Mustard Pickle ( Christmas Gifts)

Pickle For Christmas.
Mustard Pickle, Easy to Make and Wonderful with Cheese, Bread and Cold Meat.

This needs to be started the night before you make it.
Ingredients:
500g cauliflower, chopped into florets
250g green beans, trimmed and chopped
2 large or 3 small/medium onions, chopped
2 red capsicums/red peppers, chopped
1/4 cup coarse salt.
Add all these vegetables to a big bowl, sprinkle with the salt, cover and leave overnight.

The next day, rinse the veg in a lot of cold water, drain.

In a large saucepan add:
 2 tablespoons seeded mustard
2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups white vinegar
1 cup loosely packed brown sugar.
Stir well over a medium heat until the sugar is dissolved
Add all the veg and mix well.
Push veg down into the vinegar mix.
Bring mix to the boil then simmer for about 10 minutes, uncovered, stirring veg around a few times.

Mix 3 dessertspoons of plain flour into 3/4 cup white vinegar until well blended.
Add this to the pickle, stir over the heat until mixture boils and thickens.

Spoon into hot sterilised jars. Seal when cold.
(The jars can be gently warmed in the oven to heat them before adding the pickle.)
Push the veg down into the sauce to cover.

Makes 3 large/medium jars or 6 small, approximately.
Why not make more to give away?
Home made gifts are always well received.

Persian Chicken with Walnuts and Pomegranate.

An Easier Take On A Traditional Persian Favourite.

Looks like jewels on a plate.

Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
8 boneless chicken thighs cut in half widthways.
1/4 cup lime juice, or juice of 2 limes.
20g butter
2 finely chopped medium onions
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds, or 3 crushed cardamom, or 1 teaspoon powder.
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.
2 Tablespoons olive oil.
1 red capsicum, chopped into 1 cm squares
1 yellow capsicum, chopped into 1 cm squares.
1 cup finely ground or medium ground( your preference)walnuts.
1 cup pomegranate molasses.
2 tablespoons honey.
2 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
3/4 cup chicken stock.
Pomegranate seeds, fresh.( 1/2 pomegranate).

1. Put chicken in a bowl and cover with the lime juice, leave 15 minutes
2. Preheat oven to 175C/340F.
3. In a frying pan melt butter on medium heat, fry onion 3-5 minutes until soft.
4. Stir in cardamom and cinnamon cook 1 more minute, put into an oven dish
5. Brown the chicken, in the frying pan, on both sides, then add to onion mix
6. Quickly fry the capsicum and add to the oven dish too.
7. Mix the walnuts, honey, bay leaves, pomegranate molasses, tomato paste and stock.
8. Pour this over the chicken
9. Cook in the oven, covered for 20 minutes.
10. Remove lid, continue to cook 10 more minutes. Test chicken is cooked through.
Serve with Persian rice.

Rice:
1 cup basmati or long grain brown rice cooked and cooled.
20g butter or 2 Tablespoons olive oil.
1 cup microwaved peas or fava or broad beans
1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander
3/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon sumac or ras el hanout or even dukkah or moroccan spices.
salt and pepper.
Heat oil and toss all ingredients together until hot.

Truly rich, delicious, sweet and sour flavours. With flatbreads and a salad of chopped cucumber and tomatoes with torn lettuce leaves and a lemon/olive oil dressing it's good enough for a royal feast.

Whole Wheat Gingerbread Loaf

Gingerbread is a traditional British Treat.
This recipe includes nutritious ingredients that taste delicious.

Ingredients:
100g butter or low fat baking spread.
1/2 cup dark molasses sugar.
3 Tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon sifted baking soda
1/2 cup plain yoghurt
2 large eggs
3 Tablespoons sifted ginger powder
1 and 1/2 cups wholewheat flour (sifted) Add the bran left in the sifter.
1/2 cup almond meal
60g crystallised ginger, cut into thin small slices.

Heat oven to 180C or 350F.

1. Gently melt the butter, sugar and honey,
    stirring well.
2. When cool, beat in the eggs.
3. Add the baking soda to the yoghurt.
4. Line a 22cmx12cm loaf tin with baking paper.

5. Put the flour, the ginger powder and almond meal into a bowl.
6. Add the sliced ginger pieces.
7. Fold the flour mix into the  yoghurt, egg and melted ingredients until just incorporated.
8. Put the mixture into the tin.
    And into the oven.
9. Cook for 35 minutes or until the loaf springs back when
pressed in the centre. Don't over cook it.      

  

Serve with butter if you like, with a great cup of tea.

Koftas and Hummus in a Wrap.

Lower GI, High Protein, High Flavour, Middle Eastern Koftas.

These are very easy to make and are delicious served with home-made hummus.

Ingredients:
500g beef or lamb mince ( lean )
1/2 cup bulgur wheat
2 tablespoons boiling water
1 or 2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small finely chopped red onion
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
finely chopped fresh cilantro/coriander leaves-1/2 cup (optional) finely chopped.
salt -1 teaspoon.

1. Pour the boiling water onto the bulgur in a small bowl, cover, leave 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile chop the onion, crush the garlic.
3. Put the meat, spices, onion, salt, garlic, coriander if using, and softened wheat (which will have absorbed the water) into a food processor and pulse until well mixed.
4. Remove, and with wet hands divide the mix into 12 or 16 lots. Use a half cup or 1/3rd cup as a measure to get them evenly sized.
Toss the mix back and forth in wet hands to form balls, then roll into Kofta shapes.
5. Refrigerate.

6. Fry gently in a pan until golden brown. Cover pan and leave to simmer 2 minutes. Test for doneness-Don't overcook them or they will be dry.
7. Drizzle with a little honey or pomegranate molasses.
8. Place them on a warmed thin wrap on a bed of hummus.
9. Top with cucumber, tomatoes, peppers, sprouts and mint and a squeeze of lemon.
10. Fold  the wrap over and devour.

Home-made Hummus:
1 can chick peas
1/4 cup of liquid from the can
2 tablespoons of Tahini
5 tablespoons of lemon juice, or juice of 2 lemons.
Salt and pepper.
A crushed clove of garlic(optional)

A few teaspoons of olive oil
A few teaspoons warm water.
To serve, plain yoghurt and mint.
You can make the hummus as grainy or as smooth as you prefer. It makes 2 cups and keeps several days. Delicious with vegetable sticks or wholegrain crackers. Rice crackers to be gluten free.

Whizz the first 6 ingredients in a food processor until it is the consistency you like.
If it is too grainy and thick add the olive oil and warm water and process again.

When serving swirl with olive oil or add a good dollop of plain yoghurt. This makes it creamy.

Eggplant Parmigiana

Vegetarian but as Satisfying as any Meat Dish.

Serves 6.

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 diced onion
2 cloves garlic
1 400g tin crushed tomatoes
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 good size eggplant
some bocconcini or fresh mozzarella or plain greek yoghurt. About 200g.
150g grated tasty cheddar cheese.
1 cup basil leaves or 12 small teaspoons of pesto.
1/2 cup grated parmesan.
Make the sauce:
Heat the oil, add the onion, cook gently until soft.
Add the garlic, cook for 1 minute.
Add the tomatoes and the paste and simmer for 15 minutes or until thick-maybe 25 minutes.
Season with salt and ground black pepper.

Heat oven to 200C/ 400F.

Slice the eggplant thinly and shallow fry in oil in batches for 3-4 minutes, until golden
Place 1/3rd of the slices into a 20cm oven dish.
Top with half the  bocconcini/mozzarella and cheddar or add 1/2 the cheese and top with a spoonful of Greek yoghurt on each slice.
Repeat the layers.
Finish with an eggplant layer.
Pour over the tomato sauce
Scatter with basil leaves or the small dollops of pesto.
Top with parmesan, add more to cover basil or pesto.
Bake 30-35 minutes. Let it rest before cutting into squares.

Serve with broccoli or a green salad, add crusty bread for a full meal.
A personal favourite!

Honey Cake with Almonds

OH SO Scrumptious and a lot better for you.

Ingredients:
140g butter, softened slightly
1 cup of honey
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
4 eggs
3/4 cup plain yoghurt.
1 cup plain flour
1 cup wholemeal/wholewheat flour
1/2 cup ground almonds/ almond meal
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
30 - 30 g slivered almonds
A little maple syrup.

 1. Grease and line a 21cm ( 8 inches) x 6cm ring tin
 2. Cream butter, honey and essence until light and creamy.

3. Beat in eggs one at a time, add 2 Tablespoons of the flour with each egg to avoid the mix curdling.
if it does, it won't matter.
4. Beat in the yoghurt.
5. Sift the rest of the flours  and the baking powder and soda into a big bowl, add the almond meal and the bran from the sifter.
6. Fold the mix and the flour gently together
7. Spoon mix into the tin
8. Scatter the almonds over the top.

Have the oven already heated to 180C/350F.
Bake for 45minutes, test with a bamboo kebab stick or a toothpick

While still warm drizzle with a little maple syrup as a glaze if you like.

 Unable to wait until it cooled!

     Serve with maple syrup marbled Greek unsweetened yoghurt. And coffee!

      This cake is moist and tender and also goes well with a cuppa.

                                   

Tasty 20 minute Italian Sausage and Spinach Pasta.

Serves 3 or double it for 6.

Ingredients: 200-250g pasta of your choice. Penne or ridged Macaroni work well.
3 Country Pork or spicy Italian sausages
1 bag of spinach or a bunch swiss chard.
1/2 red onion
1 or 2 spring onions
2 tomatoes
1 clove garlic
nutmeg
3 Tablespoons blue cheese
200ml lite cream
ground pepper.

1. Put a saucepan of water to boil, then add pasta till al dente, drain reserving 3 Tbsp cooking water.
Meanwhile:
2. In a large frying pan fry, in olive oil, the half red onion gently.
3. Chop the 3 sausages into small slices, add to the onion in the pan. When almost done add the 2 sliced tomatoes, put on the lid and simmer.
4. In another pan melt a little butter and olive oil
5, Add the spring onion, chopped garlic, chopped chard stalks fry until soft.
6. Add the spinach or chopped chard to the pan, simmer then add grated nutmeg . Cover.
7. When the tomatoes have softened and all is cooked in the sausage pan add the 3 Tbsp crumbled blue cheese , allow it to melt.
8. Add half the cream to the spinach pan and half to the sausage pan, mix gently. Bring to boil turn down to very low.
9. Finally add the spinach mix to the sausage pan.
10. Lay down a bed of pasta and top with the mixed sausage,  tomato and blue cheese. gently mix the creamed spinach into it and top with lots of ground black pepper.

Serve with a fruity white wine.