Pesto Lentils with Zucchini and Capsicum

 

I'm so happy to share with you an outrageously delicious, simple, filling, and healthy lentil and vegetable dish. When I talk to our friends these days about food and what they are cooking for themselves, many are now eating more simply than ever, particularly during the week. So let's go mental for lentils, they tick lots of boxes.

Tuscan Chicken, Cheese and Broccoli Bake (Low carb)

This is comfort food without the extra calories, which my friends is my kind of meal at the moment in the lead up to Christmas. Leftovers are even more delicious the following day for lunch or served for dinner. You could almost think you are eating a lasagna but not missing the pasta because of the extra protein, vegetables, herbs and cheese. It's very tasty.

Oven-Baked Ratatouille

 

Oven-baked Ratatouille is a modern interpretation of the classic stove top Niçoise dish, Ratatouille. It's roots are very firmly planted in the Provençal region of France. By baking the vegetables, and roasting the ripe tomatoes into a rich, garlicky tomato sauce, a delicious and caramelised flavour is imparted to the dish. I make this French vegetarian dish often.

Mediterranean Eggplant and Vegetable Lasagne, without the calories

When I first made this vegetarian dish with Mediterranean ingredients and flavours, I wasn't sure if it would pass muster for my recipe blog, or be tasty and substantial enough to stand alone as our main meal. Well, it ticked both of those boxes, in fact Mr. HRK loved it. So did I, and I felt much healthier after eating it, with all that delicious vegetable within.

"Sunday with Mum" at Palooka Restaurant, Cairns, in Far North Queensland

 Mother's Day at Cairns Palooka Restaurant, in Far North Queensland, totally exceeded my expectations. They describe their food as contemporary modern European dining, or Mediterranean, and the French and Italian influences in their cuisine are very obvious. The restaurant is situated in the heart of Stratford village in Cairns, offering cosy seating inside or outside on the footpath, which is well protected from the weather by sturdy blinds if needed. The restaurant is very accessible, and parking along the side street is generally available.

Mediterranean Vegetable Lasagne Recipe

 

This is a Mediterranean style vegetable lasagne, to my way of thinking anyway. Most of the ingredients are of Mediterranean origin, and can probably be found in your refrigerator and pantry right now. Except perhaps for the ricotta which needs to be purchased fresh. The Mediterranean flavours shine through. There are times when a vegetarian meal just ticks all the right boxes for me, especially when I need to really load up on vegetables,  however this lasagne can also be served with any meats of your choice if you wish. This meal is perfect for a no fuss Meat Free Monday, which I still try to abide by, and at the same time enjoy something really filling and comforting.

Montpellier Mediterranee, in France

 I'm home again after 2 months in Montpellier Mediterranee, in southern France, and two weeks in Cairns in Far North Queensland at the beginning and the end of my travels. Singapore Airlines fly in and out of Cairns so I could fly out from there. Montpellier, Mediterranee, in southern France is very close to the Mediterranean coast, and is a beautiful city surrounded by many scenic areas, with a population of over 500,000. The food, and the fresh fruits and vegetables of Summer were everything that I hoped for. Over the next few weeks I'll share some of my French adventures and tales with you. 

Mediterranean Chicken Marbella Traybake

"The whole is greater than the sum of the parts."

Aristotle

 This delicious chicken dish is beloved by many of us here in Australia, but was actually created in the Silver Palate food store, which opened on New York's Manhattan Upper West Side 35 years ago. The store was started by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins, who cooked fresh each day, embracing a passion for simple good food. 

My Summery Cypriot Grain Salad

 

Grain salads are a wholesome side dish next to chicken, fish or meat, and will also hold their own as a vegetarian dish for dinner allowing the versatility of lots of extra add ins.

Bulgur or Bourghal Wheat Risotto with Chicken and Artichokes

It's easy to treat yourself to a fast, tasty and nutritious meal at the end of a busy day from food in your pantry. This is a quick post, to share with you a deceptively easy and delicious midweek meal. At the end of a busy day, if you have some left over chicken in the frig, a bottle of  preserved artichokes in your pantry, some bulgur wheat, and some white wine for the dish and the cook, voila you have the makings of a tasty and nutritious meal only 45 minutes max away.  

Ratatouille, Chicken, and Haloumi Traybake

"It's not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving."

Mother Teresa

This traybake ratatouille is based on a healthy Mediterranean combination of vegetables, and is my go to when I have fresh eggplant and capsicums on hand. I cook it a lot. I've added chicken fillets to the original vegetarian ratatouille recipe here, however just serving the vegetables and haloumi with a grain such as Burghul or brown rice is delicious for dinner. 

A very healthy Cypriot Grain Salad

This Grain Salad encapsulates all that is healthy and delicious, and as we are now being told in the best interests of our health and the planet to reduce our meat consumption and increase the amount of healthy grains, fruit and vegetables in our diet I thought I would give this one a try. If like me you haven't delved into the world of grain salads very much, this one is great to start with. I always have a variety of leftover grains, nuts and lentils in jars in my pantry so I already had most of the ingredients on hand. I chose quinoa as the main grain as I wanted to use what I had left, however cracked wheat, freekah (green wheat), or bulgur, would work equally as well.  This salad recipe isn't an original one, I have tweeked it a little bit, but it is a George Calombaris recipe which I had tasted at a luncheon recently and saved the recipe, so here it is. The coriander and parsley combined with the dressings bring it to life. However dear reader if you don't like coriander, then leave it out and  substitute something else.

Honestly, there are simpler versions of this salad out there, but toasting the nuts, almonds and pumpkin seeds brings out their unique flavours and crunch so for a special occasion this is worthwhile. It takes no time at all to toast the pumpkin seeds so my advice is not to leave the stove while you are toasting grains. I had a close call at Christmas time when I was toasting pine nuts in a small frypan on the stove for the traditional Wombok salad, got distracted by all the excitement, and well you guessed it, there were  a few burnt ones as a result. Mr. HRK very kindly picked them out for me, and life went on, however lesson learned. Has that ever happened to you?

 I prepared this salad on the day prior to us eating it, and then just garnished it with the Cumin Yoghurt Dressing and pretty pomegranate seeds just before serving it. The beauty of a Grain Salad is that even though it is dressed with a light salad dressing, it is still fresh two days later.

This went beautifully with my Mediterranean Chicken Marbella recipe and a green salad.

Chicken Marbella, a delicious tray bake

Cypriot Grain Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 red onion finely diced
1 cup of quinoa (or freekah, bulgur or other grain)
1/2 cup Puy lentils
1 bunch chopped coriander
1/2 bunch chopped parsley
2 tbsp. toasted pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp. toasted slivered almonds
2 tbsp. toasted pine nuts
2 tbsp. baby capers
1/2 cup currants
juice of 1 lemon
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt to taste
1 pomegranate, deseeded to serve

Cumin Yoghurt Dressing: - 

1 cup thick Greek yoghurt
1 tsp. cumin seeds, toasted and ground (essential)
1 tbsp. honey

Method:

Boil quinoa and lentils separately  in boiling water until both are just cooked. Drain very well and allow to cool.

Place all the ingredients in a medium bowl, except the yoghurt dressing, and mix well. The yoghurt dressing can now be left covered in a jar in the refrigerator for a day if necessary. . Whisk the oil and lemon juice dressing in a small jar until it emulsifies, season to taste, and add to the grains.

Just before eating, place the grain salad in a serving dish and top with the delicious Cumin Yoghurt.

Garnish and decorate with pomegranate seeds.

I will be cooking fairly simple and tasty foods now, that don't take much time to prepare, as I have resumed writing my other blog,  the history of my Great Great Grandfather, Thomas Dudgeon,  who was a successful Landscape Artist in Scotland and Ireland.  Mr. HRK has been researching the genealogy of my family for a long time and finally I have decided to write it up as a blog, and who knows, maybe publish it at a later date. I really enjoy the process of writing, and am loving being able to write up  in Thomas's interesting life and also that of my Great Grandmother, Ellen Stella DeLandelles, who was his daughter. If you would like to take a peek at the latest post (no. 12) that I wrote this is the link: There is also a summary of it as a post that may be easier to read. I also need to do some work on the layout of the pages so that will take some time.

As I write this I am also thinking of all the residents in Townsville, 4 hours North of here by car,  who are really doing it tough with loss of power, serious flooding, and being isolated. This weather event is unprecedented in Townsville. Townsville is normally considered quite a dry area, and when we lived there for ten years in the 1980's, it was so dry and hot that many of us were sinking a water bore in our backyards. Rain has also started here in Mackay again so I am hoping that means the rain is moving south from Townsville or back out to sea. Time will tell. It's good writing weather, and shortly I will have a pot of chicken stock simmering on the stove. It's good soup weather while the rain lasts.

Best wishes my friends and I hope you have a safe and enjoyable week. Thanks for visiting.

Pauline

Caponata, a Sicilian Eggplant Stew

 I've tried a few different Caponata recipes, because I love the sweet, sour and tangy flavours typical of this Mediterranean vegetable stew. It's also a handy dish to make at home when I have extra eggplants and herbs. In this version, my favourite so far, the sultanas add a piquant sweetness to the earthiness of the eggplant without adding too much sugar, which combined with the vinegar gives this dish the moreish factor. It can be eaten hot, warm or cold.

Oven Roasted Ratatouille

This Ratatouille is a very versatile vegetarian dish, which enhances the traditional style, stove top ratatouille which I have usually cooked, by baking the vegetables, and roasting the tomatoes, introducing a delicious, roasted, and caramelised flavour to the dish. 

Sicilian Pickled Eggplant

Pickling is a great way to use up my excess homegrown eggplant, as the quantity processes right down to comparatively small and manageable quantities. This pickle can to be eaten with roasted Mediterranean vegetables, with cheese, salads, and will be the star of any antipasta platter.

The recipe was given to me by Kara during a visit from Brisbane, and was handed  to her by her Sicilian neighbour. Rod and Kara have progressed from being fairly uninterested in eating eggplant to raving about  the variety of dishes that their neighbour can create with his homegrown eggplant, including this pickle. Sicilian pickled eggplant on toast for breakfast? I am not sure about that, but apparently Rod is hooked.

I like to use smaller eggplant if possible as they seem much crisper, less bitter, and easier to work with, but of course you will need more.  The size probably doesn't really matter though with this pickle given the processes involved.

Adjust the amount of garlic and herbs according to your tastes, but remember that they will be actively flavouring your pickle beautifully whilst marinating in the refrigerator. If you can acquire some fresh garlic from the markets, and it has recently been harvested all over the country, that will be a bonus.
.
Ingredients:

6 large or 12 small eggplants,
Salt
2 litres vinegar
Vegetable oil
4 large cloves of very fresh garlic
4 red chillies (or 2 if using the large red ones)
Oregano
Parsley
Rosemary

Preparing the eggplant for pickling:

Peel them, top and tail them,  and slice them lengthwise thinly. Salt the slices to remove the liquid and press over night. The ideal way to press them is to place the slices between boards covered with kitchen wrap and weigh them down with bricks. This time I layered them between cutting boards and weighed them down with heavy dishes and books in my kitchen, whatever you have to apply maximum weight. The eggplant needs to be very thin with all the brown juices removed. Some seeds might even pop out in the process.

Sterilise bottles:

Place 4 small pickling bottles in the oven at 120 deg. for 20 minutes to sterilise,  ready for bottling.
Remember to remove the lids and place bottles and lids in separately, not touching.

Pickling the eggplant slices:

• Remove the eggplant from the boards.
• Finely chop garlic, chillies, and herbs and set aside.
• Boil the vinegar in a large saucepan and reduce to a simmer.
• Place the eggplant in the vinegar to coat. 
• Remove eggplant slices and drain and squeeze tightly. ( I use thin plastic gloves for this process, and squeeze them between clean tea towels in a few batches.) The squeezing is very therapeutic, and the eggplant flesh is firm enough to maintain it's texture. Believe me, it needs a really good squeeze to remove the last traces of vinegar and juices. Lots of eggplant seeds will fall out, this is fine, and can be shaken out form the tea towels quite easily. There are still plenty of seeds left.
• Mix vegetable oil, eggplant, garlic, chilli, and chopped herbs,  in a medium sized bowl. Mix it up well with your hands. I used gloves because of the chillies.
• Place the pickled eggplant in your sterilised jars, squashing the mixture down as hard as you can  below the  rim of the jar, allowing enough room to cover the eggplant with vegetable oil.
• The idea is to minimise the amount of oil in the jar as the eggplant will absorb the flavour of the oil very easily, and I didn't want that to happen.  That is also why the milder vegetable oil is used instead of olive oil.
• Seal and keep jars in the refrigerator and eat within a couple of weeks.

Retirees long lunch at the Dip Inn

A great time was had by all when 17 retirees, former work colleagues of Mr. HRK, enjoyed a long lunch at our place, The Dip Inn :), yesterday. The dips or starters of mainly Mediterranean origin, set the tone for the banquet to follow. Centre stage above are Pumpkin Hummus, Beetroot Hummus, Baba Ganoush and Basil Pesto.

Thanks to Paul, the following are the recipes for his Pumpkin and Beetroot Hummus:

Pumpkin Hummus

1 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tin chick peas drained and shelled (rub chick peas between fingers in water to gently remove shells)
1/2 butternut pumpkin, roasted
Mix all in a food processor until smooth.

Beetroot hummus

Substitute pumpkin with a tin of drained beetroot. Use cooked fresh beetroot if inspired. How easy is that. I'm looking forward to the next long lunch already!!

Dear Reader, Do you enjoy having long lunches at your place and find them relaxing?

Warm wishes,

Pauline  

How to Make the Easiest Baba Ganoush Eggplant Dip



Purple Lebanese Eggplants in my tropical garden, perfect for making Baba Ganouj or Moussaka

 Everyone likes Baba Ganoush. Baba Ganouj (spelled this way as this is how it is pronounced) can be eaten as a dip, a starter, a salad, or a vegetable side depending on its consistency. With its earthy, smoky, garlicky, and nutty flavour, it is best eaten with Lebanese bread. However, dry biscuits or chopped vegetables also taste great with it.

Moussaka



Purple Lebanese Eggplants in my garden

Recently, our good friend Paul gave me his surplus produce of white eggplants. I also have a few purple Lebanese eggplants which were ready for picking. It was our turn to host the after tennis dinner for 12 so  I was excited at the thought of cooking Moussaka for our friends, and also using all of the eggplants. I checked my cookbooks and the various websites and discovered that Moussaka originated from Turkey as a casserole dish, and was then modified by the Greeks to the more baking dish style that we know.

The recipe I cooked last night was a variation of the SBS food recipe from:
http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/moussaka-1
 I made a few basic changes and was relieved when the Ricotta cream layer set. I didn't use the lamb shoulder finely diced and substituted veal and pork mince for the lamb shoulder. I think the quantity of mince could have been increased to 2 kilos for a thicker layer.

Ingredients:

1 kg Desiree potatoes
3 large eggplant
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
100g kefalotyri cheese, grated,
(or parmesan)

Ricotta cream layer
500g fresh ricotta cheese
125 g kefalotyri cheese, grated
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
500ml cream
60ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ried Greek oregano
__________________________________________________________________________
Braised lamb
 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
750g lamb mince
500 g lamb shoulder, boneless finely diced
2 brown onions, finely diced
2 celery stalks finely diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground all spice
1 tsp dried mint ( 1 tbsp. fresh)
1 tsp dried Greek oregano - or fresh is best
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp sugar
250 ml red wine 
500 ml tomato puree
500 ml chicken stock

 Instructions:

To make the braised lamb, heat olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Brown mince and diced lamb, remove from pan and reserve.
Leave the oil in pan and over a medium heat, cook onion, celery and garlic until translucent. Return lamb to pan and the herbs and spices.
Cook for 1 min then add wine. Cook until wine is reduced by half. Add tomato puree and stock and simmer over low heat for 1 hour. Set aside and allow to cool.
Preheat over to 180deg. C. Peel and slice potatoes 1 cm thick. Cook slices in olive oil in a pan until golden but not cooked through. Cook a couple of extra so you can eat them as you go.
Slice eggplant 1cm thick. I salted mine for 30 mins and then wiped the moisture and salt off and dried them. Place on baking sheet in oven, drizzle with olive oil and season. Bake for 15 mins until lightly golden.
Spread lamb filling over partially baked potato layer. Cover with baked eggplant slices. Combine all the ingredients for the ricotta cream then spread over the eggplant layer. Sprinkle over the kafalotyri cheese and bake for 40-50mins or until the top is golden brown.
ENJOY!!

Best wishes,

Pauline