Ozfoodie

Pleasing people through food

Vicki — 2010-08-02T02:58+00:00

Last week, my friend Steve came over for dinner. Steve and I go back a long way. He's one of my dearest friends. It doesn't matter how long it is since I last saw him, it always seems like it was just yesterday. He's what I'd call a "kindred spirit".

I made Steve lamb shanks — wonderful winter comfort food. (I'll post a recipe when I make it again and get a decent chance to photograph it. Sometimes photographing food just interrupts the flow. :-) ) When Steve arrived, almost everything was ready and there were just a few finishing touches to be made. He watched me bustle about, finishing things off, for maybe a minute — then he cracked up laughing.

I looked askance at him and he said, between bursts of laughter, "Do you remember when I used to visit you in Bullsbrook, and [your ex] was making dinner and would describe to me what he was cooking, and your eyes would just glaze over…?"

Hrmph. :-)

But it's true. It's only since my marriage break-up 3½ years ago that I've showed any real interest in food and cooking myself, and it was a while after that before I became aware of the Slow Food movement and all it stands for. I am still very much learning as I go along, so it's kinda sweet that Steve noticed the difference between then and now. (And is still alive to tell the tale!)

It's about people

Over the weekend I installed the free Australian Gourmet Traveller iPad app and purchased the (thus far) three available magazine issues. I had subscribed to the print mag for a while but had let the subscription lapse in the last few months. Getting the iPad app seemed like a worthwhile experiment, to see if the magazine worked better for me on the iPad than in print…

It definitely does. I now want all my foodie magazines like that. I really do! It's so well done. I'm so impressed! But that's another story and I digress. More to the point, I was reading a comment in the June 2010 issue by Eamon Sullivan, Olympic swimmer and Celebrity MasterChef. He said:

If people respond well to your food, it makes you feel good. That's the sort of thing you get addicted to: pleasing people through food.

That so aptly describes where I'm coming from. Living alone, I find there is little pleasure in cooking just for myself. The food may taste good but the experience is somewhat lacking.

So I've become aware of just how much, when I cook, it's for other people. Enjoyment of food is inseparable from the enjoyment that others get from the food, and the pleasure of spending time with them. The terms "cooking from the heart" and "cooking with love" sound so corny and almost ridiculous in this cynical day and age, but that really is what it's about for me and for many people. When that's the case, I believe it shows — not just in the food, but in the total experience of eating with the folks you cooked for, and perhaps also with.

This is why, of course, in the absence of a live-in guinea pig, I like to invite others over for meals. And that doesn't seem like a bad thing, as addictions go. :-)

Lamb, Feta and Herb Pasta

Vicki — 2010-06-20T08:18+00:00

This recipe is for a tasty but low-key meal that is quick, simple and cheap — perfect for those times when you want to eat well but just don't feel like going to a lot of trouble. It's also low-fat, which is always nice and all too rare in a pasta dish.

The anchovies give it a (necessary) depth of flavour, but they dissolve into anonymity and overall flavours of the dish are balanced, so even fussy kids will enjoy it.

Serve with a simple green salad.

Lamb, Feta and Herb Pasta

A simple, budget-friendly and kid-friendly weeknight meal.

Serves 4

Ingredients

400 g tortiglioni or penne pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4-5 anchovies, drained, chopped
500 g lamb mince
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped
½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
¼ cup mint leaves, chopped
½ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

Directions

Cook pasta following packet directions.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and anchovies. Cook for 1 minute or until anchovies dissolve.
Increase heat to medium-high. Add mince and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for 3 minutes or until mince is browned. Add lemon juice, tomatoes and salt and pepper. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until tomatoes soften. Remove from heat.
Drain pasta and return to pan. Add mince mixture, feta, mint and parsley. Toss.
Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Szechuan Chicken with Cashew Nuts

Vicki — 2010-06-10T13:02+00:00

Tonight's meal was Attempt No.3 at making Szechuan Chicken. Finally, I have achieved a result I'd be happy to repeat.

I've long been a fan of Szechuan Chicken, however it's not easy to find a decent version in Asian restaurants around about town. Quite possibly I just go to the wrong ones, but I suspect much "Chinese" food here is Anglicised well beyond the point of being authentic, even at a stretch.

Actually, I have no idea how authentic this recipe is, never having been to China let alone the Sichuan province. But I like it. There's a pleasing balance of flavours without it being overly sweet and saucy like so many restaurant "Szechuan Chicken" dishes I've tried — but in the end it's all about what you enjoy, so experiment with it, as I have done. As always, taste as you cook, because the amounts below should only be considered guides.

This is actually quite a mild dish if the chillies are left whole — as long as you refrain from putting a whole chilli in your mouth, that is! For more of a bite (which I confess, I personally enjoy) chop the chillies after soaking them. This means the chilli will not only be spread more evenly throughout the dish, but the hotness of the seeds will be released throughout, too. But go easy — you may wish to reduce the number of chillies if you take this path.

Szechuan Chicken with Cashew Nuts

A delicious blend of colour, texture and flavour.

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 tablespoon cornflour
1 egg white, beaten lightly
450 g chicken thigh fillet, cut into 2cm pieces
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 large handful raw, unsalted cashew nuts
2 spring onions, sliced into 4cm pieces
4 whole dried chillies, soaked in water for 10 minutes (and chopped, if a hotter result is desired)
½ green capsicum, cored, seeded and cut into 2cm pieces (optional — I wanted more green, and it complemented the dish nicely, but isn't essential. Again, whatever works for you.)
2.5 cm ginger, peeled and chopped
1 clove garlic, finely sliced (optional)
2 tablespoons sweet bean paste or hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons chilli bean paste
2 tablespoons shaoxing wine
a small drizzle of sesame oil
steamed rice, to serve

Directions

Coat chicken pieces in flour, shaking off excess, then mix together with the egg white until evenly coated. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. If you haven't already done so, use this time to prepare the other ingredients.
Heat a wok to medium, add the peanut oil, and stir-fry the cashew nuts until golden all over. Careful not to get the wok and oil too hot or your nuts will burn. When they're ready, remove from the wok with a slotted spoon into a bowl lined with kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.
Reheat the oil in the wok to very high. Add half the chilled chicken and stir-fry until golden. Repeat with the remaining chicken, then remove with a slotted spoon into a bowl lined with kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.
Add the capsicum, chilli, spring onion, ginger and garlic (if using) and stir-fry for about a minute.
Return the chicken to the wok with the sauces, and stir-fry until re-heated.
Serve with steamed rice.

Bacon, Egg and Mushroom Bake

Vicki — 2010-06-06T05:44+00:00

This was one of the first dishes from the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet (Book 2) that we tried when we started dieting back in January. The diet fell by the wayside a while ago but we have, this past week, revived it. Our plan for dinner tonight is to have leftover lamb curry with rice, raita and fresh tomato chutney — which you'll agree is lacking somewhat in the vegie department. So, I thought, to make up for such laxness, a brunch of Bacon, Egg and Mushroom Bake would be perfect to balance it out, being quite high in protein and low in carbohydrates, with lots of veg in the form of a green salad.

It takes a bit of time to prepare and cook, so this is great for a leisurely Sunday morning.

Bacon, Egg and Mushroom Bake

Low-fat but filling, "Bacon, Egg and Mushroom Bake" makes a perfect brunch for a relaxed Sunday morning.

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil
½ red onion, sliced
1 rasher of bacon, trimmed of fat, sliced
1 large flat mushroom, sliced
3 eggs
100 g low-fat natural yoghurt
1½ teaspoons mustard powder
35 g cheddar cheese, grated
1 heaped tablespoon roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 ripe tomato, sliced

Directions

Preheat oven to 170ºC. Lightly grease 2 small (or 1 medium) shallow ovenproof dishes. I used 350ml individual casserole dishes and they were just right.
Heat oil in a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add onion and bacon and cook for 5 minutes, or until onion is soft. Add mushrooms and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
In a bowl, lightly whisk together eggs, yoghurt and mustard powder.
Add cheese and parsley, and stir to combine.
Spoon half of the mushroom mix into each of the prepared dishes, then pour over the egg mixture. Arrange slices of tomato on top.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden and the contents are firm. (One combined bake will need longer.)
Serve with a large green salad.

For a bit of flavour variation, try adding some herbs. Thyme, oregano or basil would all work well with this.

Mongolian Beef

Vicki — 2010-06-04T10:54+00:00

I've been having lots of fun this last month or so with my new wok. I've tried several Asian recipes, experimenting with flavours. I've tried some recipes more than once, trying to get them just right (as ya do). I'm sure you too know what it's like when you try to make a dish for the first time, and you eat it and think, "That was yummy but next time I'll..." I've been doing a lot of that in the last few weeks!

One of the first meals I made in the wok was a Kylie Kwong recipe for Mongolian Beef. It was delicious made just as the recipe directs, though I do confess I substituted shredded rump steak for Kylie's recommended beef mince. (And don't forget to taste as you cook, to ensure you have a nice balance of flavours!)

This is a quick and simple family meal that's both tasty and healthy. It doesn't even have to be hot (as in chillies) at all if you leave off the suggested chilli garnish.

Mongolian Beef

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the marinade
- 2 tablespoons rice wine
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 1 tablespoon ginger, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
For the beef
- 600 g rump steak, shredded
- 1 head chinese cabbage, finely shredded
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 50 ml vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons rice wine
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon malt vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 small carrot, peeled and finely sliced
- 1 small red pepper, finely sliced
- 1 bunch spring onions, finely sliced
To serve
- steamed rice
- sliced chillies

Directions

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a large bowl.
Add in the beef and leave to marinate in fridge for 30 minutes.
Put the cabbage and salt into another bowl and mix well to combine. Leave to stand for 15 minutes then rinse under cold water and drain. Squeeze out any excess liquid with your hands.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok until the surface starts to shimmer slightly. Add half of the marinated beef and stir fry for 30 seconds. Remove from the wok with a slotted spoon and set to one side.
Add the remaining oil to the wok and cook the remaining beef for 30 seconds before returning the reserved beef to the pan.
Add in the rice wine, hoisin and oyster sauce, vinegar and sesame oil and cook for a further 30 seconds.
Toss in the cabbage, carrot and pepper and stir-fry for a further minute.
Stir through the spring onions, reserving a few for garnish and remove from the heat.
Spoon the beef into a serving bowl, sprinkle with remaining spring onions and serve with rice and sliced chillies.

Crunchy Szechuan Beef

Vicki — 2010-04-29T08:11+00:00

My new wok arrived yesterday! Yay! I do love getting new kitchen toys.

Naturally, the wok had to be "christened" that very day. It's made of carbon steel so it first had to be seasoned — a baptism of fire indeed and so exciting to see the grey metal change colour to a beautiful shiny black. After that, it was ready to be put to use.

The recipe I eventually decided on was a Neil Perry one: Szechuan Beef. I settled on this one because, firstly, I figured anything Neil Perry put his name to was bound to be worth eating, and also because it looked simple to make and I had most of the ingredients already.

The result was extremely tasty. Beautifully balanced flavours and mildly spicy, with a crunch to the beef that was unusual (to me) but pleasing. I loved the shredded carrot and celery with it too; the absence of chunky pieces ensures that the balance of flavour and texture is maintained in every mouthful.

Crunchy Szechuan Beef

Serves 2, or 4 as part of an Asian-style banquet

Ingredients

Vegetable oil, for cooking
450 g beef fillet, shredded
½ tablespoon hot bean paste
½ tablespoon ginger, chopped
½ tablespoon spring onions, chopped
½ cup shredded carrot
½ cup shredded celery
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
½ tablespoon shaoxing wine
½ tablespoon caster sugar
Dash sesame oil
¼ teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns, roasted and ground
spring onion, extra, to garnish

Directions

Heat a wok and add vegetable oil. Deep fry the beef about 6 minutes, until crispy, then remove from the wok and drain.
Reheat the wok and add ½ tablespoon oil. Stir fry the ginger and spring onion until fragrant, then add the hot bean paste, carrot and celery and toss well.
Return the beef to the wok with the shaoxing, soy, sugar, sesame oil and Szechuan pepper. Stir fry 1 minute and finish with a little extra spring onion.
Serve with steamed jasmine rice.

ANZAC Biscuits

Vicki — 2010-04-25T06:38+00:00

ANZAC Day, April 25, is an important day for Australians. From the time we are tots we are taught to remember and honour Australian servicemen and women, and especially those tens of thousands of the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps who fought and died in an ill-fated push against the Turks in World War 1. The ANZACS landed at Gallipoli, Turkey, on April 25, 1915, and were slaughtered over the next several months.

ANZAC Biscuits were given their name because — as they keep very well — they were sent overseas to those serving in the War. My son and I made some today. They are crispy on the outside and slightly soft and chewy on the inside and very yummy.

Lest we forget.

ANZAC Biscuits

Fresh out of the oven.

Serves ... makes about 24

Ingredients

1 cup plain flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup brown sugar (you can use caster sugar, but be prepared for the resulting biscuit to be lighter in colour)
½ cup desiccated coconut
125 g butter
3 tablespoons golden syrup (or treacle if you don't have golden syrup)
1 tablespoon water
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Directions

Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the sugar, rolled oats and coconut.
Melt the butter in a saucepan (or cut it roughly into chunks and microwave gently for about 40 seconds, then wait a minute or two for the whole lot to completely melt) then add the golden syrup and water.
Stir the bicarbonate of soda into the liquid mixture.
Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Place walnut-sized balls of mixture on a greased tray. Allow plenty of room between each as they do spread a lot.
Bake at 175°C until they are lovely and golden (about 15 minutes).

Don't worry if the biscuits seem soggy when you take them out of the oven — they'll harden as they cool.

Lamb with Roast Pumpkin Salad

Vicki — 2010-04-23T03:18+00:00

This simple meal is bursting with flavour. The sweetness of the roast pumpkin is just gorgeous and it goes soooooooo well in a salad with spinach leaves, feta and toasted pine nuts. It is further enhanced by the dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and garlic. It's a delicious combination that beautifully complements the natural flavour of the lamb.

You can start preparing this meal a bit ahead of time. When we had this a night or two ago, I prepared and roasted the pumpkin a couple of hours before dinner time. While the yummy, golden little wedges were roasting, I toasted the pine nuts (you can buy them already toasted but I love them when they are freshly toasted, which only takes a couple of minutes) and also prepared the other salad ingredients and the dressing. I then went to sit down for an hour or so until it was dinner time, and when it was time to eat all I really had to do was cook the lamb and let it rest before serving.

The original recipe uses a lot more salt and pepper than I did. I really don't think food needs to be swamped with salt and pepper, and the dressing here is already salty from the balsamic vinegar so I've omitted it from the dressing. I also took it very easy with the seasoning on the pumpkin and lamb — we only want just enough seasoning here to enhance the natural flavours.

Lamb with Roast Pumpkin Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients

olive oil cooking spray
6 lean lamb cutlets
Roast Pumpkin Salad
- 600 g butternut pumpkin, peeled, deseeded, cut into thin wedges
- 50 g baby spinach leaves
- 2 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted*
- 100 g feta cheese, cut into small cubes (I used Danish feta — I just love its creaminess — but use your own favourite or even a reduced-fat version)
Dressing
- 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed

Directions

Preheat oven to 230°C.
Line a baking dish with baking paper. Place pumpkin in a single layer in baking dish. Spray with oil. Season with a little salt and pepper. Turn pumpkin. Repeat with oil and salt and pepper.
Roast for 20 minutes, turning once, until tender.
Preheat a barbecue grill or chargrill on medium-high heat. Spray both sides of lamb with oil. Season with a little salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes each side for medium or until cooked to your liking.
Transfer to a plate. Cover loosely with foil. Stand for 5 minutes.
Place spinach, pine nuts and feta in a bowl. Toss to combine.
Whisk vinegar, oil and garlic in a jug. Add to salad with pumpkin. Toss gently to combine.
Serve lamb with roast pumpkin salad.

The dressing is quite garlicky, so if you have to breathe on anyone later, you may want to tone down the garlic a bit!

*To toast pine nuts, heat a dry skillet on medium-low. Add the pine-nuts and shake and stir for a minute or two, until the nuts are lovely and golden all over and smell and taste divine. (Yep I always taste — I can't help myself!) Remove them from the pan immediately they're done to your satisfaction, as they will continue to brown for as long as they are in contact with the hot pan.

Pepper Steak with Red Wine, Parmesan and Chilli

Vicki — 2010-04-10T07:39+00:00

It's time for another recipe blog post. "Yay!" I hear you cry. (Well, I can dream.)

We actually had this lovely, simple steak meal a few weeks ago, and I threw the photo up on Edible 365 and forgot about it. I'm shocked I could do that. It actually looked reasonably pretty in the photo, which makes it bloggable. Often my food photos are so bad (usually because the food presentation is — I'm still working on that!) I can't blog the meal because I don't have a supporting photo. Given that it has been so long since I put a recipe on Ozfoodie, when the photo caught my eye today I thought I would blog its recipe.

The recipe (which I found on Cuisine.com.au) calls for fillet steak but I used scotch fillet. Scotch fillet steak kinda sprawls across the plate and doesn't look as neat as the more compact fillet, but I prefer it in terms of flavour. If it's just about anything versus flavour, I choose flavour!

If (like me) you enjoy a nice, thick steak and want a decent thickness with scotch fillet steak, it is likely to weigh in at more than the recipe's suggested 150g. However, taking the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet as a guide, with its recommendation of 200g of protein per main meal with little or low carbohydrates, a weightier steak in this meal is perfectly acceptable. Sadly, however, I never seem to be able to finish a piece of steak that big, and it makes for a man-sized meal, so if you have a smaller appetite you could consider cutting a very large steak in half for two people.

Pepper Steak with Red Wine, Parmesan and Chilli

Juicy steak on sweet potato mash, in just a spoonful of red wine sauce, topped with chilli and parmesan.

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the mash
- 800 g sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
- black pepper
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 6 tablespoons low-fat milk
For the steak
- black pepper
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 4 fillet steaks (about 150g each)
- 100 ml red wine
- 50 g parmesan, shaved
- 2 large red chillies, finely sliced
- 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley leaves

Directions

For the mash: Cook sweet potato in lightly salted boiling water (I left out the salt and didn't miss it) for about 10 minutes or until tender. Drain, add ground pepper, butter (I also used unsalted butter) and milk and mash until smooth.
For the steak: Grind black pepper coarsely on both sides of steaks. Heat butter in a large heavy-based pan until nut-brown, add steaks and cook over medium to high heat for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until cooked as desired. Remove steaks from pan and rest in a warm place.
Add wine to pan and stir over medium heat, scraping the residue from the base of pan. Check seasoning and when slightly reduced pour sauce over steaks and top with parmesan, chilli and parsley.
Serve with mash and green salad leaves.

If you love garlic, you can add a sliced garlic clove to the mash water, and when the water is drained, retain the clove and mash it in with the sweet potato.

Mt Claremont Farmers Market

Vicki — 2010-04-06T05:16+00:00

A stall with flowers and fresh produce at Mt Claremont Farmers Market.

On Saturday, we visited the Mt Claremont Farmers Market for the second time. We first went just a week ago and it made my day, so I simply had to go back even though it's about 15 to 20 minutes away. (That would be nothing if I was still living in the country, but for urban Perth it seems quite a hike.) Also, not that I needed an excuse to return, we had bought some delicious fresh milk in glass bottles, no less! And wanted to return the bottles and re-stock. :-)

Fresh bread.

The concept behind farmers markets is simple. They aim to bring together producers and consumers in a win-win situation: consumers can get ultra-fresh seasonal, local food direct from the grower, and the grower (presumably) makes a profit. But it goes further than that: it fosters community. As a consumer and a lover of good food, it is fantastic to talk with the stall holders, who I've found are really excited and passionate about their products and proud of their high standards and sustainable practices, and are more than happy to talk about where they're located, how their goods are grown or processed (or not processed, as the case may be), and how to prepare and enjoy the more unusual or unfamiliar produce. This, in turn, leaves me feeling excited and passionate about it too.

Local (Swan Valley) free range eggs direct from the producer. You can see and taste the difference when eggs are actually fresh.

Something I really appreciate is that all the stallholders I've spoken with are either local, or use local produce. I refuse to buy produce and a lot of other imported or "high food miles" products from the major supermarkets because of their irresponsibility when it comes to sustainability (don't get me started on that... down, rant! Down!) and it is just a delight to be able to buy directly from producers from in or around the city, or at most a couple of hours drive, depending on the product.

Preserves, pickles, relishes, chutneys...

There are many different stalls besides those offering fresh fruit and vegetables. There's bread, juice, cheese, milk, mushrooms, eggs, seafood, meat, plants, flowers, pasta and pasta sauce, cupcakes, chutneys and relishes, olives and olive oils, herbs, coffee, chocolate and takeaway food. There are even occasional visits from Old MacDonald's Travelling Farm for the children. Altogether there are over 45 stalls.

However, summarising the stalls in a sentence or two does none of the stalls justice. Products are generally of a very high quality. Much on offer is organic, including beef and pork from the wonderful Spencers Brook Farm (I can't wait to try their chorizo!), and some is also biodynamic, and the eggs we saw were all marked "free range".

And, as I mentioned, last weekend we took home some delicious fresh milk from Sunnydale Dairy, which — unlike anything we can buy in the shops, has not been homogenised, so that deliciously old-fashioned layer of cream from the milk rises to the surface in the glass bottle. Ahhh... memories of my childhood.

Piglet at Old MacDonald's Travelling Farm.

Speaking of childhood, the markets are very family friendly. There is a playground for the kids, and tables and chairs set up nearby for parents to sit with a coffee or a snack while the kids play. When it's there, the kids will love the Old MacDonald's Travelling Farm which had baby goats, ducks, chicks, chickens, a piglet, and more. The whole atmosphere of the markets is relaxed and friendly, and as their parents shop and chat with stall-holders, kids can absorb the knowledge that there are real people — and animals — behind the food they eat.

I'm not an early morning person but despite that, I intend to be a regular at these markets. :-)

Grab a snack on the run or sit and relax for a while.

Mt Claremont Farmers Market is held every Saturday morning at the Mt Claremont Primary School at the corner of Alfred Rd and Montgomery Rd. The new hours, starting this coming Saturday 10th April, are 8am to 12pm.

Where

Mt Claremont Primary School
103 Alfred Rd
MT CLAREMONT WA 6010

When

Every Saturday morning, 8am–12pm, rain hail or shine.

Contact

Phone: 0411 895 10
Mt Claremont Farmers Market web site

Pasta di casa al fuscello

Vicki — 2010-03-21T09:42+00:00

Hrm. It's been a long time since I posted to Ozfoodie and it's not because there hasn't been anything happening or that I haven't been cooking or eating, either. Though, I do confess, we went through a period where we ate out for lunch a lot, and both our waistlines and our wallets confirm what a mistake that proved to be! So it's time to catch up on things and get back on track, in more ways than one.

Easter bread.

A highlight of the last few weeks was a Slow Food Perth pasta-making workshop: "Pasta di casa al fuscello" last Sunday. One of the Slow Food Perth members, Natalina, has had family members visiting her from Calabria in Italy, and they were generous enough to spend a morning sharing their generations-old family recipes and techniques with a houseful of other Slow Food members. Maintaining the traditions of families and regions is integral to the Slow Food philosophy and I felt very privileged to be able to share this particular family's traditions.

It was very interesting and also a lot of fun. We were first shown some traditional Easter bread. Natalina told us that when she was a child, this is what they had for Easter — no Easter Eggs as we know them!

A Slow Food Perth member helps roll out the fuscello.

Then they demonstrated how they make the pasta. Natalina said that in her family, things were done the way they were simply because that's how they'd done it for generations — they weren't always sure why, but it worked for them. She explained that different families all had different ways of doing things, and there was no right or wrong way. The pasta we made that morning contained no egg, but Natalina herself uses egg when she makes this pasta for its properties as a binding agent.

The pasta dough is mixed, kneaded, rolled out into thickish rolls, then one end of the roll is rolled out more thinly while still remaining attached. This thinner sausage of pasta is broken up into pieces that make the individual pieces of pasta. Each small piece was hand-rolled till much longer and thinner, wrapped around thin sticks in barber's pole fashion, then further rolled to spread the pasta up and down the stick, eliminating any gaps. Then with a quick but careful sliding motion, it was removed from the stick and laid out on the table.

Fuscello ready to be cooked.

This continued till the whole batch of pasta (or two, in this case) was used up. Even with a head start of a batch made in advance earlier that morning, and with several helpers from amongst the guests, it took quite a while to make enough for a houseful of people! (Yes, I had a go too!)

The fuscello was much thicker than other types of pasta I've seen and tried, and the texture was really different. With thin pasta, the "feel" of biting through it is vastly different, so this was quite a surprise as I'd never experienced it before.

Fuscello in a traditional pasta sauce with meatballs.

It was served in a ragü with veal and pork meatballs and I quickly got over the initial surprise and savoured and enjoyed it!

We followed on from there with a traditional salad that included salad greens, figs, bresaola and parmesan, with a lovely simple dressing whose ingredients I unfortunately can't remember.

The good news is that the recipes are apparently coming to the Slow Food Perth website soon.

A simple but delicious traditional Italian salad.

In all, it was a fabulous day with some of the loveliest people you could ever hope to meet.

If you're not sure what Slow Food is about and would like to know, this ABC documentary about Slow Food explains it particularly well — sadly only available online for another 25 days or so at the time of writing, but it is well worth tuning in while it's there — it's inspiring and motivating as well as informative. (Hat tip to Matt for the link.)

Grilled Snapper with Spicy Tomato Sauce

Vicki — 2010-02-12T07:31+00:00

Don't you love it when you come across a new recipe that ticks all the boxes: quick, easy, tasty — and healthy?

We're not big fish eaters but this "experiment" turned out really well and left a lovely, lingering aftertaste. It's based on a recipe in the Women's Weekly Fast Healthy cookbook.

Grilled Snapper with Spicy Tomato Sauce

Snapper topped with a spicy tomato-based sauce on a bed of spinach.

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 snapper fillets (about 200g each)
2 tablespoons cornflour
2 teaspoons peanut oil
Spicy Tomato Sauce
- 2 teaspoons peanut oil
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 425 g can chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon Shao Hsing (Chinese rice wine) or dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sambal oelek
- 2 teaspoons grated palm sugar

Directions

For the sauce: Heat 2 teaspoons of peanut oil in a small frying pan; cook garlic and shallots, stirring, about 1 minute or until shallots are soft. Stir in undrained tomatoes, Chinese cooking wine, sauce, sambal and sugar; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until liquid has reduced by half.
Meanwhile, spread the cornflour on a plate and lightly coat the fish with it. Heat a large frying pan, add 2 teaspoons peanut oil then cook, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until cooked as desired. When it's cooked the fish will have lost any transparency and be opaque and flakey. Careful not to overcook!
Place the spinach in a medium bowl with combined vinegar and remaining oil; toss gently to combine.
Serve fish with spinach salad and spicy sauce.

Chicken in Balsamic, Orange and Rosemary Sauce

Vicki — 2010-01-27T08:16+00:00

Since starting our diet (which is going really well, by the way) and joining the Edible 365 Flickr group where we have to take a new food/drink photo every day, I've been on the look-out for interesting but low-fat meals. We enjoyed our iteration of this recipe from Good Food magazine so much that I thought it would be good to share it.

I find that, in many cases, the oil and butter components of recipes can be reduced without any ill effects, and I've done so below. A little oil or butter is fine on a low-fat diet as long as you track how you use it, and limit it sensibly. I don't use butter on bread or anywhere else throughout the day, so don't feel guilty adding a bit to the main meal. :-)

Chicken in Balsamic, Orange and Rosemary Sauce

Chicken for two.

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
olive oil spray
1½ tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/3 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon light muscovado sugar
1 teaspoon butter
orange segments and fresh rosemary sprigs to garnish
steamed rice and green salad to serve

Directions

Put the chicken between pieces of cling film and flatten slightly by bashing with a pan. Unwrap and sprinkle on both sides with pepper.
Heat a non-stick pan over a medium heat, spray lightly with olive oil spray, then cook the chicken for 5 minutes, turning halfway through.
Pour 1 tablespoon vinegar over the chicken, add the orange juice and stock and sprinkle with the rosemary and salt. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and bubble gently for 5 minutes or until tender, spooning with the sauce frequently and turning chicken halfway through.
Remove the chicken from the pan, cover loosely with foil, and set aside to rest while making the sauce.
For the sauce, stir the sugar, butter and rest of the vinegar into the pan, then sizzle for a few minutes until reduced and glossy.
Put the chicken in a serving dish, spoon the sauce over and garnish with orange and rosemary. Serve with rice and a crisp green salad.

The CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet

Vicki — 2010-01-12T09:04+00:00

CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet Book 2.

As mentioned previously, we started the New Year with a decision to lose weight. We dug out the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet (Book 2) after a long period of neglect. This healthy weight loss program is based on proven scientific principles. It includes a balanced diet that is high in protein and moderate in carbohydrates. High protein diets keep people feeling full for longer. It also has an important exercise component.

The book is friendly and the principles behind it are well-explained in simple language, making sure the reader understands why the diet is structured as it is. It contains over 80 beautifully presented and really delicious recipes and encourages flexibility (within the constraints of healthy eating, of course). It's a very simple diet to follow and easy to maintain, because overall servings are generous and it shows how healthy food can taste wonderful.

Chermoula Lamb Fillet with Avocado and Coriander Salsa recipe.

We're not following the diet religiously, but we are using it as a guide and generally abiding by the principles. We are finding we are eating very well indeed and not feeling hungry at all. (Actually, I usually can't eat the full ration of meat.) We do, however, love our carbohydrates, and changing the way we'd pile rice or potatoes or couscous on our plates has been probably the biggest challenge for us in terms of eating. We are honouring the suggested proportions and to be honest we're not suffering for it, which goes to show how much of our previous habit was just that — habit. But perhaps the biggest overall challenge has been carrying out the exercise component. We'll have to work on that... sigh!

We are lucky because we work from home and taking time to prepare fresh and healthy food isn't a big issue for us, especially as we usually do it together, but I do remember how difficult it could be after a long day at work then a commute home. Cooking is generally the last thing I felt like doing then, and anything that took more than half an hour to an hour to get on the table was out of the question. But this is the beauty of the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet: just maintain the principle of low fat, high protein, moderate carbohydrate meals with lots of vegetables and salads and some fruit — and try to get regular exercise — and you won't be far wrong.

Healthy and tasty lunchbox ideas.

You soon get a feel for the recommended proportions and, quite apart from the recipes and meal suggestions in the book, there is a vast range of suitable meals — homemade or otherwise. Just about any low-fat meal will be suitable or can easily be adapted. We're eating a lot of our prior favourites as well as previously untried recipes from the book.

Even despite sneaking in a small glass of wine with our meals (and I don't recommend you do this — it's more of a confession for which I require absolution!) we're losing weight and, while we still have a way to go, we're confident we can maintain it as we are enjoying our "diet" food so very much! If you take a peek at my Edible365 Flickr set you'll see some of the healthy yumminess we've consumed so far this year, and lost weight while doing so!

If you've been thinking you'd like to lose weight in a manner which is healthy, enjoyable and sustainable in the long term, then the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet might be of interest to you, too.

Chilli, Lime and Coriander Prawns

Vicki — 2010-01-12T00:09+00:00

This prawn dish (another recipe courtesy of Taste.com.au) is light and tangy with a bit of a bite, and refreshing on a hot day. The worst part of preparing prawn dishes is generally peeling the prawns. (This is Neil's job so it doesn't bother me. Heh.) It is otherwise easy: it's simply a matter of throwing the marinade ingredients together, leaving the prawns to marinate, and barbecuing or grilling them for a few minutes at most.

Have some rice cooking ahead of time so it's ready when the prawns are.

Serve over the simple salad of cucumber and avocado, with lime wedges to squeeze over the prawns and the steamed rice.

Chilli, Lime and Coriander Prawns

A perfect light lunch on a hot summer day.

Serves 4

Ingredients

1½ cups coriander leaves
¼ cup peanut oil
1 stem lemongrass, bruised, thinly sliced
2 small red chillies, deseeded, thinly sliced
2 limes, juiced
1 kg green king prawns, peeled (tails intact), deveined
2 Lebanese cucumbers, deseeded
2 avocados, peeled and diced
steamed jasmine rice and limes, to serve

Directions

Finely chop ½ cup coriander leaves.
Combine chopped coriander, oil, garlic, lemongrass, chillies and 1/4 cup lime juice in a ceramic dish.
Add prawns and stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate, stirring once, for 30 minutes (or up to 2 hours if time permits).
Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, peel long thin strips from cucumbers.
Combine cucumber, avocado, remaining coriander leaves and remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
Preheat a greased barbecue plate on medium-high heat.
Remove prawns from marinade. Barbecue for 1 to 2 minutes each side or until pink and just cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
Arrange prawns and cucumber salad on plates. Serve with steamed rice and limes.

If you have trouble finding lemongrass in your area, check out your local Asian grocer. You will generally find such produce (including the coriander) and all manner of other Asian goodies, and at a much cheaper price than in supermarkets too.