Perfect to crunch through in this hot weather. There is such a short window in summer of enjoying this spectacular fruit (pomegranate), and I’ve discovered that if I buy a whole lot at once (like 10) and have an hour or so extracting the seeds, that I can enjoy little frozen jewels for weeks. I [...]
Dinner recipes
Pomegranate lamb (Lamb fesenjan)
December 21st, 2009
This is a middle eastern inspired dish. It is also known as lamb fesenjan, and is an Iranian specialty. I looked up a few different recipes, most that I could find were made with pomegranate syrup, but this is high in sugar, so I replaced this with juice and simplified the cooking stages slightly. Pomegranates [...]
Poached Turkey
December 21st, 2009
Takes just an hour to prepare, but has all the richness and tenderness of a perfectly roasted turkey breast. This Gourmet Traveller recipe is a delightful alternative to heating up the kitchen with a roast! We tested this recipe out, and give it the thumbs up for an easier Christmas Day. Not only that, the [...]
Smoked trout and ricotta morsels with pomegranate on cucumber
December 14th, 2009
Smoked trout has a slightly milder taste than smoked salmon, and in fillets like this, a delicious meaty texture. Trout is an oily fish and as such, an excellent source of Omega-3 fatty acids. Cucumber and pomegranate are great sources of vitamins, and the soft ricotta (one of the lowest fat cheeses) is a delicious [...]
Confit garlic tomatoes
December 14th, 2009
Slow roasted tomatoes seem to be everywhere! Fine dining has found a newest best friend – and after eating these – I can see why. My sister in law kindly described them as “life changing” though I am not sure if the champagne they were served with had something to do with that! The certainly [...]
Baba’s Blitva
November 23rd, 2009
My brother’s fiance Annaliese sent me this recipe months ago, and we finally had the time to try it recently: with the perfect accompaniment, a delicious smoked salmon pie! I do prefer spinach to silverbeet, but the garlic in this dish, and the soft, broken up potato pieces make this a creamy and wonderful delicacy. [...]
Salmon, mango, broccoli & citrus noodles
November 21st, 2009
Light, quick, fresh, and simple to prepare. The tart blood orange, salty soy sauce, and sweet mango combine beautifully as a soft backdrop for the crisp salmon. This meal was a Wednesday night – haven’t been shopping for two weeks – what will we cook – special. Basically I combined everything that was left in [...]
Healthy chicken and red bean quesadillas
November 11th, 2009
A very cost effective old favourite from University days, my housemates used to make this for me, and I loved it! Of course, back then we used to pile on the cheese, and I reckon we might have even added a slice of butter for good measure — it surprise me though, to find that [...]
Balsamic & blood orange marinated skirt steak
October 18th, 2009
This neglected cut is unexpectedly flavoursome – and cheap to boot! Skirt steak is the cut used to prepare fajitas, Chinese stir fry, and is often prepared in restaurants for the kitchen staff – it is cheap, delicious, and if you marinate it first, it does not remain tough.
I recall rump steak being the cheap [...]
Nonna’s red lentil & lamb stew
October 2nd, 2009
Real comfort food – my nieces loved this stew that “Nonna” (Mum) makes for them – and has made for us for decades with different variations. Dan just discovered it on a recent family holiday, and we made our own version at home with the baby carrots that came from our garden. This dish is [...]
South Indian Dosa
September 18th, 2009
My First Daring Cooks Challenge! I am so impressed with my new griddle – it reminds me of my grandmother’s cast iron woodfire oven. I remember stoking the fire so we could have hot water to shower – and late nights sitting up listening to the fire crackling… thanks for the memories guys! The recipe and [...]
Pork and black-eyed-pea meatballs in tomato sauce
September 9th, 2009
This recipe was inspired by some quick, cheap and tasty black-eyed-pea balls at an African restaurant called Le Kilimanjaro recently. Black eyed peas have a low GI (38-52) and a carbohydrate portion of 30g per 150g. They are high in fibre, magnesium, folate, iron and protein. I found a recipe for the traditional African version [...]
