Macaroni with Ham and Cheese

This crunchy pasta dish is so easy to make and tastes really good!  It’s a different take on the old favourite Macaroni Cheese – not so rich because there is no cheese sauce – just cheese!  You can really add anything you fancy to this dish – I often add a punnet of chopped button mushrooms.  Another nice variation is stirring through two or three chopped hard-boiled eggs – depends what you have in the fridge! 🙂

Ingredients:

1 250 gram packet of macaroni – I use elbows

3 ham steaks

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 onion finely chopped

1 clove of garlic – grated

1 teaspoon Sambal Oelek  (A paste made from ground red chillies – I use Conimex brand)

1/2 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg

salt & pepper to taste

4 cups of grated cheese

Panko crumbs for the topping

Method:

Boil the macaroni as per instructions on the packet until just el dente

While the pasta is cooking, fry the onions, garlic & chilli paste in the olive oil

Chop the ham steaks into small cubes and toss in with the onion mixture

Season with the nutmeg, salt & pepper to taste

When pasta is ready, drain and mix thoroughly with the ham and onion mixture

Add in the grated cheese and stir though to combine

Tip this into a casserole dish and sprinkle generously with Panko crumbs

Bake at 200c (fan forced) for around 20 minutes or until crumbs are nice & golden

Bon Appetit!

Crunchy Flathead Fillets with Spinach

Lowly fish and chips can be given a tremendous boost by coating your fish with crunchy Panko crumbs.  This dish is lovely on its own as light lunch or serve it with thick chips or wedges for dinner.  We love the bed of spinach which seems to go very well with any type of fish.

Ingredients:

2 large flathead fillets

½ cup of Panko crumbs

1 beaten egg

2 tablespoons of plain flour

2 bags of baby spinach

2 cloves of garlic (grated)

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ teaspoon of grated nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

Extra olive oil to shallow fry the fish

Dijonnaise to serve

Method:

Pat fish fillets dry

Have 2 large bowls ready – one for the flour, one for the egg, one for the crumbs

Season the flour with salt & pepper

Dip each fillet into the flour making sure it is well coated

Dip the fillet in to the beaten egg

Dip the fillet finally into the Panko crumbs and press them on firmly

Heat a large non stick pan and add a generous amount of olive oil and fry the fish, turning once, until golden brown.

Set aside and keep warm

In another pan gently fry the garlic and toss in the spinach leaves and turn up the heat slightly

Season with grated nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste

When completely wilted drain as much of the liquid off as possible and arrange the spinach in a pile on each plate

Place the fish fillet on top

Serve with some Dijonnaise on top

Dijonnaise can be bought in a squeezy bottle or you can make your own by combining a couple of tablespoons of Dijon Mustard with bottled mayonnaise and season to taste

Bon Appétit!

Roasted Chicken with Tarragon

This is a favourite of ours – it’s delicious cold as well…

Ingredients:

1 large free range chicken

200grams butter

1 bunch fresh tarragon

6 shallots (or pickling onions)

6 cloves fresh garlic

1 lemon

Salt & pepper to season

Cooking string to tie up the chicken

Method:

Rinse the chicken and pat dry inside and out

Chop the lemon to quarters

Skin the garlic cloves

Peel the shallots

Finely chop about 1/2 of the tarragon and mix it with the butter to form a paste

Carefully insert your hand under the skin of the breast of the chicken and gently push your hand further in – be careful not to break the skin – making a pocket on each side of the bone

Gently push in as much of the tarragon butter mix as you can flattening it out as you go

Any butter that is left can be smeared over the outside of the chicken sides and legs

Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the whole garlic cloves, lemon pieces and shallots

Tie the legs of the chicken together to prevent any of the stuffing from falling out.

Season the chicken all over with plenty of salt & pepper

Pile the remainder of the bunch of tarragon on the bottom of a roasting tin or large casserole dish (I use a Chasseur Pot)

Place the chicken breast side up and roast at 180c (fan force) for about 1 and 1½ hours or until juices run clear when pierced with a skewer

The juices can be added to a your gravy of choice which will be tangy from the lemons

You can serve the onions and garlic as a side dish as well…

Bon Appetit!

Lizzie’s Pie and Peas

We adore this dish – there’s nothing better than a fabulous homemade pie.  This recipe is for a basic Aussie Beef pie but we have also done these using chicken curry, goulash and chicken and mushroom.  The combinations are endless – just stick it in a pie and plonk it on a bed of pea mash and away you go…

Pies:

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 onion finely chopped

2 large carrots grated

1 large stick of celery finely chopped

6 rashers of bacon finely chopped

½ kilo high quality minced beef

Good glug of tomato sauce

2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

Good pinch of nutmeg

1 cup of beef stock

Salt & pepper to taste

1 sheet of puff pastry per pie tin

1 beaten egg to use as an egg wash to stick the pastry together

Method:

Fry the vegetables and bacon together until softened

Add the beef mince and make sure you break up any lumps as you are browning it

Add in the tomato sauce (to taste) and the nutmeg

Mix thoroughly

Add the beef stock and simmer uncovered for about half an hour or until stock has reduced and the mixture is nice and thick

Season to taste with salt and pepper

To make the pies:

Spray individual deep pie tins with cooking spray

Cut pastry sheet in half and push into the tin

Patch up the sides with the overlapping bits by brushing with an egg wash to stick them together

Fill with beef mixture and cover with left over pastry using the egg wash around the rim

Pinch the edges together and poke two small slits in the centre of each pie to allow the steam to escape

Place in a preheated oven on 200c (fan forced) for around 30 minutes or until golden

Serve with pea mash

Pea Mash:

Boil peeled potatoes in plenty of salted water

Throw in a big handful of frozen peas a few minutes before the potatoes are completely cooked

When cook, drain in a colander and put back into the pot

Add a big knob of butter, salt & pepper to taste and a glug of milk

Mash roughly together until mixture is smooth but not a puree

Bon Appetit!

Panko Prawns and Scallops

We love this dish in the summer – sitting outside with a big bowl of crunchy prawns and scallops with a nice salad and a selection of dipping sauces…  Panko crumbs are wonderful Japanese style breadscrumbs and give a really crisp crunchy texture to food.  They can befound in the Asian section any supermarket these days…

1 dozen green prawn cutlets

1 dozen fresh scallops

12 cup plain flour

Salt & pepper

2 beaten eggs

2 cups Panko Crumbs

Butter and Olive oil for frying

Place the scallops and prawns in a large bowl

Season the flour with salt and pepper

Sprinkle over the prawns and scallops and make sure they are all evenly coated.

Place in a colander and shake off excess flour

Beat the eggs together in a large bowl

Tip the prawns and scallops in and stir to combine – each one should have a generous coating of egg

Have the breadcrumbs ready in another large bowl and tip in the eggy prawns and scallops and shake thoroughly to coat

Using tongs, pick them out of the crumbs and shallow fry them in the sizzling butter and olive oil in a large frying pan

Serve immediately

Bon Appetit!

Prawn and Scallop Soft Tacos with Avocado Salsa

These can be made using soft tacos or the larger tortillas  – they are delicious – try stopping at just one – it’s impossible…  Grilled prawns and scallops with a luscious Avocado Salsa drizzled with fresh lime juice… Yum!  The amount of prawns and scallops listed below will make two tacos.  We find cooking one each at a time is best – that way everything is hot and ready to eat immediately…

Ingredients for 2 people:

2 ripe avocados

handful of cherry tomatoes chopped

finely chopped red onion

1/2 dozen finely chopped Jalapeno Chillies (we buy them in a jar)

salt & pepper to taste

juice of 1 lime

packet of soft tacos or tortillas (I use Mission brand)

6 fresh scallops

6 fresh prawn cutlets

Lime wedges to serve

Sour cream

Method:

Avocado salsa:

Mash the avocados with the juice of one lime

Stir though the finely chopped onion, Jalapeños and tomatoes

Season with salt & pepper to taste and set aside

In a grill pan or very hot fry pan, saute the prawns and scallops for a few minutes until cooked

At the same time in another hot frying pan, heat the tacos quickly on each side or if preferred heat in microwave

Smear a generous amount of Avocado Salsa over each taco

Place 3 prawns and 3 scallops on each taco

Fold which ever way suits you

Serve on a plate with lime wedges and a dollop of sour cream

Squeeze the lime juice over the taco and dip in the sour cream

Bon Appetit!

Breakfast Pizza

Some mornings you wake up and just have to have a pizza!  This breakfast pizza is just the thing…  Bacon, eggs and fresh vine tomatoes – what could be better…  You can also add anything else you have on hand – spinach, mushrooms – anything that cooks fairly quickly will do…

Ingredients for 2:

2 pieces Pita bread (I use Gerry’s Pitties – the absolute best)

2 tablespoons tomato passata

handful of grated cheese

4 rashers of bacon

4 beaten eggs

2 fresh vine tomatoes

a splash of olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

Method:

Spread a good tablespoon of passata over the pita bread with the back of a spoon

Sprinkle with some grated cheese

Beat 2 eggs per pizza and drizzle over the cheese

Slice 2 bacon rashers in to three pieces and place on the pizza

Chop a tomato per pizza roughly and place in between the bacon

Sprinkle with some more grated cheese

Season with salt & pepper to taste and a drizzle of good olive oil

Bake in a 200c (fan forced) oven for about 10 minutes or until the egg is set and the bacon is cooked

Bon Appetit!

Cauliflower Cheese Soup with Crispy Bacon

This yummy soup is so easy to make and only takes about 30 minutes or so to cook.   The coriander seeds and bay leaves help give this soup a lovely subtle flavour…

Ingredients:

50 grams butter

5 medium-sized potatoes diced

1 large leek finely chopped

2 teaspoons of coriander seeds

2 bay leaves

1 head of cauliflower chopped roughly

2 teaspoons of coriander seeds

1 litre chicken stock (I use Campbell’s)

2 cups grated cheese (you can also use smoked cheese which gives a slightly different flavour)

1/2 tub sour cream (125g)

8 rashers of streaky bacon

salt & pepper for seasoning

parsley for garnish

Method:

Melt butter in a large saucepan

Add chopped leek and potatoes

Cover and cook on a low heat while you prepare the other ingredients

In a non stick pan, gently toast the coriander seeds then grind in a mortar and pestle into a coarse powder

Add to the potato and leek along with the bay leaves and chopped cauliflower – stirring well

Add the chicken stock and cover with a lid

Simmer for around 30 minutes or until potatoes and cauliflower are soft

Using a stick blender, blend soup into a lovely thick puree

Add cheese and season with plenty of salt and pepper to taste

Add sour cream and gently reheat

Grill or pan fry the bacon until crispy and generously crumble over the soup with some parsley to serve

Great with hot garlic bread just out of the oven…

Bon Appetit!

Teriyaki Beef with Toasted Sesame Seeds

This delicious beef dish is ridiculously easy to make.  We have this a lot in the summer as Simon grills the pieces on the BBQ.  I sometimes thread them onto skewers and serve with a Wasabi Cream.

You can also use chicken thighs if you wish but these have to be left on for much longer to ensure they are cooked though…

Teriyaki Beef

Ingredients:

500g Beef Fillet

1/2 commercially bought Teriyaki Marinade (we use Masterfoods brand)

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

Method:

Cut the beef into large cubes

Marinate in Teriyaki marinade for a few hours or preferably overnight

Grill over BBQ or fry the cubes in very hot frypan for a couple of minutes only – you want the beef to still be pink inside but charred on the outside

Dry fry the sesame seed in a non stick pan and sprinkle over the beef to serve

Serve with roti bread to mop up the sauce

Wasabi Cream:

1 teaspoon Wasabi powder

1 tablespoon of water

1/2 cup of sour cream

finely chopped chives to garnish

Mix the Wasabi powder and water together to form a paste

Stir in the sour cream

Garnish with freshly chopped chives

Bon Appetit!

Asian Style Sweet Roast Pork and Dumpling Soup

This isn’t so much a recipe as a list of ingredients to buy and put together!  It’s such a time saver and looks and tastes wonderful.. This is the one I make but you can really put anything you fancy in it!

I always have a pack of frozen dumplings in the freezer.  They are so handy as a snack with dipping sauce or for putting into soups.  The ones I used were prawn and chive.

We bought a box of sliced sweet roast pork from our local Chinese shop – they have the meat hanging up in the window and chop it fresh with a huge cleaver. We often buy some to add to a stir fry if pressed for time.

This time we also bought the noodles!  Simon asked for a serve of noodles with the pork and was given a bowl of lovely thin rice noodles.  I have also used thin egg noodles from the supermarket.  You just have to soak them in boiling water for a few minutes first.  The recipe below will feed two very hungry people or you can split it into four smaller bowls.  It just depends on how greedy you are feeling… 🙂

Sweet Roast Pork & Dumpling Soup

Ingredients:

6 cups chicken stock (we use Campbell’s Chicken Stock)

Cooked noodles

Sweet roast pork

Prawn & chive dumplings

Bag of baby spinach

Sesame oil

Garlic (grated)

Fresh coriander

Asian crispy fried onions

Method:

Steam the dumplings until cooked – around 10-15 minutes

Saute the baby spinach and grated garlic in a small glug of sesame oil in a deep pot

When spinach is soft add the chicken stock and bring to the boil

Heat the sweet roast pork and noodles for about 30 seconds in the microwave

Assembly:

In two big deep soup plates put a handful of noodles on the bottom of each plate

Add the steamed dumplings

Place the sweet roast pork on top

Ladle the hot soup over the top

Top with crispy fried onions and chopped coriander

Bon Appetit!