Pot luck perfection: The best ever steak chilli

I like the idea of a pot-luck dinner, I’ve always been intrigued by it, ever since I was a child. My aunt Ann, who lived in Florida, would bring back tall tales of the pot-luck dinners she had been to, although at the time my brother and I were far more interested in the sacks of neon-coloured sweets she arrived home with. A pot-luck dinner seemed to have it all: the fun of trying new dishes, the gossip over deciphering who brought the dodgy crudité platter, and perhaps most usefully, an interesting way of meeting new people through a common interest. The concept of hosting a dinner party where each guest brings a dish or dessert may sound crass and slightly lacking in imagination on the host’s part, but I like to think it starts a conversation about food, one where everyone has a vested interest.

Since moving 10,000 miles from home, coming to a brand new city has required us to develop a new social group. It’s a struggle, but it’s also quite a refreshing process to go through– like speed-dating for friends. Checking out new restaurants, drinks at bars, events and now pot-luck dinners are all part of the process and all help to form a new little world. Many of the people we have met are fellow food lovers, which makes a fairly significant difference to the type of pot-luck you host.This week I share a little slice of the dishes I’ve been making for our pot-luck Sundays.

I’ve always had a slight aversion to chilli; in my mind it’s always been a bit boring. The reason I’ve come around to it, is the idea of swapping minced beef with roughly chopped rib steak. The texture transforms it and brings the dish to life alongside the addition of some choice spices and dark, sticky treacle. As pot-luck dishes go, this is the one to beat.

Corn bread has been cooked in North America for centuries, and plays an important part in traditional American cuisine. These hoe cakes – said to have once been baked on a garden hoe over an open fire – are often enjoyed with hearty stews and soups. I recently tried this version at a barbecue joint called Barrel & Ashes in Los Angeles, where they slather the corn bread with a sweet and creamy maple butter and sprinkle it with sea salt and spring onions. Highly addictive stuff.

A slice cake is the ideal dessert for a pot-luck dinner; it can be prepared well in advance, with just the finishing garnishes to be touched up at the last minute. It is also easy to transport and to serve.

Whether you divide these recipes among friends for a pot-luck dinner or if you’re cooking it all yourself for a gang, this is a great weekend meal for a crowd.

CORN BREAD WITH MAPLE BUTTER & SPRING ONIONS

This sweet and savoury corn bread is delicious alongside a meaty chilli – so good your guests will ask for the recipe.

Serves 6

• 120g cornmeal
• 120g plain flour
• 1tbs caster sugar
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1tsp salt
• 2 large free-range eggs
• 300ml milk
• 50g butter, melted

To serve

• 50g butter, softened
• 2tbs maple syrup
• 6 spring onions, finely sliced

Method
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.

For the maple butter, whisk the butter and maple syrup until completely blended. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the milk to a small mixing jug before adding one egg and one egg yolk and mixing to combine. Add the remaining white to a small, clean metal bowl and whisk until it holds stiff peaks.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk mixture and melted butter. Once combined, fold through the egg white.

Heat a cast-iron skillet or heavy-based frying pan or casserole roughly 8cm in diameter over a medium-high heat. Add the butter and, once melted, pour half the batter into the pan, swirling to completely coat the base.

Once bubbles form on the surface, transfer the pan to the oven to cook for two to three minutes. Remove from the oven and flip. Spread with half the maple butter before transferring back to oven to cook for another three minutes. When the cake is golden brown and firm to the touch, serve in generous slices sprinkled with spring onions and a liberal sprinkling of sea salt.

THE BEST EVER STEAK CHILLI

This is the perfect pot-luck recipe that can be transported in the pot it was cooked in. Serve warm with all the extras and you have a meal ideal for a crowd. Seek out rib steak for this and chop it so it still holds its shape during the cooking process – an altogether different chilli.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 2tbs rapeseed oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 small carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 celery stalks, trimmed and finely chopped
• 2 red peppers, deseeded and finely chopped
• 2tsp chilli powder
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• 2tsp ground cumin
• 500g rib steak, finely chopped
• 2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
• 1tbs Worcestershire sauce
• 1tbs treacle
• 400g tin each of kidney beans and chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Sea salt and ground black pepper
• Crusty bread or tortilla chips, crème fraîche and/or coriander leaves, to serve

Method 
Place a large cooking pot or flame-proof casserole pan over a medium–high heat and add the oil. Add the onion, garlic, carrot, celery and peppers. Then stir through the spices – the chilli powder, smoked paprika and cumin. Fry the mixture for seven to eight minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

Add the meat to the pan and fry gently until lightly browned, stirring regularly. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and then fill one of the tins with hot water and pour this in also. Add the Worcestershire sauce and treacle.

Bring the mixture to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring every now and then. Before the end of the cooking time add in the kidney beans and chickpeas. If it needs a little extra water, add some.

When the chilli has reduced, season with sea salt and ground black pepper. Serve in deep bowls with crusty bread or tortilla chips, a dollop of crème fraîche and coriander leaves, if you wish.

COCONUT, MANGO & PASSIONFRUIT SLICE CAKE

This can be made as a dairy-free cake, but feel free to use real butter in place of the dairy-free spread. When I can’t find passion fruit in the shops, I often zest up a lime and toss the mango slices with the fine strands and a good squeeze of the juice.

Serves: 4-6

For the coconut cake

• 3 large eggs
• 150g caster sugar
• 100g dairy-free sunflower spread, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
• 100g desiccated coconut
• Juice of 1 orange
• 50g gluten-free flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1tbs gluten-free baking powder

For the passion fruit frosting

• 100g dairy-free sunflower spread
• 200g icing sugar, sifted
• Generous pinch of sea salt flakes
• ½tsp vanilla extract
• 2-3 passion fruits, halved, pulp scooped out and sieved to remove the seeds

To decorate

• 1 large firm ripe mango, peeled, and cut into thin slices
• 1 passion fruit, halved
• 1 heaped tbs lightly toasted coconut curls (optional)

Method 
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Lightly grease a 20cm square non-stick baking tin and then lightly dust with flour or lime with parchment paper.

Beat the eggs and sugar together in a large bowl with a hand-held electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the sunflower spread, desiccated coconut and orange juice and beat again until well-mixed.

Sift the flour and baking powder into another bowl and then fold into the egg mixture, using a large metal spoon. Transfer to the prepared baking tin and bake for about 20 minutes, or until well-risen and golden brown and a thin metal skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for five minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the passion fruit frosting. Place the sunflower spread in a free-standing mixer. Add half the icing sugar and mix for one to two minutes to combine. Switch off the machine, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and add the salt and vanilla extract. Switch back on again, add the rest of the icing sugar and mix until combined. Drizzle in enough of the sieved passion fruit purée to make a nice smooth frosting, scraping down the sides again with the spatula if necessary. Cover with clingfilm and chill until needed.

To serve, spread the passion fruit frosting over the cake with a spatula and then arrange the mango slices on top. Spoon over the passion fruit pulp and scatter with the lightly toasted coconut curls, if using.