watermelon salad
April 16, 2011 § 5 Comments
It’s a bit sneaky of me to squeeze this very summery recipe in mid April amidst the figs and soups, but I had an end of season watermelon and there is still plenty of basil in the garden so I thought I could just get away with it before it becomes really wintery and inappropriate. It did go down quite well with a crusty slice of bread and the afternoon Autumn sun shining in on the kitchen table. Its beautifully fresh and light.
what you will need
About 1 kg of watermelon cubed
3 – 4 handfuls baby greens
100 g fetta
Handful basil leaves roughly broken
2 Tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tsp lemon rind
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and serve with crusty bread.
homemade fig and pear semi-freddo
April 3, 2011 § 13 Comments
Over our back fence there is an overgrown lane-way. The grass is knee-high littered with old televisions and garden clippings sneakily dropped out of neighbours lives. This place seems long forgotten. Certainly no one seems to go there. And I wouldn’t either, if it were not for the huge fig tree that hangs beyond one lucky neighbours back-yard, the branches reaching deep into the lane. Once a week I have been jumping our fence, braving the long grass with the hidden electrical appliances and checking on the figs, waiting for them to turn soft and blushing purple. I’m glad I have been watching so closely, because all of a sudden they have hurriedly begun to ripen and split, the purple blush revealing delicious pink softly wrapped in white. My recent visits have had me returning with a wide sticky smile and pockets juicy and bulging. I have needed careful restraint in order for them to make it all the way to the kitchen with me. Luckily the idea of fig ice-cream has kept me determined to save a special few.
Semi-freddo is a lovely way to get the idea of ice-cream without all the bother, fluster and equipment needed to produce it. Inspired by Jamie Oliver’s recipe in this book I have changed the quantities a bit, and adapted it to my own flavourings.
It’s probably obvious, I am making fig and pear semi-freddo because I want to impress someone. What could be especially delightful for my sweetheart just back from 5 months in Africa. This recipe is both seductive and gentle with the comfort of pears and flirtation of figs.
What you will need
400 g fresh figs
1 ripe pear
2 Tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice
pinch cinnamon
100 g brown sugar
1 vanilla pod
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
5 free range organic eggs separated
600 ml thick organic cream
pinch salt
1 Tbsp raw organic honey
Remove the stalk from the fig and cut into quarters. Remove the core from the pear and roughly chop. Place the fig, pear, lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar in a saucepan and stew until soft and caramelised. Allow to cool before pureeing.
Whisk together the egg yolks and vanilla.
In a second bowl whisk the cream until soft peaks form.
In a third bowl whisk the egg whites and salt until very firm peaks form.
Gently fold all ingredients together. Transfer to an old ice cream container or tupperware and drizzle with honey before placing in the freezer for about 4 hours or until partially frozen. Otherwise, freeze for longer and place in the fridge for 20 minutes before serving. Semi-freddo is Italian and literally translates to semi-frozen.
Serve in a bowl with fresh figs or a drizzle of honey.
Enjoy!
Other very tasty combinations:
Banana and cardamom
Apricot and almond
Chocolate and chili
zucchini and bacon soup
March 23, 2011 § 5 Comments
Bacon is a treat for me. I rarely purchase it because I worry about how happy those little pigs might have been in their lives. But as much as the well-behaved wholesome environmentalist in me protests, I secretly love bacon. I have tried not to, but the pleasure has remained, pure bacon enjoyment when it is on my plate. So in order to overcome my internal battles, I have justified eating it every now and again, provided its happy bacon. The bacon I have used in this recipe is biodynamic and free range, which if you are in Melbourne, you can find at Belmore Biodynamic Meats in Thornbury.
Now I also happen to think that a very good place for bacon, possibly even the best, is in soup. In saying that, I have to admit I have a bit of a soup obsession. It is probably my most favourite food in the whole wide world. If I had to choose just one thing to eat for the rest of my life, it would be soup, no questions asked.
This soup came about because as usual for this time of year there are whale like zucchini’s everywhere. I think the zucchini is balanced nicely with the richness of the bacon and the freshness of the lemon and thyme. You may have begun to notice my love affair with lemon and thyme… if not, Im sure you soon will, they seem to make their way into a lot of my cooking these days.
Recipe for zucchini and bacon soup
Good splash olive oil
1 large onion diced
4 – 5 cloves garlic crushed
1 tsp paprika
zest of 1/2 a lemon
3 – 4 medium-sized potatoes (I used toolangi delights, purple and beautiful)
About 1.2 kg zucchini
1 good tsp good quality vegetable stock
couple of sprigs thyme plus more for garnish
4 free range organic bacon rashers
Juice of half a lemon
In a large saucepan saute the onions and garlic until soft. Add the paprika and lemon zest and stir until fragrant. Add the potatoes, zucchini, stock, salt and pepper. Add enough water to just cover the vegetables. Simmer until the vegetables are nice and soft. Add the thyme, simmer for a tiny bit longer and then blend with a potato masher. If you have a blender feel free to use that, I don’t have one so i work by hand but I also like the no machine approach of the potato masher because I’m a bit quaint like that.
Slice up the bacon and fry in a pan until browned. Add to the soup along with the fresh lemon juice.
Serve in nice deep bowls and top with a bit more lemon rind and fresh thyme.
Delicious!
Serves 4 big bowls with a bit left over for lunch the next day. Because soup is always better the next day!
Autumn and Chutney Red and Green
March 18, 2011 § 2 Comments
The days are whirling on by. Why is there such a fine balance between being too busy and not busy enough. I have hit too busy hard and have resorted to that all to familiar feeling that any tiny spare moment in the day must be made productive. At the same time I am trying preciously to hold onto stolen moments alone in the garden, or a walk down a quite evening street, or a good stare at the ceiling whilst lying in bed. A life without time to smell winter on its way, or missing the precise day autumn turns the leaves on the trees, or not noticing the loveliness of a miserable cold day, isn’t worth living to me.
So Autumn has snuck up and run me over. It comes with cold toes and dewy grass, turmeric days, darkening evenings, soup cravings and way too many tomatoes in the garden.
This Tomato Chutney recipe originated from a friends brother. Its evolved a bit along the way but was so damn good to start with that it would be a shame to change it too much. The recipe calls for green tomatoes but because ours are still ripening I have used red ones instead and just used a bit less salt. If you are using red ones you also don’t need to let the tomatoes sit over night in the salt as the recipe suggests.
2 kg tomatoes roughly chopped
700 g onion finely diced
700 g grated apple
1/3 of a cup salt (if using red tomatoes 1/4 cup will do)
2 cups dark brown sugar
400 g sultanas or raisins
400 g dates roughly chopped
2 and 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp turmeric
1/2 Tbsp curry powder
1 Tbsp whole cummin seeds
1 Tbsp whole coriander seeds
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 tsp mustard seeds
/2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp chilli powder
1 Tbsp whole cloves
1 Tbsp whole pepper corns
Put the tomatoes, onion and salt together in a bowl and leave to rest overnight (this is only necessary if you are using green tomatoes).
Place all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to the boil for a couple of minutes. Simmer and stir regularly for 45 minutes.
In the meantime pre heat the oven to 140°C. Clean about 10 jars in hot water. Place the jars on their sides in the oven until they have dried. Boil the lids in a saucepan of hot water.
Pour the mixture, it must be still boiling hot, into the hot jars and tighten the lids immediately.
Homemade Spicy Wedges with Aioli
February 26, 2011 § 3 Comments
I have had quite a few requests for this recipe, firstly at Friendly Beaches and then at our wonderful garden gig we had for the Luscombe street Community Garden last sunday.
To make these wedges you have to be prepared to go a bit wild in the spice cupboard. They are usually different every time I make them. This is probably depending on which spices aren’t too far back and hard to reach in the cupboard, but I will do my best to give you something to follow. I would also like to stress here that there is definitely room for personal touch. Sometimes I have made them with lemongrass, sometimes not, sometimes with cumin, sometimes not, sometimes with turmeric, sometimes not, sometimes with garam masala, sometimes not and so on. However, I think the lemon juice, zest and cinnamon are great ingredients to add an intriguing flavour.
I have provided an aioli recipe to go with the wedges but they are just as good with chutney or the like.
Spicy Wedges (Serves 4 – 5)
2 kg potatoes
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp whole cumin seeds
2 tsp ground coriander seeds
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1 1/2 tsp salt
Zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon
80 ml oil
1 stalk lemongrass beaten with the back of a knife and chopped finely
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C. Wash the potatoes and cut into wedges. Place the potatoes and all the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix until the potatoes are coated evenly.
Place the potatoes on two large baking trays making sure all wedges are touching the tray. Bake for 1 hour if using a fan forced oven, a bit longer if not.
Aioli
2 egg yolks
1 cup light olive oil or a combination of stronger olive oil and sunflower oil
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp lemon zest
2 cloves crushed garlic
A big handful of fresh herbs. I used parsley, oregano and thyme.
Place the egg yolks and 2 Tbsp lemon juice on a large plate and stir well with a fork. Add the olive oil very very slowly, stirring well with the fork after each drop.
Once all the olive oil has been added, stir in the remainder lemon juice, zest, garlic and mustard. Finely chop the herbs and add these too.
(If you want to cheat and buy a good quality mayonnaise and add garlic lemon juice, zest and herbs to make your aioli, I promise I won’t tell anyone. I have been guilty of this too).
Serve in a bowl alongside the wedges.
Enjoy!
Everything Pink: Chocolate Beetroot Cupcakes
February 22, 2011 § 3 Comments
Pink is beautiful! I have only just noticed this.
My love affair with pink has crept up and surprised me, slowly taking form, settling into the back-seat of my mind, organising itself, getting comfortable before revealing itself to me.
Perhaps the seed was planted recently when I loved the paper curtain in our laundry.
Floral and patterned and pink.
Or when I started taking photos of pink roses.
Velvety and creamy and pink.
Or perhaps it was some years ago when I bought this dress.
1950’s and vintage and pink.
Or way back when I admired the stain of beetroot on everything it touched.
Bright and earthy and pink.
Either way, I have been told that pink is the colour of universal love and you should bring pink into your life when you want calmness, relaxation, acceptance and contentment.
Well that suits me just fine. Any excuse to make Chocolate Beetroot Cupcakes in a pink dress!
Recipe for Chocolate Beetroot Cupcakes with Orange Spiced Chocolate Mousse Topping
200 g dark cooking chocolate, I used Green and Blacks Organic 85% Cocoa
80 g butter
200 g dark brown sugar
3 free range organic eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
200 g raw beetroot finely grated
1 Tbsp natural yoghurt
Dash of milk if needed
80 g almond meal
80 g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Method
Pre-heat oven to 170°C/340°F
Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of boiling water.
In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until fluffy. Mix in the grated beetroot, yoghurt and milk. Add the melted chocolate and combine well. Add the almond meal and sift in the flour cinnamon and baking powder. Stir until just combined.
Place 16 – 18 cupcake cases in a muffin tray. Spoon mixture into the cases until about 3/4 full.
Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer.
Chocolate mousse topping
100 g dark chocolate (85% cocoa)
200 ml sour cream
Zest of 1/4 orange
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Pinch ground cloves
2 Tbsp honey
Method
While the cupcakes are cooling, make the topping by melting the chocolate along with the orange zest in a bowl over a saucepan with boiling water. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the sour cream. Add the cloves, vanilla extract and honey and smooth over the cooled cupcakes. Store in the fridge.
Enjoy!!
Because there was Silverbeet
February 16, 2011 § 2 Comments
I went to a friend’s house the other day and there in their front garden was the biggest chilli bush I had ever seen. It was about one and a half metres tall and covered in chillies red and green. Apparently they grow like this in the tropics and apparently that is just the kind of summer we have had here in Melbourne whilst I have been away. Tropical at 37 degrees south! Everything is growing, growing and growing. The grass fluorescent green is impossible to keep restrained, the tomatoes race to rot before they are picked and the silverbeet with huge happy leaves laughs in the rain and sun.
I woke up this morning and new I couldn’t ignore it any longer. It needed eating. And because it is the middle of the week it needed to be something quick and easy. So here is something very simple for a fresh summer breakfast when you want something a bit more than just toast or muesli.
Silverbeet and Tomatoes with Lemon and Almonds on Sourdough (serves 2)
Olive oil
2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1 tsp fresh ginger roughly chopped
6 – 8 big silverbeet leaves washed and roughly chopped
A big handful of tomatoes roughly chopped
2 Tbsp tamari (if you don’t have tamari soy sauce will do)
A lemon
Small handful of almonds roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
In a large skillet, lightly sauté the garlic and ginger in a little oil. Add the silverbeet and cook until it just starts to wilt. Add the tomatoes and tamari and continue to cook until the tomatoes just begin to become soft but still hold their shape. Season with salt and pepper. Serve on sourdough toast with a squeeze of lemon juice and sprinkle of almonds.
Enjoy your day!!
What it Means to be Perfect: Chocolate coated dried plums marinated in white wine and a hint of thyme
February 11, 2011 § 9 Comments
Chocolate coated dried plums
When in Belgium I went to visit my great aunty and uncle Yvonne and Jos in the small town of Bellingen. Oom Jos just turned 90 and Tante Yvonne isn’t far behind. We ate cake with a fork and knife before a dinner of witlof wrapped in ham and baked in snowy white sauce. This is a very traditional Flemish dish. As a child I was always glad witlof was so hard to find in Australia so it rarely ended up in my mother’s kitchen. But now I enjoy it in small amounts provided there’s plenty of ham and sauce to go around.
During the Flemish conversations around the dinner table I mostly daydreamed at the paintings on the wall and marvelled at the young spirit of my aunt and uncle gossiping and laughing about the local goings on. At one point, the conversation briefly turned to English and my uncle proclaimed,
Tante Yvonn and Oom Jos
‘No one is perfect.’
Then after reflecting on this statement for a while he continued,
‘Except for my wife! She is Perfect. She cleans and cooks all day. She is perfect… only problem is she has no time for making love. She is too busy. She never has time to kiss me.’
I am always struck when I see an old relationship full of humour, love and adoration like this one, a little reminder that life can indeed be great, full of warmth and happiness.
So because the conversation here is about love and perfection and because it is almost Valentines Day and because I am sadly alone with my darling still in Africa, I have decided it is most suitable I share this recipe so perfect and delicious it will make you weak at the knees and your heart melt. Well at least I hope so.
I got the idea of chocolate covered prunes from Stephanie Alexanders book The Cooks Companion. She stuffs them with almonds and soaks them in brandy. I have adapted it some by using white wine and adding a few little bits and pieces for extra freshness. I think the thyme and lemon zest brings something unique and light to the richness of the chocolate. I also changed the terminology a bit because for something with a valentine spirit ‘prunes’ doesn’t really have the right um… connotations in regards to some of its well known uses. Dried plums on the other hand….
Recipe for Chocolate Coated Dried Plums
You will need
30 pitted prunes
30 almonds
3/4 cup white wine
Juice of an orange
Sprig of thyme
Zest of 1/4 of a lemon
200g dark cooking chocolate
Stuff an almond into each prune where the pip would have been and place in a bowl along with the white wine, orange juice, thyme and lemon zest. Allow to soak for 1 – 2 hours then drain well.
drain well
Melt the chocolate in a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of boiling water.
Melted chocolate
Dip each prune into the chocolate. Allow to cool in the fridge on a tray covered with baking paper until the chocolate sets.
Allow to cool on baking paper
Serve on a pretty plate and eat with someone special.
Enjoy!!
Thyme for Pumpkin
January 9, 2011 § 3 Comments
The markets in Makeni, shoulder to shoulder with hot crawling crowds carrying their buys and sales and indeed, their handbags, on their heads for convenient hands free shopping. The way is particularly slow, pedestrians congested in the narrow spaces between the stalls, every productive piece of bare earth used for displaying neatly balanced towers of onions and stacks of maggi cubes, portions of salt, plates of roasted peanuts, handfuls of chillies and piles of dried fish. However this is not really a market, it’s meant to be a road lined with stalls, but they inevitably spread to encompass the whole space. When a car wants to pass through, it noses itself into the crowds as women hurriedly gather their trade and punters squeeze against the sides of the street.
It is here one sunny day that I spy amongst the dry and smelly fish, a big beautiful deep green pumpkin. ‘Yes mam, yes mam’ says the soft and rounded lady sitting behind her display holding the pumpkin out to me on a seemingly particularly stretched out arm. Her body reaches heavily out over the fish towards me. She is guessing I will be stupid and white enough to pay her almost a dollar for this one so she won’t take any chances with me missing the cue. And she is right of course, I can’t resist. Soon it is heavy in my bag on my shoulder as I balance my new weight on the back of the Okada home, weaving through the cars and pedestrians. I am happy with my buys today, also tucked away in my bag, tiny bundles of individually wrapped dried thyme that I find with excitement amongst the maggi cubes and salt in the markets but just never recognised before.
Beautiful things. My pumpkin at home amongst the basil seedlings
What then? Well not traditional but predictable, pumpkin soup with spices brought gallantly all the way from Morocco, pumpkin fritters that leave me wanting to cry and finally, Pumpkin in a Skillet with Thyme, Lime and Chilli.
Recipe for Pumpkin in a Skillet with Thyme Lime and Chilli
This recipe makes for a lovely snack and is so simple. But lets not mistake lack of complexity for lack of tasty because it is the latter indeed. I can be grateful for that here where you are far from overwhelmed by an abundance of variety and reminded of how effective just a few ingredients can be.
You will need
About a quarter to half a pumpkin sliced roughly 5mm thick
Oil for frying
Thyme to taste
Chilli powder to taste
1 or 2 limes
1-2 fresh chillies, seeds removed and finely sliced
In a skillet or heavy based fry pan gently fry pumpkin over a medium heat until golden brown and crisp on the outside but soft in the middle.
Sprinkle immediately with thyme, salt and chilli powder and serve with a squeeze of lime and sprinkle of fresh chilli.
Eat straight away; it is best hot and still crisp.
Served on our broken chopping board, the prettiest thing I could find in the house
rose petal and ginger tea
December 17, 2010 § 5 Comments
Rose petal and ginger tea
Before arriving in Sierra Leone, a man at a spice shop in Morocco gave me a bag of rose petals. At the time I didn’t think much of my gift or of how useful they would be to me at my next destination but they smelled divine and didn’t weigh much so they went in my backpack with everything else. However it wasn’t until I was siting here in the heat of Sierra Leone nursing a runny nose, soar throat and once monthly pains in my belly that I decided to make myself a ginger tea, and on seeing the rose petals sitting on the bench I decided to chuck some of them in too. I was surprised by the velvety warm soft taste; the juxtaposition of hot ginger and cool rose on the tongue; like drinking a cup of love on a sunny day.
I decided to do a bit of research on the health benefits of rose.
Apparently roses aren’t the most romantic flower for nothing; they are said to comfort the heart and emotions. This explains a lot as I find them utterly irresistible and it is with great difficulty that I overcome the temptation to smell every one I pass. Perhaps this is accentuated by the fact that my grandparents owned a rose nursery just outside of Brussels and one of my first memories is of wandering through them with my Oma as a 4-year-old.
When I came across the less romantic properties of rose I couldn’t help thinking that this flower was designed to solve all my problems, especially whilst living in Sierra Leone. Rose clears heat and toxins from the body resulting in a cooling effect (oh sweet yes!), can benefit a sore throat and runny nose, and relieves painful periods. It also contains high levels of Vitamin C, helps the body fight against infection, helps establish healthy bacteria, helps cleans the kidneys, liver and gall bladder, helps remedy gastro, diarrhoea and dysentery, works as a laxative, helps infertility and has a positive effect on the nervous system therefore helps fatigue, insomnia and depression.
So I am thinking it was with some luck or perhaps a future insight that the man at the spice shop gave me a bag of rose petals. And when combined with the more widely known benefits of ginger – boosts the immune, and treats colds, chest infections, digestive disorders, nausea and joint pain – this has become my new super tea and what’s more it tastes so good.
The recipe for rose petal and ginger tea is simple
1cm by 1cm cube of fresh ginger peeled and sliced thinly
1 dried rose bud or a couple of rose petals
1 cup boiling water
Place all ingredients in a tall glass or fine china teacup, and let cool slightly before sipping.
Serves 1
Enjoy
the invisible cookbook 