Quick & Easy Lunch: Garlic Pita Pizza & Fattoush-Inspired Salad

Today’s quick and easy lunch earned a blog post purely because it was so delish, I will be making it again and wanted to note down the recipe. Now there’s no need to try and jazz this up, it’s a simple meal, nothing flash or sophisticated. It’s a perfect work lunch, or even a light post-work dinner. I dare say, you could probably even get the kids to eat it, or at least help make the pita pizzas. Quick, easy and tasty, that’s my mantra.

The salad was inspired by the flavours of a fattoush salad, but I made a few changes and served my pita crisps separately as opposed to in the salad. This recipe served 2 with a little salad to spare and a few pita crisps shared with my fur babies.

Ingredients

For the pizza

• 2 pieces of pita bread (*if you’re health conscious, you can definitely use the wholemeal stuff)
• 1- 2 cups pizza sauce (*you can make your own with a bit of tomato paste/passata, onion, garlic, basil & oregano or buy a good pre-made one)
• 1  tablespoon minced garlic (*I use mine from a jar, alternatively you can finely chop 1 clove of garlic)
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1-2 cups of mozzarella cheese, (depending on how cheesy you want it)

For the salad

• 1 piece of pita bread
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced sideways, chopped
• 1/2 tomato, chopped
• 1 cup flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 cup red cabbage, sliced thinly
• 1/2 cup red capsicum
• 1/2 cup green capsicum
• 1/3 cup mint leaves
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup lemon juice

Method

• Preheat oven to 180C.
• Cut 1 slice of pita bread into small wedges. Spray with cooking spray, sprinkle with cumin powder, salt and pepper and pop it in the oven to cook until golden and crispy.
• Meanwhile, spread another piece of pita bread with a thin layer of pizza sauce. ‘Glue’ the second piece of pita bread on top. Spread with another, more generous layer of pizza sauce. Spread with minced garlic and then sprinkle with dried oregano and parsley leaves.
• Top with mozzarella cheese and then bake in the oven long enough for the cheese to melt and go golden and for the base to crisp up.
• Meanwhile, prep your salad: combine all the salad ingredients into a bowl. Combine olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a separate bowl, stir to combine and then pour over your salad, ensuring you mix it through well.
• When the pita crisps are ready, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
• When the pizza is ready, slice it immediately and serve alongside the salad and pita crisps.

 

Rosemary Chicken and Mushroom Risotto

I’ve been eating a lot of risotto lately. I’m not sure why because I was never mad about if before, but suddenly I’m craving it all the time- maybe as an excuse to perfect my technique?

Risotto is traditionally supposed to be served with a very wet ‘soupy’ texture, but in the interests of trying to get The Husband to eat it, I cooked mine down a little further- he flat out refuses to eat soupy, sloppy rice. The same way I refuse to pick up his socks. It’s a Mexican stand-off of epic proportions.

I think it’s hard to make a chicken and mushroom risotto look good with the whole shades of brown thing going on and with no good daylight left, I was stuck with down lights only, so my most humble apologies. In my opinion, nothing looks as flash as a bright orange pumpkin risotto. That’s the only risotto that stands any chance of looking great in a photo.

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 small shallot or brown onion, chopped finely

1 clove of garlic, chopped finely

1 chicken breast, cut into small pieces

150g mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup leek, white part only, sliced finely

1 bacon rasher, cut into the tiniest little pieces you can manage

1/2 flat leaf parsley, chopped roughly

2 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped roughly

2 cups arborio rice

4 cups chicken stock, hot

1/2 cup white wine

Shaved parmesan

Method

1. Heat  1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan over medium heat and add chicken, cook for a few minutes until chicken is well-browned. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the same pan and cook onion, garlic, mushrooms, leek and bacon until the onion is soft and translucent and the bacon is that yummy golden, crispy sort of texture.
3. Add the herbs and stir through before adding the arborio rice. Stir with the onion and mushroom mix until the rice grains are well coated with oil, then add 1 cup of chicken stock and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally until the rice has absorbed the liquid.
4. Continue to add chicken stock, 1 cup at a time until the rice has absorbed the liquid.
5. As you add the last cup of chicken stock, also add the white wine and some shaved parmesan (not too much, save it for serving up).
6. The risotto should be ready when the rice is cooked, but not mushy and a traditional risotto is supposed to be soupy in texture with a lot of reserve liquid.
7. Serve the risotto immediately, you can drop in a knob of butter for that glistening, silky finish and stir through some fresh parsley. Shave some parmesan over the top.

 

Lemon & Herb Grilled Chicken with Fennel, Orange & Chilli Salad

I know it’s winter here in the southern hemisphere here and all and this meal has a certain summer feel about it, but it was so delish that it would be a real shame to have to wait until summer to enjoy it (not that I would ever be so silly!).

A few notes about this recipe. It serves 4 for a light meal or two really hungry beasts (aka, The Husband and moi).

I added the chilli slices to the fennel and orange salad because The Husband is a chilli nut and will eat it on everything….Yes, everything.

The orange and fennel salad is obviously so versatile, you can leave the chilli out and team it with seafood as well. Of course, the dressing is completely open to interpretation as well…

I sliced a few of the oranges with the skin before peeling them, just for some colour (oh, please don’t hurt me Donna Hay!) These oranges were bought from the local farmer’s market and were so fresh that the skin just detached quite easily with the knife and fork during the meal, no biggie.

A very simple and quick meal, perfect for the mid-week rush.

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 sprig of rosemary leaves
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

For the salad

• 1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced (core removed)
• 1 navel orange, peeled and cut into segments
• 1 orange, juiced
• 1 small, red chilli
• 1 great big handful of flat leaf parsley (get rid of those stems though)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
• 1 tsp honey
• 3 tbsp white wine vinegar

Method

1. Begin by combining  2 tablespoons of the olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary leaves, oregano, salt and pepper into a bowl and whisk to combine.
2. Slice chicken breast fillets in half so that you have 4 pieces of chicken. Beat the crap out of it with a mallet if you need to even them out to ensure they cook evenly.
3. Add the chicken to the marinade, ensuring it is coated well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, you can prep your salad.  Combine the fennel, orange slices and chilli in a serving bowl.
5. To make the dressing, whisk orange juice, olive oil, mustard, honey and white wine vinegar together until well combined. Season to taste. Pour the dressing over the fennel, orange and chilli and toss to combine. Set aside.
6. Preheat cast-iron grill, or BBQ and cook the chicken, in batched until golden and cooked through.
7. Serve alongside the fennel, orange and chilli salad immediately.

 

Classic Caesar Salad

I am a Caesar Salad Whore (CSW).

Watching Masterchef last night and Donna Hay’s spin on the classic Caesar Salad stirred the Caesar harlot in me and I spent the rest of the night thinking about the crunch and creaminess of a yummy Caesar Salad.

I have to order Caesar Salad everywhere it appears on the menu. In fact, I’ve had Caesar Salads from all over this fine land and beyond and would be happy reviewing and blogging about Caesar Salads alone.

I’ve had some pretty icky salads and some that are just so deliciously moreish and of all the places I’ve devoured Caesars, I think my local pub has got it pretty down pat.

Now, in my desperate need to have this salad after watching Masterchef, I had to use iceberg lettuce (I know, string me up and stone me right now) because my ‘quaint’ little local supermarket was closed and I wasn’t able to pick up some cos lettuce. So let’s just pretend that in my photos, I’ve used deep green, crispy cos leaves as opposed to the blasphemy that is iceberg lettuce. The salad still had the right jist of flavours and the CSW in me was blissfully satisfied in the post-Caesar glow.

This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients

For the salad

2 small heads cos (romaine) lettuce

2 eggs

3 rashers rindless bacon, sliced into strips

1/2 Ciabatta roll, sliced thinly

2 tablespoons olive oil

For the dressing

4 anchovy fillets
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
5 tablespoons olive oil
1  large egg yolk
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Lay bacon slices on tray and put them in the oven to cook for about 8-10 minutes until deliciously crispy.
2. Lay the thin slices of Ciabatta bread on a tray lined with baking paper, brush with olive oil and sprinkle a little salt and cook in the oven, until golden and crunchy.
3. Drain bacon on paper towel and set croutons aside.
4. Meanwhile, soft boil 2 eggs and set aside to cool once they’re done.
5. To make the dressing: Whir the anchovy fillets and garlic in a food processor (I used my Magic Bullet). Add the olive oil, egg yolk, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and then season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Your dressing should have a lovely runny consistency, so if it’s too thick, just whisk in a bit of water.
6. Arrange cos leaves on a plate. Top with crunchy bacon pieces, shaved parmesan and croutons.
7. Peel soft-boiled eggs, split in half and arrange atop the salad.
8. Drizzle with Caesar dressing and serve immediately.

 

Lentil and Vegetable Curry Pies

Put your hand up if you don’t have a pie-maker. If you don’t, I am ordering you to go and buy one immediately.

Pie-makers are a blessing for the lazy, the busy and the pastry-challenged (moi).

Pie-making was usually reserved for cold winter days off from work where I felt like being adventurous and trying to attempt pastry and yummy fillings, usually with dire results.

Now, with some blessed frozen pastry, armed with a saucepan and some yummy ingredients, I’m rolling out pies like some kinda crazed Mrs Mac and I love that it is just so easy.

I don’t usually buy into the kitchen fads, you know, the things that are supposed to make life easier but end up stressing you out more by taking up space in the back of a kitchen cupboard. But the pie-maker is a must.

This recipe makes 6 pies. They store well in the fridge or freezer. My pie-maker makes 4 pies at a time.

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

3 sheets frozen shortcrust or puff pastry (you’re supposed to use shortcrust for the base and puff for the top)

1/2 onion, chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp minced/chopped red chilli

3 tbsp red curry paste

1 can brown lentils

1 cup frozen vegetables of your choice (I used cauliflower, peas, corn and broadbeans)- set them in a bowl 10 minutes prior to starting so they’re not straight out of the freezer.

1/2 can coconut cream

1/2 cup chicken stock (vegetable stock for vegetarians)

1 can crushed tomatoes

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Drizzle olive oil in a frying pan. Cook onion, garlic and chilli for 2-3 minutes until onion is soft.
2. Stir in curry paste and cook, stirring to dissolve for a further minute or so.
3. Add the lentils and frozen vegetables and cook for a further few minutes.
4. Add coconut cream, crushed tomatoes, stock and season before stirring well. Put the lid on the cook on med-high heat for approx 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce has thickened enough to scoop into your pies.
5. If your sauce isn’t thickening as quickly as you would like, add 1 tbsp of cornflour dissolved in water and stir into your curry.
6. When the curry mixture is ready and you’ve seasoned to taste, take off the heat and set aside.
7. With the pastry cutter you would have received with your pie-maker (or if not using a pie-maker, just a regular pastry cutter), cut out 6 circles of shortcrust pastry for the base of the pies. Then, cut 6 puff pastry circles out for the tops.
8. Put the shortcrust bases into the pie-maker, fill with lentil curry filling. Put the puff pastry tops on and close the pie maker. Cook until the indicator signifies that the pie is ready (I usually leave my going a few minutes extra, until lovely and golden and crispy).
9. If not using a pie-maker, use muffin trays to make your individual pies. Brush with egg wash prior to baking in the oven at 180C until golden.

 

Vietnamese Beef, Mushroom & Noodle Salad

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not very experienced with Asian food, so I am still in my experimentation phase, just  dabbling with recipes, new ingredients and condiments, to find the flavours that I like. I had a leftover piece of porterhouse steak and it was either hunt online for a recipe where 1 piece of steak was going to be sufficient, or treat the dogs to a nice dinner (they shared some of it with me in the end).

I’ve copied the recipe as I found it on the website but made a few minor adjustments along the way.

On a side note, I’m a bit weird with the concept of steak as a salad ingredient. Chicken, yes, tuna, yes, prawns, yes maybe…but steak, hmmm I’m not sure I’m convinced. My steak came out cooked to perfection, it was tender and well done, just the way I like it and the salad was tasty, but I don’t think I will be rushing out to add steak to any of my other salads anytime soon…

Ingredients

1/2lb sirloin steak (*I used porterhouse)

3.5oz bean thread noodles (*I used rice vermicelli)

1/2 cup of fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 small handful of mint leaves

1 small handful of basil leaves

1 small handful of coriander leaves

2 Kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced (*I didn’t use these)

1 red chilli, finely sliced

1/2 red onion, finely sliced

1/2 cucumber,  sliced or cut into strips

1 tablespoon of chopped roasted peanuts

1 tablespoon of fried shallots (finely slice shallots, deep fry in oil until golden, drain on paper towel)- *couldn’t be bothered.

BEEF MARINADE:

1 clove of garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon of soy sauce

1 tablespoon fish sauce

2 teaspoons of sugar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

SALAD DRESSING

1/6th cup sugar

1/4 cup lime juice

2 tablespoons of fish sauce

2 tablespoons of soy sauce

1 clove of garlic

1 tablespoon of sliced lemongrass (white section only)

1 small handful of cilantro leaves

2 tablespoons olive oil

Method

1. To marinate the beef, mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl, add the steak, and coat well. Refrigerate for a couple of hours, if this isn’t possible, at least do it for ten minutes while you prep your vegies.
2. Soak the noodles in hot water, according to package directions. Run under cold water to cool. Dry with a paper towel. Cut the noodles into short lengths.
3. Whisk all salad dressing ingredients together in a bowl.
4. Heat a cast iron grill or heavy-based frying pan over a high heat until it is very hot. Pour in a little oil. When it is really smoking, add the steak.
5. Sear the steak for a couple of minutes on each side, then turn down the heat, and cook a little longer – until it is cooked to your liking. (*Once seared on the outside, I like to take my cast iron grill pan and pop it straight into a preheated oven at about 180C and cook for a further 8 minutes or so, until well done).
6. When cooked to your liking, take the beef out of the pan and let it rest for a couple of minutes. In that same pan quickly cook the sliced mushrooms.
7. Cut the meat across the grain into thin slices.
8. Combine the beef with all the other ingredients, apart from the toasted peanuts and fried shallots. Toss to combine. Add the dressing slowly, until everything is just coated. Put onto plates, and top with the fried shallots and roased peanuts.

Recipe Source

 

Pumpkin & Leek Soup

Another picture from my gallery of ghastly photos this week. No, that is not pumpkin soup that a man has dragged his dirty, grassy work boots through. No, it is not mop water.

It’s a really comforting, quick and easy mid-week soup that reheats nicely in the work microwave the next day.

I had been sick this week and not up to the task of cooking something involved, so opted for an easy soup.

I’m not one for pureeing soup, or sieving it to ensure there are no bits and pieces, I prefer the chunkier, ‘rustic’ (yeah, rustic, that’s what I’ll call it!) and simple soups of my childhood, but if that’s what lights your candle…or you want to pretty it up, feel free to puree and sieve to your heart’s content.

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

1 small butternut pumpkin, peeled and chopped

1 leek, white part only

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 stalk of celery

1/2 onion, chopped finely

2 cups of chicken stock

2 cups of water

2 tbsp finely chopped parsley

2 tsp chopped rosemary leaves

pinch of paprika

1/2 cup cream

salt and pepper, to taste

Method

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a pot, add pumpkin, onion, garlic, leek  and celery and sauteon medium heat, until onions and leeks are softened and fragrant.
2. Add water, stock, parsley, rosemary and paprika, stir well, cover and cook on medium heat for approximately 35 minutes. Season to taste as you go.
3. When the soup is ready, turn off the heat, then stir through the cream.
4. Put the soup through the blender if you want it to look nice. If you’re hungry and you don’t give a damn, just plate it up and slurp away. It’s good with warmed Turkish bread 😉

 

Lazy Sunday Lunch: Haloumi, Chickpea & Crispy Prosciutto Salad

Sorry for the lack of recent updates. Life has been busier than usual. We recently introduced a new 3 month old puppy into the family, a Maltese Shih-Tzu. She is a sister to our older Maltese Pomeranian cross and there has been a pretty intense adjustment period for all four of us.

I took for granted how easy life was with our 12 year old fur-daughter. She is placid, quiet, happy to laze about all day. When we brought the new little firecracker home, everything was turned upside down, literally. And don’t get me started on the poop, which I kindly won’t because we’re here to talk about food….but OMG, how something so little and fluffy poops so furiously and with such rank odour beats me….

So anyway, my point was, since the new puppy came along, cooking has taken a back seat unfortunately. Having a screaming, howling, shitting pup will do that to anyone. Eating salads and pasta or soup for dinner became the norm over the last month and crawling into bed was a blessed escape from cleaning up poop, refereeing the bitch fights and sneezing. Yes, I am allergic to her.

So today, I finally emerged from my puppy-induced coma and hit the kitchen to make a yummy Sunday lunch. I wasn’t trying to be overly ambitious, after all, she was still there, attempting to hump my leg and playing tunnel between my feet. The result was one of our favourite salads- my husband and I have enjoyed this simple salad on many lazy Sundays.

Obviously, the ingredients are open to change to suit your own taste, but provided you keep the main three components I’m sure you will find it tasty, filling and quick and easy to make. I love the saltiness of the haloumi and prosciutto (I’m a fan of salty flavours, just in case you hadn’t noticed), the meatiness of the chickpeas, crisp crunch of the grilled prosciutto and buttery lettuce. YUM!

Just on a side note, I actually put some mixed olives into mine at my husband’s request (this, from the same guy who thought tomato sauce on grilled fish was a great idea)….Don’t. They didn’t sit well with the flavour combinations.

Ingredients

1 block of haloumi cheese, sliced into thick-ish slices

6 pieces of prosciutto or pancetta

1/2 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 cups mixed lettuce leaves

1/2 cucumber, sliced

1 vine-ripened tomato, cut into wedges

1 Spanish onion, sliced finely

2 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp red balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

2 tbsp honey, warmed in the microwave

Method

Lay prosciutto on a tray and grill in the oven until dark and crispy, set aside.

Cook prosciutto in a lightly oiled pan or grill until golden.

Assemble salad, spoon over the chickpeas, top with haloumi and crispy prosciutto.

To make the dressing, combine olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard and honey, whisk to combine and drizzle over the salad.

Told ya it was easy. 😛

 

Potato, Caramelised Onion & Feta Tart

I really suck at anything to do with pastry.

I hate the mess of making pastry from scratch. All the flour and kneading and icky hands.

I hate the paranoia of staring at it in the oven, hoping it doesn’t shrink or crumble up.

And I really hate blind-baking.  I can’t ever get it right.

So I’m a ready-rolled, frozen pastry kinda girl and not ashamed of it. I don’t have the time, energy or inclination to make dough with my bare hands. Maybe if I had a talent for it, I would feel differently….

This tart is really simple, quick and a perfect light dinner or leftover work lunch. For dinner, you could serve it with a fresh tomato salad or some simply dressed rocket leaves.

I sneaked some eggplant slices into mine only because that’s the only way I can get my husband to eat eggplant, but of course, you don’t have to.

Now my photos aren’t as good as I would have liked (I’m blaming it on the lighting) and let’s just say it’s all looking a bit ‘rustic’, but holy moly, oh so good.

Ingredients

3tbsp olive oil

2 onions, sliced

2 tsp sugar

1/4 cup water

4 slices of eggplant, thinly sliced

5 medium sized waxy potatoes, sliced thinly

2 sheets ready-rolled frozen shortcrust pastry

rosemary sprigs (I used dried rosemary as that was all I had on hand)

rosemary salt

crumbled Danish feta cheese

salt and pepper, to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Grease a shallow fluted tart pan with removable base
2. Heat olive oil in pan, add onions and cook, stirring regularly until soft and fragrant.
3. Add sugar and cook for a further few minutes, allowing the sugar to dissolve and the onions to pick up a lovely caramel colour.
4. Soak eggplant and sliced potato in salted water while working to avoid discolouration.
5. Add water to the pan and cook until it reduces down and forms a thick onion ‘jam’ consistency. Set aside to cool.
6. Line the tart pan with two sheets of pastry to ensure there is sufficient pastry and it reaches up the sides evenly. Trim any excess with a knife.
7. Line the tart base with baking paper and fill with rice or pastry weights and bake for 10 minutes. Remove weights and  reduce oven to about 160°C and bake for a further 10 minutes until golden and crisp.
8. Meanwhile, cook eggplant for a few minutes with a lick of olive oil, then set aside.
9. Cook the potato slices in a hot pan with a touch of olive oil. Add rosemary and a sprinkle of rosemary salt (this isn’t essential, but adds a nice touch- you can even make your own). Cook until the potatoes have picked up some nice colour, then set aside to cool.
10. Once the tart shell is ready, smear your caramelised onions over the base, ensuring you spread evenly.
11. Add eggplant (if you’re using it) and then layer the potato slices on top.
12. Sprinkle with crumbled feta and bake in the oven for a further 15 minutes until potatoes are cooked through perfectly, and the feta has gone all yummy.

 

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna Stack

This is one of those “I need to eat some fresh vegetables before my body becomes permanently preserved after all the packaged crap I’ve been eating” recipes- it delivers a nice, healthy hit of vegetables and would also make a  simple, delicious and fresh lunch or light dinner. Apologies for the gazillion shots- I am feeling a tad indecisive tonight and so just uploaded them all.

Ingredients

375 fresh lasagna sheets

1/2 eggplant, sliced thinly

1 small zucchini, sliced thinly length-ways

1/2 sweett potato, sliced thinly

1 onion, sliced

1 carrot, sliced thinly, lengthways

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

1 red capsicum, sliced

2 tbsp garlic

2 tbsp pesto

1/2 cup  pasta sauce (I use bottled home-made pasta sauce- you could make your own with passata, basil, garlic, onion, olive oil and seasoning)

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Basil leaves

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Toss sliced vegetables in a big bowl with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, then lay flat on a tray and bake in the oven for approximately 30 minutes- however because all ovens are different, you will have to keep an eye on this.
3. Cut the lasagna sheets into twelve 8cm squares. Cook in a large pot of rapidly boiling water until al dente. Drain well.

4. Place one sheet of lasagna on the bottom of the plate, dollop with sauce.
5. Once the vegies are done, start to assemble your stacks. The order I did mine in was (from the bottom):

• Lasagna sheet
• Sauce
• Eggplant
• Sweet potato
• Lasagna sheet
• Sauce
• Capsicum
• Sweet potato
• onion
• carrot
• mushroom
• zucchini
• pesto
• top lasagna sheet
• sauce
• mushroom
• basil leaf

6. Finish the plates with some olive oil and a dash of balsamic vinegar and serve.

 

Monday to Friday Work Lunches

I recently had one of those big lightbulb moments that we all have once in a while.

I realised that I have been spending in excess of $100.00 a week just on buying lunch at work…and multiply that by two because my husband and I work at the same place.

Young, dumb, more money than brains, who knows why, but I was happily oblivious to this little fact until the account balance was $0.00 and I wanted to go clothes shopping.

So this time I decided that I really needed to stop having lunch at the cafe every day- not only was it ridiculously overpriced, but the food was boring and it wasn’t even tasty….just convenient.

So I have set myself a challenge, to take my lunch to work everyday for the next week. I tried to start this last week, but failed twice, ending up at the cafe for a mini Bailey’s cheesecake ‘for lunch-dessert’ and another time for a drink….and of course while I was there, why not some ravioli? Grrrrr!!!

So here’s my lunch plan for the week. Hopefully I can stick to it, save myself a few kilos and actually get to clothes shopping on the weekend!

MONDAY-Haloumi & Avocado Salad

Grilled haloumi slices, sliced avocado, rocket, salad leaves, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, carrot, mushroom, toasted pine nuts and a mustard-Balsamic dressing.

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TUESDAY- Teriyaki Rice Paper Rolls

Shredded teriyaki chicken, vermicelli noodles, iceberg lettuce, carrot, snow peas with Hoi Sin dipping sauce.

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WEDNESDAY- Cumin grilled chicken strips with Tabbouleh salad and toasted Turkish breadChicken tenderloins marinated in lemon, olive oil, garlic and cumin seeds overnight, then grilled with a salad of chopped parsley, tomatoes, burghul, mint, olive oil and lemon juice with a slice of toasted Turkish bread to scoop up that delicious salad.

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THURSDAY- Vietnamese Chicken Salad Rolls

Poached chicken in sesame oil, soy sauce, caster sugar, garlic and a dash of fish sauce, green onions, shredded carrot scooped into a crunchy roll.

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FRIDAY: Potato & Leek Soup

Potato, leek, onion, garlic, vegetable, stock, cream. Make up a big pot and take the leftovers to work. Yum!

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And just so you know, I’m blaming WordPress for the formatting of this post…not the wine.

 

Chickpea and Vegetable Soup

If you have kids or a husband, you would probably know a little about the absolute fricken nightmare it can be to get them to eat their vegies.  You can only explain the nutritional benefits of tomatoes and ‘accidentally’ leave the healthy eating pyramid diagram casually laying around the place so many times before figuring out that they still won’t care.

I’m guilty of of not getting enough vegies into my diet either, so please don’t think I’m up on my soapbox. Working an insane amount of hours and being demoralised and physically drained by the time I finish up for the day sorta screws with your desire to wanna spend hours in the kitchen.

So when I’ve been shitting all over the healthy food pyramid and subsisting on nasi goreng noodles and kebabs, I know that a big hit of vegies will get me back on the road to sainthood.

So this recipe is one of my quick, easy favourites. Easy enough to make a big pot of it at the start of the week and either live on that for a few days or freeze for later use. And it’s got a good range of vegetables in there and protein for the vegetarians (personally, I think there is something strange about meat in soups).

This meal is great served with crusty Ciabatta bread or on a cold winter night you can cook it down until it’s a little thicker and serve over creamy mashed potato. Yum. This soup is hearty and packed with flavour and you can go to bed knowing you got a good variety of vegies today.

Chickpea & Vegetable Soup

• 2tbsp olive oil
• 1 leek, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp garlic, minced
• 1 red onion, diced
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 3 small potatoes, diced
• 1 stick celery, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1 litre salt reduced chicken stock
• 400g can diced tomatoes or bottle of passata
• 400g can brown lentils, rinsed and drained
• 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 400g can cannelini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh basil leaves

1. Heat oil in heavy based pot. Cook leek, onion and garlic for a few minutes until garlic softens.
2. Add carrots, potatoes, celery and zucchini to onion mix and stir fry for a few minutes until fragrant.
3. Add stock, tomatoes/passata, lentils, chickpeas and cannelini beans.
4. Add cinnamon and basil leaves while the soup cooks for approx 30 minutes. Ensure you keep stirring and try it as go along to ensure the seasonings are your taste.

 

Ham, Camembert & Cranberry Toasted Sandwich on Turkish Bread

I struggle with lunch. Especially taking lunch to work, which I know is the right thing to be doing instead of blowing $80 a week on crap from the cafe, which I know is going to be shit before I buy it, but meh, up shit creek without a paddle and all that kinda stuff.

To be honest, the last thing I am thinking about at 7am is putting together something delicious for lunch-it’s usually something more like “What can I get away with wearing that looks the closest to ironed?” and “Shit, I smudged my mascara. Maybe if I rub it with a cotton bud, people will think I am going for the smokey eye look.”

Shh, I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking I should make my lunch the night before work.

Well, I would if I wasn’t so exhausted by the bombsite that is my kitchen, folding a mountain of laundry, having a domestic with my husband and trying to find the TV remote control, I’d consider it. But then I’d have to put something together that could endure a night in the fridge and still be appetizing the next day.

Then came my love affair with Turkish bread. So delicious and moreish, you could put practically anything between two slices of Turkish bread and I would consider eating it. And let’s be honest, I am going to leave the fancy pants ingredients for other bloggers- as much as I would love to eat a Turkish roll with some amazing, exotic ingredients, I’m all about keeping it real and attainable… and quick.

Ingredients

1 Turkish roll, halved lengthways

2 slices honey ham (you could also use turkey, or chicken breast)

3-4 slices Camembert (or Brie) cheese

Cranberry Jelly

Mesclun lettuce

Method

1. Spread cranberry jelly over bottom half of roll.
2. Lay out the slices of Camembert cheese, top with ham slices.
3. Pop the top slice of the roll on, spray with a fine mist of oil spray and put in the sandwich press for 3-5 minutes, until cheese is melted and bread is crispy. If the smoke detector goes off, it’s too late and you should just slink away to the cafe and shell out another $10.00 for a salad.
4. Once you’ve removed it from the sandwich press, and allowed it to cool down, stuff it silly with your lettuce mix and eat it. A last minute squirt of mayo is also yum, but you didn’t hear it from me!

Other topping ideas for Turkish rolls:

• Chargrilled Mediterranean vegetables– you could chargrill the vegies ahead of time, or simply buy them from the deli. Spread your base with a tasty tapenade or capsicum relish or even onion jam and layer your vegies with some sliced bocconcini cheese before putting in the sandwich press or under the grill.
• Chicken, brie, mango chutney and baby spinach – one of my favourites, I crave this one frequently. Use a poached or roasted chicken breast, sliced finely. Spread the base with a generous amount of mango chutney, then add your Brie and baby spinach before putting it into the sandwich press. Thank me later.
• Tandoori chicken, baby spinach & Spanish onion with cucumber yoghurt– Marinate your chicken breast in tandoori sauce or alternatively you can use a tandoori curry paste. Once the chicken has cooled (I’d recommend in the fridge for a few hours to really let those flavours intensify), slice thinly. Layer generously on your roll, top with finely sliced Spanish onion and baby spinach, then put in the sandwich press. While that is crisping up, mix a small amount of yoghurt with some grated cucumber (not quite a raita, but close enough for lunch on the fly). You could make this ahead of time and take to work in a separate little container. Once your sandwich is ready, remove the top slice and apply your dollop of yoghurt, then put the slice back on, let it all smoosh in and enjoy.
• Roast beef, seeded mustard, Swiss cheese & onion relish with rocket– spread the seeded mustard on the top slice of the bread, spread the onion relish on the bottom slice. Add the roast beef slices, then the cheese- grill until the cheese is melted, then add your rocket to serve.
• Prosciutto, pesto, sundried tomato & mozzarella– you can use pesto or fresh basil leaves on the bottom slice of bread. Then apply the mozzarella (sliced or grated), the sundried tomato and then top with prosciutto before putting in the sandwich press.

 

7 Day Challenge: Dinner on the table in under 30 minutes- Sunday

Chicken, Leek & Potato Pie

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 leeks, trimmed, halved, washed, sliced
• 400g coliban potatoes, peeled, diced into 1cm cubes
• 1/4 cup plain flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 small barbecued chicken, skin and bones removed, meat shredded (see note)
• 1 cup grated tasty cheese
• 1 sheet frozen ready-rolled puff pastry, partially thawed

Method

1. Preheat oven to 220°C. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add leek and potatoes. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until leeks are tender but not coloured.
2. Sprinkle over the flour. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and gradually add stock, stirring. Return to medium heat. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture comes to the boil. Add chicken and cheese. Season with salt and cracked black pepper.
3. Spoon chicken mixture into a 5-cup capacity, 26cm (top) ceramic pie dish. Place pastry over filling. Press edges to seal. Trim excess pastry. Cut a small cross in the centre. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden. Stand pie in dish for 5 minutes. Serve.

Notes & tips

• You will need 2 cups of shredded chicken for this recipe.

Recipe Source

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7 Day Challenge: Dinner on the table in under 30 minutes- Thursday

Tagliatelle with Tomato, Olives & Chorizo

Ingredients

• 375g tagliatelle
• 1 (170g) chorizo sausage, halved lengthways, sliced
• 1 zucchini, halved lengthways, sliced
• ½ red capsicum, cut into 2cm pieces
• 1 garlic clove, chopped finely
• 16 (150g) green anchovy-stuffed olives
• 700g bottle passata sauce
• ½ cup ( 125ml) red wine
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano (or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh leaves)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh leaves)
• ½ teaspoon chilli flakes
• shaved parmesan, to serve

Method

1. Cook chorizo in a heated medium saucepan over medium heat for 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Add the garlic, zucchini, capsicum and olives and cook for a further 2 minutes.
2. Add the passata, wine, sugar, herbs and chilli to the saucepan. Bring to the boil; simmer for 15-20 minutes or until reduced to a good sauce consistency.
3. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente. Drain.
4. Return the pasta to the saucepan and add the sauce; season with pepper. Toss gently to coat. Serve immediately topped with parmesan.

Not suitable to freeze or microwave.

Recipe Source

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7 Day Challenge: Dinner on the table in under 30 minutes- Wednesday

Beef Pho (Vietnamese Rice Noodle Soup)

Ingredients

• 120g rice vermicelli
• 300g topside steak
• 1L beef stock or consomme
• 1 tsp finely chopped red chilli
• 1 onion, finely sliced
• 80g bean sprouts
• 1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves
• 1/4 cup shredded fresh mint leaves
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 4 tsp fish sauce, to taste
• salt and pepper, to taste

Method

1. Soak the rice vermicelli in boiling water for 10 minutes. Cut the steak across the grain into very thin slices (about 2mm). Bring the stock or consommé to the boil in a separate pan, and add the chilli.

2. Drain the noodles. Place a quarter of the onion in the bottom of each bowl. Divide the noodles among the bowls then top with the meat. Pour the boiling stock onto the meat slices, then add the bean sprouts, coriander and mint.

3. Squeeze a lemon quarter over each bowl, and add 1 teaspoon fish sauce to each portion. Season to taste. Serve immediately.

Recipe Source

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The Perfect Cheese Platter & Xmas Lunch, Aussie Style.

As much as I love the concept of a white Christmas with a big feast with a traditional turkey and ham, etc, I have recently come to the conclusion that Christmases Down Under are pretty freakin awesome.

Being summer in the land down under during the festive season, many families will no doubt sit down to a traditional turkey dinner, despite the fact that it’s a million degrees outside, the sidewalks are melting and the backyard looks like a burn out barren wasteland. There will be flies the size of your pupils, all the men in the family will be crowded around the TV watching sport and the smell of barbecued meat mingles with the scent of a distant bushfire. (Image source, left)

We spraypaint white “snow” on our windows , leave santa cookies and milk and are fascinated with American Christmas movies when our Christmas couldn’t be any more different.

Christmas feasts have  come a long way in Australia. Yes, many will have an elaborate roast dinner with all the trimmings, but many Aussies are taking advantage of our fresh, beautiful produce, seafood and great cuts of meat and putting together mouthwatering lunches and delectable dinners.

Ideas for Christmas dinner & lunch, Aussie style:

Aussie BBQ

• A good old fashioned Aussie BBQ- complete with sausages, lean cuts of steak, hamburger patties, grilled onions, corn on the cob, marinated chicken skewers, prawns and fish fillets.
• To accompany the fine array of BBQ offerings, there’s the customary selection of salads- potato salad, pasta salad, Greek salad and maybe a rice salad.
• Desserts for the great Aussie Christmas BBQ include the good old fashioned pavlova (Image source, right), trifle, choc peppermint log and chocolate & coconut truffle balls.

Sit Down Lunch

Because Aussie Christmases tend to be ridiculously hot and stressful, your Christmas lunch hostess is not likely to want to be slaving over a hot oven and the guests aren’t likely to be wanting a heavy, hot lunch. So we often opt for a light lunch, full of fresh flavours rather than a heavy meal.

• Grilled or bake fish (whole of fillets)- barramundi, snapper, salmon and tuna are popular choices. Also, you can’t go wrong with prawns, scallops and oysters if wanting to impress your Christmas guests. We are luckyto have fantastic fresh seafood here down under and the seafood needs minimal preparation and cooking time so you can focus on the sides and desserts. (Image source, right).
• The easiest way to appeal to the appetites of your guests is to offer a selection of salads or vegetable sides. If serving seafood, I would serve a brown rice and vegetable salad with a citrus and dill dressing; wok stir fried ginger and garlic vegetables if serving Asian-inspired fish. A big green leafy salad never goes astray. Lemon and garlic sauteed potatoes are always a hit as well as a light spinach and walnut salad. The options are endless, but the idea is keep the flavours light, keep the texture light and you want lots of bright colour.
• The perfect dessert for a light Christmas lunch would be  something like some merengue nests filled with fresh berries and whipped cream; layered berry trifles complete with sponge, custard and fresh fruit, a big fruit platter with honey cream or for a bit of tradition, but with minimal work- how about some brandy snaps filled with whipped cream?

Aussie Christmas Dinner

When the sun goes down on a sweltering Christmas day, the kids have tired themselves out  playing with their new toys and the house starts to fill with dinner guests,  who are undoubtably already exhausted and still stuff from the Christmas lunch they have already endured with their evil in-laws, it can be easy to get overwhelmed. So keep it simple, tasty and light to avoid going to bed like a stuffed turkey.

• Chicken or beef  are popular options for a light dinner- something simple like a roasted chicken or a stuffed, rolled beef fillet or chicken breast are great, simple ideas that are very satisfying.
• Roast chicken stuffed with mushroom, leeks and bacon is delish and so moreish, your guests will forget how filling lunch was.
• If opting for seafood, a baked salmon with salsa verde makes a statement.
• Marinated chicken breast served with a lovely mango salsa is light and fresh and perfect for summer.
• A roulade- beef, chicken or even salmon, makes a stylish main course and the possibilities and combinations are endless. Plus, presentation is almost guaranteed to be impressive when plating up. (Image source,right)
• For the vegeterians, consider a layered chargrilled vegetable terrine.
• If you’re aching for a traditional turkey, try a different stuffing- walnut, raisin and sage; quince and pistachio; cranberry and walnut; pistachio and pancetta stuffing.
• You can’t go wrong by finishing the evening with a fruit and cheese platter. For the perfect cheese platter, you need to choose a selection of cheeses with various textures. Choose creamy cheeses like Brie and Camembert, a sharp crumbly vintage cheddar, a peppercorn cheese for a bit of spice, blue cheese (if that’s your thing),  and perhaps a smoked cheese, or fruit cheese.
• To ensure that your cheese platter is perfect, serve with muscatels, dried figs, grapes, slices of crisp pear and red apple, walnuts, quince paste, water crackers and lavash bread or something special like a walnut bread.
• Be sure to serve your cheese at room temperature, don’t crowd the platter and ensure there is an individual knife for each cheese. (Image source, left)

 

Honey-Roasted Pumpkin & Feta Salad

Okay, so here’s the thing.

I am not really much of a following a recipe/measuring ingredients out kind of person.

Sort of ridiculous, I know, considering I have a food blog.

Originally the whole idea behind my food blog was that it was a place to centralise all my favourite recipes, a paperless medium, a database of all the yummy recipes I had found, tried, and created.I needed to free up one of kitchen cupboards where all my cookbooks resided and I thought uploading the recipes to a blog would be the easy solution.

I never cared about how many hits I’d get a day and if autobots wanted to leave me spam comments about having a longer lasting erection, it wasn’t a life crisis.

But now I enjoy logging in every day, reading comments and emails from people who’ve stumbled across my blog.  I love the idea that people can be inspired by the recipes I post, just as I am inspired reading many food blogs.

But here’s the problem. When I’m getting my culinary freak on in the kitchen, I just don’t measure. I don’t weigh. I don’t count teaspoons, tablespoons and cups. I just throw it all together, taste as I go and hope for the best, which has served me well to date.

So today, I’m posting a vague “recipe” for a salad I concocted today for lunch. I’m going to have to be very broad with my ingredients measurements because to be honest, I whipped it up in such a hungry frenzy that I didn’t care. So I trust, that if you’re going to try this recipe, adapt the figures to suit your own style, taste and desires.

AND TASTE AS YOU GO!

On a side note, this recipe is great for a summer light lunch or work lunch and great for vegetarians. If you wanted to make a low GI version friendlier version, you would just substitute the pumpkin for kumara.

This recipe is also a good way of using up leftover roast pumpkin from the big dinner the night before.

Ingredients

• 2 cups baby mesclun salad leaves
• 2 large wedges of butternut pumpkin
• 1/2 small red onion, sliced finely
• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
• 3/4 cup diced feta cheese
• 3/4 cup walnuts
• 1/2 small red capsicum, sliced into finely
• 3 tbsp  honey
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (I actually used rice wine vinegar because I’m having a love affair with it at the moment, and want it on everything).
• salt and pepper, to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C.
2. Cut pumpkin into palm-sized chunks and place on a oiled baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt and pepper to taste and then drizzle with 2 tbsp honey. Roast, in the oven until cooked through and edges start to slightly caramelise.
3. Once the pumpkin is cooked, set aside to cool or refrigerate.
4. In a large bowl or serving platter, assemble your salad.
5. Top with chopped pumpkin and feta cheese. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts.
6. Make your dressing by combining 3tbsp olive oil, 3tbsp honey, 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard and vinegar. Stir well, then pour over salad just before serving.

 

Top 10 Recipes of 2009… According To Me

10. Prosciutto Pizza

I love prosciutto. Can’t get enough of it.
One of my favourite dinners, on an “I can’t be bothered” night is  to pick up a pre-made pizza base (or pull one out of my stockpile in the freezer) and smother it with olive oil, a touch of homemade Italian tomato sauce and basil and then top it with slices of prosciutto, parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves or rocket. The flavours just pop in your mouth and usually leaves me with a smile on my face.

Image Source

 

Top 10 Recipes of 2009… According To Me

9. Arancini

I grew up in an Italian family, so I know a bit about traditional Italian food.

One of my favourites growing up were arancini, which are essentially rice balls. Recipes vary, but the general idea is that you have a ball of rice mixed with melted mozzarella cheese, beef mince, peas, parmesan cheese and onion which is then rolled in breadcrumbs and deep fried.

The recipe that I have linked to here is a very basic one to work from. I have added cooked mince and peas and a few tablespoons of my grandmother’s homemade tomato sauce into the mix to relive those memories of my childhood.

Image source