This is what winter food is about to me, spicy flavourful deliciousness. Warming food that comforts you, makes you feel like you've been given a hug. Food like this also reminds me of my childhood, my mother used most of these spices daily and started showing me how to cook with them when I was still a child. It's a thrifty way to add flavour and life to dishes that otherwise might be a bit bland. Spice was gold in our family's kitchen and still reins supreme in mine.
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Baby it's hot outside!!! Brisbane is in the middle of a heat wave at the moment, we are currently sitting on... 39 degrees celsius (103 degrees fahrenheit) I'm melting! Cooking these little babies up didn't cool things down for me but they were certainly worth it in the end. The pineapple salsa is fresh and summery, the cakes themselves are delicious with just a little spice to keep things interesting.
I am day 4 into Veganuary (http://www.veganuary.com/) which means for the month of January I am eating no animal products or foods produced with animal products in them. I initially thought this would be quite a challenge with work and being busy, however I've been surprised at how simple it really has been. It's also made me be a lot more creative with my food than I normally am. I've been eating a much wider variety of food and am feeling fantastic for it. Preparation has been my friend, cooking extra for dinner to have the next day and always having suitable snacks on hand to stop those 3pm sugar demons... A book that has helped me so far is Chloe Coscarelli's cookbook (Chloe's Kitchen). This book was a firm favourite of mine before Veganuary and I highly recommend it to anyone. It has some seriously delicious recipes in it - including today's recipe. Her website is http://www.chefchloe.com/ Baby Black Bean Cakes Makes 16 bean patties Ingredients: 4 tbs extra virgin olive oil 1 brown onion, finely chopped 400g cooked black beans, rinsed (or 1 can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed well) - it also helps if you premash them a little 1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced 1/2 cup polenta (aka cornmeal) 1/2 cup breadcrumbs 1 tbs chilli powder 1 tsp himalayan salt 1/2 cup fresh coriander, chopped 1/4 cup water In a large frypan heat 2 tbs olive oil over medium heat and cook the onions until they are caramelised. Transfer the onions to a large bowl and set frypan aside for later. Add the beans, carrots, polenta, breadcrumbs, chilli powder, salt, coriander and water to the bowl of onions. Using your hands, mash the mixture together. If it is too dry to bind, add 1 tbs of water at a time to the mixture until it binds. Mould the mixture into patties about 5cm wide. Heat the remaining oil in the frypan over medium high heat and cook the patties for 3 minutes each side, until they are browned and crisp on the outside. Add more oil to the skillet to stop burning if required. Drain cooked patties on paper towels. Serve with a spoonful of pineapple salsa on top. Pineapple Salsa 1 cup diced pineapple 1/4 cup fresh coriander, finely chopped 2 tbs red onion, finely chopped 1 tbs agave syrup -if needed for sweetness Combine all ingredients together in a bowl. Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you've all had a great Christmas! The last two weeks have been a little crazy for me, I've been working over this period and its been BUSY! On the plus side, I've also had a chance to catch up with some wonderful people I haven't seen in a long time AND get in some great shopping much to my boyfriend's disdain.... :)
Having been so busy (... shopping:P), quick and easy recipes have been the order of the day. Hence this super easy, delicious -probably bad for you- but it's Christmas so we'll let it slide potato salad. This recipe is a spin on an oldie of mine that I make for my family every year (http://heartyhealthykitchen.weebly.com/2/post/2012/10/potato-salad-to-die-for.html ) with a few other leftovers added. I was really surprised at how tasty this was. Enjoy:) Serves: 4 as a main, more as a side Ingredients: 500g Kipfler potatos, chopped into bite size pieces 500g sweet potato, chopped into bite sized pieces 5 green onions, finely chopped 1 small red onion, finely sliced 1 small handful of fresh dill, finely chopped 1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half, then in half again 1/4 cup leftover Christmas ham, chopped 2 Celery stalks, chopped into small cubes 100g Green beans, trimmed and cut in half 1/2 cup light sour cream 1/2 cup whole egg mayonnaise Fresh juice from half a lemon salt and pepper to taste Place your potatoes in a large saucepan of salted water and cook until just tender (around 8-10 minutes). While they are boiling, preheat your oven to 180 degrees celsius. Mix the sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice and dill together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Once the potatoes are tender, drain and place in a large baking dish in a single layer and bake for 10-15 minutes to dry them out (this ensures your salad doesn't go mushy). Lightly steam your green beans for a couple of minutes, you don't want them soft but still a little crunchy. Once the potatoes are baked, remove and let them cool for 5 minutes. Once cooled, add the green onions, red onion, cherry tomatoes, ham, celery and green beans. Mix thoroughly then stir in the dressing. Serve immediately. Who doesn't love a good green curry? I learnt to make curry pastes from scratch whilst in Thailand and was surprised as how simple it really is. You don't need a food processor, if you have a large mortar and pestle you can mix it in that.. just be prepared to put in a fair bit of elbow grease. If you do have a food processor this is done in about 5 minutes. So easy and so incredibly fresh, the flavour of the kaffir lime just jumps out at you and throws a party on your tongue. If you are vegetarian, simply replace the chicken with potato it's just as tasty:) This recipe makes 1 large jar and it will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 2 months.
Makes - 1 large jar Ingredients: 15 fresh green Chillies, chopped 3 tbs Shallots, chopped (for those in Australia, I mean the small brown onion here, not the green one) 3 tbs Garlic, chopped 1 tbs Galangal, finely sliced 1 tbs Lemongrass (white part only), chopped 1 tsp fresh Kaffir lime peel, finely chopped 1 tsp Coriander root, chopped 1 tsp Coriander seeds 1 tsp Cumin seeds 1 tsp Shrimp paste (use peanut or soy paste for veggo option) 1/2 tsp Salt 1 Bok choy leaf (any Asian leafy green will do here, you are using it for the colour only) Like I mentioned above, there are 2 ways to do this. If you are feeling energetic you can throw all this in a large mortar and pestle and pound the crap out of it until it is very very smooth. When I made it this way in Thailand, it took a good 10/15 min of constant pounding to get the desired smoothness. HOWEVER, if you are a little lazy like me, you can simply throw it in a food processor and let that do all the hard work for you. If you choose this option you may need to add a little oil to help it blend properly (I used extra virgin coconut oil), I found my processor wouldn't work without a bit of moisture, I guess you could use water as well? You will need to let it process for around 5 min, scraping the edges down frequently until it is smooth with no lumps. Once you have finished, all you need to do is put it in a sterilised jar and pop it in the fridge. Enjoy:) (If you don't like a hot curry, simply reduce the number of chillies). Thai Green Curry Serves 2 Ingredients: 300g Chicken, sliced into 1 inch pieces (or substitute for veggo option) 2 tbs Green curry paste 1 cup Coconut milk 100g mixture of Eggplant, Carrot and baby Corn (use any veg you like, green beans are also delicious), sliced into bite size pieces 5 Kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced 10 Sweet basil leaves, crushed and torn 7 green Chillies, cut diagonally 1 tbs Fish sauce 2 tsp Sugar Heat a pan over low heat and add the coconut milk and curry paste. Stir continuously for a couple of minutes or until the curry paste is fragrant. Add the chicken and stir vigorously until nearly cooked then add your vegetable mixture. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and add the fish sauce and sugar to taste. Once the flavours are balanced add the chillies and kaffir lime leaves. Simmer until the vegetables and chicken are cooked then stir in your basil leaves and serve immediately. Yum yum yum! Chicken schnitzel is a classic dinner for many people. Unfortunately, more and more people are being diagnosed with celiac's disease or gluten intolerance every day. Other's choose to avoid gluten for other reasons. This is a healthy twist on a classic family meal that nearly everyone can enjoy. As this also uses quinoa flakes instead of breadcrumbs, it has a little extra kick of protein. I baked the schnitzel instead of frying it so it hasn't browned up quite as much but this is a great alternative. You can throw whatever spices you like into the mix.
Makes 2 schnitzels Ingredients: 1x 200g chicken breast, trimmed of fat. 1/2 cup quinoa flakes 1 tsp dried italian herbs 5 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves removed from stalks 1 egg If baking the schnitzel, preheat your oven to 180 degrees and line a baking tray with baking paper. Combine the quinoa flakes, italian herbs and thyme leaves in a bowl and mix well. Crack the egg into a second bowl and beat with a fork. Cut your chicken breast in half lengthways into 1 inch slices. Dip the chicken into the egg, then toss in the dry mixture, pressing down so that it is well crumbed. Set aside and prepare the other slice. If you are baking the schnitzel place on the baking tray and lightly spray the top with olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes then turn over and bake for another 8 minutes (or until golden, we were hungry so we didn't necessarily wait much longer). Try not to cook any longer than 10 minutes on the second side or your chicken will be dry and horrible. If you are frying, cook as normal. Serve with your favourite side. OK, so vegan fried rice is not a particularly hard thing to do, but this is delicious, quick to make and literally ANYONE can cook this. Fried rice is a great way to use up cooked rice and to pack a whole lot of veg into your life. Let's be real - who doesn't love fried rice? This is a tasty plant based version which is so tasty, you'll wonder why you don't cook this more often. As I mentioned, cooking time on this is really quick, so make sure all of your ingredients are prepped and ready to go before you start to cook.
Serves 2 as a main Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups of cooked brown rice - make sure the rice isnt wet, it needs to be dry 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup of chopped brown onion 3/4 cup of diced carrot 2 medium size mushrooms, chopped 1 cup frozen peas 1 vegan burger pattie, chopped into bite sized pieces 3 tbs extra virgin coconut oil 1/2 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1/2 tsp tumeric powder 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper 1/2 tsp himalayan salt 4 tbs soy sauce 1/4 cup water Heat 2 tbs of coconut oil in a large saucepan or wok over medium heat. Add the garlic and salt and cook until the garlic softens. Add the carrots and onions and cook for 1 minute stirring frequently. Add the mushrooms, veggie burger and 2 tbs soy sauce. Cook until the vegetables and burger have softened. Push the vegetables to one side of the pan. Add 1 tbs coconut oil, the cooked rice and 1 tbs soy sauce onto the cleared half of the pan and mix well. Flatten out the rice the best you can and let fry for few minutes. Mix your spices and vegetables into the rice and cook for a minute. If your rice is still hard add a little water. Once the mixture has cooked together add the frozen peas and 1/4 cup of water. Mix together until the peas are cooked through and the water has absorbed. Serve! So after an incredibly busy period at uni, an amazing trip to Thailand and even more uni assignments later - I'M BACK! I spent the better part of last month lazing around Thailand with a coconut in my hand and this dish was one of my favorite things to eat over there. The balance of sweet, sour and spicy blows my mind every time. It's true what they say - street food is the way to go over there and there are plenty of stalls to try. The freshness of this recipe is what hooked me though, it's perfect for the hot weather. If you aren't a fan of spicy food, reduce the chilli in the recipe to one instead of 3.
Tip: this goes perfect with a fresh young coconut to drink:) Enjoy! Serves 1 Ingredients: 100g fresh shredded GREEN papaya 3 small hot chilli 1 snake bean aka chinese long bean, cut into 1 inch pieces 1 tomato, cut into wedges 1 tbs dried shrimp 1 garlic clove 2 tbs roasted peanuts 1 tbs fish sauce 1 tbs sugar or natural sweetener 2 tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice In a large mortar and pestle crush the garlic and chilli until well mushed. Add the snake bean and tomato wedges and crush together until well combined. Leave it a little chunky. Add in your green papaya, dried shrimp, peanuts, sugar, lemon juice and fish sauce and mix well. Once combined, plate up and top with a little extra chilli and a few peanuts on top. Serve immediately. This is classic good food. Beetroot with goats cheese and a herby vinaigrette... it doesn't get much better than this:) Add lentils and you have a meal (or a tasty side dish). This recipe is from Rachel Khoo's "The Little Paris Kitchen" cookbook which I have been devouring recently. This is perfect for those nights when you just can't be bothered making much. All you need to do really is boil the beetroot up (or roast if you've got more time) and cook the lentils. Really easy stuff. Healthy too:) The vinaigrette could be made in advance.
Serves 2/3 as a main Ingredients: 1 cup dry puy lentils, rinsed 1 bay leaf 1 sprig of thyme pinch of salt & pepper 1 large beetroot, trimmed and halved 200g soft goats cheese (I used ash covered), crumbled Vinaigrette Ingredients: 1/2 bunch of dill, 2 tbs mild tasting oil 2 tbs white wine vinegar salt pinch of brown sugar Cook your beetroot until soft. I boiled mine with the skin on in a pot of boiling water for 30 min, then peeled the skin off while the beetroot was still warm. When the beetroot is half cooked throw your lentils into a pot with 2 1/2 cups of water, the bay leaf, thyme and a good pinch of salt. Once this is done you can make your vinaigrette. Simply put all the vinaigrette ingredients into a food processor and whiz until the dill stalks have broken up. This may take a couple of minutes. Taste and add more salt if it needs. Once the beetroot are cooked, peeled and trimmed, slice them thinly either on a mandolin or with a knife. Drain your lentils and remove the thyme stalks and bay leaf. Divide the lentils equally on serving plates and top with the beetroot slices and goats cheese. Drizzle with the vinaigrette, add a little salt and pepper and you're ready to eat! You should have plenty of the dill vinaigrette left over, I mixed this through my leftover lentils the next day and threw in some chopped cherry tomatoes. This. Is. Delicious. Like, really delicious. My totally carnivorous boyfriend has told me - no less than 5 times in the last half hour- exactly how good it is. "The best vegetarian food I've ever had". They do take a little time to make but you will be completely rewarded the second you taste them.
Full credit for this recipe goes to the wonderful souls behind http://www.sproutedkitchen.com/ I have been slowly cooking my way through their cookbook, which I have to say - if you dont have it, check out their website and seriously consider getting the book. I have SO many cookbooks but theirs is one of the best loved books in my kitchen at the moment. The lemon pesto in this recipe is extra special :) Serves 4 Ingredients: 1 cup lentils, rinsed 2 cups water 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil 3/4 cup ricotta 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp fennel seeds 2 tbs fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1 tsp sea salt 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper 2/3 cup breadcrumbs Lemon pesto: 1 clove garlic, minced 1/4 cup pine nuts grated zest and juice of 1 lemon pinch of sea salt 1 cup basil leaves 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 tbs parmesan, freshly grated 2 tbs water Place your lentils in a pot covered with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 20 minutes, adding more water if needed. Drain lentils. While the lentils are cooking make your pesto. Place the garlic, lemon juice and zest, pine nuts and salt in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add the basil, 1/4 cup of olive oil and parmesan, blending again until smooth. Remove from processor bowl and clean the processor parts. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Add lentils to the processor and pulse until they form a chunky puree. I found it helped to add a tiny amount of water here to make it puree better. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add in the eggs, olive oil, ricotta, parmesan cheese, garlic, fennel seeds, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Mix until well combined. Stir in the breadcrumbs and allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes to allow the flavours to blend. Roll your lentil mixture into 1 inch balls, checking that the mixture holds together well. If you feel it is too wet, add another tbs of the breadcrumbs. Place the balls on a baking paper lined oven tray. They dont need to be widely spaced. Brush with a little olive oil if you like and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from pan and serve with pesto sauce... try not to eat them all at once ;) Ok, I know... it's another pumpkin and sweet potato soup - but this baby has some bite! It's hotness is nicely balanced out by the kaffir lime leaf. This soup is perfect for those chilly days that seem to be here to stay in Brisbane at the moment and is really cheap, healthy and quick to make. If you are not a fan of hot food this may not be for you, however if you do like your food with some bite this is a lovely yummy soup that will warm you to the bones.
Serves 2 Ingredients: 300g Pumpkin, peeled and diced 200g sweet potato, peeled and diced 1 tbs extra virgin coconut oil half a large brown onion, diced 1 tbs green curry paste 2 cups vegetable stock 1 and a half kaffir lime leaves, shredded 1/8th cup of fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes or until soft. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring until fragrant for around a minute. Add the pumpkin and sweet potato, stir until they are coated in the curry paste then pour in the vegetable stock and 1 cup of water. Bring to the boil, then reduce to medium-low heat and simmer for 20 minutes until the pumpkin and potato is soft. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup. Stir in the coriander and kaffir lime leaves and serve. This will keep in the fridge for a few days. |
~Lauryn~Ramblings from my kitchen in Australia Categories
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