Doing the sweet and savoury swing

On the weekend I tried out this 'Capetown Fruit and Vegetable Curry' from my Sundays at Moosewood's cookbook. Given that the ingredients list included many sweet things like apricots, apricot conserve, apples, raisins and bananas, I was a bit concerned that it would be too sweet for my liking. A bit too extreme. But the vegetables and yoghurt dressing really balance it really well, and it does fall right into the middle of both sweet and savoury, without going too far either side. It was new and different for me, and I was impressed.

Vegetarian sausage-fest

Last weekend I got together with some friends for a sausage making day. The meat eaters made real sausage with real intestines, while the vegetarians banded together to make some gluten free vegetarian sausages (we had some celiacs present). In fact, they go beyond vegetarian: they are vegan. Vegetarian sausages are stupidly expensive, and also impossible to buy gluten free as often the main ingredient is gluten flour, so I was keen to learn how to make them myself. I followed this recipe and instructional video, and went from there for the first one. And for the second variety I based my ingredients on this list. We tried steaming in both aluminium foil and cling wrap, however the aluminium foil gave much better results (they stayed the shape they were supposed to).

Spicy vegetarian sausage

250 g dry soy meat/TVP, purchased from my local asian grocer
1 - 1 1/2 cups chickpea flour, depending on how wet the mixture is
3 tbsp vegetable stock
1 whole onion, minced
2 tbsp fennel seed
2 tsp coarsely ground pepper, preferably freshly ground
2 tbsp ground paprika
1 tsp dried chili flakes (I'd add more of this in future)
3 tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground allspice
8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp salt

1. Cook the soy meat in about 750 ml water until all the water is absorbed. Drain off any excess water.
2. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Add more chickpea flour as required until it is a thick mixture.
3. Scoop out mixture and make little logs to desired thickness. Place onto aluminium foil and roll up, twisting the ends. Steam for 30 mins. Allow to cool.

Your sausages can now be placed on the BBQ, in the fridge or in the freezer until you're ready to eat them.

Makes 8 fat sausages, or 12-14 smaller sausages.

Freshly steamed spicy vegetarian sausages, waiting to be BBQed!

Black bean and corn sausages

1 onion, minced
4 large cloves garlic, minced
3-4 tbsp vegetable stock
1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups cooked black beans
3 teaspoons Salt
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oregano
2 tbsp paprika
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 medium green capsicum
1 small carrot peeled, minced
1 tub (125 g) silken tofu (probably firm tofu is better to use, in hindsight!)
400 g can corn kernels, drained
1 1/2 cups chickpea, corn or rice flour
1/2 bunch fresh coriander (optional)

1. Mince the onions and garlic, beans, carrot, green capsicum and tofu. Transfer to a large bowl.
   
2. Transfer to a large bowl. Mix through spices. Add whole corn kernels. Add enough flour so it all binds together to a sticky but relatively firm mixture.
   
3. Scoop out mixture and make little logs to desired thickness. Place onto aluminium foil and roll up, twisting the ends. Steam for 30 mins. Allow to cool.
4. To serve, remove plastic and cut on the bias into 1/2-inch- thick slices.

Makes 8 fat sausages, or 12-14 smaller sausages.

Blindingly beautiful beetroot risotto

For those of you out there who love beetroot, this recipe is definitely for you! However if you're trying to convince someone that beetroot is an awesomely delicious food, perhaps this isn't the best recipe to start with. It's exceptionally beetrooty. This risotto turns out vividly pink/red, so is visually stunning (or startling?). I made my risotto with 2/3 barley, 1/3 arborio rice to lower the GI for a diabetic member of the household, and the slightly nutty flavour of the barley blended well with the walnuts and the earthiness of the beetroot. The flavour and appearance is offset with goats cheese or fetta and finally topped with roquette, or if you have a fresh bunch of beets you can use the beet leaves.

I made this a week or so ago. I don't make it very often but it's definitely a fun meal. I think people would get a bit put off if I cooked them blindingly bright pink food on a regular basis. If I take leftovers to work it always gets a (positive) reaction over lunch from my colleagues.

Beetroot barley risotto

1 large bunch of baby beet
600 ml vegetable stock
150 ml red wine
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled, finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
160 g barley
85 g arborio rice
2-3 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
75 g walnuts, roughly chopped
125 g soft goats cheese or feta cheese
Fresh roquette or lightly wilted beet greens to serve on top

Thoroughly wash the beetroot. Trim the leaves leaving about 1-2 cm near the root, and leave the tails. If you trim them too far they will ooze pink juice everywhere (which is a real pain). Cook the beetroot using your preferred method: steaming, microwave or boiling. Remove the skins. Dice into 1cm cubes and set aside. This can be done while waiting for the rest of the risotto to cook.

Fry the garlic in the olive oil for 1 minute. Add the onion, saute for 5 minutes or until it's just soft.

Add rice, barley and thyme, stir and coat in the oil.

Add the red wine, cooking until the red wine is absorbed.

Add the stock mixture, about 1/4 at a time, adding the next part when the liquid is mostly absorbed, stirring regularly. Cook for 30-40 mins or until the barley is al dante.

Add the cubed beets and 2/3 walnuts and continue to stir to distribute the pinkness throughout the risotto. That's the best bit. You made need to add a dash of extra stock at this point (I usually do).

Distributing the colour evenly throughout the risotto: Aii!!

If you're cooking up the beet greens, just wash them down and steam them for about 2 mins. Otherwise, bowl out your risotto, sprinkle crumbled cheese over the risotto, and top with the remaining walnuts, some S&P, and roquette or wilted beet greens.

Bulgarian Red Pepper Stew

While going through all of the old photos on my phone I found a photo I took at work (hence poor lighting). This is one of my favourite stew recipes. It's so hearty and tasty and nutritious and the red capsicums are absolutely delicious. I know the photo is ugly. It really doesn't do it justice: the red peppers are really red! Just focus on the ingredients instead.

I originally found the recipe in Sundays in Moosewood Restaurant, but there have since found other versions of the recipe online. Here's my version below, with notes of the variations I've made. This is definitely a stew that takes time, so I have it ticking away on a Sunday afternoon while I'm sewing and doing other things. But sometimes I get a hankering for it on a cool Sunday afternoon and haven't had the foresight to put the lentils on to soak the night before, so I do substitute for tinned but they don't hold their shape or texture nearly as well.


Bulgarian Red Pepper Stew

½ cup dried lentils (or 1 tin brown lentils, drained)
½ cup dried navy pea beans/great northern/borlotti beans (or 1 tin borlotti beans)
2 larges onions, chopped
6 mediums red capsicums, de-seeded and chopped. I quater my capsicums and just slice them on a mandolin. (I have also made this recipe with tinned tomatoes substituted for some of the red capsicums: 4 capsicums and 400 g tinned or fresh tomatoes)
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried marjoram
¼ tsp dried thyme (I've also used fresh herbs and increased the quantity and they taste great)
¼ tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 tsp paprika
Salt and pepper to taste (I looove pepper, so I put in loads of the stuff)
750 ml vegetable stock (although sometimes I've needed up to 1 L)
60l dry red wine (optional)
2 tbsp dry sherry (optional)
¼ cup tomato paste
Fresh parsley and Greek/natural yoghurt to serve

Soak legumes overnight, drain. In a fresh pot of water, bring to the boil then simmer until just tender. Drain, set aside. I prefer to cook mine beforehand and add later in the cooking, because I find that the salt from the stock makes the beans a bit tough.

In a large, heavy based pot, saute onions in olive oil until soft. Stir in bell pepper and saute for 5-10 mins more. Add paprika and cayenne, stir through for 1 more minute.

Pour in stock, wine and sherry. Add herbs and legumes. Bring to the boil, lower heat to a simmer and leave for 1 1/2-2 hours uncovered or partially covered, stirring occasionally. Mix in tomato paste and S&P to taste. Simmer for a further 5-10 mins, adding a little extra stock or water if the stew is too thick.

Serve with a good dollop of yogurt and chopped parsley sprinkled on top. Goes very well with a good, crusty cob bread.

Recipe review: Leek & Aubergine Tart Tatin

I decided to follow Maggie and Simon's Leek & Aubergine Tart Tatin recipe, featured on the program last Wednesday. We substituted vino cotto for balsamic vinegar, sugar for honey in the syrup and made the dough half with wholemeal flour. Although, I did that silly thing when you take a hot pan out of the oven and place it back on the stove top, and then forget that it's been in the oven and grab the handle of the pan... not so smart. It was a joint success between Gib and I: It took a little bit of time to put together, but worth every minute. It was a definite success, smelled divine, tasted absolutely delicious.

This is... a favourite recipe I'd like to share

This is a new favourite recipe. Quick, easy and convenient to make, super tasty, and convenient to take to work for lunch (I get so bored by sandwiches). I was inspired by a recipe featured on taste.com.au, which is a finalist in a reader recipe competition in Good Taste magazine. The original recipe says to bake the avocado and sour cream, however I can't stand the bitterness of baked avocado, so I chose to have mine fresh at the end. Serves 6.


Vegetarian Mexican lasagne

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 brown onions, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin (I might have added some more cumin just because I love it so much!)
• 1/4 pinch allspice
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 750 g tin red kidney beans, drained
  
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 4 pieces corn mountain bread
• 2 avocados, mashed
• 235g (1 cup) sour cream
• 1-2 cups coarsely grated cheddar, depending on how cheesy you are feeling (of course you can substitute low fat dairy options if you choose)
  

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C
2. In a large, heavy based fry pan, heat the oil and add garlic. Fry for 30 seconds before adding the onion. Cook, stirring regularly, until the onion is soft.
3. Add the spices, cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add beans and tomato, cook for 4-5 mins until beans are heated through.
4. In a large ovenproof dish, layer with two of the corn bread pieces. Spoon half of the bean mixture on top. Sprinkle with half of the cheese. Layer with another two pieces of corn bread, then bean mix and cheese.
5. Place in the oven and bake for 30 mins until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
6. Serve topped with mashed avocado and sour cream.

The original non-vegetarian mexican lasagne

Thank you three buttons for this week's theme (and for hosting This is...) because you all know just how much I love sharing my new favourite recipes!

What to do with beetroot stems?

I headed into Macro Wholefoods today and was overwhelmed by the big, bright bunches of super fresh baby beets and just had to buy them. And then they had bunches of bright green asparagus on sale so, you know, I just had to buy them too (along with a massive bag of limes for $3)

I decided to make a vegetable salad of baby beets and sweet potato, with asparagus and wilted baby spinach leaves, with a bit of balsamic vinegar dressing. I reckon you could have easily put either goat or feta cheese in, or perhaps tossed through some walnuts, but just a simple balsamic was delicious enough too.


But the problem was I had all of these gorgeous bright pink beetroot stems that I couldn't bear to throw out:

Too pretty to donate to the compost bin...

Apparently no one really cooks with beetroot stems. The only recipe I could find was this one for keerai upperi, and with inspiration from that, Gib and I combined forces and made our own side dish with beetroot stems... with wonderful results. Not sure if my photos are doing it justice here, but oh well, here goes:

Beth and Gib's gingery beetroot stem and bean side dish

1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic
Stems from one bunch of fresh baby beats, washed thoroughly, chopped into 5cm lengths
1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tbsp mustard (I used hot english)
100 g cannelini beans

Saute the onion and garlic together until the onion goes clear
Add the beetroot stems and ginger, cooks for another 3-4 minutes until stems start to soften
Toss through mustard and cannelini beans, cook until beans are warmed through


Although it doesn't really come through in the photo, what I liked about this was the gradient of colours in the dish: the bright pink stems, the peachy coloured onion and finally the pale white beans which don't get much of a chance to absorb the beetroot.

Recipe reviews, chasing lyrebirds and more octopus cakes

I've come down with the flu. I spent the day reading and sleeping (mostly sleeping) and now it's 2am and I'm wide awake. Needless to say I'm now regretting not getting my flu vaccination this year - I'd forgotten how horrid it is! So I thought I'd share some adventures I've had in the kitchen the past week.

Edit: Oops in a haze of flu, I forgot to add the bit about lyrebirds... see below!

Recipe review #1: Beer baked beans

I finally gave the Stove-top sweet and spicy beer baked beans a go (as mentioned in a previous post). After making the recipe exactly as it said, I found it was far too sweet. I ended up adding 500 g chopped tomatoes to the pot as well to make it less sweet. I'd probably halve the amount of sugar and add a 400 g tin of tomatoes in future. I could not find navy beans, but great northern beans were the best substitution (they're virtually the same size and shape anyway). And I decided on Coopers, a nice strong beer taste. I've been taking it to work and getting some envious looks in the lunch room.

Recipe review #2: Maggie and Simon's mushroom and leek calzone

Calzone are delicious. Often I'll make up a batch of 6 for Gib and I to take to work during the week, or for a quick, filling meal after training. When I saw this recipe featured on the Cook and the Chef last week, I had to give it a go. Mushroom and leek a favourite food combination of mine, and I was intrigued to see how the non-pizza bread dough turned out. I made the dough in the food processor, and the dough was quicker and less messy to make than pizza dough is (which sped up the calzone making process substantially). I substituted the fontina for gouda. Oh boy, it was delicious. I'll definitely be making this one again.

Sarah's octopus cake
Friday night I helped my friend Sarah bake a blue ring octopus cake for her friend who she goes scuba diving with every weekend. Sarah doesn't bake very often and we were a little pressed for time having to do it all in the one evening (usually I make my cakes in advance) so we decided to go with the classic packet chocolate cake and ice with butter cream icing. We discovered that Betty Crocker's chocolate cakes only make 8 cups, and the octopus cake is a 10 cup tin. The cake mix just filled the legs but not the base of the tin. It still worked out fine. The blue rings are made from candy necklaces and the eyes and beak (Sarah, like me, clearly also has an appreciation for anatomical correctness, even in cakes) are made from mini licorice all sorts. Congratulations to Sarah for her first ever character cake!

Chasing lyrebirds

I took the day off last Thursday to hang out with Gib to coordinate with his work hours, and I worked Saturday. We took a picnic lunch and headed for the Dandenongs. From Grant's picnic ground in Kalista we took the eastern loop (about 7km) and on the way spotted four lyrebirds! The first was a female just scurrying across the path and scratching about. We heard lyrebirds the whole way around though. We started picking their calls by thinking "Gee, that kookaburra sounds a little close to the ground" and then "Hmm.. that bell bird sounds a little flat, don't you think?". About half way around the track we spotted two males hanging out together (brothers?), practicing and strutting their stuff. Then another male came along and started up this massive repertoire, much more impressive (better mimicry). The three of them proceeded to have a bit of a sing off until the two boys scurried away. This is a poor quality video I took with my camera, but I took it for the sound. You can hear the more impressive male and see the other two scratching, strutting about and then finally scurrying away. The only bird you can hear on the video is the lyrebird, but my favourite is when he does the kookaburra. Exciting stuff. Lyrebirds can be very hard to spot so we were extremely fortunate to see not one but four of them!

Sunday roast... veg style

I've been playing a bit with tofu. Tofu, I have decided, really is an acquired taste, and now that I've acquired a taste for it, I want to test exactly what I can do with it. It's quite versatile, mouldable, absorbs all flavours, comes in a all sorts of textures. I've tried it in stir fries, in miso soup, in curries,
recently in veggie patties and for dinner last night I decided to try a tofu roast. You can buy Sanitarium vegie roasts but they are rather expensive ($7 each), so I figured there must be people out there in the world who make vegie or tofu roasts and I went hunting. The total cost of my loaf was $5 ($4 for the block of tofu, and about $1 for everything else, since I had dried the herbs from my garden)

I was prepared for failure: I was expecting it to be bland and unexiting, but I was pleasantly surprised. The taste reminded me of stuffing but with a more kick and with a meatloafy texture. I'd love to play with different recieps, but I was extremely happy with this recipe, from The Common Ground, which I borrowed heavily from as the basis for my creation.

Beth's surprisingly tasty tofu roast

• 1 slice sprouted wheat bread, processed to bread crumbs
  
• 1/3 cup Massel vegetarian stock
• 1 large onions, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 500 g firm tofu
• 45 ml soy sauce
• 1/3 cup tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp each dried basil, sage, oregano and rosemary
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
• fresh ground black pepper
• 1 egg
  

Combine bread and stock. Fry up garlic and onions in olive oil until soft. Put bread mixture, onions, garlic and all remaining ingredients in a food processor. Process for about a minute until all ingredients are combined, but still kind of chunky. Place into a greased loaf tin and bake for 30 mins. Set aside for 15 mins to cool. Slice into 8-10 slices.

• The pumpkin, beets came from the farmer's market.
• The roasted cauliflower was inspired by Maggie Beer's roasted cauliflower salad (we just used the first three ingredients)
• The green/purple leafy side is actually beetroot leaves. I have never cooked with these before, but I followed Maggie Beer's instructions to cook them like silverbeet in a bit of butter in a pan until wilted. The leaves were exceptionally fresh and they tasted delicious. Slightly bitter, reminded me of English spinach.
• Served with gravy, of course.
  

Vegie burger mission

Tonight I'm attending a BBQ for Gib's open water diving course graduation. A perfect opportunity to try out one of the vegie burger recipes recently featured in Epicure.

I decided to give the tofu burger a go. I have attempted many bean and lentil burgers in my time, but tofu burgers are a place I have never gone before. Probably because tofu is something I have generally disliked in the past, but it seems to be growing on me. Gib and I went for a wander along our local asian grocer strip (our most favourite one had a fire out the back of it a couple of evenings ago, so it was not open for obvious reasons) so I picked up some tofu, wakame and other bits and pieces.

I found the mixture to be quite bland when I tried it, so I made some additions.

Beth's new super tasty tofu burger recipe (that doesn't fall apart!)

2 sheets dried wakame, boiled for 3 mins, drained.
6 spring onions, finely chopped
300 g firm tofu, marinated in 5 spice
1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs (made from the crusts of sprouted wheat bread)
2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp lemon juice
2.5 cm piece ginger, finely diced
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp nanami togarashi (Japanese Seven Spice)
2 tbsp peanut oil
Some extra sesame seeds

• Boil the wakame for 5 mins, until fully rehydrated. Dice into 1cm pieces (my food processor wasn't going to cope with it whole).
• Put wakame and half the tofu into processor and process until crumbly. Transfer to a bowl.
• Place bread into processor, process until breadcrumbs form. Add remaining tofu, let run until smooth.
  
• Add to bowl with the tofu/wakame, sesame seeds, soy sauce, lemon juice, peanut oil, ginger, nanami togarashi and freshly ground pepper. Stir/mix with hands until well to combine (it formed a dough, so I used my hands, it was much easier). Form into 2-4 patties, depending on how big you like them. I find veggie patties very filling, so I made 4 small ones. Press the patties into a tray of sesame seeds to coat them, brush off any excess.
• Cook 4-5 mins each side.

I let mine rest for about 30 mins: the time taken to drive to the BBQ and have the BBQ started. I don't have any photos because the camera was forgotten (d'oh!) however, I can say they looked exactly like the ones in the picture.

I was surprised at how meaty they tasted. I think it was the soy sauce/tofu/lemon combination, and even though I was despairing about the recipe at the start, I think my additions really lifted the flavour of the patties and I'd definitely make them again. Using tofu in the buger was really easy and it did bind everything exceptionally well. The patties were more structurally sound than any bean/lentil patties I have made previously. And they looked great!

Veggie burger vexations

The Age’s Epicure has a feature on vegie burgers. I love them: so filling and tasty with a nice hot serve of home made potato wedges sprinkled with salt on the side (sweet potato wedges are great too!).

“VEGIE burgers are nothing new. But they have gone mainstream - and in the process, for the most part, they've become worse.”

It’s true!! A few years ago, whenever I’d order a veggie burger while I was out, they’d be really flavourful, lots of punch, hot and crispy on the outside and bursting with herbs, spices and bursting with little juicy bits of vegetable. But now you find them everywhere, and they’re bland, tasteless mush. I don’t think the people who make them ever eat them themselves. Or they must think that we enjoy them being like eating mud cakes in bread.

When I make them at home, they taste awesome, but I haven’t mastered how to make them without them falling apart. Perhaps it’s my dad’s enthusiasm for flipping everything 20 times on the BBQ that makes them fall apart, or maybe it’s their construction method. I have come to learn that they really do need to rest for 30 mins in the fridge before placing them in the pan. This article has solutions to my problems! As Mark Bittman explains:

“Vegetables, legumes and nuts don't have the connective tissue that helps hold meat patties together, so they require a little binder to create a cohesive mass that can be shaped and handled. The idea is to use ingredients that bridge the gap between liquids and solids by capturing the moisture.”

Egg, butter, potato or bread are great ways to help them bind.

The other tip was: “There are three secrets to a vegie burger with a crisp outer crust and a tender interior: be sure there is enough hot fat in the pan before cooking; let the patties cook on one side until they are nicely browned; and don't overcook - you want them hot but not dry.”

Ah-ha! Excellent. There are also three recipes included so you can choose from tofu, bean or nut burgers. Mmmm... can't wait to try them!

Image source: The Age - Epicure

Colcannon comfort

It's Friday and time to use up some leftovers before the weekend. I had half a savoy cabbage in the fridge, some leftover spring onion that had been chopped but not used, a head of broccoli and some potatoes. That means one thing: colcannon. I cooked it up this morning so I could store it in the freezer for later.

I should note that until about a year ago, I hated cabbage. I could not think of a more vile vegetable. I think it was because when I was growing up, a prerequisite for having an Australian BBQ was coleslaw. Raw cabbage and Praise Mayonnaise -- or worse, the pre-packaged stuff you pick up from Woolies. I'm shuddering at the thought of it now (maybe it has improved since I was a child... I'm open to new coleslaw recipes!). Then I discovered okonomiyaki and was blown away at how good a cabbage pancake could taste (finely shredded is the key). I had heard of colcannon, but it's only something that has recently become a favourite. Cheap, easy, warm and comforting in winter.

I based this recipe mostly on Maggie and Simon's recipe for ingredients and method, but I also borrowed from Moosewood's recipe as well, which includes broccoli and a sprinkling of cheese. So here is my adaptation:

Beth's cosy colcannon creation

Serves 4-6
Can be frozen for up to 6 weeks.

1/3 savoy cabbage, finely shredded
600 g pontiac potatoes, peeled (low GI!)
1 head of broccoli, chopped into small florets
100 ml low fat milk
60g butter
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1/2 cup low fat tasty cheese
Salt and pepper

• Boil (or microwave) potatoes until tender but not falling apart. If boiling, drain, then allow to rest in the open to dry.
• Steam cabbage for 3 minutes, until soft, but not totally soggy
• Steam broccoli for 4-5 mins until soft, but not soggy, colorless and flavourless (which was my mother's way of cooking them!)
• Warm butter and milk in a pan or on a low setting in the microwave. Set aside.
• Combine potato, cabbage, broccoli, butter, milk and S&P in a large bowl.
• Transfer to a rectangular baking dish, smooth out. Sprinkle with spring onion and cheese. Grill until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

I usually serve this as a side dish with other chunky roasted vegetables (carrot, pumpkin etc), however it makes an excellent accompaniment for meat or sausages.

Vegetarian gyoza - YUM!

My Japanese friend, Erika, taught me how to make gyoza. In restaurants around here, gyoza are horribly oily and greasy and flavourless (apart from the mountains of oil). But when Erika and her mother made them for us, they were one of the most delicious things I have ever tasted. They were filled with fresh ingredients, loads of garlic and fresh chives, cooked lightly on the bottom and then steamed to finish them off. Very healthy, filling and wholesome. They make for a great side or, if you make a few different types, a dinner that sits lightly in your tummy (unlike those stodgy horrid things in restaurants). Another inspiration in my gyoza experimentation was Confessions of a Food Nazi who is also an advocate of the delicious, healthy gyoza -- she also has some very useful tips!

I think of all the meals I've made recently, this has certainly been the most satisfying. Oh my gosh, for something so healthy they are just so incredibly delicious and moreish. A little bit crunchy on the bottom and all soft and almost velvety on top, and the smell of fresh crushed garlic is just divine.

Erika and her mum's wonderful gyoza. Look at a all of that beautiful fresh chive!

Ingredients:

• Store bought gyoza wrappers (from the local Asian grocer, these are ridiculously cheap)
• Cabbage (which will be about half of your filling)
  
• Mushrooms, marinated tofu or ground pork, as the "feature" ingredient
  
• Garlic (another key ingredient in gyoza)
• Leek or spring onions
• Ginger
• Sake
• Mirin
• Tamari soy sauce
• Sesame oil

I followed the preparation instructions from this website, given that Erika wasn't by my side to guide me. I made two types: one with shimeji and shiitaki mushrooms, the other with marinated tofu (I think I preferred the fresh mushroom one though). I'm leaving the ingredients list kind of open because it's totally your own preference. You really don't need to make much filling, only a small bowl full will make about 30 gyoza as you only put about a teaspoon of filling in each.

1. Place a small amount of the mixture in the palm of your hand. Wet around the edges.

2. Fold in half

3. Pleat (this is surprisingly quick and easy but looks really cool!)

I coated a large fry pan in spray oil, placed the gyoza in and cooked until the bases of them were brown. Approximately 5 mins. You can either place the gyoza on their sides or have them sitting upright (like in the photo below): Erika tells me that it really doesn't matter.


I covered the top of the fry pan with aluminium foil (if it had a lid I would have used that), and added about 1/2 cup water to the pan, then let it steam for another 5-10 mins until cooked through. I served the gyoza straight from the pan. The dipping sauce was a simple mixture of tamari soy sauce and mirin, however there are many varieties of dipping sauce inspiration on the net.

My what's-in-the-fridge Friday night dinner

Every Friday I get a box full of veggies delivered to my door, so on Thursdays and Fridays I try to make sure all of my veggies are used up for the following week, even if it makes cooking up two meals one night and freezing one for lunches or emergency meals later.

Last night I pulled out one of my favourite recipe books, Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, and happened to open to recipe that had everything I had in the fridge. It's a Spanish stew called Mole de Olla (Mole meaning "mixture" and Olla being large clay pot). It was simple, wholesome, comforting and delcious. I have seen other recipes for this that have included chicken or beef too.

I made the stew as per the recipe so I wont publish it here (it's on page 465 of the Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant book!), but it included onino, garlic, chilis, cinnamon, cloves, potatoes, tinned tomatoes, fresh green beans, zucchini, fresh corn off the cob, left to stew for about an hour and topped with cheddar cheese to serve.

My idea of a perfect winter meal: a bowl of hearty stew topped with tasty cheese

Recent low GI dinners

Low GI Dinner #1 - Bean and corn burritos

Gib and I are currently "minding" his dad while Gib's mum is away overseas. His dad was diagnosed with diabetes a few months ago (his nickname is now "GI John"), and we're trying to keep him on the straight and narrow in Gib's mum's absence! So far so good. I tried out a recipe from my new 'Low GI Vegetarian Cookbook' that I was given recently. Of course, I can't resist changing a recipe, even one that I've never tried before (often because I prefer use what I have in the fridge instead of going out of my way to match a recipe). It was a quick and easy weekend meal. Below is my recipe (adapted from the bean and corn burrito recipe, p. 95).

Bean and corn mix (serves 4 - 6)

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 spanish onion, sliced (using my mandolin! yeah!)
• 3 cloves of garlic (we love garlic -- sorry!!)
• 3 fresh corn cobs, kernels removed
• 1 red capsicum, cut into chunks
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp hot paprika
• 2 tsp dried oregano leaves
• Jalepino peppers, to taste (I used about a handful of sliced jalepinos)
• 4 fresh tomatoes, peeled and diced
• 400 g tin red kidney beans, drained
• 1/2 cup vegetable stock
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup vegetable stock

Other stuff

• Avocado, sliced
• Baby spinach, washed thoroughly
• 1/2 cup reduced fat cheese
• Wholemeal tortillas

Heat the oil in a large pan, fry the garlic on moderate heat for about 30 seconds. Add the onion, corn and capsicum, cook for ~5 mins. Add the spices, cook until fragrant (~1 min).

Add the chopped tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato past and stock. Simmer for 10 mins.

If your tortillas are a bit stiff and look like they're going to tear, heat them in the microwave for 30 seconds, with a damp paper towel placed between each tortilla. Pile the tortillas with bean and corn mix, sliced avocado, baby spinach and cheese and fold up the burrito.



Low GI Dinner #2 - Silverbeet and mushroom quiche

This one was adapted from this recipe, but it was more like a quiche than a pie. Very tasty, has been making for a great lunch. I served this with a side of roasted vegetabb,\

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 500g mushrooms (I had fresh swiss brown and shiitake on hand)
  
• 1 bunch silverbeet, washed thoroughly and roughly chopped
• Pinch nutmeg
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 4 eggs
• 300g silken tofu, mashed (you could use ricotta, but if you want a low fat protein boost, Japanese silken tofu is the way to go)
  
• 1/2 cup grated reduced fat tasty cheese

Preheat oven to 180°C. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, add the garlic, saute for 30 seconds before adding the onion. Cook for ~5 mins or until soft. Add the mushrooms and saute for another 3-4 mins. Add the silverbeet, nutmeg and season, stir through and cover the saucepan and cook until the silverbeet wilts (~3-5 mins). Remove from the heat, stir through again and drain any excess moisture.

Transfer the silverbeet mixture into a large 6 cup capacity pyrex casserole dish (or whatever you have). Whisk the eggs and tofu together, season with salt and pepper and stir through the grated cheese. Pour the egg mixture over the silverbeet mixture and the egg mixture through the silverbeet.
Bake the pie for 40 mins or until golden and set. I cheated because I was in a hurry so I started it off in the microwave for 7 minutse before placing it back in the oven. It took about 10 mins off the cooking time. Allow to cool slightly before slicing.

Crafty ways with legumes

I never grew up with legumes. My parents hate them. The thought of lentils makes my mother shudder. For me, I love legumes. I've been known to eat 4 bean mix straight out of the can. And in fact, right now as I'm typing this, I'm eating a wrap filled with kidney beans (and other things).

Jen from August Street isn't so excited about legumes, but has decided to give them a go as apart of the Low GI in July thing she's got going. I'd suggest, if you're just starting out on the legume adventure, to go with canned beans so you know what the texture of your legumes should be like, and then soak your own (they do taste so much better). I still used tinned beans from time to time but I find because I'm eating legumes regularly, I always have some sort of bean on to soak. And as long as you change the water they can soak for a few days. I should also mention that the whole unpleasant flatulence thing that everyone always talks about... it goes away after about a week of eating them regularly (regularly meaning maybe 4 times in a week?).

I'll now share my Top 10 favourite legume recipes (in no particular order):

1. Chickpea and almond couscous: This is my all time favourite chickpea recipe. I could eat this all day. It's so good that it'd become a Christmas favourite with the whole of my dad's family and there's a lot of them!)
2. Butter bean curry: I add broccoli and whatever is left in the fridge to this one as well. This is absolutely delicious
3. Lentil and halloumi salad: Oh, this is delicious. I hate salads, but this one is an absolute favourite. I think it's the halloumi that makes it. Make sure you wash and drain your lentils well.
4. Lentil shepherd's pie: I make this one for my family who were never brought up with meatless dishes and don't know how to take legumes being a "feature" of a meal. I have made this one low GI by replacing the potato mash with cauliflower mash (I head of cauliflower steamed and mashed with 2 tbsp thickened cream or sour cream).
5. Mediterranean vegetable bake: So quick and easy to make. I'd never have thought to use weetbix in cooking, but damn, it goes good. Who'd have thought?
6. Lentil lasagne: You can't go wrong with this.
   
7. Chickpea and sweet potato koftas: I have made these for dinner parties before.
8. Aromatic black eye bean curry: I recently tried this one out. Very flavourful! YUM!
9. Bulghur and Chickpeas with Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms: I don't know where to get roasted buckwheat groats, so I replace them with bulghur (cracked wheat) instead. You can buy it from Coles and Safeway.
10. Hommus: a quick and easy dip that is terrific when that mid-afternoon hunger pang hits.

My favourite websites for legume recipes are:

• Sanitarium
• Edgell
• Whole foods market

Photo by this is emily

Pizza dough fun

One of the things I enjoy most is making my own pizza dough. It only takes 15 mins to make and the dough freezes very well for up to a month. When I was a student living out of home, I'd make this dough up and keep half in the freezer for later and it made a cheap and very filling meal.

Friday night I made pizza for dinner and this morning, with the leftover dough, I whipped up a batch of 6 calzone to take for lunch this week... unless Gib gets to them first.

For the dough:
4 cups flour (or for wholemeal pizza dough: 2 cups each of plain and wholemeal flour)
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 x 8g sachet yeast
2 tsp sugar (or 1 1/2 tsp honey)
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil

• Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Set aside for 10 mins.
• Sift the flour, sugar and salt together.
• Make a well into the centre and gradually mix in the yeast/water mixture. Mix in the honey and olive oil at this stage.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and kneed until smooth.

If storing for later, wrap your dough in cling wrap and place in a zip lock bag in the fridge for up to 2 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Divide your dough and shape it into a pizza base or for calzone, or whatever you feel like.
I bake my home made pizzas for 15 minutes at 200C.

My "calzones":
I lie, my calzones were more like pasties, but using bread instead of pastry. I'm having a bit of a fad for legumes at the moment, but you could replace the lentils with minced meat or bacon or whatver you feel like.

• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 cups of lentils, mixed variety, soaked overnight
• 1 carrot, finely diced
  
• 1 turnip, finely diced
  
• 1 cup of peas (frozen)
  
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 500 ml vegetable stock
  
• 1 cup pasta sauce
  
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary

Saute onion and garlic until onion is clear. Add lentils, carrot, turnip, stock, red wine, pasta sauce and worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for ~30 mins or until lentils are soft. Add peas at the end.

Some people prefer to make their calzone in a semi-circle shape, but I've had too much trouble in the past with my filling oozing out of the sides, so I prefer this method: Roll out the dough in a roughly square shape, about 30 cm x 30 cm. Place a large spoonful of the mixure in middle. Fold the two side edges in. Fold the bottom edge up and then continue to roll the calzone over to close over the last edge (so the seam of th calzone is on the bottom).

Transfer your calzone to a tray lined with a baking sheet. Brush the calzone with 1 lightly whisked egg. Bake for 15 minutes at 200 C.



In other exciting news, I came home from a party Saturday night to a distinct smokey smell. Really smokey. My mum had been having a bit of a dinner party, and according to my dad, she got talking, and burnt the syrup that was supposed to go on the dessert. Not just burnt, but really burnt. So much so that one of the cats had to be taken outside because he was coughing! Check this out! Miraculously, the teflon coated cast iron pot was still in perfect condition!

Miso-Glazed daikon, asparagus & okra, tossed with sesame seeds

Okra doesn't seem to be a popular vegetable in Australia, but I've always seen tins of the stuff down at my local mediterranean-influenced markets and have wanted to try cooking with it. Gib was also curious to try it after playing World of Warcraft and saw dropping of monsters in Westfall. So while browsing a local Indian grocery store, we decided to buy a bag of it and see how it goes. I've heard people say that okra has an unpleasant texture, as it tends to be quite gummy, but this did not offend me in the least. I adapted the recipe followning from here. We also roasted up a couple of leeks and served them with the wasabi-lemon sauce (the sauce was very tasty, I'll keep that in mind for the future) but it wasn't nearly as good as the okra dish:

1/3 cup yellow miso paste
1 1/2 tsp kewpie mayonnaise
1 tablespoon soy sauce
6 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 daikon
2 carrots
2 bunches of asparagus
200 g okra

Mix miso paste, mayonnaise and soy sauce until combined. Set aside.

Toast sesame seeds in a dry pan for ~1 minute until golden brown. Peel daikon and carrot and cut into 1" chunks. Snap off hard bottoms of the asparagus and cut pieces in half. Wash okra and allow to drain.

In a steamer, cook daikon and carrot for approximately 10 minutes or until just tender (do not overcook!), and place in a large mixing bowl. Steam asparagus and okra together about 5 minutes, or until just tender and the vegetables are still a vivid green. Add okra and asparagus to carrot and daikon. Add the miso mixture to the hot vegetables, and mix thoroughly so that the sap from the okra binds with the miso. Sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds on top.

Serve with rice. Serves 4.

My favourite 15 minute meal: Home made pizza

When I'm feeling lazy after a big training session or on a Saturday night when I want to veg out and not think, I make these. To me a pizza is best with a thin crust and not so totally covered with cheese that you can't identify whatever else is on the pizza.

Today's pizza features:
- Pita bread
- Tomato paste with a mexican blend of spices, just for something different
- Mushrooms
- Spinach
- Tomato
- Spanish onion
- Fresh cut pumpkin, thinly sliced (I usually microwave the pumpkin for a minute in the microwave to give it a head start)
- Cheese (low fat, cos low fat tasty is so tasteless it's almost like mozarella anyway!)

Bake in oven, 200C for 12-15 mins.

Before

After -- ohhh doncha just wish you had dinner at my place last night?

Any leftover pitas (why on earth do they sell them in packs of 5?) are chopped up and popped in the oven for 5 mins to make pita chips. And then, if I'm still feeling lazy Sunday night, I can turn them into pita nachos!

Cooking with Kate

Today my buddy Kate came around and baked and cooked. I found out that Kate is remarkably more productive in the kitchen than I am. I made curried carrot soup, gingerbread men and Kate made steamed sweet red bean buns, pumpkin scones and baklava. What an absolute machine she is! I gecook quite healthily but today we went all out... I don't think I've used that much butter in one go for quite some time (heheheh just ignore the fact that we worked together as researchers at a heart research institute!). The steamed buns, while fun to make, didn't turn out so well so I wont bother posting the recipe for those.

Now you'll notice that there are photos! I haven't got my new camera yet, but I did get a new phone which has a camera! So some of the photos have come out a bit strange and aren't great quality... oh well.

Curried carrot soup

• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 kg carrots, grated
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp hot cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon turmeric
• Fresh ground pepper to taste
  
• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 400 ml light cocounut milk

Heat oil in a large heavy based pot. Fry the garlic for 30 seconds and then add onion. Cook the onion until clear.

Add the mustard seeds, cayenne, cumin, cinnamon and turmeric and fry for 1 minute until fragrant and the mustard seeds are starting to pop.

Stir through carrot and ginger. Add stock, bring to the boil and then simmer for 30 mins. Blend with a stab mixer until smooth.

Stir through the coconut milk, bring the soup up to temperature and serve.

*This soup is actually more orange coloured than this, and the wall is actually white, not blue. But you get the idea!

Karatebread men (makes 18)

Kate and I met at work and became buddies after we both discovered we both do karate and both love to cook. So we combined our passions today and made... karatebread men!

• Melted butter, to grease
• 125g butter, at room temperature
• 100g (1/2 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar
• 125ml (1/2 cup) golden syrup
• 1 egg, separated
• 375g (21/2 cups) plain flour
• 1 tbs ground ginger
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 150 g icing sugar

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper
Beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the golden syrup and egg yolk until combined. Stir in the flour, ginger, mixed spice and bicarbonate of soda. Turn out onto a

floured surface and knead until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Roll the dough out on a floured surface to 4mm thick. Make sure to coat the rolling pin in flour too because this dough is quite sticky. Avoid handling the dough too much. Cut out your 9cm gingerbread men and use a spatula to lift and place onto trays (about 1 inch apart). Reroll the dough and repeat until all the dough is used up. Any scraps can be rolled up and made into some random shape, like a circle or gingerbread "log" or if you're like me you might just like to eat the dough raw! Or if you're feeling boring, put scraps into the bin.

Bake in oven for 10 minutes or until brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 mins before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, make your icing by beating the eggwhite to soft peaks. Add icing sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Ice your men however you want, but we chose to put little white dogis on ours... and once we started to run out of icing we made sumobread men. My icing skills aren't well practiced, so you'll have to use your imagination a bit!

HAI-YAAAAHHH!!!

Baklava

Recipe from here.

• 375g (1 packet) filo pastry
• 180g butter, melted & cooled (although, I think we only used about half of this! I don't think we were trying hard enough)
• 2 tsp water

Filling

• 150g walnut pieces
• 150g unsalted pistachios
• 55g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
• 1tsp ground cinnamon

Honey syrup

• 1 375g jar honey
• 165g (3/4 cup) sugar
• 250mls (1 cup) water
• 1 lemon, rind finely grated and juiced

Preheat oven to 180°C. Spread the walnuts on a baking tray and lightly toast in the preheated oven for 5-8 minus. Cool.
Combine walnuts, pistachios, sugar and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor and process using on 'pulse' until they are finely chopped.

Remove the filo pastry from its packet and lie flat on the work bench. Cover with a dry tea towel and then a damp tea towel. (This will keep the filo from drying out while making the baklava.)

Brush a shallow 18 x 28cm cake tin with some of the butter (see right). Take 1/3 of the sheets of filo. Brush the top sheet generously with butter and fold into thirds to make a rectangle the size of the tin. Place in the base of the buttered tin and brush surface with butter. Spread 1/2 of the nut filling over the filo to cover. Layer 1/2 of the remaining filo sheets as before. Spread left over nut filling over filo and top with the remaining layered buttered filo sheets. Lightly brush top with remaining butter.

Using a sharp knife, cut a diamond pattern into the top layer of filo and sprinkle with the water. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Cover with foil and cook for 45 minutes longer or until the filo layers are cooked through.

Meanwhile, to make the honey syrup, combine honey, sugar, water, lemon rind and juice in a saucepan and stir over high heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil and keep on medium heat for 10 minutes or until the syrup has thickened slightly.

Remove from heat and allow to cool. When cooked, remove baklava from the oven and immediately pour the cooled syrup evenly over the surface. Stand to cool completely.
Cut into diamond shapes. This can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Pumpkin Scones

40 g butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
350 g pumpkin (e.g. jap, kent)
2 1/2 cups self raising flour
1/2 tsp nutmeg
~1/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 200°C. Grease your tray. Cut off the rind from the pumpkin, cut into chunks and steam or microwave until soft.

Beat butter, sugar and egg together. Stire in pumpkin, flour and nutmeg and enough milk to make a soft, sticky dough. Kneed lightly until nice and smooth.

Roll out dough to about 1 1/2 inch thinkness, cut out into circles with a cutter (or a tumbler or wineglass or whatever!). Brush the top with milk and cook for 12-15 mins. Best eaten soon after baking.

Perhaps 12 mins would be better than 15! But ooooohhhh soooo yummy!