recipe: Calzone

So, I got a recipe for calzone dough and decided to give it a try, besides, I made a bunch of them, froze and will use when I don't have time for preparing meals, so although it was a bit time consuming, it will allow me some fun times later, and they were pretty good!

makes 16: 4 cups flour, big pinch of salt, 3/4 cup cold water, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice filling 1: 600 g pumpkin, half an onion, 1 tsp olive oil, 1 tbsp sultanas, 1/2 tsp 5 spice, salt & pepper filling 2: 1 red capsicum, 2 tomatoes, half an onion, 1 tsp olive oil, torn basil, salt & pepper

1. Pre heat your oven to 200C, line a baking tray with baking paper and place your pumpkin with the peel and seeds on it, place the capsicum and bake until it chars and the pumpkin softens;
2. In a bowl sift flour and a large pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre, add olive oil, lemon juice and water. Mix to form a dough and knead on a floured surface for about 5 minutes;(you might need to add more water or flour while doing this). Make a ball, wrap in cling film and let rest for half an hour;
3. In a sauce pan heat the 2 tsp olive oil. Add the onion sliced thinly and cook for a couple of minutes until soft. remove half the onion into a large bowl and turn the heat to low. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for a little longer;
4. When your capsicum is ready, and cool, remove skin and seeds, chop into squares and add to the pan. Season with salt and pepper, add the torn basil leaves and set aside. (filling 2 is ready)
5. When the pumpkin is soft, remove peel and seeds, add to the bowl containing onions and mash coarsely with a potato masher. Add sultanas, spice, salt and pepper and stir to combine. (filling 1 is ready)
6. Divide your dough into 16 pieces, using a rolling pin roll 16 round pieces of about 18 cm diameter.
7. Now, divide your fillings into your calzones, fold them and press edges to close with a wet fork. Place them back in your baking trays and bake at 200C for about 20 minutes.

They will be lovely with a nice salad and greek yoghurt.

week14

So, last week I didn't manage to post my last recipe...sorry about that, it will come again any time soon.
It has been a month since we started our vegetarian switch and I must say things are lookin much better for us, not just with a bit of weight loss, but somehow things function better if you know what I mean. And we did cheat and had a bit of meet when we had parties with friends or nights out, and it seems to disturb our little veggie bodes a little bit...as they say, you shouldn't really eat that much meet, if any at all...

heads on the menu this week though:

Sunday:
_dinner: Calzones

Monday:
_lunch: Calzones
_dinner: White Chili

Tuesday:
_lunch: White Chili
_dinner: Veggie Noddle Salad

Wednesday:
_lunch: Veggie Noodle Salad
_dinner: Spicy vegetable and dhal stew

Thursday:
_lunch: Spicy vegetable and dhal stew
_dinner: Fish and chips (with a twist)

Friday:
_lunch: Fish and chips (with a twist)

recipe: Eggplant and Potato Bake

This recipe I was really proud of, cause its my own concoction and its really really good, if you like spicy fragrant stuff, so here it goes:

serving 4:
2 medium eggplants, 1x 400g chickpeas rinsed & drained, 400 g potatoes, 1x400g canned chopped tomatoes, 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp ground coriander, 1 tsp chili flakes, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1 tsp olive oil, 1 1/2 cups water, knob of butter, 1 tsp corn flour, 1 tbsp dijon mustard

1. Pre heat your oven to 200C. Pich the eggplant with a knife or some skewers and place them in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes or until really soft. Remove from oven and let cool for a bit;
2. Heat water in a pot and boil the potatoes until they are soft. Remove and let cool;
3. Heat the oil in a sauce pan, add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes;
4. Scoop the flesh from the eggplant, chop it coarsely and add to the pan;
5. Add the spices, chickpeas, diced tomatoes and 1/2 cup of water and simmer for 10 minutes. Add salt and correct flavours; 5. Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly. Set aside;
6. Heat butter in a small pan, add corn flour, stirring, water and dijon mustard. Let it boil and set aside;
7. Get an oven-proof dish, brush with a bit of olive oil and place 1/3 of your sauce on the bottom;
8. Layer half of the potatoes on top, and pour 1/2 the mustard sauce. repeat with another third of sauce, remaining potatoes, remaining sauce and finally the mustard sauce;
9. Bake for about 20 minutes and serve with some salad;

It definitely isn't the most appealing dish to your eyes, but it sure was tasty!

recipe: Pasta salad with lentils and roasted veggies

Another really easy recipe and quite good in the end, serving only 2 this time:

1/2 cup risonni, 1/2 cup red lentils, 1 red capsicum, 1 zuchinni thinly sliced lengthways, 2 tomatoes chopped, 1 red onion chopped, 2 tbsp tomatoe puree, 1 vegetable stock cube, juice of half a lemon, 2 tbsp chopped parsley, salt & pepper

1. Pre heat your oven on grill;
2. Line a baking tray, place the chopped onion, sliced zuchinni and whole capsicum and grill for about 15 minutes turning at least once; ( you might need to grill capsicum for a little longer until its charred and soft - remove from oven and let cool)
3. Meanwhile, heat some water in a sauce pan and cook lentils for about 10 minutes. Remove them from pan, drain them and return them to the pan. Add enough water to cover, the pasta and stock cube and simmer covered until pasta is cooked through;
4. In a large bowl place chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and lemon juice. Mix well;
5. Add pasta and lentils, chopped parsley and mix again;
6. When capsicum has cooled down, peel, remove seeds and chop coarsely. Add to the bowl;
7. Finally add onion and zuchinni to the bowl, correct flavours and serve.

recipe: Spinach and Leek fritatta

Right, this recipe is so easy, you almost can just sit and relax...and you can always mix & match with other vegetables, this time I used spinach and leek, but feel free to improvise.

Serves 4: 250g spinach, 1 leek thinly sliced, 5 eggs lightly beaten, 100 ml skim milk, 1 tsp cornflour, 2 tbsp chopped basil, pinch of thyme, salt & pepper

1. In a sauce pan, boil some water and cook spinach until it wilts. Remove spinach to drain;
2. In the same water cook leek for 5 minutes or until soft. Drain and reserve;
3. In a bowl mix eggs, milk, cornflour, chopped herbs, salt and pepper;
4. Place spinach in the bottom of a previously greased oven proof dish, top with leek and egg mixture stirring lightly with a fork;
5. Bake for half an hour in the oven (180C) or until eggs are cooked in the middle;
6. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes, slice in four pieces and serve with some chopped cucumber and rocket dressed with some olive oil and lemon;

recipe: capsicum & Eggplant Lasagne

So, since we started this vegetarian phase we've realized we have to cook ahead in order to eat well all week and somehow lasagne has been a really easy option to have around...its easy, we can have 6 servings, plus its quite filling.

Serving 6: 5 fresh lasagne sheets, 2 eggplants thinly sliced lengthways, 4 red capsicums, 1 zuchinni thinly sliced lengthways, 1 brown onion chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 bay leaf, 1 green capsicum diced, 2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes, 4 silver beet leaves sliced, 1/2 cup chopped parsley, pinch of dry thyme, salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat your oven to grill;
2. Place capsicums in a baking tray and grill turning every 6 minutes, until they are charred;
3. Place the eggplant and zuchinni slices in baking trays, brush with some oil and grill for about 5 minutes each side (or until slightly charred and soft);
4. Meanwhile heat the oil in a large sauce pan. Add onion, garlic and bay leaf and cook for about 5 minutes or until soft;
5. Add the green capsicum and cook for another 3/4 minutes. Add diced tomatoes, silver beet, plus 1/2 cup water and let simmer for about 10 minutes;
6. Add chopped parsley, thyme and season with salt and pepper;
7. When the capsicum is cold, peel them, remove seeds and halve them;
8. Brush a deep oven dish with some oil and place 1/4 of the tomato sauce on the bottom;
9. Top with 1 1/2 lasagne sheets and layer 1/2 of the roasted vegetables on top. Pour another 1/4 sauce and repeat the process. Finish with 2 lasagne sheets topped with the remaining sauce;
10. Bake in the oven covered with foil for half an hour (200C) and then another 10 minutes uncovered;
Serve with a green salad.

week 13

Although I sometimes feel like some nice grilled chicken, we're behaving quite well with our vegetarian regime, and this weeks menu is this:

Sunday:
_dinner: Capsicum & Eggplant Lasagne

Monday:
_lunch: Capsicum & Eggplant Lasagne
_dinner: Spinach and leek Fritatta

Tuesday:
_lunch: Spinach and leek Fritatta
_dinner: Pasta salad with lentils and roasted veggies

Wednesday:
_lunch: Capsicum & Eggplant Lasagne
_dinner: Eggplant & Potato Bake

Thursday:
_lunch: Eggplant & Potato Bake
_dinner: Gremolata Rice Soup

recipe: Roasted Capsicum with Lentil Stuffing

I loooove red capsicum! This recipe takes a little longer than usual, but its really nice and filling. The flavour blend really well together and I promise you won't feel hungry with one serve only.

4 people: 4 medium red capsicum halved and de-seeded, 400g pumpkin cut into cubes, 1 cup dry red lentils washed and drained, 2 onions finely chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1 celery stick chopped, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1 1/4 cups water, 1 vegetable stock cube, 1/4 cup currants, 1/4 cup pine nuts, 1/2 cup chopped parsley

1. Pre heat your oven to 200C, line a baking tray with some baking paper and bake the pumpkin for about 15 minutes. Add the capsicum halves and bake for another 10 minutes;
2. Meanwhile heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a sauce pan, add onion and celery and cook for a couple of minutes until they start to soften;
3. Add garlic, cumin and lentils. Stir to combine;
4. Add lemon juice, water and stock cube, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes;
5. Add the pumpkin, nuts and currants and simmer for a further 5 minutes;
6. Correct flavours and add salt if necessary and parsley;
7. Fill the capsicum halves with the lentil mixture (you might have extra filling if the capsicums are too small - freeze it and use it another day) and bake for an extra 15 minutes.
Serve with some white rice or just plain salad greens.
Hope you like it!

recipe: Chickpea and Brown Rice Patties

OMG, these are a bit hard work, but they are soo good, you have to try!

Serves 4: 1x 400g can chickpeas drained and rinsed, 1/2 cup brown rice, 1 carrot grated, 2 tbsp breadcrumbs, zest of 1 lemon, 4 tbsp chopped parsley, 2 tbsp chopped coriander, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 egg white, 3 shallots thinly sliced, 4 tomatoes, 1 small green capsicum, 1 cucumber, 3 tbs lemon juice, 2 tbsp olive oil

1. Cook rice in unsalted water;
2. Place chickpeas in a food processor and chop then till a paste forms. Transfer it to a large bowl;
3. Add breadcrumbs and thinly chopped shallots (only two) to the chickpea mixture and combine;
4. Add 2 tbsp parsley, lemon rind, grated carrot and rice. Combine well; 5. Season well with salt and pepper and add the egg white. Mix well and then make 4 patties with your hands. Let them cool for twenty minutes in the refrigerator;
5. Meanwhile chop tomatoes, capsicum, cucuber and shallot and place in a bowl. Season with lemon juice 1 tbsp oil, remaining parsley and salt;
6. Heat the remaining oil in a large fry pan and fry the patties each side for about 5 minutes;
7. Serve with your sala.
Soooo goood!

recipe: Mushroom & Noodle Miso Soup

This recipe is a bit of a cheat, because you just use instant miso soup sachets, but still, its dead easy, and really yummy.

Serves 4:
2L water, 4 miso soup sachets (18g each), 100g mushrooms, 1 shallot thinly sliced, 250g bean sprouts, 4 cups baby spinach, 50g dry egg noodles, 4 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, salt & pepper to taste and coriander sprigs to top with

1. Heat water in a large sauce pan;
2. When it boils, add miso and mushrooms reducing head to medium. Add onion and let simmer for about 5 minutes;
3. Add bean sprouts, noodles, soy sauce and sesame oil; Let it simmer for another 10 minutes or until noodles are done and separated;
4. Add baby spinach, correct flavours and voilà.
Serve topped with coriander sprigs and cracked pepper if you'd like.
Enjoy!

recipe: Gaspacho

This is one of my favourite dishes in the world as I grew up eating it, weather it was on it's own, with grilled fish or just nice fresh sourdough bread dipped in it...the recipe differs from the spanish 'gazpacho' and it even differs from other recipes in the centre of Portugal, so feel lucky boys and girls, coz this Gaspacho is a 'one of a kind' pearl:

Serves: about 6 people (as main or more as a side)
5 medium tomatoes, 1 onion, 1 lebanese cucumber, 2 garlic cloves, 1 green capsicum, salt, oregano, 2 L water, 4 Tbs Olive oil, 3 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar, ice cubes

1. Chop the garlic finely and add it to a large salad bowl;
2. Chop the onion very finely and the tomato in small cubes. Add to the bowl;
3. Chop the cucumber and the capsicum finely and add to the rest f the ingredients. Stir to combine;
4. Add 2L cold water to the bowl (or enough to cover all the vegetables). Mix the gaspacho and add olive oil, vinegar, salt and a sprinkle of dried oregano. Taste and correct flavours (it really depends on your taste buds now, add olive oil, vinegar, salt, oregano or water until it tastes good);
5. Finally add ice cubes to the bowl and stir. This will make it extra fresh. (perfect if you are throwing a party cause you want to keep it cool- warm gaspacho is a 'no-no')

Serve with grilled sardines (best choice), nice barbecued meat, or enjoy it by itself as a cold summer soup with a nice slice of your favourite bread.
Hummmm, perfect!

recipe: Minty Potato Filo Pies

These little pies are dead easy to make, and perfect as a picnic treat or a light meal. Besides, they were dead cute.

makes 4: 4 filo pastry sheets, 200g potatoes peeled and chopped, 1 cup frozen peas, 1/4 cup chopped mint leaves, 3 eggs, 1/4 cup milk, 1 tomato, salt & pepper

1. Pre heat the oven to 180C;
2. Heat salted water in a sauce pan, add the potatoes and cook till soft. Add the peas, cok for a couple of minutes, then remove and place in a colander to drain;
3. Transfer potatoes and peas to a bowl and mash with a potato masher. Season and reserve;
4. Grease 4 ramekins and arrange 1 sheet of filo pastry in each ramekin. Place them in the oven for about 5 minutes;
5. In a bowl mix eggs with mint and milk. Season with salt and pepper;
6. Divide the potato mixture amongst ramekins. Top with egg mixture. Place a tomato slice on top of each pie and bake for about half an hour;
7. When ready, serve with some tomato and cucumber salad with tzatziki;

week 12

For this week the menu is as follows:

Monday:
_dinner:Minty Potato Filo Pies

Tuesday:
_lunch:Minty Potato Filo Pies
_dinner:Gaspacho

Wednesday:
_lunch: Gaspacho
_dinner: Mushroom Miso Soup

Thursday:
_lunch: Chickpea & Brown Rice patties
_dinner: Chickpea & Brown Rice patties

Friday:
_lunch: Roasted Capsicum with lentil stuffing

recipe: Mackerel Fish Cakes

Loved these fishcakes!! makes 8: 500g potatoes, 2 x 125g can mackerel in brine, 6 green onions finely chopped, 1 tbsp Horseraddish cream (use mustard if you can't find it), 1 egg lightly beaten, flour, breadcrumbs and oil for shallow frying

1. Peel and chop the potatoes, cook them in salted water until they are soft. Drain and let them cool;
2. Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl and mash them with a potato masher;
3. Add the Mackerel (previously drained), green onions cream and combine. Season with salt and pepper and make 8 round cakes;
4. Place the flour, egg and breadcrumbs in separate bowls. Flour the fish cakes, then pass them through the egg mixture and end with the breadcrumb mixture. Repeat and let them cool in the fridge for half an hour;
5. Heat some oil in a frypan and shallow fry the fishcakes for a couple of minutes each side;

Serve as an appetizer or with a salad, they're great, I promise!

recipe: Pear-Barley and asparagus Risotto

Risotto with only 3 basic ingredients and healthier than normal ones...of course you can use rice instead, but we chose to use pearl barley instead.

ingredients (about 3 serves): 1tbs olive oil, 250 asparagus cut into 4 cm pieces (don't get large asparagus!), 1 onion finely chopped, 1 cup pear-barley, 2 vegetable stock cubes plus 3 1/2 cups of warm water, salt and pepper, chopped chives and lemon juice (* parmesan cheese - optional)

1. Heat olive oil in saucepan and add onion cooking until it gets soft;
2. Add barley, stirring to coat;
3. Add stock cubes dissolved in water. Bring to a boil, cover and cook for about 20 minutes (or until barley is cooked)
4. Add asparagus, cook stirring for another 10 minutes or until most water evaporates;
5. Season with salt, sprinkle with chopped chives, add a drizzle of lemon or balsamic vinegar and you're done.

Great by itself or with some nice grilled fish!

recipe: Noodle & Vegetable Soup

Although it is officially summer in Melbourne, it has been a pretty poor one, may I say....so poor we can even eat a warm soup and enjoy it once in a while...

serving 4: 1 tsp oil, 2 carrots chopped, 1 onion finelly chopped, 2 sticks celery chopped, 1 swede chopped in cubes, 1x 400g canned tomatoes, 3 stock cubes dissolved in 3 1/2 cups of water, 2 tbs chopped fresh basil, 1 tbs chopped fresh parsley, 40g dried egg noodles, salt & pepper

1. Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add onion and cook for a couple of minutes;
2. Add celery, carrots and swede and stir to coat. Add canned tomatoes, stock and half the herbs.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes of until veggies are tender.
4. Uncover, add noodles and simmer for another 10 minutes or until noodles are cooked;
5. Season with salt & pepper, serve in bowls, top with remaining herbs and eat it with some nice sourdough bread....
hummmm, perfect!

recipe: Lentil & Vegetable Stew w/ couscous

This recipe is really easy and the flavours are quite simple, but very homey. You should really give it a go.

Serves 4: 2 tbs olive oil, 1 onion chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 2 tsp grated ginger, 2 tsp ground cumin, 2 tsp ground coriander, 1 cup vegetable stock, 1x 400g can chopped tomatoes, 400 g cauliflower cut into florets, 1 eggplant cut into 2 cm cubes, 150 g green beans cut into 4 cm lenghts, 1x 400g canned lentils rinsed and drained, fresh coriander chopped, 1 cup couscous

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan, add onion, garlic and ginger. Cook for a couple of minutes and add spices;
2. Add stock & tomatoes.
3. Add eggplant, cauliflower, green beans, stir to combine and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for half an hour;
4. Uncover and simmer for another 10 minutes. Stir in lentils and cook for another 5 minutes. Add chopped coriander and adjust flavours;
5. Cover couscous with boiling water and stir with a fork until its fluffy;
6. Serve topped with some coriander;

recipe: Lemon and Raspberry Pudding

This is really easy and soo good! If you don't have raspberries, use strawberries or any other berries available.

serving 2: 1 egg, 1 1/2 tbsp self raisin flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tbs butter (plus extra to grease), 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 lemon both rind and juice

1. Pre-heat the oven to 170C. Grease 2 oven-proof ramekins with butter;
2. Separate the egg white in a bowl and beat until soft peaks form (I always add a pinch of salt...mom's trick) and reserve;
3. In another bowl beat butter with sugar until soft. Add lemon rind, juice, egg yolk and milk. Finally add the flour mixing well;
4. Fold the egg whites in the egg mixture and divide the mixture in the ramekins;
5. Place them in a baking tray previously filled with hot water (so it reaches halfway the ramekins height);
6. Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool for a bit. Serve topped with raspberries;

Delicious!!!

recipe: Pumpkin and Mushroom lasagne

This recipe takes a bit of time, but its a nice twist on traditional lasagne and perfect for Sunday dinner.

For 6 serves, you will need:
250 g fresh lasagne sheets, 1.5kg pumpkin, 750g mushrooms, 1/2 tbsp chopped sage, 3 shallots, 3 garlic cloves crushed, 1 tbsp dijon mustard, salt & pepper, 3/4 cup skim milk, 3/4 cup water

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C.
2. Half the pumpkin and place one of the halves in the oven, cut side down for about 40 minutes or until quite soft;
3. Cut and peel the remaining pumpkin and chop it in small cubes. Slice the mushrooms thinly;
4. Heat a tsp olive oil in a large sauce pan and add half the garlic. When fragrant add mushrooms and pumpkin cubes stirring to coat. Cook for about minutes in low/medium heat or until pumpkin gets softer. Season, remove from heat and let cool.
5. In a small sauce pan add milk, water, thinly sliced shallots, remaining garlic and mustard, bring to a boil stirring and remove from heat to cool for a bit.
6. Remove flesh from oven roasted pumpkin and mash it in a large bowl with a potato masher. Season with salt and pepper, add the milk mixture and season again.
7. In a large oven proof dish lightly greased with oil, add 1 cup of the pumpkin sauce to the bottom. On top place 3 sheets of lasagne. Add 1 cup of the mushroom mixture and repeat the process 2 more times. Finish with a layer of pumpkin sauce;
8. Cover the tray with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes.
9. Serve with a green salad.

week 11

We have survived a week with our new vegetarian regime (at least at home...there were some chicken pieces sneakily eaten somewhere outside...) but lets keep that a secret and call the week a success!

So, following this new 2011 trend, here goes our weekly menu:

Sunday:
_dinner: Pumpkin & Mushroom Lasagne
_dessert: Lemon & Raspberry Baked Pudding

Monday:
_lunch: Pumpkin & Mushroom Lasagne
_dinner: Lentil & Vegetable Stew with couscous

Tuesday:
_lunch: Lentil & Vegetable Stew with couscous
_dinner: Noodle & Vegetable Soup

Wednesday:
_lunch: Pumpkin & Mushroom Lasagne
_dinner: Barley & Asparagus Risotto

Thursday:
_lunch: Barley & Asparagus Risotto
_dinner: Mackerel & Green Onion Cakes

Friday:
_lunch: Mackerel & Green Onion Cakes

and the weekend will be spent at the beach!!! crossing my fingers to have good weather!

recipe: Vegetable Quiche

You may have noticed the amount of vegetarian dishes this week....we're going on a "meat" detox program at the moment...better for you and the environment...lets see how long we can do it for...

serving 4: 1 red onion cut into wedges, 300 g pumpkin cut into 2 cm cubes, 1 small eggplant cut unto cubes, 1 zuchinni cut into 3 cm pieces, 1 medium red capsicum cut into thin strips, 10 sheets filo pastry, *50 g feta cheese (optional), 5 eggs lightly beaten, olive oil, pinch of nutmeg, salt & pepper, chopped coriander, rocket and tomatoes

1. Place the vegetables (except capsicum) on a bowl, add some olive oil and salt to coat and put them on a lined baking tray. Baked them in a pre-heated oven (170C) for 45 minutes;
2. Brush a springform tin with olive oil and line them with the filo pastry sheets, one at a time, brushing with oil between each sheet;
3. Place half of the capsicum on the bottom of the tin;
4. When the veggies are done, stick them in your tin (add the feta cheese at this point if you are using it). Place the remaining capsicum on top of the mixture;
5. Beat the eggs in a small bowl, season with nutmeg, salt & pepper and add the chopped coriander. Pour the eggs over the vegetables;
6. Place the tin back in the oven, bake for about 40 minutes, or until eggs are cooked.
7. Serve with rocket and tomato salad dressed to your liking;

recipe: Curried Vegetable Stew

This recipe is fool-proof, dead-easy. It will just take a while with the chopping, but its quite comforting and amazingly low in calories.

4 people:
1 tbs olive oil, 1 onion finely chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1 Tbsp grated ginger, 2 Tbsp curry powder, 1 tsp Garam Masala, 1 tsp Cumin, 450 g pumpkin chopped in cubes, 1/2 cauliflower cut into florets, 1 small zuchinni chopped, 1 red capsicum cut in slices, a handful of green beans cut into 4 cm pieces, 2 x 400g chopped tomato cans, 2 vegetable stock cubes & 2 cups warm water to dissolve, a bunch coriander chopped

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan. Add onion, garlic and ginger and cook until soft.
2. Add spices and stir to coat.
3. Add canned tomatoes, stock and bring to a boil;
4. Add the vegetables and simmer for about 45 minutes. Add half the coriander and correct flavours.
5. Serve with rice topped with the remaining coriander.

dead-easy!!

recipe: Stuffed Eggplant

I really liked this recipe, but you have to be aware of the cooking time of the eggplant shells...I cooked mine for half an hour and they still were a bit tough, but besides that, its pretty straightforward and you can add or remove ingredients to the filling as you like. Next time i will probably grill the eggplant shells until they soften up a bit before filling and baking them, so...give it a go and leave comments or suggestions pls.

serving 4:

2 large eggplants, 1 tomato, 2 garlic cloves, 1 onion, 2/3 cup brown basmati rice, 1 tbs olive oil, 1 tbs ground cumin, 1/2 tsp chilli flakes, 1/2 tbs 5 spice powder, 1/4 cup white wine, 1/4 cup chopped parsley, chopped mint, almond flakes, fried garlic to garnish

1. Pre heat your oven to 180C;
2. Cook rice according to packet instructions. Drain and reserve;
3. Halve eggplants lengthways, scoop flesh leaving a 1cm border (or thinner) on shells. Chop the flesh finely;
4. Heat oil in a large fry pan and, add crushed garlic and chopped onion cooking for about 5 minutes. Add spices, stir and finally add eggplant flesh, chopped tomato wine and simmer until soft. Season with salt;
5. Add the rice and parsley to the eggplant mixture, and divide amongst 4 eggplant shells. Top with flaked almonds and bake for half an hour (or more) until the shells are soft;
6. Half an hour later, remove them from the oven, let cool for a bit, top with mint and fried garlic (ready made) and serve with salad or a dollop of yoghurt (if you have tzatziki you will go nuts).


Cheers for another healthy meal!