Curried red lentil, tomato and coconut soup

 

Winter has brought soup back to our dining table, and what a Winter Warmer this bowl of creamy lentil deliciousness is. Perfectly balanced herbs and spices with a hint of heat, are a specialty of Yotam Ottolenghi's recipe repertoire, and as a bonus this soup is also nourishing, hearty and gluten-free. It is also vegetarian.

Lamb Siniyah, a Middle Eastern Lamb Stew

 

Lamb Siniyah or stewed lamb cooked in a pot with a tahini crust are the stars of this delicious Middle Eastern version of Shepherd's Pie. A golden tahini crust replaces the potato topping to perfection. It's rich and comforting and laced with fragrant Middle Eastern spices. Who doesn't love a tasty Shepherd's 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".  

Chicken with Miso, Ginger, and Lime

Yotam Ottolenghi is well reputed for his Middle Eastern style meals, but this Japanese inspired meal with white miso, ginger and lime is delicious, sticky, tangy, savoury and full of flavour. 

Lime salsa with Sweet Potato Mash

Sweet as sweet potatoes are exactly what their name suggests, lending themselves perfectly to both sweet and savoury cooking. They are in abundance right now, and along with tangy juicy limes also in season, I hope this simple recipe will tempt you to eat and celebrate the beautiful produce in season. Herby lime salsa is the perfect  counterpart to the versatile sweet potato, which is only a distant relative of the normal potato by the way. Sweet potatoes are high in fibre, and their bright orange colour tells us they are also high in the antioxidant beta-carotene and Vitamin A., all supporting our immune function.

When I first tasted this dish at our foodie friends P&J's home, I just loved it, the lime salsa combined with the sweet potato was such an exciting surprise to my palate. It really tickled my taste buds. This dish shines alongside all sorts of foods, Middle Eastern cuisine, humble grilled sausages or a vegetarian or vegan spread. I baked the sweet potatoes ahead of time and kept the mash refrigerated to be reheated later, made the salsa the same morning, which meant the dish was easy to assemble just prior to eating.

Yotam Ottolenghi also suggests that after cooking, we keep the skins, brush them lightly with olive oil and roast them again for about 8 minutes, at 200 deg. C fan forced, and eat them as a crisp-like snack. Waste not, want not. Yes, it's one of Yotam's clever recipes.

Let's cook:-

Preheat the oven to 200 deg. C fan.

Serves four to six as a side

Ingredients:

1 kg orange sweet potatoes washed, skin left on and cut in half lengthways, from top to bottom

60 ml olive oil

5 g basil leaves, chopped

5 g coriander, finely chopped

1/2 garlic clove, crushed

2 large limes, finely grate the zest to get 2 teaspoons, then juice to get 1 tablespoon

salt and black pepper

Method:

Massage the cut sweet potatoes with 1 tablespoon of oil and season with 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Line them up on a high sided baking tray lined with baking parchment, flesh side down, and roast for 30-35 minutes, until very soft. Be careful removing from the oven as some juice will have  come out of the potatoes.

While the sweet potatoes are roasting away, make the salsa.

Put the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil into a small bowl. Add the remaining ingredients with a good pinch of salt, and gently stir to combine.

Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and allow to cool. Remove the skins, they should just slide off easily, or scoop out the flesh. Baking them this way results in a softer vegetable and better flavour. Set aside the skins to use later if you wish. Mash the flesh in a bowl with 1/8 teaspoon of salt and plenty of black pepper until quite smooth.

Transfer to a platter, make dips in the surface of the sweet potato, and spoon in the salsa. Decorate with extra herbs or some sprigs of tarragon.

Serve hot.

The 2nd edition below of Sweet Potato Mash with Lime Salsa.

Warm wishes

Pauline

Stuffed Zucchini Boats with Pine Nut Salsa

 

Zucchinis, Zukes, or Courgettes, same thing, and at the moment they are in season here, so if you have lots of them in your vegetable crisper like I had, this could be the recipe for you. I wanted to do something a bit different with them this time, so why not stuff them? I really like stuffed vegetables, and they transform into a meal in themselves. Serve these as a meal on their own, or if  you are thinking of a banquet, they make a great side dish for hungry people. This recipe is inspired by chef Yotam Ottolenghi, yes I am a fan of his recipes, as you know, and this one has ingredients which you probably have on hand already, if not they are easy to find. I had a lot of fun making this recipe, and it's a cinch to make for Meatless Monday, a Sunday lunch, or just during the week, it's light and easy.

I was preparing the zucchinis, removing the flesh and hollowing them out, having fun and making little canoes, when Mr. HRK came up to me and said I think that might be going a bit far. Mr. HRK has a very quick wit at times, and when I said to him, I need to do this before I can stuff them, which I didn't think was anything too extreme, he said well the Canoe Slalom race is on the TV and Aussie Jessica Fox is racing shortly for a Gold Medal, and you are making canoes? That's really getting into it isn't it? I hadn't even though of that, but we had a good laugh, and then Jessica won the Gold Medal for the Canoe Slalom race which was amazing, she was incredible, and I had my canoes to play with as well:) So Jessica you had  lots of support back here in Australia, and we are so proud of you. So this recipe is an ode to the Slalom Canoe Gold Medal event, and a tribute to Jessica Fox. What a woman.

Cook's Notes:

• Don't be afraid of adding extra herbal flavour to this dish, it will shine through.
• If you love chilli, add a chopped capilano sweet chilli to the stuffing mix.
• Very fresh, organic produce is the key to successful vegetarian cooking. I bought these zucchinis and beautiful cherry tomatoes from a local Mackay farmer, called Sweet As Fresh As, who throughout the Winter sell sweetcorn, tomatoes, zucchinis, cucumbers and whatever else they have in season. Their strawberries are to die for. I rarely manage to cook with those though, as we eat them all too quickly. They set up a stall at the Wednesday City Markets, and sell from their truck which they drive to a North Mackay roadside spot up the road from Bunnings and opposite a S.D.A. school. They can be found there every Thursday and Sunday morning. They are a real Mackay farming success story.
• Keep a tightly sealed bottle of lightly toasted pine nuts in the frig, so that they are ready for dishes like these, saves a lot of time. 
• To save time, the stuffing can be made a day ahead so that the zucchinis are ready to be stuffed and baked.
• A mix of yellow and green zucchinis also looks very attractive on the plate.

Ingredients:

Serves two as a main course, or four as a side

2 large zucchinis, (500 g) halved lengthways

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 large beaten egg

40 g Parmesan cheese (or Pecorino) finely grated

40 g fresh sourdough breadcrumbs (about 1 slice, crusts are fine)

100 g cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 large lemon (finely grate the zest for 2 teaspoons, then juice to get 1 tablespoon)

4 tablespoons finely chopped oregano leaves (a good bunch), plus a few extra leaves for a garnish

A couple of sprigs of lemon thyme, optional ( I used it because I grow it, and love the flavour)

35 g pine nuts, lightly toasted

3 tablespoons olive oil 

salt

Method:

Preheat the oven to 230 deg. C fan forced.

Hollow out the zucchinis with a dessert spoon into the shape of canoes, leaving about 1 cm thickness around the edges. The zucchinis will still hold their shape if scooped out carefully.

Prepare the zucchinis and the tomatoes: 

Transfer the zucchini flesh to a sieve or colander and squeeze out as much moisture as you can. I sprinkled the flesh with a small amount of salt and left them for a little while to encourage the salt to drain off, but my zucchinis didn't release much moisture. You are aiming to be left with about 100 g of drained zucchini flesh. 

Meanwhile in another bowl continue the squeezing and crushing and crush the tomatoes well with your hands.

Put the drained zucchini flesh into a bowl, add the crushed tomatoes, and add the egg, garlic, breadcrumbs and Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a grinding of black pepper. Give a stir and set aside.

Pine Nut Salsa

In a separate bowl mix the lemon zest, pine nuts, and oregano. Take half of this mixture, and mix into the zucchini mixture. Place the remaining half of the mixture to the side for later, to finish making the salsa.

Place the zucchini canoes on your baking tray, with the hollowed sides facing upwards. 

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the zucchini halves and season them with 1/8 teaspoon of salt.

Fill the zucchinis with the zucchini filling mixture,and bake for 15 minutes, until they are beautifully golden-brown and set. Be careful to check after exactly 15 minutes.

Finish making the Pine Nut Salsa while the zucchinis are baking.

Add the lemon juice, the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 1/8 teaspoon of salt to the bowl of oregano, zest, and pine nuts. 

When the zucchinis have cooled slightly, spread the salsa on each of them, and sprinkle with a garnish of oregano leaves for further flavour and presentation, and serve.

If the zucchinis are being served as a main, serve with a salad and whatever carbohydrate you might prefer. But that is your choice and optional.

We've had moderate success with growing zucchinis, and at the moment we have about 6 volunteer plants in our garden, self seeded from our compost heap, plants with large leaves, which could be zucchinis, could be pumpkins, could be another kind of squash, time will tell, and that's the fun of it. Meanwhile I'll keep shopping for this healthy produce at the markets.

Congratulations to all of the amazing athletes from all nations competing at the Tokyo Olympics. Some of the stories bring tears to our eyes, others fill us with joy and pride. They have all worked so hard to be there.

Warm wishes,  

Pauline

Curried Lentil, Tomato, and Coconut Soup

Whether you like your lentil soup with a rough texture and the lentils still holding their shape, or smooth like I do, then just blitz this soup away to your liking, and enjoy it. We used leftover coriander roots and stalks in this soup, and the earthy unique coriander flavour with the texture of chives,  along with the other aromatic ingredients make this soup memorable, and one bowl just isn't enough. It's also a cinch to make.

Bulgur Wheat with Tomato, Eggplant (Aubergine), and Lemon Yoghurt

The beauty of this Middle Eastern vegetarian recipe is that all of its elements can be prepared in advance, kept refrigerated separately, and then just warmed through and assembled when you are ready to serve it. My friends, I assure you that the bulgur and tomato is delicious enough to eat on its own if you wish. I have a tub of it in the freezer which was leftover, and it will be perfect when I need an easy side dish to eat. However, it is meant to be served with the aubergine (eggplant) and yoghurt as a main dish or as part of a selection of dishes. If you are happy to eat this as a vegetarian dish on its own, it will feed four people, otherwise it will serve at least 8 as a side dish. So easy to make, and I love that this dish can be prepared totally in advance and that it so creatively and deliciously uses up the eggplants (aubergines) which I always seem to have in abundance.

I am always so happy when I have fresh mint growing in a large pot which is the perfect garnish for this meal. Middle Eastern dishes and mint are the perfect marriage. This one could also be served as a side with a curry. It is a variation of another recipe from Yotam Ottolenghi's book, aptly named Simple.

This week I have been doing a lot of cooking with vegetables, which I seem to have accumulated. How do I end up with so many? I'm not a vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination, I adore meat. However Winter is a wonderful time to cook with veggies, don't you think? I'll be sharing my Green Broccoli and Coconut soup with you shortly, it is so good and provides our bodies with a blast of nutrients, is great for the gut, and at the moment I have another batch of Green Cabbage sauerkraut on my kitchen bench waiting to be bottled for processing over the next few days. We are enjoying another cold snap here, well I call a minimum temperature of 7 deg. F. a cold snap, and with Spring just over the horizon, there won't be many more opportunities to make cool weather sauerkraut. This is my recipe for sauerkraut if you are interested in making a batch in the cooler climates.

If you feel challenged at the thought of cooking with bulgur please don't be. It can be used interchangeably with cooked rice, couscous or quinoa and is often used to make tabbouleh. It
doesn't require cooking though, only soaking, as it is a whole wheat grain that has been cracked and partially precooked for your convenience. It is a staple in the Mediterranean region and Middle Eastern countries, often used in grain salads, side dishes, soups, even green salads after it has been soaked. If you can't find it in your supermarket, try a health food shop or an Asian or Indian supermarket. It is nutty and delicious and makes a nice change to the usual grains we cook with.

Let's cook:

Ingredients:

2 eggplants (aubergines) cut into 3 cm chunks (about 500 g)
105 ml. olive oil
2 onions, finely sliced (320 g)
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp. ground baharat or allspice
400 g very ripe cherry tomatoes or 1 can of drained cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp. tomato paste
250 g bulgur wheat (preferably fine grind)
200 g Greek-style yoghurt
1 small, preserved lemon (25 g) skin and flesh chopped finely.
10 g mint leaves
salt and black pepper
Pomegranate Molasses (optional)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200 deg. C fan forced.

Roasting the Eggplant
Firstly we need to roast the chopped eggplants. Place them into a large bowl with 4 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a good grinding of pepper. Mix well together with your washed hands, then spread them out onto a large baking tray lined with baking paper. Roast for 35-40 minutes turning over halfway through, until the eggplants are caramelised and soft. Remove from your oven and set aside.

Cooking the Bulgur, Onions and Tomato
Add the remaining oil to a large frypan with a lid and set to a medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the onion and fry for 8 minutes, stirring a few times. It will become soft and caramelised. Add the garlic and Baharat and fry for another minute, stirring until the garlic becomes aromatic.

Add the ripe cherry tomatoes, and mash them with a potato masher to break them up. You might need to warm up the tomatoes first so that they break up easily. If your tomatoes aren't ripe enough to be mashable, use a drained can of cherry tomatoes instead.

Stir in the tomato paste, 400 ml of water and 1 teaspoon of salt.

Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to medium low, cover and cook for 12 minutes.  Add the bulgur, stir so that it is completely coated in the tomato mixture and remove the pan from the heat. Set aside on your bench for 20 minutes, and the bulgur will absorb all of the liquid.


Lemon Yoghurt

In a medium bowl, mix together the yoghurt with the preserved lemon, half the mint and 1/8 teaspoon of salt.

Divide the bulgur between four plates. Plate up with the yoghurt and a serving of eggplant on top, and garnish with a sprinkle of the remaining mint. If you have any pomegranate molasses on hand, I know that a splash of that on top would be the finishing touch, but that is optional.

Serve with a Curry or a Tagine for a perfect dinner.

Thanks for dropping by,

Best wishes

Pauline