Useful

This site - Taste
and this site - Cuisine

They're Australian and I am much pleased at what an online resource they are.

Udon noodle soup

I am sure there are myriad Japanese food purists out there who will be horrified at the following, but look, it came at the end of a few full-on days and I needed something restorative. And it was.

Udon Noodle Soup

1. Cook udon noodles (I used organic dry ones, not those prepackaged fat slug ones with heaps of additives and thickeners in them) according to packet instructions. Mine took 10 minutes in boiling water. Refresh under cold water.
2. Bring four cups of water to the boil with 2-4 dried shitake mushrooms (You could of course use homemade stock)
3. I had a piece of soy chicken from the Chinese BBQ kitchen which I added for extra flavour depth - obviously omit to keep it vegetarian.
4. Boil for five minutes
5. Remove mushrooms and slice finely
6. Add about 1/2 cup or more to taste of soy sauce
7. Add about the same of white wine
8. Add finely sliced rounds of 1-2 shallots
9. Take off the boil
10. Add a tablespoon of miso (I actually used two sachets of miso soup mix!) and the noodles
11. Taste and add any of the above to adjust to your preference
12. Scatter over some fresh coriander leaves
13. Eat

This is so fluid and basic I'm almost embarrassed to post it. But it was good. And certainly restorative.

Roast chicken w/ ricotta and pine nut stuffing

I'm not posting a roast chicken recipe. Everyone has their favourite. But I will say this, basically 20 minutes for each side at 200C. Go see Joke if you want all manner of brines and rinses and entertaining reads on moist breasts.

I love experimenting with roast chicken. I mean, see here (that's the roast chicken with cankles)and here for two examples. Monday was no different. I had ricotta that had to be used, left over rice from Sunday night and a hankering for pine nuts. These are rough quantities - it made a lot of stuffing. I stuffed the cavity, between the breast meat and skin and in the pocket between the thigh and the breast.

Leek, ricotta and pinenut stuffing

• 1 leek, finely sliced
• 2 zucchinis, grated
• 1-2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• About 4oog of ricotta
• Probably about 1 cup of cooked rice
• a good handful of pinenuts
• juice of half a lemon
• finely grated rind of 1 lemon
• salt and pepper
• 4-6 sprigs flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

1. heat a frypan over medium high heat, spray with oil, saute the leeks until softened
2. add zucchinis and garlic and cook for a few minutes, then remove from heat and cool slightly
3. mix all the ingredients together
4. taste and season accordingly
5. stuff in chicken

It's a wrap

Somehow this week became Felix's week, in that he determined what we were going to have for dinner each night of the week.
See. This is when I know these children really are mine.
Very particular.
Liking of a list.
Very partial to been very anal.

Sunday featured tandoori chicken w/ cucumber raita, tomato 'salad' and rice
Monday was more chicken (whoops, at least it was free range - the poor man's organic) - this time a whole roasted bird with a fantastic stuffing with potatoe and sweet potato 'chips'
Tuesday was Vietnamese rice paper rolls w/ soy chicken and bbq duck from BBQ Kitchen in Chinatown, which Chef collected on his way home. There was a minor segue to China as I remembered I had some Peking Duck pancakes in the freezer and a new jar of hoisin sauce in the cupboard. Yum,
Tonight was leftovers of the chicken and duck and julienned vegetables rolled into sushi rolls. I also made some udon noodle soup.
But are you noticing the theme? I'm starting to feel like the Chef off The Muppets. We roll it, roll it and roll it some more.
I'm drawing the line at TexMex.

Scones

I love making scones. They're super quick, extraordinarily easy and everyone I know has a soft spot for them. Everyone.

Scones

• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup cream
• 600g self raising flour
• pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to a hot oven
2. Combine the ingredients using a palette knife until barely combined
3. Turn out onto a lightly floured bench and working quickly with a light hand, combine into a dough
4. Roll out to about 2cm thick
5. Cut out rounds (I use a vegemite glass) and place close to each other on a baking tray
6. Brush the tops lightly with some milk
7. Bake in a hot oven for 12-15 minutes
8. Serve w/ jam and lightly whipped cream

Mixing it up...
A dear friend of mine at work, Angela, mentioned her lemonade scones to me one day and then I saw a recipe for them over at The cook and the chef website (I LOVE that show), so last weekend I tried them.

Lemonade scones

• 1 cup cream
• 1 cup lemonade
• 3 cups self raising flour

1. Follow instructions as above

I thought they were weird. They looked like scones, they rose like scones but they had a weird lemonade flavour. We started joking around:
- ginger and date scones - using ginger beer
- coke scones
- fanta scones
I'm glad I tried them but I doubt I'd ever make that version again.

Choc Banana Bread

The first time I made this was for a family brunch event. It was still warm from the oven and I had used big, wide, flat chocolate buttons that just oozed as we cut into it. Divine. I've also made it with raspberries rather than chocolate, which was equally delicious.

Choc banana bread

• 125g butter
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 4 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup choc chips
• 2 cups plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder

1. preheat oven to 180C (350F)
2. grease and flour a 19x11cm loaf tin
3. cream the butter and sugar together until pale
4. add the eggs one at a time
5. fold in the bananas, chocolate and vanilla
6. add the dry ingredients and be careful not to over mix
7. pour into tin and bake for 1hr 15min

The raspberry version

I made it as two smaller loaves, sliced the second loaf and froze it, so this week have popped a slice in the boys lunch box as a little surprise for them.

Lasagne

Ahhh, an oldie but a goodie. Show me a child who doesn't like lasagne and come, let them sit by me. That's right. Despite making a lasagne every raves about, it really doesn't do it for me. I prefer Nigella's take on it - to make the bolognaise, the bechamel and to them smooch them through penne and bake - if I have to eat something of this ilk. I don't know, it's just not my thing.

It's on the weekly rotation at the moment as Felix loves it and Jasper eats it. I also get two nights out of it and sometimes enough bolognaise sauce left over to get a dinner out of that as well. That my friend is called a win win win.

Lasagne
The Bolognaise sauce

• 2-4 onions, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• 4-6 cloves garlic, smooshed
• 1kg beef mince
• 500g pork mince
• 1 cup of red wine (optional, I only add if I've got a bottle open)
• 2-4 tbls tomato paste
• 500ml sugo
• 2x400g tins chopped tomatoes
• stock or water
• flat leaf parsley and basil

1. Heat a little oil in a big saucepan and saute the onions, carrots and celery slowly. I'm talking 30 minutes at least. Add the garlic about half way through. Keep it quite wet, if it dries out add some water.
2. Add the meat and cook until browned through
3. Add the wine and cook out until alcohol smell has dissipated
4. Add tomato paste and cook it out for a minute or so
5. Add the sugo and tinned tomatoes and enough stock that it gets good boiling/simmering movement.
6. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 2 hours
7. Near the end of cooking I added a big handful of fresh herbs and check seasoning.

Bechamel sauce

• 4 tbs butter
• 6 tbs plain flour
• 1 litre milk (I use skim)
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan
2. Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes or so
3. Add milk gradually at first to ensure you don't have any lumps, then pour it all in
4. Stir fairly constantly over medium heat until it thickens
5. Turn off the heat and add the parmesan
6. Season with salt and pepper

Lasagne sheets
I know some of you will just go 'pfff' at this, as I did when Joke told me he cures his own bacon (or something like that) but I can taste the difference, so this is what I do.
I use ones which you have to cook first. They're thicker and this brand is fantastic. I figure when Antoinette who runs the best (dare I say only really decent one) Italian deli on the Northern Beaches will only stock this one it has to be good. I also occasionally use the Latina fresh variety when the thought of getting the pack into the car and out of the car and into a deli and out of a deli and back in the car and home makes my head explode.

Building your lasagne
My beautiful friend Linda who also happens to be Italian told me once that lasagne is all about the layers and that there has to be lots of them. She doesn't even make it with bechamel. Just lasagne sheets and bolognaise. And mine never gets close to hers in flavour. She made it once, for Chef's 30th when a few of us went to the farm where we were married. That dinner, where copious amounts of alcohol were consumed with almost equally massive amounts of food is one of my most favourite memories of all time.

Start with a layer of the meat sauce, then pasta, then bechamel and so on
Sometimes I throw in a layer of ricotta - if I have it in the fridge.
Sprinkle some cheese over the top and bake at 180C for 40minutes to an hour.
Sometimes I make smaller ones in tin containers that I then freeze, because this level of effort for one dinner is just madness. But the above recipe makes a lot of bolognaise and you should have some left over to make spag bol the next night or freeze for another day at least.

Lasagne

Ahhh, an oldie but a goodie. Show me a child who doesn't like lasagne and come, let them sit by me. That's right. Despite making a lasagne every raves about, it really doesn't do it for me. I prefer Nigella's take on it - to make the bolognaise, the bechamel and to them smooch them through penne and bake - if I have to eat something of this ilk. I don't know, it's just not my thing.

It's on the weekly rotation at the moment as Felix loves it and Jasper eats it. I also get two nights out of it and sometimes enough bolognaise sauce left over to get a dinner out of that as well. That my friend is called a win win win.

Lasagne
The Bolognaise sauce

• 2-4 onions, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• 4-6 cloves garlic, smooshed
• 1kg beef mince
• 500g pork mince
• 1 cup of red wine (optional, I only add if I've got a bottle open)
• 2-4 tbls tomato paste
• 500ml sugo
• 2x400g tins chopped tomatoes
• stock or water
• flat leaf parsley and basil

1. Heat a little oil in a big saucepan and saute the onions, carrots and celery slowly. I'm talking 30 minutes at least. Add the garlic about half way through. Keep it quite wet, if it dries out add some water.
2. Add the meat and cook until browned through
3. Add the wine and cook out until alcohol smell has dissipated
4. Add tomato paste and cook it out for a minute or so
5. Add the sugo and tinned tomatoes and enough stock that it gets good boiling/simmering movement.
6. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 2 hours
7. Near the end of cooking I added a big handful of fresh herbs and check seasoning.

Bechamel sauce

• 4 tbs butter
• 6 tbs plain flour
• 1 litre milk (I use skim)
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan
2. Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes or so
3. Add milk gradually at first to ensure you don't have any lumps, then pour it all in
4. Stir fairly constantly over medium heat until it thickens
5. Turn off the heat and add the parmesan
6. Season with salt and pepper

Lasagne sheets
I know some of you will just go 'pfff' at this, as I did when Joke told me he cures his own bacon (or something like that) but I can taste the difference, so this is what I do.
I use ones which you have to cook first. They're thicker and this brand is fantastic. I figure when Antoinette who runs the best (dare I say only really decent one) Italian deli on the Northern Beaches will only stock this one it has to be good. I also occasionally use the Latina fresh variety when the thought of getting the pack into the car and out of the car and into a deli and out of a deli and back in the car and home makes my head explode.

Building your lasagne
My beautiful friend Linda who also happens to be Italian told me once that lasagne is all about the layers and that there has to be lots of them. She doesn't even make it with bechamel. Just lasagne sheets and bolognaise. And mine never gets close to hers in flavour. She made it once, for Chef's 30th when a few of us went to the farm where we were married. That dinner, where copious amounts of alcohol were consumed with almost equally massive amounts of food is one of my most favourite memories of all time.

Start with a layer of the meat sauce, then pasta, then bechamel and so on

Layer as follows
meat
pasta
bechamel
pasta
meat
pasta
ricotta
bechamel
pasta
meat
pasta
bechamel
sprinkle cheese over the top.

That's right people - LOTS of layers. This is important. As important as a slow long cooked sauce.
Bake at 180C until cooked through.

Honey mustard dressing

This is based on Jamie Oliver's honey mustard and garlic dressing that I've had to separate myself from, such was my desire. I've doubled it and changed it slightly. Because I live with a pack.

• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tblsp seeded mustard
• 3 tblsp honey
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup olive oil

1. mix together
2. taste and add whatever it needs (sometimes the lemon is more lemony... if that makes sense and it needs a touch more honey)

Lemony lamb with roasted vegetable couscous salad

I've been quite proud of my expanded dinner repertoire of late. Particularly that most of it does not follow a particular recipe to the letter. For you see, I am one of those home cooks who tend to follow recipes to the letter. I get ansy if I have to change something or leave something out and do not even bother trying to console me if it all goes pear shaped and ends up uneaten or worse... unedible. And yes, those two things are very very different.

Anyway, this is an example of me relaxing the recipe fixation and going with flavours. If I wasn't watching the fat intake so much I would have lugged over the olive oil for the veggies to roast and then dressed the couscous and veggies in the honey mustard dressing I have come to know and love. But it was delicious all the same.

Lemony lamb with roasted vegetable and couscous salad

• lamb backstrap (as many as you need for as many as you're feeding)
• lemon pepper
• 1 cup couscous
• pumpkin, cut into chunks
• sweet potato, cut into similar sized chunks as the pumpkin
• eggplant, cut into thick slices (as in, about 1cm thick) and then cut again to similar size pieces as vegetables
• Spanish onions, cut into chunks
• 2 tbls olive oil
• mint
• flat-leafed parsley
• 1 lemon, zest finely grated and juiced
• sea salt and freshly cracked pepper

1. Preheat oven to 220C
2. Coat the lamb in the lemon pepper and set aside while you chop the vegetables and get them cooking
3. Cook vegetables for about 30 minutes or until getting some good colour and are cooked through.
4. Cook the lamb using your preferred method - I would have used the stove top cast iron griddle, but have been using the knock out the fat knock out the flavour non-stick benchtop griller thingy we normally reserve for toasted sandwiches lately and been pleasantly surprised. For starters, meat is done in 3-4 minutes (as it cooks top and bottom), they get the nice 'lines' on them and I'm using a lot less fat in my cooking. And it's easy to clean. I know! - and then let it rest
   
5. Combine the couscous with 1 cup boiling water (I throw in some stock powder to add more flavour) and cover
6. Combine the couscous with the vegetables, herbs, zest and juice
7. Slice lamb and serve w/ couscous and green veg of choice. I cooked some asparagus on the grill after cooking the lamb as it is in season here at the mo and absolutely delicious.
   

Puy lentils with mint and feta

As I embark on project boombalardy I have been cooking a lot more with lentils and loving it. This was something I just made up as part of the Festival of Jasper on the weekend which was simply sensational.

Puy lentils with mint and feta

• 1 cup puy lentils
• 200g feta
• 1 punnet cherry tomatoes
• 1 lebanese cucumber, quartered and cut into chunks
  
• 1/2 cup (or so) kalamata olives
• 2-4 sprigs mint, finely chopped
  
• 2-3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
  
• 1 lime, zest finely grated and juiced
• 2 tsp olive oil
• sea salt and freshly cracked pepper

1. Combine the lentils with 1 1/2 cups water (or stock), bring to the boil and then simmer gently for 15-20 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed and lentils are al dente. For want of a better expression.
2. Drain lentils and toss with crumbled feta, the tomatoes, cucumber, olives, herbs and zest.
3. Squeeze over lime juice and the olive oil and season.

Naturally, if you're not watching your fat intake with the intensity of the best British train-watcher, you could pour over a few good lugs and a bit more lime juice, but this was very tasty all the same.

Coffee Streusel Cake

I have a very large soft spot for cakes that have a streusel/crumble topping on them. It's located between my boobs and nether parts and expands with little effort and is sometimes affectionately referred to as Terry. Terry Tummy. Terence when I'm fed up with the reality I can not eat whatever I want whenever I want without 'issues' ensuing.

This recipe comes from my MIL who used to make it a lot apparently. I am dirty with her that 'a lot' was clearly happening a long time ago because she hasn't made it while I've been part of the family. And that's 16 years. Just kidding. I have been looking for this kind of recipe for months, so when she brought it out at a family lunch the other day, I was stoked.

Coffee Streusel Cake

• 250g butter, softened
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp bi-carb
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup nuts, chopped (I used pecans but walnuts or macadamias would work)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 180C and grease and flour a 26cm springform tin
2. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy
3. Add the eggs one at a time and the vanilla
4. Fold in the dry ingredients, alternating with the sour cream
5. Combine the nuts with the brown sugar and cinnamon
6. Spoon half the batter into the cake tin and spread to the edges (the cake batter is quite thick)
7. Top with half the nut/sugar mixture
8. Spoon over remaining cake batter, then top with remaining nut/sugar mixture.
9. Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until cooked when tested.

Next time I'm going to ever so slightly cut the top layer of nut/sugar/cinnamon into the batter with a palette knife.

Berry Crumble Cake

This was inspired by Canadian Baker but as we're not quite into stone fruit season, I used a frozen berries - mainly blackberries and some raspberries thrown in for good measure. I also substituted the sour cream for low fat natural yoghurt as it was all I had and wholemeal plain flour for the plain flour as I'm trying to use more whole foods across all areas of my cooking at the moment. It all seemed to work and I must say it was delicious and I can't wait to make it with some in season stone fruits this summer.

Berry Crumble Cake

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• finely grated rind of 1 lemon
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• pinch nutmeg
• 1 cup sour cream
• 6 cups pitted sliced plums (about 1.25kg) or frozen berries or fruit of choice
• 1 1/4 cup plain flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 cup butter, melted

1. Grease a 13x9inch slice tin and preheat oven to 180C
2. Cream butter and sugar and rind
3. Add eggs, beating well after each addition
4. Add the flour, baking powder and soda, alternating with some of the sour cream
5. Spoon into the tin
6. Top with the fruit
7. Combine the flour, brown sugar and nutmeg
8. Add the melted butter
9. Strew over the top of the fruit
10. Bake for 45-55 minutes

Delicious on its own or served warm with ice cream.

Lebanese style peas and lamb

This is based on a Karen Martini recipe that featured recently in the Sun Herald's Sunday Life magazine. I reckon you could double the amount of lamb mince and leave the rest of the recipe as is. Just depends on how many you're feeding and how much you like peas. (I love peas with a passion that is completely misplaced on vegetables.) I also added in the carrots to get another vegetable into the family. I doubled the entire recipe and it made A LOT. I have tubs in the freezer now, which is not a bad thing but don't say you weren't warned.

Lebanese style peas and lamb

• 100ml olive oil*
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 250g lamb mince
• 2 carrots, cut into lengths
  
• 2 tsp dried chilli (I left this out due to Oscar not being able to stomach chilli in any form)
• 1 tsp dried mint
• 1 tsp cracked pepper
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 3 large tomatoes, chopped
• sea salt
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 700ml water
• 750g frozen peas
• to serve: steamed rice, plain yoghurt, lemon juice and fresh mint, finely chopped

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan and add onion and garlic
2. Add the lamb and brown
3. Then add the carrots, spices and tomatoes
4. Add the tomato paste, water and peas
5. Cook for 20 minutes
6. Serve with rice, yoghurt, squeeze over some lemon juice and sprinkle some fresh mint.

*I made it with 2 tsp of oil and it still tasted delicious. I will leave it to you and your waistline to decide which way you go.

Caremlised lime snapper

Now Chef is working in Pyrmont he can go here on the way home from work. So last week I asked him to pick up some white fish fillets on the way home. He selected a whole snapper and they gutted and filleted it for him. I was already in heaven. This is inspired by a Donna Hay recipe from her book the instant cook. One of those books someone bought for me that I thought, gee this is good and then fell out of my head as I returned to the staple dinner selections we are all want to do. It gives you a main recipe and then three versions of it underneath. Nifty I say.

Caramelised lime snapper

• 1.8-2kg white fish fillets
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 6 tbls brown sugar
• 4 tbls lime juice
• 2 tbls soy sauce
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 1-2 tsp chilli flakes (optional - I didn't use as Oscar can't do heat of any nature at all)
• steamed rice, fresh coriander (cilantro) and shallots (green onions or scallions depending on where you live) sliced - to serve

1. Heat the oil in a large frypan
2. sear the fish for one minute on each side
3. pour over combined other ingredients and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until the fish is cooked through and the sauce has reduced and is nice and sticky.
4. Serve with steamed rice, coriander leaves and sliced shallots

YUM.
Served two (and a half - mum tried some) adults and three kids with a little bit left over.
Imagine using the sauce w/ prawns.

Sumac lamb with haloumi and chickpea salad

So Chef has a new job (here for those of you based in Sydney) which means his going to be home for dinner more nights than not. Two jobs ago this was also the case but I was working full time so it didn't mean that much. Now, it changes things dramatically. While I always try to rustle up something delicious for dinner, it is a different 'pressure' for want of a better word when there are two grown ups at the table. This was last nights effort with which I was pretty pleased.

Sumac lamb with haloumi and chickpea salad

• lamb chops (I used chump chops as I had them in the freezer)
• sumac
• 1x400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 block haloumi, cut into slices
• mesclun salad mix
• 2 tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 cucumber, cut into rounds
• 2 shallots, sliced
• handful of mint and parsley, chopped finely
• 3/4-1 cup skim milk plain yoghurt
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 lime, finely grated rind and juiced

1. Coat the lamb chops liberally in sumac, rub into the meat and set aside
2. Heat a griddle pan or ridged fry pan (I used our knock-out-the-fat knock-out-the-flavour grill for the first time, normally we just use it for toasted sandwiches and it actually worked really well)
3. Combine the yoghurt with the lime rind, enough of the juice for your personal preference (I used 1/2 the lime), sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Set aside
4. Cook the haloumi until it starts to give, cut slices in half and set aside
5. Cook the lamb to your liking (I didn't use any oil as the griddle had some of the fat from the haloumi on it)
   
6. Combine the mesclun, herbs, tomato, cucumber and shallots with the chickpeas and haloumi
7. Serve, with some of the yoghurt dressing drizzled over the salad