MMmmm homemade vegetarian minestrone...

I used the McKenzie's Italian Style Soup Mix to make a vegetarian minestrone. It took me 3 hours to make but was definitely worth it! Of course I didn't follow the recipe on the packet and added my own preferred ingredients. The risoni was a nice touch, I think.

Toasted tuna sandwich with tomato, chilli and cheese

John West Tuna Tempters - Chilli - quick easy-to-make snack which fills you up and tastes yummy!

Grilled fish with mash and MasterFoods Béarnaise Finishing Sauce

MasterFoods Béarnaise Finishing Sauce - so convenient to use and tastes yummy!

Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Huế)

I had a very delicious noodle soup at my cousin's tonight. She puts so much effort into preparing this dish, which uses many ingredients. She also puts aside a little broth before adding chilli which is great for the kids. As you can see in this picture, her version of Bún Bò Huế looks deceivingly mild. As a lover of spicy foods, I did add a generous helping of the prepared chilli-sate sauce and also extra herbs, shredded veges and bean sprouts. MMmmmm it was delicious! 

Here is a link to a great blog by Wandering Chopsticks and if I am ever brave enough to attempt it one day, I will definitely be following the recipe on that site. 

Garden Salad

Garden Salad! The first pick of the mixed lettuce from my little garden. Of course, the olives, cucumber and tomatoes were store bought. In hindsight, I should have taken a photo of the lettuce BEFORE I turned it into a yummy salad.

 

Japanese Feast for Three and a Half

Chicken Teriyaki with Cabbage & Japayo, Edaname, Flying Fish Roe Sushi, Seaweed Sushi, Cooked Tuna Sushi, Inari, Crab with Avocado and Cucumber Salad, Salmon & Tuna Sashimi, California Rolls, Fresh Oysters

I really enjoy making homemade sushi. Of course, my eyes are bigger than my stomach and I don't end up using half the ingredients that I buy. This time I found some frozen flying fish roe from Wan Long Oriental Supermarket. Hooray! So of course I made California Rolls and the Crab, Avocado and Cucumber Salad for the first time. Hubby's favourite's always makes an appearance as, unfortunately for him, he is not a fan of raw seafood. So, he gets to eat plenty of Chicken Teriyaki, Cooked Tuna Rolls and Inari. 

I also made sure to stock up on the Wasabi, Japanese Mayo and Soy Sauce, which we agree are the key ingredients to making our dinner a success! If our dinner guest wasn't driving, I would have warmed some sake as well. Maybe next time?

Steamed chives dumplings, 韭菜餜, Gu Chai Gue

Garlic Chives

My mum makes the best garlic chives dumplings. It's a traditional recipe that has been passed down the generations but unfortunately it will probably stop with me. I am great at eating it. I can roll the dough. I know roughly the ingredients she uses (minced pork, dried shrimp, garlic chives). Shamefully, I fail when it comes to actually putting it all together. 

Steamed Chive Dumplings "Gu Chai Gue": Here is an awesome clip I found on youtube (thank goodness for youtube) because I can't begin to describe the skill (and art) involved in sculpting these dumplings.

Tea for Two Sisters Blog: This blogspot describes it perfectly for me. I remember when I visited my cousins overseas, making Gu Chai Gue would be something all the women in the village would do together. Of course, in the village, they milled their own flour. But that's another story.

Purple Carrots with Udon Noodles

Stir fried udon noodles with purple carrots and other veges

I was very excited when I found purple carrots at Coles the other day. I wasn't sure how to use them and they've been in my fridge for over a week. Today I was game enough to give it a go and decided to make hubby stir fried noodles for lunch.

So here is my concoction. Hubby normally dreads concoctions because he never knows what he's going to get. Luckily I passed the test and he really enjoyed it. Next time I will add plenty of pepper and fresh chilli as well.

Recipe Notes:

• Prepare vegetables into julienne strips.
• Stir fry 1 purple carrot and 1 small orange carrot in 1 tbsp oil for about 2 minutes.
• Add 1/4 red capsicum, 1 cup cabbage, shallots, 1 packet udon noodles, 1 tbsp oyster sauce, a splash of sesame oil, 2 tbsp water and stir fry for another 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• Serves 1 hungry hubby.

Molokhia

Molokhia


I loved recreating this Egyptian recipe. Thank you my beautiful friend (you know who you are!) who was so kind to share her homemade recipe with me.

These were my notes which I scribbled down over the phone. Just quietly, I was so pleased with the result. I also had enough to bring to work the next day for lunch. (Although in hindsight, not a very considerate idea as my colleague had to suffer the wonderful aromas of roasted chicken, garlic and spice!)

However as a family meal where we ALL can enjoy the garlic, I do think it is a hit. I am hoping it will be a frequent meal at our house.

A good guide is SBS Food Safari. They have step-by-step instructions which are simple and easy to follow. I chose to cook a whole chicken instead of rabbit and used minced frozen Molokhia. I also like the texture of medium grain rice.


Recipe Notes:

• Bring water to boil first, then add chicken, 1 tomato, 1 onion, 1 bay leaf, 2 cardamon.
• Simmer on low heat until chicken is cooked, remove chicken, strain and reserve stock.
• Take chicken off the bone and add chicken meat to soup stock.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil to a pan, fry 1 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp coriander powder, salt & pepper.
• Add flavoured oil & molokhia to soup. Heat soup but do not boil.
• Serve with cooked plain rice. Add a squeeze of lemon juice if desired.

Laksa with Chicken, Prawns & Tofu

Chicken & Prawn Laksa

 

 

A weekly meal at mum's seems to be a soup dish. More often than not, I find myself cooking Laksa, simply because it's so yummy and easy to make. Especially coming home after a long day of work, with a throbbing headache and having already volunteered to cook dinner, this dish also allows me to take short cuts as well as improvise. It's a type of dish that goes well with chicken or prawns or seafood or any combination you like. For a slight twist, I chose not to add bean sprouts this time but instead put in thinly sliced tripe for crunch.

 

Recipe Notes:

• Bring 1.5-2L water to boil, add 2 pieces chicken merryland, simmer until just cooked. 
• Take chicken pieces out and shred roughly, removing bones. 
• Peel and devein 1/2 kilo king prawns, reserve heads and shells.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and fry 1 tbsp garlic, 2 tbsp lemon grass, prawn heads and shells for about 5 minutes.
• Add half the chicken stock and boil rapidly for 5 minutes, then using a sieve to strain, pour into main stockpot.
• Cook king prawns in stock and set aside. Blanch tripe quickly and set aside.
• Add 200g jar Laksa Paste, 400ml coconut milk, fried tofu and 2 tbsp fish sauce.
• Prepare bowls of fresh thin rice noodles with pieces of cooked chicken, prawn & tripe.
• Add tofu and laksa soup. Garnish with chopped fresh chives, fried shallots and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Garlic & Herbs Lamb Shanks Slow Cooker Recipe




Garlic & Herbs Lamb Shanks with Potato Mash and Side Salad

 



Oh I do love my slow cooker! I am very excited because this was my first attempt at making lamb shanks. OK, so I cheated a little and added a packet of Garlic and Herb Lamb Shanks Recipe Base. Served with mashed potato and ideally steamed vegetables (although we had a salad with it instead), this is definitely a hearty meal that is simple and satisfying.

I added chopped onions and fresh garlic to the sauce, but other than that I pretty much just stuck to the recipe on the back of the packet. It really is very easy to make and so yummy. I can't wait to try Moroccan Lamb Shanks next weekend.









Recipe Notes:

• Heat 1 tbsp oil in pan and cook 2 lamb shanks until brown.
• Add 1 chopped onion, 1 tsp minced garlic, 2 carrots (quartered), 440g can diced tomatoes, 170g can tomato paste and recipe base in slow cooker bowl and stir.
• Cook on low for 8 hours, stirring once every 2-3 hours.
• Serve on a bed of mashed potato and pile a generous amount of sauce on top.
• Enjoy with a glass of red wine.
• Save left-over sauce as a base for lasagna or bolognese.

roasted pumpkin & fontina tortellini with rosemary beurre noisette

roasted pumpkin & fontina tortellini with rosemary beurre noisette

Of course, after purchasing my pasta machine, I had to have a go at making this recipe at home. I made a few changes to suit our palate and pantry.

1. Egg-free pasta. It's surprising easy to make. I followed this Egg-free Pasta Recipe which pretty much substitutes the plain flour and eggs for Semolina flour. It tasted awesome and this is the recipe I use for all my home-made pasta.

2. Garnish. The pumpkin fondants were cut into squares because I didn't have a round cutter. I have to say that the texture is different and definitely tasted better when it was round. Oh, and I forgot to buy spinach! So what did I use instead? Broccoli and cauliflower. Not a great combination. It was quite plain and didn't really go well together. So, note to self - either skip the greens or get in the car and buy some spinach!

3. Filling. I looked high and low and could not find either cheeses mentioned in the recipe. Again I improvised and used haloumi for this recipe as it is quite salty and I thought it would be a good balance for the sweetness of the pumpkin. I skipped the eggs and used dried herbs from the pantry. 

Original recipe by Peter Sheppard

Serves 6

Pasta
250g plain flour
pinch salt
1 egg
5 yolks

Garnish
1 bunch spinach
50 g hazelnuts roasted

Filling
50g diced fontina or raclette cheese
2 sprig thyme
2 sprig rosemary
1 butternut pumpkin
2 cloves of garlic
2 egg yolks

1 sprig rosemary finely chopped


METHOD

Pasta
Put the sifted flour and salt into a food processor. Combine the egg and 5 yolks and slowly add them to the flour. The mixture should now resemble bread crumbs - if it feels dry add a little water. Turn out onto the bench and knead to form a firm dough. Wrap in cling film and leave on the bench for 1 hour.

Filling
Peel and slice the pumpkin. Using a round cutter cut 6 rounds of pumpkin, add a good knob of butter and place over a low heat. Lay the remaining pumpkin on a tray with the rosemary, thyme and garlic, season, cover with foil and place in a 160C oven for 20 minutes or until soft. Remove the foil and cook for 10 more minutes. Pass the pumpkin through a sieve, add 2 egg yolks and the diced fontina.

Garnish
Pick and wash the spinach. Cook the pumpkin fondants until they are soft, turning them over part way through the cooking. When the fondants are cooked, remove the pumpkin and turn up the heat. Add the chopped rosemary and when the butter starts to brown remove from the heat. Wilt the spinach and set aside.

Prepare the tortellinis
Roll the pasta and cut into 12 x 8 cm diameter rounds. One at a time re-roll each round, brush with water and place a spoon of filling in the center. Fold over and press together. Cut away the excess pasta leaving 1 cm all around the filling. Holding each corner between thumb and index finger press your forefingers into the center and fold around. Brush with water and press together. Simmer for 3 minutes

To serve
Place a ball of spinach in the center of each plate and put 2 tortellini and a pumpkin fondant around. Sprinkle with the hazelnuts and the beurre noisette.