Anyone For Bröd?

I went to IKEA last week. This was a momentous occasion for me, because despite 4.5 years living here in Perth, and driving it past it frequently, this was my Very First Visit at the only WA IKEA store. I have been to IKEA in Victoria and South Australia, but many years ago.

Although I didn’t actually buy any furnishings, we did take a lot of photos with our phones, of things we want to go back and get when we move in to the new apartment shortly. It was exciting! Also very, very crowded – 5 minutes before opening time when we arrived, there were about 200 people waiting outside for the doors to open. Lots of people with kids too. Ugh. Once the place opened, however the crowds thinned out pretty quickly (yay for childminding and a ball pit!), and moving through the store was actually fairly painless.

I bought a silicone pot stand thing, a jar of herring roe (mmmmmmm) and at the last minute picked up a carton of Brödmix Flerkorn to try. I am a sucker for all things bread-related, especially dense, dark, chewy, thick, grainy chunks of bread, that have soooo much more flavour than dreary white bread.

I can’t believe how simple this bread was to make! It’s like pancake mix – just add water, shake it all up, pour, let it rise and then pop it into the oven. I really expected it to be a bit of a flop, although online searching turned up a LOT of big fans of this bread mix, all over the world.

The loaf came out quite heavy, and the edges were very crunchy – I thought it might taste very dry – possibly I left it in the oven for 5 minutes too long I think – a lesson for next time but of course it depends on the oven, and shortly I will be trying to get used to my lovely new one 🙂 Inside, however it was perfect – nutty, moist and VERY moreish!  It was perfectly suited as an accompaniment to risotto, made with the Huon hot smoked salmon that I won on Valentine’s Day 🙂

I have to go back to IKEA soon (yes, I HAVE to, right???) to buy a couple of the things that we earmarked the other day……I shall definitely be going back to the Swedish food market section, for more delicious Brödmix.

Happy Fooding!

Fajitas, Thai Style…

This chicken mince dish, kind of Thai larb-ish, is adapted from a that’s life! reader recipes compilation, and I served it with tortillas and Greek yoghurt, to make it a fajita meal. Yum. The coconut milk gave the chicken a definite Thai flavour.

Soooooo quick, the whole thing was cooked and ready to serve in 20 minutes. Definitely one to rival Jamie with his very quick meals – including chopping time it was less than 30-minutes from start to finish. A weeknight winner, and especially good at this crazy time of year!

Thai Chicken Fajitas

2 tbsp olive oil

500 gms chicken mince

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 red onion, finely chopped

1 stalk lemongrass, finely chopped

165 mls low-fat coconut milk

¼ cup sweet chilli sauce

2 tbsp lime juice

1 tbsp fish sauce

3 tbsp fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or wok. Add chicken, garlic, chilli, onion and lemongrass, and saute, stirring often to break up lumps, for about 5 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients, bring to a boil and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve with tortillas and Greek yoghurt (optional – add shredded lettuce as well).

Serves 2

Happy Summer fooding!

You Say You Want a Revolution….

Layer upon layer upon layer

A quinoa one, that is. Quinoa has been a super food winner for the last couple of years, and I’ve been on that bandwagon since living in Chile, where it has always been a commonly found staple food, and for good reason – it tastes great, is easy to cook, is suitable for those with wheat allergies, and of course is extremely good for you.

There is a plethora (I just wanted to use that word cos’ it’s a cool one!) of quinoa cookbooks around these days, and I eagerly scour through every new one that comes in at my work. The recipe below is adapted from Cabbage Crockpot Casserole, from Patricia Green & Carolyn Hemming’s new cookbook, Quinoa Revolution.

I don’t usually go in for crockpot recipes that involve a heap of pre-preparation – I do like to just throw it all in – but I had plenty of time on this day so was happy to brown the mince before putting it in the crockpot, and it was simple enough to do. Everything else is just layered over the top and then it is switched on and ignored for the day.

I don’t feel the passata on the top added anything really, so next time I will just leave that top bit out – it doesn’t really mix in through the rest, and just stays as a layer of tomato “paste”, when you serve it. Just tinned tomatoes is enough I think.

Layered Beef Casserole

1 tbsp olive oil

500 gms minced beef

1 brown onion, cut into wedges

4 slices rindless bacon, fat cut off, roughly chopped

3/4 cup red quinoa

1 green capsicum, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 green cabbage, roughly chopped

cracked pepper, to taste

400 gm can diced tomatoes

700 ml bottle bought passata

Heat olive oil in a large pan or wok, and saute the beef for a couple of minutes, stirring to break up lumps, until lightly browned. Drain in a colander and if it is a fatty mince, rinse through with hot water.

Place meat in crockpot. Place all other ingredients on mince, layered in the order given.

Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH 4 hours.

If desired, serve with mashed potatoes and a green vegetable, or salad and garlic bread.

Serves 4-6

I don’t think this wins a lot of points for looks, but the flavours are great.

Happy Fooding!

The Warmth Hath Arriveth

I should have mentioned about the lack of Summer weather earlier, because as soon as I posted about how cold and wet it was, the heat arrived! And I am certainly not complaining now – it’s quite lovely and should remain so now for the next 5 or so months. Hooray!

So……salad time.

After a couple of days of not eating proper meals, in fact not eating much at all I have to say, as well as too much wine consumption (what can I say, my friends are a bad influence….), I was badly in need of something healthy and vibrant. This dish, adapted from a recent Super Food Ideas recipe, fit the detox bill perfectly – light and crunchy, great colours, full of vitamins and goodness, and tasting great too.

Chicken & Broccolini Salad

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp light soy sauce

2 skinless chicken breast fillets (about 500 gms)

2 bunches broccolini, cut into 3cm pieces

⅓ cup pine nuts

¼ cup dukkah (whatever flavour you like – I used Hot Chilli by Gourmet Spice Blends from Mt Tamborine, Queensland)

zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

60 gms baby spinach leaves

Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a deep fry pan or wok. Add chicken fillets; brown on both sides then add the soy sauce, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes until cooked all the way through (add a splash of water if it starts to stick). Remove from pan, cover with foil and let rest for 5 minutes then slice and put aside.

Steam broccolini pieces in microwave for 2 minutes on HIGH; let stand for a few minutes then drain.

Heat the other tbsp of olive oil in the same frypan or wok; add pine nuts and dukkah and stir frequently for 1-2 minutes until starting to toast and become aromatic. Returned sliced chicken to pan along with all remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly and gently heat through until spinach wilts.

Serves 2-3

Happy Summer Fooding!

Crockpot Chicken Casserole

The weather in Perth has been crap lately! Whilst bushfires and awful heat is raging on the East coast, here the warm weather just won’t properly start. We get a couple of warm days full of promise, in fact yesterday got quite warm, but the nights are still freeing and then the cold and rain comes back. It’s really been awful, and I am soooooo over wearing Winter clothes. I am hanging out for shorts and little Summer dresses! It is quite weird, as usually our heat has already started and the East is still getting the cold….not the other way around.

As with clothes, the weather is still making me feel like stews and soups, to go with being cosy inside listening to the rain pouring down (we had the wettest September here since 1930, and October has been wetter than normal too).

This warming comfort dish was not intended to be blog material…..I just threw the stuff in the crockpot thinking well it won’t be anything to write home about, but I’ll be at work all day and it will be great to come home to something cooked. No one to eat it but me, so if it’s not exciting it will still be nutritious and give me some leftovers as well.

I was pleasantly surprised! The chicken was tender and literally had fallen apart, so there is no need to cut it into chunks beforehand – just throw it all in. You could double it for a larger family meal too.

Chicken Casserole

600-700 gms skinless chicken thigh fillets, trimmed of any fat

400 gm can cream of celery soup

1/2 cup chicken stock

6 baby potatoes

2 carrots, peeled & cut into chunks

1 large brown onion, cut into wedges

1 large red chilli, finely chopped

cracked pepper, to taste

1 tbsp plain flour (use gluten-free cornflour if you are GF)

Place the chicken, potatoes and carrots in crockpot. Mix the soup, stock, onion, chilli and cracked pepper together in a bowl, and pour over the chicken.

Cook on LOW for 7 hours.

Blend the flour with a little cold water, into a smooth paste. Add this to the crockpot and give it a stir.

Cook for a further 1 hour.

Serves 3-4 depending on whether you serve it with side dishes or not.

Happy Fooding!

Quick Lamb Curry

This simple lamb mince dish is based on one from Simple Indian Cookery by Madhur Jaffrey – an old book that I came across at work recently, with loads of terrific and EASY Indian dishes.

There is no rocket science here; the key is in the use of fresh spices – get your mortar & pestle action on!

You could serve this as is, in a bowl, or make it a bit more glamorous with rice, tortillas or naan bread, raita, and maybe a side dish of sauteed mushrooms or mashed potato!

Minced Lamb With Peas

2 tbsp olive oil

1 brown onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp freshly grated ginger

1 tsp cumin seeds, ground

1 tsp coriander seeds, ground

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp cinnamon, ground

1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tomatoes, chopped

4 tbsp low-fat Greek yoghurt

500 gms minced lamb

cracked pepper, to taste

1 cup water

juice of 1 lemon

3/4 cup frozen peas

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or frying pan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and ginger; stir until lightly browned.

Add the cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, nutmeg and cayenne pepper, and stir for 10 seconds. Add the tomatoes and yoghurt. Cook over medium heat until the tomatoes have softened, stirring often.

Add the lamb and cracked pepper. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, breaking up all the lumps.

Add the water and bring to a simmer, then cover and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add lemon juice and peas, return to a simmer and cook gently, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes.

Serves 4

Happy Fooding!

Turkey Talk

I do love Christmas. Yes, I know it’s only September…..but David Jones‘ Christmas Shop opened in the last week of August, and for me that’s the “Christmas time is here” green light! And yes, I’ve done some present shopping already, but that’s cos’ I am a super nerd and do it all year round, with a permanent gift ideas list on my computer.

I spent last Christmas in Melbourne with family, but at the last minute before I flew East, I picked up a Coles brand frozen turkey breast roll on special, thinking it might be good if I have the opportunity to host a late Christmas dinner (or Christmas in July even). Said dinner never eventuated, and this week I have been trying to whittle away at what’s in my freezer, in order to give a it a darn good de-frosting.

I found the turkey and one morning this week before work, suddenly thought omg I wonder if I could cook this in the crockpot, from frozen? These breast roll things are cookable from frozen, in the oven, so I thought why not try it in the crockpot. I looked up a few websites and forums, and opinion is divided about whether you should or shouldn’t do this – but I figured I would just give it a go and if it wasn’t cooked properly I would just throw it away – I really did need to use this turkey up after so long (although the use by date is next Feb, which seems a long time to me – 14 months from date of purchase).

I removed the plastic wrapping and placed foil over the top of the turkey’s foil tray. I then placed it in the crockpot with 2 cups of water in the bottom. The turkey was a 1kg sized one (not huge but remember it’s all meat, no bone or waste, so does actually go a long way) and I cooked it on LOW for 9 hours. When I came home from work, I took it out and let it rest for 20 minutes, and it was perfect! Possibly it was even overcooked a bit, but because of the way it was cooked, it was not dry at all and really was melt-in-your-mouth stuff.

I am really glad I now know this works well, as it is always good to have lots of alternative cooking options at Christmas when everyone is sooooo busy, and the oven is often in use for other things.

Happy Early Christmas Fooding!

Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken

Don’t be fooled by the title above and the ingredients below – this actually does not taste sweet! I think the soy sauce counter-balances the juice and sugar, making it just right.

Simple and tasty, this recipe is based on one of those random facebook postings that you get, designed as a sort of ad but giving you something to entice you into clicking the link. There are a lot of those popping up in people’s feeds lately I’ve noticed – not just recipes, but also a lot of home-remedy cleaning tips. I never click on the links, but I do sometimes write down the recipe ideas, and this one worked really well.

Definitely use thigh fillets here and not breast, as it will be way too dry with breast.

Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken

1 kg chicken thigh fillets, trimmed of any fat/skin

1 cup pineapple juice

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup light soy sauce

cracked pepper

1 tbsp cornflour

2 tbsp cold water

1 cup sugar snap peas

Combine chicken, pineapple juice, sugar, soy sauce and pepper in crockpot. Mix well and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours.

Blend cornflour and water then add this and the peas, to the crockpot. Stir to blend and cook for a further 1 hour.

Serve with black rice, yoghurt & naan bread if desired.

Serves 4

Happy Fooding!

Shhhhh….The Kids Will Never Know It’s Not Rice

At the risk of totally boring you…..yes it’s cauliflower again! But does it look like it?? Not a bit.

I like to think I’m pretty much up there with the latest food trends, products and “in things”, but it was made clear to me last week (thanks Jane!) that I have missed the cauliflower rice phenomenon, completely and utterly.

I picked up a large cauli for $1.37 on Friday, so after scouring the e-world for many variations, this is my version of “fried rice” without rice. You can really use this in any way that you would use rice, and add anything you like. I really wanted the zing of fresh lemon juice/zest, plus a bit of pizzazz from chilli (not much, just a hint), and it worked beautifully, in fact I scoffed a bowl of this and thought omg how moreish is this.

Super healthy, versatile and soooooo easy if you have a food processor. As long as cauliflower stays cheap this will be a new staple food in my cooking. Plus you can freeze it in sandwich bags for future use, when cauli is in season.

There are many step-by-step photos around, of how to make cauliflower rice – just google and you’ll find plenty of recipe ideas. If you don’t have a food processor, use a cheese grater – works just as well but is more labour intensive and slower.

Cauliflower Fried Rice

1 large head of cauliflower

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp chilli paste (I like Masterfoods)

juice of 1 lemon

zest of 1 lemon

2 tbsp vegetable stock

1/2 cup frozen peas

(and next time I’ll add some chopped coriander – just didn’t have any to hand this time)

Cut the cauliflower into florets (make sure it is completely dry)  and place in a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped – should be rice sized grains.

Heat olive oil in a pan or wok. Add the onion and garlic, and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

Serves 6 as a side dish, or if you are having it on its own as a bowl of deliciousness, serves 3.

This is a perfect dish to serve fussy kids who like rice but won’t eat vegies – they’ll never know it’s not rice! You can make it plain without adding the onion etc too – just saute for 7-8 mins until “al dente”.

Happy Fooding!

 

Cooking With Herbs – An Old Fave

Chicken, mushrooms & vegie snags

This terrific and easy marinated chicken thigh fillet recipe is from another great old Women’s Weekly Cookbook from yesteryear – Cooking With Herbs. My copies of all of these old WW books are very food-stained, falling apart at the seams and generally well-loved! When I first bought this particular one, coriander was one of those “weird” herbs that you had to be innovative and daring in your food tastes, to use! Now of course it is a staple flavour in most kitchens, and deservedly so.

I have usually made this in a wok, but this time decided to rev up the barbie, as I had just given it a good clean (anticipating Summer, even though it’s still only mid-Winter – ever hopeful, I am). As you can see, I threw on a lot of food for just one person, but I find if I’m going to heat up the barbie, I have to make it worthwhile, so I just cook a heap of stuff and then have it as leftovers on sandwiches or in salads etc.

The fresh herb/garlic/ginger odours as the chicken cooked, were lovely – a good aroma coming off the bbq is always a delight.

Coriander Ginger Chicken

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp crushed fresh ginger

1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

2 spring onions, finely chopped

1/4 cup light soy sauce

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tsp castor sugar

cracked pepper, to taste

6-8 skinless chicken thigh fillets, trimmed of fat

Add chicken to combined remaining ingredients in a bowl or marinating dish. Mix well and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Cook chicken in a single layer either in a wok, a medium frypan or on the bbq, for 5-7 minutes each side until cooked through. Pour over any leftover marinade during cooking.

Serves 4.