recipe: Chili Bean Nachos

This dish is really nothing special in terms of cooking, its dead easy, and sooo good, I feel like eating it again right now just thinking of it...

Serves 4:

2 tsp olive oil, 1 large zuchinni, 1 onion chopped finely, 1 garlic clove crushed, 2x 400g cans kidney beans drained and rinsed, 1x 400g can chopped tomatoes, 2 tsp mexican taco seasoning, chopped coriander, 150g corn chips, salt & pepper, extra spring onion , *cheese and Greek yoghurt to serve

1. Pre heat your oven to grill - only if you are grating cheese, if you are like me and don't like cheese, you won't need an oven;
2. Heat oil in a sauce pan, add onion and garlic and cook until soft;
3. Grate the zucchinni and add to the pan. Add mexican seasoning and cook in medium heat until zucchini is fragrant and soft;
4. Add kidney beans, diced tomatoes and simmer for about 15 minutes. With a potato masher, coarsely mash half of the beans. Season with salt and pepper, add coriander and reserve;
5. Divide bean mixture among serving bowls. Top with nachos, spring onion and yoghurt and serve. (if using cheese top chips with cheese, grill for about 8 minutes or until melted, top with greek yoghurt and spring onions and serve).

Perfect.

recipe: Quick Dahl

Easy easy recipe, very warming on a cold night, and quite quick! Plus, you can use staples on your pantry - I had them because I love spices and uncommon pantry items...- and wrap dinner in no time!

Serves 2:

1 onion finely diced, 2 tsp grated ginger, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1 tomato diced, 3/4 cup red lentils, 3 tsp olive oil, 1/4 cup curry leaves, 2 cups water, 1 tbsp curry powder, salt and pepper to season

1. Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add onion, garlic and ginger and cook until soft;

2. Add curry powder and stir to combine.
3. Add lentils, curry leaves, tomato and water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are cooked. (about twenty minutes). Check every 5 minutes or so, and add more water if necessary.
4. Season with salt and pepper and serve with greek yoghurt.

recipe: Tuna & Potato Pie

This recipe is great for several reasons: serves 6, its dead easy, low fat,really healthy and yummy. So get your butts out in the kitchen and start cookin.

Serves 6:
4 small cans tuna in spring water drained, 10 medium potatoes, 2 tsp olive oil, 1x400g can diced tomatoes, 1 1/2 red capsicum diced, 1 onion sliced, 2 garlic cloves crushed, chopped parsley, 1 egg yolk, salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil potatoes until they are soft. Reserve, peel and mash - I used skim milk and a bit of butter for the mash, but you are free to use your own recipe - seasoning with salt;
2. Pre heat your oven to 180C;
3. In a sauce pan heat olive oil. Add garlic and onion and cook until soft;
4. Add red capsicum and cook for another 5 minutes; Add diced tomatoes, tuna and stir to combine. Simmer for about 10 minutes, add chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper - you might need some water if your sauce is too thick.
5. In a large oven proof dish, place tuna sauce. Top with mashed potatoes. Whisk your egg yolk and brush over mashed potato layer. Bake for about 25 minutes or until you get a golden colour all over.

Serve with a nice salad and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

recipe: Pumpkin & Meatball Soup

This recipe came completely out of my creative side (eheh), I saw this photo for pumpkin & meatball soup on a magazine using canned pumpkin soup and thought...ergh, they have ruined this recipe...but the photo looked really yummy, so...ms Laura decided to make up one that looked like the photo...in the end, it looked close to the photo...but I'm sure it tasted much better...not to brag, but I made up a really delicious hybrid between boring pumpkin soup, chicken meatballs and Asian flavours. I hope you try it, don't be scared, really...it was very good!

Serves 4:
meatballs: 250g chicken mince, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 1/2 onion finely chopped,1 tsp grated ginger, salt & pepper, 1 1/2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp chopped coriander

soup: 1.5 Kg pumpkin, 250 ml coconut milk, bunch fresh coriander chopped, 1 green chilli finely chopped, 1/2 onion finely chopped, 2 tsp olive oil, 200 g fresh noodles (I used thai flat noodles but hokkien or any other fresh noodles will be fine), 1 red capsicum finely sliced, 2 carrots cut into matchsticks, juice of 4 limes or about 2 large lemons, salt and pepper to taste,

1. Pre heat your oven to 190C. (I only roast the pumpkin because I hate cutting it when raw, and by doing this its really easy to cut, plus I like the smoky flavour - but you can use just raw pumpkin later on, letting it simmer until soft)
2. In a bowl mix chicken mince, garlic, ginger, onion and soy sauce, season with salt, pepper and coriander, mix again and set aside;
3. Place the pumpkin in a tray lined with foil and bake for half an hour or until soft. When ready, let cool for a while and then chop coarsely;
4. In a sauce pan heat olive oil, add chopped onion, chilli and cook for a couple of minutes;
5. Add coconut milk, chopped pumpkin and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and blend the soup at this stage (if you used raw pumpkin you will have to cook for longer) until you have a creamy texture;
6. Add chopped carrot, capsicum and about 1 cup water- you might need more water to reach the correct consistency, you don't want a mash or a watery soup, so you have to test a bit at this stage - and chopped coriander. Simmer covered for about 15 minutes or until carrots are cooked through;
7. Using your hands, make 8 small meatballs and set aside;
8. Back to the soup, season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Add noodles making sure they separate themselves . Finally place meatballs in the soup, cover and cook for another 5-10 minutes;
9. When meatballs are cooked, check seasoning one last time and add more lemon juice if necessary;

Serve soup while warm.
Enjoy.

recipe: Jamie's Amazing "Curry" & Flatbreads

I found this recipe in a magazine and thought..."humm, another roast vegetable curry ha?..." and then I read it and when the word "banana" appeared I was caught...and decided to try it...and it ended up being on eof the most delicious curries I have ever had, and it made me really proud...although, some people say it isn't really a curry because there aren't any curry leaves, curry powder or paste in it...nevertheless, I hope you try making it, and if I don't get any feedback on this recipe, then this blog is really a waste of my time...

Serves 4: curry:
1kg pumpkin, 1 cauliflower cut into florets, 1 x 400g can chickpeas drained and rinsed, 1 tbsp garam masala, 200 ml coconut milk, 1 red chili finelly chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed, 3 tsp grated ginger, 1/2 bunch basil leaves, 1/2 bunch mint leaves, 1 bunch coriander leaves, 1 banana sliced, salt & pepper to taste, 2 tsp olive oil, 3 tbsp lime or lemon juice, 2 tsp butter, 1 garlic clove thinly sliced, 1 tbsp chopped coriander

flatbreads: 125g flour, 1/4 tbsp baking powder, 125g natural greek yoghurt

1. Pre heat your oven to 190C. Place pumpkin in a lined tray and bake for 20 minutes. At that stage place cauliflower and bake for another 15 minutes or until slightly charred. Remove from the oven to cool. Chop pumpkin into bite size pieces and place all the vegetables in a large bowl. Season with garam masala and set aside;
2. In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder and yoghurt. Mix well until you have a smooth paste. Knead in a floured surface for a couple of minutes place it back in the bowl, cover with cling film and set aside;
3. In a food processor or a large mortar and pestle place garlic, ginger, chilli and and grind. Add herbs, banana, lime juice and process until you have a paste;
4. Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add curry paste and cook for a couple of minutes;
5. Add chickpeas, pumpkin, cauliflower and coconut milk. (Add some water if too dry) Simmer for about 10 minutes;
6. Season with salt, pepper and more lemon juice if necessary. Reserve.
7. Heat butter in a small sauce pan, add sliced garlic and chopped coriander and reserve;
8. In a floured surface knead the dough to make 3 "round-ish" flat breads. Slice them through the middle;
9. Heat a skillet and without using any oil, grill the flat breads one by one each side until bubbles form and they are slightly charred. Brush them with the garlic butter mixture;

Serve the curry with the flat breads and honestly....let me know if this isn't one of the best curries ever!
There is a bit of work with the flat breads, but the curry couldn't be easier so try it and enjoy it.

recipe: Lancashire Lamb Hotpot

I have no idea where Lancashire is, I found this recipe in a magazine and decided to give it a go...I used lamb instead of beef and changed the cooking method a bit, but was happy with the result anyway. Its getting cold in Melbourne so this kind of food is really comforting at the moment.

Serves 4: 500g diced lamb (I used cutlets), 2 tsp olive oil, 2 onions thinly sliced, 5 carrots diced, 1 tsp dried thyme, 2 tbsp flour, 2 dried bay leaves, 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, 2 potatoes thinly sliced, 1 tbsp chopped parsley, salt & pepper to season

1. Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add onion and bay leaves and cook until soft;
2. Add carrots, thyme and cook for another 5 minutes stirring occasionally;
3. Coat diced lamb in flour and add to the pot. Cook stirring for a couple of minutes until lamb starts to brown;
4. Add a cup of water (or enough to cover everything) Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper and bring to a boil;
5. Check seasoning, add parsley and top with sliced potatoes. Simmer covered for about 10 minutes - or if your pot is oven proof, stick it in a pre heated oven -190C -and bake for 25 minutes or until potatoes are golden on top.
6. (if your sauce pan isn't oven proof continue the recipe from this step) Remove the potatoes from the pot and place them in a small oven proof dish. Bake them in a preheated oven -180C-for about 15 minutes or until golden/ crispy.

Serve the lamb with your roasted potatoes on top and enjoy.

recipe: Red Wine and Beef Casserole

This dish is truly delicious. Plus, its really easy. You do need a bit of time do get the sauce to thicken and to soften the meat but its amazing what you can do with only a few simple ingredients. I have made it twice in the last week - first served with roast potatoes and second in a pie form that was divine! so, let me know how it goes, if you make it, I am sure you will love it, like we did.

Serves 4: 500g beef fillet diced in cubes, 1 diced onion, 2 garlic cloves crushed, about 10 button mushrooms cut into quarters, 2 tbsp plain flour, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp thyme, 1 glass red wine, 1x 400g can diced tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut meat, place it in a bowl and add flour. Shake to coat;
2. Heat the oil in a sauce pan, add onion and garlic and cook until it softens;
3. Add beef and cook stirring for a couple of minutes. Add mushrooms and cook for a further minute; 4. Add wine, tomatoes and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours - check every 20 minutes so it doesn't stick to the bottom and add salt gradually so the flavours blend slowly;
5. Finally adjust flavours and serve. This dish is even better a day or two later and I hope you enjoy it.

recipe: Chicken Stew with Parsley Dumplings

This recipe is my own concoction of the hearty stews we have in Portugal and it varies depending on what veggies I have on the pantry. Usually it will take all of the ones below plus potatoes, but the variations are up to you. I made dumplings instead f using potatoes and reduced most of the fat used by my matriarchs back in Portugal to make it quite low-fat (a bit less tasty indeed, you do need some fat, so use more olive oil if you are comfortable with it and cuts of meat with fat in it will add flavour - I used lean chicken, takes less time to cook, but you could use some nice beef or even lamb or veal.)

Serves 6:
dumplings: 1 cup self raising flour, 1/2 cup milk, 80g butter or margarine, 1 tbsp chopped parsley, plus flour to dust stew: 500g lean chicken breast cut into cubes, 1 onion diced, 1 bay leaf, 4 tsp olive oil, 1 green capsicum finely diced, 5 or 6 carrots cubed, 1 tomato diced, 1x400g can diced tomatoes, 3 cups of water (or stock if you prefer a thicker flavour - you can also add some white wine), 2 cups frozen peas, 2 handfuls green beans cut into 4 cm pieces, salt to taste

1. In a bowl mix flour with butter with your fingers. Add milk, 1 tsp salt and mix everything to form a moist dough. reserve;
2. In a large sauce pan, heat the oil. Add the bay leaf, diced onion and cook until the onion is golden. Add tomato, capsicum and cook for another 5 minutes; and bring everything to a boil
3. Add diced carrots, diced tomatoes and stir well. Add chicken and water (3 cups should be enough to cover chicken, if not use some more - the dumplings will soak some of the liquid later);
4. Add green beans, peas and season with salt. Reduce heat and simmer for a couple of minutes;
5. Meanwhile, add parsley to dumpling dough and form 12 small balls with your hands - use more flour to avoid the dough sticking to your hands. Place each ball in the simmering stew sauce, cover and cook everything for about 20 minutes; Serve and enjoy.

Its quite comforting and it reminds me of home a bit...minus dumplings.

recipe; CHICKEN & LEEK POTATO BAKE

For 4 serves:

2 chicken breasts, 1 garlic clove thinly sliced, 1/2 lemon juice, pich of oregano, salt & pepper, 5 potatoes thinly sliced, 1/2 cup milk, 1 cup water, 1 tbp flour, 1 tbs mustard, salt & pepper, 1 leek, thinly sliced, 1 tbs chopped thyme, 3 garlic cloves crushed, olive oil

1. Pre heat the oven to 180C. Cut some slits on the chicken breast and place the garlic clove slices on them, rub the chicken with oregano, salt, pepper and the lemon juice. Marinate for half an hour.
2. Place the chicken in some aluminium foil and bake in the oven until cooked.
3. Heat some olive oil in a sauce pan, add the crushed garlic cloves, leek and cook until soft.
4. Shredd the chicken and add to the leek mixture.
5. Mix 1/4 of milk with the flour. In a sauce pan, bring the remaining water and milk to the boil, add the flour mixture, mustard, salt and pepper and stir until the sauce has thickned.
6. Rub some olive oil in the bottom of an oven dish and add 1/3 of the potatoes to the bottom forming the first layer. Add half of the chicken mixture and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat with a layer of potatoes, the remaining half of the chicken, 1/3 sauce, final potato layer and remaining sauce.
*If you are a cheese lover, feel free to change the recipe and add some in between the layers. also i added salt to every potato layer, and black pepper to the final one.
7. Bake covered in foil for 50 minutes. Remove foil, increase the temperature of the oven to 180C, 200 C and bake uncovered for another 15 minutes.
8. remove from the oven, rest for about 10 minutes and serve with a green salad.
Perfect for Sunday dinner.

recipe: PORTUGUESE CHICKEN PIE

This was the first time I made this and I was soo proud of it. It tasted almost exactly to the ones you get in Portugal, only....better! cause I made it and they were a huge success. Now, I will give you the recipe for the filling, which you can use however you like, in a big pie, several small ones or for rissois (the previous recipe: I made some and they were great too).

You will need:
1 chicken cut into pieces, 1/2 onion chopped, 2 tbp olive oil, 1 bay leaf, 1 cup of diced tomatoes, 1 chicken stock cube, 100 ml white wine and 750 ml water, 1/2 onion chopped, 30 g butter, plain flour, chopped parsley, nutmeg, salt/pepper, 3 egg yolks and a squezze of lemon juice. (rissois dough or puff pastry sheets)

1. Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan with the onion and bay leaf. Let the onion become golden.
2. Add the chopped tomatoes, cook for a couple of minutes and add the chicken pieces.
3. Let the chicken cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally and when the skin starts to turn golden add the wine, stock cube and water.
4. Cover and let it simmer in medium/low heat for half an hour.
5. Remove the chicken pieces to cool and reserve the stock.
6. When cold, remove skin and bones and shred the chicken.
7. Heat the butter in another sauce pan in low heat and add the chopped onion.
8. Add the flour (about a cup)and stir constantly. Start to add the previously reserved stock and stir. You need to get a creamy consistency so if you need more flour, add it now.
9. When you've added the stock and achieved a creamy consistency, add the chicken and stir for a couple of minutes.
10. Add the chopped parsley, a good pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepper and adjust the flavours.
11. Add the egg yolks and mix them gently to the chicken, remove from the heat and let it cool for a while.
12. Now you have the filling ready, use your imagination.

recipe: BACALHAU PIE

"BACALHAU" or dried & salted cod is probably the most ubiquitous food in Portugal. 500 years ago when there were no freezers, somebody decided to salt cod to preserve it and somehow, we still do it and love it! Now, I'm not sure why we keep doing it, because you can just use fresh cod, but we seem to be proud of this tradition and have more than (we say) 1001 says of cooking it. This recipe reminds me of home and it changes everytime I do it. And tonight I made it just for myself...ultimate comfort food.

IMPORTANT::: if you are using salted/ dry cod, you will need to soak it overnight and change the water several times so it doesn't taste like pure salt!!

Now, I thought I was making it for 2 meals for me (I'm a petite so, It isnt's much), but in the end I ate it all...bad bad girl...so, give it a go and double or triple the recipe if you are making it for more than 2 people.
1 piece of salted cod (150/200 g) soaked overnight, 2 tbs olive oil, 1 bay leaf, 1 garlic clove crushed, 1/2 onion thinly sliced, 1 red capsicum, 2 handfuls of spinach (not necessary, I had spare), 1/4 cup white whine, 3 tbs flat-leaf parsley chopped, 1 egg lightly beaten, freshly ground black pepper, pinch of nutget, 2 large potatoes, salt, a knob of butter and a splash of milk

1. Boil the bacalhau, when it is cooked, remove from the pan, let it cool and flake it removing the skin and bones. Set aside
2. Boils the potatoes and make mash: add butter, some milk (or water), salt and pepper to taste (do not use too much salt at this stage since the cod could still be quite salty, wait till the cod mixture is done and then adjust the flavours)
3. Heat the oil in a sauce pan, add the garlic and bay leaf. Cook for a couple of minutes and add the onion (cook in low heat). Cook the onion, stirring occasionally until it softens.
4. Add the capsicum previously diced in tiny squares and let it cook for about 5 minutes.
5. Add the cod and the wine and cook for another 5 minutes.
6. Finally add the spinach and mix everything. Remove from heat and add the chopped parsley. (don't forget to remove the bay leaf)
7. Turn your oven on to 180C and pour half the cod mixture on to a small baking pan (I used a 15x15x 6 cm one)
8. Put the mashed potatoes over the top and brush with the egg wash. Coarsely ground some pepper over the top and its ready to go to the oven.
9. Bake for 30 minutes or until its golden on top. Serve with a salad.

p.s.1. I didn't need any salt for the cod mixture since the bacalhau was salted, but you will have to adjust the flavours as you go along.

p.s.2. I have made this dish for a dinner party and replaced the spinach for 1 diced tomato and used yellow, red and green capsicum so it was really colorful and pretty and everybody said it was good!

p.s.3. The remaining half of the bacalhau will be used tomorrow for another pie or for small pastries, depending on my mood.

Hope you like it.