A Turkish Feast - Lamb Kofta, Bazlama (Turkish flat bread), Tabbouleh, a simple Turkish salad, and Baklava

Eating fresh and healthy food has never been more important for everyone given the Covid epidemic still looming on our doorstep, and the change of season to Winter in the Southern Hemisphere anyway. 

Middle Eastern Lamb Siniyah a la` Yotam Ottolenghi

Rich and comforting, one pot stewed lamb with a tahini crust are the stars of this Middle Eastern version of Shepherds Pie. Who doesn't love a tasty Shepherds Pie? Well I promise you, this dish will exceed your expectations even further. Yotam Ottolenghi has created  a very clever recipe here, one of many in his book "Simple".  

Light and Cheesy Green Vegetable Coconut Soup

Vegetable lovers, this one is for you. This soup is a celebration of all the beautiful green produce coming into season right now.  I have made no compromises with this soup my friends, it is all vegetable based, using totally green produce, organic is preferable. Leek, broccoli, zucchini, celery, peas, baby spinach, garlic and fresh ginger are the basis of my soup this morning but any edible green vegetables you find lurking in your vegetable crisper, will  be perfect. Frozen green veg can be used as well. It's Meat Free Monday in our kitchen, and the perfect day for it. It's a wonderful time of the year to increase our intake of fruit and vegetables. With the weather cooling down even here in the tropics thank goodness, the markets and supermarkets are stocking a beautiful selection of fresh produce at reasonable prices.  Broccoli is $2.99 a kilo today, reasonably priced at last. Will it go lower in price, I hope so. The weekend is often the time when we spend time socialising with friends and family, consuming delicious food and enjoying a couple of drinks so let's give our bodies a chance to recharge on Monday and also help the environment by going meat free. Never has it been more important to keep healthy and boost our immune system, and that is our responsibility.

Oh I just realised, I probably can't call the garlic or the coconut oil green, however they are both produced organically, and the garlic I use is grown locally at nearby Eungella.

 Broccoli and zucchini are now recognised as being key vegetables for people suffering from high blood sugar and Type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes. Without going into too much detail about it, broccoli is a rich source of Chromium, a mineral which helps to improve insulin action in pre-diabetes and control blood glucose, an important factor for everyone these days I think. Never has it been more important to keep healthy and boost our immune system. Green vegetable soup is also quite creamy when pureed, thanks to the texture and structure of the versatile zucchini. This soup makes it so easy to include broccoli in your family's diet in a very appetising way, and to control our weight as well. However, for some variety and to be economical, try using up green leftovers and bits and pieces in your crisper by adding celery, beans, chives, eschallots, peas, spinach or silverbeet, a mix of herbs, or anything green and edible. I used 1 cup of frozen peas and beans in this soup which is so convenient.

Ingredients:

1 leek, washed and roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 tablespoons organic coconut oil

6 cups roughly chopped green vegetables, which can include 2 zucchinis, 1 head of broccoli, celery, 1 cup frozen peas and 1 cup beans.  Use whatever you have. (However, it works best using zucchini and broccoli as a base for your other vegetables.)

2 handfuls of baby spinach roughly chopped, these cook right down (optional)

1-2 green chillis (optional)

1 litre vegetable stock (homemade is best if you have it or use stock cubes)

1 cup roughly chopped herbs, such as coriander, basil, oregano or flat-leaf parsley leaves

2 coriander roots finely chopped if you are using coriander as one of your herbs

Pinch of salt, ground black pepper for seasoning

Juice of ½ to 1 lemon (Test the taste after adding juice from ½ a lemon and add more if required.)

1 cup crumbled sharp cheddar such as parmesan

Recipe Notes: 

• I love the flavour of leeks, however you can use onion.
• Use butter, olive oil or ghee instead of coconut oil to fry the vegetables if that is what you prefer, and add some coconut milk at the end of the cooking time for a delicious coconut flavour.
• Swap the green vegetables around using whatever you have on hand.
• Use chicken stock instead of vegetable if that is all you have.
• Use fresh rocket for some punch if you wish.
• If you are vegetarian, add some cooked green lentils for extra protein in your diet.
• Use up most of the green vegetable. Use the green stalk of the leek if still fresh, the leaves of the celery
• Zucchini is a great vegetable to use as it makes the soup nice and creamy
• Add some blue cheese at the end if you have some on hand (did I say blue, you'll be forgiven this time because it tastes great) but parmesan will be delicious

Method:

Sauté the leek and garlic in the coconut oil in a large saucepan for a superior flavour. (if you are really in a hurry omit this step and just add to the rest of the vegetables, it will still taste great). 

Add the green vegetables to the leek and garlic and stir for a minute, then pour in the stock and bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Stir in the herbs, salt to your taste, and a few grinds of black pepper, and then the rocket if you are using it. 

I threw quite a mix of chopped herbs into my pot this time, basil, parsley, coriander and tarragon, however just use what you can find. Parsley as a minimum will work.

Simmer until all the vegetables are cooked and softened. Taste to check the seasoning and add more salt or pepper if needed.

Turn off the heat and puree until smooth using a stick blender, or pulse in a normal upright blender when it has cooled slightly.

Whisk in the lemon juice and stir through the cheese, or omit the cheese and top with a dollop of low fat yoghurt or basil pesto. I like to garnish with lots of fresh green herbs such as parsley. There are so many healthy options to choose from.

You can also add some tasty blue cheese to the soup bowl. It will take the whole experience to a new level.

Have an enjoyable and safe week,

Best wishes,

Pauline

In My Kitchen - April 2021

 Welcome to In My Kitchen for April, 2021. It's still school holidays here, not that this affects me much, as we're not travelling and don't have children or grandchildren in town, however shopping centres and roads are a lot busier at this time of year, and thankfully the weather is cooling down. 

CELERY GRATIN

In this recipe, humble celery takes centre stage. Normally it is used as a vegetable to flavour lots of other dishes such as soups, casseroles and stews, after all celery, onions, and carrots are the vegetable triumvirate or  Mirepoix in French cooking, used as the flavour base for so many dishes. This dish has quite subtle French style flavours,  and I used some stale sourdough to make my breadcrumbs in the food processor which made the crumb and parmesan topping so tasty and crunchy around the edges. However any breadcrumbs will do.

The idea for this recipe began when I was making chicken soup, on a cool rainy day (love those days here), and I realised I had a lot of celery in the refrigerator. So the celery took over, and I also started waging war on all the other vegetables lurking in my crisper. As a result, a pot of vegetable stock appeared using up all of the veges which were looking a little tired but still usable, and so I simmered the vegetable stock alongside the chicken soup for a couple of hours.  It's good time management to do it this way, as the same kind of veges went into the soup and the stock, and then at the end of the cooking time, I transferred some of the vegetable stock into the chicken soup to top it up. Delicious.

Meanwhile I was left with some nice crisp fresh celery, which I made into this delicious gratin. Who doesn't love a vegetable gratin? Celery is such an economical vegetable to buy, it only costs $2.00 for a whole head of it here, which is probably why I end up with so much of it, but it is very versatile and can be added to so many dishes.  I found this recipe in River Cottage Veg Everyday, another great recipe thanks Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

Let's cook:

Ingredients:

 1 head of celery

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs of thyme

25 g butter

100 ml thickened cream

75 g breadcrumbs

30 g very tasty cheese, such as Parmesan, Gruyere, or a hard goat's cheese, finely grated

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Preheat the oven to 160 deg. C/Gas Mark 3.

Break the celery into stalks. Set aside the outer stalks if they look a bit coarse or hollow which they probably are. They will be great to use in stock or soups. The secret to this recipe is to choose fresh crisp stalks, and to remove any noticeable strings from the the stalks you have chosen.

Remove all of the leaves from your chosen stalks and set them aside to use in stocks as well. 

Cut all the stalks into 10 cm lengths.

Put the celery into a shallow ovenproof dish and add the bay leaf and the thyme, tucking in around the stems.

Pour over 3 tablespoons of water, dot the butter over the stalks, and sprinkle with some salt and freshly ground pepper.

Cover the dish with alfoil and bake for about 40 minutes until the celery is tender.

Remove the dish from the oven and turn the oven temperature up to 200 deg. C/Gas Mark 6.

Discard the thyme and bay leaf, and carefully pour off the liquid from the celery dish into a jug.

To the celery liquid add enough cream to make up to 150 ml and whisk together.  Have a taste and add more salt and pepper if needed, then pour back over the celery into the dish.

Mix the grated cheese and the breadcrumbs together, sprinkle over the celery and return to the oven for 15-20 minutes, until the crumb topping is crispy. 

Finish off by grinding over some black pepper and serve.

Yum, my mouth is watering as I type this up.

Sometimes I  also freeze celery and the leaves. It needs to be cut into usable sized pieces, then blanched, then quickly chilled in ice water, dried and frozen in zip lock bags.Great to use in stocks and soups.

Celery gratin is perfect to eat on meat free Monday with a lentil dish or even a frittata, if you follow that path,  however we enjoyed it as a side during the week with a simple chicken casserole.

Warm wishes,

Pauline

Homemade Chocolate Ganache Cake

Over the Easter break the only kind of cake that I want to make is a chocolate cake, and with lots of icing. It was our lovely friend's birthday yesterday, which was also Easter Sunday, so for her birthday I made this rich, moist cake with luscious frosting which we all enjoyed  at home after lunch accompanied by Mr. HRK's special espresso coffee. This was my first attempt at making chocolate ganache. Normally I make traditional chocolate icing, but this was a birthday celebration and Easter Sunday as well, so I thought ganache would be quite  special. It's also nice to decorate chocolate cake with raspberries don't you think, however it's not essential. I also placed some chocolate coated ginger around the edge of the cake because the birthday girl loves ginger.

When I saw this recipe in Silvia Colloca's recipe book, Love Laugh Bake!, I was captivated and had to try it. I'm on a mission to find the best chocolate cake to add to my baking repertoire, and my friends it's tough going. This one just might be it, and would be fine served just with whipped cream, traditional icing or the ganache frosting from this recipe. It's a cinch to make, and whilst not every chocolate cake needs to have dark chocolate in it's list of ingredients, yes sometimes just good quality cocoa powder will do, I think that for an elegant touch, and one that warrants becoming an impressive birthday centrepiece, this rich, moist chocolate cake is a winner. 

Let's Bake:

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

 180 g  dark chocolate chips

200 g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the tin

250 g brown sugar

4 eggs

350 g (2 1/2 cups) self-raising flour, sifted (or plain flour + 5 teaspoons very fresh baking powder)

3 tablespoons Cocoa powder, sifted

200 ml buttermilk

125 g (1 cup) raspberries

Ganache Frosting

300 ml thickened cream

300 g milk chocolate chips

100 g dark chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat your oven to 160 deg. C. and grease and line a 22-23 cm round cake

Melting the chocolate and butter:

Select a medium sized pyrex bowl that fits over a saucepan ensuring there is no space between the bowl and the rim of the saucepan. Place the chocolate and butter in the pyrex bowl, set approx. 3 cm of water in the saucepan to simmer, and then place the bowl over the simmering water. The bowl mustn't come in contact with the water, and steam mustn't enter the bowl or the chocolate may separate. (Sorry to sound bossy about this but it has happened to me.) Set aside to cool.

Mix the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy using your electric mixer. 

Remove the bowl from the mixer. 

Sift the flour and cocoa together and add to the beaten egg mixture. Then add the buttermilk, and the cooled melted chocolate and fold this mixture to combine.

Pour the mixture into the lined baking tin and bake for 35-40 minutes. Just to be sure, test with a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is cooked.

Cool the cake in the tin for 10 minutes, and then ease onto a wire cooling rake to cool completely. Cut the cake in half horizontally using a serrated knife, so that it can be filled in the centre with ganache a bit later, but this isn't essential.

Making the Ganache:

Pour the cream into a small saucepan and bring to simmering point on a low heat, small bubbles will start appearing and light steam will rise from the cream. Remove from the heat, then add the chocolate to the saucepan and wait for it to melt into the warm cream. 

Whisk the mixture lightly until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl, cover very tightly with cling wrap and place in the refrigerator for 60 minutes to set to a spreadable consistency. If you leave the melted chocolate in the saucepan it will take longer to set. I left the ganache in the frig for a whole morning, and it was perfect to spread on the cake in the early afternoon. Mine took longer to set than 60 minutes. We are still experiencing humidity here so the ganache started to soften quickly after being removed from the frig. and was great to work with. 

If you have cut your cake into two halves, place the bottom layer on a cake stand cut side up. Spread one-third of the frosting onto it, and scatter with half of the raspberries. Place the top layer of the cake over the raspberries, and spread the frosting over the top and around the sides. Scatter the remaining raspberries over the top of the cake.

We don't buy each other Easter eggs or chocolates anymore at Easter time, especially when we have chocolate cake to look forward to. However we managed to have some chocolate eggs delivered to our grandchildren in the Falkland Islands as part of a special grocery hamper for our sons 40th birthday just before Easter.  They all loved it. More about that story later.

Mr. HRK and I  hope you have enjoyed a peaceful and relaxing Easter with family or friends or both, wherever you are. 

Warm wishes,

Pauline