream v Tablespoon olive oil
v 50 grammes blue cheese (any type needing used up!)
v 2 wholemeal bread croutons (cut into rounds slightly smaller than the
serving dishes and fl ash fried in a knob of butter or olive oil)
v Sprinkling of grated cheese
Method
In a heavy bottomed medium sized frying pan place oil, salt, garlic, pepper
and onion. Gently fry till cooked but not brown. Add spinach (drained of
excess water) mix in and bring to gentle simmer. Add blue cheese and
cream and mix till incorporated. Transfer to individual dishes. Place croutons
on top and sprinkle with cheese.
Blue Cheese And Walnut Chicory Salad
Ingredients
v Packet walnuts
v Packet cheap blue cheese
v Packet Chicory Spears
v Cupful Cream
v Cupful Mayonnaise
v Pinch black pepper
Method
Arrange chicory leaves on a
serving plate hollow side up,
or individual salad plates as
required.
Mix together blue cheese
(mashed) cream and mayonnaise
and black pepper till a stiff sauce
is formed (use extra cream if
necessary)
Stuff chicory leaves with this
Spinach with Blue
mixture and sprinkle walnuts
over. Cheese
(Chopped lettuce can be
substituted for the chicory)
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APPETIZERS
Gambas Al Pilpil (Spicy Garlic Prawns)
Ingredients
v For each portion use 1 large cup peeled and frozen prawns
v 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
v 1/2 x teaspoon Oregano
v 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
v 1 x teaspoon hot paprika
v 2 dried hot chillies
v 1 cup olive oil
v 1/2 fi sh stock cube
Method
Place all the ingredients in a heavy bottomed frying pan, slowly
bring to the simmer, stir then simmer gently for 10 minutes. Serve
immediately with crusty bread for dunking!
Mussel Soup for 2
Ingredients
v Pkt frozen mussels (minus shells) 400 grammes approx.
v Small leek (cleaned and chopped fi nely)
v Small onion (chopped fi nely)
v 1 x tablespoon olive oil or margarine
v 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
v 1 x fi sh stock cube
v 2 cups single cream
v 1/2 cup dry white wine
Method
In a heavy bottomed saucepan
place oil, pepper leek and
onion. Place over low heat till
cooked, stirring all the time
(Do not brown leek otherwise
the fl avour will be lost) Add
mussels, stock cube and white
wine. Bring slowly to boil and
Blue Cheese And cook gently for 5 minutes. Add
cream, mix in well and bring to
Walnut Chicory boil.
Serve immediately
Salad
Betty’s Good Food Guide 9
APPETIZERS
Asparagus With Egg And
Butter Sauce
For 2:
Ingredients
v Either bundle of fresh green
asparagus or jar of
green asparagus
v 2 hard boiled eggs
v 4 ozs butter
v Pinch black pepper
v Pinch salt.
Method
If using fresh asparagus cook
Asparagus With Egg
gently till “al diente” (not mushy)
Or drain jar and heat gently. And Butter Sauce
Chop hard boiled eggs
Melt butter in saucepan and add
pepper, salt and eggs.
Divide asparagus between 2
serving plates, pour over sauce and serve.
Eggs Benedict
Ingredients (Per person)
2 poached eggs, 4 rounds of toast cut out with large cutter
or glass etc), 2 slices of ham, cupful of spinach, cooked and
seasoned, 1 carton of Hollandaise sauce.
Method
In an oven to tableware dish make towers fi rst with a round
of toast, spread with spinach, then ham, then another toast,
then place an egg on top and pour over sauce. Place in a
medium oven for 5 minutes then serve. The ham can be
replaced with smoked salmon
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